Page 50 of The Christmas Tree Farm
Bennett glanced toward Kira’s house, down the dirt road from the parking lot. He thought about her in there, alone and cold. He thought about her rummaging around in that old barn, or stumbling over some grisly discovery, or most likely looking out her window and seeing the Dream Harbor Book Club stealing her Christmas trees, and he wanted to protect her from all of it.
He blew out a long sigh.
This test was too much and he’d definitely failed it.
‘Wait up,’ he called after the group and followed them back into the trees.
* * *
‘I’m starting to think maybe there isn’t a dead body, after all,’ Jacob said, like he was horribly disappointed they hadn’t found a murder victim.
‘Of course there isn’t,’ Bennett grumbled. They’d ended up by the old barn again, mostly because Jacob thought it looked like a good place to hide things and partly because the biggest trees were up at this end of the farm, and apparently Kaori required a twelve-footer for her cathedral ceilings. Bennett was cold and tired and now carrying Pudgy who was snoring loudly in his arms.
The women had already headed back down the hill, their trees on the back of a sled. But Jacob insisted they check out the barn. So here they were, inside the building that just this morning Bennett had warned Kira to stay away from.
Trespassing.
Snooping.
‘Maybe it’s not a body. Maybe Noah was right. Maybe he buried some kind of treasure. Or money,’ Jacob said, as he peered around an old tractor.
‘And if he did, it’s not ours to find. So, let’s go.’
‘He’s right,’ Darius chimed in from his spot huddled inside his coat near the door. ‘We should go, babe.’
‘Okay, fine,’ Jacob agreed with a huff. ‘I guess the old guy was just screwing with us with that letter.’ He shrugged. ‘Well, you’re off the hook, Ben. You don’t have to keep coming up here for walks,’ he said, with another wink, before following Darius out of the barn.
Bennett didn’t have to keep coming here. He shouldn’t keep coming here. He didn’t need another Nicole in his life. Not that Kira was anything like her, but the situation was too tempting for him. It was like a sugar addict getting a part-time job at a candy factory.
He glanced at the ceiling, where the beams had separated and the roof had caved in. Snowflakes swirled in through the opening. There was nothing else in here except for some old farm equipment and damp hay. Nothing of much use.
Except for maybe that…
Bennett spotted the old shovel and the bag of rock salt shoved into the corner of the barn. He doubted Kira had thought about how she would clear her path tomorrow. She wasn’t used to the snow.
He could just bring these down and leave them on her porch for her.
And then he would go.
He wouldn’t think about her digging herself out of her house, alone, tomorrow. Nope. He would drop these off and then go home.
It was a good plan. A compromise with himself.
He looked down at the sleeping dog in his arms and the two circling his feet.
‘Hey, Jacob, wait up.’ He followed the other men and found them loading their tiny tree onto the back of a sled. Perfect.
He put the salt and the shovel next to their tree, but kept Pudgy with him. She was too old to go bumping around on the back of a sled. They all slipped and slid their way back down the hill, with Jacob and Darius spontaneously breaking out into a very spirited version of ‘Let it Snow’ on their way down.
It reminded Bennett that this was what he’d wanted. A white Christmas. A quintessential New England December. Noah was right, the farm looked like the set of a holiday movie. But it wasn’t enough. Bennett’s thoughts kept returning to his other Christmas wish.
And his resolve to leave the snow supplies and run was weakening with every step.
‘Can you guys drop the dogs off at Logan’s for me?’ he said when they got back to the cars. Logan’s farm was on the way back to town or he wouldn’t have asked, but he didn’t know how much longer he’d be here, and he wanted the dogs taken care of.
Because, who the hell was he kidding? There was no way he was leaving until he was sure Kira was equipped for this storm.
‘Sure, Ben.’ Jacob smiled at him, shaking snow from his coat. ‘Sticking around a little longer, huh?’
