Ellie laughed. “Colton is basically family to me and my brother so it’s hardly an imposition to have you with us over Christmas. Plus, I’m looking forward to having a full house.”
Maisie slipped off her boots. “Well, Coltonismy family and if he’s yours too, it means we’re family. Which means, photos are on me.”
Asher came running back into the room, his boots squelching. Ellie winced. “Ash. You’re supposed to take your boots off.”
His shoulders drooped. “But I’m going back out after cookies.”
“Boots,” Ellie said.
Once again, Maisie bit her lip. Oh yeah. She was all about looking forward; to this week, this Christmas, the activities, the people, and the moments she’d capture with her camera. This was going to be the best Christmas ever.
Chapter Two
NICHOLASKING SCANNED THEnarrow two-lane street for a parking spot but there was no way his behemoth of a truck was going to fit between any of the narrowly painted white lines. When his sister, Ellie, had said small town, he hadn’t considered that she meant one right out of a Hallmark movie. Taking a right at the four-way, he eased in against the curb behind another vehicle.
Once he cut the engine, Nick closed his eyes and took a couple deep breaths. He’d left late and traffic had sucked, but he was here. Almost. He just needed to grab some cookies for his nephew, Asher. Getting out of the truck tweaked his knee. Swearing under his breath, he pushed away the irritation he felt over not being in the shape he should be. Everyday activities shouldn’t fucking hurt.
Even the side street looked like it was part of a Christmas movie. Wreaths hung on every door, lights and holiday displays adorned the windows, and the parking meters had reindeer antlers. The ones onthe meter he fed were falling over so he had to move them to get his coins in.
When he turned the corner onto Main Street, a classic Bing Crosby tune played from hidden speakers. The sun was sinking lower in the sky, casting a gentle, yellowish glow over snowcapped mountains in the distance. Ellie would probably complain about Nick showing up with treats, but that was an uncle’s right and Nick hadn’t seen the kid, other than on FaceTime, for too long.
Lately, he’d been missing Asher and Ellie a lot more than usual. Nick moved around people on the sidewalk, his shoulders tensing as they glanced his way for more than a few seconds. When he received no more than a “Merry Christmas,” he relaxed, his breath coming more freely.
You’re not in your hometown or at a hockey arena. Get over yourself. The only guy most of these people are excited to see is Santa.
Though he wasn’t feeling like the merriest version of himself, the thought made him laugh. It’d been a while for that, as well.
AFTER GRABBING SOME COOKIESat a place that could only be described as a bakery run by Santa’s elves, Nick made the rest of the journey to his sister’s place. He might not be Buddy the Elf but Nick was excited to wake up on Christmas morning with his family. The closer he got to Ellie’s new house, the more positive he felt. He hated that he’d been injured but he needed this break. More than he wanted to admit.
Playing professionally took laser focus and dedication. He’d never wavered; not from wanting it and not from working for it. It often left him no time for anything else. Now, the stark realization that nothing lasted forever was reminding him of all the other things he’d pushed to the wayside in his life.
This latest injury, on top of his media mishap a few months earlier, piled on top of losing his estranged mother and finding out his sister was getting a divorce, had thrown Nick mentally, physically, and emotionally. Despite seeing a therapist, putting his all into rehab, and trying to find something resembling Zen, pulling out of this slump was proving harder than he’d ever imagined.
By the time he turned into the long drive, the sun had dipped in between the mountaintops, looking more like a painting than reality. He’d FaceTimed with them to see the property, the business, and the house, but seeing it in person was better. It was incredible. A wide timber sign sat behind one of the fences wrapped with holiday lights. It read TICKLETREEFARMSand boasted twenty-six acres of beautiful space that offered U-pick or ready-to-go trees. The lot was closed for the evening but would be open right up to Christmas Eve.
When Ellie told him about the place, he’d been distractedly excited for her. But when she told him about her divorce six months ago, and her plans to move forward, he was concerned about her taking on so much on her own. He just wanted her to be okay and he felt like if he’d been paying more attention to something besides himself and his career, his sister wouldn’t have had to face so much alone.Misplaced guilt, his therapist would say. At least he was learning something.
He took a left at the end of the drive, a small smile lifting his lips. There were lights everywhere. The two-story farmhouse came into view and a sense of peace, something he recognized because it happened so infrequently lately, washed over him. He couldn’t see the neighbors to the left but he knew they weren’t too far away. The place wasn’t isolated, just private. A private wonderland that was perfect for Ellie and Asher.
His sister’s Cherokee was parked in the driveway, blocked in by an aging and ugly red Jeep, a rental sedan, and a minivan. His smile grew, knowing he’d give their old friend, Colton Bell, a hard time if the minivan was his. It’d been way too long since he’d seen Colton. He hadn’t even met his husband, Jacob. Between their careers, life,and physical distance, not to mention Nick traveling all the time, he hadn’t really seen anyone.
Maybe that was something to consider for the pro side of the list taking up too much space in his brain. He got out of the truck, grabbed his bags and the cookies, and hadn’t taken two full steps toward the house when his nephew came barreling out the door in bright-green pajamas and snow boots.
“Uncle Nick!”
Nick’s heart lodged in his throat, emotion pummeling him, as his four-year-old nephew flew across the porch, practically diving down the stairs. He dropped his bags, balanced the cookie box precariously, and winced as he bent low to scoop him up with his free arm.
Closing his eyes, there was no need to force a smile this time. “Hey, kid. Nice jammies.”
Little arms curled around his neck. “I missed you, Uncle Nick.”
When he opened his eyes, he saw his sister standing in the doorway, a smile on her pretty face. Her long blond waves cascaded around her shoulders. Nick’s heart squeezed painfully. These two people were everything to him.
“I missed you too,” he said. Setting him down, he picked up his bags and nudged Asher. “It’s cold out here. Let’s go in.”
And then, Asher proceeded to fill him in on every single moment in one run-on sentence. While the kid rambled, Nick went up the steps, dropped his bags again, and pulled his sister into a tight hug.
“Hey,” he said. The tension in his shoulders, his spine, and his chest loosened just from seeing, for himself, that they were good. They’d landed on their feet.
