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“Your Mama wanted to stay, but she had to go to heaven,” I say past the emotions pooling in my throat.
“With our baby brother?”
“Yes, that’s right, sweetheart.” I clench my jaw, glancing at the small plot beside my wife. Tears well in my eyes, but I blink them away.
Maddox Hall
November 30, 2021
“Morgan, why don’t you give Maddox the wreath you brought him?” I say, picking it up from where she dropped it. Her sniffles fill the air around us as she pulls away and takes the Christmas decoration.
“Here, Maddox,” she says in the softest whisper, draping the wreath over the corner of his headstone. We stand there for a few more minutes, the girls speaking in soft whispers to their brother’s grave. I sigh, sending out a pleading prayer to whatever God is out there.
Please help me give them a happy Christmas.
???
“Are you following me?” I bite out harshly, glaring at the woman from the bookstore. I still have no idea what her name is, and I honestly don’t care at this point. It’s the third time I’ve run into her in the last two days, and this time, it’s gone too far. We stand outside Sandy’s Diner, the girls watching from our booth inside.
“No!” Her brown eyes go wide, her smile faltering as she steps back. I cross my arms, standing firm. “I was just looking for you—I’m Jana.”
“I don’t care who you are,” I say, enjoying the way her dark lashes flutter in surprise before her eyes narrow slightly. She sets her jaw, her lips pulling into a small frown.She’s cute when she’s angry.
“Well, I just thought you might want to know who your booth buddy was.”
“My booth buddy?” I ask, and now it’s my turn to frown. I wrack my brain for what she’s talking about. It takes me a minute to connect the words with Mayor Bradley’s announcement at the meeting last night.The Little Button Bakery and Brooks Books. “No, my ‘buddy’ is Mrs. Filly.”
“Actually, Mrs. F is out of town for the holidays,” Jana says, quirking an eyebrow. A small, smug smile pulls at her full lips, but she bites down on her bottom lip to hide it. My eyes zero in on the movement. “So, I guess you’re stuck with me instead.”
“Why would I be stuck with you?”
“Because I work at the bakery, and the manager put me on festival duty,” she says with a shrug. Her fingers tap absently on her thigh as she scans our surroundings. “Anyway, I thought we could get together sometime and do a little brainstorming. I haven’t been to a Christmas festival in Harmony in years, so I mostly just remember the games and prizes.”
I sigh. Maddie’s ballet class was canceled at the last minute due to a flu outbreak, meaning I would be free this evening. “Well, why don’t you come by the house? I just had some time free up.”
“Oh, um…” Jana chuckles a little as she pulls her lightweight jacket tighter around her body. “I was actually supposed to go get a tree with my roommate.”
Unbidden, the memory of Maddie asking for a Christmas tree comes flying to the forefront of my mind. “Okay, we’ll come with you.”
Jana’s full cheeks flush a pretty pink, and I relish the reaction. “We?”
“My girls have been bugging me to get a tree for weeks now,” I say, nodding to the window. Maddie and Morgan are laughing, their chicken strips and fries laying forgotten on the table.
“You have kids.” The surprised tone brings my gaze back to her. She stares in awe at the little girls, her brown eyes lighting up.She’s gorgeous. The thought startles me, and I swallow quickly and clear my throat.
“It looks like they’re finished,” I say. “I’ll pay the bill, and then we can go.”
I hurry inside, away from Jana and her enticing smile.
Chapter Eight
Jana
My heart flutters with every glance he sends me.No, don’t react that way! He’s a total asshole, I scold myself. It’s impossible to think straight when all I can smell is the woodsy-citrus scent of his cologne. There’s an unexpected tension between us, and it takes everything in me not to break our silence. The two little girls in the backseat whisper back and forth, excited laughter filling the truck.
“Are we really getting a tree, Daddy?” the younger one pipes up. Alex looks at me, his jaw tight, but when he lifts his gaze to the rearview mirror, it’s like he’s a whole different person. His amber eyes soften, accompanying his lips in a smile as his entire face brightens.
“Sure are, Morgan.”
