Page 7 of Christmas Promises
Aunt Edna, on the other hand, had come back after her graduation from college, and did exactly what she’d always planned to do. Opened a bookstore.
The shop had been busier earlier, filled with little children and their mothers and fathers for the weekly children’s hour. Aunt Edna had asked Laney to take over the story time for her today so she could go in for a check-up at the local clinic. Laney had been thrilled. She loved kids and she loved children’s books, so she was pretty much in heaven. And she’d been right. She’d had such fun with the kids that she’d completely forgotten about her own troubles or why she happened to be in Sugarville Grove instead of Paris while she read to them from the fabulousThe Polar Express. Not only was the story full of heartfelt messages, the illustrations were absolutely stunning. Even at thirty years old Laney loved studying them.
She dabbled in art herself. Or, at least, she used to before she’d gotten so busy with her work. Maybe she’d buy some paper and a nice pencil or two while she was here. Besides helping Aunt Edna at Clever Fox Books, she didn’t have much else to do.
Now, with the children all bundled up and taken home by a loved one, the store had quieted. This time of day there would only be one or two customers, especially with the snow that had started up again. She suspected even Vermont residents didn’t want to be out on the roads if they didn’t have to be.
To Laney, Aunt Edna’s shop was one of the most special places on all the earth. The summer she had spent in Sugarville Grove when she was fourteen had been the best of her life. Her mother and Edna were sisters but nothing alike and not exactly estranged, but Laney had detected a cautious politeness between them, as if they were worried to upset the other. Regardless, Edna had asked if her fourteen-year-old niece could come out for the summer to help in the shop while her best clerk was on maternity leave. Laney hadn’t thought her mother and father would agree to let her go, but they sent her off without hesitation. Later, Laney came to understand that it had been a particularly rough patch in her parents’ marriage. The invitation had been a godsend for them all.
What a summer that had been. Not only was she in her happy place, among books and people who loved to read, but she’d had a sweet summer romance with Nolan Hayes. She could still see his face, with his freckled nose, big smile and hazel eyes, waving goodbye to her as Aunt Edna had taken her to the train station. Such longing had existed between them. Innocent and pure. Nothing more than a few chaste kisses. But how those kisses had fed her soul. For years, actually. They’d spent so much time together that summer, reading and swimming at the Little Bear Lake with none of the burdens that weighed down adults. He’d been her first love. She’d never forgotten him.
Aunt Edna and Nolan’s mother had been close friends and still were. However, Laney had not yet asked after him, feeling too self-conscious to share with her aunt that she often thought of him, even all these years later. She felt kind of silly, thinking about Nolan Hayes. He might not even remember her. They’d promised to write but after a few letters, they’d both gotten busy with high school, and correspondence dwindled. A few years back Edna had told her that Nolan was now an English professor at the university. She wasn’t surprised by that at all. Shehadbeen surprised to learn that he was not married. But he probably had a girlfriend. The Hayes brothers were considered quite a catch back in the day. She assumed they still were.
An hour before closing, her aunt had left her alone so that she could make a deposit at the bank before it closed, leaving Laney to unpack a shipment of paperbacks from a publisher. She spent thirty minutes arranging them on thestaff recommendstable and onto their appropriate shelves. It was ten minutes to closing time when the bell over the door chimed. She straightened and turned toward the entrance.
Her heart just about stopped.
She would have recognized him anywhere—fewer freckles and his face had narrowed, but his eyes were the same. He’d also grown considerably larger than when they were fourteen. His shoulders barely fit through the door. It was exaggeration, but not by much. Despite his professional-looking blue peacoat, he looked more lumberjack than professor.
She froze, her hands clutching the straps of the green apron Aunt Edna had them all wear but could not look away. Apparently, neither could he. The man stood stock still in front of the door, staring at her.
“It’s you.” He blinked, as if he couldn’t quite believe what he was seeing.
“It’s you.” Okay, so he remembered her. “Hi, Nolan.”
“Laney Gray, what in the world are you doing here?” He stepped closer, his eyes bright as he tugged off his knit cap to reveal that gorgeous head of dark hair that flopped attractively over his forehead. “You’re real, right? Not just a Christmas fantasy?”
She laughed as she moved closer to him, still clutching the straps of her apron. “I’m here for a month. Helping Aunt Edna.”
“Oh. Well, great.” He grinned, his gaze remaining on her face as if she were the most delightful thing he’d ever seen. “It’s good to see you. You’ve changed a little since I last saw you.”
“Sixteen years can do that to a person,” Laney said. “You’re a lot bigger. And what happened to your freckles?”
“Sixteen years does that to a person. Gosh, it’s great to see you.” He held out his arms, and they embraced stiffly. When he let her go, he peered at her, shaking his head. “Actually, you look remarkably the same. Only more beautiful.”
She flushed, warm suddenly despite the cold that had followed him through the front door. “I knew you the moment you walked in.”
“When did you get here?” Nolan asked.
“Yesterday.”
“My mother didn’t mention it.”
“She might not know. It was a last-minute decision.”
“Is this a permanent thing or just temporary?” Nolan asked.
“I’m not sure. I’m in a transitional phase of my life, and Aunt Edna has graciously taken me in.”
His eyes glittered with curiosity, but he was too polite to ask for details. That hadn’t changed either. He’d been steadfastly well-mannered even at fourteen. She’d found it so refreshing after the rude boys she’d gone to school within New York.
“I don’t know what to say. I’m in shock.” Nolan smiled in that tender way he had. “You’re the last person I expected to see today.”
“It’s the last place I expected to be at this particular phase in my life.”
“I’d love to catch up. Do you have dinner plans? We could grab a bite over at the Moose. Or there’s a new pizza place in town that’s really good.”
“I haven’t been to the Moose since I was here that summer.”
