Page 10 of Mechanic’s Christmas Match

“What are you talking about?” she asked.

“It wasn’t much, and Theo helped,” Rory said with a teasing smile. “I can’t charge you for it when he did most of the work. It wouldn’t be right.”

“But you guys towed the car,” Ana said weakly.

She wanted to argue and firmly insist on paying, but the truth was that not spending her savings would be a huge help. She felt tears of relief prickle her eyes at the idea, and willed herself not to cry in front of Theo.

“Bossman already agreed it’s on the house,” Rory told her firmly. “Come on, I’ll walk you out.”

He touched his hand to the small of her back, as if to lead her outside.

Even when she started moving and his hand fell away, she could still feel that gentle touch sending tingles up her spine.

Theo walked alongside, his little hand still in hers, blessedly oblivious to the feelings crashing around in her heart.

They watched as Rory removed the car seat from his own truck and installed it back in her car in a matter of seconds, making her appreciate his strength and skill all over again.

There was a time not so long ago when I wouldn’t have known enough about car seats to be impressed by that, she thought to herself.

“All set,” Rory said, warmly, running a hand through his dark hair. “Happy Thanksgiving.”

“Happy Thanksgiving,” Ana echoed, as she strapped Theo into his seat.

When she straightened, Rory was still there, standing close enough that she could smell his spicy aftershave.

“Listen,” she said softly, too ashamed to meet his eyes. “I appreciate this so much. You’ll never know.”

“I know exactly how it is when times are tight,” he said, his voice a little gruff. “If not for my sister and her husband, I’d still be… in a tough situation myself. We have to look out for each other whenever we can.”

She looked up at him, knowing he meant that people should look out for each other in general. But there was just something about the way he’d said it that made it sound personal, like the two of them were in this together.

His blue eyes were filled with concern and something else that almost looked like hope.

“Speaking of your sister,” she heard herself say, tearing her eyes from his again. “Stop by the shop for a gift for her. We’ll take care of you.”

For a moment there was silence between them, and her foolish heart throbbed at the idea that he might finally tell her that he liked her.

“I might just do that,” Rory replied at last, his voice warm with humor again, like always. “See you around town, Ana Banana.”

4

ANA

The day after Thanksgiving, Ana hurried around the dress shop, doing her best to care for her customers and make sure everyone was finding what they needed.

The small space was full of happy voices and the rustle of fabric, accompanied by the local station playing softly on the radio. It would be all-Christmas music, all the time, until the new year. And though Ana always thought she’d be tired of it by January, that hadn’t happened yet. Instead, she often found herself nostalgic for the Christmas carols after the station moved back to their regular programming.

Her mom stood at the checkout, spreading cheerful gossip with everyone who came up to pay and carefully wrapping up their purchases. Mariangel Gutierrez was one of those people who everyone immediately feels comfortable with. She had been born for this work, creating original dresses and other clothing and then selling the pieces to people she cared about.

Though Ana was the one who had dreamed of working in fashion, her mom had jumped in with both feet to support that dream. Mari’s hard-earned gifts ensured that the shop always managed to stay afloat, even in a tiny town like Trinity Falls.

As much as Ana loved her friends Mal and Valerie, her mother was her real best friend.

Today, the store was busier than ever. It was pretty well known that Ana and her mom always marked down almost half their inventory on Thanksgiving weekend to make room for more. Most of the customers who stopped by today were here for the clearance items.

But several customers had taken an extra moment to look for a gift for a friend or family member, and those gifts were almost all selected from the full-priced items at the front of the shop.

Of course Sloane Greenfield had picked today to stop by with that reporter, Kai Blackstone. Kai was writing an article about the best small towns in America, and somehow, Trinity Falls was on his list to check out. Sloane was a local real estate agent, and she had volunteered to show him around. If the town miraculously made the list of “best towns”, that kind of attention could mean great things for their beloved little town, so of course everyone was tripping all over themselves to make a good impression.