Page 9 of A South Hill Christmas Keepsake
The minute he’d seen Hannah Leigh in front of Bringleton’s that morning, dressed in boots, a cable-knit sweater, and looking every bit like she belonged in one of those fancy Christmas catalogs, you could’ve knocked Nate over with a candy cane. She hadn’t changed. Not in how it mattered. Still pretty, still had that same spark in her blue eyes that made him feel like he was standing in the path of something important.
For the first time in a long while, Nate didn’t mind the waiting.
CHAPTER SIX
Nate tried to look nonchalant as Hannah Leigh stepped into his path, carrying a big plastic tub and placing it next to a stack of others just like it.
“I figured you’d be halfway through the lights by now.” The bin rustled with every step.
Nate blurted out a little white lie, “I got delayed making sure Birdie didn’t glue tinsel to the exit signs. Again.”
“Sounds like her.” Hannah Leigh shook her head. The familiar warmth cracked the cold bite in the air. “She means well.”
“So do fireworks, but they’re still loud, messy, and best admired from a safe distance.”
She walked past him, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, and set the bin down with a thump. “I heard you worked on the remodel of this place. I’d never have known this used to be a school.”
His shoulders lifted a bit. “Thanks. It’s been a labor of love. It’ll be cool to see how the town uses Dogwood Hall for the holidays. You know how the town gets when Christmas rolls around.”
Hannah Leigh tilted her head, a teasing glint in her eye. “Like a sugar rush with a to-do list?”
He gave a low, good-natured laugh.“Exactly.”
“Only Aunt Winnie seems determined to outdo her best this year.”
Nate rubbed the back of his neck. “Not a simple task,” he said, knowing that also meant his job would be bigger too. “So, I hear we’re putting up lights.”
“Yep.” She raised a tangled ball of lights from the top of the box she’d brought in. “Santa’s spaghetti, anyone? It’ll take longer to untangle this mess than to hang them.”
He eyed the mess. “Well, with both of us working on it, I’m sure we can get it done.”
They got to work in companionable silence, untangling strings of lights to hang, the kind that blinked with the rhythm of a country fiddle. As they worked, Hannah Leigh ran her fingers across the edge of the windowsill, pausing.
“This used to be my classroom in the fourth grade. Miss Parrish. She had a thing for cardinal decorations.”
“I remember that about her,” Nate said. “She moved away a few years ago.”
“Aunt Winnie received a postcard from her last year from Florida where her daughter lives. Said she misses the dogwood blooms but not the snow.”
“Can’t say I’d blame her.” He held up a length of flocked garland. “This should fit right over that doorway. What do you think?”
“It’ll be perfect.” She took the other end, and they walked over to install it.
Nate hammered a few nails into the wall so they could drape it around the door frame. His arm brushed against Hannah Leigh as she lifted the garland up to him.
He froze, and she didn’t budge. He tried to subdue the zing that had shot through him, cleared his throat, and changed the subject. “How have things been going?”
She glanced at him. “Pretty good. I thought coming back here would be hard, but it’s been nice so far.”
“Yeah. I get that. You’re used to being in the city. This probably isn’t that exciting to you.”
“No. Not at all.” She looked across the space. “It’s nice to see so many familiar faces all pitching in.” She lifted an untangled string of lights for him to hang.
He made quick work of it. He wanted to say more. To ask about the job in D.C. and the reason behind that shadow in hereyes. Instead, he picked up the extension cord and plugged in the lights.
They both turned to admire the colorful glow over the doorway of Dogwood Hall.
“It’s beautiful,” she said.
