“Since the tree is prelit, we don’t have to mess with hanging lights.”
“Lucky us,” he answered.
“Exactly. On real trees, it can take forever to get the lights right.”
“I love Christmas lights,” Lydia said, her features aglow in the bright colors from Kim’s artificial tree.
“So do I,” Ryan told her daughter with a gentle smile that touched Holly deep at her center.
She cleared her throat. “Once the lights are on, I always start with the garland first and then hang the decorations after that.”
“The garland is in the box closest to the tree,” Audrey said. “Mom always used a gold shiny ribbon for a garland.”
“Good to know.”
She opened the box and found a roll of wide ribbon on top, coiled around what looked like a portion of a dowel.
She had to admire Kim’s organizational techniques. As someone who was usually only too happy to take down her Christmas decorations—or so exhausted by all the fuss, at that point—she usually tended to store her decorations haphazardly.
“This will work nicely,” she said. “Give me a few minutes to hang the garland and then the rest of you can start hanging ornaments.”
“Even me?” Lydia asked, eyes wide as if afraid to hope.
“Especially you, darling.” She smiled, kissing Lydia’s forehead. When she lifted her head, her gaze met Ryan’s and she found him watching her with an unreadable expression, one that left her feeling slightly breathless.
The next hour was surprisingly enjoyable.
Ryan headed back outside, presumably to finish hanging the few remaining light strings. Audrey seemed to relish thechance to decorate the tree, choosing where each ornament should go with care. Lydia was more haphazard, hanging most of hers in one big clump that Audrey subtly tried to redistribute more equitably.
After it was clear Audrey could handle the task without her supervision, Holly left them to the tree decorating while she went to work adorning the mantel with more greenery, ribbon and floral picks she found in the boxes of decorations.
By the time Ryan came in from outside, the house looked vastly different than when Holly and Lydia had walked in a few hours earlier.
After shrugging out of his coat, Ryan sniffed the air with an appreciation that made her smile.
“It smells good in here.”
“Christmas magic,” she told him. She decided not to tell him she had found some pine- and cinnamon-scented sachets in a sealed container in one of the boxes and had tucked them around the room in unobtrusive places.
Holiday cheer to her was as much about the scents and tastes as the decorations.
He looked around the room. “Everything looks great. Thanks so much for your help.”
She could not disagree. The house looked warm and inviting, a haven of comfort.
“It was a team effort,” Holly said.
“Mom is going to be so happy when she comes home,” Audrey said with a satisfied sigh.
Holly couldn’t resist hugging the girl, her throat aching a little as she thought about how cheerfully Audrey had handled the stress and disorder of this holiday season.
“You’re most welcome. We were happy to help, weren’t we, Lyd?”
“I’m a helper.”
“You sure are,” Ryan said.
Lydia giggled, clearly besotted with the man.
