Page 75 of Saved By Noel
Out of my peripheral vision, I see Pops shrug and hold up his hands. “Such are the gambles of life. But I say it’s worth the risk. Because a life loving a good woman is the biggest jackpot the world has to offer.”
I leave Pops’ house and drive aimlessly around the outskirts of town. I rolled the window down for Chase, but he’s kept his chin propped on my thigh the whole time.
Reaching to run my hand down his back, I think about the day we found each other. When I was in the middle of my electrician apprenticeship, I’d found Chase abandoned along the side of the road. He was a tiny, quivering puppy, crouching there in the grass. Nursing him back to health and gaining his trust had added a layer of purpose to my life. Now, I can’t imagine life without him. I think about how wrecked I’ll be the day that Chase’s life with me comes to an end.
The thought chokes my throat, but I know that I wouldn’t trade away the time I have with Chase in order to avoid that pain.
Chase whimpers, reading my thoughts, as always. I scratch behind his ears. “I suppose it hasn’t been so terrible needing you in my life, has it, boy?”
It’s getting dark, and I find myself driving up the ridge toward Clara’s cabin. The beacon of her Christmas lights is less of a standout this year, now that we have thousands of lights strung up all over town. I pull into her driveway and cut the engine.
I’ll check on the plants, per Syd’s order. Even though I know that Clara won’t be here, my chest is heavy as I follow the stone pathway to her front porch. Maybe the heaviness isbecauseshe won’t be here.
Punching in the code on the lock, my mind falls back to the first time I did this. The first night I met Clara—literally stumbling into her. The vision of her wide eyes, her damp curls, her black robe is easy to recall, considering how many times I’ve replayed it over the past year. Rubbing a hand across my beard with a sigh, I open the door.
I flip on the light and look around the room. It’s obvious she left in a hurry—there’s a pair of shoes in the middle of the floorwhere she must have toed them off. A dirty bowl and coffee mug sit in the sink, a box of Cocoa Puffs left open on the counter.
Running water in the sink, I wash the few dishes and put them on the drying rack. Then I fill her watering can with fertilizer and water, carrying it to the sunroom to assess which plants need care. The Tineke plant sitting at the end of her writing desk catches my attention, and I think back to her shock when I returned it to her in good condition.
Something else on her writing desk catches my eye—a stack of papers, marked with red pen. I peer more closely and realize what I’m staring at: Clara’s movie script.
She did it, I think with a smile.She chased the dream.
I know I should walk away. I know it would be an invasion of privacy to look at this script when she hasn’t given me permission.
Knowing that can’t overcome the strength of my curiosity, though. I take the stack and sit down in her armchair. Chase lies down at my feet, and I start reading.
A woman named Renee buys a large house sight unseen in a small town named Bethlehem. Her plan is to convert it into a Christmas-themed bed-and-breakfast. When she arrives, she’s shocked to find that the dying town has rebuffed its Christmas namesake. She sets out to rally the people to embrace their Christmas connection in order to revitalize the town.
Renee has a run-in with Jack, a particularly grouchy member of the city council. As I read the descriptions of Jack’s character—the rugged beard, tall stature, and grumpy moods—it’s a view of myself in a Clara-shaped mirror.
The script so obviously reflects Clara’s time in Noel, her time with me. There’s no denying the connection. But as I read, I understand how Clara sees me. Really, trulyseesme. The good and the bad.
She sees the hesitance to let people close. But she also sees the dogged love for the people of Noel. She sees the resistance to change. But she also sees the efforts, big and small, to be open to what’s needed.
I stay up for hours, reading every line of her script. Chase snores softly at my feet as I turn the final pages. The story ends with Jack confessing his love for Renee, professing all the ways she’s made him a better man. Acknowledging all the ways she’s made the town better simply by her presence.
And then he kisses her under the mistletoe on her bed-and-breakfast porch.
Jack and Renee stare at each other with love in their eyes, the kind of love that fights through every obstacle, as the camera pans away to the town Christmas festival.
I stare at the final stage direction written at the end of the script, and my heart sinks. The reality of how much I hurt Clara slaps me across the face. This is the kind of ending she was dreaming of when she kissed me. But I froze up, acting as though I didn’twanther kissing me.
Like I didn’t want her.
I stand so abruptly, Chase jumps to his feet with a growl, searching for intruders.
“We have to make this right, Chase. You’re gonna have to stay with Pops for a couple days because I have to go win Clara back.”
Chapter forty-one
Clara
“How in the world are you done with all the newsletters already?” Madison asks me, incredulity in her voice and facial expression.
“I came in early.” I shrug.
Her eyes narrow at me. “How early?”
