Page 7 of The Mistletoe Bluff
With trembling fingers, I picked up the phone and opened the text.
UNKNOWN NUMBER
Hi there. Sorry again about your car. It truly was an accident.
I’m happy to pay for the damage.
I can meet you at the shop to pay for it tomorrow morning.
Does nine work for you?
Well, that was easier than I had expected it to be. I thought for sure the scratcher would be a little weasel and try to get out of paying for it.
I reread the text a few more times. Huh. No use of the word “mate” this time either. The car scratcher also didn’t sign a name. I couldn’t tell by a toneless text if it was Oliver or not. Maybe Iwasbeing paranoid. Surely that man wouldn’t be back in Meridel of all places when he had all the women of England to bother.
Maybe luck was finally on my side. I typed a quick response, determined not to overthink it.
ME
Nine works for me. I’ll meet you at Meridel Auto.
A reply appeared a few seconds later.
Unknown number
Looking forward to it.
Looking forward to it? What idiot looks forward to forking over a butt-ton of dollars for a car scratch? Not only that but right before Christmas?
I glanced around at my apartment that was devoid of any Christmas decorations. That was the way I liked it. Christmas had always been a hard time, especially after my dad left. My mom always had to work late on Christmas Eve, and then she’d come home and pass out, and I’d spend the rest of Christmas alone. I was lucky if there were any presents under the tree at all.
So now, other than a simple dinner with my cousins, I didn’tdoChristmas, and I certainly didn’t spend a stupid amount of money on decor when I had thousands of dollars of debt to pay off.
Thankfully, the last few years Jameson, Emma, and Aunt Maggie had invited me to spend Christmas with them, easing the ache in my chest ever so slightly. But this year, Elsie and Jameson were going to spend the holiday withherfamily instead. Jameson had encouraged Elsie to reconnect with her parents after her relationship with them was destroyed by their divorce years ago. I was glad Elsie was taking a step toward healing, but a part of me was sad that it meant I’d be alone as a result.
I would’ve spent Christmas with Emma and Aunt Maggie, but Emma had said that she was going to surprise my aunt with a trip to the big city since her mom was gaining her strength back after her battle with cancer. I thought about asking to tag along, but it was hard for Emma to be away from Maggie while she was at college, and I wanted them to have the time together they needed.
Even if that meant I would be alone once again.
The thought had a hollow ache settling into my stomach.
As much as I wanted to take care of myself and not need anyone to help me get by…
I despised being alone.
After letting myself wallow for a while, I got up and flipped through the small stack of mail on my counter. I was terrible at opening my mail and let it build up for a couple weeks until I was forced to go through it. Most of it was junk anyway. Endless credit card offers, utility maintenance coupons—which were hilarious since I lived in an apartment and didn’t need them—and countlessMeridel Postnewspapers. I had made it all the way to the bottom, the rest of the stack tossed in the recycling bin, when there was a knock at my door.
The one person who had a key to the building and thus access to my door was—
“Who’s your bestest best friend in the whole world?” A muffled voice sang through the wood door.
“Hmm, I think I need to think about it,” I answered as I opened it to find my best friend, Elsie. She had a sneaky grin on her face, her dark blonde hair pulled up into a messy ponytail. She wasted no time sauntering in and plopping down on my couch.
“No Jameson tonight?”
Elsie shook her head. “He had his clinic’s Christmas party tonight.”
“You didn’t go with him?”
