Christmas at Holiday House - RaeAnne Thayne Page 0,49
than she had when Abby first arrived at Holiday House, she still moved at times like a woman who was nearly eighty years old. Which she was.
“It smells delicious in here. You’re making cookies?”
“I thought I would make some for dress rehearsal tomorrow.”
“You’re so thoughtful. Thank you, my dear. You really do think of everything, don’t you? That’s exactly what I came to talk to you about. I think you need a break from everything, so I’ve arranged a little outing for you and Christopher.”
“An outing? What kind of outing?”
Winnie looked evasive, which made Abby suddenly feel nervous.
“Oh, just a fun chance to play in the snow for a few hours. I’ve just hung up with Ethan. He’s coming for dinner tonight and then would like to take you and Christopher to the new tubing hill at the resort.”
“What’s tubing?” Christopher asked.
“It’s like sledding, only you sit on an inner tube that has a plastic bottom,” Winnie explained.
Christopher’s face lit up. “That sounds fun!”
“It can be. The resort has been working on a tubing hill for a few years now. I’ve heard it’s a big hit.”
Abby remembered Rodrigo mentioning it at Thanksgiving, which seemed a lifetime ago.
Her nerves seemed to jangle. Ethan. Tubing hill. An evening spent in his company. How could she do it without making an even bigger fool of herself around the man?
She closed her eyes for an instant, remembering his mouth on hers, warm and hard, his arms holding her close, the heat that had swirled around them.
She swallowed, pushing away the memory firmly. “I can’t possibly go tonight.”
“Why not?”
“You do remember that you have two hundred guests showing up here in two days, right? And a hundred things still to do before then.”
“What do you still have to do?”
Abby went through her mental list, which, she had to admit, had shrunk down to a few remaining details. “Plenty of things,” she said.
“Everything looks great to me. You’ve been amazingly efficient. The house is decorated, the landscaping crew did an excellent job outside, others are taking care of the refreshments. What else do you have to do?”
She would think of something. Anything.
“Think about it, darling. You deserve a night out. If not for your sake, what about for Christopher, who has been such a good boy to help us.”
“I want to go tubing,” Christopher said, his eyes pleading.
Oh, my word. How was she supposed to withstand both of them?
“Would it help if I told you that you won’t have to worry about a thing? You won’t even need passes as you’ll be going with Ethan. He will be there the whole time to watch out for both you and Christopher, if you decide you don’t want to go on the tubing hill.”
Winifred was difficult to say no to. The woman was relentless.
“I told you I would wash all the Holiday House serving platters so Emily can use them for the refreshments,” she suddenly remembered.
“Nonsense. I can take care of that. Sofia and a few others who are singing a number together asked if they could come over tonight to practice with the piano. They can help me with the serving trays.”
She tried to think of some other excuse but ran out.
“You have been working so hard this past week. Honestly, I don’t know what we would have done without you. That’s why I want you to go have a little fun with Christopher. He’s a little boy who has never gone sledding, even though right now you’re smack-dab in the middle of the Rocky Mountains. You can fix that tonight.”
“We don’t have snowsuits or boots or anything.”
“I’ve already thought of that. Mariah is bringing over some of Dakota’s extra winter gear for Christopher, and she has some of her own things that you can use.”
“You’ve already talked to her?”
Winnie shrugged, plopping down into her favorite kitchen chair. “You can’t blame me. I was only trying to anticipate all the excuses you might throw at me.”
Oh, yes. Winnie had manipulation down to an art form. She couldn’t even really be mad since the woman was only trying to do something nice for her and for Christopher.
“I have a chicken noodle soup in the freezer that’s one of Ethan’s favorites. I’m going to cook that for dinner, so you won’t have to fret about a thing on that front, either.”
She really had thought of everything. Abby didn’t know what to say. While she would love the chance to have some fun with Christopher, who really had been a