“Excuse me!”

Chloe turned around as an older couple hurried over to them.

“I’m sorry, but we couldn’t help overhearing,” the woman said. “Do you need a cabin? For your pets?”

“Yes!” Chloe exclaimed, glancing over at Jessica. “We have a dog and a cat and they can’t come in the lodge—”

“Why, we’d be happy to give you our cabin and stay in the lodge instead,” the man said.

“Really?” Jessica asked in disbelief. “You’d do that?”

“Of course we would, dear!” the woman said, patting Jessica’s arm. “We don’t mind giving up a cabin so your poor little fur babies have a nice warm place to stay.”

“And staying in the lodge isn’t exactly chopped liver,” the man joked.

“Thank you!” Chloe cried. “Thank you so much!”

The woman smiled indulgently at her. “You’re welcome,” she replied. “We booked the Mistletoe, and I think you’re going to love it! We stayed there last winter, too. Now, it’s on the small size, so it will be a little cozy for a family of four, but I’m sure sisters like you won’t mind sharing a room!”

“We’re—” Sandy began, but Jessica quickly cut her off.

“The Mistletoe is where we’ve been since Saturday morning!” Jessica said.

“Even better!” the woman exclaimed, clapping her hands in delight. “Now you won’t have to pack up and move! Run along and fetch your father, girls, so you can tell him the good news. We’ll get these reservations straightened out so that we can all start celebrating. After all, it’s Christmas Eve!”

“I’ll tell Dad,” Chloe quickly volunteered before Sandy could say anything. She knew he’d be glad to hear that they could stay in a cottage after all—but now that Chloe’s immediate sense of relief had passed, the reality of the situation was starting to sink in. Mistletoe Cottage was smaller than the one where Chloe and her dad had stayed. It would be a tight fit under the best of circumstances—but they’d be cramming in there with a dog and a cat who hated each other. And Sandy, Chloe thought, who kind of hates me.

A short while later, Dad and Chloe carried their suitcases over to Mistletoe Cottage. Chloe kept a tight hold on Charlie’s leash as he frolicked in the snow. Hope he gets out some of that energy before he sees Elsa again, Chloe thought. Then she remembered that Elsa would be staying in Sandy’s room now that Dad would be back at their cottage.

Jessica swung open the door before they were halfway down the path. Chloe had a feeling that she’d been watching for them.

“Welcome!” Jessica called out. “Come on in from the cold!”

Inside the entryway, Chloe sniffed the air as she stomped the snow off her boots. “Mmm, something smells good,” she said. She unhooked Charlie’s leash and hung it on the peg by the door.

“Sandy and I made cocoa,” Jessica said. “We thought you’d need to warm up after lugging your suitcases through the snow.”

Just then, Sandy appeared in the doorway to the living room, with Elsa trailing behind her. Sandy could’ve reached down to scoop Elsa into her arms.

But she didn’t.

Chloe wished she hadn’t unhooked Charlie’s leash so soon. But it was too late. He was free—and Elsa was just a few feet away. Chloe’s breath caught in her throat. If Charlie charged at Elsa again—even worse, if he accidentally hurt her—

But, to Chloe’s amazement, Charlie seemed to have learned his lesson. He approached Elsa cautiously, keeping his body close to the ground and his tail low. From all the dog-care books she’d read, Chloe recognized the pose instantly: Charlie was showing Elsa that she was the boss.

Charlie moved toward Elsa. Everyone watched—and no one moved. Elsa sat very still, watching him through her bright green eyes.

It’s working, Chloe thought. They’re not fighting! They’re getting to know each other! They’re—

Elsa’s paw was a blur of gray as she lashed out at Charlie. Chloe didn’t need to see her claws to know they were out. Charlie’s whimper of pain—and the way he scurried behind the couch to hide—told her everything she needed to know.

“Charlie!” Chloe cried.

“Oh, Elsa.” Jessica sighed in exasperation.

Sandy shrugged. “You can’t blame Elsa for defending herself,” she said.

Chloe’s temper flared—and she only felt angrier when she noticed the specks of bright red blood on Charlie’s muzzle. “Charlie didn’t even do anything this time!” she said.

“Let’s all just—” Dad began. Then his face scrunched up and he sneezed loudly. And again. And again!

“Okay, that’s it,” Jessica announced. “Sandy, please take Elsa to your room, like we discussed.”

“But—”

“Nope,” Jessica cut her off. “She’s making Tom sneeze and she attacked Charlie. She’s lost her living room privileges for the rest of the trip.”

“I can—achoooo!—take some—achoooo!—allergy meds,” Dad tried to say.

“Sandy. Now,” Jessica said—in a voice that meant business.

Without another word, Sandy bent down to pick up Elsa. Then she disappeared down the hall. The slam of her door made the little cabin shake.

“I’m happy to try the medicine,” Dad said, wiping his watery eyes.

“It looks like you’ll need to try it even if Elsa’s in a different room,” Jessica said, looking concerned. “I’m so sorry, Tom, I’m sure her fur is everywhere.”

“It’s not your fault,” Dad told her. “It’s not anyone’s fault.”

“Come on—I’ll get you a glass of water,” Jessica said as she moved toward the kitchen. “How about you, Chloe? I bet you’d like some cocoa.”

“Definitely,” Chloe replied—but even she could hear that her voice sounded odd. It was strained and hollow, which was a pretty good reflection of how she felt inside. Just a couple days ago, she’d had such high hopes for this trip. Chloe had never dreamed that it would lead to the worst Christmas ever. It wasn’t even the fact that there wouldn’t be presents or any of the special traditions from home. No, it was all the bad feelings. Jessica and Sandy were obviously having a hard time. Sandy seemed miserable beyond words. Even Elsa and Charlie couldn’t get along for five minutes!

It doesn’t have to be this way, Chloe thought miserably. But at this point, it would take a Christmas miracle to save the holiday.

On the way to the kitchen, though, Chloe noticed Elsa’s food bowl. In her anger, Sandy must have forgotten to grab it. Chloe was about to walk past it when she suddenly stopped. An idea—no, a plan—was slowly starting to unfurl in her mind.

What would I be doing if it were just Dad and me right now? she thought. We’d play in the snow. Probably build a big snowman and then have an even bigger snowball fight. And drink tons of cocoa, and play games, and have Christmas Eve tea. And it would feel like Christmas because we were together and having so much fun.

Even though things were tense, Chloe realized, she could still do her part to make Christmas special. She didn’t have to let Sandy’s grumpiness or Jessica’s worrying or anything else get in the way of a special snowbound Christmas.

I’ll ask Jessica to keep the cocoa warm for me, Chloe decided. Because first I want to play in the snow! And—and maybe Sandy will, too! Chloe remembered the way Sandy had laughed with glee during snow tubing. Anybody who had that much fun in the snow would definitely be up for a snowball fight. Or maybe even building a snow fort! The possibilities were endless… but Chloe wouldn’t know unless she asked.

Impulsively, Chloe picked up Elsa’s food bowl and hurried over to Sandy’s room. She was so excited she didn’t even knock.

“Hey! Sandy! Do you—” Chloe began. But when she realized what was happening, the words stuck in her throat.

Sandy was curled up in a ball on her bed, and even from the doorway Chloe could see the wet streaks of tears on her cheeks. Every few seconds, her shoulders shook with a silent sob. Elsa had abandoned her favorite spot on the pillow and was perched right by Sandy’s head. From the look of things, though, not even her beloved kitty could make Sandy feel better.

When she saw Sandy suffering like that, all Chloe could think of was how much she wanted to help. She closed the door and sat on the end of the bed. “Hey, hey, don’t cry,” she said. “We don’t have to let a storm ruin our Christmas! It will be like—like an adventure! And we can play in the snow and watch movies and bake cookies. I promise everything is going to be okay. We can make it okay!”

Sandy sat up and stared at Chloe with tear-filled eyes. “You really don’t get it, do you?” she asked. “I thought you were just pretending, but you’re not, are you? You don’t get it at all.”

Chloe had no idea what Sandy was talking about. “I guess not,” she said. “Do you want to tell me?”

“This isn’t some magical snowbound adventure for me,” Sandy snapped. “So no matter what you say, I’m not going to be all, yay, let’s frolic in the snow and sing carols by candlelight. Getting stuck here means I won’t get to see my dad on Christmas. Do you have any idea what that feels like? Here’s a clue. It’s basically the worst feeling in the world. So excuse me if I can’t fake it and pretend that everything is so amazing. But you go ahead. Have your amazing snowy Christmas with your dad and my mom. That’s what you’ve wanted since we got here, isn’t it? Everything’s working out just the way you wanted! You must be so happy.”

Chloe stood there, frozen, until Sandy finished speaking. Even then, Sandy’s words seemed to hang in the air, reverberating like a bell that couldn’t be unrung.

All Chloe wanted to do was escape from Sandy’s room… and Sandy’s rage. But she wouldn’t just slink away in silence. Not when she’d done nothing wrong. It wasn’t easy, but at last, Chloe found her voice.

“None of this makes me happy,” she said. “None of it.”

Then, with as much dignity as she could muster, she walked out of Sandy’s room, closing the door behind her.

Where to go, where to go? Mistletoe Cottage was stupidly small—Chloe couldn’t believe she’d ever thought it was cute and cozy. There was no privacy, none! Dad and Jessica were in the kitchen, with that big open window into the living room. No matter where Chloe went, it was only a matter of time before Dad and Jessica realized that something was wrong. She longed to escape to Sugar Plum Cottage, but another family was probably already in there.

I wish we hadn’t gotten snowed in, Chloe thought miserably. I wish we hadn’t come at all.