Page 30 of Evergreen Christmas

Jordyn stilled, her hands curling around her knees tightly. “What do you mean?”

“Nate lost his wife six years ago,” Eve said gently.

“Yes,” Jordyn said. “He told me.”

“Did . . .” Holly hesitated, picking at her nails. “Did he tell you anything else about his late wife?”

“Not really,” Jordyn said.

“Nate loved Macy very much,” Kandy said quietly.

“So much,” Holly said, “that he has refused to even consider dating anyone for six years. He’s made it very clear to every woman who’s approached him that he’s not interested in dating or pursuing a romantic relationship.”

Jordyn’s stomach clenched. “O-other women have asked him out? A lot of them?”

Grimacing, Holly nodded. “More than a few. And they’ve all received the same answer from what I hear—he’s not interested or available.”

“He’s been very clear about that,” Carol Belle confirmed. “And I just don’t see him changing his mind. We and Nate may have our differences right now regarding the Christmas competition, but one thing Nate is and has always been, is a fantastic father. He loves that little girl of his so much, he’s not willing to take up with another woman who might disappoint either of them in any way.”

An ache spread through Jordyn. “But . . . I’m trying not to disappoint anyone. And I certainly wouldn’t want to hurt Nate or Roxie.”

“No one’s saying that,” Holly said urgently. She hopped up, sat on the loveseat beside Jordyn, reached out and placed a hand on Jordyn’s knee. “All we’re saying is that he prefers to be single and focus his energy on Roxie.”

“Yes,” Eve added. “What we’re trying to say is, Nate is not available.”

“And all of us—especially me—forgot that for a little while,” Carol Belle whispered. Grimacing, she looked down at her hands and wove her fingers tightly together in her lap. “When we heard Chestnut Ridge was getting a new owner, we were excited. For years, we’ve been subtly trying to persuade Nate to step away from the Christmas competition and focus his energy on rebuilding his own interests.”

Jordyn shook her head. “But I thought Nate loved the Christmas competition.”

“He does,” Carol Belle hastened to explain. “But for all the wrong reasons. You see, for him, the Christmas competition—and the tree contest, especially—has become another way for him to dwell on his loss.” She held up her hand. “Not that we want to discourage Nate from remembering Macy, treasuring the time he had with her and sharing those memories with Roxie. The reason we began the Christmas competition in the first place was for Kandy and me to honor our late husbands’ memory while moving on with our lives. But instead of celebrating Macy’s memory during the Christmas competition and finding new joy, Nate uses the festivities to fuel his grief and remain stagnant. It’s just that, well, he’s so fixated on the past that he won’t embrace any possibility of a new future for himself. Macy loved the Christmas competition and winning the Christmas tree contest and Christmas Crown was her goal every year. Nate even built her a trophy case to store all of the Christmas Crowns she’d won. When she died, Nate took it upon himself to carry on that tradition to the detriment of healing after her loss.”

“We’ve been searching for a way to encourage him to take a break from the Christmas competition and refocus his attention on himself for a change,” Holly whispered. “We love Nate and want him to be happy. Misguided intentions or not, we hoped a break from the competition would do him good.”

“And when we heard you had bought Chestnut Ridge,” Eve said, “we saw an opportunity for a newcomer to use Fabio to kick Nate out of the Christmas tree competition this year.”

“But we didn’t expect you to be so . . . so . . .” Carol Belle struggled for words, her face flushing.

“So beautiful,” Holly said, smiling softly. “And vivacious. And appealing. And it hasn’t escaped our notice that Nate has noticed, too. And that you have taken an interest in him.”

“And that,” Carol Belle stressed, “we didn’t count on. Please don’t misunderstand us—we were over the moon when we noticed he’d taken an interest in you. We were ready to encourage it even! Maybe do a little matchmaking! ”

“But it wasn’t until you kissed him that we thought the situation through properly,” Eve said. “Nate still hasn’t truly let Macy go and, well, we’ve come to think that he may not ever be ready. And when we saw you kiss him, we guessed you might have already fallen for him a little.”

“We may still be getting to know you,” Kandy whispered, “but we already care for you—very much! And the last thing we’d ever want is to see your heart get broken, especially right after you moved to town.” She reached out and patted Carol Belle’s knee. “Looking out for each other’s well-being is what we do best as friends.”

The two women shared a meaningful look.

“Yes,” Carol Belle whispered. “And we’re very protective of each other when it comes to romantic entanglements.”

Jordyn sank back in her seat, her heart thumping in her chest, and an awkward embarrassment singeing her neck. She hadn’t stuck around yesterday after kissing Nate. Rather, she’d walked away, focused only on the pleasurable tingle running through her. She hadn’t thought about how Nate might have reacted to her kiss.

Poor man. Had she actually accosted him with an unwanted advance? And in doing so, had she unwittingly given Noel’s residents the wrong impression of her? What if Nate really wasn’t interested in pursuing a new romantic relationship? What if she had mistaken the chemistry she thought existed between them, and what if he didn’t feel the same attraction for her that she did for him?

Heaven help her! She clapped her hands over her face. She’d made an utter fool of herself.

“Oh, Jordyn,” Kandy said quickly, leaving the sofa, sitting on the loveseat beside Jordyn and gently tugging Jordyn’s hands from her face. “Please don’t be embarrassed. You did absolutely nothing wrong. You were just being a kind neighbor and friend.”

“And were enjoying a bit of innocent flirting with a man you’re interested in,” Holly added. “There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.”

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