by Rachel Hanna
Cassie ran through the now unlocked door and hugged Claire's waist. "I'm going to miss you so much!"
"I'm going to miss you too, Cassie. But I'm sure you'll come and visit your aunt someday soon. And you are welcome to come to dance class anytime you want."
Cassie looked up at her and smiled, one stray tear rolling down her chubby cheek. "Merry Christmas, Miss Claire."
"Merry Christmas, Cassie. And a happy new year to you and your father. Good luck on your new adventure."
Cassie turned and went back to her aunt, pressing her face into Susan's hip, obviously to hide her tears.
"Thanks for all you've done for her, Claire. I didn't think things were going to end up like this."
"Neither did I."
Susan turned and walked out the door as Claire locked up behind them.
It was really happening. Starting over was getting to be tiresome. For once, she wished that her hopes and dreams matched up with reality. It looked like this Christmas wasn't going to be so joyful after all.
Jake stood in front of his sister and held her hands. "I'm going to miss you more than I want to admit.”
Susan smiled sadly. "I was really hoping to keep my big brother around for a bit longer."
"Relax. I'll only be one state away. You know you guys can come up to Nashville anytime." He wanted to say he’d visit too, but until he could shake Claire out of his mind, that wasn’t going to happen. He couldn’t even bring himself to go say goodbye to her, the feeling of her cutting him off so abruptly still searing in his heart.
Truthfully, Jake was a little trepidatious about starting another new life. Cassie's world had been upended twice now, and this time it was a lot harder for her. She had made friends in January Cove, and she loved being with her aunt Susan.
He’d gone back-and-forth so many times in his mind about whether he was making the right decision. But he had to start a more stable life for both of them. And he needed to do it away from Claire. She had helped heal him, but being around her when she obviously didn't want him was affecting him more than he would want to admit out loud.
Dr. Gardiner had already referred him to a good counselor in his new area, and he would definitely need to make use of that. He wasn't a hundred percent yet, and some nights he still struggled with the nightmares but it was getting better every day.
As he loaded the last suitcase into the back of his truck, he watched as Cassie hugged his sister tightly. The guilt he felt for tearing her away was strong, but he knew that she was a resilient little girl. She’d had so many obstacles in her short life already.
"Be careful," Susan said, a serious tone in her voice.
"Always."
Jake helped Cassie up into the truck and shut the door. She waved from behind the tinted window before looking down at her tablet to play a game. Jake jumped behind the steering wheel, waving as he shut his door and they drove down the road.
The first few miles were quiet. Cassie was pretty upset at him right now, but he had no doubt that she would get over it soon enough.
The fact that they weren't spending Christmas with Susan had been particularly hard. But unfortunately, duty called and he had to start his new job just a few days before Christmas.
They had rented a small apartment near the firehouse. He hoped in a couple of years he would be able to save up and buy them their own house. Firefighter pay wasn't exactly the best, but they didn't need much. Just a place to call home with a backyard for a dog .
Cassie continued staring at her electronics as Jake drove the lonely miles, first out of January Cove and then through Savannah. It would take them many hours to get to Nashville, and he toyed with the idea of stopping over in Atlanta for one night just so he could get some rest and feed Cassie.
As they made their way through the moss covered trees of Savannah, Cassie finally looked up. "You know, I'm really mad at you, Daddy."
"I know, sweetie."
"I don't know when I'm going to stop being mad."
Jake smiled and patted her leg. "I know. It's okay to be mad at me. I can take it."
“I think Miss Claire was mad when I told her before the parade. Maybe that's why she wasn't talking to you so much." She looked back down at her game as Jake grew more confused.
"Wait. How did you know about the move before the parade?"
"I heard you talking to aunt Susan. And I heard you talking to some guy on the phone about a job in Nashville."
"Oh, Cassie. Do you mean to tell me that you told Miss Claire I was taking you to Nashville before the Christmas parade?"
"Yes. She looked really confused."
Jake suddenly realized that the reason Claire had broken things off so abruptly was that she thought he was playing her. She must have assumed that he had already made the decision about Nashville before the parade and was stringing her along or something. He felt sick to his stomach. "Cassie, you shouldn't tell things like that when you don't know the full story. When you heard me on the phone, and when you heard me talking to aunt Susan, I hadn't made my decision yet."
"Why does it matter? You're still making me go to this Nashville place. I wanted to stay in January Cove!”
As he stared at the road in front of him, fingers clenched tightly around the steering wheel, Jake struggled with what to do. Maybe she did have feelings for him. Maybe there had been a future. And maybe an eight-year-old had unknowingly thrown them all for a loop.
It was Christmas Eve, and Claire couldn't see staying in her house all day and night. Susan had invited her to come over for dinner, but she just didn't feel like being around anyone. Today, she felt melancholy.
She was away from her family, all the way across the country, in fact. And now, the one man she cared about was five-hundred miles away in Nashville.
How had she fallen for him so quickly? She’d been on many dates in her life, but never had she felt such a sense of loss when she knew it was over.
And so tonight, on Christmas Eve, she had chosen to wallow in her sadness by coming to the dance studio and staring at the Christmas tree in the darkness.
She had a bottle of wine, the first necessity for a night of self pity, but she hadn't even opened it. Right now she just wanted to listen to sad Christmas music and wait for the holidays to pass.
She stood up and started to dance around the floor. Dancing was the only thing that soothed her soul when she was upset. It was like her own secret language, and right now her soul definitely needed soothing.
A part of her had hoped that Jake would have changed his mind and stayed in January Cove, like one of those sappy Christmas movie plots that no one ever believes can possibly be true.
But he hadn't changed his mind. He’d been gone for several days now. And even though she kept looking out at the street, hoping to see his big truck drive by, she knew it was a fools’ errand. He wasn't coming back. He was starting over. He would find somebody new, and they would probably never see each other again.
So much for Christmas miracles.
She turned the music up louder, and started to dance harder than she had in months. Pushing her body to the limit was something she had grown accustomed to over the course of her career, but it had gotten harder since her injury.
But tonight, all of her muscles felt warm and ready for the work out. She spun and stretched and threw her body around in ways that she hadn't done in a long time. And it felt good. And it felt bad.
When the song was over, she fell into a lump on the floor, struggling to catch her breath and feeling adrenaline coursing throughout her body. She sat down and pulled her knees up to her chest, looking at the Christmas tree, remembering the day she’d chosen it with Jake.
"Excuse me, ma'am. Do you offer any adult dance classes? I’d like to learn how to do what you just did.”
She spun around and saw Jake standing in the doorway. For a moment, she thought she was imagining things. Maybe he was some kind of adrenaline induced hallucination. She hadn't had any wine yet, so it cou
ldn't have been that.
Slowly, Claire stood up, still reeling from all the spinning she had done. Amazing how something so second nature can become difficult after several months of not doing it.
"Jake? What on earth are you doing here? How did you get in here?”
“You gave me a key, remember? When I was working on the float decorations?” Dang it. She’d forgotten to get her key back.
“You can put the key on the front desk and then let yourself out.” She turned back to face the Christmas tree.
"Claire, it seems we've had a little misunderstanding."
"I don't think so. Why aren't you in Nashville? Shouldn't you be working?"
"Doubtful since I don't live in Nashville.”
She slowly walked toward him as he did the same. She stopped with about three feet between them, not wanting to get any closer for fear that she might either slap him or kiss him or both.
"What do you mean you don't live in Nashville? You just left a few days ago. Cassie came and said goodbye to me."
"Claire, when I met up with you that day to build the float, I had decided to stay in January Cove. I had been offered a job here at the fire station."
"What? I don't understand. Then why did Cassie tell me you were moving to Nashville?"
"She misunderstood what she heard me say on the phone and to my sister. I had been offered a job there, but I had also been offered a job here. I was trying to make the decision and she assumed that I decided to move to Nashville."
"But didn't you leave?"
"Yes. Because I thought you didn't want me, and I was hurt. I thought you didn't have any feelings for me. And maybe you didn't. Maybe you still don't. But when I realized what Cassie had done, I had to come back and ask you whether you turned me away because you thought I was leaving? Or did you just not have the same feelings I did?"
Claire stood there, staring into space. Her brain was swirling, and not from the turns she had done while dancing.
"I did that because I thought you had used me. I thought you didn't have those feelings for me.”
"What feelings, Claire?” he asked as he walked closer.
It felt like the oxygen in the room was getting less and less. She looked up at him, as nervous as those times she had to walk out onto a darkened stage and take her place in the spotlight.
"Strong feelings," she said.
"You mean feelings such as, oh I don’t know, love?" he asked, running his thumb across her cheek.
"Maybe," she said with a sly smile.
"I can't help but notice that we are standing underneath mistletoe," Jake said. Claire's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. There was no mistletoe hanging above them.
"I think you might be mistaken.”
Jake slid his hand into his pocket and pulled out a bunch of plastic mistletoe, holding it high above his head. "No, I'm not mistaken."
"Oh, well then, I guess we must abide by the rules of mistletoe," she said. Jake took his other hand and slid it behind her head, cradling it. He leaned in slowly, pressing his warm lips against hers, and she felt like someone had just given her an oxygen mask. She could breathe again.
When they finally came up for air, Jake smiled down at her. “I guess I really do believe in Christmas miracles.”
“Oh yeah? What’s your miracle this Christmas, Jake?”
“A second chance.”
Also by Rachel Hanna
The January Cove series:
The One For Me
Loving Tessa
Falling For You
Finding Love
All I Need
Secrets And Soulmates
Sweet Love
Choices of the Heart
Faith, Hope & Love
Get the 8-Book Boxed Set Here!
The Whiskey Ridge Series
Starting Over
Taking Chances
Home Again
Always A Bridesmaid
To see Rachel’s other books, visit her author page on Amazon!
Copyright © 2018 by Rachel Hanna
All rights reserved.
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