by Jen Peters
The cafeteria held another dozen trees, most of them smaller and more like what people would have in their homes. Some were similar to her family tree, with cross-stitched miniatures, children’s kindergarten ornaments, and “Our First Christmas” mixed in with colored balls.
One was all red on a white tree, while another was nothing but Disney princesses. Forrest shook his head at that one, but Robin would have loved it when she was little.
Lori Swanson’s tree was the surprise. She hadn’t entered her florist shop in the commercial contest, but she outdid herself here: a tall tree draped with gold ribbon and absolutely covered with sunflowers.
“Wow,” was all Nora could say, stunned by her friend’s creation.
Forrest just shook his head. “How do people come up with these ideas?”
“More to the point,” Nora said, “how do you find so many sunflowers this time of year?”
They moved through the rest of the trees, talking about past Christmases and the delight of children.
“I loved watching the kids come out and see the tree and all the presents,” Nora said. “The wonder in their eyes…”
“Me too. Well…” Forrest frowned slightly. “Maybe I didn’t enjoy it as much then as I do remembering it now.”
Nora raised an eyebrow and waited.
“I remember getting Eric his first bike, and how I had to work to get him an X-box when they came out, and the time we went skiing instead of to his grandparents. But I don’t think I have the memories of small moments like you do. I was too focused on work and what I needed to do to grow the business.”
“Workaholic? What was your business like?”
Forrest laughed. “Which one? The aquarium business that flopped, the computer repair shop that also flopped, or the supply stores and consulting that are going strong?”
What an interesting combination. “Supply stores?”
“A beauty-supply chain with twenty-three stores, a janitorial supply company with twenty-eight stores, plus a business consulting program for people starting out.”
Nora looked at the homey Christmas trees surrounding them, thought of her own single restaurant, and sighed. “That’s a lot of managing to do. Do you miss it?”
Forrest shrugged. “Sometimes. I have good directors and I keep my hand in, but it’s harder than I expected to not be busy all the time. It just…well, it all started feeling rather empty. Not much time to enjoy the money I was making, and it can only do so much. I had lots of people to share it with, but never connected with anyone deeply. Maybe that’s why I like McCormick’s Creek—it’s real. You care about each other.”
“We do,” Nora murmured. There were a few bad apples in town she wouldn’t mind seeing leave, but mostly they were good people.
With the kids and the restaurant, her life had been laser-focused, but she’d still had time for other people around her. In fact, she probably wouldn’t have made it without them. What would it have been like to split her energy in different directions as Forrest had?
She squeezed his hand. “You’ve done okay, though. Eric is a fine young man and you have a good relationship with him. That’s what counts.”
He looked down at her with a smile. “It is, and I’m grateful. It doesn’t keep me from wishing for more, though.”
His words seemed to carry a double meaning, and Nora looked away. Was she ready to be someone’s more?
She set the thought aside. “Come on. We’ve got a candy-apple walk to organize.”
Chapter 6
No matter what Cat decided to wear for her wedding, Nora knew she wanted to treat herself to a special dress. She left all the Christmas tree boxes in the little trailer behind her car—a no-brainer considering how tired she was—and spent early Sunday evening online, clicking from one website to another. The ads and suggested sites she clicked led her into a rabbit hole of gowns, from outlandish to exquisite.
She passed on slinky, sequined creations—her modestly plump figure wouldn’t appreciate them. She liked the fun, full skirts above the knee, but they all felt too young. And she thought she might like a long gown, although she couldn’t think of anywhere else she would wear it. Robin’s wedding, maybe.
Of course, with the Christmas season, there was an over-abundance of red, black, and gold dresses. She nixed anything black immediately, didn’t want to stand out in red, and the gold just seemed too over the top. And of course, Cat didn’t have any colors picked out to guide her choices.
Colors. If she didn’t have colors, how was Nora to choose flowers? Surely there must be some sort of theme to hold it all together. But how to do that without making it too elaborate for Cat?
She clicked half-heartedly from one dress to another, thinking about Christmas colors, the deep apricot Cat loved to wear, and Justin’s favorite blue.
Then her eyes popped.
On the screen was a sumptuous bronze gown. The ruched bodice, the smooth skirt, the gorgeous color…her body sighed in anticipation.
She changed images, examining it from the side, the back, a front angle, and back to the front detail. If she ever dreamed up a dress, if she ever had any design talent, this was the dress she would create.
Could she possibly get it in time for Justin’s wedding?
One more click and her heart sank. Almost a thousand dollars for a dress she would wear once, maybe twice. There was no way on earth she would ever pay so much for a piece of clothing. A refrigerator or stove, maybe. But a dress? There were plenty of other, more worthwhile things to spend money on.
Nora firmly returned to her original search. Splurges like that were not for her. Eventually, she found a charming dress, navy blue with cream insets, and under two hundred dollars. She closed her eyes and imagined herself in it—it was lovely. Maybe not her dream dress, but very nice. She studied the size charts, then crossed her fingers and ordered. Seven to ten days to arrive would put it here in plenty of time for the wedding.
She checked the clock—she still had time to push herself and set the tree up in the living room, even if it didn’t get fully decorated tonight. She clicked over to the tab with the bronze gown and let herself have one last daydream, then closed the laptop.
* * *
Christmas carols filled the house the next evening as Nora pulled the last cake round out of the oven and set it to cool beside the other four. Red velvet, vanilla almond, lemon lavender, raspberry sour cream, and chocolate peppermint. That should give Justin and Cat some good choices, and she could do others if they didn’t like any of these. Of course, knowing those two, they’d probably opt for plain white cake.
She would give herself five minutes on the couch before she started on various fillings and frostings. She nudged Augie to the side, put her feet up, and closed her eyes.
The doorbell and the dogs’ subsequent barking woke her nearly an hour later. “Shush, all of you!” She motioned with her hand and four of them headed back toward Robin’s room. Augie stayed as she opened the door.
“Hi there,” Forrest said, brushing snowflakes off his hat. She hadn’t seen a man wear a business hat for years, but it suited him. “I wondered…I’m sorry, did I wake you?”
Nora waved a hand. “Just closed my eyes for a moment and now an hour has gone by. Unbelievable. Come on in. You can talk while I play catch up.”
Forrest eyed the cakes on the counter. “Five? And after you worked a full shift?”
“Sure,” Nora shrugged. “I’m a baker. And how did you know I did a full shift?”
It was Forrest’s turn to shrug. “I might have stopped by the restaurant. And Robin might have let me know you’d be home.”
“That girl…” Inwardly, Nora was pleased. Forrest seemed to be hanging around quite a bit—she was getting vibes that this wasn’t simply a one-sided delusion. Did he want something to come of it? Did she?
Forrest was quite a bit different from Gary, big in personality and size where Gary had been tall, lean, and quiet. But she’d seen traits in
Forrest that she admired; he was helpful, considerate, adventurous. And romantic. She thought of him kissing her hand—definitely romantic.
“So what’s all this for?” Forrest cut into her thoughts.
“Cake samples. I want to give Justin and Cat some ideas.”
“You’re making their wedding cake, on top of everything else?”
Nora raised her eyebrows. “I’ll do what I want for my son’s wedding, thank you.”
Forrest raised his hands. “I know, I know. You have every right to. But you’re horribly busy, and I thought you said they wanted to keep it low key.”
“I’ll just have to make the time work. And low-key means it won’t be four tiers of fondant and edible flowers. It doesn’t mean the cake can’t taste good.”
She pulled a saucepan from the dish drainer, glancing at Forrest before starting the lemon curd. He meant well, she was sure. Actually, he was trying to watch out for her, and that felt pretty good.
Justin had tried to step into his father’s shoes, but she had worked hard to help him be a regular teenager, not the man of the house. She hadn’t let him give her money from his part-time job or be the sounding board for her grief. She’d been proud of him doing his chores without being nagged, but the only extra thing she’d asked was for him to help take Robin places once he got his driver’s license.
So to have Forrest concerned for her? Nora warmed at the thought. She’d been the capable, responsible, on-her-own woman for a long time.
She described the cake flavors as she zested the lemons and started a raspberry sauce, promising he could taste in a bit.
“So what can I do to help?” he asked. “I have to admit I’m not much good in the kitchen.”
“Hmm…could you write notes as I think out loud? There’s so much in my head, and I forget half of it by the time I get to pen and paper.”
Forrest pulled up an app on his phone. “Shoot.”
Nora began whisking the lemon curd while the raspberries simmered. “We need to do something for announcements. I think Cat will send invitations by email, but there will be people they want to tell who won’t actually be at the wedding. Probably still email, but a nice graphic…And I really need to pin her down on something about colors—we don’t want a mishmash of flowers.” She swiped the hair away from her eyes.
“Wedding at the church?” Forrest asked.
“Yes. I’ve talked to Pastor Mark already, but Christmas Day is complicated. I need to see if Justin and Cat would be happy with Christmas Eve.”
“Reception? Or would they think that’s too much?”
“Oh, we’ll have a reception, we’ll just call it a celebration party.” Nora grinned. “I’m pretty sure it will be at the Inn—you know they met while remodeling it?”
Forrest nodded, then turned his attention to his phone. “So you’re going to need flowers ordered, food planned, and music—you know the young people will want to dance. Maybe some of us oldsters, too.” He grinned.
Nora groaned. “I hadn’t even thought about someone for the music.”
“You concentrate on the cakes and getting some color choices from the bride and groom. I can find a DJ and check with the Inn to make sure they have the tables and chairs needed. The parlor would make a great dance area. You’ll need to think about other food besides the cake—probably finger food—and I will make sure the florist can order the flowers you need in time. Nothing exotic, I expect.”
Nora stared at Forrest. She could see the successful CEO come out in him—focused, all business and detail-oriented. She was impressed, but it put her a little off-kilter, too.
“Whoa,” she said. “I appreciate the help, but I don’t need to be managed. I’m quite capable of putting together a wedding, even if it is short notice.”
This was about her business, not his, and echoes of the last time someone had tried to take over ran through her mind. Let me take care of the bookkeeping, Nora—you need to spend your time cooking. She’d almost lost the restaurant to her “friend’s” embezzlement.
Forrest looked sheepish. His mouth gave a wry twist as he put his phone down. “I’m sorry. I was rather taking charge, wasn’t I?”
Her eyebrows rose.
“I’ve spent so many years in corporate mode that sometimes it comes back way too easily.” He sat back and rested his hands on the counter. “What would you like me to do? I’m here and I can help, and you can slap me if I try to take over again.”
“No, you’re right,” Nora said, staring into the thickening sauce, trying to put her friend’s betrayal out of her mind. This was a wedding, not her restaurant, and he was only trying to help. “I had forgotten about the music and I don’t know who to ask. I just got a little defensive—I’ve been handling everything on my own for a long time.”
“I meant it, though,” Forrest said. “You can suffocate me with frosting if I get out of line.”
Nora finally grinned. “I don’t think it will come to that.” She tasted the lemon curd, added a pinch of salt, and gave it a final whisk. “I’ll tell you what. If you would check around for possible DJs, I’d really appreciate it.”
Forrest nodded and put a note on his phone.
Nora spooned a small amount of the intense lemon sauce onto a plate. “Now try this.”
Chapter 7
There was a quiet lull at the restaurant Tuesday, and Nora looked at the mishmash on the storage shelves in dismay.
“Hey, Mom,” Robin said, entering the kitchen. “Everything’s clean and prepped out there—do you want help with anything?”
“Sure, you can help sort out the stock. It’s gotten kind of jumbled in the last few days. Too much to do.”
“Wedding stuff?” Robin asked. “I wish I could help more, but maybe after the groundbreaking on Saturday.”
Nora looked at her daughter with pride. “I’m so excited for you. You had a dream and you’re making it work.”
“Cliff’s a big part of it. I don’t think I could have done it without him.” A blissful look crossed her face, and Nora knew she was off in romantic thoughts.
She chuckled. “You and Cliff, Justin and Cat. What am I going to do without all of you?”
Robin put her arm around Nora’s shoulders. “Aw, Mom, it’s time for you to have a life of your own, don’t you think? Besides, I don’t think Cliff and I are setting a date any time soon.”
Nora shook her head. “Young people these days. I say if you find the right person and you’re sure about him—”
“I’m sure,” Robin interjected.
“—then why wait? Unless you need time to plan an elaborate wedding.”
Robin shook her head. “Something small and intimate, when it comes time,” she said.
Nora studied her. “We haven’t talked about your wedding dreams since you were a child. How much does tradition matter to you?” She held her breath, surprised she didn’t know how her daughter would answer.
Robin wiped down the shelf that Nora had just cleared. “I guess it depends on what tradition. I’m not hung up on ‘something borrowed, something blue,’ if that’s what you mean.”
“Hmm. What about your dress? Would you want it new and fashionable, or would you want to wear mine? It might be too poufy and froufrou for you.” Nora forced air into her lungs. She felt disappointment coming, no matter what Robin said.
Nora busied herself with items on the top shelf, but Robin put her cloth down and pulled her into a tight hug. “I would love to wear your wedding dress, Mom! I’m not sure it would fit, but…”
Nora held her daughter close, joy-filled with a piece of tradition that should be inconsequential but wasn’t. “Oh, Robin, I love that you want to wear it yourself. It shouldn’t matter, but somehow it makes me ridiculously happy. And you’re smaller than I was then, so taking it in will be easy. We could alter it, make it into something a little more in line with today’s styles. But…” Her voice trailed off. She was still concerned about Cat. How best to broach the subject?
Would Robin feel like her rights were being shoved aside?
“What, Mom? Like I said, there’s no hurry.”
Nora sighed and pulled her daughter over to a stool. “I need to tell you I offered it to Cat on Friday. Would you be horribly resentful if Cat wore it first? I don’t want you feeling like you get leftovers, but—”
“Cat wants to wear it? Awesome!” Robin shot off the stool and twirled. “It will be gorgeous on her. And no, I wouldn’t be getting leftovers. We’ll just have to consult on alterations, find a style we both like.”
What a generous daughter Nora had. She shouldn’t have worried about Robin’s reaction in the first place, but she’d needed to check. Now it was just Cat—that young woman stumped her sometimes.
“Cat’s a little confusing to me,” Nora said. “I mean, she’s perfect for Justin, but I don’t really know how she thinks. She wants a simple wedding and was going to wear one of her regular church dresses. I told her I thought we could keep it simple and still make it a magical day. And so, even though I hadn’t talked to you yet, I offered her my dress to wear. I thought it would help—give her something special without needing to spend money or time on her own.”
“Sounds good.”
“Except she backed off. Turned a bit pale, actually, and ran off.”
Robin sat back down on the stool. “That’s it? She didn’t say anything?”
Nora shook her head. “Only that a wedding dress is what a mother does for her daughter, and then that she had to get to work.”
“Oh, Mom. Hasn’t she told you about her own mother? The woman was quite something, I gather.”
Cat and Nora had talked about many things, but had only just begun to share confidences and deeper feelings. The young woman hadn’t opened up about her mother yet, other than to say she wasn’t in contact much. It was a sad state of affairs, but Nora hadn’t felt she could pry.
Now, she sat on the other stool and asked what she’d rather not know. “Did she abuse Cat?”
