“Okay, I just need to pack the last of the cookies.” Holly returned to packing the last few, making sure the box was secure. “Let’s make sure we don’t forget anything.”
The children scrambled into their winter gear, and Holly helped Teddy zip his coat when his fingers fumbled with the cold. Outside, Daniel’s truck waited in the driveway, frost sparkling on the windshield in the morning sun.
Holly helped them climb in, making sure their seatbelts were secure before sliding behind the wheel. It felt odd, she’d never driven anything this big before. But when she started the engine, and it rumbled to life, it sure felt safer to drive this beast rather than her car in these weather conditions.
“Dad always lets me pick the music,” Teddy announced as Holly started the engine.
“That’s not true. He lets us take turns,” Maisie countered from the backseat. “But he skips all the rap stations.”
“And the ones with the shouting people,” Teddy added, reaching for the radio dial.
“The metal stations,” Maisie clarified with the air of someone much older than her years.
Holly smiled, watching them in the rearview mirror as Teddy found a station playing Christmas carols. “Is this one okay?”
“Perfect,” Maisie said, clutching her cookie box protectively as Holly backed out of the driveway.
The drive to school was short but sweet, filled with Teddy’s enthusiastic off-key singing and Maisie’s more reserved humming. Holly navigated the morning traffic with growing confidence, already familiar with which turns to take and where to park.
When had this happened? When had Bear Creek started to feel so familiar?
At the school, Holly helped them out of the truck, straightening Teddy’s collar and making sure Maisie had a firm grip on her precious cookie cargo before walking them into the building.
“Have a wonderful day,” she said, kneeling to give Teddy a quick hug. “Be good, okay?”
“I’m always good,” Teddy insisted, although his mischievous grin suggested otherwise.
Maisie stepped forward for her own hug, her small arms wrapping tightly around Holly’s neck. “Will you pick us up too?”
The question caught Holly off guard. “I…I’m not sure. It depends on your dad.”
“I hope you do,” Maisie said before she walked away, cradling her cookies protectively.
As she walked away, her heart ached in the sweetest, most painful way. When she walked away from her wedding, she thought she was walking away from a future with children and morning school routines. Yet here she was. But would it last?
Could it last?
Not like this. She had to deal with the fallout of what had happened with Andrew and then figure out her future.
Back in the truck, Holly sat for a moment, hands resting on the steering wheel. She should probably deal with her car situation. The tow truck had likely delivered it somewhere by now. She should call someone, make arrangements to collect it, and then figure out what came next.
What did come next? The question loomed large in her mind.
She could go back to Daniel’s house, tidy up from the morning rush. Then start making calls, begin the process of untangling the mess she’d left behind. Andrew, her mother, the apartment they’d shared...
Or she could go help the man who had helped her when she needed it. Without a second thought, she put the truck in drive and headed toward the bakery. The rest of her life could wait another day.
When she pushed through the bakery door, the bell’s cheerful jingle was almost drowned out by the controlled chaos inside. A line of customers stretched to the door, their faces showing varying degrees of impatience. Behind the counter, Daniel moved with the efficient grace of someone who’d done this a thousand times, but the tension in his shoulders was visible even from across the room.
Mina was at the register, her usual calm demeanor fraying slightly at the edges as she tried to ring up orders while simultaneously answering the phone.
Holly didn’t hesitate. She slipped her coat off, hung it on the rack by the door, and moved behind the counter as if she’d been working there for years.
“I’ll take the next customer,” she said as she tied on an apron.
Daniel looked up, relief washing over his features. “Holly…”
“You are a lifesaver,” Mina finished.
