Ace shuddered. “He goes from cinnamon roll to pumpernickel.” He narrowed his eyes. “The devil’s fart.”
“You know, some people use Google to look up useful information,” Colton called out as he left the room.
“What’s the fun in that?” Ace let his head fall back with a groan. “No, it’s fine. It’ll be fine. They love me. It’s all good. I can handle this.”
CHAPTERFIVE
“Mommy, mommy! I saw a bear chasing a man!”
Colton lifted his gaze from his phone. Were there bears in the woods? Obviously, there were bears in the woods. He hadn’t thought of that before sending Ace to find a tree. Not that Ace would venture into the woods to get a tree, but the town’s Christmas tree lot was near the woods.
An adorable little girl in a pink pea coat tugged on her mother’s sleeve. “The bear was pretty and had makeup on.”
The woman at the café counter was stunning. Her dark skin contrasted beautifully with her gorgeous silver hair, which was braided and rolled into a perfect bun on her head. She wore a fluffy white sweater, red leggings, and white boots. She blinked down at her daughter. “Sweetheart, bears don’t wear makeup.”
Some did. Different kind of bear, though.
“This one had eye makeup, and he was chasing a man, and he yelled, ‘Mints are not food!’ What did the bear mean by that, mommy?”
Colton almost choked on his coffee. Oh dear. He wiped his mouth and then smiled at the little girl. “The bear meant that the man should have gotten him breakfast before leading him on an adventure. In the bear’s defense, the man had been warned.”
The little girl stared at him, then looked up at her mother, who laughed. “I take it you know both the man and the bear.”
“The man is my husband, and the bear is a sassy hairstylist in an enormous faux fur coat who clearly wasn’t given breakfast despite my warning.”
“Oh no.” She laughed again and held her hand out to Colton. “Amara. I own the ornament shop down the road. This is Dorothy. We call her Dotty.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you both. I’m Colton.” He shook Amara’s hand before turning his attention back to Dotty. “I hope the man and the bear didn’t scare you.”
Dotty shook her head, her dark curls bouncing. “He was silly. There were three other men running after them. Was it the Three Wise Men?”
“I don’t think it wastheThree Wise Men, but they’re certainly three of the wisest men I know.”
Dotty nodded. Her face lit up. “Are you going to come to the shop? We have lots of pretty ornaments. They’ll make your Christmas tree look beautiful!”
“Well, it just so happens that we’re going to need lots of ornaments for our new tree. How about I drop by later, and you can help me pick out some?”
“Yay!” Dotty clapped her hands excitedly. She hummed and tapped her lips with one of her little fingers. “You look like a silver and blue theme kind of person.”
Colton blinked at her, then lifted his gaze to her mom, who laughed.
“My little sales manager. Not only can she sell you the ornaments, but she can tell what your colors are.”
“Count me in.” Colton thanked them and waved goodbye as they were leaving. They were almost to the door when Clara came in. The trio cheerfully greeted one another before Clara headed over and joined Colton at his table. He’d arrived as soon as the café opened while the town was mostly asleep. It had been so peaceful, and the scenery outside the window was beautiful. A fresh layer of snow had fallen overnight.
“Good morning, Colton. I hope you slept well.”
“I did. Thank you,” Colton replied. The young barista, a cute blond with big hazel-green eyes, stopped by the table to take Clara’s order. He jotted it down, then smiled brightly at Colton.
“You must be Mr. Connolly. It’s so amazing what you’re doing to help the town.”
“Oh, um, it’s my pleasure.” Colton hadn’t expected anyone to know.
Clara leaned in, her smile apologetic. “This is a small town. Everyone knows everything.”
“Right.” Colton chuckled. He hadn’t thought of that. He’d lived in big cities all his life. Most of the time, people didn’t even know who their neighbors were. “It’s lovely to meet you….”
“Merrick,” the young man replied. “But everyone calls me Merry.”
