Page 59 of Carpenter's Christmas Bride

KENZIE

Kenzie spent the next day at the local ballet theatre, losing herself in the last days of the production’s preparation with her grandmother.

Somehow, even the awkward ending to her day with Aidan couldn’t keep her down when she was in the cool, dark theatre, surrounded by happy people.

Kenzie was working with the “Waltz of the Flowers” dancers quietly in the back, while the dress run-through went along onstage.

A crew of women stood at the ready to make last minute costume adjustments as the dancers moved through their parts in the space and Grandma Lee stopped and started for lights and sound.

It was hard to believe that they were less than a week away from the first performance. The dancers were brimming with excitement and the crew were all smiling and working hard.

As usual, the performances were sold out, but Grandma Lee had surprised Kenzie with three tickets for the weekend.

“I thought maybe you could bring Aidan Webb and his little boy,” she suggested lightly, before heading into the fray of dancers where Kenzie couldn’t argue.

A day or two ago, Kenzie would have been thrilled to be able to offer those coveted tickets to Aidan and Walt. In her mind, Aidan was her knight in shining armor, and it would only be a matter of time before they fell madly in love.

But after that strange, reluctant air descended over him yesterday, she wasn’t feeling so sure anymore.

He hadn’t said or done a single thing to make her think that the growing bond between them was fraying. But she had felt it instantly, in spite of the pounding music and flashing lights of the arcade. It felt like a sign had suddenly lit up over his head that said, not interested.

A month ago, she hadn’t thought about the guy since high school. It was odd to feel devastated about him—all without him ever telling her that he liked her, or even that she was beautiful. Plenty of men came up and told her that after performances. She’d even had partners say it in that same awed tone, and it never failed to make her uncomfortable. But somehow, she knew it would feel different if Aidan Webb said he thought she was beautiful.

Maybe she’d just been reading too many romance novels. Of course she was seeing him as the hero. If she’d spent the week reading thrillers, she’d probably think he was a secret jewel thief or something.

A glance at her phone told her it was time to go. She had promised Mal she would help out with some gift baskets at the bakery tonight, and Mal’s friends would be there too. It would be nice to have another distraction from Aidan Webb.

She had met Valerie and Ana separately in town with Mal over the last few days, but tonight would be her first time attending a Girls’ Night event.

She looked around for Grandma Lee, but she was deep in conversation with the Nutcracker prince, so Kenzie just gave her a little wave and headed out again.

The air outside the theatre was cold and fresh. Tiny snow flurries sparkled in the streetlights and Kenzie felt like a little kid again, coming out of rehearsals and feeling like she was part of the scenery of the fairy tale herself.

She made her way to Mal’s place slowly on her crutches, drinking in the beautiful Christmas decorations on the storefronts.

The display at the jewelry shop was a dream of items from nature laid with sparkling gems. And the Victorian dollhouse in the window of the real estate office rested on a bed of cotton snow and was hung with tiny Christmas lights and bedecked with a wreath and tiny pine boughs.

At the desk behind the dollhouse, a tireless Sloane Greenfield waved to Kenzie, a pile of papers in one hand and a phone in the other. Kenzie wondered if the poor young woman would work on the actual holiday too.

The lights were all on in the bakery, though the sign read Closed. Mal and her friends, Valerie, who owned the jewelry shop and Ana, who co-owned a clothing store with her mother, were all inside, laughing and sipping from paper cups.

For a moment, it made Kenzie think of her roommates back in New York, and she felt a pang of loneliness for the nights they had spent sewing their toe shoes and watching movies, or stretching while the radio played, all the while gossiping about the ballet—who was going to fall in love, who was going to be moved up to principal dancer, who was leaving…

I might be back there soon, she told herself. Anything is possible.

Honestly though, when Kenzie herself had been moved up to principal, she had sensed a cooling off with her friends. It was awkward to wonder if they really thought she deserved it, and to know their next move would be to take bets on how long she could hold onto it.

I’m not going to think about that, she told herself. I’m going to focus on what my life could look like in Trinity Falls.

And since that life started with crossing her fingers that Mal’s crew of women would include her, she took a deep breath and headed into the bakery. But the door handle stuck when she tried to turn it, and made a loud rattling sound that had the three of them looking up to see what was going on.

Of course the door was locked. The shop was closed. Kenzie felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment and tears prickle her eyes. What a first impression.

Mal darted over and unlocked it with a big welcoming smile. But the smile disappeared when she saw the look on Kenzie’s face.

“Hey,” she said. “Are you okay?”

“Yes,” Kenzie said. “Of course. Sorry, I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

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