“Tell her I said hi,” Kent called after Mason as he walked to the front of the store to take the call.
Ginger had been Mason’s best friend since they were kids, and she knew Kent well. She also worked at the same company as Mason as the lead chemist. She was the one who made sure their fertilizer mixtures were the best in the industry. Mason loved her like a sister, but there had never been anything romantic about the relationship. She was a little too quirky for him, always buried in her work, poring over chemical equations, and singing to her plants. Her apartment looked like a tropical jungle, so maybe singing to plants actually had a benefit.
“Hey! How’s it going out in the middle of nowhere?” Ginger asked.
“Not too bad. It’s good to see my dad, and I like helping him out with the store, but it is kind of dead around here,” Mason joked. They both lived in the city, where everyone was rushing all the time. His job was very demanding, too, and the truth was that he was enjoying the downtime. “How are things back at work?”
Ginger’s sigh echoed over the phone. “Brad is obsessed with the formula for the rosebushes. Apparently Bursting Blooms is outselling us. You know Brad. He can’t handle that.”
“You can say that again. Is he pressuring you to do something you don’t want to do?” Mason had been a little concerned about Brad’s ideas as to how to outperform their competitors lately. It was one thing to come up with a better product, but Brad had suggested doing some things that were a little shady to give them an advantage. Mason didn’t agree with that type of behavior.
“Not really. I mean, he doesn’t know enough about what I do, so all he says is ‘make it better.’ Which, of course, I’m trying to do. But I thought I should warn you that he’s finagled something so that our booth is right next to Bursting Blooms at the trade show coming up in a week.”
“Why warn me? I’m on vacation, so Kevin is filling in.” At least, that had been the plan when Mason went on vacation.
“Yeah, well, about that… I heard Brad saying something about giving you a call to see if you could do the trade show.”
Now it was Mason’s turn to sigh. He ran his hands through his hair. “Really? My dad is counting on me. I’m not sure I want to leave to go to a trade show.”
“I know. That’s why I’m calling you. But I’m not sure how you can get out of it, and it is kind of flattering that Brad thinks you’re the best salesperson.”
“Okay, well, I guess it is a compliment. But hopefully, he’ll stick with Kevin.”
They chatted about a few personal things, such as Ginger’s latest plant, a philodendron that she had put on top of her refrigerator and, according to her, really started thriving when she sang Queen songs to it. Apparently, it really loved “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Mason was in a good mood when he hung up. Ginger always lifted his spirits; she was so outgoing and bubbly.
“Oh, there you are. How’s Ginger?” Kent had come out of the back room of the store.
“She’s doing great. Got a new plant.”
Kent laughed. “That’s my Ginger. I finished decorating the tree. Why don’t you come out and take a look, and then maybe we can go and grab some dinner.”
“Good idea.” Mason set his phone to silent mode so he wouldn’t be interrupted by Brad at dinner. There would be plenty of time to talk to his boss tomorrow.
Chapter 10
The next day, Kristen showed up at the town hall ten minutes early for the wreath-making contest. Ethan had already dropped off the pine boughs and other greenery that the tree farm had donated.
The wreath-making contest was always one of Kristen’s favorite Christmas traditions. She loved the smell of pine in the air and the sound of laughter as people worked together to create beautiful wreaths. This year, she was determined to win. As she walked into the town hall, she saw rows of tables set up with all the supplies she would need.
Several business owners were already there. Julie and Ida were sitting at a table, and Julie waved her over. Ida jumped up to hug her. For a woman in her eighties, she was pretty spry.
“Kristen, it’s so great you are back in town. I know Julie is looking forward to having you around.”
Kristen was flooded with warmth. “Thanks. I’m glad to be back.”
Julie waved to a chair. “Sit with us.” She held up a round knitted ball with glitter on it. “Gram made these for the wreaths.”
“They’re lovely.” Kristen exchanged a raised-brow glance with Julie, making sure Ida couldn’t see her, then started to unload the bag of items she’d brought.
“Ooh, those are going to be perfect.” Julie reached for a pine cone.
After working on the skating plans and eating dinner, Kristen and her mom had spent the rest of the evening dipping the edges of the pine cones in gold glitter and sharing a bottle of wine. It hadn’t taken them long to learn that glitter and a cat equaled a big mess, but they’d had fun anyway.
Ida leaned closer. “What else do you have?”
“Just some mistletoe sprigs.” Kristen held up a few bags.
“That sounds lovely. You can use some of my decorations if you want.” Ida picked up a knitted ball and smiled at it proudly.
