Page 56 of Once Upon A Christmas Song

“He was very complimentary of my boots and leggings while he checked out my ass.”

“Good God.”

“That was always one of Dawson’s best qualities—his inability, like my Michael, to see anyone but the person he loves.”

“Loved,” I amended.

“Loves,” she corrected. “Don’t be dumb. I can see you being careful and making him wait, but a man who repents and will jump through whatever hoops you require, that’s a pretty good start.”

It was.

“Over there,” she said suddenly, and when I turned, Merle and Conner were putting up our summer fans.

“What is happening? We just put those all away.”

“Yes, I know, but Luther’s coming by to sage everything, so we have to move the air around, otherwise the smell will linger into tomorrow and that’s all I need after the gospel group is this place smelling like a Catholic church.”

“You can’t sage in here.”

“Not me, Luther. Are you listening?”

“No, I mean⁠—”

“We’re closing early so Georgine can go to the thing and so we can get some cleaning and rearranging done and Luther can sage. He’s getting all the bad juju out, and there’s apparently some dreamcatchers or something he needs to hang.”

“So you’re fine with us losing sales tonight.”

“We have no live music tonight, so it’s fine. I sent Elsa and Thad out to make posters and hang them up, and as I said, I updated the website. It was fun to put Grammy award winner Dawson West and the Dregs on our Instagram and TikTok.”

I shook my head at her.

“I could have left that for you, but…you and technology? Not so much.”

“I have to go now.”

She smiled at me. “Have fun babysitting.”

“You’re mean.”

Instant squint at me. “This is new?”

“You’re just letting Luther right in to sage our entire place.”

“Not the kitchen. I already told him that.”

Throwing up my arms, I went back down the hall, only to pass Luke and Prue and Cami walking by.

“I’m coming right back,” Cami informed me.

When I reached my office, I realized that everything had been moved but the rabbit, whose cage Dawson was surveying.

“Don’t lift it. I’ll move it,” I told him.

“We could do it together,” he suggested, “so you’re not broken later.”

When I had crossed to him, he lifted his head, and I was going to say something, tell him he didn’t have to waste his night watching two kids who were basically self-sufficient and where all I had to do was eat and watch movies, but then…I caught him without his smile, with nothing but longing in his eyes.

I froze.