She pulled her phone from her handbag, stood up, and walked over to the fireplace. On her phone, she searched for the local Christmas tree farm where she and her mother always got their Christmas trees. As she scrolled through her search results, Richard peeked his head in.
“All okay?” he called.
“Yep! Thank you, Richard. Except… do you have any matches? I’d like to light this fire.”
“I’d be happy to find you some, Ms. Fuller,” he said with a smile. “Does it have enough kindling?”
“It looks like it.”
“I’ll see what I can find.”
Once Richard had left, she called the Christmas tree farm and, after a bit of haggling, she ordered seven of the biggest Colorado Blue spruce trees they had and a few miles of fresh garland, and she got them for a very good price. With a smile, she also ordered a few bundles of mistletoe, thinking of all the places she could hang it around the house. What would Nick do if he were caught under it with her? The idea of him out of his comfort zone was enough to create a little giggle that rose in her throat. The Christmas tree farm worker promised to have it all delivered by noon, and it would come by truck, he’d said. Then, she grabbed her handbag and headed out to check on Caroline and find Christmas decorations.
* * *
“How was your Thanksgiving?” Caroline asked with a smile as she held the door open for Abbey to enter. Her shoulders were rounded forward from age, even though she was clearly attempting to stand quite straight. She had on a pair of slacks with a blouse that had fabric-covered buttons. Her white hair was curled and tucked behind her ears, showing off her pearl earrings. With a delicate touch, she pulled the door closed after Abbey entered.
“It was good.” Abbey watched Caroline’s face, wondering if the holiday had made her feel lonely, but she didn’t look unhappy in any way. She never did. “Nick sent me two pumpkin pies.” Caroline’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Want to hear the story?”
As Abbey told her the story of Gramps and how he’d dropped the pies, and how Nick had been so thoughtful as to send her some, Caroline was almost smiling.
“I knew you’d make a good impression on him,” she said, her lips pressed together as if to keep her smile from surfacing.
“Well, I haven’t started decorating yet. He may have a different opinion when I’m done,” she teased. “What if he doesn’t like my choices? Decorating is so subjective. How do you know I’m the right person for the job?”
Caroline sat there, smiling now, thoughts behind her eyes. “Nick took a very long time to find me a nurse. He worried so much that he wouldn’t find someone who could work to his—and my—standards. He was fully expecting to go through a few nurses before finding a good fit. But then you came in and I just loved you. You are so kind and thoughtful and careful. Even if you don’t decorate like he would, I think he’ll love it. You will surprise him at every turn, and I can’t wait to hear all about it.”
“I don’t know…” Abbey worried aloud.
“I have never known Nick to send pie…” She put her fingertips to her lips to squelch the bubbling laughter for a moment before she continued, “I’ve never seen him send anything to anyone.” She giggled again. “I think he’ll enjoy having you around.”
“Okay,” Abbey said, standing up. She hoped Caroline didn’t have some sort of ridiculous matchmaking plan going on or anything. She seemed awfully giddy. That was the very last thing Abbey needed. She’d promised herself that she’d never do that to Max again. She’d had a few boyfriends since his father, and they’d all ended badly.
Max’s father, Vince, had been nice enough when Abbey had met him. He was always on the go—party to party, never settling down. Abbey had enjoyed the chase when it came to him. He was that bad boy she’d wanted to tame. And, for a while, she thought she had. Their relationship had progressed and, before she knew it, he was moving into her apartment. As a bartender, he kept crazy hours, but she delighted in the fact that he spent his free time with her, he took her to his parties, and he seemed to be in love with her. Until she got pregnant.
After Max was born, Vince had tried to be there for her, but when it came down to it, he wouldn’t change his lifestyle to be with her and Max. She became more and more fed up with his party-going and lack of attention to her and their baby. He came in at all hours, stayed out, drank too much. Ultimately, she realized that he wouldn’t change because that wasn’t who he was. She confronted him during an argument and he admitted that he had never wanted to be a father. She didn’t need to hear any more. He moved out the next day, and she hadn’t heard from him since.