Page 14 of Snowflakes and Sparks

“You’re the first person they thought about? Not that you wouldn’t do a good job, but why a young guy like you?”

Alex let out a laugh. “I like volunteering. Everyone in this town knows that. So yeah, I have to run.”

“No worries,” I said. “I understand completely.”

“Why don’t I walk you home?”

“Sure, that would be lovely,” I said, even though I felt the disappointment run through me.

“Or…” Alex said. “You could join me? I’m sure no one would mind.”

***

Twenty minutes later, I was surrounded by a team of driven townsfolk who all took their job as Snow Ball organizers very seriously. They were decked out in matching Snow Ball hats and jackets and all carried a clipboard with them. They kept throwing me suspicious looks and I heard them talk – not so subtly – about me.

“What is she doing here? She doesn’t even live here.”

“Was one disaster not enough for her?”

“It’s one thing for her to come back to our town, but showing up at this meeting?”

Like I told Alex before, a tight-knit community. One I clearly was not a part of. Not that it mattered, since I was only here temporarily, but it would’ve been nice to be acknowledged for who I was – Suzie Stonebrooks, not Suzie the Ultimate Christmas Destroyer. For a moment I considered putting them in their place, then chickened out. I hated confrontations and they looked like an angry bunch.

A guy called Bob opened the meeting and they discussed who would take over Diane’s task of organizing a festive Winter Walk through the town. Most of the ideas were turned down because they were either too expensive, too much work or too over the top.

“We need to come up with something. Time’s ticking,” Bob said, making a tick-tock sound. “A lot of people who are spending the holidays at the inn have already signed up for the tour. We can’t let them down. The Winter Walk tradition cannot be forgotten,” he added dramatically.

“How about a tour linked to the snow globe factory?” I suggested.

Someone called Tracy rolled her eyes. “We already did that last year. We need to be more original than that.”

“Why don’t we all sleep on it and present our ideas at the next meeting?” Alex suggested. “As long as we can start working on the Winter Walk by the end of the week, there’s more than enough time. Maybe Diane has got some ideas of her own as well. I’ll give her a call.”

Everyone sighed and muttered, but eventually they all agreed to meet again on Friday with a list of fresh ideas.

I helped Alex put the chairs back in their designated places. We went out and he locked the doors of the community center, then turned to face me.

“Now I’ll walk you home,” he said with a smile.

Our boots crunched through the fresh snow and I breathed in the crisp evening air. Neither of us said a word, and yet there wasn’t a trace of uncomfortable silence between us. It felt as if we had been walking home together for years.

Every single house was decked out with fairy lights and ornate Christmas wreaths. Some people had even placed a nativity scene in their front yards, complete with miniature stables and all. I smiled. The townsfolk might not be fond of me, but they certainly knew how to create a blissful Christmas atmosphere.

“I’m sorry tonight went different than I had planned, Suzie.”

We had stopped in front of Got It Covered and the thought of standing close to Alex sent a fresh series of flutters through me.

“You mean how everyone at the meeting made it crystal clear that I’m an intruder?”

“They don’t think you’re an intruder. They just need a chance to get to know you, that’s all. When they do, they’ll warm to you pretty fast. Give them a little bit of time.”

I smiled. “I hope so. I didn’t mind tagging along to the meeting, but I don’t think I’ll join you again on Friday.”

“Just so you know, this is not how I normally act on dates. Running to town meetings and all. Not that this was technically a real date,” he quickly added.

My heart rate kicked up a notch. “Oh yeah? How would you have spent your evening then? If this had been, hypothetically, a real date?”

He took my hand in his and gave it a squeeze. His voice sounded as soft as his brown-eyed gaze. “You’ll have to find out for yourself someday, won’t you?”

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