Page 57 of Home for the Holidays

The sledding hill,which was attached to a golf course, had a giant, blow-up Santa Claus and eight reindeer at the top. There were people everywhere. Kids were sledding and throwing poorly made snowballs at each other, and families were building all sorts of snow creatures in various areas of the course. It was fun to witness. Iris hadn’t run into that many people in Vale Park since she arrived. It was almost good to see that so many others actually existed and she wasn’t trapped in some sort of Nowak snow globe.

Vale Park was growing on her. She could feel it seeping into her bones, the appreciation for small-town living. It was hard to not enjoy the way everyone waved at each other, how they all spoke to each other, how they all probably knew everyone’s business. It was weirdly refreshing.

New York wasn’t like that. At all. She loved the anonymity she had there, but she also hated how she had no one to confide in but Stacey and Zac. It’s not that she wanted to rush back to the hinterlands of Colorado to live closer to her parents. That was not an option. Living next door to overbearing Mary and far too easygoing Skip was not where her future lay. But maybe living in New York was no longer her future either.

She shook her head as she helped Zac pull the sleds and inner tubes out of the back of their rental car. “So you and Evan seem to have mended…allthe fences.”

Zac’s smile could have lit up a dark room. “Yeah, um, I think it’s probably time for you and me to break up.”

“Ya think?” She chuckled as she playfully pushed him. “I’m so happy for you. Truly.”

“I never thought this would happen.” He stilled his movements as he stared across the parking lot, where his family stood around Evan. Even Nora was taken by his charms; she was currently clamoring for him to hold her.

“So, when should we stage this huge breakup?” She put her arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer, feeling a very strange volt of electricity surging through her. Breaking up meant she could stop feelingasbad about her rapidly developing feelings for Heidi. “Wanna do it now?”

He turned toward her. “Can we just pull apart and not make a scene?”

“Gasp! You, agay, don’t want to cause a scene? Blasphemy!” She pulled him into a hug. “Go,” she said against his ear. “I’m going to bail. I’m not feeling all that great. I’ll take the SUV home.”

“You really aren’t?” he asked as he pulled away and looked at her. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m so tired. I think I’ll head back to the house and take a nap.”

“Ugh, watch out. My mom will probably try to help you feel better.”

Iris rolled her lips inward as she nodded. “I’ll try to steer clear.”

“Good call.” He kissed her on the cheek. “I love you.”

“Love you more,” she whispered as he headed off toward his family, pulling the sleds behind him.

CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE

As sad as Heidi was to see Iris leave, she was enjoying the peace and quiet. Well, it wasn’t completely peaceful. She couldn’t quiet her brain down. And it wasn’t exactly quiet either because her Christmas music was blaring through the kitchen. She was currently spinning around the island with the broom, singing along with Darlene Love to “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home),” which was by far her favorite of the classics. And belting the end at the top of her lungs? Let’s just say she neverdidn’tparticipate. It wasn’t until she opened her eyes after the last note that she realized she was not, in fact, alone.

“Iris,” she gasped while clutching the broom. She quickly straightened her apron and tried to look as cool and unaffected as possible. Iris’s smile as she leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen was so incredibly hot, though, so seeming nonchalant was damn near impossible. “What are you doing here? You all just left a half hour ago. Is everyone with you?”

Iris shook her head.

“Then how did you get out of it?” She took a deep breath and held it for one beat, two, before continuing with, “Did you escape?”

Iris nodded.

Heidi chuckled. “Did anyone question you?”

She shook her head again.

“Great news.” She watched as Iris walked toward her, her skinny jeans hugging her in all the best places. When she was standing in front of her, Heidi cupped Iris’s face with her left hand. “It’s nice to see you.”

“I think Zac and I broke up.”

“Oh?” She could feel herself smiling. A step in the right direction. Thank god.

Iris shrugged, then covered Heidi’s hand with her own. “So I took it as a great time to escape. I told him I wasn’t feeling great and that I was going to go home and rest.”

Heidi slid her hand down Iris’s neck, to the V-neck of her cream, cable-knit sweater. She slipped it beneath the wool, where she flattened it against the soft skin of her chest. “You don’t feel like you have a fever.”

Iris’s breathing quickened. “Ever heard the term ‘fuck the police’?”

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