Page 8 of Chasing Cheer
“I travel a lot for work.” Holly paused, seeming to consider something. When she spoke again, her tone had a note in it he couldn’t quite place.Confusion?“I actually saw the flyer for the fall festival while I was on a business trip… in Finland.”
His eyebrows shot up at that. “In Finland? I wish I could take credit, but I definitely don’t have any part in advertising all the way over there.”Finland? Really?
“I still have the poster strip in my pocket, actually.” Holly slipped a folded-up rectangular piece of paper from her pocket. She carefully opened it and offered it to him.
It was from one of the posters they tacked up in businesses around town and in nearby counties.
“Wow. This is one of ours, but I’m just as confused as you are as to what it was doing in Finland. Where exactly did you come across it?”
Holly seemed troubled, and Ash wondered what was distressing her. “In a little café there. One that belongs to a friend. They post flyers for lots of events throughout Europe, but I was pretty surprised to see one for a small town in Oregon.”
Ash handed the little piece of paper back to Holly, and she tucked it into her sweater pocket. “So I stored it away and figured if I could squeeze in a trip for the festival while I’m on the West Coast anyway for business, why not?”
Ash decided not to press any further, though he still couldn’t imagine what one of his flyers was doing in Finland. He would have to ask Sofia if she’d emailed them to any of her connections overseas. “Well, however it got there, I’m glad it did. We’re always happy to have new people stumble across our events. Are you here by yourself, then?”
Ash guided Comet around a corner to a small courtyard where a white gazebo was decorated with lights and garlands made of fabric leaves and pumpkins. Comet trotted over to it happily, sniffing the large pumpkins on the ground near the steps. Holly smiled at the scene, and her pleasure at his creation caused him to smile as well.
“Oh yes, I always travel by myself,” Holly said, following Comet as the dog continued to walk and sniff.
“Do you have family at home in Canada?” Ash sensed she was holding something back, and he didn’t want to push too hard. If she shut him down on that question, he would take the hint and try less personal topics. He whistled to Comet, who returned to his side immediately. They strolled past the gazebo and toward a trail leading to the edge of the forest.
“No, not exactly. I don’t have any family, but I have good friends back home.” Her voice sounded almost melodious, the cadence somehow measured yet perfectly normal. Her eyes roamed over the forest as she spoke.
“That’s good. I don’t know where I’d be without my best friend, Sofia. You met her in the restaurant. She was your server,” Ash said, pausing as Comet sniffed a tree.
He loved being out in the forest, engulfed in the scent of pine, hearing the rustle of leaves in the breeze, and having no one around but Comet. He almost always took their evening walks alone because he was around people all day, every day, helping and entertaining. While he thrived on that, the evenings of solitude with his dog were restorative. But he was glad to have Holly with him. She seemed just as at home in the woods as he did.
“This is a beautiful forest you have here,” Holly said, almost as if she were reading his thoughts.
Ash watched as her gaze moved over the rows of trees stretching beyond the Emerald House as far as the eye could see. The forest sloped upward slightly as it stretched away from the town. Ash smiled, struck by how she had worded her compliment. No one had ever said that to him before. Usually, people commented on his business or his work around town, but few stopped to recognize the forest his family had had the responsibility of stewarding for decades. He took a look around them and up at the stars, which were visible through the treetops.
“You’re right. We’re very lucky to have this. There’s a clearing not too far from here where a lot of the fall festival activities are held. I guess you’ll see it tomorrow.”
He wanted to know more about what she’d said about her family, but it felt like she didn’t want to share. Sometimes, family matters were complicated. He knew that better than most. So Ash stayed silent and continued to stroll down the forest path, the Emerald House visible just on the other side of the trees.
Holly matched his pace easily. She turned her head suddenly at the snap of a branch, and her eyes narrowed. Ash heard a rustling noise but didn’t see anything by the time he followed her gaze.
“Don’t worry. The bigger wildlife doesn’t usually come this close to the house. I’ve never seen anything more than birds or squirrels on this trail, day or night.”
It almost sounded like Holly stifled a laugh, and he looked at her in surprise. She simply shook her head and kept walking.
“How long have you lived here?”
Surprised that she’d initiated some conversation, he picked up a stick to throw for Comet. The dog immediately sprinted ahead of them to retrieve it.
“My whole life,” he said proudly. “Well, almost. I moved away for college to get my business degree but then came right back to help my dad with the place. He retired a couple of years ago, and I took it over full-time.”
“That’s nice. I took over the family business too,” Holly said then inhaled sharply.
Ash glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and saw that her lips were clamped firmly together.
Does she regret offering that piece of information? Why?“Oh really? What kind of business is it?”
Holly adjusted her sweater, and when she spoke, her voice was calm, as if Ash had imagined her hesitation. “We do market research. That’s why I need to travel so much. The markets are different all over the world, and they’re constantly changing. There’s a lot to keep up with.”
“I can imagine. What kind of market do you do research for?” Ash asked as they emerged from the thicket of trees.
“All kinds of things. But consumer goods, especially those related to sleep products.”
