Page 3 of A Christmas Spark
The job had paid well, and she’d had a beautiful apartment overlooking the harbor—that she’d never been home to enjoy—and plenty of money that she’d never had anything to spend it on. She’d never taken days off, working through the weekends, and hadn’t had any friends or real relationships outside of her professional ones at work. She hadn’t dated, hadn’t gone out to dinner, hadn’t met up with anyone for drinks.
She would still probably be doing that, she reflected, if not for the fact that her grandmother had called after years of being estranged from her, asking her to come and visit Fir Tree Grove for the holiday. Mabel, being sneaky, hadn’t slipped in the bit about needing Vanessa’s help at the store due to an injury until Vanessa was already there, but truthfully, looking back on it, Vanessa was glad. If she’d known her grandmother needed her to work at a toy store in the small Maine town for the holidays, she might not have agreed to it. It had been difficult enough to convince her to leave her job behind briefly, especially when she’d promised her boss that she wouldn’t take any holiday time that year, in order to cover for those who had.
But now, Vanessa was grateful every day that she’d let herself be talked into it—both into visiting in the first place and into staying to help. She had everything she hadn’t realized she was missing now—family, in the close, loving relationship that she now had with her grandmother, a real friend in Imogen, who ran the chocolate shop in town and had immediately latched onto Vanessa, a small home of her own that she got to spend time inand enjoy, and a boyfriend for the first time in years, Jackson, the handsome owner of the local diner who had wooed her with endless coffee and fresh eggnog creamer.
She looked around with an amused smile as she helped the last of the siblings sneak their choices over to Mabel to be rung up, feeling a warm sense of happy satisfaction at her new life and everything it had brought to her. She was feeling especially festive and happy with the onset of the Christmas season, and she had to laugh inwardly when she remembered how little Christmas spirit she’d had when she’d first come to Fir Tree Grove last year. She’d thought the town’s endless decorations were overblown and tacky, that everyone was strangely happy all the time, and that the festivity seemed forced.
But now, she felt differently about all of it. Fir Tree Grove’s love of Christmas seemed full of festivity and joy, warmth and laughter, a time when everyone went out of their way even more so than normal to spread happiness and love. She knew now that it wasn’t that she’d disliked Christmas before, or that the town celebrations had been overblown. She’d just thrown herself so fully into work, isolated herself so completely in order to keep herself from thinking about how alone in the world she’d been after her parents’ untimely passing, that she’d forgotten what it felt like to relax and have fun, to enjoy things being just a little ‘too much.’
Now, she’d learned how to enjoy all of it. She hadn’t expected the fulfillment she’d found in Fir Tree Grove, but once she’d let herself open up to the possibilities, her grandmother and Imogen and Jackson—and everyone else in town—had brought her so much joy.
She couldn’t be more grateful for the turn that her life had taken.
She finished up helping the siblings, and waved to the woman and her children as they left the shop with their bags inhand. Mabel was bustling over to the shelves as the lunchtime lull set in, straightening and rearranging toys that had been knocked out of place by the eager children running around. Vanessa joined in, tidying up the wrapping station, checking to make sure that the window displays were all still as they should be—sometimes small fingers liked to sneak in and mess with the decorations and toys there—and reorganizing the front counter. It took at least thirty minutes to set the shop back to rights, and when Mabel was pleased, she took a deep breath and turned toward Vanessa.
“Are you hungry?” she asked, dusting off her jeans. “I can go grab us something if you like.”
“Jackson actually just texted me.” Vanessa held up her phone. “He said he’s going to bring us over chicken pot pie from the diner. Their special today, apparently. Enough for both of us,” she added, and Mabel beamed.
“I do love a good chicken pot pie, and theirs is the best. Alright, then. Let’s have some tea in the back room while we wait on your handsome man.” Mabel winked at her, and Vanessa rolled her eyes playfully, but her cheeks reddened slightly. Even after a year, she was still sometimes surprised by how happy her relationship made her. She’d gone so many years without dating, telling herself that she didn’t have time for it, and she was so glad for Jackson’s patience as she’d gotten used to it again.
And he was so handsome. Different from anyone she would have dated in San Francisco, if she’d ever made the time, but she liked that. She liked that he was rugged, and handy, and worked hard at the diner that he’d put so much love and care into. She felt that same love and care in their relationship, and it made her happier than she could have ever dreamed.
“You sit down and I’ll make the tea,” Vanessa directed as they walked into the back room. “You’ve been on your feet all morning.”
“So have you,” Mabel retorted, but she took the opportunity to sit down, all the same, while Vanessa brewed two cups of peppermint tea for them. She groaned a little as she sank into the chair, and Vanessa looked quickly over at her. “I’m fine,” she insisted, but Vanessa still felt a little worried.
“You should let me fuss over you more,” Vanessa said, as she brought the tea over to the table. “Isn’t that the point of having a granddaughter close by? Letting her take care of you?”
“I’m very good at taking care of myself,” Mabel retorted. “I’ve been doing it for years now.”
“Just because you can doesn’t mean you have to. I think you told me that,” Vanessa said lightly, sliding her grandmother’s cup over to her.
Mabel gave her a conspiratorial look, clearly wanting to change the subject as she raised the steaming cup to her lips. “Things seem to be going well between you and Jackson. You’ve been together for a whole year now.”
Vanessa laughed. She clearly saw her grandmother’s gambit to change the topic for what it was, but she was more than happy to allow it, all the same. “I’ve never been so happy,” she admitted, sipping her own tea. “And you’re right. It’s not just the Christmas season, it’s about to be our first anniversary.” She took another sip of her tea, humming with pleasure at the minty warmth. “I want this Christmas to be really special for us both. But I need to think of the perfect gift.”
“Hmm.” Mabel pondered for a moment. “Well, there’s always a display of wood-carved watches at the Holly and Ivy Market this time of year, shipped in from this artisan who makes them by hand. That seems like something he might like.”
“Oh, wow.” Vanessa considered. “That sounds lovely. I’ll have to check them out.”
“You could get it engraved as well, Cindy always offers that.” Mabel paused, still thinking. “There’s always the possibility of apractical gift. New boots, a new locally made wool sweater, or a flannel. Jackson will wear his clothes and shoes until they fall apart, so something new and special that you picked out for him would be a good gift.”
“It might remind him of how he bought me boots and a scarf for our first date.” Vanessa laughed, remembering how woefully unprepared she’d been for a walk around the Christmas tree farm. She hadn’t needed a winter wardrobe when she’d lived in San Francisco, and the clothes she’d bought for her trip to Fir Tree Grove had been more fashion than function. In the year since, she’d fully kitted herself out with a functional—if still luxurious—winter wardrobe, but for that first date the heeled boots she’d worn wouldn’t have worked at all.
“See? Nostalgia is always a winner when it comes to gifts. Or you could ask at the tavern about what they’re doing this year. I know last year they sold hand-engraved sets of beer glasses, along with their special Christmas ale. You could get your initials and the date engraved on a set.”
“These are all great ideas,” Vanessa agreed enthusiastically. “I should be writing them down. Hang on—” She started to slip her phone out of her pocket to make a note, just as the heavy sound of boots crossing the threshold startled them both, and she looked up to see Jackson walking into the back room, containers of food held in his hands.
Both women went quiet immediately, Vanessa setting down her phone, and Jackson narrowed his eyes with a grin as he looked between them both.
“What are you two plotting?” he asked with a chuckle, and Mabel waved a hand at him.
“Never you mind,” she said, as he set the takeout containers of food down on the table.
“Well, I brought hot chicken pot pie for us all for lunch,” Jackson said with a grin. “Today’s special. Local chicken, pastryfrom scratch, local vegetables, and plenty of herbs. Thyme, rosemary, fresh pepper, garlic—” he opened the containers and both women happily inhaled the scent of food.
“Well, it was awfully sweet of you to bring us lunch,” Mabel said with a smile. “But I just remembered I have an errand I need to run before we re-open for the afternoon. We ran out of deposit bags last night, I think. I’m just going to run to the bank and grab some.”
