The Christmas Plan - Samantha Chase Page 0,19

centers, but everything it did have was incredibly charming. Everywhere she went, people stopped and talked and there was always music playing!

Although, she could do with a little less “Silver Bells”–in all its variations.

But it was still so festive and uplifting to walk around what could only be described as the perfect Christmas town that looked like a picturesque winter wonderland.

Thanksgiving had been loud and boisterous with Gabe’s family and so much different from anything she’d ever experienced. Aspen’s family was a little more on the reserved and traditional side, but the Andrews family loved to laugh and joke and eat and…she simply adored them all.

As they had been told, Gabe’s grandparents and Uncle Ed came and stayed over. They were leaving in the morning. Aspen had really enjoyed getting to know them all and even made a special batch of white chocolate peppermint truffles for them to take home.

Something Gabe told her would endear Aspen to them for life.

The thought made her heart happy and put a smile on her face–which was becoming the norm lately and she loved it.

The day after Thanksgiving, Aspen went shopping with Mrs. Andrews and a bunch of her friends while Gabe worked the tree lot with his father. He was worried about sending her off without him, but she assured him that she could totally fend for herself in a mall.

Even though it meant driving for over an hour in a minivan with six other women who were essentially strangers.

She got to know everyone real fast.

But after a successful day of shopping–and by shopping, she meant that she browsed a lot and helped everyone find the perfect gifts for their loved ones and Aspen bought herself a pair of extra gloves and a hat–they had returned home and feasted on all the Thanksgiving leftovers.

Which were amazing and made her wonder why her family never made a little extra so they could enjoy the meal twice.

Because they're practical and boring, she reminded herself.

Saturday was spent making candy with Gabe’s mom. They opted to set everything up in the main house because the kitchen was bigger than the entire tiny house. And if Aspen had to pick a perfect day, this would be it.

Gabe and his father, grandfather, and uncle had left after breakfast to go to the tree lot and as soon as they were gone, Aspen brought over all her equipment to the main house. Once everything was set up, she began talking Mrs. Andrews and Grandma Andrews through the process.

“My goodness,” Grandma Andrews said as she walked around the kitchen. “You brought all of this with you from Atlanta?”

“Yes, ma’am,” she replied happily as she sorted out ingredients. “I figured I’d offer to make some as Christmas gifts but felt a little weird asking to take over the kitchen like this. That’s why the tiny house was such a pleasant surprise. I figured I’d just work with smaller batches out there.”

“Now you won’t have to,” Mrs. Andrews said, giving Aspen a quick hug. “And I am so excited about learning how to do this. I enjoy baking and everyone loves the cookies I make, but I would absolutely love to add some candy to my repertoire.”

Aspen thought that was adorable and knew they were going to be making a lot of candy in the coming weeks.

The three of them worked first on some basic chocolate candy using festive holiday molds. Then she taught them how to paint the chocolate using red and green before moving on to switch over to white chocolate. Once the candies were set aside, they moved on to creating a nice assortment of different flavored truffles.

And ate almost as much as they made!

“I know the boys would be upset if I didn’t make dinner tonight, but I’m so full of chocolate that I don’t know if I can eat another thing!” Gabe’s mom said with a laugh when the last of the truffles were done.

“How about takeout?” Aspen suggested. “Maybe some pizza or something?” Both women looked at her like she was crazy. “I mean…there’s still so much to clean up and I just thought…”

“You’re brilliant, Aspen!” Grandma Andrews said with a hearty laugh. “After all the Thanksgiving cooking and baking, it will be nice to give the kitchen a rest. Pizza it is!”

It was her turn to look at them like they were crazy because it didn’t seem like a big deal. She and Gabe ordered pizza at least once a week.

When Gabe and the rest of