Читать книгу A Merry Little Christmas: 1225 Christmas Tree Lane / 5-B Poppy Lane - Debbie Macomber - Страница 6

“Mom!”

The front door slammed and Beth Morehouse hurried out of the kitchen. Three days before Christmas, and her daughters were home from college—at last! Her foreman, Jeff, had been kind enough to pick them up at the airport while Beth dealt with last-minute chores. She’d been looking forward to seeing them for weeks. Throwing her arms wide, she ran toward Bailey and Sophie. “Merry Christmas, girls.”

Squealing with delight, they dropped their bags and rushed into her embrace.

“I can’t believe it’s snowing. It’s so beautiful,” Bailey said, holding Beth in a tight hug. At twenty-one, she was the oldest by fourteen months. She resembled her father in so many ways. She was tall like Kent and had his dark brown hair, which she’d tucked under a knitted cap. Her eyes shone with a quiet joy. She was the thoughtful one and that, too, reminded Beth of her ex-husband. Three years after the divorce, she still missed him, although pride would never allow her to admit that. Even her budding relationship with Ted Reynolds, the local veterinarian, paled when she thought about her life with Kent and their history together.

“My turn.” Displacing Bailey, Sophie snuggled into Beth’s embrace. “The house looks fabulous, Mom. Really Christmassy.” This child was more like Beth. A few inches shorter than her sister, Sophie had curly auburn hair and eyes so blue they seemed to reflect a summer sky. Releasing Beth, Sophie added, “And it smells wonderful.”

Beth had done her best to make the house as festive and bright as possible for her daughters. She’d spent long hours draping fresh evergreen boughs on the staircase leading to the second-floor bedrooms. Two of the three Christmas trees were loaded with ornaments. The main tree in the family room was still bare, awaiting their arrival so they could decorate it together, which was a family tradition.

A trio of four-foot-tall snowmen stood guard in the hallway near the family room where the Nativity scene was displayed on the fireplace mantel. Decorating had helped take Beth’s mind off the fact that her ex-husband would be joining them for Christmas. This would be the first time she’d seen him in three years. Oh, they’d spoken often enough, but every conversation had revolved around their daughters. Nothing else. No questions asked. No comments of a personal nature. Just the girls and only the girls. It’d been strictly business. Until now.

Until Christmas.

They both loved the holidays. It was Kent who’d first suggested they have several Christmas trees. Always fresh ones, which was one reason Beth had been attracted to the Christmas tree farm when she started her new life.

“I’ve got lunch ready,” Beth said, trying to turn her attention away from her ex-husband. He still lived in California, as did the girls. He’d stayed in their hometown of Sacramento, while Bailey and Sophie both attended university in San Diego. According to their daughters, Kent had asked to come for Christmas. She’d known for almost two weeks that he’d made reservations at the Thyme and Tide B and B in Cedar Cove. The news that he’d be in town had initially come as a shock to Beth. He hadn’t discussed it with her at all. Instead, he’d had their daughters do his talking for him. That made everything more awkward, because it wasn’t as if she could refuse, not with Bailey and Sophie so excited about spending Christmas together as a family. But Kent’s plans had left her with a host of unanswered questions. Was this his way of telling Beth he missed her? Was he looking for a reconciliation? Was she? The questions swarmed in her head, but the answers wouldn’t be clear until he arrived. At least she’d be better able to judge his reasons. His intentions. And her own…

“Just like it used to be,” Bailey finished. Beth had missed whatever she’d said before that, although it wasn’t hard to guess.

Just like it used to be. These were magic words, but Beth had recognized long ago that the clock only moved forward. Yet the girls’ eagerness, Kent’s apparent insistence and her nostalgia for what they’d once shared swept aside her customary reserve.

“Mom?” Bailey said when she didn’t respond. “We’re talking…. Where are you?”

Beth gave a quick shake of her head. “Woolgathering. Sorry. I haven’t had much sleep lately.” Exhausted as she was, managing the tree farm and getting ready for Christmas with her daughters—and Kent—she’d hardly slept. She couldn’t. Every time she closed her eyes, Kent was there. Kent with his boyish smile and his eyes twinkling with mischief and fun. They’d been happy once and somehow they’d lost that and so much more. Beth had never been able to put her finger on what exactly had gone wrong; she only knew that it had. In the end they’d lived separate lives, going their own ways. Their daughters had kept them together—and then they were off at college, and suddenly it was just Kent and Beth. That was when they discovered they no longer had anything in common.

“You’re not sleeping?” Bailey’s eyes widened with concern.

Sophie elbowed her sister. “Bailey, think about it. This is the busiest time of year for a Christmas tree farm. Then there’s all this decorating. And, if we’re really lucky—”

“Mom made date candy?” Bailey cut in.

“And caramel corn?” Sophie asked hopefully, hands folded in prayer.

“Yes to you both. It wouldn’t be Christmas without our special treats.”

“You’re the best mom in the world.”

Beth smiled. She’d had less than three hours’ sleep, thanks to all the Christmas preparations, her dogs and…her incessant memories of Kent. Traffic at the tree farm had thinned out now that Christmas was only three days away. But families were still stopping by and there was quite a bit to do, including cleanup. Her ten-man crew was down to four and they’d coped just fine without either her or Jeff this morning. While he drove out to the airport, she’d been getting ready for her daughters’ arrival. However, as soon as lunch was over, she needed to head back outside.

Beth and the girls had booked a skiing trip between Christmas and New Year’s, and after the hectic schedule of the past two months, she was counting on a few relaxing days with her daughters. Their reservations were made and she was eager to go. Ted Reynolds, good friend that he was, had offered to take care of her animals, which reminded her of the one hitch in her perfectly planned holiday escape.

“Before we sit down to eat, I need to tell you we have special guests this Christmas.”

“You mean Dad, right?” Bailey led the way into the other room, where there was more greenery and a beautifully arranged table with three place settings.

“Well, yes, your father. But he’s not the only one….”

“Mom.” Bailey tensed as she spoke. “Don’t tell me you have a boyfriend. It’s that vet, isn’t it?”

“Ten guests, actually,” she said, ignoring the comment about Ted, “and they aren’t all boys.”

“Puppies?” Sophie guessed.

“Puppies,” Beth confirmed, not surprised that her daughter had figured it out. “Ten of them.”

“Ten?” Sophie cried, aghast.

Without asking, Bailey went straight to the laundry room off the kitchen. “Where did you get ten puppies?” The instant she opened the door, all ten black puppies scampered into the kitchen, scrambling about, skidding across the polished hardwood floor.

“They’re adorable.” Sharing Beth’s love for animals, both girls were immediately down on the floor, scooping the puppies into their arms. Before long, each held at least two of the Lab-mix puppies, the little creatures intent on licking their faces.

Unable to resist, Beth joined her daughters and gathered the remaining puppies onto her lap. One curled into a tight ball. Another climbed onto her shoulder and began licking her ear. The others squirmed until one wriggled free and chased his tail with determined vigor, completely preoccupied. They really were adorable, which was good because in every other way they were a nuisance.

Sophie held a puppy to her cheek. “Where’d you get them, Mom?”

“They were…a gift,” she explained, turning her face away to avoid more wet, slurpy kisses.

“A gift?”

“But why’d you take all ten?” Bailey asked, astonished.

“I didn’t have any choice. They showed up on my porch in a basket a week ago.” Beth didn’t say that discovering these puppies had been the proverbial last straw. They’d literally appeared on her doorstep the same day she’d learned Kent was coming here for Christmas. For an insane moment she’d considered running away, grabbing a plane to Fiji or Bora-Bora. Instead, she’d run over to the Hardings’ and ended up spilling her heart out to Grace. Under normal conditions, Beth wasn’t one to share her burdens with others. However, this was simply too much—an ex-husband’s unexpected visit and the arrival of ten abandoned puppies, all during the busiest season of the year. The Hardings had given her tea and sympathy; Ted had been wonderful, too. Beth was grateful for his willingness to watch her animals but she refused to leave him with these ten additional dogs. So she’d made it her goal to find homes for all of them before Christmas. Which didn’t give her a lot of time…

“How could someone just drop off ten puppies?” Bailey asked as she lifted one intrepid little guy off her shoulder and settled him in her lap.

“Who could do that and not be seen?” Sophie added. “I mean, you have people working all over this place.”

Beth had certainly asked around. “Jeff saw a woman with a huge basket at my door. He thought he recognized her from his church, but when he asked her, she denied it. Then later, Pete, one of the drivers, claimed he saw a man on my porch with a basket. I talked to five different people and got five different stories. All I know is that I’ve got to find homes for these puppies before we leave for Whistler.” And preferably before Kent arrived, although that was highly unlikely.

“Have you found any yet?” Bailey asked.

“No…but I’ve put out the word.”

“You’ll do it, Mom,” Sophie said confidently. “I know you will.”

“How old are they?” Bailey stroked a soft, floppy ear.

“Ted thinks about two months. Between six and eight weeks, anyway.”

“They’re irresistible. You won’t have trouble finding homes,” Sophie said.

Beth wished she had even a fraction of her daughter’s faith. In October, she’d found homes for four part-golden-retriever puppies. Coming up with those homes had been hard enough—and now ten more. She hoped the season would help.

She’d offer assistance with training if the new owners wanted it—and she’d push the all-important spay-and-neuter message. Ted had promised to give the owners a break on the price, too.

Working together, Beth and the girls corralled the puppies and got them back inside the laundry room. Then they washed up for lunch. Thankfully the girls’ favorites didn’t require much effort; the tomato basil soup and toasted cheese sandwiches were on the table within minutes.

“Now I truly feel like we’re home,” Bailey said, spooning up the thick soup.

Sophie sighed contentedly. “This place is starting to feel more like home all the time.”

Beth had moved to Washington State following her divorce. For fifteen years she’d taught business and management classes at an agricultural college outside Sacramento. After she and Kent had split up, Beth felt she needed a change. A big one. An escape. She’d read about this Christmas tree farm for sale while browsing on the internet and had become intrigued. As soon as she’d visited the property and toured the house, she was sold.

Her general knowledge of farm life and crop cultivation had come in handy. She knew just enough about trees not to be intimidated. Besides, Wes Klein, the previous owners’ son, had helped the first couple of years. She’d soon picked up everything else she needed to know. She hired the same crew each season and was pleasantly surprised by how smoothly things had gone this year, the first year she was on her own.

In addition to Christmas trees, she sold wreaths and garlands, which were created by three members of her staff who devoted all their time to this endeavor. The Kleins used to have only a handful of orders for holiday wreaths. Beth had turned that into a thriving aspect of the business. Plus, overseas sales of Christmas trees had doubled in the past three years. Beth had always enjoyed the season, but never more than now. She felt she was actively contributing to a lot of families’ happiness this Christmas.

The girls cleared the table and put their plates and bowls in the dishwasher.

“I’ve got to get back outside, but before I go, I need you to tell me what’s going on with your father.” From the girls’ startled expressions Beth realized she should have led into the conversation with a bit more finesse. But subtlety wasn’t exactly her strong suit and she was short on time.

“Dad wanted to come for Christmas,” Bailey answered, as if that was all the explanation required.

“Did he give you any particular reason?” she asked suspiciously.

Sophie shook her head. “None that he mentioned.”

That wasn’t too helpful; still, Beth persisted. “But why this year?”

Bailey shrugged. “Don’t know. All I can tell you is that he said he missed us and asked if he could join us for Christmas. We couldn’t say no. You wouldn’t want us to, would you, Mom?”

“Of course not.” Beth looked from one daughter to the other. “He didn’t say anything more than that? You’re sure?”

“Positive.” Both girls widened their eyes, expressions innocent as could be.

Convinced there was more to this sudden desire to be with them—and remembering Grace’s suggestion that the girls might be more involved than they were letting on—Beth hesitated. She wanted to probe deeper but really needed to get to work. As it was, she’d lingered with her daughters well into Jeff’s lunch hour.

“You’ll be okay without me?” Beth asked, abandoning all inquiries for the moment.

“Mom, it isn’t like we’re six years old!”

“I know, I know, it’s just that I hate leaving you so soon after you got here.”

“Go,” Bailey said, ushering her toward the door. “We’ll be fine. We’ll unpack our suitcases and put It’s a Wonderful Life in the DVD player.”

“I want to watch it, too,” Beth protested. It was their favorite Christmas movie.

“Okay, we’ll hold off until tonight. Now go.”

Walking out the door, Beth blew them a kiss, the same way she had every time she left for work when they were youngsters.

The second the door closed, Bailey turned to her sister. “Do you think Mom suspects anything?”

“I’m not sure….”

“I told you we needed to get our story straight before we saw her!”

“I didn’t think she’d drill us with questions the instant we walked in the door. Just remember, this whole idea was yours,” Sophie reminded her.

“But you agreed! Dad’s miserable without Mom, and Mom needs Dad whether she’s willing to admit it or not.”

“Well, she’s not willing to admit it, not yet,” Sophie said. She rinsed out the soup pan and placed it in the dishwasher. “I never really understood why they got divorced,” she mused.

“Yeah.” Bailey was wiping off the kitchen counter. “It didn’t make any sense.”

“When they told us I thought they were joking. Some joke, huh?”

“Could there be anyone else involved?” Bailey asked, growing introspective. “Mom mentioned that vet again. Ted something.”

“Ted Reynolds. She hasn’t dated in ages, but she seems to like him. He could be trouble.”

Bailey frowned. “The problem with Mom is that she’s living inside an…an emotional cocoon.” She nodded, pleased with that description. “She’s consumed by this tree farm so she doesn’t have to think about Dad or the divorce or anything else.”

“Who made you the expert?” Sophie muttered.

Bailey ignored the sarcasm. “I took this really great psychology class, and I recognized what Mom’s been doing for the past few years. We’ve got to shake her up, make her realize the divorce was a terrible mistake.”

“It’s not just the tree farm, it’s those darn puppies,” Sophie lamented. “With puppies constantly showing up on Mom’s porch, she can focus all her attention on them. She spends a lot of time training her dogs for those canine therapy programs—”

“And being the unofficial rescue facility,” Bailey threw in.

Sophie nodded. “And now there’s this Ted guy. Getting Mom and Dad together isn’t going to be as easy as you think.”

“What did you tell Dad?” Bailey asked.

Sophie slouched into a chair and stared at her sister. “Just that it’s important to Mom that we all spend Christmas together.”

“Did he ask why?”

“Not really. He said he didn’t have any fixed plans for Christmas, and if Mom wanted him to come he would.”

“What are we going to tell them when they discover we arranged this?”

“What we should’ve said when they told us they were getting divorced. This is stupid. They should’ve tried harder.”

“They just grew apart, that’s all, but if they’d made an effort they could’ve gotten close again, right?”

“Right.”

“Marriage takes work,” Bailey said, feeling wise. The research for her recent psych essay on “Family in the New Millennium” had made that very clear to her.

“I just don’t want them to be upset with us,” Sophie said, worried.

“They can’t. It’s Christmas. We brought them together…okay, under false pretenses, but they can’t be mad because we’re only doing what’s best for them.”

“Amen. Sing it, sister.”

“We’ll sing it in two-part harmony.”

“Dad gets here when?”

“Tomorrow afternoon.”

“Perfect.” Sophie held up two crossed fingers. “I believe. I believe.”

“So do I,” Bailey echoed. This was going to be the most wonderful Christmas of their lives and it didn’t have a single thing to do with the wrapped packages under the tree. It was because of the gift they intended to give their parents.

And each other.

The snow had stopped falling, and the grounds were so pristine and lovely, they could’ve been on a book cover. Or a Christmas card. The evergreens were daubed with snow, giving them a flocked look that was more beautiful than anything Beth could reproduce with the sticky artificial stuff her crew applied to the more elaborately decorated trees in the shop.

“We’re back,” Bruce Peyton said as he approached Beth. “And this time, we’re definitely going home with a tree.”

His pregnant wife, Rachel, looked so much better than she had two weeks ago. Beth had learned later that Rachel was hospitalized with food poisoning that same evening. Bruce’s teenage daughter, Jolene, was with them today, as she’d been before.

“Are all the best trees taken?” the girl asked, her eyes wide with concern.

She had a point. The trees closer to the house had been thinned out, but there were still a number of excellent spruces and firs in the far lot. “Not to worry,” she assured Jolene. “I always save the best for last.” She handed the girl a cup of warm cocoa. “If you’d like, I’ll have my foreman take you to the back twenty in the ATV and you can see for yourself.”

“Really?”

“Really,” Beth confirmed. She led them over to Jeff, made introductions and gave him Jolene’s request.

The ATVs were built for two, so Jeff took one and Jolene climbed on behind him. Bruce took the second vehicle. Rachel looked at the hard seat, then eyed the dirt road speculatively.

“I think I’ll stay here and visit with Beth while you two choose the tree.”

“You can’t,” Jolene said loudly. “You have to help pick out the tree. That’s the most fun part.”

“I’m just not sure I’m up to this.”

“Let me take you for a test run,” Bruce suggested.

Rachel remained hesitant, then nodded. “Okay, but don’t be upset if I decide to stay back.”

“I won’t,” Bruce said.

“I really want you to come with us,” Jolene insisted.

“I know, honey. I will next year. I’ll come with you and your little sister. Don’t forget, it’ll be her very first Christmas.”

Jolene hugged her quickly. “Okay.”

Ten minutes later, Rachel was sitting in the office, drinking a bottle of apple juice as Beth finished her paperwork.

“I doubt they’ll be long,” Beth told her. “The trees there are gorgeous, especially with this afternoon’s snow.”

“I hope Bruce and Jolene don’t go overboard and choose the biggest tree on the farm.”

Beth chuckled. “Jeff knows that people look at a tree and have no idea how large it is until they try to get it in the house. He’ll keep them realistic.”

“Oh, good. Jolene loves Christmas.” Rachel leaned back in her chair. “I consider this our first real Christmas as a family. We were married last year but I was so busy cleaning and moving that it didn’t feel very Christmassy.”

“There seem to be a lot of firsts for your family,” Beth said gently.

“I agree. It hasn’t been a smooth transition for us, but everything’s come together in the past couple of weeks.”

“I’m glad,” Beth said. She wasn’t entirely sure what Rachel meant. Busy though she’d been, when the Peytons originally came for their tree, Beth couldn’t help noticing the tension between Rachel and Jolene. The change in attitude, particularly on Jolene’s part, was encouraging.

Twenty minutes later, the two ATVs roared into the yard. As soon as the engine was shut off, Jolene leaped off the back of her father’s vehicle and raced toward Rachel.

“We found the most beautiful tree,” she said excitedly. “It’s just perfect.”

“Where is it?” Rachel asked, laughing at Jolene’s unabashed enthusiasm.

“You should’ve seen her,” Bruce said, joining them. “Jolene was like a rabbit, hopping from one tree to the next.”

“Dad, you’re embarrassing me,” the girl protested, but not too vigorously. In fact, it looked as if a smile was permanently affixed to her face.

“Exactly where is this wonderful, perfect Christmas tree?” Rachel asked again.

“Jeff’s going back in the pickup for it now,” Bruce explained. He reached into his pocket for his wallet. “While he’s doing that, I’ll pay for the tree and get out the rope so we can tie it to the top of the car.”

“When we take it home, we’re all going to decorate it together,” Jolene said happily.

“My girls and I do that,” Beth told her. “I always decorate several trees, but I leave one undecorated so the four…three of us can do it together once they’re home from college.”

Jolene looked at her father and Rachel. “Will you wait for me when I’m in college, too?”

“You bet,” Rachel said, raising one thumb.

That seemed to satisfy the teenager. “It won’t be that long, you know.”

“No need to rush it,” Bruce commented.

The phone rang, and since Jeff was busy, Beth grabbed it. “Cedar Cove Tree Farm,” she said. “Beth speaking.”

“Oh, Beth, I’m so glad I caught you.”

It was her friend, Grace Harding, the head librarian who’d adopted a golden-retriever mix from the previous batch of puppies. She sounded harried.

“What can I do for you, Grace?” Beth asked.

“We need a small tree.”

“How small?”

“One that’ll fit in a hotel room. It’s for a family who just arrived in town. Friends of ours.”

“Sure. I can have Jeff cut one for you and deliver it myself.”

“Oh, would you? I know this is last-minute, but these are two special friends who once rented our house on Rosewood Lane. That was years ago—but Ian’s in the navy and it looks like they’re moving back. They have two children. They’re only here for a few days, but I can’t bear the thought of them spending Christmas in Cedar Cove without a tree.”

“I’m on it,” Beth said. “Don’t worry, I’ll see to everything, including lights and decorations. Shall I bring it to your place?”

“Yes, please. I don’t know how to thank you.”

“You already have,” Beth said. Replacing the phone she looked at Bruce. “Now, I don’t suppose I could interest you in adopting a puppy?”

“A puppy?” Jolene perked right up. “Could we, Dad? Rachel? Could we?”

Bruce shrugged uncomfortably. “I don’t think so, sweetheart. With the baby coming and everything…”

“What kind of puppy?” Rachel asked, reaching for Bruce’s hand.

“They’re a Labrador mix. They’re all black and extremely cute. You could have the pick of the litter.”

Jolene clasped her hands and turned pleading eyes to her father.

Bruce held Rachel’s gaze and after a moment nodded. “But remember, Jolene, you’re responsible for training and taking care of the puppy.”

“I will, Dad, I promise. I’ve always wanted a dog! I want a girl and I’m going to name her Poppy.”

“Poppy’s a good name,” Rachel said.

“I can help with the training,” Beth offered, leading all three of them to the laundry room. It didn’t take Jolene long to choose the puppy she wanted.

One down, nine to go.