1225 Christmas Tree Lane (10 page)

They broke into peals of laughter.

“What?” Beth turned again to see what her daughters were laughing about now.

“Mom, you're so predictable. That's exactly what we told Danielle you'd say.”

Kent pulled the sleigh over to the shed and handed the reins to Beth while he jumped down. He helped Sophie out first, then Danielle and Bailey.

“I'll take the sled over to the Nelsons',” Beth said, but before she could set off, Kent leaped back into place beside her.

“I'll go with you.”

“That isn't necessary,” she told him, thinking he'd want to be inside with the others.

“Yes, it is. You aren't going to argue with me, are you?”

“I…no.”

“Good, because it would be very tempting to stop you the way I used to once upon a time.”

Beth swallowed hard. She'd forgotten. In the early days of their marriage, anytime she disagreed with him, Kent would take her in his arms and kiss her.

“Honey, can you get the door?” Corrie called from the back bedroom. She swore that if Roy didn't get his hearing checked soon, she'd start ignoring every word he said. That would give him a little demonstration of what she put up with every day.

“Okay,” he yelled from the living room.

With an exasperated sigh Corrie went back to her wrapping paper and ribbon. She was almost finished with Noelle's birthday gift, the one they'd take to Grace Harding's party. She still needed to arrange the last of the Christmas presents under the tree before their children arrived for dinner, which would be followed by Christ
mas Eve church services. After that, they'd go to Noelle's first-birthday celebration at the Hardings'. Gloria, Roy and Corrie's eldest daughter, would be coming tonight. Corrie hoped Gloria would bring Chad Timmons.

She couldn't help worrying about Gloria, who was single, pregnant and determined to manage on her own. What disturbed Corrie most was the fact that there was no reason for Gloria to be so stubborn. Chad loved her; Corrie was convinced of that. She'd invited him to dinner and hoped Gloria wouldn't be upset with her. Oh, she hadn't made a secret of it, but she hadn't talked it over with Gloria, either.

Mack and Mary Jo would be with them and of course little Noelle, too. She'd been born on Christmas Eve one year ago, at the Harding ranch; Mack had delivered her. Corrie had a lovely birthday cake ready for her adopted granddaughter, not to mention a pile of gifts. Corrie couldn't wait to watch Noelle open them. There was nothing like a baby to bring excitement and joy back to Christmas.

“Corrie,” Roy shouted. “It's the Beldons.”

“I'll be right there,” she shouted back as she finished tying the ribbon on the gift she'd just wrapped.

Corrie had been expecting Peggy and Bob to stop by at some point that afternoon. It was tradition. Every
Christmas Eve the Beldons came over with a plate of Peggy's homemade cookies and specialty candies.

“Merry Christmas,” Corrie said, hurrying into the room and opening her arms. She hugged Bob and then, after taking the plate from Peggy, embraced her, too.

“I hope we aren't interrupting your day.”

“Nonsense,” Corrie told her. “You know you're welcome anytime.”

“Especially when you come bearing gifts,” Roy joked.

“Sit down, please. I've got eggnog and coffee, whichever you prefer.”

“We can only stay a few minutes,” Bob said, claiming the corner of the sofa. “Hollie and Marc are driving over from Spokane.”

“Wonderful! I'm glad they can make it.” Corrie hadn't met the Beldons' daughter and son, but she'd heard lots about them. She and Peggy often met for lunch and had a strong friendship.

“It'll be good to have them here for Christmas.”

“We'll have a full house ourselves,” Roy said. “Mack and Mary Jo are coming for dinner tonight and they'll be here on Christmas Day, as well.”

“Gloria will be here tonight, too, and she'll attend church services with us,” Corrie added.

“And Christmas Day?” Peggy asked.

Corrie shrugged. “She didn't say. I imagine she'll come for dinner, unless…”

“Unless?”

“Unless she plans to spend it with Chad.”

“Ah, yes. How are things going between her and Chad?”

“Fine, I think. Gloria hasn't said much, but she seems happier these days, less…confused. I know they're seeing each other regularly. If they have any wedding plans, however, they haven't shared them with us.”

“Chad put the crib together,” Roy said. “I volunteered and so did Mack, but Gloria said Chad would do it.”

“That sounds positive,” Peggy murmured.

“I just wish those two would get married,” Corrie responded. “I know the world's different these days. So many young women choose to be single mothers, but it's hard work.”

“A baby needs a father,” Roy inserted. “I wanted to tell Gloria that, but Corrie wouldn't let me.”

“When has that stopped you in the past?” Corrie retorted as she headed into the kitchen to get their drinks. It still annoyed her that her husband had gone against her wishes and informed Chad of Gloria's pregnancy. After she and Chad had broken up, Gloria had wanted to keep the information from him.

The irony of her daughter's situation astonished her. This was history repeating itself. Well, almost…

Years ago, in college, Corrie had discovered she was pregnant after Roy had ended their relationship. Instead of letting him know, she'd returned home and given her daughter up for adoption. Not until they'd reunited a couple of years later did Roy learn about his baby. And not for more than three decades did they actually meet her. Her husband had been determined that the same thing not happen to Chad Timmons.

Peggy helped her prepare the coffee. Roy and Bob had both requested eggnog, which Corrie poured into festive glasses decorated with green holly leaves and red berries. They'd once belonged to her mother and Corrie reserved them for this special season and for special friends.

“What have you heard from Linnette?” Peggy asked when they were all seated again.

“She and Pete will be in North Dakota over Christmas.”

“Was it just a year ago that Pete drove her to Cedar Cove for Christmas?” Roy asked, shaking his head.

Corrie felt the same way. So much had taken place this past year…. During the holidays, Linnette, their younger daughter, had brought home a man she'd met,
a farmer named Pete Mason. They'd liked him, but at the time Peggy hadn't thought the relationship was going anywhere. Pete farmed with his brothers near Buffalo Valley, where Linnette had recently accepted a position as a physician assistant. Although Linnette hadn't been in Buffalo Valley long, she seemed genuinely happy for the first time since Cal Washburn had broken her heart. Soon after that, she'd packed up her car and set off with no destination in mind. Peggy had worried endlessly, sure this was a formula for disaster. Then Linnette had phoned from this small prairie town where she'd ended up and sounded…content. She'd sounded more like herself than she had in a very long while.

Corrie hated that her younger daughter lived so far from the family. But she loved Linnette enough to realize she had to make her own decisions. Pete had fallen in love with her first and initially Corrie feared Linnette might have married on the rebound. Those concerns had been laid to rest. On Corrie's recent trip to Buffalo Valley, after the birth of Linnette and Pete's son, she had all the reassurance she'd ever need. It was abundantly clear that Linnette loved her husband and the life she'd created in this small North Dakota community.

“We had quite a Christmas last year,” Roy commented, chuckling. “Mack had just been hired by the
fire department and he was at the Hardings' to deliver Mary Jo's baby.”

Bob grinned. “What I remember was Mary Jo's three brothers racing around town looking for her.”

“And not a one of them had any sense of direction.”

“Hey, be fair. They'd never been on this side of the sound before.”

“And now Linc lives here, too.”

“And married to the Bellamy girl.”

“They are the sweetest couple,” Peggy said with the hint of a sigh. “I saw them in the grocery store the other day. It was positively romantic just seeing the two of them together. We spoke for a few minutes and apparently Linc and Lori are spending Christmas with her family.”

“Well,” Bob said, “that's an improvement. Bellamy was trying to ruin Linc's business. Until you and Troy intervened…”

Roy shrugged off Bob's comment. “I'm glad they reconciled with Lori's family, but I don't know why Bellamy couldn't just accept the fact that they're married. End of story.”

“It wasn't the only wedding this past year, either,” Bob said. “Faith and Troy tied the knot, and of course so did Mack and Mary Jo.”

“I do love a wedding,” Corrie said. To her way of thinking, there should be one more, and preferably soon. She'd feel so much better about Gloria's situation if she was married to Chad.

“Well…” Bob lowered his empty glass. “I hate to cut this short, but we've got a few other stops to make.”

Corrie and Roy walked their friends to the front door and thanked them again.

“This is one small way of repaying you for all you've done for us,” Peggy said.

“How can you say that?” Corrie asked. Their friendship had been one of her biggest blessings since moving to Cedar Cove. “You've done so much for
us.
”

“You kept me out of prison,” Bob reminded them, referring to the death at the B and B. “Believe me, I'll be forever grateful for that.”

“Ancient history,” Roy insisted, standing on the front porch. He wrapped his arm around Corrie's shoulders.

“Ancient history to you, perhaps,” Bob said, “but it's something I'll never forget.”

They got into their vehicle, and Corrie and Roy returned to the warmth of the house.

“I really didn't do that much,” Roy protested. “Bob was so obviously innocent….”

“Are you complaining about the cookies and candy they brought?” she asked, half-joking. “No way!”

“Then enjoy and quit your muttering.”

He laughed. “You're right. Have you tasted that English toffee yet? It's good stuff.”

“Don't tell me how good it is, I'm resisting.”

“Why?”

Corrie rolled her eyes. “Because it's hard enough not to overindulge during the holidays without you telling me how good everything tastes.”

“Fine. Leaves more for me.”

Sighing, Corrie brought the tray into the kitchen and covered it with a towel. Out of sight, out of mind. She returned to the back bedroom and resumed wrapping gifts.

Fifteen minutes later, Roy poked his head in. “You about done?”

“Yup. I'm putting the final touches on the last package. Why?”

“Anything here for Gloria?”

“Of course.”

“Well, she just parked outside the house.”

“Oh.” Corrie felt a bit flustered.

“She isn't alone.”

“Did Chad come with her?” Corrie couldn't hide the excitement in her voice.

Roy nodded. “Only they don't seem to be in any big hurry to come inside. They've been sitting in the car chatting for the past ten minutes.”

Corrie arched her eyebrows. “Can you tell if they're arguing?” She certainly hoped not!

“I didn't want it to be obvious that I saw them.”

“Good point.” Still, one might think that Roy, a private investigator, would know how to watch without being seen.

“Besides, this is
their
business.”

Another good point, although that hadn't troubled him earlier when he'd gone to see Chad, which she restrained herself from mentioning.

The doorbell chimed.

“I'll get it,” Roy said.

Corrie made her way into the kitchen and brewed a fresh pot of coffee. She heard Roy greet their daughter and Chad, and she quickly joined them.

“I know we're early,” Gloria said. She held hands with Chad—a positive sign. “Chad thought we should all talk before everyone came for dinner tonight.”

“Sure,” Roy said, sitting down in his recliner.

Gloria and Chad took the sofa, huddled close to each other.

Corrie slid onto her favorite chair, her heart in her throat.

A tense silence pervaded the room as both she and Roy waited for whatever announcement was about to be made.

Gloria looked at Chad as if she wanted him to do the talking.

“Gloria and I wanted you to know we decided to get married,” he blurted out. “She agreed to marry me a couple of weeks ago but we wanted to keep it to ourselves until Christmas, and—”

Corrie was instantly on her feet. “That's wonderful news!” she said, interrupting him and clasping her hands together. Her mind was whirling. While she hoped it would be soon, for the baby's sake, she'd love a June wedding. That would give her enough time to plan. She'd get started first thing after Christmas. They'd need someplace special for the reception and, of course, there were the invitations, which they'd want to send out immediately. They'd have to find a dress; at this stage of her pregnancy, Gloria probably wouldn't fit into Corrie's wedding gown, which was a shame.

“When's the happy date?” Roy asked.

“Actually…we're already married,” Chad said.

Corrie blinked, assuming she'd misunderstood. “Already married?” she repeated. That wasn't possible!

“When?” Roy asked, following the first question with a second. “Where?”

Again it was Chad who explained. “I'm afraid I'm responsible. Gloria said she'd marry me but we couldn't agree on a date.”

“I wanted to wait until after the baby's born and have a summer wedding,” she told them.

Corrie nodded, understanding.

“And I wanted us to be married
before
the baby's born,” Chad said.

Ah, yes,
Corrie thought, seeing the problem.

“So we decided to simply go ahead and get married right away and then, this summer, have another ceremony and a reception.”

“Makes sense to me,” Roy said, obviously pleased by this unexpected turn of events.

“Why didn't you let us know?” Corrie asked, feeling a twinge of hurt despite her happiness. Even if it was a quick affair, she would've liked to be there.

“I agree we should have asked you to attend,” Gloria said. “But if you were there and Chad's parents weren't,
they would've felt cheated. So we just did it. We applied for the license and were married a couple of days later.”

“By whom?”

“Judge Griffin,” Chad said. “At the courthouse. Mack and Mary Jo stood up with us.” He paused. “I don't blame you for being upset.”