by Jaclyn Hardy
Heather wanted that more than she cared to admit. “Sure. That would be cool.”
He grinned again. “Perfect.”
It wasn’t until he left the ballroom that she realized he hadn’t gotten her phone number. Maybe he’d just said it to be nice. Heather searched the crowd for Janie and then slipped through the crowd to see Janie writing something on the boy’s hand. Well, at least it was working for one of them.
“I’m going to head upstairs. Are you ready to go?”
“Yeah, one sec.” She finished signing with a flourish, then handed the pen back to the boy. “Call me after six tomorrow. Otherwise, my mom might not like it.”
Heather raised an eyebrow and left the ballroom with Janie right behind her. The reception area of the hotel was cool and quiet compared to the ballroom. The excitement of the evening faded a little as they walked upstairs. She’d loved dancing with Stuart and part of her wanted to see him again, but it was crazy to even think about. Christmas vacation wasn’t exactly the best opportunity to meet the man of her dreams.
Stuart still couldn’t believe Heather had danced with him after the jerk he’d been. As soon as she turned around to chew him out, he knew he’d made a mistake. Something about her had made his breath catch, and he knew he needed to see her again.
He climbed out of bed and showered quickly so he could get to work. A butcher was busy even on Christmas Eve. People would burn their turkeys or forget to order enough meat to feed the entire extended family. He didn’t mind working that day. It was quiet for a lot of the morning, and then he could go home in time for dinner.
The shop opened at eight am, and a line had already formed. Stuart opened the door and went behind the counter.
Sherry stepped up to the counter. “I need a ham. Silly me. I forgot my sister was flying in with her three kids. Oh, and can it be one of those fancy honey hams?”
Stuart picked out a ham and wrapped it up. “Here you go. Tell Ellie I said hello.”
“I will, dear. Merry Christmas.” She stopped to chat with a few people in the back of the line, then scurried off to her car.
“Hey, Mrs. Peterson. How is your day?”
She sighed dramatically. “So many family members, not enough food. We have allergies I didn’t know about, and then I found out last night my niece is a vegetarian—not that you can help there—so I need another ham and a turkey breast. You don’t have any added ingredients, right?”
“The turkey is clean. The ham might have something in it.” Stuart packed one of each of them and set them on the scale one at a time. He had to reweigh the turkey three times because he was too caught up on the fact that her niece was a vegetarian. It could have been a coincidence . . . “So you don’t see your niece often?”
“No, she’s off at some fancy college studying to be a surgeon. Can you imagine?” Mrs. Peterson took her items off the counter. “Wonderful girl. Always such a sweetheart. You should meet her sometime.”
Stuart rang up the order and took her credit card to run her payment. “Maybe so. Have a great day. Merry Christmas.”
It was almost ten by the time the last customer left. It was a good thing it was time to close. They were out of hams and had a few turkey breasts left. He packed them up and took them out to his truck. Mom would cook them and take them to a family in the city that needed help. It was a family tradition.
The house smelled of cookies, bread, and other goodies when Stuart got home. Laughing came from the living room where most of his family was, but he went straight for the kitchen. “Hey, Mom. There are only a few left this year.”
“It’s okay. Three is better than none.” She kissed him on the cheek. “Could you grab more plates from the cupboard? Then go find your sisters. I told them they’d be helping, but I think they escaped with your cousins.”
“Sounds about right.” Stuart found some Christmas paper plates for his mom, then went to find Julia and Natalie.
It was fairly easy. He just had to follow the giggles and he’d figure out where they were. When he didn’t find them inside, he grabbed his coat and headed out to their old playhouse. They’d outgrown it years before, but it didn’t stop them from using it.
“Hey, Mom needs you two to help with dinner.”
Julia rolled the dice to the game they were playing. “We’re almost done.”
“Yes, but Mom isn’t.”
“Why aren’t you helping?” Natalie sat up and put her shoes on.
Stuart flicked a game piece, sending the rest of them flying. “I’m not helping because I’m here getting you two. Come on.”
It wasn’t the nicest thing he could have done, but he knew they wouldn’t come otherwise. He stepped aside as they ran into the house threatening to tell Mom. Reason number four thousand why he couldn’t wait to get his house finished. It was time to leave home as soon as possible. Hopefully he’d have time to work on it between all of the festivities.
Mom raised her eyebrows at Stuart when he walked into the kitchen, but he didn’t say anything. He’d hear about it later. For now, there was work to be done.
Stuart found his dad watching football. “Hey, were you able pick up the lumber yet?”
“It’s at the house.” Dad helped with Stuart’s house when he could get away from the business. “This load should take care of the rest of the framing.”
“Sweet.” Stuart grinned. His house might just get finished in the next few months. He’d saved up everything he’d earned since graduating from high school to build his own place. A few colleges had begged for him to apply, but his heart was set on starting up his own ranch someday.
The doorbell rang, so Stuart went to answer it. Patrick stood in the doorway with a box of pies.
“Hey, Rachel wanted me to deliver these. You have two apple, two blueberry, three pumpkin, and one pecan.”
“Great. We can set them in the garage to keep cold for now.” Stuart picked up the box sitting next to Patrick, then walked around the side of the house. They set the boxes on the shelf next to the door. “I’ll go grab some cash. You can come in if you’d like.”
Patrick walked in. “It smells amazing in here.”
“You’re such a sweetheart.” Mom handed him some cash and a plate of goodies. “Things must be crazy at the hotel this weekend.”
“It’s packed. We had to hire a couple more waiters for dinner today.” Patrick checked the list in his hand. “I’d better get going. This delivery boy’s job is never done.”
Stuart caught Peterson on the list. “Hey, want some help? I’m free for a bit.”
Patrick looked up in surprise. “Sure. You can tell me where a few of these people live. I’m still getting used the area and it’s been almost two years. I’m convinced Rachel had me do this job so I’d get out from under foot, because it certainly wasn’t for my sense of direction.”
“Be back, Mom.” Stuart grabbed his jacket and hat, then met Patrick by his car.
Patrick handed Stuart the list. “All right, let’s start with the closest and move out from there.”
“Okay, first one is two blocks away. Take a left at the intersection.” Stuart stared at the list. There were three others on here besides the Petersons. He had that long to decide if he was going to try to see Heather or if he would realize how horrible the idea was.
“So, Mrs. Peterson’s niece, huh?” Patrick turned the corner.
Stuart looked over at him in surprise. “What?”
Patrick grinned. “I heard Heather’s parents talking, and I saw your eyes light up when you saw which houses I was going to. It wasn’t that hard to put together.”
“I’m that transparent, huh?”
“Just to me. I saw you two dance last night, and there was definitely a spark there.”
Stuart laughed. “Oh, there’s going to be a bigger spark than that pretty soon. Believe me. Did you hear that she’s a vegetarian?”
“Ouch. And you didn’t tell her you’re the town butcher, did you?”
&
nbsp; “Nope.”
Patrick whistled. “Not cool, man. But then, I don’t think I’d tell her either.”
“Seriously?”
“Okay, I probably would. But hey, maybe she’ll leave soon and then you won’t have to tell her. Just avoid the topic all together.”
Stuart tapped his chin. “Now there’s an idea. She wouldn’t care at all if she found out ten years down the road, right?”
“Keep dreaming.” Patrick pulled up in front of the next house and grabbed a box from the back of the car to take up to the door. He talked to them for a minute, then ran back to the car.
The next few stops were fairly close, so both Stuart and Patrick took a box and delivered them to make it go faster. Once they were down to the Peterson’s, Stuart had almost talked himself out of trying to see Heather.
“Want this one?” Patrick pulled up to the house.
“I . . . don’t think so.”
Patrick laughed. “Look, if you like her, you should at least go say hi. And chances are you might not even see her. What can it hurt?”
Stuart sighed and got out of the car. He’d have to remember not to hang out with Patrick. The city boy had way too many crazy ideas. Stuart took the box of pie up to the house and adjusted the box so he could get to the doorbell.
Several footsteps pounded toward the door before it finally opened. Heather stood there with her sleeves pulled up and an apron over her dress. Stuart forgot how to speak for a minute, but at least Heather had the same problem.
“Who is it, dear?” Mrs. Peterson pushed past her. “Oh, Stuart sweetie. Did I forget something?”
“No, I’m helping deliver the pie. Patrick was doing delivery and doesn’t have everyone’s addresses down yet.” He apparently couldn’t talk to Heather, but he could spew all kinds of nonsense to Mrs. Peterson instead. “Want me to take them in for you?”
She moved out of the way of the door. “Thank you, dear. Would you just set them on the counter? We can take them from there.”
Stuart smiled at Heather as he walked past and into the kitchen. Several people stood around the living room, staring at him. He waved and hurried back to the doorway where Heather still stood.
“Merry Christmas.” He smiled and went past her.
“Thanks for the pie,” Heather called out.
Stuart turned and managed to trip on a planter. His face burned as he waved. “You’re welcome. See you around.”
He limped back to the car, and found Patrick laughing. “Was that as bad as I think it was?”
“Probably worse.” Patrick laughed again and pulled out onto the road. “So many stories to tell the grandkids someday.”
“Grandkids? I doubt it. I’m sure she’s inside right now laughing hysterically.”
Patrick turned the corner to head back to Stuart’s. “Most likely, but at least you made an impression.”
“Kinda like that planter made an impression in my ankle.”
They pulled up to Stuart’s house. “Thanks again for helping out. Have a great Christmas. Oh, hey. We’re going ice fishing next weekend with Rachel’s dad and a few of the ranch hands if you want to tag along.”
“I’ll have to see what our schedule looks like, but it should be fine.” Stuart waved and ran into the house.
Mom and the girls had left while Stuart was gone, so the house was much quieter than it had been earlier. Dad and a few of his cousins were back in the living room watching football. Stuart was tempted to flop on the couch and watch with them, but it wasn’t often he had a break.
“I’m heading over to the house, Dad.”
Dad looked up from the game. “Okay, this game is almost done. I’ll be there as soon as it’s over.”
“Sounds good.” Stuart grabbed his keys off the counter and headed out to his truck. The bite to the air meant they might actually have a white Christmas, but it also meant he needed to get the rest of the framing done before it hit.
Stuart’s house was out away from the city, and the drive gave him a chance to think. He may have imagined it, but it seemed that Heather was happy to see him. But would she be that happy if she knew what he did for a living? Probably not.
The house stood there waiting for him when he pulled up. The lumber that had been delivered sat on the floor inside the house. Stuart climbed out of his truck and walked over to the generator to turn it on. The familiar rumble started up, and he was soon busy measuring and cutting lumber to build the last few walls.
He’d just finished a wall and was ready to stand it up when his dad and several other trucks pulled up in the yard. The weather was bitter cold by that time, but it didn’t stop them from pulling on gloves and grabbing tools.
“Thought you could use some more help.” Dad grinned.
Stuart nodded. “The more we can get done the better. If some of you could start on the plywood around the outside, I can finish up here. Then we can add the plastic before the storm hits.”
It was going to be next to impossible with the amount of sunlight they had left, but he wouldn’t tell them that. While Dad told everyone what their jobs would be, Stuart finished the wall he’d been working on and moved to the next.
“We’re just about out of lumber.” Dad rested his arms on the half wall between the kitchen and living room.
“Good thing this is the last wall then.” Stuart secured another two by four to the wall and moved on to the next one.
Dad turned in a circle. “This is going to be a huge house for one man.”
Stuart laughed. “I don’t plan to have just me in here forever. Besides, I’ll need ranch hands and a cook.”
“And a wife.” Dad’s hint was one he’d given a million times.
“Yes, that too. At some point.” He added the next board. “Can you grab me some more nails?”
Dad chuckled and grabbed a box. “I hear you spent some time with a girl last night.”
The joys of small towns. A person couldn’t sneeze without someone else knowing about it. “Yeah, I did. I guess. It was two dances. I danced with several other women as well.”
“But only one caught your attention.” The statement was loaded, and they both knew it.
Stuart hadn’t really talked to any women outside of work after Rachel was married. Or before, really. He’d had his heart set on her since high school. It was too bad she’d always thought of him as a good friend.
He stood and stretched. “Her name is Heather. She’s feisty, funny, and . . . would not approve of my occupation if she knew what it was.”
“I’d heard that part, too. Maybe you should just tell her.” Dad took one end of the wall and Stuart took the other.
They lifted it and Stuart attached it to the floor before answering. “If what you did for a living was completely against what Mom believed in, would you tell her?”
“Sure. But that’s me.” Dad put a hand on his shoulder. “Look, do you like this girl?”
“I barely know her. And I’ve already upset her at least twice.”
Dad raised his eyebrows. “Was that before or after she danced with you?”
“Before.” Stuart set down the nail gun and stretched.
“So, let me get this straight. You upset her, and then dance not one, but two dances with her?” Dad shook his head. “Son, if someone is willing to get past your dumb mistakes, that’s not someone you should let go. Speaking of which, we’d better get back home. Your mom isn’t going to like it if we’re late.”
Stuart turned off the generator and gathered his supplies. He’d come back and finish with the rest of the lumber after Christmas lunch. Everyone else had left by the time Stuart climbed into his truck. A light snow fell as he made his way back into town. Perfect for a white Christmas.
Several cars were parked outside their house when he pulled in. Most had been at his new home just half an hour before, but it looked like his grandparents had made it down from Boise as well.
Noise welcomed him inside as everyone piled into the living ro
om for the annual talent show that the grandkids put on. Stuart grabbed some of the dinner left on the table, then took his place in the back as his two nieces stood in the front. Their tap dance routine was adorable as usual.
The show ended, and after the reading of the Nativity, Mom slipped into the kitchen to get their egg nog milkshakes started. Stuart joined her and took cups out of the cupboard.
“How much were you able to get done?” Mom scooped ice cream into a bucket that sat in the sink.
“Framing is done. The guys got the plywood on except for the roof, so that’s next.” Stuart handed her a carton of egg nog.
Mom poured it in. “That’s great. I’ll have to go by tomorrow to see what it all looks like.”
She turned on the beater to mix the shakes while Stuart gathered spoons. Others gathered in the kitchen, eagerly awaiting their treats. This was the last tradition of the night before everyone headed off to bed. Stuart made sure everyone else had theirs before handing one to his mom and taking one for himself.
They leaned against the sink counter. Mom rested her head against Stuart’s shoulder and sighed. “I don’t know what I’m going to do when you’re not around to help out.”
“I’m not that far away. Besides, Natalie or Julia can step in.”
“It’s not the same and you know it.”
Stuart kissed his mom’s forehead. “I know.”
Christmas morning had already come and gone, and Stuart looked forward to a long nap. His house called him to work on it, but he hadn’t slept much the night before. Too many thoughts of Heather ran through his mind. It was ridiculous. They’d met twice, and one of those times he’d insulted her. But something about her had his mind all confused. Stuart busied himself helping Mom with lunch. The quicker it was done, the sooner he could go upstairs and sleep.
He took the turkey juices and poured them into a pot on the stove to start the gravy—his favorite part of the meal.
“Don’t forget we need some of that for the stuffing.” Mom took a large stock pot and filled it with dried bread.
“You have plenty left in the roaster.” Stuart turned the heat down and added corn starch to thicken it. “Is everyone here?”
