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“All right,” Clark admitted, giving Valerie a crooked grin. “Maybe you’re on to something.”
He reached forward and pulled a candle out of the box, and she watched him with amusement as he sniffed it hesitantly. It was the apple streusel candle that she’d ordered, and it smelled like Sunday morning in the heart of fall at Sweet Thing Bakery.
“These candles really do smell great,” he murmured, and was once again rewarded by Valerie beaming at him.
“I told you so.”
Before he could say anything else, the door was pulled open again, grabbing both Clark and Valerie’s attention. Both of them turned their attention to the newcomer, and the moment Clark saw who it was his face broke into a wide, happy smile.
Three children darted forward, one of them skipping as they approached the counter a few feet ahead of their mother.
“Valerie,” Clark said, turning his attention back to his companion. “This is Margaret Hilton, and these are her kids Stephanie, Jake, and Willow. The house you saw the other day? They’re who we’re fixing it up for.”
Valerie turned to face them, her thousand-watt smile beaming in full force. Margaret, a matronly woman with a round, kind face, looked a bit caught off guard to be standing in front of a well-known actress.
“Valerie Bernard?” Margaret stammered, her apple cheeks reddening as she extended a hand to the woman in front of her.
Valerie nodded, taking the other woman’s proffered hand and shaking it warmly. “I sure am. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“You were inYours Ever After!” Stephanie exclaimed, jumping up and down on the balls of her feet excitedly.
The girl was only seven, and even though she was the oldest Hilton child, Clark was still surprised that she knew one of Valerie’s movies.
“It’s mine and Momma’s favorite,” the little girl gushed, turning her attention from Valerie to Clark, she began to explain. “In the movie, she plays a princess just like Cinderella. And she falls in love with a prince at a ball. There isn’t a pumpkin carriage, though. It would have been cooler if there was.”
Valerie threw her head back and laughed, and it was the first time that Clark had heard it. His heart started to hammer even harder, although he wasn’t entirely sure how. It had already been going fast enough that he was certain he would land himself in the hospital.
“I agree,” Valerie said to Stephanie, still chuckling over what the little girl had said. “A pumpkin carriage would have been much cooler. But Ididget to ride on a pink horse.”
“Was it really pink?” the girl asked, her bouncing becoming even more exuberant. “Momma said it was just special effects.”
“Nope.” Valerie shook her head. “It was pink. Through and through.”
“That’s so cool.” Stephanie nodded in approval as Valerie grinned at her.
The woman turned her attention to the other two kids, giving them a wide and open smile. Jake was five and Willow was three, and both of them were much shier than their older sister. They stood on either side of their mother, holding her hands and looking up at Valerie with wide eyes.
“Hello to you two,” she said, giving them a wink that made Willow giggle.
Clark’s heart warmed. He recalled what Valerie had said about having to get used to a small town, how she found it hard to believe that people were truly as nice as they seemed in a place like this. But watching her interact with the Hiltons, he couldn’t help but think that maybe Snowy Pine Ridge was already rubbing off on her.
Margaret turned her attention back to Clark, giving him a broad smile. He launched into an explanation of everything they had done over the course of the last week. So far, they were able to get two of the walls downstairs completely demolished, as well as the drywall taken down in quite a bit of the upstairs.
Margaret’s face lit up at the news. Clark tried his hardest not to look toward Valerie as he spoke, but there were a few times where he just couldn’t help it. She seemed to be listening intently, turning her head this way and that, and he wondered if she was trying to envision the updates that he outlined for the family.
There was a slew of thank yous, and when Margaret tried to pay for the items she’d come in for, Clark had waved her off. The family said goodbye to both Valerie and Clark before disappearing out the front door. And once the Hilton family had disappeared entirely from view, Clark turned his attention back to Valerie.
“I still can’t get over what a nice thing you all are doing for them,” she muttered, shaking her head in disbelief.
“Well, believe it,” Clark answered with a grin. “Did you do anything like it in California?”
Valerie answered with a shake of her head. “I volunteered from time to time, and I donated to charities. But nothing like this.”
An idea popped into Clark’s head, and he didn’t give himself time to second-guess it before he began speaking.
“Do you want to?”
Valerie cocked her head to the side. “Do I want to what?”
