Sofia knew she didn’t need to explain. “Yeah. Except it was my most popular line. I really didn’t think people would notice, but…” She held out her phone to Holly to show her the dozens of comments and messages that had come through.
Holly squinted at the phone, not seeming to understand what she was seeing.
Sofia sighed and put the phone back in her purse. “I suppose I’ll have to put the line back up. I was hoping to replace it with something better, but…” She paused and looked out the window. “I’ve never had my work resonate with people this much. Maybe you can’t capture lightning twice, you know?”
“If anyone can, it’s you,” Holly said so confidently that Sofia thought she just might be able to believe it.
“Candy canes,”Sofia murmured as she surveyed her front yard the next morning. As soon as the expression slipped out of her mouth, she scowled.Why am I using one of Holly’s Canada-isms?
Ash had dropped her off at home after a few hours of girl time with Holly, and the spiked hot chocolate had assisted her in sleeping soundly, something she couldn’t say for the previous night.
She scanned the yard again then quickly crossed the house to check the planters in the back. The snow had all melted, but the tulips and garden veggies she had started didn’t seem the worse for wear. In fact, they looked healthier than ever.
It was almost as if, instead of being a killing frost, the snow had served as a fertilizer. She shook her head.Nothing makes any sense these days.She thought of Ash’s words a few weeks ago about a rare soil event that was allowing the tulips to bloom earlier and for a longer time. She’d been meaning to research it but had been too sidetracked spending every free minute with Isaiah.
No.She quickly crushed her hands into her eyes and twisted them before stretching her arms over her head and doing a little shake. Sofia was not going to think about him that day. She had enough to deal with to get her clients back to being happy. Emerald Hollow Artisanal had to be her sole focus.
While Holly’s confidence had nearly convinced her that she could recreate the magic of the WanderLost line with a new concept, sometime during the ride home, she’d realized she didn’t want to. The WanderLost line had been her creation, no matter who had inspired it. She’d made something that connected with people, then she had deleted it like it was nothing. That wasn’t fair to them or to her.
For the next few hours, she worked on a new piece for the collection, something she could share with her customers to announce that the line was back. She let all the emotions of the last few weeks run through her as she worked—suspicion, fear, and unease, which over time had given way to interest, care, excitement, and something she was pretty sure had been love.
She stopped her mind there before letting in the feelings of confusion and loss.
Sofia let her hands work rapidly, and by dinnertime, she had what she needed.
Chapter Sixty-Two
HOLLY
Holly spent some time with her reindeer and Comet in the forest that morning before going to find Ash. The surprise snow that had fallen the previous day was completely gone, and spring was back in full bloom, as if the ground had not been covered in a blanket of white mere hours ago.
Holly had been nervous when she’d first seen the snow. She didn’t know what it meant, but she sensed deep within her that North Pole magic was somehow at work. But what it was up to, she didn’t know. Ever since the moment in the restaurant, when Luca and Isaiah’s sister, Willow, had realized they’d known each other from childhood, Holly had started to wonder if the North Pole’s connection to Emerald Hollow was even more embedded than she realized.
Is there more to the goings-on in Emerald Hollow than my presence and the snow tunneling of the past? Or is it merely a coincidence that Willow lived here as a child?That seemed highly unlikely to Holly, and she wondered how much else there was to North Pole magic that she didn’t understand.
That conversation combined with the little flash of snow—and the magic she thought it indicated—had finally convinced her to do what she’d been putting off. She took a deep breath and walked back toward the Emerald House, Comet trotting happily beside her.
She’d even stayed up late after Sofia left the café concert, creeping into the dark kitchen to distract herself by baking. Automatically, without realizing what she was doing, she pulled out the ingredients for her North Pole-famous jingle pops and got to baking.
She wanted to give one to Auryn to express that she forgave him for the incident with Isaiah. While he had been at fault, it hadn’t been intentional. If anything, she felt it was her fault for not keeping a closer eye on what was happening at the North Pole. It had been her asking Lumi about snow tunneling that allowed Auryn to overhear the conversation in the first place.
Ash walked into the kitchen just as Holly pulled the jingle pops out of the oven. He scratched his neck sleepily. “What are you still doing up?”
Holly moved so that her body blocked the jingle pops. She remembered what had happened when humans consumed them the previous year, and she didn’t want a repeat of the situation. “Just doing a little baking. Something for Auryn.”
Ash glanced at the oven, and his eyes widened. “Jingle pops? Yeah, you don’t have to worry about me sneaking one of those. I don’t want to be found line dancing in the café.”
Holly choked out a laugh then relaxed as she saw the twinkle in Ash’s eyes. “And what areyoustill doing up?”
“Felt like a late-night snack.” He reached for a pan, set it on the stove, then began rummaging around in the large commercial fridge.
While Ash made them some omelets, Holly placed the jingle pops in Tupperware and stashed them deep in the kitchencabinets—safely away from humans—with the intention of delivering them to the North Pole within a day or two, hoping they would cheer Auryn up.
Holly studied Ash as he prepared then plated their omelets. Everything about the man radiated a good-natured peace that she didn’t see often in humans, and an icy fear gripped her heart as she thought about what she needed to do.
“Do you want a hot chocolate?” Ash asked, already moving to the pantry where he kept the secret recipe.
“Sure. That sounds great.”
