by Joy Avery
“Great choice,” she said, grabbing two brown bottles from the fridge.
After washing their hands, they settled at the table. When Jake flipped the pizza box top open, the hearty aroma of meat, cheese, and spices escaped, causing his mouth to water and Sienna’s stomach to growl.
Wide-eyed, Sienna slapped her hand against her mid-section, then burst into laughter. He joined in. They seemed to be doing a lot of that. He hadn’t truly laughed in a while.
“I’m starving,” she said. “Don’t judge me, because I’m about to inhale this pizza.”
He flashed his hands in mock surrender. “Hey, no judgement here.”
Jake placed a piece of pizza on her plate, then his own. Sienna took her first bite and hummed a delicious sound of satisfaction that taunted him for several long seconds.
“Good?”
“The best.”
“So, what kind of work do you do, Sienna Turner?” he asked, taking a bite from his slice, savoring the delectable cuisine.
“I make handmade greeting cards for all occasions. Greetings by Sienna dot com. Just in case you’re interested.”
Oh, he was definitely interested. And he was sure he’d be in her cards, too. “You must be busy this time of year, huh?”
“Swamped. But I absolutely love what I do, so the chaos doesn’t bother me.”
They chatted about a myriad of things as they feasted: global warming, politics, music, movies, community. The list went on. Jake couldn’t recall the last time he’d enjoyed anyone’s company so much. Sienna felt like someone he’d known all his life, not a woman he’d just met today.
As she talked—something she seemed to enjoy doing—he noticed small things about her. Like the tiny freckles that peppered the bridge of her nose. The way her eyes twinkled when she got excited talking about craft supplies. How she talked with her hands. Most noticeable was the way her smile lit the room.
“May I ask you a personal question, Jake?”
Uh-oh. “Sure.”
“Did you forgive your wife for cheating on you?”
The question caught him off guard. He placed his half-eaten, third slice of pizza onto the plate and wiped his mouth. “I never got the chance,” he said. “It wasn’t until after her death that I learned of her affair.”
Sadness washed across Sienna’s lovely face, and he sensed her compassion.
“Wow. That had to be…tough,” she said. “How’d you find out, if you don’t mind me asking?”
Jake shifted in his seat.
“I’m sorry,” Sienna said. “It’s none of my business. I apologize for prying. I’m sure this is not a subject you like to talk about.”
“It’s fine,” he said, which surprised him because, Sienna had been right, he didn’t like talking about this. In fact, up until now, the only other person who knew about Nicole’s affair was Rowe. And even they never discussed it. “I found love letters hidden in our closet.” He gave a humorless chuckle. “She hated having to write a check, yet here she was penning lengthy love letters to another man.” No longer having an appetite, he pushed the plate aside.
“Did you confront the other man?” Sienna asked.
“I don’t know who he is. All the letters were in a plain white envelope. No to or return address. They were likely delivered inside another envelope she disposed of.”
“Love can be so cruel,” Sienna said.
“Not love, people,” he said.
“Does that mean you still believe in love, just not people?”
He eyed her a moment before answering. “I’m not sure what I believe in anymore.”
Sienna pushed her plate away, too. “Then we definitely have something in common.”
Silence lingered between them for a moment.
“May I ask you another question?” Sienna said.
Well, she was just full of questions, wasn’t she? “Shoot.”
Her eyes lowered to his hand. “Why do you still wear your wedding ring?”
His gaze followed hers. He studied the piece of jewelry. “Habit, I guess.” Or a reminder of what he and Nicole once had. Or just plain stupidity. All of it. None of it. It was difficult to determine.
“I see,” was all she said.
“Now may I ask you a question?” If she could pry, so could he.
Sienna answered with confidence. “Yes.”
“What did your husband do to make you dislike Christmas?”
Sienna wrapped her fingers around her beer bottle, but apparently reconsidered lifting it to her mouth. He could have withdrawn the question, but he didn’t. He wanted—almost needed—to know. He couldn’t explain why.
“Three days before Christmas…” Her words trailed.
The gloom he saw in her eyes told him one thing, whatever Malcolm had done to her had cut deep.
She continued, “He confessed to an affair—another affair—three days before Christmas. It kind of ruined my once-favorite holiday for me.”
Damn. What kind of cold-blooded monster would do something like that at Christmas? Instead of happiness, Sienna obviously associated pain with the holiday. That was unfortunate, because if you weren’t elated any other time of the year, you should be at Christmas. “I’m sorry.”
“It wasn’t your fault my ex-husband couldn’t keep it in his pants,” Sienna said.
Jake took a sip of his beer. “He wants absolution?”
“I’ve forgiven him, but he wants me to forget. Which I will never do. Remembering keeps me from making the same mistake again.”
“What was your mistake?”
“Falling in love,” she said without hesitation.
He held his bottle in the air. “Now that I can agree with.”
Sienna clinked his bottle with hers.
They continued to chat until the timer sounded, letting them know the first batch of pies were done. Placing those to cool, they reloaded the oven with more. While they waited the near hour for the next batch to cook, they cleaned the kitchen, rendering it back to spotless in no time.
The last batch of pies finally went into the oven. A little after one a.m., they’d baked every single pie.
“Oh, my God. I can’t believe we are finally finished. If I never see another sweet potato, I’ll be okay with that,” Sienna said.
“It wasn’t so bad,” Jake said, his eyes sweeping the numerous pies scattered about the kitchen. On the counters, the island, the table. “We did our thing, didn’t we?”
“Yes, we did.” Sienna high-fived him. “Thank you so much, Jake. I truly couldn’t have done this without you. You were a blessing in disguise.”
“I can’t think of a better compliment than to be called a blessing. I’m glad I could help. It’s getting late. I guess I should get going.”
“Getting late? It’s almost two in the morning. It’s not getting late; it is late. Or early. I guess it depends on how you look at it.”
Jake checked his watch. “Wow. I guess they’re right. Time does fly when you’re having fun.”
“I’m glad to know you think baking all these pies was fun.”
“That wasn’t what I was referring to,” he said. Sienna gave him an awkward look, but didn’t say anything. “I can show myself out. Have a good night, Sienna.”
“You, too, Jake. Thank you again for everything.”
“It was my pleasure.”
“By the way, if you talk to my sister, you don’t have to mention helping me.”
He made a zipper motion across his lips, then tossed the imaginary key. “Your secret is safe with me. Do you need help transporting the pies to the shelter?”
“I think I can manage it. You’ve already done so much. I wouldn’t dream of inconveniencing you any further.”
“It wouldn’t be an inconvenience at all. If you change your mind, you have my card. Give me a call.”
She nodded.
“Good night,” he said, moving away. Almost out of the kitchen, Sienna called out to him. He turned to face her.
Confused, he said, “Saturday?”
“It’ll be a good day to hang the Christmas lights.”
She gave him a low-wattage smile that drew his attention to her mouth. Damn. He had to quit fantasizing about kissing her. “Sounds good. I’m going to make you fall in love with Christmas again, Sienna Turner. One light at a time. Just you wait and see.”
Chapter Five
Sienna wished she’d taken Jake up on his offer to help transport the pies to the shelter because it had been an absolute headache trying to fit all of them inside her Chevy Cruze. To keep them from shifting all over the place, she’d been forced to drive ten miles under the speed limit the entire trip across-town. A tough feat for a lead-footed individual. She’d been flipped off, honked at, cursed, but she’d gotten all the pies there in one piece. That was all that mattered.
She’d arrived at Doorway to Hope a little after ten that morning to assist with setup. The fact Evelyn and her family wouldn’t be here this year to share the experience saddened her. Still, being here filled her with a fullness she couldn’t explain. When she saw the amount of food that had been donated, she overflowed with even more joy.
So many people would be fed today. The idea of a single person going hungry—not just on Thanksgiving, but any day of the week—broke her heart. But today, she would be responsible for helping to stomp out hunger.
“Sienna?”
Sienna turned to see Leland Rhodes, Doorway to Hope’s director, approaching. The heavyset man wore a green and brown long-sleeved plaid shirt, a pair of khakis—rolled at the bottom and a pair of spit-shined brown leather dress shoes. Styling and profiling, Evelyn would have said.
“Mr. Rhodes. Happy Thanksgiving.”
“Happy Thanksgiving to you, dear. It’s wonderful to see you again. I saw the pies in the kitchen and they look as delicious as always. Thank you so much for providing them.”
The leftover mix she’d sampled had tasted pretty good. She just hoped the finished product did, too. “You’re very welcome.”
Someone called out to Mr. Rhodes and he excused himself.
Sienna had been tasked with setting up the dessert table. In addition to her pies, there were dozens of cakes: twelve-layer chocolate, lemon pound, coconut, red velvet, strawberry, and carrot to name a few. There were several trays of cookies and platters of cupcakes. Once done organizing everything, she took a step back to admire her handiwork. Evelyn would be proud.
When her cell phone vibrated in her pocket, she fished it out. It didn’t surprise her when Evelyn’s name scrolled across the screen. Swiping her finger across the screen, she made the call active. “Hello, sister. Yes, I’m at the shelter. No, I didn’t have any issues getting the pies here.”
Evelyn laughed. “You know me too well. Happy Thanksgiving.”
“Happy Thanksgiving to you and the fam. I hope you’re having an amazing time in California.”
Evelyn groaned, then spent the next few minutes giving an account of her visit to her monster-in-law’s. According to Evelyn, the overbearing woman had critiqued her cooking, parenting skills, even her attire.
“But enough about me,” Evelyn said. “How are you?”
“I’m good. Just gearing up to serve the village.”
“I meant to call you yesterday, but we spent most of the day visiting every consignment shop in California, because my dear husband lacks the balls to say no to his endearing mother,” Evelyn said sarcastically.
If Sienna had been standing in front of her sister, she knew there would have been a scowl on Evelyn’s face. Archer’s inability to stand up to his mother had always been a source of contention in their marriage. “Really? I thought it was because you were trying to avoid talking to me after sending a complete stranger to my home.”
Evelyn laughed. “Jake Hollidae is no stranger. Archer has been knowing him for years. He seems like a great guy.”
“Well, you’ll be happy to know I didn’t call the police on him. Also, that I agreed to allow him to hang the Christmas lights. If my house resembles a scene from National Lampoon’s Christmas, I’m blaming you. I’m—” Sienna stopped mid-thought, her eyes narrowing on the man now chatting with Mr. Rhodes. Jake? Her body confirmed his presence.
“Sienna? Are you still there?”
“Eve, can I call you back?”
“Is everything okay?” Evelyn asked.
“Yes. I’ll call you later, okay?”
Evelyn hesitated a moment before finally saying, “Okay.”
Ending the call, she slid her cell phone into the back pocket of the jeans. After another minute or so, Jake shook Mr. Rhodes’s hand, then headed in her direction. Unable to turn away, she watched him like a vulture as he crossed the floor, tossing a greeting and a Happy Thanksgiving to everyone he passed. The burnt orange sweater and dark brown pants he wore accented his muscular frame divinely and caused a flutter in her stomach. She wasn’t the only one admiring the well-put-together man, who moved with the confidence, poise and grace of a lion.
“Hey, you,” he said on approach.
“Hey. What are you doing here?” she asked.
Jake flashed his palms. “Don’t worry. I’m not stalking you.” He shrugged one strong shoulder. “I have a few extra hours to spare and thought I’d put the time to good use.” He pointed over his shoulder. “I spoke with Mr. Rhodes. He says he could use all the hands he can get. But if you’re uncomfortable with me being here…”
“Why would I be uncomfortable?” They’d practically spent an entire night together already. “We’ve been through a calamity together, remember? We’re practically BFFs.”
Jake grinned. “Well, put me to work, BFF.”
Watching Jake perform his duties: moving tables, unfolding and placing chairs, Sienna couldn’t help but regard him in the highest esteem. Not just because he was a delight to ogle—though he was, all flexing muscles and such—but because he seemed genuinely happy to be here. To have him here, and clearly motivated to help, spoke volumes about his character.
Jake fit in seamlessly, chatting and laughing with the other volunteers. Several of the female helpers took great interest in him. Oddly, he didn’t appear overly adsorbed by their attention. Sienna found herself unable to keep her eyes off him. Each time he’d glance in her direction—which was quite often—she’d turn away and make a poor attempt at looking busy.
Exhausted with the pretending, it had gotten to a point where she would just smile and so would he. That became their ongoing thing.
Hours later, when the dining hall filled with people, Jake showed the same level of enthusiasm as he had before, along with a great degree of compassion. Clearly, a people person, laughter continuously rang out from his area, which affected everyone around him, making them all a tad jollier.
Tasked with manning the turkey carving station—a duty that, in previous years, had only been held by Mr. Rhodes—Jake appeared to enjoy serving the VIPs, as he’d dubbed them. He never once looked down on them or made any kind of snide remarks about their need to be here. He’d simply placed their meat on the plate and encouraged them to return for more.
Around four that afternoon, the last wave of folks trickled through the line. Once the hall cleared out, Sienna, Jake and the others started the cleanup process. It didn’t take long to return the hall to its previous organized state.
“Another successful year,” Mr. Rhodes said, moving up behind Sienna. “I want to thank you again for being here and for the delicious pies.” He rubbed his protruding belly. “I think I ate a whole one by myself.”
Hearing someone call something she’d prepared delicious swelled Sienna with pride. Maybe she wasn’t as horrible at baking as she thought. Of course, she did have assistance. “I’m happy to have helped, Mr. Rhodes, and even happier you liked the pies. Jake helped me prepare them. I’ll make sure to let him know how much you enjoyed them.”
Mr. Rhodes’s smile grew. “Well, you two make a gre
at team. I was just about to go chat with him, so I’ll thank him myself for those tasty pies and for all the turkeys and hams.”
Sienna’s brows furrowed. “Turkeys and hams?”
“A truck full.” Mr. Rhodes’s hands flailed. “Fully-cooked turkeys and hams everywhere. A fine young man. Thank you for introducing him to the program. He says you encouraged him to be here. That’s what it’s all about,” Mr. Rhodes said, then moseyed off.
Sienna’s eyes slid to Jake, standing across the room. She recognized the man he chatted with as one who’d passed through the line with his wife and two kids. One girl, one boy. The family had stood out to her, mostly because of the looks in their eyes. Excitement and joy in the kids. Determination and steadfastness in the wife’s. In the husband’s… Sienna had seen defeat. It had saddened her. However, the man now smiled, bright and wide. What had Jake said to him? Deciding it was none of her business, she retreated into the kitchen.
A short time later, Jake joined her, startling her when he bumped her shoulder with his.
“What do you say we go for coffee after we’re done here?” Jake asked. “My treat,” he added.
Out of habit, Sienna fixed her mouth to say no. Since her divorce, declining invitations from the opposite sex had become second nature to her. Usually out of a lack of interest, but also self-preservation. But for the first time in a long time, no wasn’t what teetered on the tip of her tongue; however, her lips wouldn’t form around the yes, eager to escape, either.
“Unless you have some place to be,” Jake said. “It is Thanksgiving. I’m sure you have big plans.”
Yes, she did. Those plans included a pint of rum raisin ice cream, pajamas and her remote. Giving Jake’s invitation some consideration, she said, “I have a little time to spare.”
The Pancake Palace wasn’t quite what Jake had in mind when he’d invited Sienna for coffee, but she didn’t seem to mind the greasy diner one bit. Unfortunately, the spot he’d intended to take her had closed early on account of Thanksgiving. Understandable. Folks wanted to spend time with their families. He could respect that.
Jake eyed the clock affixed to one of the lemon-yellow walls. He didn’t need to be at the Winthrop estate until seven. That gave him some time with this lovely lady. He planned to make the most of it. “I hope this place is okay,” he said. “Not five-star, but you have to admit, it’s festive.”
