Unforgettable Christmas - Gifts of Love (The Unforgettables Book 3)

by Mimi Barbour

  Running on pure adrenaline, Evie worked until midnight and estimated she could get the store ready within the next couple of days. The following day, hunger pangs took over in the afternoon and she decided to take a break. Just as she headed for the front door, she spotted a little boy, his face pressed against the window, steaming the glass with his breath. His eyes were wide with wonder as he looked at the train set in the window. His expression of innocent fascination tugged at her heart. When had she ever felt that way?

  Evie stepped closer to the window and waved at the boy. He blinked then waved back. Deciding to delay getting her meal, she opened the door. “Would you like to come in and look at the train?” she asked him.

  He hesitated a half-beat and skipped inside.

  It occurred to Evie that a young child shouldn’t be wandering around by himself. She glanced down the street. “Do you have your mother or father with you?”

  He shook his head, his gaze traveling to the train set. “Aunt Jenn’s next door. She fixes hair.”

  Evie wondered if Aunt Jenn was going to have a panic attack when the boy went missing. “You should probably go back to her, but I guess you can look at the train for a moment. Would you like to make it go around the track?” she asked and gave him the remote control.

  He gave a huge nod and instinctively knew how to start it. “This is so cool. I gotta tell my uncle about it.”

  Evie smiled.

  “William,” a woman’s voice called. “William, where are you?”

  The boy’s eyes widened. “Aunt Jenn.”

  “Better go,” Evie said and hustled him out the door.

  “Miss,” she called to the woman racing frantically down the block. “Miss. Jenn,” she called again.

  The woman turned around and spotted her and the boy and immediately walked toward them. “William Michael, how many times have I told you not to leave the shop without me?”

  “I was bored and I wanted to see the train,” he said.

  The woman shook her head. “Your uncle won’t be happy to hear this.”

  William winced and Evie hated that he might get in trouble. “He wasn’t here more than three minutes,” Evie assured the woman. “I’m Evie Fitzgerald. I’ll be running the decoration shop,” she said extending her hand.

  The woman shook her head. “I’m Jenn Crawford. I work next door. Thanks for looking after Will.”

  “No trouble at all,” Evie said and watched Jenn shake her finger at the boy then kiss his cheek as the two walked away.

  Her heart squeezed at Jenn’s combination of sternness and affection. At best, Evie’s mother had been a distracted parent. Granted, her mother, Miranda had suffered by being a young widow and Evie suspected her mother hadn’t recovered from her father’s death. Even now, her mother seemed to be running from her loss.

  Sighing, Evie walked back into the shop where the train was still running around the track amidst the faux snow, and she didn’t have the remote.

  The next afternoon, a knock sounded on the door of the shop. Evie glanced up to see a tall man and a small boy outside. She narrowed her eyes and recognized Will. Upon another glance, she saw that the man was Deputy Michael Benson. Her heart took a dip.

  Trouble, she thought. The man was going to triple her ticket when he found out she couldn’t replace the tail lights yet. Taking a deep breath, she walked to the door and opened it. “Well, hello, Mr. Benson and Will,” she said.

  The deputy tipped his hat. “Sorry to bother you, but Will came home with a little something extra last night. Will, give Ms. Fitzgerald the remote for the train.”

  Will extended his hand with the remote. “Sorry.”

  “Oh, it’s no problem. Thank you for returning it. You and your aunt were in a rush to leave.”

  “That’s generous,” the deputy said.

  “It’s true. One minute, he was running the train. The next minute, he was responding to his aunt. I’m sure there were no bad intentions.”

  “Except he shouldn’t have left without Jenn,” he said.

  “I can’t argue with that.”

  “Can we take her to get pie?” Will asked, shifting from one foot to the other.

  Evie widened her eyes in surprise.

  Michael Benson cleared his throat. “Ms. Fitzgerald is probably too busy for pie.”

  Little William looked up at her with big, brown of eyes of longing. She looked at both of them and knew she should say No, thank you.

  Chapter Two

  “Maybe she doesn’t like pie,” Michael added with a daring glint in his eyes.

  Evie couldn’t tell if he was joking. “How could I not love pie? Let’s get some pie,” she said decisively. “I’ll lock up.”

  She grabbed her purse and keys and locked the door behind her. “Where are we going?”

  “Twila’s Diner,” Michael said. “Twila makes the best pie. I’m surprised you haven’t had any yet.”

  “I haven’t had many real meals. I’ve been so busy that I just grabbed fast food from down the street.”

  Michael shook his head. “You shouldn’t pass up the locals even if you’re temporary.”

  “I’ve been crazy busy since I got here. Plus a deputy gave me a ticket for tail lights that need to be replaced and who knows what else?” She took a quick breath. “But thank you again for changing my tire.”

  He nodded. “You’re welcome. Just another block and we’ll be at Twila’s.”

  Just as he said, they soon arrived at the diner with a photo of a sandwich, meatloaf and mashed potatoes, ice cream and pie painted on the glass window. Michael opened the door and waved her inside. The aroma of home-cooked food wafted over her. “It smells delicious,” she said.

  “It is,” he said. “How ya’ doing Addie?” he asked the young hostess.

  “I’m good, Michael. How are you?” the woman asked with an inviting smile and dipped her head seductively. “I haven’t seen enough of you lately.”

  “Everyone’s getting busy for the holidays,” he said. “It’s what keeps Mistletoe going.”

  “So true, but if you catch a break, give me a call,” Addie said. “Three?”

  “Three for pie,” Michael said.

  Addie gave Evie a thorough twice-over, as if she was checking out the competition. Evie was extremely aware of the time she hadn’t spent in the gym, her bitten-down fingernails and growing-out roots.

  She slid into a red booth across from Michael and Will and picked up a menu. Glancing over the top of it to Will, she smiled at the boy. “What is your favorite kind of pie? I need advice since this is my first time.”

  Will nodded. “Apple,” he said. “And cherry,” he added. “And chocolate crème.”

  “Oh, my. How will I choose?” she said, glancing at the menu. “How will you decide?”

  Will sighed. “I want all of them.”

  “I do too,” she said.

  A middle-aged waitress walked to their table. “Hi there, Michael. Will,” she said. She glanced at Evie with an inquisitive glance. “I’m Kristine,” she said and extended her hand.

  “Thank you,” Evie said. “I’m Evie Fitzgerald. I’m running the Christmas Ornament shop.”

  Kristine nodded. “Seasonal girl. I’m always glad to see some new blood. We don’t have enough young people around here. What would you like?”

  “It’s my first time here. I hear your pie is wonderful,” Evie said.

  “It is. We’re featuring Dutch Apple today,” Kristine said.

  “Do you recommend it?”

  “If you’re not on a diet,” Kristine quipped.

  Evie chuckled. “Then I’ll take Dutch Apple,” she said.

  “With ice cream?” Kristine asked.

  “Oh, yes, please.”

  Kristine smiled. “I like this girl. What about you, William?”

  “Chocolate,” he said. “Or Apple,” he added.

  Kristine met his gaze, but waited patiently.

  “I can give you a bite of mine if
you like,” Evie said.

  “Chocolate,” Will said triumphantly.

  “Will you share with me?” Michael asked.

  “Are you having a hard time choosing?”

  “Just curious,” he said. “Cherry.”

  “Ice cream?” Kristine asked.

  “Not this time. I’ll take decaf coffee with cream.”

  “Got it. I’ll bring you some water.”

  Silence followed after she left. “She was friendly,” Evie said.

  “Everyone loves Kristine,” Michael said then glanced at Will. “You wanna go to the coloring table?”

  Will looked across the room and nodded.

  “Okay, stay where I can see you,” Michael said, pointing to his eyes then Will’s.

  “Yes sir,” Will said then ran toward a booth at the back of the diner where children were coloring with crayons.

  “Good move to entertain the kids,” she said.

  “Yeah, it’s a good place,” he said and drummed his fingers on the table. “I know you’re here to manage the ornament shop, but why here?”

  “I needed a job. This was my first offer. I’m hoping it will help me get back into the market. I got laid off after my boss made some questionable financial moves,” she said.

  Michael pursed his lips. “You’re from Manhattan. That’s expensive.”

  “Yes, it is,” she said, thinking about the sad state of her bank account. “But I have a job. That’s the important thing.”

  “Yeah. You wanna go back?” he asked.

  “That’s the plan. This job is temporary, so I’ll need to get a different job by the end of January. I couldn’t keep my apartment, so I’ll be starting over.” She sighed. “But enough about me. Your William is quite the charmer.”

  Michael gave a half-grin. “Yeah. He’s come a long way since his parents died.”

  “Oh, no. What happened?”

  “They died in an automobile accident. I was his godfather, so he’s mine and I’m his now.”

  “That’s a cool way of putting it,” she said. “He lives with you?”

  “Yeah. I have a housekeeper that helps with him and my sister.”

  “Jenn. Aunt Jenn,” Evie said. “She adores him, doesn’t she?”

  “She does. How did you know that?”

  “She scolded him then gave him a kiss and squeezed him tight. Looked like love to me,” she said.

  “Most aunts do that,” he said.

  “Not all,” she countered and nodded as a server put ice water on their table. “Thanks,” she said.

  “Jenn’s the best. What’s your family like?”

  She grimaced. “Eccentric.”

  “Siblings?”

  “None.”

  “Parents?”

  “My father died when I was very young. My mother is alive, but distracted.”

  “Ah,” he said. “No wonder you live in Manhattan.”

  “What does that have to do with anything?”

  “You don’t have to get too close to everyone in New York,” he said. “In a small town, everyone knows everything about you.”

  “Not necessarily,” she said. “New York is full of different little cliques and communities. Employment can get tricky as it did in my case.”

  “I guess,” he said, clearly still skeptical.

  “Well, tell me, if your reputation gets smudged due to no fault of your own, will people in Mistletoe give you another chance?”

  He hesitated a moment. “I’d like to think so.”

  A scream sounded from across the room.

  “No hitting!” Will said to a little girl.

  “Drama at the coloring table,” Michael said under his breath and walked to the children’s table. After a couple of moments, he led Will back to their table.

  “You did good, guy,” Michael said as Will scooted into the booth.

  “She wanted my red crayon,” Will said. “There were a bunch of other red crayons.”

  Evie took in Will’s pout and was in total agreement. “You did well.”

  Less than a moment later, their server arrived with their orders. A perfect distraction.

  “Oh my goodness. Look at all that ice cream,” Evie said.

  Will looked at her plate with longing eyes. “Let me put some on your plate,” she said, and scooped half of her ice cream onto his plate.

  He immediately shoveled a bite into his mouth.

  “What about your pie?” she asked.

  “Ice cream is better,” he said.

  “Would you like some?” she asked Michael.

  Michael lifted his hand, but she put some on his plate too.

  “You don’t have hardly any left,” he said.

  “I have plenty especially since both of you are going to share a bite of your pie with me,” she said and gave a sly smile.

  Will laughed. “I’ll give you a bite of my pie.”

  “What about you Deputy Michael?” she challenged.

  Michael slid a sexy glance at her and scooped up a bite of his pie. “Want it?”

  Evie felt a crazy sliver of heat. “Yes,” she said. “Yes, I do.”

  She opened her mouth and Michael put a bite of cherry pie in her mouth.

  She closed her mouth and eyes and savored the bite. “Yum.” Opening her eyes, she met Michael’s gaze. “That was good.”

  “Yeah,” he said and took a bite of his pie combined with a scoop of ice cream.

  Evie’s temperature rose. When had this whole situation gotten so hot? Why did she feel the need to fan herself? She glanced at Michael again. She looked at his mouth. He was a deputy who had given her a ticket. He was an uncle. There shouldn’t be anything sexy about him.

  Right?

  Chapter Three

  Twenty minutes later, she, Michael and Will managed to finish most of the pie. There were a few bites she couldn’t finish, but Michael and Will covered for her. They exited the diner and headed back to her shop.

  “That was delicious,” Evie said. “The best treat I’ve had in a long time. Thank you. Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome,” Will said and rubbed his belly. “I liked it too.”

  Evie laughed at his pure enjoyment of their treat. She could learn a lot from him. She glanced at Michael. “He’s great. Thanks for sharing him with me. He makes me remember to take joy each moment. Adults forget that. Well,” she amended. “I forget that.”

  Michael stopped and met her gaze. “Maybe I have too.”

  She felt a quick quiver in her stomach and it took a moment to remember to take a breath. “You’re a deputy and uncle. What else do you do?”

  “I’m a rancher,” he said with a shrug. “I fill in with the fire department if they need me.”

  “So, you do everything,” she said.

  “I wouldn’t say that,” he said.

  “Well, I would,” she said and didn’t look away from him. It took some strength, but she didn’t.

  He shrugged again. “We’re here at your shop. If you need something, give me a call.”

  She smiled. “I don’t have your number.”

  “555-3780,” William immediately recited.

  Evie laughed. “Busted.” She paused. “No worries. I won’t remember.”

  “555-3780,” William repeated.

  “Give me your phone,” Michael said as if her were surrendering. “I’ll give you my number.”

  She handed over her phone and waited until he returned it to her. “Brave man. I noticed you didn’t ask for mine.”

  “I already have yours since I gave you a ticket.”

  “Oh, lucky me.”

  “Or not,” he said then put his hand on his nephew’s shoulder. “Come on, bud. Time to go home.”

  After the pie outing, Evie walked to the rooming house where she would remain for the rest of her time in Mistletoe. The owner was named Theodora Provost, and the two-story brick and white frame house was located on Hummingbird Lane, thankfully not far from the store. Unlike the rest o
f Mistletoe, the front door featured a Fall wreath with pine combs and orange ribbon. The rest of Mistletoe was decorated out the wazoo for Christmas because Christmas was big business in Mistletoe. The lack of Christmas décor made her curious about Ms. Provost.

  Evie lifted the brass door knocker and rapped on it.

  “Coming,” a woman called from inside the house.

  The door opened and an elderly woman with snow white hair, ivory skin, pink cheeks and pink lips tilted her head at Evie assessingly. “Are you Ms. Evie Fitzgerald?”

  “Yes, I am. And you are Ms. Theodora Provost?” Evie asked, for some reason hoping she met with the older woman’s approval.

  “Tee,” she said. “You have a modern look to you. Come along. I’ll show you to your room. Are you missing Manhattan yet?”

  “I’ve been too busy setting up shop,” Evie said, taking in the polished hard wood floors and smell of lemon-scented cleaner. A clean, but worn oriental runner covered the hallway floor

  “I can see how that would happen. I know you’re only here for the season, but I hope you’ll get a chance to enjoy some of the history and beauty of our area. Christmas has become such a business,” Tee said with a sigh. “I refuse to decorate for Christmas until after I’ve eaten my Thanksgiving dinner.”

  “I totally understand and agree,” Evie said.

  Tee turned to look at her in confusion. “But I thought you were operating the temporary Christmas ornament shop.”

  “I am, but I can’t say Christmas is my favorite holiday.”

  Tee dipped her head. “Not mine either. Too much fuss. I prefer Thanksgiving. What is your favorite?”

  “Labor Day. I’ve usually had it off,” Evie said.

  Tee blinked. “Well, that’s a new one. I thought I’d heard it all. I might have guessed Halloween for you.”

  Evie remembered her mother getting ready for costume parties and leaving Evie with a sitter. “No. I prefer Labor Day. It’s still warm. Hamburger, fries and some pie and I’m good.”