Page 14 of Lakehouse Mistletoe
“Is everything okay?” Oliver asked.
“It looks like Kacey’s mother-in-law had a heart attack. She and her husband are traveling to Florida to be with her and wanted to let me know. She said she won’t be able to help with Thanksgiving dinner.”
He brightened. “The bed and breakfast is offering a Thanksgiving dinner?”
She held out her hand. “Don’t let anyone know. It’s kind of a trial run for Christmas. Besides, the B&B won’t be full. Just three guests. Looks like I’ll be busier than I thought.”
He held up his hand and pulled out his phone. “Hang on. I’ll give you my number if you need help.”
She shook her head. “I don’t want to impose …”
He chortled. “You won’t be imposing at all. It’s Hopeton. You can always ask for help in a small town.
She hesitated.
He cocked his head. “So how is everything going? I ran into Rebecca, and she said you are doing an amazing job.”
Helen bit her lip. “Really? That’s good to hear. I must admit it is a bit overwhelming. I’m scared I’m going to mess something up. And I want this holiday to be special.”
Oliver gave her an understanding smile. “From what I’ve heard, you already made the B&B feel special. That’s more important than a perfect holiday meal.”
She smiled. “Thank you.” He didn’t know how much that meant.
“How about you just take my number. I promise I won’t text or call. That way if you need me, you can let me know. Otherwise, I’ll see you around.” He held out his phone with his number. She quickly put his name in her contact list.
Besides, it wasn’t like she was going to call him. She was an independent woman, after all.
Chapter 10
The day before Thanksgiving, Helen had gotten up early to knead dough in the quiet kitchen before the sun was up. She was planning on making rolls for Thanksgiving and wanted to make sure her roll recipe was good. She would also make the pumpkin pies today so it would be one less thing to do tomorrow.
The weather was cold and dreary, and she turned on the fireplace in the living room to take off the chill.
Despite only being in Hopeton for a short time, Helen quickly found herself in a routine. She would set her alarm for five and rise early to have her coffee on the front porch and go over everything she needed to get done that day. Now that it was officially too cold to sit outside, she would take her coffee in the living room and sit in front of the fireplace.
She would go over her list of things that needed to be done before starting breakfast. Now that she was facing Thanksgiving dinner, her mind had been going a million miles a minute with what ifs. What if the turkey came out dry? What if the pies weren’t good? What if the guests hated it?
Helen stopped and wiped her hands on her apron. Last time this year she was in her own kitchen prepping for her own Thanksgiving feast.
She set a timer for the dough to rise, filled her coffee cup, and walked into the dining room.
She looked around the dining room. The small tables would be pushed together to make one long table tomorrow. She opened the sideboard and pulled out the long red and orange plaid tablecloth that she would use along with matching napkins so she could iron them. For the meal she would light the small fireplace in this room, light candles on the table, and dim the lights to create a cozy family dinner for the dinner guests.
She found a collection of small crystal salt and pepper shakers under the sideboard that she would set at the top of each person’s plate on the dining room table.
Taking a sip of her coffee, she heard her phone ding. She pulled the phone out of her apron and glanced down at the text.
It was from Carl. Again.
Happy early Thanksgiving. I miss you.
She cringed at his message. In her chest a small angry flame ignited.
What in the world did Carl want from her? He’d ruined their lives. He lied to her. Cheated both financially and physically.
Did he think she would just drop everything and come running back to him?
He was deluded if he thought that.
