Cora opened a bottle of wine while Phil turned on the Christmas music.
When he caught her look of surprise, he said, “I figured you’d want some background music. You know, to set the mood.”
She couldn’t hide her grin. He was getting in the spirit of things, and not just playing along for Georgie’s sake.
“Won’t you need to sell all these ornaments in the store?” Georgie asked as they unboxed a collection of Nutcracker-themed ornaments.
Cora laughed away the concern. “I have so much merchandise, that I don’t need to worry. Besides, this is one of the perks of owning a holiday shop.”
“Did you always want to own a shop?” Phil asked from the other side of the tree.
“It wasn’t something I’d thought of specifically,” Cora admitted. She tried to remember what she’d ever wanted to do with her life and couldn’t remember back that far. Once her mother got sick, she stopped looking to the future, she supposed. “I just knew that I loved the way Christmas made me feel. It brought out the best in my family, and in this town, and it was something that I wanted to hold onto, all year long. Having that shop made it possible.”
Phil didn’t say anything to that, but then, she supposed a guy who didn’t bother to celebrate the holiday most years wouldn’t understand.
But his grandparents did.
“When I told you grandmother that I wanted to open a holiday shop, she was thrilled. Her enthusiasm was actually what gave me the confidence to go through with it.”
Phil arched an eyebrow, as if surprised by this, but then gave a little smile. “She did always love Christmas.”
“You didn’t want to spend the holiday with them this year?” Cora asked. Even though she hated the thought of Phil and Georgie leaving town early, she didn’t like the thought of the Keatons being alone for Christmas either.
Phil looked momentarily taken aback. “I never…I mean, well, I’m usually working on Christmas, and…I guess I figured that they were used to being on their own for the day.”
“Oh, they were never on their own,” Cora said pleasantly. She gestured to the window, where the lights from Main Street twinkled in the dusk. “They had an entire community to share it with.”
Sensing that she had touched upon a sensitive topic, she said, “But I’m sure they have a new community now, if that facility is as nice as you say it is.”
“Not as nice as Blue Harbor,” Phil admitted sheepishly.
“Very few places are,” Cora said kindly. She reached for another box of ornaments and popped it open. “But then, other than Evening Island, I don’t really get out much.”
“The shop keeps you that busy?” Phil asked.
Cora considered this. There were some weeks of the year where she had no business at all. The gap between Valentine’s Day and Easter was the slowest, and September was slow, too. “The tourists keep things very busy in the summer, actually.”
“Good, that’s good.”
“Good for me. And good for your grandparents,” Cora said with a laugh.
It was on the tip of her tongue to ask about the cottage and his plans for it. He hadn’t mentioned visiting the real estate office the other day and she wasn’t one to pry. But if the Keatons weren’t returning to town and if Georgie loved it here so much, wouldn’t it make sense for Phil to consider buying the place for himself, for weekends and summers?
The doorbell rang, interrupting her thoughts, and Phil went downstairs to collect the pizza.
“Back door,” Cora informed him. “Everyone knows the front door is only for the shop.”
“Good to know,” Phil said in a way that made Cora think he was stowing that bit of information aside, just like a local would.
They ate their pizza on the floor, under the Christmas tree, and Cora had to admit that after experiencing a tree all of her own, she’d never go back on that again.
And maybe, she thought, glancing at the two new people in her life, she wouldn’t have to.
“Oh!” she said, jumping up. “We forgot the most important part.”
She left her curious guests in the living room and hurried downstairs to the shop, where the angel tree topper was resting on the top branch of a medium-sized tree near the counter. Standing on her tip toes, she carefully brought it down. She held it close, feeling protective, and revealed it proudly once she was back inside.
“We can’t finish the tree without the angel. Georgie, do you want to do the honors?”
Georgie carefully