Page 29 of The Christmas Cottage
“Sure. Hand it over.” He grinned, taking the Santa suit out of Mabel’s hand, and disappeared into the bathroom to try his on, while Vanessa shimmied into Mrs. Claus’ dress and then tugged her jeans off once it was on.
“Perfect,” Mabel declared, once she saw it on Vanessa. “It doesn’t actually really need much in the way of alterations. We’re pretty close to the same size.” She plucked at the dress, fussing over it a little and getting it to lay just right.
Jackson walked in just then, a grin on his face. “I’ll have to get the beard to stop being so itchy,” he said with a laugh. “George was lucky to have one built right in. But the suit fits well enough. We’ll give it a little padding to make me look more jolly.”
“All right, now we need a photo.” Mabel beamed, reaching for the camera in her purse. “Get closer,” she urged, waving at the two of them. “Look like you’re a couple. Santa and Mrs. Claus, right?” she added mischievously, as Vanessa gave her a narrow look. “Put your arms around each other. There you go,” she encouraged, as Jackson stepped a little closer and gently put his arm around Vanessa, careful to just rest his hand lightly on her waist.
Vanessa was blushing by the time she’d taken a few pictures, and Mabel was pleased to see that Jackson was being sweet and respectful, not cuddling too close to Vanessa but still close enough for the pictures to be just right.
This is going to be great,she thought, as Jackson glanced down at Vanessa and she saw the way his gaze lingered. The two of them just needed an excuse to spend more time together. Who knew, maybe they’d even try long distance?—
“Is that enough?” Vanessa asked, clearly flustered as she untangled herself from Jackson. “I’m sure there will be more chances for pictures. We should get this all unpacked.”
“I’ve got a few more totes to grab,” Jackson agreed, clearing his throat. “Be right back.”
Mabel looked at the camera. “The pictures are perfect,” she said, holding up the back of the camera so Vanessa could see.
Vanessa blushed again. “They’re good,” she said quickly. “By the way,” she added, clearly trying to change the subject. “Did you find that unicorn toy for Katie, yet?”
Mabel shook her head, setting the camera down. “Unfortunately, it’s still backordered. I’m going to keep trying though. I’ll let you know if I do.”
Vanessa nodded. “All right. Hopefully it comes in.”
Mabel noticed the flicker of disappointment in her granddaughter’s face, and it warmed her heart. She didn’t want to disappoint Vanessa of course, ever, but seeing Vanessa’s concern over Katie’s toy told her that Vanessa was beginning to make connections in the town. She was forming attachments to people now, in a place that she’d cut ties with long ago, and as far as Mabel was concerned, that could only be a good thing.
She loved Fir Tree Grove. And she wanted Vanessa to love it just as much as she did.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The next morning, Vanessa went to the diner for breakfast before heading over to the toy shop. She’d finally decided to splurge on the pumpkin French toast, and she was excited to try it. She was getting more and more comfortable with allowing herself treats, and allowing herself to have fun, and relax.
She’d started actually setting herself hours for work, refusing to sit at her desk in the morning until she’d enjoyed her coffee and breakfast without any other distractions, and giving herself a few hours every day after helping Mabel with the shop to get through emails and invoices for Russell, before firmly closing her laptop and enjoying the rest of the evening. She’d watched Christmas movies with her grandmother, read her new book by the fireplace in her room, and taken long, lazy baths with her new bath bombs.
She felt more relaxed than she had in years, like she might have actually gotten a couple of years younger on this trip. And she thought, sometimes, that she wasn’t ready for it to be over.
That was silly, of course. It was vacation, and vacations couldn’t last forever, even if she did have multiple years of never taking one to make up for. But there was still an end date on hertime in Fir Tree Grove. She had a life in San Francisco still, and it hadn’t just gone away.
She also had to admit that she was looking forward to seeing Jackson at the diner. She’d put on her favorite pair of jeans and a dove-gray cashmere sweater that she thought was one of the nicest she’d brought, and spent a little extra time on her makeup that morning. But when she walked into the diner, breathing in the scents of cinnamon and coffee and melting cheese, she only saw Patty behind the counter, two of the other waitresses busily taking orders. Jackson was nowhere to be seen.
A flicker of disappointment sparked through her, but she thought that maybe he was just in the back. Surely he’d appear before she was done with breakfast. She sat down at the counter, putting in an order with Patty for the pumpkin French toast and a pumpkin spice coffee. Without Jackson there, she felt a little strange ordering the off-the-menu eggnog latte, like it was something just between them.
The French toast, when it came, was sweet and cinnamon-y, rich and cooked to perfection. She drizzled fresh maple syrup over it, savoring every bite as she drank her coffee, and once again she couldn’t help but think that she would miss all of this when she left. She only had her coffee shop back in San Francisco as a place that felt like hers, and it was more like a second office. She only ever worked there, she’d never just sat and relaxed.
I can find some places like that,she thought.Make more time to do things like this, and have a life outside of work.
But even as she thought of finding a little breakfast spot, or a new coffee shop, or anything else that would be special just for her, she felt a little guilty. Like she was betraying Fir Tree Grove somehow by thinking of finding new spots back in the city to enjoy, the way she was enjoying sitting and having breakfast in the Snowdrift Diner.
It just wouldn’t be the same, she thought. But there was nothing she could do about that except savor her time in the little town while she was there, and maybe make a point of coming back again sooner rather than later. That was something shecouldchange—the fact that she never took vacations or saw her grandmother.
She looked around again as she ate her breakfast, searching for some sign of Jackson, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Maybe it’s his day off,she thought as she finished her French toast and the last of her coffee, asking Patty for another cup of coffee to-go before she headed over to The Toy Chest. Still, she couldn’t help feeling a stab of disappointment at the fact that she hadn’t gotten to see him.
Outside, it was crisp and cold, and she thought she caught the scent of hot chocolate wafting over from Imogen’s shop. The outing at the Christmas market had been so much fun, she thought, and she should stop by and see Imogen again soon. She hadn’t had a close friend since college, and the idea of having someone who might stop by to see her or vice versa, who she could go out and do things with, was more appealing than she’d let herself think about.
Imogen had been lovely to her so far, sweet and welcoming and fun, and Vanessa couldn’t help thinking it was a shame that her ex-husband had left her to raise sweet, beautiful little Katie all on her own. Imogen was doing a remarkable job, but it was hardly fair that she had to shoulder so much responsibility.
It had been clear that toy was important to Katie, something that she really wanted, and Vanessa wished that she could get it for her. If Mabel couldn’t source it through her distributors though, she wasn’t sure what other resources there might be?—
