Page 19 of Christmas at Cozy Holly Inn
“No, thanks. I can handle it.”
“Of course.”
“Well, I have things to do inside. Try to keep a handle on your dog. She scares the cat,” she said as she retreated up the steps.
He would have been more offended if she hadn’t reached out almost aimlessly to touch Snowball’s fur as she passed. He bit back a smile as he ushered Snowball back toward home. Julie liked dogs more than she let on.
Which was good. He didn’t know whether he could like someone who didn’t like his dog.
And for the sake of the sale going smoothly, it was better he didn’t add more friction between their families. At least, that was what he told himself.
Chapter 10
It was probably a good thing that the cat appeared to dislike Julie. He made a point to leave the room or hide whenever Julie tried to engage him. She told herself that this was best, so she wouldn’t get attached. Still, one little snuggle, or at least letting her pet his soft fur, wouldn’t be too bad, would it?
“I’m not a monster,” she told the cat.
He didn’t answer. He was hiding underneath Gramps’s rocker, a precarious place to be in the best of times, especially since his long fluffy tail kept swishing under one of the runners.
“You could get hurt.”
The cat didn’t seem to believe her.
She sighed, rubbing her hands together to get them warm and remembering Nolan’s critique of her outerwear.
“I haven’t forgotten the winters in Vermont,” she muttered under her breath. She paced the living room, waiting for the sound of a car. Bob would be here any minute, and she was anxious to get him started and knock another task off the list.
The cat tensed at the sound of what she was waiting for. It was muffled, the snow not being as crunchy as it might have been, but the unmistakable rumble of a truck engine hailed someone’s arrival. She hurried to the door to meet Bob.
Bob Ryder looked exactly as he’d sounded on the phone. He was about the same age as her grandmother but robust. He had a bit of a potbelly half hidden by the heavy plaid jacket he wore. He carried with him a box of tools in his gloved hand. His truck was a much older model than the one Julie had rented, and sitting next to the rental in front of the inn, it looked its age.
Bob smiled as he saw her. He took the stairs at a careful pace, holding on to the railing once he tested his weight on it. It wiggled a bit, causing him to mutter under his breath. Probably one more thing to fix. Hopefully just a loose screw and not the wood itself.
When he reached her, he put the toolbox down on the porch she’d swept clean of snow this morning and offered his hand. She took it. He had a firm handshake, despite his years.
“I can’t say I ever thought to see you in Pinecone Falls again.”
Self-consciously, she held out her hands. “Well, here I am.”
“That you are. And you look just like your gram too. I can’t believe so much time has passed.” He gave a hearty sigh then stamped his feet. “Well, why don’t you show me what needs doing.”
Before they went inside, Julie showed him the spindle on the railing she wanted replaced—it was front and center and, having been broken by goodness-knew-what, could be a danger risk to an unsuspecting guest. Inside, she started to lead him to the kitchen, where one of the cabinets was falling off the hinges—not the one in which she kept the cat food, much to the cat’s dismay.
Bob stopped short in the living room. The cat had vacated his spot beneath the rocker, and without that sign of life, it looked quiet and lonely. Everything was clean—Julie had scrubbed the floor to within an inch of its life—but without Gram and Gramps and an assortment of guests there, it was only a room. Only empty furniture.
“My wife and I used to come to these parties every year. Long before your time,” he added with a chuckle. His eyes shining in the light coming in from the window, he gestured to the fireplace next to the rocker. “We used to take our picture in front of that fireplace, every year. She called it good luck.”
“And was it?”
He looked at her, as though startled she was still here. She felt like she shouldn’t be, like she was intruding on a private moment. But his expression was soft and a bit sad, not accusing. “Anything that made her happy was good luck if you ask me.” He hesitated a moment then added, “She passed on a few years back. But Eloise… I still have these fond memories of her, of a place she loved. It’s enough.”
To her surprise, he caught her hand. She flexed her fingers but didn’t pull away, even though she felt a bit awkward. The look in his eyes was too intense.
“Thank you,” he said thickly. “For doing what Ida can’t anymore. For making this party happen so I can remember her that way one more time.”
Julie’s throat felt thick with emotion. “You’re welcome,” she whispered back, and she tried for a smile too. She wasn’t sure she succeeded.
He cleared his throat and pulled away. “Now what else do you want me to fix here?”
