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Was he missing something? “I didn’t know it had ever left.”
To illustrate his point, he looked over at the tree. The lights were bright enough to cover the entire square and then some.
“It’s Noelle, more than anything,” Charity explained. “Her dad died a few years ago. She’s spending time at home right now so she can help her mom downsize. I guess she thinks we need a little romance in this town.”
The sadness in her tone told him she might agree with that. Did she need a little romance, too?
“I know you were close to Noelle’s parents,” he said. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” she said. “He was sick for a while. Not that being sick is a good thing. Just that it wasn’t sudden.”
“Right.” He nodded. “Still, her mom’s pretty young to be widowed.”
“Exactly. She seems to have no interest in dating. Noelle was a little worried about her, being all the way in Knoxville. I wonder if she thinks finding her mom someone will make it easier for her not to live nearby.”
“She thinks the mistletoe will help her mom find a man?”
That brought a frown to Charity’s face, although Nic wasn’t entirely sure why. Then he realized she was thinking through what he’d just said.
“I don’t think it’s direct like that. I think maybe she just wants everyone in town to find love.”
“Maybe including herself,” he suggested.
Charity laughed. “Maybe that’s it. She had to have hung at least fifty bushels of mistletoe around town. She didn’t even go up into the mountains.”
His mind ran through the possible mistletoe-hanging spots around town. It didn’t seem like the area would be big enough to hang fifty of anything without him seeing them every few feet.
“Show me,” he said.
It was an impulsive move, mostly designed to keep her around him a little longer. Any excuse that would draw them together.
“Show you what?” she asked.
“The mistletoe.”
She looked around. “There’s not any around here.”
“Okay, where’s the closest one?”
She pointed in the direction of the pizzeria. “We hung one near Town Hall. There’s a little area with a bench off to the side of the building. We hung some off a tree. There was the statue, too, of course, but you took that bushel.”
As if he needed reminding. That was the mistletoe that had encouraged him to kiss her. An amazing kiss he’d never forget, as long as he lived.
“Show me the one by Town Hall,” he said.
Wow, had he gotten bossy, or what? Charity eyed him for a long moment without saying a word. He was sure she was going to bust him on looking for an excuse to hang around her. What other reason could he have for wanting her to show him mistletoe? Except maybe…?
Okay, yeah, that thought had crossed his mind too. Before the night was over, he was going to steal another kiss. And mistletoe was the perfect way to make it happen.
9
Santa Claus was up ahead. He was standing on the sidewalk in front of Town Hall.
At first, Charity thought he was a mirage, then maybe a mannequin. When he moved, her next thought was that he was collecting for one of those charities that had volunteers standing outside in Santa costumes. But this was an odd time and place to do that. He’d have better luck on the square, where a few tourists might be milling around, looking for something open after eight o’clock on a Sunday night.
“Is that your missing Santa?” Nic asked.
He’d shoved his hands in his pockets as they walked, and she wondered if he was cold. She’d thrown on her trusty gloves, which she kept tucked inside her pockets at all times. It was chilly outside, but not as cold as it would be in the coming weeks. Funny, but she didn’t feel that chill nearly as much as she normally would have. Maybe it was the exhilaration of being with Nic. It could be the same adrenaline rush that had kept her warm during the tree-lighting ceremony.
