Chapter 7

SEVEN

ANDY

“Y ou look exhausted.” I tried not to laugh as Willow yawned. “Good thing I brought you this.” I held up a cup of coffee.

“Bless you.” Willow grabbed the cup with both hands and pulled it toward her chest. “I had no idea a puppy and kitty could have so much energy.” She yawned again. “They can go for hours before they finally crash.”

“So, I guess that means you did adopt an animal. Well, two animals.” I smiled and took a sip of my coffee.

“It was hard to say no.” She shrugged her shoulders and pulled out her phone. “Would you be able to say no to those faces?”

“Oh, um, no.” I grabbed her phone to get a closer look. “What made you adopt a puppy and a kitten?”

“They were together in a cage.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah, someone brought them in together.” She put her nose over the opening to the to-go cup lid and breathed in the aromas. “They’re bonded. I loved that the rescue didn’t separate them. You should see them at home; they go everywhere together.”

“I would love to meet them.” I was so impressed at how Willow was nervous to have an animal but gave not one but two animals a home. “Maybe they can have a play date with my dog.”

“How big is your dog?” She turned her head to the side, obviously curious about my answer.

“Queensland Heeler mix. He’s about 45 pounds.”

“Oh, that’s not bad, but we should wait a few more months.” She laughed. “They’re still pretty tiny.” She placed her hand on my forearm. “But you can still meet them.”

“I look forward to it.” I could hear Mackinac’s voice behind us. “Sounds like it’s time to decorate.” I winked and turned around.

“Good morning, you two.” Mack placed her hands on both of our shoulders. “Are you ready to spread some holiday spirit throughout the town?”

“Um–” I glanced over at Willow– “yes.”

“What Andy said.” Willow nodded.

“It’s so much fun.” Mack hopped up and down. “Come on.” She walked over to a shed behind a building. “Everything is in here.” She unlocked the doors and stepped inside. “I have a very important question. She turned to face us while holding a garland in one hand and a strand of lights in the other. Which one?”

My first instinct was to say garland, but I waited to answer. “Willow, thoughts?”

“I’ve been known to throw out a strand of lights if they are too tangled.” She raised her eyebrows and laughed.

“So, garland it is.” Mack handed the long strand to me. “Make sure she doesn’t throw out any garland.”

“Noted.” I wrapped my hand around the large strand.

“Are there specific places where you want the garlands to be placed?” Willow stepped into the shed and grabbed some more garlands.

“We want them on lights, building signs, anywhere with a flat surface.” She clapped her hands together and walked away.

“Mackinac has spoken.” I laughed and headed over to a light post. “Wait, is there a ladder in the shed?”

“Yes,” Willow yelled from the small space. “Grabbing it.”

When we arrived, it was freezing, but it was typical Michigan weather in December. By the time we hung the last garland at 2:45 p.m., our hands and faces were like icicles.

“Please tell me we’re done.” I stepped down off the ladder. “I don’t know if I’ll have the ability to hold a garland or hammer any more nails.” My gloves usually kept my hands warm, but they let me down today. Plus, the little bit of snow in places didn’t help because it made my gloves wet.

“Same.” She rubbed her hands together.

“Should we go get some hot chocolate at Razem?” I glanced around, hoping to find Mack somewhere nearby. “Let me text Mack to let her know we’re finished and heading out.”

“She was running across the street the last time I saw her.” She pointed in the direction of Lakeside Pub. “Maybe we’ll see her over at Razem.”

We made sure to put the ladder away and lock up the shed.

“Okay, let’s get out of the cold.” I placed my hand in the middle of her back and walked toward the restaurant.”

“I’m excited to finally try Razem.”

“Oh, you’re in for a treat.” We waited for the cars to clear and crossed the street. “August likes to go all out when he makes anything.”

“So, his hot chocolate must be amazing.”

“Out of this world.” I grabbed the handle and pulled the door open. “He also makes different flavored whipped cream.”

“How have I not been here before?”

“That is a mystery we need to solve.”

The host walked back to his station and grabbed two menus. “Hey, Andy. Just the two of you today?”

“Just us.” I nodded.

He seated us in the back near the doors to the kitchen. You could hear someone yelling. “Wow, I hope everything is okay.” Willow’s eyes went wide as she slid into her seat.

“That’s just August being August.” The host laughed and placed the menus in front of us. “Your server will be here in a moment.”

“August sounds angry.” Willow leaned forward and whispered in case the man in question pushed open the kitchen doors.

“He does seem intense, but he’s just a big teddy bear.” I shrugged. It was true, too. His bark was worse than his bite.

“Andy.” The loud voice from the kitchen was now behind me. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be next door?” He laughed and slapped his hand against my shoulder.

“Julian is filling in so I could help decorate the downtown area.”

“Who roped you into that?” His eyes moved over to Willow.

“Not me.” She placed her hand against her chest. “You can blame Mackinac for that.”

“Sounds about right.” He laughed. “Should I make a couple of hot chocolates for the occasion?”

“Yes. That’s why we’re here.”

August pointed at Willow. “Chocolate, cherry, or peppermint?”

“Cherry.”

“Great choice.” He smiled and glanced over at me. “Your usual?”

“Yup.”

“Your usual.” Willow watched August disappear through the doors into the kitchen.

“Peppermint.” I still had my gloves on because my hands were freezing. “It’s the whipped cream flavor for the hot chocolate.”

“Oh, cherry will pair perfectly.”

“It does. I can confirm that.” I rubbed my hands together to try to get them warm. “What brought you to Crystal Shores?”

“My finger.” She laughed. “I closed my eyes and pointed to a place on the map.”

“Crystal Shores was the winner.”

“Exactly.”

There was something different about Willow; she was easy to talk to. When I woke up this morning, I looked forward to the day and decorating the town with her.

Something I hadn’t felt in a while.