A Christmas in Connecticut Read online

  * Buche de noel (aka yule log). Uh…all kinds of nope, unless he could get one from the bakery…maybe.

  * Brined and roasted fresh turkey. Ugh. The turkey Beth made for Thanksgiving was more like jerky. Not sure brining is going to help.

  * Fresh cranberry sauce with oranges and cinnamon. Try to talk her into the canned stuff.

  Jack read the rest of the list and suddenly felt overwhelmed and all alone. It was clear to him, that Beth wanted a picture-perfect Christmas. Shoot, so did he, but they’d need to be realistic with her confined to bedrest. He’d try to talk to her about it.

  He looked up when he heard the jingle of the store’s door. It was Claire. He couldn’t control the smile that spread across his face. She looked adorable in a pompom topped knit hat, jeans that hugged her curves, and a soft blue sweater.

  “Hi,” he said.

  “Hi,” she replied as she walked up to the register. “I’m sorry again about the display.” She motioned to the batteries now in bins by the register.

  “No worries.” Jack rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. “So, what size do you need?”

  “What?”

  He was pretty sure he noticed her cheeks flush at the question.

  “Batteries. What size does your flashlight need?”

  “Right. I have it written down,” she said as she dug around in her purse. “Two, CR2032 sized batteries.” She looked up at Jack. “What? You have a weird look on your face.”

  “It’s just strange…I’ve never heard of a flashlight that takes disc batteries…must be some kind of fancy big-city type.” He gave her a grin before turning around and looking through some small drawers.

  “Yeah, something like that,” Claire mumbled.

  Jack handed her the batteries. He looked over the counter at her shoes. “I’m glad you’re not in clogs, but those won’t be any good either once the snow shows up.” He motioned to her boots.

  “These? These are Uggs…the warmest and most comfortable boot ever. Look, they’ve got a non-slip tread…I’m not going to fall down in these,” she pointed to the soles with a smile on her face, “and they’re made in Australia.” She looked at him with a look of triumph.

  “Yeah, I’m sure the Australians are big experts on snow.” He chuckled. “Once you step into a deep drift, those boots are going to be filled with snow, not to mention that the suede won’t hold up…they’ll be ruined in no time.” As soon as he’d said this, Jack felt bad. Her face had gone from triumphant to crestfallen. “I just would hate to see you ruin such a nice-looking pair of boots, that’s all.” He smiled gently at her.

  “Thanks—”

  “Oh, it’s you.” Hank had walked in from the back stockroom. He had his hands in his pockets as he rocked back on his feet. “Where’s the Dodgers’ cap?” he motioned to the top of Claire’s head.

  “I get it,” she responded, pointing to Hank’s cap. “You’re a Boston fan, my condolences.” She had a small, mischievous smile on her face.

  “Your condolences? For what? We’ve won four World Series in the past twenty years…pffft…you’re just sore that we beat you in ‘18.” Hank was getting ready to go to the mat over his beloved Red Sox, when he suddenly looked at his phone. “Hey, Jenny just pulled some apple pies out of the oven,” he said to Jack, his voice full of unconstrained excitement.

  “Sorry—but you get texts when there’s pie?” Claire looked at Hank with a look of disbelief on her face.

  “Yeah…so what?” Hank replied.

  Jack stepped in before this went any further. “Jenny makes the best apple pie you’ve ever tasted. They’re gone in no time, so she gives us a heads-up when she’s got them. As a matter of fact, how about joining me for a slice? She also makes a mean cup of coffee.” Jack felt his heart hang in the balance as he waited for an answer.

  “Sure, sounds good, I’m not a girl who says no to pie.”

  “Hey…what about me?” Hank said to Jack, his hands on his hips.

  “I’ll bring you back a slice,” Jack said.

  “Make it two,” Hank replied as he gave Jack a thumbs up and a sly grin when Claire wasn’t looking.

  “Oh my god, this is so good.” Claire had just taken a bite of the pie along with some of the vanilla ice cream. It really was the best pie she’d ever tasted.

  “See? Now you don’t think we’re so weird getting a pie text.” He smiled at Claire as he took a bite of his.

  “Nah, I still think you guys are weird.” She gave him a wink before taking another bite.

  Jenny came over and refilled their coffee cups.

  “What made you enlist in the army?” Claire asked. She noticed he seemed a bit uncomfortable with the question, his posture seemed to stiffen.

  After a few seconds, he shrugged his shoulders. “The men in my family have always served. My dad was in Vietnam and my grandfather served in World War II, and my great-grandfather was in World War I. It’s just what us Wilson men do. We feel a duty to give back.” He remained quiet as he ran his fork along the crust of the pie.

  “That’s really amazing. How long were you there?”

  “Six years, I enlisted right out of college.”

  A comfortable silence settled around them for a few minutes as they both enjoyed their pie and coffee.

  Claire looked at him as he ate. She imagined he was thinking about Afghanistan. He seemed to be a million miles away. He had that handsome yet boyish quality some men had; his eyes could melt her core in less than a millisecond. “You mentioned you have a sister,” she said, breaking the silence as she took a sip of her coffee.

  “Beth, she’s a couple of years older than I am. She and her husband are living in the house we grew up in.”

  “Is that going to make the holidays more difficult? You know…the memories…now that your dad isn’t here?”

  “Maybe, I hadn’t thought about it that way.”

  “It’s why I came out here. I didn’t want to be reminded at every turn that my parents weren’t around. I’m living in their house. It’s hard. I don’t want to be reminded all the time that they used to live there, yet I don’t want to change it either.” She took a deep breath as she took another bite of the pie.

  “I get that,” Jack said, looking her in the eye. “Beth actually remodeled the kitchen recently…I didn’t think it was a good idea at first. It looks totally different, but I think it has actually helped. It’s still the same house, but changed. It’s how I feel about myself since serving and losing Dad: same guy but changed.” His face softened, and he looked down at his mug.

  Claire nodded as she listened to him.

  “Dad always made Christmas special…magical, really. This was going to be our first Christmas together now that I’m home from Afghanistan, but…” Jack’s voice trailed off.

  “I’m so sorry Jack. I understand how hard it is.” She reached out and put her hand on his wrist.

  “Thanks…it’s hard, she and her husband are expecting their first baby though, so that’s brightened everyone’s mood.”

  “Oh, that’s exciting,” replied Claire. “When’s she due?”

  “Around the end of January.”

  “So, she’s pretty far along then. How’s she doing?”

  “Well, she was just ordered on bedrest…she has preeclampsia.”

  “Yikes…total bedrest?”

  “Yep.”

  “That’s going to make Christmas tough.”

  “We’ll figure it out,” Jack replied.

  They sat quietly while finishing their coffee and pie. Claire stole glances at Jack at every opportunity. He was wearing his signature flannel shirt, biceps straining the fabric.

  “Thank you for the pie,” she said as they left the diner.

  “Sure. I’m glad you enjoyed it.” Jack was holding the bag containing Hank’s two slices.

  “Well, I guess I’ll see you around,” Claire said. She didn’t really want to leave. She wished they were still inside eating pie. Being around him gave
her a warm feeling inside.

  “Yeah, see you around.” Jack waved as he headed back to the store across the street.

  Claire morosely made her way to her car. At least I have the batteries. She got in, turned the ignition on and…nothing. Turned it again and…nothing. “Is everything with a battery just going to crap out on me?” She hit her hands on the steering wheel before resting her forehead on it. I do not need this right now. She sat there for about a minute or two before she heard tapping on the passenger side window. Jack!

  “Hi,” she said brightly, getting out of the car.

  “Are you having trouble? I saw you just sitting here and then when you began pounding on the steering wheel, I figured I better come check on you.”

  “That’s so nice, thank you.” Her cheeks were burning, and her heart was racing.

  “Small town benefits.”

  “Thank you, I’m guessing it’s the battery?” She shrugged her shoulders.

  “Do you always have such bad luck with batteries?” He laughed lightly. “I’ve gotcha. Be right back.”

  In a minute he was back with his truck, pulling it forward until the front barely touched the front of Claire’s car. To Claire it looked like the two cars were kissing. What are you, eight years old? Get a grip, Claire.

  Jack jumped out and popped the hood, jumper cables in hand. In under five minutes, Claire’s car was up and running again.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  “No problem. Drive it around so the battery charges up. You might still have an issue in the morning. If you do, just call me. If the battery’s shot, you’ll need to trade it in for a new rental.”

  He closed her door and waved as she drove off. Claire’s heart was full of good feelings as she drove away. She drove for awhile out of town before figuring that she’d charged the battery enough and headed back home.

  Her thoughts were on Jack during the entire drive back to the cottage. She didn’t know him very well yet felt strangely drawn to him. She’d been hoping after the pie that he would have asked her out. Is that really a good idea, though? What was she thinking getting her mind wrapped up in this guy? I’m only going to be here for about a month and then back to Los Angeles, she thought. What’s the point? Except for…which reminded her of the batteries.

  First things first, she thought as she opened the cottage door. The house was super cold. A warm fire would be cozy and take the chill off, she thought. There was everything she needed right next to the fireplace: a small stack of newspapers, some kindling, logs, and long handled wooden matches. Claire built everything up the way her father had done when they had stayed in a cabin at Big Bear. Those were fun family trips. Claire had learned how to ski, albeit badly. They would ski during the day and then come back to the cozy cabin for dinner and games. Although at times, Claire wished she hadn’t been an only child, the advantage had been that her parents’ focus had been 100% on her. Their little family of three had been close. Claire’s heart ached with loss. She refocused on getting the fire started.

  Once the newspaper had caught, she headed back to the bedroom with the batteries in hand. She replaced the batteries and the vibrator roared to life with the flick of a switch. Finally. Claire was about to get comfortable when she heard the doorbell. Shit.

  She left the bedroom and found the living room filled with smoke. What the hell? She flung the front door open with one hand while she went to see what was causing all the smoke, grabbing one of the pillows off the entry bench and waving it around in the air. When the door swung open, Jack was standing there with a package under one arm.

  “Oh wow, what’s going on in here?” He quickly set the package down and went to the fireplace. “Open the windows,” he said to Claire. “And bring me an oven mitt or a towel from the kitchen.”

  Claire rushed the oven mitt to Jack as he kneeled in front of the fireplace. All the smoke was billowing into the room instead of up the chimney.

  “You forgot to open the damper,” he said as he used the mitt to push it open. Immediately, the room began to clear.

  “Thank you. What good timing you have,” she said.

  “Yeah, I’m glad I was here.” He returned the mitt to the kitchen and washed his hands.

  “So, what brings you by?” Claire’s heart was beating fast, and it wasn’t from the fireplace mishap. Here he was in her living room; his tight jeans hugging his tall frame.

  “I brought you something,” he said, handing her the package. “Sorry, the wrapping isn’t great.”

  “Looks fine,” Claire said excitedly. He brought me a gift…that’s a good sign. She smiled at Jack as she tore the paper from the box. She pulled the lid off and peered inside. “Oh, wow…boots.” Ugly boots. She pulled them from the box, examining the heavy, black rubber soles. They were slightly taller than ankle height with big black laces. The only thing cute about them was the shearling lining. “Thanks?” She said, holding one of the boots out as she looked at it.

  “I got your size when I retrieved your clog. I know, I know…they’re not fashionable, and they’re made in Maine, not Australia. They may not be the latest fashion by L.A. standards, but here in River Falls once the snow arrives? You’ll blend right in…and your feet will stay dry.”

  She thought she saw a slight blush on his cheeks. She may not love the boots, but the thought was pure sweetness.

  “Thank you,” she said. “I really appreciate you thinking about me.” She held his gaze for a minute.

  “You’re welcome.”

  “And thank you again for giving me a jump today. I’m glad you were there.”

  “No problem. Really, almost anyone in town would have stopped to help.”

  “And thank you for preventing a house fire.”

  “It wouldn’t have burned down…just smoke…but yeah, I’m glad I was here.”

  “I really owe you…big! I was about to make some hot chocolate…want some?”

  “Sure, sounds good.” He sat down on the sofa in the living room.

  Claire looked out at him while she dumped two packets of the hot chocolate mix into mugs and added hot water. Who cares if I’m only here for a month? I have needs and this might be just the person to fill those needs.

  Chapter 6

  Jack was a bit disappointed at Claire’s reaction to the boots. He got it…they weren’t stylish for a big city girl, nevertheless, she’d looked like a kid on Christmas morning who didn’t get what she’d asked Santa for. But she sure looked sexy as hell in her jeans and body-hugging sweater. Just seeing her made his heart beat faster.

  Claire set a mug down next to him. “Here’s my secret ingredient,” she said, producing a small bottle of peppermint schnapps. She tipped a healthy portion into his mug.

  “Thanks,” Jack replied. He looked down at the small marshmallows floating around before fishing one out and tasting it. “These aren’t the homemade ones you blogged about, or the French-style hot chocolate,” he said trying to chew the small rubbery piece that had lodged itself into his molar as he eyed the watery drink.

  “Uh…no…I haven't had a chance to make those yet, you’ll have to make do with the instant kind with the marshmallows already included. It’s all they had at the market,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. “I’m limited to what they have in stock…it’s definitely not Los Angeles,” she snorted.

  “Right.” He felt a little ruffled by her dig at the market. “Schnapps is an excellent addition though.” Jack drank a bit more. Claire sat next to him on the couch, her shoulder touching his and now her leg had brushed against his leg. He felt his insides bolt to life. They continued to sit quietly with one another, enjoying the silence and the beauty of the fire. He was thinking all kinds of thoughts as he finished his drink. All of them were about the woman sitting next to him. The alcohol gave him the bit of liquid courage he needed. “So…I did kind of have something I wanted to ask you.” He turned, facing Claire. His heart felt as if it had traveled up to his throat.

 
“Sure,” she replied, her face brightened with what looked like expectation. “I owe you for the boots, not to mention rescuing my car today.”

  “I told you that my sister is pregnant and on bedrest…her husband, Tyler, isn’t really the handy type, plus he travels a lot for work, so…she can’t count on his help right now.” He tried to clear the lump in his throat, but it wasn’t budging. “Beth is really wanting a special Christmas since this will be our first one together in six years—and I told you how much Christmas meant to our dad.”

  He noticed what looked like apprehension slowly replace the expectation from her face.

  “Well…I…I mean we were thinking that since you’re an expert on these things, I was wondering, and Beth was wondering, whether you’d be willing to help us with Christmas.” He looked her in the eyes…they were brown pools of warmth he wanted to dive into. “We would love to have you enjoy the holiday with us…unless, of course, you were planning on spending it alone…if so, I understand.” His heart was about to beat out of his chest while he waited for her answer. He wanted her to say yes, not for the Christmas stuff, but for his own selfish benefit…he wanted to spend time with her. A lot of time.

  He thought he noticed her hesitate briefly before putting her hand on his arm and giving him a warm smile. “I’d love to help.”

  “That’s awesome…thank you. Beth is going to be so happy; I have a long list from her of projects and recipes she’d gotten from your blog. I’ll send it to you. Wow…what a relief. I won’t have to tackle it alone.”

  “Long list? From the blog?” Claire responded…it seemed to Jack as if the color had suddenly drained from her face.

  “Yeah…it’s not super long. And we don’t have to do everything on it either…we’ll figure it out. You and I.” He beamed as he looked at her. “I’ll text you her address…maybe we could meet over there tomorrow…you’ll like her, and she’s going to be so excited to meet you. He noticed Claire wasn’t saying anything…she’d gone mute after he’d mentioned the list. “I’ll see you tomorrow…thank you again, Claire. This means the world to me.” He looked into her eyes, which still seemed glazed over, said goodbye and got into his truck. Maybe she’s just tired.