Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 38149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 191(@200wpm)___ 153(@250wpm)___ 127(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 38149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 191(@200wpm)___ 153(@250wpm)___ 127(@300wpm)
Lena squealed. “OMG! I know exactly how you feel. I love the holidays! We’re going all out this weekend. Billy has been warned! Did you happen to see him, Joe? He’s cutting a few trees on the back lot right now.”
“No, I didn’t. I’ll have to catch him next time.”
She nodded as she skirted the counter to ring up Cameron’s purchase and somehow talked him into buying fresh garland and a wreath while giving him a general breakdown of the life and times of moi.
“I’ve known Joe forever,” Lena blabbed. “We went to kindergarten together and all the way through high school. A group of us worked here at the tree farm when we were teenagers. We were the ones making the wreaths and tying mistletoe back then. We had so much fun, drinking spiked hot cocoa and dancing around to goofy holiday music. Remember that, Joe?”
“Yeah.”
Lena didn’t seem to be in tune with my ‘let’s wrap this up’ vibe. I stifled a sigh as she launched into a story about the time I’d dared my friends to sled Bonsai Hill shirtless in the middle of a snowstorm.
“He didn’t get any takers, so he went on his own,” she said. “We’re hearty folks here, but it was ten degrees and snowing so hard you could barely see your hand in front of your face. Joe didn’t care. He took his coat off, pulled off his sweater and his hat, hopped on the toboggan and went tearing down the hill. Total nut bar! If Billy’s mom hadn’t been waiting at the bottom of the hill with a blanket and warm cider, you’d probably still be an ice cube.”
“Yeah, well…”
“Billy was telling our son, Caden, that story the other day as a tale of caution. He’s only seven, but he’s a bit of a daredevil…just like this guy.”
“I was a stupid teenager, Lena. Things change.” I hooked the wreath around my arm and grabbed the tree while Cameron took his receipt and slipped his wallet into his pocket. “Well, it was nice to see—”
“So you’ve lived here your whole life,” Cameron commented, ignoring my attempt to escape.
“Yep,” Lena proudly pronounced. “Born and raised in Fallbrook. And at this farm. Well, I wasn’t born at the farm, but I liked it so much I married the boss’s son so I could work here every year.”
He made a show of casting an appreciative glance at the expanse of trees and fairy lights overhead, and turned to gaze at the red barn and the stately home in the distance. I didn’t know this man well, but I had a feeling he was sizing things up and taking notes for future reference. We’d all end up in his book one way or another.
“It’s a lovely area. I can see why,” he gushed.
Lena nodded. “It’s home. Billy and I went to college in Burlington and talked about moving to Albany years ago, but we wanted to raise our kids here. Most of our friends did the same thing. We all headed off to the big city and boomeranged back to Fallbrook. Even Joe.”
My plastic smile was in danger of cracking in half. I loved Lena like a sister, but this was officially excruciating. I tugged Cameron’s sleeve before he could ask a billion questions Lena would have been more than happy to answer.
“We have to get going. See you soon, Lena.”
“That better be true, Joey. Don’t be a stranger.” She hurried around the counter to hug me and squeezed Cameron’s bicep. “Nice to meet you, Cam. Happy Holidays.”
“Thank you.”
I declined her offer to have one of the teenage employees help schlep our purchases to my truck with an indignant snort that made her laugh. And just like that, the years melted away. We were fifteen-year-olds, hanging out with our buddies at our cushy afterschool gig. We had a whole life in front of us—no drama, no wrong turns, no regrets. I hadn’t known how good I’d had it till it was gone.
I hadn’t “boomeranged” home on purpose. I’d come to lick my wounds and stayed. At first, I’d told myself it was a temporary reprieve, but I didn’t have any plans to move on. I could claim to be worried about my mom’s health, but she was doing well. I could claim I needed to make a living, but that wasn’t really true.
Something kept me here. I couldn’t break the connection or shake the idea that I was here for a reason…like a quest I had yet to figure out.
Thankfully, Cameron’s endless stream of questions staved off mindless introspection. Was everyone as friendly as Lena? Mostly. Was I still close to my old buddies? Yep. Did people seem to meet their partners in other towns and settle down or had they married each other like Lena and Billy? Uh…a little of each.