Page 7 of Sweet Christmas Comeback
He took in the scene: Jade perched on a ladder surrounded by sparks, dangling wires, and what appeared to be the electrical carnage of a very amateur repair job.
“So you’re back,” he said, his tone carefully neutral.
“Just for a while,” she replied automatically, then immediately regretted it. It sounded defensive, temporary. Like she was already planning her next escape.
“Things didn’t work out in the big city?”
The question hit like a gentle slap. He wasn’t wrong—things definitely hadn’t worked out—but hearing it put so bluntly stung. She could see him taking in her current situation: perched on a ladder, hair standing on end, having just blacked out half the building in an amateur electrical disaster. Not exactly the triumphant return of a successful marketing executive.
There was an awkward pause. She remembered this Leo—the one who’d helped her build that disastrous bridge for physics class, who’d tutted Mrs. Henderson’s groceries to her car when her arthritis was acting up, who’d spent his lunch periods in the auto shop helping underclassmen fix their cars for free. He’d always been the helper, the fixer. That part at least hadn’t changed, even if everything else about him had.
“So,” she said, desperate to fill the silence, “reindeer, huh? That’s... new.”
A ghost of a smile touched his lips. “Not as new as you’d think. Started about five years ago. Turns out there’s decent money in Christmas magic.”
“Christmas magic,” she repeated. “Is that the official business term?”
“Holiday livestock entertainment services,” he corrected, and now he was definitely smiling. “But Christmas magic sounds better on the business cards.”
Despite everything—the electrical disaster, the awkwardness, the way he’d just casually pointed out her failures—Jade found herself smiling back. “Much better marketing.”
“Right. You’d know about that.” There was no malice in it, just a statement of fact, but it reminded them both of the gulf between who they’d been and who they were now.
“Mabel, where’s your breaker box?” Leo asked, breaking the moment and shifting into practical mode.
“By the back door,” Mabel said gratefully. “Oh, Leo, thank goodness you’re here.”
“I was walking by when I heard the pop and saw the sparks,” he explained, making his way carefully through the dark bakery. “Sounded like someone was having electrical troubles.”
Jade climbed down from the ladder with as much dignity as she could muster, which wasn’t much considering her hair was still standing on end and she smelled faintly of ozone. “I was just replacing the display case lighting. It’s a simple job.”
“Uh-huh.” Leo located the breaker box and began flipping switches with the confidence of someone who actually knew what he was doing. “Did you turn off the power first?”
“Of course I turned off the power,” Jade said indignantly. “I turned off that switch right there.”
“That’s the switch for the back room outlets,” Leo said mildly. “The display case is on this one.” He flipped a different breaker, and she heard the distinct click of the circuit disconnecting.
“Oh.”
“Yeah.” One by one, the lights began coming back on as Leo restored power to the rest of the building. The refrigerator hummed back to life, and the cash register beeped its way through a reboot sequence.
When the lights came up, Leo turned to survey the damage. The old fluorescent fixture lay in pieces on the floor, the new LED panel hung at a drunken angle from one mounting bracket, and there was a small scorch mark on the wall where the sparks had made contact.
“YouTube tutorial?” he asked.
“How did you know?”
“Lucky guess.” He walked over to examine the dangling light fixture, his practiced eye taking in the tangle of wires and thesomewhat creative approach to electrical work. “Mind if I ask which video you watched?”
Jade pulled out her phone and showed him the screen. Leo watched about thirty seconds of ‘Replace Commercial Fluorescent Lights - Easy DIY!’ before shaking his head.
“This guy’s an idiot,” he announced. “He’s got the wire configuration completely wrong, and he’s not using the right type of ballast for a commercial fixture.”
“He seemed very confident,” Jade said weakly.
“Confidence and competence are two different things.” Leo was already reaching for the dangling wires, his movements efficient and sure. “I could finish this for you. Take about ten minutes.”
“That’s very kind,” Jade said, her pride warring with practicality, “but I can handle it. I just need to watch a few more videos. Maybe find a better tutorial.”
