Santa's Shopkeeper (River's End Ranch Book 18) Read online

  “What am I believing in, exactly?”

  “You’re believing in Christmas. In miracles. In love. In fairies. In all of it.” Jaclyn beamed at her again. “Believe in everything you like best about this season.”

  Heidi took a deep breath. “So basically, stop worrying”

  “That’s right. And it seems like that’s what I told you the last time you came to see me all upset about something. You know, you really are kind of uptight. Let me show you something. Choose a bunny.”

  “What?”

  Jaclyn motioned to the rabbits that were hopping all over the floor. “Choose a bunny. Pick it up and put it on your lap. And pet it.”

  Heidi felt a little foolish, but she did as she was asked.

  “Nice, long strokes. Down the ears, down the back. Doesn’t that feel better?”

  “I . . . I think it does,” Heidi said. It was almost like silk. Or velvet. The gray rabbit she’d chosen just sat there, as though it existed just to be stroked. Of course, maybe that’s exactly why pets were created . . . and why they were called “pets.”

  “Well, now. You’d better get back to work.” Jaclyn stood up, took the rabbit, and nodded toward the door. “You know what you need to do. Now just go do it.”

  That was a little abrupt, but that was Jaclyn’s way. Heidi stood and took a step toward the door, but then paused. “I almost forgot. Are you coming to the ornament decorating party?”

  “Don’t I always?”

  “That’s what I thought. Well, I brought in a new selection of fairies and gnomes for people to paint, and one of them looks quite a bit like Gorgeous George.”

  “Oh, he’ll be so pleased! I’ll be sure to tell him.” Jaclyn held the door open wide. “See you there.”

  Heidi waved, then headed down the walk. As she passed the concrete gnome statue known as Gorgeous George, she said, “You’re about to become a whole lot more famous.” When he winked at her, she was pretty sure she imagined it, but then again, maybe she just needed to believe.

  Chapter Eight

  “Oh, it’s so pretty!” Maisie’s smile was as bright as the Christmas lights up and down Main Street. Mark chuckled at her reactions to everything. It was impossible not to feel the Christmas spirit when seeing everything through her perspective. Connor was just as mesmerized, but he showed it by sticking one finger in his mouth and looking around with huge eyes.

  “What do you think, honey? Should we decorate our house like this next year?” Callie teased, looping her arm through Todd’s.

  “Um, let’s not,” he replied, and she laughed.

  Mark took a deep breath, loving this time with his family. The undercurrent of stress they’d been feeling because of Callie’s health seemed to have lifted somewhat, and it was so nice to be able to enjoy the beautiful decorations and listen to the carolers, who were dressed as though they’d stepped right out of Victorian England.

  “Look! It’s Heidi’s window!” Maisie tugged on Mark’s hand. “Let’s go see it!”

  Mark didn’t know if he was biased, but he thought this window was the best. Heidi had really done a great job with the reindeer and motion-activated Santa. The whole thing looked like it could come to life at any moment—real life, and not just robotics.

  “This one has to be the winner,” Maisie said, tugging on Mark’s hand again. “Who do we tell that this one should be the winner?”

  “Come with me, squirt,” Todd said. “We’ll go find someone together.” He took his daughter’s hand and nodded at Mark. “I think a certain shopkeeper needs some congratulating on a job well done.”

  Mark grinned and headed inside the store, where he found Heidi in another of her cute costumes. She was handing out old-fashioned Christmas candy to everyone who walked in. She was busy, but she looked up and brightened when she saw him.

  He wandered around and pretended to look at displays until she was free for a minute, and then he walked over and kissed her cheek. “Everything looks great,” he said. “Maisie has declared you the undisputed winner.”

  “I wish she was the only judge, but I’ll take her praise over anyone else’s,” Heidi said. “So, what do you think of the Christmas Stroll?”

  “It’s awesome, but I think I like the manager of the general store just a little bit more.”

  “You can like us both, you know. That part’s not a contest.”

  “That’s good to know.”

  Just then, Mark’s phone chimed with a text, and he checked the display. As soon as he saw the message—911. Come now.—he turned on his heel. “Emergency. Gotta go,” he yelled, racing out the door and toward the Family Fun cabin as fast as he could.

  ***

  Mark threw open the front door of the cabin, fully expecting to find Callie in the middle of a full-blown seizure. Instead, he found Todd pacing back and forth, Callie trying to calm him.

  “What’s the matter?” Mark asked. “Why the emergency text?”

  “It’s bad, Mark. It’s really, really bad.” Todd pushed his hands through his hair. “Our house just burned down. A total loss. Everything is gone. The Christmas presents, all the furniture—I mean everything. I just got a call from our neighbor. They were out of town too and just got home.”

  Mark looked back and forth between Todd and Callie, stunned by what he was hearing. “Oh, no. I’m so sorry. Where are the kids?”

  “Maisie’s reading a book to Connor that we got at the little bookstore today,” Callie said. “I don’t know what to tell them. How can I even begin to explain this?”

  Todd put his hand on her shoulder. “We’ll figure it out, but I’ve got to get on the phone with the insurance company. We’re fully covered, but how long is that going to take to process, especially over the holidays?”

  A knock sounded on the door. Mark turned around and opened it. Heidi stood there, still in her costume, but bundled in a coat and scarf. “Is everything okay?”

  He stepped back so she could come in. When she heard what happened, her hands flew to her mouth. “Oh, that’s horrible. How can I help?”

  “Could you get the kids in bed? I know it’s a lot to ask, but we need to make some calls, and it would really help out,” Callie said.

  “Of course.”

  Heidi tossed her coat over the back of the couch and walked down the hall to the children’s room. Mark heard them let out excited squeals when they saw her.

  “You feeling all right, Callie?” he asked his sister-in-law.

  “I’m okay. I’m more worried about my husband than myself right now,” she replied.

  “I’m fine too. Just . . . a lot to think about.” Todd sank down on the couch. “What about Christmas?”

  “We’ll figure something out,” Callie replied. “The kids have had such a great time this week, I don’t think a lack of presents is going to be a big deal.”

  “But they’re expecting something under the tree. Heck, they’re expecting a tree.” Todd stood up again. “I need to call the insurance company.”

  “Why don’t you go in the bedroom to do that? A little more privacy,” Callie said. “I don’t want the kids to overhear until we’re ready to sit down and tell them.”

  “Good idea.” He walked down the hall, pulling out his cell phone as he went.

  Mark turned back to Callie. “Why don’t you sit down and have a cold drink, and I’ll give Heidi a hand with the kids?”

  “Sounds good.” She grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, settled into the couch, and leaned back, closing her eyes. Staying calm was the absolute best thing for her at that moment.

  Mark went into the kids’ room to find them already in their pajamas and listening to Heidi tell them a story. It looked like she’d skipped their baths in favor of getting them to sleep early. Todd and Callie would have so much to think about and discuss that night, and doing it privately so they could stay calm for the kids would be important to them.

  He sat down on the floor and watched Heidi as she spoke. She was a born
storyteller. She did a different voice for each of the elves, and one elf in particular—named Stinky—had the two kids giggling. When at last the story came to an end, she said, “Tomorrow is ornament day, and I have tons and tons of ornaments for you to choose from. You can paint them, or there are some you can color with markers, and you can glue ribbons and bows and glitter on them. While you’re going to sleep, think about what kind of ornaments you want to make, all right?”

  The kids nodded as they slid down into their covers, and she tucked them in. Then Mark kissed their foreheads before stepping out into the hall and closing the door.

  “You’re so great with them,” he said. “Thanks for that.”

  “Honestly, it was my privilege.” She rested her hand on his arm. “Is there anything else I can do?”

  “I don’t know. Until Todd figures things out with the insurance company, I don’t know what we can do.” Mark ran his hand through his hair, then realized he’d picked up that mannerism from his brother. “He said he needs to run back home and see the damage for himself. I think it would be better for Callie and the kids to stay here—too much uncertainty right now.”

  He paused. “That’s something you could do—can you find out if we can stay in our cabin another few days? Our parents could take us in, but I think that would just remind the kids that our house isn’t there anymore and they can’t just go home to it. This ranch is keeping them distracted enough that maybe being here will make it easier. I guess we’ll give them IOUs for their presents or something.”

  “Sure. I’ll take care of that right now.” Heidi picked up her coat, but he took it from her hands and held it while she slipped her arms into the sleeves. Then he held the lapels and looked into her eyes.

  “Thank you,” he said softly. “Having you here was a real blessing. Who won the contest?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “I asked Alicia to take over for me when I came here.”

  He took a step closer and kissed her forehead. “You’re something else, you know that?” he murmured into her hair. “Looking out for us when you could have been soaking up the accolades for a job well done.”

  “Accolades don’t mean much when your friends are suffering,” she replied. “Get what sleep you can. I’ll take care of things with the registration desk.”

  “Thank you,” he said one more time, aware of how simple it sounded. His gratitude ran far deeper than those two words.

  ***

  As Heidi walked across the snow-covered ground toward the bunkhouse, she saw Andrew the engineer passing the other way, and she ducked her head a little, hoping he wouldn’t notice her. He was a nice guy, but the one date they’d had really hadn’t gone well, and she’d rather not go through the embarrassment of an awkward conversation—especially when she had something so important to do.

  She just couldn’t believe that the Wilsons’ house had burned down. What a horrible thing to happen at any time of the year, but Christmastime made it seem so much worse. She’d been worried about Maisie being disappointed on Christmas morning, but now the whole family would go through a greater heartbreak than a missing present.

  Carly was minding the registration desk when Heidi walked in, and she listened as Heidi quickly outlined the situation.

  “That’s horrible,” Carly said. “Let me see.” She tapped some keys on her computer. “It looks like Wade put a note on that cabin for next week. Hang on—I’ll check with him real quick.”

  She picked up the phone and made a call, asking him what he needed the cabin for and explaining what had happened. When she hung up, she had a huge smile on her face.

  “Wade has a friend coming, but he just told me to put them in a different cabin so the Wilsons can stay where they are,” she said. “And not only that, but he says to give them the cabin for an additional week for free. They’ll need a place to be while they get things sorted, and he says it’s his pleasure to help them out.”

  “Oh, that’s fantastic,” Heidi said, her heart feeling warm. “What a great thing to do.”

  “This time of year brings out the best in everyone,” Carly replied. “Do you want me to let the Wilsons know?”

  “I think I’d like to, if you don’t mind,” Heidi said. It would be such a fun surprise.

  “Sure. Not a problem. And congratulations.”

  Heidi blinked. “What for?”

  “Your window won again this year.”

  “Oh. That is good news. Thanks.” She’d have time to celebrate that small victory later.

  As she walked out to her car, Heidi thought about what Carly had just said. Christmas brings out the best in everyone. Hmm.

  Her thoughts churned as she drove home. When she pulled into the parking lot of her apartment building, she had a plan, and it was a pretty darned good one, if she did say so herself. As soon as she walked inside, she pulled out her phone and sent a text to Mark. I have some good news. Can you meet me at the café at six? My treat.

  He replied almost immediately. Yes. Thank you.

  She grinned. This was going to be a little bit too much fun.

  Chapter Nine

  “You know I’m always up for a late-night snack,” Abby said, plunking down on Heidi’s couch. “What’s up?”

  Heidi passed over the plate of cookies she’d promised her friend when she called. “I’m taking on kind of a huge project, and I wondered if you’d help.”

  “Of course. And not just because you made cookies. Well, I’m not sure if taking cookie dough out of a tube and baking it counts as ‘making’ it, per se, but I’m not complaining.”

  “Good girl. Okay, so, you remember that really good-looking guy I sent into your store the other day?”

  “Oh, you mean the one you’ve been seen with several times since, but you haven’t called to tell me about further relationship developments? Yes, I remember him.”

  Heidi felt guilty for ignoring her best friend. She usually told Abby everything. “I’m sorry, Abby. It’s just that it’s Christmas Week, and tomorrow’s ornament day, and I’ve been so busy.”

  Abby held up a hand. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll just eat extra cookies and feel sorry for myself. Now, what’s this project?”

  “His brother’s house burned down tonight, like totally destroyed, taking all the Christmas presents and everything with it. So I thought it would be really great if I threw together a Secret Santa for them. There’s no time to order in new presents, so everything would either have to be on the ranch already or bought in a nearby town. What do you say? Will you help?”

  “Oh, no! Fires are rotten! Sure, I’ll help. What do you need me to do?”

  “Well, first I have to talk to Wade and make sure it’s all right. Then I want to talk to every employee on this place and see if they’ll help out with donations.”

  “I love it. And I’m great at wrapping—I can help with that part too.”

  “Fantastic.” Heidi grabbed a cookie for herself. Abby was right—these weren’t anywhere near as good as homemade, and her mind flashed back to Jaclyn, her homemade snickerdoodles, and her strange advice. Did this count as taking care of Mark? She sure hoped so. It felt like the right thing to do, not only because she was starting to have feelings for him, but because she cared about all the Wilsons. They were the perfect family in so many ways, and she wished she was a part of something like that.

  Her thoughts brought her up short. She was having feelings for Mark? She wanted to be part of his family? Good grief—where had that come from? She’d known the guy what—five minutes? She couldn’t possibly think that she could develop feelings that fast. And she likely only wanted to be part of his family because it was so different from her own. There was something about having siblings that couldn’t be replicated in any other way. Her parents had given her the best life they could, but seeing Mark and Todd interact with each other—it was special. It was a bond that would connect them no matter what life threw at them.

  Even with these very logical
thoughts, the feelings wouldn’t go away. Maybe it was possible to fall for someone that fast. And maybe she wanted to be part of his family because it was an awesome family and they had room for her in it. Regardless of all this, though, she’d do the Secret Santa for them because they needed it and because she cared. Chances were excellent that she’d never see any of them again after Christmas, but she’d always have the knowledge that she’d done what she could for some people who could really use some help.

  ***

  Mark had tried to sleep the night before, especially because he had an early breakfast date with Heidi, but he never did doze off. He could feel his brother’s stress hanging in the air like fog. Even though Todd was doing everything he could to keep Callie focused on the positives, his nerves were on edge, and Mark couldn’t blame him one bit. They’d lost all their pictures and other precious memorabilia in that fire—things that insurance couldn’t replace because there’s no way to replace things like that. Callie had pointed out that at least their pictures were backed up online, but there was no backup for things like the children’s first outfits or Callie’s wedding bouquet, which she’d dried and put under glass.

  Callie was handling this a lot better than Mark had expected. Stress was one of her biggest seizure triggers, but she seemed to be all right. Maybe she was pretending for Todd’s sake just as he was pretending for hers. At some point, all the real emotions would come out. That would be a tough day—Mark was sure of it.

  He left the cabin quietly so as not to wake anyone up. He’d taken the time to scribble a quick note so they’d know where he was, and he made sure his cell was on. The morning was frosty, just the way a morning in December should be, and his nose got cold as he inhaled. They just didn’t experience weather like this in California. Maybe they should spend every Christmas in Idaho so they could always experience this whole snow and ice and Currier-and-Ives thing.

  Heidi was waiting for him in a booth when he walked into the café, and she waved him over.