Christmas Kisses
PROLOGUE
Hailey
Hailey Bennett sat in the cozy kitchen wondering how to begin. Mrs. Kirby, her new foster mother, had asked her and the other three girls in the house to write a letter to Santa. She tapped the pencil against the wooden tabletop, trying to form the words in her head.
She’d learned at school that writing words was easier for her than talking. Talking sometimes got her into big trouble. Besides, she liked the words and people she made up and kept inside her head. These characters all lived in fancy big houses with a Mom and a Dad who loved them. Not in a house where yelling and hitting took place. Her teacher told her she had a great imagination and that someday she might become a real storyteller. Maybe. Now, she’d better pretend she believed in Santa. She looked around. The other girls were busy writing to him. She wondered if she could make the words come out right.
She began to form the printed letters on paper as carefully as she could.
“Dear Santa, I want a pupy for Xmas with lots of kisses. Your frind, Hailey Bennett.”
“How are you doing, sweetheart? Need any help?” Mrs. Kirby asked, coming into the kitchen and giving her a friendly smile.
Hailey shook her head. She knew better than to bring attention to herself. That had only caused trouble in the foster home she’d just left. Those people were called out of town for the holidays to take care of a sick relative. Or so the person from Foster Care Services told her. They’d left without even saying goodbye to her. Another house that didn’t work for her.
At the memory of finding herself alone again, tears escaped her eyes and dropped onto the lenses of her eyeglasses. She quickly took them off and rubbed them dry. She didn’t want the other girls to see. They might call her a crybaby, like the kids at school sometimes did. Or “four-eyes,” which was almost as bad.
Hailey left the kitchen and joined the older girls in the family room. Carefully, so as not to draw attention to herself, she sat on the floor by the doorway. From here, she wouldn’t bother anyone. It was a good place to make up some of her favorite stories. At eight, she’d lived through a lot of disappointments, and these stories brought her comfort.
Hailey studied the lights on the Christmas tree and listened to the holiday music. Soon she became lost in a memory of colorful lights, a soft voice, and blue eyes. She’d been told her mother had died when she was four, and her father was unknown. She thought it must be a mistake. Somewhere her mother was looking for her. She was sure of it. When she got old enough, she’d go find her.
Mrs. Kirby came and sat down beside her. “Pretty Christmas lights, huh?”
Hailey nodded.
“I hope you’ll be comfortable here with me and the other girls. Anytime you need to talk to me about something, feel free to do it. Okay?”
Hailey studied her and then nodded. This new foster mother seemed really nice, but only time would tell if this house would be the right one.
“I have something for you,” Mrs. Kirby said. “Something to welcome you.”
Hailey felt her eyes widen. This was something new.
“Would you like to open it now?” Mrs. Kirby’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
Her pulse speeding up with excitement she didn’t dare show, Hailey bobbed her head up and down.
Mrs. Kirby got to her feet, went into her downstairs bedroom, and returned with a gaily-wrapped package. “Here. This is for you.”
Hailey accepted the gift and held it to her chest. “Mine?”
“Yes, yours. Go ahead and open it.”
Hailey carefully unwrapped the package, slowly lifted the paper off, and stared with disbelief at the stuffed puppy dog. The brown fur felt soft as she lifted it into her arms. Dark- brown, button eyes stared deep inside her to where she hid her feelings. The pink-felt tongue sewn into the mouth looked as if it wanted to kiss her.
“Mine?” Hailey said again, needing to be sure. It was the closest she’d ever come to having something like this of her own.
“Yes, sweetie, it’s yours. Later, after the holidays, we’ll get a real dog in the house. But all of us will have to decide together on what kind it’ll be.”
Hailey buried her face into the puppy’s soft fur and felt her eyes fill. This time, words inside her head weren’t enough. “I … I love it,” she managed to say. Her lips trembled with emotion.
Hailey noticed Mrs. Kirby’s eyes grow as watery as her own. “This dog will help you. Any time you feel uncomfortable, Hailey, bring him to me, and we’ll talk to him and you about it. Okay?”
Hailey thought for a moment, and nodded, trying not to be a big crybaby.
Throughout the rest of the afternoon, Hailey held the dog close to her.
One of the girls saw her and asked,” What’s your puppy’s name?”
Hailey shrugged, too shy to answer.
“How about Charlie, for Charlie Brown?”
Hailey giggled and nodded. “Okay.”
She hugged the dog. Hi, Charlie.
At dinner, everyone gathered around the kitchen table. By now, Hailey knew the oldest girl was named Jo. The other two were Alissa and Stevie. As Mrs. Kirby explained, they’d all been in need of a new home too. Hailey studied them and held onto her dog, wondering what life would be like here. Already, it might be the best ever.
After dinner when the talking of the girls had died down, Mrs. Kirby took Hailey’s hand. “Time for a bath and to get ready for bed.”
Hailey bit her lip. Even though she’d been here for a few days, it took her a while to get used to new routines. And she certainly wasn’t used to someone holding her hand. Not in a nice way.
Mrs. Kirby led her upstairs, chatting quietly about the good day they’d had. Hailey was sharing a room with Alissa. Mrs. Kirby, or Maddie as one of the big girls called her, had figured the two of them, as the youngest, wouldn’t mind sharing, that it would be nice for them to know they weren’t alone. Hailey was glad. She clutched Charlie to her chest, glad, too, she had Charlie to make her feel safe.
Okay, Charlie, bath time.
Upstairs, Mrs. Kirby led her into a big room at the front of the house. Though it was getting dark outside, Hailey could see the soft glow of street lights through the large window that gave a nice view of the pretty neighborhood.
Hailey noticed Mrs. Kirby looking around the room sadly and reached out and touched her hand.
Mrs. Kirby’s eyes widened and then filled with tears. She knelt on the floor and wrapped her arms around Hailey, filling her with a warm feeling. “Ah, Hailey, you’re such a sweet girl. I know you’re going to be happy here.”
Wanting to please Mrs. Kirby, Hailey nodded, though she was waiting to be told she’d have to move. Again.
Mrs. Kirby rose and patted her on the head. “I have another surprise. Here is your new Christmas nightgown. All the girls got them.”
Hailey stared at the red flannel nightgown whose collar and cuffs were edged in lace. It was beautiful. “Mine?” she asked, touching the soft, warm fabric.
“Yes, yours, Hailey. After your bath, we’ll put it on and hopefully I’ll have time for a short story with you and Alissa before it’s time to get the other girls settled.”
In a daze of disbelief, Hailey took her bath, put on her new nightgown, and climbed into her soft, clean bed, the one closest to the window. Alissa, a sweet girl who sometimes let her hold her Unicorn pillow, slept in the other bed. She liked having Alissa in the same room.
After both girls were tucked in, Mrs. Kirby sat down on the edge of Hailey’s bed with a couple of books. Hailey grinned at Alissa. Of all the things that would make this day even more magical it was having a story read to them.
As Mrs. Kirby read aloud a book about a moon and another story about a girl moving to a new home, a peace settled inside Hailey. She had a new home too.
###
The next morning, Mrs. Kirby surprised her by saying, “We’re going shopping so you can get gifts for the other girls in the house. It’s Christmas Eve, and we don’t have much time for you to choose something for them and get it wrapped.”
Hailey simply stared at her. She’d never bought a gift or wrapped a gift or even thought of Christmas this way.
“If you’ve never done this before, that’s okay!” said Mrs. Kirby. “I’ll help you decide what to get if you need me to. Don’t worry, it’s going to be fun. That’s what Christmas is all about—thinking of others, having fun, and remembering to be grateful for all you have.”
Hailey forced words out of her head into her mouth. “Thank you. That will be fun.”
Mrs. Kirby smiled. “I think so too.”
Later, at the store, Hailey squeezed a five-dollar bill in her hand and hugged Charlie closer to her. The store was alive with activity as people strolled the aisles, and Christmas music played through loudspeakers. Nearby, Mrs. Kirby said, “Remember, choose something you think each of the girls would like. Something you might like yourself, perhaps. I know you’ve just met them, but knowing you, I’m sure you’ll come up with something special for each of them.”
Hailey had studied each of the girls in the house. Some choices would be easy. Some not.
It took her no time to choose a book for Alissa. She’d loved their story time as much as Hailey. For Stevie, she finally chose a notebook with a picture of a fox on it. Stevie seemed to have words in her head too. Jo was the hardest choice of all. She seemed tough, but Hailey knew better. She walked slowly up one aisle of the store and down another and then stopped in front of the hair ribbons and bows. Even though she knew Jo might be surprised, Hailey picked out a bright-red bow with sparkly fake diamonds on it. It was the most beautiful bow in the store.
Satisfied, she showed Mrs. Kirby her selections.
“Perfect,” she said to her. “Lovely ideas.”
Brimming with pleasure, Hailey handed the lady at checkout her money and put the gifts down.
“Somebody is going to have a nice Christmas,” the lady said, smiling at her.
Hailey nodded. My sisters. Even thinking the word sister made Hailey’s heart pound with excitement, and nervousness too. It was all so new.
###
At home, Hailey and Mrs. Kirby worked together wrapping the gifts in Mrs. Kirby’s bedroom where they had privacy. The pretty green paper and shiny silver bows seemed like gifts of their own. Hailey did her best to make the paper not so crinkly and to stick the bow in exactly the right place.
Mrs. Kirby handed her the name tags. “Okay, now you need to add these. One for each of the girls. I’ve printed them carefully so you can read them.”
Hailey proudly attached the name tags to the right gifts. She couldn’t wait to see if the girls liked them.
She carefully carried them into the living room and placed them under the tree.
“Don’t look, Charlie!” She hid the stuffed dog behind her back.
Mrs. Kirby smiled at her. “Tomorrow is going to be so much fun. Now let’s see how the other girls are doing with icing the cookies they made earlier.”
When they walked into the large kitchen, Alissa, Stevie, and Jo were standing around the kitchen island exclaiming over the cookies.
“Stevie’s are the best,” Jo said, and nobody disagreed. Hers were gorgeous, with a few extra touches on the Christmas trees and on Santa’s face.
“Did you save a couple of cookies for Hailey to ice, like I asked?” Mrs. Kirby said.
Jo nodded. “Here, Hailey, here are yours.”
Hailey swallowed hard. “Mine?”
“Yes. They’re yours. Here’s the icing and here is the spreader. Go to it,” Jo said.
A few moments later, Hailey stood back. The green and red colors weren’t exactly where she’d wanted them—they sort of blended too much—but the cookies were beautiful just the same.
“Go ahead and lick the spoon. We left some for you,” said Mrs. Kirby.
The sugary taste on Hailey’s tongue was delicious. “Mmm,” she murmured, bringing a knowing smile to Mrs. Kirby’s face.
###
Christmas morning, Alissa jumped out of bed. “Get up, sleepyhead! It’s Christmas!”
Hailey’s eyes flew open. It had just been moments ago that she lay awake wondering if Christmas was ever going to come. She scrambled out of bed and raced after Alissa.
Downstairs, Mrs. Kirby was in the living room with Jo and Stevie.
“Merry Christmas, girls! Come join us.”
They sat together around the Christmas tree. Hailey stared at the number of brightly wrapped packages with awe. She’d never lived in a house where there were so many.
“Let’s take turns opening gifts,” said Mrs. Kirby.
Watching the girls open her presents for them, Hailey felt warm inside. They’d each liked her gift. She could tell. Stevie even understood why she’d chosen a notebook with a fox on it. Her last name was Fox.
And when she opened her own gifts, her spirit soared. Colored pencils, pens, a notebook with a picture of a dachshund on it, a drawing pad, and not one, but two books were hers. The notebook even had her name printed on it in big black letters.
Charlie, it’s the best Christmas ever. Maybe there really is a Santa Claus.
She’d always remember this day—the music, the lights on the tree, the sound of crinkling paper, the cries of surprise. She studied Mrs. Kirby laughing with the other girls and felt her heart fill.
Mrs. Kirby leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “We all have so much to be thankful for.”
Yes, Charlie, you and me. Hailey hugged him hard, wanting to cry with happiness.
CHAPTER ONE
Hailey Kirby sat in the Granite Ridge, Idaho, library in a small wooden chair in the middle of a circle of wide-eyed children sitting on the plush, new, green carpet in the children’s section. Story time was her favorite activity of her job as assistant librarian and director of children’s programs, and she loved to make it as exciting as possible by acting out the characters with different voices and mannerisms.
Though their town was small, the two-story, red-brick library building was an important part of it. It had become a gathering place for various activities. Volunteer groups in town used the conference room for meetings, and the book club, which had started as a small group, had grown large enough to meet there every month, filling the largest room. Best of all, the library was a place that introduced the joys of reading to children.
As she leafed through the book she was reading aloud, she studied the pictures carefully—pictures drawn by her own hand. That was something very few people knew. As part of her contract with a well-known children’s book publisher, Hailey, writing and illustrating under the name of Lee Merriweather, had demanded anonymity. After lengthy discussions and with the help of her sister, Jo, acting as her lawyer, she finally won. She knew, though, as Lee Merriweather’s popularity grew, she would eventually be exposed. Maybe by then, she’d be more comfortable about people knowing who she really was.
“What’s Charlie going to do now?” asked one of the children, giving her a worried look.
“Is he going to get into trouble again?” another child asked.
Hailey held up a finger. “Let’s see. Shall we?” One of the main characters in her stories was a boy named Charlie. He and his three friends found themselves in all kinds of trouble as they learned one life lesson after another. Each book had a happy ending, of course, because she understood how important they were.
Hailey read:
“Charlie’s mother hugged him tight. “I’m so glad you came home. I missed you.”
“I promise not to run away again,” said Charlie. He hadn’t been gone long. After going only one block with his dachshund, Zeke, he wished he hadn’t done it. Like his mother had told him, “Home is where the heart is”, and he knew his home was with her and the rest of his family.”
“I’m glad Charlie went home,” said a little girl named Regan, whom Hailey adored.
“Me, too,” said Hailey. She’d found a home with Maddie Kirby when she was eight years old and would do anything in the world to repay her. It was one reason she’d come back to Granite Ridge after college. If Mom ever needed her, she’d be there in a heartbeat.
She helped the children replace their chairs at the tables set aside for them in the children’s corner and checked her watch. She had just a few more hours until it was time for her to go home to pack for her stay with her family at the Cedar Mountain Lodge. She was both excited and saddened by the idea.
Alissa, her sister, had been dumped by her fiancé, Jed, days before their Christmas Eve wedding. Alissa told everyone in the family to go ahead with plans to spend time at the Lodge. Travel arrangements had already been made for those flying in, the Lodge had accommodations for them all, and her ex fiancé, the rat, could very well find other arrangements for the holiday. In an effort to cheer her and continue their family tradition of spending the holidays together, Hailey, her sisters, and their mom all agreed to keep to those plans. But Hailey ached for her sister. Jed had seemed the perfect man for her, and he’d disappointed them all.
Hailey spent time speaking to parents as they picked up their children from Story Time. She accepted hugs from all the children, loving the feel of their little arms around her.
When Nick Hensley entered the room, her pulse sprinted. With his black, curly hair, brown eyes, and strong physique, he was a hottie. The black ski jacket he wore stretched across his broad chest as if it had been made especially for him.
“Hi. I’m here for Regan,” Nick announced, looking around. “Where is she?” He sometimes helped his sister, Stacy, take care of Regan when she was too busy at the candy store in town to pick her up herself.
“Here! I’m here!” Laughing, Regan poked her head from behind a corner of the book shelf and ran to him, her arms open wide, her pink snow jacket flying behind her.
He swung her up in his arms and hugged her to him. “Okay, monkey, time to go to the store. Your mom is still working there.”
“Are you going to stay with us?” she asked.
He shook his head. “No, I have to go to work at the Lodge. I make music there for everyone. Remember? Say thank you to Miss Kirby.”
“Kisses! I want kisses,” Regan said, reaching for Hailey.
Hailey came close enough for Regan to kiss her.
Hailey closed her eyes as Regan planted a kiss on her cheek, wondering how it would feel if Nick did the same. She inhaled the smell of his lemony after-shave and sighed as he stepped away. They’d talked as friends about books, the weather and such, but that was as far as it went.
“Okay, then. Regan will see you next time,” said Nick in his deep sexy voice. He started to leave and turned back to her. “I did as you suggested and wrote to Lee Merriweather. I got an email back from her stating she’d be happy to consider my creating a couple of children’s songs to go with her books.”
“How nice,” she replied with a smile, trying not to give herself away. “I think it’s a great idea.”
Nick shook his head. “There’s something about those stories of hers that is special. Because Regan loves them so much, I swear I’ve read each book of hers about a hundred times, and every time I’m reminded of something in my own childhood. Weird, huh?”
“Maybe. But I’m sure it would make her happy to hear that.” Hailey’s heart sang. His kind words made all the hard work, all the long hours of writing and illustrating a children’s book worthwhile.
“Well, I guess I’d better go.” Still holding Regan in his arms, he walked out of the library.
Hailey sighed again. Lee Merriweather was more real to Nick than she was. Didn’t he remember meeting her as a young girl? The sweet way he’d knelt down to say hi was something she’d never forget.
Back then, she’d been a lot shyer, a lot quieter. Growing up, her thick eyeglasses and strawberry-blond hair that would never cooperate didn’t help. Everyone in her family told her she was adorable, a little pixie, and though she loved them for it, she knew better. Just before she entered high school, they all surprised her with Lasik surgery. It was the sweetest, most wonderful gift she could’ve imagined, a chance to do without her hated glasses. At the time, she couldn’t stop crying at their kindness. The memory still brought tears to her eyes.
In her books, Charlie, too, wore eyeglasses. No coincidence.
Karen Peterson, the head librarian, walked over to Hailey. “Are you getting ready to leave? I’m so sorry about Alissa’s broken engagement. She deserves much better treatment than that.”
“Yes, I think so too. My family is going to go ahead with their plans to stay at the Lodge through Christmas to New Year’s Day. I think it’ll be good for all of us.”
“Such a sweet family you have, Hailey,” Karen said, beaming at her. “Maddie was so lucky to find you four girls.”
“No,” Hailey said firmly. “We girls are the lucky ones.” She’d loved going from somebody no one wanted to one of the Kirby girls.
“Well, enjoy yourselves. And when you come back, be ready to go to work. I’ll have a hard time explaining to the little ones why their marvelous Miss Kirby is away. Thank goodness our volunteers are willing to step in to give you the time off.”
“The volunteers are wonderful. I can’t thank them enough.” Living in a small town like Granite Ridge had its advantages. The idea of supporting one another was a part of it.
###
After Karen left, Hailey quickly wrote down instructions for the volunteers and mentioned a couple of books they might like to read aloud to the children. Every time she discovered a new book by a fellow author, she was thrilled to introduce it to the children. In some ways, it reminded her of her first night at her mother’s house when she was a frightened little girl of eight. The story her mother read to her and Alissa was still one of her favorites. Who could resist saying goodnight to a moon?
With everything prepped at the library, Hailey bundled up, said goodbye to Karen, and headed out the door. Before going home to her condo, she had one errand to make. Hensley’s Sweet Shoppe made the best chocolate-coated, caramel kisses ever. Those special holiday sweets were one of the first things her sisters asked for whenever they came home to visit. She planned to surprise them with a big box of the candy.
The frosty air outside took her breath away and nipped at her nose. But Hailey didn’t mind. It was part of the charm of the season. Absorbing the bright colors of the lights and the holiday displays in the shop windows, she hurried along the street.
Hensley’s Sweet Shoppe had a delightful, old-fashioned look to it with large paned-glass windows covering most of the front of the store on either side of the bright-red front door. The humidity of the indoor air had coated the windows with a frosty look that made the store even more inviting.
Hailey stepped inside, inhaled the enticing, sugary aroma, and grinned. Though she was careful about eating too many, she loved her sweets.
“Hey, Hailey! I’ve got your order for Christmas Kisses all ready for you,” said Stacy, smiling at her, her dark eyes agleam. She was all but hidden behind a starched, white apron. Her hair was covered by a pink baseball cap she wore to work in, but it couldn’t hide a dark curl that trailed out from under it.
“Thanks!” said Hailey. “They’re the best.”
“By the way, I appreciate your including Regan in story time,” Stacy said. “I know she’s a little young to be there without me sitting with her, but it means the world to her to be able to be with the other kids to listen to you.”
“No problem. I adore her. Regan is better behaved than some of the older kids, and she genuinely loves the stories. That means a lot.”
“Regan and Nick both love to read.” Stacy shook her head. “I swear, if Nick ever had the chance to meet the author of those Charlie books, he’d fall in love with her. He thinks she must be the most wonderful woman in the world.”
“Really?” Hailey couldn’t hold back her surprise.
Stacy nodded. “Oh, yeah. He hasn’t told me too much about his time away playing guitar in his band, but he’s one disillusioned guy about women. Apparently, they fell all over him because of his fame and so-called fortune. After being cheated out of a lot of money by his agent and with Mom’s death, Nick was more than ready to come back to Granite Ridge to help me. Nick and I have promised to honor Mom’s wishes to keep the candy store going. Thank goodness because that lying, cheating, scumbag of an ex left me high and dry.”
Stacy, as chatty as her mother had been, continued. “Yeah, underneath all the glamour, Nick is a quiet man who loves music and is content sharing it with others in a whole new way at the Lodge.” She winked. “I can’t believe Stevie’s younger sister has grown into such a beauty. You were always so shy, so hidden behind those glasses of yours. But you were adorable, Hailey. I remember all too well how you and those dogs of yours followed your sisters and me around for a bit.”
Hailey laughed. Another part of living in a small town meant your past was bound to nip you in the behind from time to time. “About the box of caramels?”
“Ah yes,” said Stacy. “Here they are.”
Hailey paid for the candy and waved goodbye. “Happy Holidays, Stacy. Give Regan a hug and a kiss for me.”
“Will do. She’s with the sitter, but I’ll tell her. Best to all of you Kirbys.”
A warm feeling kept the chill of the air away as Hailey hurried back to the library to get her car. She gripped the box of candy kisses in her hand. Kisses both real and imagined had been part of her life as a Kirby since the time her new mother gave her a stuffed dog to help make her feel more comfortable in her new home. At the suggestion of one of her sisters, she’d named that little, soft dog Charlie Brown. Other, real dogs followed.
In time, Hailey hoped to have a family of her own, complete with dogs. But in order to make that happen, she needed to find the right man.
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