Page 39 of Christmas By The Book

“You okay?” she asked me.

“I just realized, I didn’t get you a present,” I told her, shaking my head.

She raised her eyebrows at me, then laughed. “You don’t need to get me a present, after everything you’ve done for me,” she assured me. “Honestly, I’m fine.”

But I wanted to. I started racking my brain as she made us a coffee, and we planned the perfect Christmas day.

“The church service still hasn’t happened yet,” she mused, tapping her finger against her bottom lip. “It was put off because of the storm last night. Do you feel like checking it out? The kids doing carols are always super-cute.”

“Sounds perfect,” I agreed. “As long as we can get something to eat afterward. That ramen is only going to hold me so long.”

“Sure thing,” she replied. “I think the diner is open on Christmas day.”

“Yes, I need a strong coffee and a big breakfast,” I replied, and I slipped my hand into hers. “So, where are we headed?”

The sidewalks had been cleared on the way up to the church, making it easy for us to attend the carols. The church, though tiny, was packed with people, all of them bundled up in the cold weather gear to fight off the chill. The snow sparkled in the windows, the light picking out glimmering details on the large tree next to the aisle. When the children sang, their voices filled the air, like the music was enveloping us completely.

She slipped her hand into mine, our fingers interlocking, as they sang, and I glanced down at her hands together. They seemed to fit into each other as though they had been made like that, made especially to match. I couldn’t get over it, how much sense we seemed to make together, and I knew this was the start of something I would never forget.

We were about to head out to the diner, when someone caught Jorja’s shoulder.

“Excuse me, Jorja?”

We both turned, to find an older woman standing before us, her cheeks pink from the cold outside.

“Oh, Mrs. Braithewaite,” she replied. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes, dear, it’s fine,” she assured her. “I just wanted you to know that I heard about everything Wharton was trying to do to your grandmother’s store, and I think you’ve done the right thing, choosing not to sell to him. He put in an offer on my place, too, but I just turned it down this morning.”

“That’s amazing news,” Jorja gushed.

Mrs. Braithewaite nodded. “Well, when I heard that he was going to knock down a few of the stores on our street to build a big superstore, I knew I had to put my foot down,” she explained. “We couldn’t have him turning Mastin Falls into just any other town, could we?”

“Agreed,” I cut in, squeezing Jorja’s hand.

“Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that we all have your back,” she added.

“All of you?” Jorja replied, a little confused.

“Yes, of course,” she replied, gesturing to the rest of the people in the church, who had started filing out into the snow once more. “Wharton was trying to get almost everyone on the street to sell up. But we all dug our heels in, and now he’s not going to have any reason to stay here. I hope he’ll be gone by the new year.”

Jorja beamed. “I’m so glad,” she murmured. “I just... I’m so glad we’re not going to lose anything that makes this place special.”

“Exactly,” Mrs. Braithewaite agreed, and she gave Jorja’s shoulder a squeeze. “Well, I’ll leave you to it. Merry Christmas!”

We echoed her words, and Jorja turned to me, eyebrows raised.

“Wow,” she murmured. “I didn’t expect that.”

“You didn’t?” I replied. “You’re inspiring people, Jorja. You’re showing them that they don’t have to take whatever Wharton offers them. That’s amazing.”

“Thank you,” she replied, lowering her gaze slightly, her cheeks flushing. It was rare for her to actually take a compliment without trying to find some reason why it didn’t actually apply to her. She was starting to trust me when I told her that I really meant what I said, and that felt good. Really good.

“Come on, I’m starving,” I told her, tugging her toward the door.

“Me too,” she agreed with a sigh.

“And this is going to be my Christmas gift to you,” I added.