“I know. I don’t plan to go anywhere,” Rachel answered. “You sure you guys don’t need anything?”
“Like I said, we have all we need here. How about you? How’s the cabin holding up?”
“So far, so good.” She left out the part about Holden coming to her rescue with matches, batteries, and his solid arms that wrapped around her and made her lose her mind. “I’m fine here.”
“How’s the tree?”
Still on the line, Rachel moved to the back of the house to peer out the frosted windows. Like a beacon on a hill, their noble stood proud amongst an ocean of white. “It’s perfect.”
“Good to hear. Sounds like that’s not the case for everyone.”
“I heard the Hendersons lost a big one. Who else?”
Rachel could hear the store’s bell chiming in the background, along with her father’s cheerful greeting. Sure, having a customer could make him that happy, but apprehension snaked through her gut that something else entirely was the cause of his mood.
“Rumor has it the Hart tree sustained some significant damage,” Paula said, her voice purposefully low. “Obviously, this isn’t how we wanted to win, but it looks like our humble little tree is finally going to have its day on the square.”
CHAPTER26
Holden could hear the wailing before he even reached the front door, and he had a feeling it wasn’t his niece doing the crying.
“Enter at your own risk,” Sarah warned as she passed through the foyer, happy baby bouncing in her arms. “I’m going to put this little one down for a nap. But it sounds like there’s another grumpy pants in this house who could use one too.”
Holden gave his precious niece a kiss on the cheek before his sister carted her off.
He hesitated in the entryway. Even Scout’s typical spring in her step slowed to a hesitant crawl as they made their way into the cabin and toward the commotion.
His father’s lamenting continued. “This can’t be happening! Why is this happening? This was our year!”
“Zeke, it’s just a tree,” Jill countered.
Ouch. That would not help. It was the equivalent of telling someone to calm down amid a major breakdown—it would only add to the frustration.
“Maybe there’s a way to salvage it?” Holden’s mother offered.
“Do you honestly think there’s a way to salvagethat?”
Until then, Holden hadn’t had a clear view of the noble fir in question. But when he came up behind his parents—their noses practically pressed against the glass window like children peering into a toy store—the source of his father’s theatrical sorrow was on full display.
In the middle of the property was that giant tree—still standing, in fact—but leaning against it like a crutch was another, smaller fir. It was good news that it hadn’t taken out the potential Christmas tree entirely. Less good that on the felled tree’s way down, it had swiped a third of the noble’s lower branches, making the skirt noticeably lopsided and uneven.
“Oh,” Holden groaned. “Yikes.”
“Yikes, is right.” His father spun around, smacking his walking boot on every corner of furniture as he fumbled his way to the couch. He dropped onto the sofa like a sack of potatoes.
“Maybe Mom’s right?” Holden proposed. “Maybe there’s a way we can salvage it. I can take the chainsaw to it this afternoon and see about bringing the rest of the lower branches up. Who knows?” he continued to suggest hopefully. “It might even look better. Some of those branches were hanging pretty low. Maybe all it needs is a good haircut.”
Jill’s compassionate eyes met her son’s. “That’s a great idea, Holden.” She turned to Zeke. “Isn’t that a great idea, dear?”
“It never occurred to me that something like this could happen,” Zeke mused into the void.
“Mother Nature’s an unpredictable beast.”
Zeke winced as he lifted his injured ankle to the coffee table. Holden assisted him by placing a fluffy pillow beneath his lower leg. “How’s that, Dad?”
“I don’t even feel the pain anymore.” In the most dramatic fashion, Zeke pressed his hand to his chest. “I only feel it in here.”
“Speaking of pain, it’s time for your meds.” Jill came to her husband’s side with a small cup of water and a handful of pills. “Take these and get some rest, Zeke. You were up all night with that storm and the doctor said the best thing for you is to stay off that foot and relax.”
