A Christmas to Remember(88)

“Good morning,” he said to Joyce and Sharon who were wiping down the counters. Then, he turned back to Carrie. “I’d like to ask you to do something for me.”

“What is it?” she asked.

“Would you come to the brewery with me? Bring the kids. I want to show you and the family around. Then maybe we could take the kids to see Santa.”

“Oh, that would be lovely!” Joyce said from behind Carrie.

Carrie had been too stunned to speak. Adam had said he wanted to show her the brewery. Had she heard him correctly? He must want her there for the children. Or perhaps he was just being polite.

Joyce walked around the island and patted his arm, smiling.

“I haven’t ever shown you where I work,” he said, “so I thought it was about time.”

“If Carrie can get the little ones around, I’ll organize the big ones,” Joyce winked. “Would you like some breakfast, honey?” she asked Adam. Joyce looked positively thrilled. As she finished clearing the dishes, she was almost bouncing with excitement.

Carrie was still trying to process what had just happened when Adam came up beside her, standing closer than he should. He looked down at her, warmth in his eyes, and she could feel the splotches coming. This time, they weren’t coming from nerves, they were coming from the excitement—a thrill like she’d never felt before. The way he was looking at her was the same way he’d looked at her last night, but there was something more real about it in the daylight, making it less dreamlike and more genuine. She took in a breath to steady herself. He reached into the cabinet above her head and pulled out a plate.

“What time would you like to go?” she asked, trying to hide her excitement.

“As soon as everyone’s ready.”



Carrie pulled her car up behind the camper and put it in park. Adam had driven everyone in the camper because Walter had trouble getting in and out of the car, and the snow had piled up significantly on the curbs. She’d followed behind with the children. As she walked around the car to unbuckle the kids, she tried to keep her emotions even. The book on stress that she’d read while waiting to meet the Fletchers was still on the seat of her car. She resisted the urge to open it and find an answer for the way she was feeling. Truthfully, she knew she wouldn’t find answers in there. Life was too complex, too specific to find answers to her kind of questions.

When she opened David’s side, she was taken aback by what she saw. He was working diligently to unbuckle himself, his usual serious expression replaced by a huge grin, causing the dimple on his right cheek to show more than usual. “Are you doing okay?” she asked as David fumbled with the buckles.

“Yes!” he said. “Can you get this one?”

Carrie unclipped the last buckle and David hopped out onto the icy city street, nearly losing his balance and slipping. She caught him. “Wait there on the sidewalk while I get Olivia,” she said, thrilled to see such excitement in David. “You’re a very happy boy today.” She walked to the curb as she waited for the traffic to pass so she could open Olivia’s door. Adam had parallel parked up the street since he had the large camper and needed more room. They were all walking down the sidewalk toward Carrie’s car.

“I get to see Daddy’s work!” David said.

Carrie unbuckled Olivia and carried her across the original cobblestones and over the snow bank to the sidewalk, setting her down easily so she didn’t fall. Her little pink snow boots provided little traction on the ice. Carrie looked up at Shockoe Brewery. It was nestled in an old, historic area of the city. Spanning two buildings, the exterior was painted a bright white with dark green awnings on every window and above the front door. Every window had a spruce wreath with bright red bows and white twinkle lights. An oval lighted sign with curly writing, saying “open” was positioned in the window next to the door.

The Fletchers had caught up with them, and Adam walked around to the front of the group. He opened the large, wooden door for them to enter. The whole place oozed refinement. The hostess perked up at the sight of Adam, smiling nervously in his direction. As she started thumbing through menus, he politely told her to hold off. Carrie was impressed by his presence. Adam was different there than he was at home with her. With Carrie, he was softer, gentler, whereas at the brewery, he was still pleasant, but he was more matter-of-fact with his commands. Until then, she’d never realized how friendly he’d actually been with her since the very beginning.

The hostess immediately put the menus back and stood at attention, ready to fulfill any request he had. The wall of glass with the brew kettle was bigger in real life than what it had seemed in the pictures. An entire wall behind the hostess, opposite the front, had Salty Shockoe bottles from floor to ceiling, all kinds of different labels and sizes. The wall was arranged in a way that it looked artistic—as good as any painting she’d ever seen. The tables were thick, lacquered dark wood with deep pink orchids in the center of each one. The formality of the orchids against the casual beer design was like chocolate and popcorn—sweet and salty—mirroring Adam’s own personality in many ways.