CHAPTER 6

CHAPTER

6

T

he Christmas concert at the elementary school was clearly a highlight for the town. The gym was buzzing with excitement, but Jenna had a hard time concentrating on the kids.

“I’m sorry, Jenna. I promised not to drag you into our Christmas stuff, and here we are.” She could feel Isaac’s breath on her cheek as he leaned over to whisper into her ear. She wasn’t finding she minded all that much. The Christmas-ness of the event was overrun by the proximity of Isaac. The seats were so close together, her leg was brushing up against his, and she could feel his hand

almost

resting on her leg. He looked nervous as they waited for Sara’s class to take the stage and sing their song. She reached over to give his hand a quick squeeze of reassurance, and he grabbed onto it. When she would have taken it back, he held it more firmly in both of his.

“I think I’m more nervous than she is.” Isaac gave a little laugh. “We’ve been practicing, but she’s never been willing to sing when anyone else was in the room. I hope she doesn’t freeze up on stage.”

But when the group filed on, Sara didn’t look nervous. She waved from the stage, and took her place next to the other angel girls and boys.

They sang their song as beautifully as a grade one class full of enthusiastic kids could. Which was mostly off-key and at full volume.

Strings of street lights, even stop lights

Blink a bright red and green,

As the shoppers rush home with their treasures.

Hear the snow crunch, see the kids bunch,

This is Santa's big scene,

And above all this bustle you hear ...

There was something about Christmas songs that went straight to Jenna’s heart, and “Silver Bells” had always been one of her favourites.

Jenna didn’t notice the sideways glances people were throwing their way as Sara came running up and hugged them both after the show. “Daddy said you helped make my angel costume. It was the nicest one anyone had. Did you hear me sing? I wasn’t even scared or anything because angels are brave.” And then she turned her never-ending energy to more important things. “Daddy, can we get cookies from the bake sale?” Sara pointed at a table surrounded by people at the edge of the room.

Isaac handed over a five-dollar bill and said, “Why don’t you go pick out three of the nicest ones and we’ll all have a treat.”

When Sara darted off, Isaac turned to Jenna. “I just wanted to say thank you, too. Sara’s costume was beautiful, and it really meant a lot to her that you came to see her sing today.”

“Well, I think my heart would have to be made of stone to say no to a little girl’s invitation.”

“Yes, but you didn’t have to do it. I just wanted you to know how much I appreciate it.”

Jenna realized that although she had intended to avoid Christmas completely, she’d actually had fun doing things with Sara and Isaac over the past couple of days. Not for the sake of writing about things for her blog, but just for the sake of enjoying whatever was going on.

It was nice to be reminded of why she had started her website in the first place. She had spent most of her childhood fantasizing about what it would be like to be part of a normal family at the holidays, and her Christmas website had been a natural extension of that desire.

“Actually, I’m having fun. It’s been so long since I’ve been able to enjoy the holidays without working. I had forgotten how great it could be to actually take part in some of the things I write about.”

When Sara returned, she handed Jenna a tree-shaped cookie covered in red icing and green sprinkles, and she was grinning from ear to ear. She had chosen the most decorated, candy-covered cookies she could find. “I thought you might like the red one best.”

Good call. If any of the goopy icing dripped on her sweater, at least it would match. Sara was a sweet kid, and she deserved to have the perfect Christmas. Jenna realized she had been given an opportunity to use all of her holiday-making skills to help give Sara the kind of Christmas Jenna always wished she could have had as a child.

Jenna turned to Isaac. “I need to grab a few things from the store. Will you two be a few more minutes here?”

He glanced over to where Sara was giggling away with a group of girls from her class as they admired her wings. “We can stick around here for a bit. Unless you need a hand to carry whatever you’re getting?”

Nope. She’d figure out a way to do it on her own. She really wanted her plans to be a surprise for both of them. “I’m good. I’ll meet you back here as soon as I’m done.”

She felt a stab of jealousy at the sight of an attractive blonde heading straight for Isaac the second Jenna left his side.

None of your business, Jenna. You’re not staying anyway.

Jenna’s

first stop was at the drugstore, where she’d found a bag with a strap long enough that she could wear it across her body, leaving her hands free for her crutches.

Her next mission had been to find the hardware store, where she had picked out a selection of bits and pieces to work with. Now all she needed to pull off the present she had planned for Sara was silver spray paint.

She found some at the end of aisle three and then hobbled back to the counter to add it to her pile and pay for her goodies. She was lost in imagining Sara’s reaction to her surprise when a familiar voice brought her to a halt.

“Need a hand to carry those?”

The voice yanked her straight out of her happy place, and she whirled around to face her brother. “What are you doing here, Eli?” She couldn’t believe it! After all her efforts to keep him away from her this holiday, how had he found her?

“I heard you hurt yourself. Now what kind of brother would I be if I just left you alone, injured, at Christmas?”

Concerned? Oh yeah, he was concerned all right, but not about her. “The kind that doesn’t care about me at all, ever, unless he needs money?” Jenna racked her brains trying to think of how he could have found her. Even if her mother knew about her knee injury, Jenna had been careful not to tell her where she was going. “I’m not giving you a penny. I told you last time I wouldn’t bail you out again. I’m done. You’re never getting another cent from me.”

“It’s important, Jenna. If I don’t have five grand by Monday I’m going to get seriously hurt.” His face flushed and his fists clenched at his sides. She could see the muscle working in his jaw that meant his teeth were grinding together. “Come on, Jenna. I’m your only brother. Besides, I know you can afford it. Mom told me you sold your little website, and I just need a bit to tide me over until I’m back on my feet. I’ll pay you back.”

Yeah, right.

Like all the other times?

Thank goodness she hadn’t told her mother how much she’d sold her “little website” for. If he knew what she was actually worth he’d never leave her alone. And it was always serious with Eli. Or at least that’s what he said. She honestly didn’t want to hear any of his stories. Most likely he was betting on sports again, if he owed money to some low-life. He’d never been lucky—regardless of the sport. But he just couldn’t seem to break away.

“No, Eli. I’m not giving you anything. You’re a big boy. You’re going to have to deal with whatever trouble you’ve gotten yourself into on your own this time.”

She checked her bag to make sure it was secure, and to avoid seeing whether it was a look of anger or disappointment on her brother’s face. This time, she was standing firm.

“Leave me alone, Eli.” Jenna struggled to keep her breathing slow and steady while she walked away as quickly as she could manage on her crutches. A glance back showed that although his voice followed her, he was still standing on the sidewalk where she had left him.

“I’m not leaving here empty-handed, Jenna. The only way to make me leave is to help me.”

The sad part was, Jenna really did want to help him. However, she knew that giving him more money was not the answer.

Jenna was

quiet the whole ride back. She couldn’t stop worrying about her brother being in town and what that was going to mean. He couldn’t possibly know where she was staying, but it wasn’t like there were a ton of options. It was a small town. A few phone calls and he would know exactly where she was.

The previous times he’d come to her for money, he had guilted her into it after a few days of hassling her. She inevitably gave in, agreeing to give him the money so he would leave her alone. Until last time, when he had actually gotten violent. It scared her, and she swore it was the last time. This time, she wasn’t giving in, but Jenna was worried about what Eli would do when he realized she was serious about not bailing him out.

He needed cash, and she worried that there wasn’t much he wouldn’t do to get it. She wanted to keep as much distance as possible between Eli and her new friends.

When they pulled up to the Lodge, Sara let out a squeal. “The lights are back on!”

Sure enough, the porch lights were giving off a welcoming glow. Instead of feeling happy about it, Jenna felt a quick flash of disappointment. The thought of going back to a lonely cabin by herself wasn’t all that appealing after the time she had spent with Isaac and Sara.

Especially when the thought of her brother tracking her down loomed over her. It wasn’t fair to hide behind Isaac and Sara, but she wasn’t comfortable with the idea of being alone with her brother at the moment. In the dark, the cabin looked even further from the main lodge.

“Jenna, can we make cookies now?” Sara dumped her jacket at the door and ran towards the kitchen. “Do you know how to make gingerbread ones? Those are my favourite, but I don’t know if we have the right shapes. I’ll go look.”

“Hold on there, Short Stuff. Jenna might want to get back to her own holiday plans now that the power is back on.” He looked at Jenna.

“Actually, I’d love to make cookies. Sara, why don’t you go change out of your costume and wash your hands, and by the time you get back to the kitchen we’ll be ready to go.” Jenna laughed at the look of disbelief on Isaac’s face.

“You really want to do this? Baking is more torture than fun in my book.”

“Gingerbreads are my favourite, too.” Plus, it would put off having to face her return to that lonely cabin.

“But you’re a paying guest. I don’t want you to feel like you have to entertain Sara all the time.” His hands were resting on her shoulders and he pulled her gaze up to meet his. “You’re supposed to be relaxing.”

“Lucky for you, then, that I love baking. And Sara’s a great kid.” Jenna forced herself out of his arms and headed over to the counter, breaking eye contact. She didn’t want to give herself away. Yes, she liked Sara, but her motives right now weren’t entirely unselfish. “What do you have for ingredients?”

“There might be some stuff in the cupboards from the last time my sister was here. We’ll have to find a recipe online. I don’t think we have one in the house. And I don’t think we have any cookie cutters.” Was it her imagination or did she detect a bit of disappointment in his voice when she pulled away? He wasn’t the only one. She wanted to pick up right where they’d left off the other night.

Right now, the last thing she needed was to complicate an already complicated situation by getting romantically involved.

Keep things light, Jenna. Get through tonight, and then focus on getting rid of your brother.

Jenna propped her crutches against the counter and took a seat in front of Isaac’s laptop at the kitchen table. “No problem. I know just where to find the perfect recipe.” The website may not belong to her anymore, but she could still use it. “Can you grab my shoulder bag from by the door? I think I have the cookie cutters covered.”

Making cookies would be the perfect distraction from worrying about her brother. Maybe if she kept them all busy until bedtime, Isaac would suggest she just stay in the lodge again tonight.

Jenna would take whatever time she could get.

Jenna wasn’t exactly racing

off, but she had a history of being polite in order to keep Sara happy. It was a quality he couldn’t find fault with, but she was a paying guest, and he didn’t want her to feel pressured.

It seemed wrong that Jenna was paying for her time here when she felt like a part of their family. She’d been helping out with Sara, and been a good sport about all the Christmas stuff they had roped her into.

Isaac wanted to talk to her about refunding her booking fee, but hadn’t really found a good moment. While the girls made their cookie dough and cut out shapes to bake, he was on the laptop at the kitchen table.

Soon the scent of gingerbread filled the kitchen and Sara went off to draw pictures of how she was going to decorate the cookies when they cooled down.

“Jenna, can I talk to you about something?” he asked.

“Yes?” She took a seat at the table beside him, and his body reacted immediately. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair and hoped she wouldn’t be upset with him.

“I refunded your money.”

“Oh. Um, okay. Can I at least stay until morning?”

Wait.

Something wasn’t right here. “Of course you can. Where else would you go?”

Silence.

“Jenna?” He didn’t know where her thoughts had taken her, but from the grim look on her face it wasn’t a happy place.

“Sorry. I was just running through my options. I don’t think I can drive for at least a few more days so you’ll have to put up with me until I can figure out how to get back to the city.”

What was she talking about? Did she think he was asking her to leave? “Wait a minute. I don’t want you to leave.”

“You don’t?” He could see some of the tension leave her shoulders, and her fists unclenched.

“No!” He reached out to take her hand across the table. “I just didn’t think it was fair for you to be paying for a cabin when you were staying here in the lodge with us. With the power outage, and you getting hurt, and you spending your whole vacation entertaining my daughter, well, it just wouldn’t feel right to take your money.”

He liked the way his fingers were entwined with hers on the tabletop. She hadn’t removed her hand from his, and that was a good sign, right?

“Oh. You don’t want me to leave?”

“No. Not at all. I was hoping you’d agree to stay here in the lodge with us over Christmas. As a friend. Not a guest.” Because he had a rule about not getting involved with guests. However, if he wasn’t taking her money then she was no longer a paying guest.

That opened up a lot more possibilities.

Yes, she was leaving in a few days. But she didn’t need to leave right now. He was starting to think that he’d rather have a short time with Jenna than no time at all. “It will be chaos, with my family all arriving on Christmas Day and staying through until New Year’s. But I think you’ll like them.” They would love her. Especially his sister, who was always going on about how she didn’t want him to be a lonely bachelor for the rest of his life. Maybe if she could see he was at least

interested

in a woman she would get off his back.

With his niece Lindsay around to entertain Sara, he’d have a little more time to convince Jenna that a little holiday fling was just what she needed.

Jenna smiled. “I would love to. On one condition.” She took her hand from his, and spun the laptop around on the table to face her. “You have

got

to let me fix up your website while I’m here.”