Christmas at Fireside Cabins - Jenny Hale Page 0,81
had to come clean. I couldn’t live like that. And I wasn’t going to be with Alexa just so she could take half of the business to hand over to her father. Even though, given our little trip to Fiji, that was a real possibility. So I sold Winding Alley Music, and I didn’t tell her. I basically gave it away. I didn’t need it, and I didn’t want my name attached to any questionable business practices. She was furious, claiming she’d never marry a ‘washed-up musician,’ as she called me. After I sold Winding Alley, and before the big wedding, I left her, came here to Pinewood Hills, and opened the coffee shop, never looking back.”
“So what did she say when you left?”
“I don’t know. I wasn’t there to see. She’d refused to speak to me until the day of the wedding, when she had to. I told her to have it her way and left her a note.” He shook his head, disgusted. “She’s been trying to press charges—for what, I have no idea. There are no grounds to press any charges. It makes no sense. I think she just wants to get me in a room so she can give me a piece of her mind, even if it’s a lawyer’s office. She wanted to sue based on a set of laws called ‘Heart Balm’ laws that claim that by leaving her before the wedding, I was in breach of contract, and that this breach caused her anxiety and humiliation. Those grounds aren’t even valid in Tennessee, but she was using her one-time residence in New York to bring the charges. I doubt they’d stand, but the legal bills for representation would eat away at precious funds. Last I heard, she’d hired a private investigator to find me. She’s so bitter.”
“My God.” Lila couldn’t imagine putting him through that. She stared into the fire, digesting all of this.
Just then there was a knock at the door, interrupting them.
Lila chewed on her lip, deciding whether or not to ignore it, but there was another knock, this one louder. “Just a sec,” she said, placing her napkin on the table and standing up. “Don’t disappear,” she told him with a wink.
Lila opened the door to find Eleanor, holding a gift wrapped in bright red paper. “I wanted to bring this over to you.”
“Come in,” Lila offered.
“Oh my goodness,” Eleanor said, as she reached the kitchen table and saw Theo. “Hello! Lila’s been looking for you—I’m delighted she’s found you. And you two are right in the middle of dinner. I’m so sorry to interrupt.” She set the gift on the table.
“I wanted to do something to say thank you for all your help with sprucing up the place. You truly saved the day. And thank you, Theo, for fixing the plumbing. If I’d known you’d be here, I’d have brought you something too.” She waved her hands in the air. “I won’t stay.”
“You’re more than welcome,” Lila said. “And I’m so happy to help.”
She opened the box to find a brand-new Christmas scarf and mittens set. They were made of the softest large-weave buttercream yarn, with little holly leaves embroidered on them. “These are beautiful,” she said. “Actually, they’re incredible. Where did you ever find them?”
“I knitted them,” Eleanor said proudly. “They’re my own design.”
“Wow.” Lila set them back in the box. “You could sell these.”
“I’ll bet Trudy would like to put a few pairs in the farm’s gift shop,” Theo said.
“Really?” Eleanor asked. “I can make them in about a week.”
“You’re so talented,” Lila told her.
Theo added, “I’ll check with Trudy and get her to call you.”
“That’s wonderful,” the old woman replied, beaming.
Lila’s heart was full at seeing the smile on Eleanor’s face. Now if she could just find a way for her new friend to keep this place…
Twenty-Five
“I love it that we’ve been able to lift Eleanor’s spirits at Christmas,” Lila told Theo, as they settled in the living room with their glasses of wine after dinner. “It makes me so happy.”
“You might be the most kindhearted person I’ve ever met,” Theo said.
“Family is everything to me, and mine was taken away too soon. I think that’s why I enjoy helping people. It makes me feel close to someone.”
Theo took her hand.
“It’s never too late, Theo,” she said.
“What?”
“It’s never too late to fix things with your family. I wish mine were still around, and I don’t want you to regret anything…”