Home for the Holidays

by Sara Richardson

  It was time to change tactics.

  “Looking good up there,” she called. Oh, wait. “I mean, the lights are looking good. I didn’t mean you’re looking good. Not that you don’t look good…”

  The man didn’t even turn to acknowledge her babbling. He simply kept the steady pound of his hammer going and pretended she wasn’t talking. She should be grateful. For some reason, this man had the ability to make her feel awkward and unsure. Which was ridiculous. She was a grown woman, and she’d dealt with plenty of difficult men in her day.

  “So how long have you known Sassy?” she called up to him, trying again.

  “Years,” he muttered, pounding in another nail.

  Sighing, Rose tromped a few steps to the left so she could get a better look at his face. He certainly didn’t resemble Sassy, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be her son. “How—”

  A low rumbling bark sounded somewhere behind her, cutting off her question. Rose whirled just in time to see a huge white dog tearing out of the woods and barreling right for her.

  “Woof! Woof!”

  “Oh my God!” That thing was going to kill her! She darted forward and threw herself at the ladder, climbing halfway up just as the dog reached the first rung.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Colt demanded, steadying the ladder.

  Down below, the dog yipped and jumped around as though it, too, wanted to climb the ladder. Probably to eat her…

  “What’d you mean, what am I doing?” she gasped and sputtered. “There’s a dog down there!” Rose scrambled up another rung so that she was right below Colt’s boots.

  “I can see that.” His flat tone informed her he wasn’t stupid.

  “Dogs don’t like me.” Fear inflated her heart, pressing it in tightly against her ribs. “One bit me when I was ten years old. And I didn’t do anything to deserve it.” She’d simply been walking down the street in her neighborhood, and the thing had attacked her from behind.

  “This dog isn’t gonna bite you.” His gaze looked past her. “I’d say she looks pretty harmless.”

  Rose peeked down at the dog again. Its front paws were still up on the ladder’s fourth rung.

  “Woof! Woof, woof, woof!”

  “It has huge teeth,” she whimpered, remembering exactly how it had felt when that stray dog had sunk its teeth into her back. She still had a big scar.

  “All dogs have big teeth,” Colt informed her. “But listen to her bark. It’s friendly. She wants some love.”

  Easy for him to say. He was still up higher than her. “I’m not going to risk it.” She held on to the ladder so tight her knuckles had to be white underneath her gloves.

  “What do you plan to do then?” the man asked impatiently. “We can’t stay up here all night.”

  “We could,” she argued. It would beat getting bitten by a dog. “I had to get stitches. And a shot. It was all very traumatic.” And she hadn’t been able to pet a dog since. She’d wanted to—she’d wanted to see the creatures as sweet and furry and lovable—but instead, all she noticed when she saw a dog approaching were their scary big teeth.

  Colt sighed and glanced around as though looking for a way to get around the crazy woman below him. “Look, we have to get down. I have to move the ladder in order to finish hanging the lights you insisted you wanted on the barn.”

  Rose stared up at the half he’d already finished. “Looks great the way it is.” No need to move the ladder. No need to move her off the ladder. “I’m sure the dog will go away soon.”

  As if it wanted to argue, the dog plopped down onto the ground and stared up at them with a whimper while its tail swooshed through the snow.

  Colt shifted his weight. “What if I promise you she won’t hurt you?”

  “You can’t promise that.” Dogs were unpredictable. “Do you know the dog? Have you ever seen it before?”

  “No,” he admitted. “But I can tell with animals. Look at her eyes.”

  Rose frowned up at him.

  “Come on,” he prompted, and she couldn’t help but notice his tone had gentled slightly. “Look down at her. Her teeth aren’t showing anymore.”

  Securing her arm around the rung, Rose leaned back slightly and looked down at the dog. Okay, so it had a cute face. Fluffy grayish white fur stuck up around its floppy ears and bristly old-man eyebrows hovered over large dark eyes.

  “Woof!” Its tail started to sweep again, whipping up a cloud of snow.

  “See?” Colt bent closer to her. “She’s friendly. I can tell.”

  “Then you go down first.” Rose held her grip firm on the ladder. “If she’s friendly with you, I’ll come down.” Maybe. Most likely.

  “How do you suggest I get down with you in my way?” Colt nudged her shoulder gently with his boot as though teasing her.

  “Go around me.” Even as she said it, she knew that would involve a difficult maneuver.

  The man leaned his forehead against the ladder and muttered something under his breath. “I can’t believe you don’t like dogs. You of all people. The woman who’s trying so hard to be everyone’s friend. You and that dog down there likely have a lot in common.”

  Rose huffed but decided to let the snark go. “I never said I don’t like them. They don’t like me.” What if she went down there and it tackled her? “I suppose you’re not afraid of anything. You’ve probably never been afraid of anything in your whole life.”

  “That’s not true,” Colt said thoughtfully.

  “Really?” She raised her head, but she couldn’t get a look at his face. Was he actually going to open up about something?

  “I have fears.” He paused dramatically. “I’m terrified of nosy interior designers who go around redecorating Christmas trees without permission.”

  Despite herself, Rose had to smile as she swatted his boot with her glove-clad hand. “Now I’m really not moving.” She would make him stay up here for hours. Though she had to admit, even in her Uggs, her toes had started to get a little frosty.

  “I’m joking.” A rare grin hiked up one corner of his mouth. “I’m not that scared of you.”

  “Ha.” Suddenly, Colt was a jokester. “You might not be scared of me, but I’m terrified of that dog.” Rose peered down to where the dog had put its front paws back on the fourth rung of the ladder. Sure, it was fluffy and cute and probably very nice. But it was also big and unpredictable. And it had sharp teeth. Her heart raced again.

  “I have an idea.” Colt bent so she could see his face. “If you can carefully move to the back of the ladder, I can climb down first and tame the beast, so she won’t hurt you.”

  She was about to hesitate, but her toes were moving past the cold stage all the way to numb. “I guess we could try it.” She judged the distance from the ground. That would be a hard fall…

  “Move an inch at a time,” Colt coached. “One hand on the back of the ladder, then one foot. Take your time.”

  “Right.” Rose shuffled her feet and shifted, reaching one hand around to secure a hold on the back of the ladder.

  “That’s it.” The man almost sounded like he was talking to a child. “Easy.”

  Easy. Right. Nothing about this was easy. She looked down past her feet and the movement seemed to get the dog all excited again. Or angry?

  “Woof! Woof!” The thing bounced as though trying to make its way up the ladder.

  Yeah, she wasn’t going down there. “Okay, here goes.” She wound one leg around the frame of the ladder until she found a secure place to set her foot on the inside of the rung. With one foot and hand on each side of the ladder, she shuffled her way inch by inch to the back of the ladder, her hands clutched in a death grip. “There.” She was breathing so hard she may as well have run a marathon.

  “All right. I’m coming down.” Colt moved slowly, keeping his eyes on her. “Watch your hands.”

  Legs shaking with the effort, Rose moved her hands to the outside of the ladder’s frame so he could work his way down
past her. When he’d reached her level, he paused, smiling a little. “Don’t worry. I’ve got this.”

  The man’s face changed when he smiled. His eyes warmed and his jaw relaxed. For some reason it put her at ease. “I’m not worried.” Much.

  “Good.” He continued down the ladder, and the closer he got to the ground, the higher the dog jumped. “Hey there, pup.” Colt took the last few rungs slowly while the dog jumped all over his back.

  “Be careful!” Rose watched in horror as the dog reached its paws all the way up to Colt’s shoulders.

  “Good girl,” the man cooed. “Sit. Can you sit?”

  The dog immediately dropped its butt to the ground and smiled up at Colt, its tongue hanging out the side of its mouth.

  “Good dog,” he gushed, scratching the dog behind its ears. “See?” he called up to Rose. “Nothing to worry about.”

  “Okay.” Heat flashed across her face as she carefully made her way down the back side of the ladder until her boots met the ground.

  Colt had knelt to keep a hand on the dog so it wouldn’t maul her, but still she kept a healthy distance. “Where do you think it came from?”

  “There’s no telling.” He glanced in the direction of the woods. “No collar but it’s possible she has a chip.” He stood to his full height. “Do you want to pet her?”

  “Oh. No. That’s okay.” Rose stepped back. The dog was pretty cute, especially up close. Those eyebrows…

  Whimpering, the dog lay down, stretching out its front legs and inching toward her with the most hopeful look. She finally understood what people meant by puppy dog eyes.

  “Just a quick pat on the head,” Colt coaxed, kneeling next to the dog. “I’ll keep a hand on her just in case.”

  “I guess a quick pat couldn’t hurt.” The dog seemed to listen to Colt. It was probably his deep commanding voice.

  “Hi there.” Fear swelled, but Rose pushed through it, easing one foot closer.

  The dog’s tail went into hyperdrive again, but she stayed on her belly while Colt scratched her ears. “Stay,” he murmured soothingly.

  A little shaky on her legs, Rose removed her glove and reached out her hand, holding her palm just beneath the dog’s cold nose. Her mom had tried and tried to help her get over her fear of dogs, and this was as far as she’d ever gotten.

  “Good puppy,” she murmured, mostly trying to calm herself. She reached her hand to the dog’s head and swept her fingers over the soft fur.

  The dog leaned toward her, its nose tipped down as though begging for more.

  “She likes you.” Colt stood while Rose continued to pet the dog, inching closer and closer.

  “She is pretty sweet.” Rose couldn’t deny that. And soft. Her fur was like silk.

  “She looks like a mix.” Colt seemed to give the dog a good inspection. “I’m guessing she’s got at least some golden retriever in her. Maybe some terrier, too.”

  “You’re good with dogs.” Rose held her hand underneath the dog’s nose again and she licked Rose’s fingers happily.

  “Most dogs are easier to deal with than people.” When Colt moved a few steps away, the dog sat taller.

  “I wonder where her owner is.” Rose knelt down to the dog’s level. No creature with eyes like that could be vicious. “Hi, baby.” She moved her hand to the dog’s back.

  “Looks like someone’s not afraid of dogs anymore,” the man commented, watching her with a smile.

  Rose found herself smiling, too. “What are we going to do with her?” she asked, standing up. Who knew how long the dog had been outside. “Should we bring her into Sassy’s to warm her up?”

  Colt seemed to consider the idea. “I guess that would be good. We can give her some water. Maybe feed her and then take her to the vet to see if she’s chipped.”

  “What if she’s not chipped?” Rose started up the hill toward Sassy’s house with the dog following right on her heels.

  “I don’t know.” Colt walked alongside her. “I guess we could make posters and put them up around town. Someone might recognize her.”

  For the first time since she’d arrived in Juniper, Colt wasn’t trying to get away from her. Maybe this dog situation would give her the opportunity to ask him about his connection to Sassy. “Great idea.” She could take a picture of the dog and print it out in Sassy’s office. “I’m sure someone is missing her.”

  “Hopefully.” Colt didn’t seem convinced. “We get a lot of strays around here though, being so close to the highway. Seems some people thinks it’s easier to abandon their dogs in the mountains than it is to take them to a shelter.”

  “What?” Rose stopped, dropping to her knees to pet the dog again. “How could anyone do that?”

  “I don’t know.” Colt reached his hand to the dog’s snout. “Like I said, in my opinion, most dogs are easier to deal with than—”

  A shiny black SUV turned into the driveway, following the tracks in the snow up to the house.

  “Who’s that?” Colt asked, watching the car.

  “I don’t know.” Rose started walking to meet the car. “If they’re here for Sassy, they’ll be disappointed. She told us she had a lot to do today and wouldn’t be around.”

  The dog bounded ahead of them barking, seeming excited about the prospect of another new friend.

  After the car had parked next to the front porch, the driver got out and hurried to open the back door. The dog rushed to greet the mysterious visitor, but the woman who got out of the car pushed her away.

  Hold on a sec…

  Rose jogged closer.

  “Mom?” Even with Lillian buried under a thick fur coat, she recognized her right away. “What’re you doing here?”

  “I came to talk some sense into you.” Lillian shooed the dog away with a wave of her hand and teetered through the snow until she stood across from Rose. “I came to bring you home.”

  Great. She really should’ve anticipated this. “I’m a little busy right now.” And she didn’t need her mother to make a scene in front of Colt. “Do you have suitcases? We can go into the house and get you settled…”

  “I’m not staying.” Her mother shifted her gaze to Colt and slipped off her sunglasses. “You.” She pointed in his direction. “I know you.”

  Colt’s face had turned stony again. “I should take the dog to the vet. See what I can find out.” He ducked away and hurried to his truck, whistling for the dog to follow him. “See ya around.” The dog jumped into the car, and Colt was right behind her. The truck peeled out before Rose could figure out what was happening.

  “What’re you doing with him?” her mother demanded.

  “With who? Colt?” What on earth was Lillian going on about? “Wait. How do you know him?” If he really was just some neighbor boy like Mags had thought, there’s no way her mother would remember him.

  “I can’t believe it. I can’t believe he’s still here,” her mother snipped. “That boy is part of the reason I haven’t spoken to your aunt in over eighteen years.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Dahlia

  Dahlia couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed like this. Ike twirled her again, slipping to the opposite side and then reeling her back to him and moving effortlessly back into a two-step.

  “You really are a good dancer.” She couldn’t tell if she was breathless from the dancing, or the laughing, or the fact that the last half hour had chipped away at some of the loneliness that had walled off her heart.

  Ike dazzled her with his grin. “You’re making me look good,” he said, dipping her as the song came to an end.

  “Right.” She giggled again. She couldn’t help herself. Rose had been right. Dahlia had forgotten how much she used to love dancing. Jeff had always hated dancing. Even at their wedding, he’d only danced with her once—when he’d been forced to during the bride and groom’s song. He’d never had even an ounce of rhythm, and he only wanted people watching him when he could impress them. According to him,
dancing made people look stupid. But for the last half hour, she hadn’t cared if she looked stupid, and Ike hadn’t seemed to care either. She’d forgotten how light music made her feel. Or maybe she’d never felt quiet as light as she did in Ike’s arms. He smelled good—clean and spicy, and for once she didn’t have to think too hard about her next move. Instead she relied on his expert guidance.

  Everyone started to clap for Clyde, and the older man stood up from his stool, taking a bow.

  “Wooh!” Ike whistled loud, leading the applause. Dahlia joined in as she scanned the crowd. She’d seen Mags slip out while talking on the phone a few minutes ago. Now her sister ducked back in through the door, and she wasn’t smiling. “I’m going to go check on Mags,” she said to Ike.

  “Sounds good.” He leaned in, his hand brushing the small of her back. “Can I get you ladies another drink?”

  “I’ll let you know in a minute.” She remained close to him for an extra few seconds, feeling the warmth of his touch rise through her body. After being numb for so long, she’d like to stay longer and explore the flutterings he made her feel. Except her sister needed her. “Be right back.” She drifted away from him and pushed through the crowd until she made it to the table where Mags sat with a blank expression on her face.

  “Hey.” She sat across from her. “Are you okay?” Silly question. Mags’s eyes were red. She’d obviously been crying. Dahlia leaned forward, reaching for her. “What is it? What happened?”

  “I called Eric.” Her sister swallowed hard. “He didn’t even want to talk to me. He sounded so far away. I feel like I don’t even know him anymore.”

  “Oh sweetie.” Dahlia scooted her stool around so she could sit next to her and slip an arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry. What did he say?”

  “Nothing.” Mags dabbed at her eyes with a napkin. “That’s the thing. He didn’t know what to say. I’m afraid he doesn’t want to try anymore. I’m afraid we’ll never be able to fix our marriage.”

  Dahlia closed her eyes. She remembered that feeling of desperation when Jeff had started to drift away from her. The fear. All along she’d known what was coming, but she had still done everything she could to keep it together. It had been such a lonely lost time in her life.