Page 64 of Cowboy’s Christmas Baker

it cheered Dad up

and next year it will be easier

we’ll have a new good memory to think about now

Harrison’s hand moved automatically to his chest, rubbing the invisible ache growing there.

i’m glad you’re here

The ache turned into a longing. He wanted to hold her so badly that it hurt.

But he wasn’t going to push.

Me too.

Good night, Mallory. Sweet dreams.

good night, Harrison

sweet dreams

He dozed off with his phone in his hand, thinking about all of the messages he couldn’t wait to send her tomorrow.

14

MALLORY

Aweek later, Mal stood at her booth at the open-air market, just a few minutes before the day’s event was scheduled to begin.

The farmer’s market was always held here instead of in the village center during the cold season or when it rained. The massive, covered space meant weather wasn’t such a big factor in getting people out shopping. The open-air market was also close to where the highway would soon be. The road wasn’t in yet, but when it was, she had high hopes for what kind of traffic the market might get from curious travelers.

Last year, the town had begun an annual tradition of having some Christmas festivities here. Today’s special holiday market was being held to support local charities, with each vendor dedicating a portion of their sales to a cause they cared about. And there were plenty of other things going on too. Tonight, there would even be a campfire and a singalong.

Mal had chosen Carla’s Place and the Heroes Center as her charities, and she truly hoped she could sell enough to do a little good for both. Her table was laid with her usual treats on one side—cookies, muffins, and loaves of fresh bread.

The other side was completely covered in trays of jingle bell knots.

All week, she had been giving out samples of the new treat and the response had been overwhelmingly positive so far. She had taken orders for the special pretzels for so many Christmas parties and events that she’d had to start turning some down since she didn’t have the time or oven space for more.

And plenty of folks came in wanting a jingle bell knot with their morning coffee too. Yesterday, she’d been sold out by nine in the morning.

“We could try limiting it to two per customer,” Annie suggested. “Unless they order ahead.”

“But I can’t take any more orders,” Mal said worriedly.

It was a good problem to have—the kind of problem she had always dreamed of. But she had never imagined having to turn anyone away. It didn’t feel good to tell folks she was all out of something they wanted.

She’d been experimenting with mini-pretzels, hoping maybe a smaller version would be better for kids and light eaters, and then she could make a whole lot more per batch.

For today, she had plenty of both the bigger and smaller versions. And she was hoping that her supply would last a little longer than usual, since there were so many other options here at the market.

All around her, other vendors were getting ready. This morning, children were allowed to have booths too, and there were so many kids setting out their impressive crafts. There were finger paintings, lumpy pottery offerings, and one girl even had a whole table of tiny crocheted animals.

In the center of the room, a couple of the Cassidy boys were setting up the trains. The children had loved the huge train display last year, and Mal was sure this year would be no different.

Mom loved all of this so much last year…

She opened herself up to let the memory return to her instead of turning it away just because it hurt. And she was rewarded instantly with a vision of her mom walking around with a reusable shopping bag so stuffed with purchases that it barely closed, a huge smile on her face as she greeted her friends and former students.