“Will we see Ben and Charlotte?”
Ben owned The Christmas Tree Farm and Charlotte was his daughter. “I don’t know if they’ll be here. Ben might be working on the farm and Charlotte could be with Kylie.”
Charlie sighed. “I hope we see Charlotte. She was going to make Frederick a special bed in case one of her cats found him.”
Andrea had heard all about Frederick, the toy mouse Charlotte’s grandmother had made. He’d even starred in a book Charlotte had written in the boys’ writing group. “If Charlotte isn’t in the shop, I’ll call Kylie and see if we can visit them.”
As soon as she stopped the truck, the boys opened their doors and ran toward the big red barn. She didn’t have to tell them to be careful with the ornaments. They were as enthralled with The Christmas Shop as she was.
Lifting her face to the sky, she breathed in the sweet, intoxicating scent of the pine trees. Ben’s farm was in a magical setting and was an incredible place to raise a family.
Andy waved her forward. “Come on, Mom. Nate’s working today.”
She smiled and hurried toward the barn. Nate was nineteen years old and a student at Montana State University. Whenever he could, he came back to Sapphire Bay and helped at The Christmas Shop. For some reason, Andy had befriended him and enjoyed seeing his carved Christmas decorations.
Nate looked up from the front counter and grinned at Andy and Charlie. “I was hoping you’d stop by. How are you guys?”
“We’re good,” Andy said. “When did you get back to Sapphire Bay?”
“Last week. I had to finish a job in Bozeman before I came home.”
“Have you made some more toys?” Charlie asked.
“Yep. They’re over here.”
Andrea followed the boys to a shelf on the far side of the store. Surrounded by handblown glass decorations, wooden Nutcracker soldiers standing to attention, and gold, red, and green quilts, was the most adorable nativity scene.
Nate pointed to the shelf. “I made this last month. It’s not for sale, but Ben wanted me to display it. Do you recognize anyone?”
Made from hand-carved wood, the tallest figurine stood about ten inches high.
Charlie stepped forward to take a closer look. “That’s Mr. Whiskers,” he said excitedly.
Nate laughed. “You can’t have a nativity scene without a cat in the barn.”
Andy pointed to one of the Three Wise Men. “Is that Pastor John?”
Andrea leaned closer and smiled. If she wasn’t mistaken, Nate had modeled the sculptures on other people they knew from The Welcome Center. “It’s wonderful. Has Pastor John seen it?”
“Not yet. Shelley invited Mom and me to dinner tonight. I’ll give it to him then.”
“He’ll love it.”
“I hope so. I made this sleigh, too.” He pointed to a wooden sleigh complete with reindeer and a very merry looking Santa. “The wooden boxes I made have all sold, but I’m making more. If Andy and Charlie want to come to the farm on Saturday, we’re making Christmas ornaments as part of our summer crafts program.”
Andy’s gaze shot to Andrea. “Can we go?”
“I can pick them up at eight o’clock and drop them home at four,” Nate said quickly. “It’s free and they’ll be okay with me.”
Nate was a careful driver, so she wasn’t worried about their safety. She looked at Charlie and Andy. How could she say no to the pleading look on their faces? “Okay, you can go. I’ll make a picnic lunch you can share with Nate.”
“Yeah!” Charlie said. “Can we see if Charlotte’s going too?”
“I’ll call Kylie and ask.” Andrea wanted to make sure Kylie was all right, and the craft program was a wonderful excuse.
“She’s in the loft, looking through the things Ben stored there.”
Andrea looked above them. If Ben knew his nine-months pregnant wife had climbed into the loft, he wouldn’t be impressed. “Would you mind if I went to see her?”
