Page 7 of Stuck in Christmas

“Nonsense. This is the Hospitality State,” Bonnie said, her enthusiasm infectious.

I smiled at the woman, and then I caught the glint of metal on the neck strap of her apron. It was an intricately painted enamel brooch with metal embellishments. “That is a beautiful pin you’re wearing.”

“A partridge in a pear tree.” Bonnie beamed and leaned closer so I could get a better look. “Joe got it for me on our first Christmas as a married couple. Probably isn’t worth more than a quarter, but it has sentimental value.”

“It’s beautiful and reminds me of something,” I started, but Eli’s voice jolted me back to reality.

“Are you coming?” He demanded as he held open the door between the diner and the inn.

I hugged Bonnie and hustled across the floor to where Eli waited. “Sorry.” I followed him through the door and up a set of carved stairs. “This is a beautiful inn. How long has Bonnie had it?”

“Long enough,” Eli replied.

I couldn’t help but dig some more. “That’s quite an answer.”

“That’s the best you’ll get tonight. Good night.” Eli placed my bags on the bed with a thud, then laid a key on the dresser before lingering for a moment.

I waited for him to say something else, but he simply gave me a curt nod and then disappeared down the hallway.

“That’s weird,” I muttered, shaking my head as I unpacked.

Once settled, I prepared for bed, then reached for my phone to tell the automated assistant when I wanted to wake up. “Hey, set the alarm for seven a.m.”

“I’ve turned it on,” the automated assistant replied. His voice seemed peeved that he was doing something I asked him to do hundreds of times.

I fluffed my pillows, hoping the morning light would bring clarity to my wildly tangled night. “Let’s see if the roads look better in the light of day.” It was part prayer as I closed my eyes.

As I was about to dive into deep sleep, I dreamed of standing on the town square, outside Bonnie’s Inn, waiting for something. I heard jingling bells and heavy breaths, and when I turned to see what was behind me, I realized I was smack in the path of eight reindeer, barreling through the sky, right for my face.

I threw myself to the side, expecting to end up on the floor of my room at the inn. Instead, I fell face-first into a snowbank.

Part Two

Three

“What the…holly?” I pulled myself out of the snowbank and looked down at my clothes. I was not in my pajamas, but in the outfit I wore to the reindeer farm yesterday.

Maybe I sleepwalked.

After changing out of my pajamas?

I spotted Joe hurrying toward me, his breath steaming in the chilly air.

“Miss, are you alright?” he asked, concerned.

“Yeah, Joe. I can’t seem to walk in the snow around here,” I admitted, chuckling at my clumsiness. “You'd think I’d have learned from last night.”

Joe looked bewildered, his brow furrowing slightly. “How’d you know my name?” He glanced down at his name tag. “Oh, yes.”

“Joe—it's Renee. We met yesterday?” I prompted.Maybe he was getting forgetful in his older years?“I stayed the night at the Inn.”

His smile lit up the area as he laughed. “Sorry, Miss Renee. We get a lot of guests in town for the Christmas Carnival, and I’m terrible with names. Let’s get you inside and warmed up.”

As we entered the diner, a blast of warmth enveloped me, mingling with the sweet scent of peaches and hot chocolate. The bells jingled overhead on the door, and Bonnie stood in the same spot as the day I met her. Yesterday. I narrowed my eyes. Maybe she always stands in that same spot. Wearing the exact same apron.

“Who might this be?” Bonnie asked Joe.

A sense of unease skittered up my spine.

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