to him and tucked herself into his side. “You did pretty good. I think you’ve got a future in film.”
He barked a laugh that earned him curious looks from the shoppers streaming in and out of the store. “What about you, ma’am?” He pretended to hold a microphone. “What do you think about the supposed flying reindeer in Yellowstone?” He pushed his hand toward her chin.
She cocked her head. “I didn’t used to think that it was possible—but I’m starting to feel Christmas magic, so maybe it’s true.” She tapped her heart.
Caleb dropped the interviewer act and kissed her forehead, closing his eyes and breathing in her cocoa-and-mint scent. He’d thought spending time with Faith—kissing, flirting, sharing—was safe because she would leave. But if she actually believed … He couldn’t even fathom what that would do to his heart.
Chapter 26
Faith
Faith walked past the tree she and Caleb decorated that morning on her way out to the clinic for an emergency call. The a.m. might be a strange time to hang ornaments, but it was the only time they could fit it in, and since he was bent on doing all these couples’ holiday activities together, they had to be a little creative with their schedules.
She touched a red bauble as she went by, making it sway. The alley between the house and the clinic was chilly, and she tucked her sweater around her body, hunching against the cold. What she wouldn’t give for Caleb’s warm body to cuddle up against right now.
There was a woman waiting for her in the clinic entry, a cat carrier on her lap.
Faith did a double take. “I know you, don’t I?” she asked.
She shook her head, making her long hair bounce. “I usually see Doc.” She sniffed as if deigning to bring Faith her cat—which was currently dry-heaving in its case—was a personal insult.
Faith held back her comment that she had more training than her dad. In the end, he had more experience, so she didn’t have much pride to stand on. “Dad’s out for a few more weeks. Why don’t you come on back to the exam room and we’ll figure out what’s going on?” Faith opened the door and held it as the woman breezed through, smelling like roses that were several days past their prime. Or maybe that was the cat.
She set the case on the counter, and Faith read the name tag. “Can you tell me what’s been going on with Mr. Crumple-kins?” Faith asked as she pulled out a pair of gloves.
“I could ask you the same thing,” the woman said.
Faith took a moment to check her chart on the computer. Her name was Hazel. Hazel? Hazel! The woman who’d thrown darts from her eyes at Caleb when they’d been on their sleigh ride. The woman who’d wanted to be Mrs. Caleb Nichollas in high school.
Well, that explained a lot.
Grateful she’d finally connected the dots, Faith put on her professional mask and went to work, opening the cage and pretending she didn’t hear Hazel’s comment. The calico cat huddled in the back of the carrier and glared. “I know, you don’t feel good.” The smell of vomit wasn’t too overpowering. She’d worked on sicker cats.
“I take good care of him, thank you very much.”
Faith nodded, though she didn’t say anything. She reached inside and pulled the cat out, grateful it wasn’t angry enough to swipe at her. She had handling gloves but preferred not to use them if the animal was cooperative. “Has he eaten anything out of the ordinary lately?”
Hazel huffed and stared up at the ceiling. “He got into a batch of fudge last night?”
Faith cringed. “Cat’s don’t usually eat chocolate unless they’ve been given it before—have you ever fed him chocolate?”
Hazel gulped. “I let him lick my fingers after eating—once.” Translation: I do it all the time and I think it’s so funny.
“Was there anything else in the fudge I need to know about? Nuts or berries?”
“Bacon.”
“Excuse me?” Faith stared at her.
“I crumbled bacon and sprinkled it on top. My dad loves it.” She cocked a hip. “Doc does too. Mr. Crumple-kins ate his batch.”
Like Dad needed all that fat. “Dad suffered a major heart attack. He can’t have bacon or fudge, and especially not bacon fudge—ever.” Faith used her clinical voice—which was shorter and tighter than her regular conversation voice, but she felt the need to establish boundaries with this woman.
Hazel narrowed her eyes. “I saw you on a sleigh ridge with Caleb.”
Faith glanced down