A strange sense of relief coursed through Jace as he watched Adaline trying to process the photograph. Her eyes were huge in her face, and the color had drained from her cheeks. The image had clearly rattled her as much as it had him.
All day, Jace had tried to convince himself that he was placing too much emphasis on the picture...that Gus had probably stuffed it in the storage closet with the rest of the horse memorabilia because none of it was important anymore. It was just a bunch of clutter he no longer had use for.
But in his heart, Jace knew that couldn’t be true. Judging by Adaline’s stunned expression, she agreed.
“Tell me I’m not crazy.” The fact that he was having this conversation while wearing a gigantic pair of Santa pants that were at least three sizes too big only added to the surreal nature of the moment. “It has to mean something, right?”
Adaline nodded and finally tore her gaze away from the photo long enough for her eyes to fix on his. They blazed bluer than ever.
“It can’t be a coincidence—not after Gus’s initial reaction to Fuzzy. I know your uncle can be a difficult man, but he was really hostile.” Her lips curved into the smallest of smiles. “Until you ordered him to be nice to me, apparently.”
Jace arched a brow. “And now he’s all sunshine and roses?”
“I wouldn’t go that far, but he seems to enjoy spending time with Fuzzy.” Adaline traced the dog in the picture with her fingertip. Its resemblance to Fuzzy was truly uncanny. “And he hasn’t thrown any Jell-O at me lately, so there’s that.”
Jace laughed under his breath. “There’s still time before Christmas.”
“Can’t wait,” she deadpanned. “Seriously, though. Do you have any idea who the woman in this picture could be?”
Jace shook his head. “I don’t, but the storage closet is full of her photos. Most of them are framed horse show portraits. This one really stuck out.”
“I can see why.” Adaline smiled down at her dog and Fuzzy responded with a curious head tilt.
“There was something else, too,” Jace added, lowering his voice when a chapel custodian began dismantling the Santa display.
“What?” Adaline leaned in, and Jace caught a whiff of her sugary sweet smell that he’d missed so much over the past few days. Part of him—a very large part, if he was being completely truthful—wanted to scoop her up in his arms and carry her off to kiss her among the Christmas trees and forget all about Gus and his secrets.
But he knew he couldn’t. Jace had come back to Bluebonnet to reconnect with his uncle while there was still time. The clock was ticking, and now he finally had something real and concrete to cling to—something he could take to Gus and use to start a conversation.
“I found a wedding veil. It was packed away in a box in the same closet with everything else,” he said.
“A wedding veil?” Adaline gasped so loud that Fuzzy’s ears swiveled back on his head.
The custodian shot them a curious glance as he hoisted Santa’s throne on to a dolly with wheels. “Are you two getting married?”
“What?” The color rushed back to Adaline’s face in an instant. Two rosy spots of pink dotted her cheeks. She seemed to be looking anywhere and everywhere other than in Jace’s direction. The woman’s complete lack of a poker face never failed to amuse him. “I...um, no. We were just talking about someone else’s wedding veil.”
The custodian held up his hands. “Sorry. I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop. You just make a really lovely couple, and I heard that there’s going to be a wedding here on Christmas Eve.”
“Right. Well, that’s not us,” Adaline said, and an odd sensation settled deep in Jace’s chest.
He wasn’t sure if it was regret or something else...something that almost felt like possibility. Adaline’s eyes met his, and for a dizzying moment, neither one of them seemed to breathe.
Was she thinking the same thing he was?
No more cleanses.
Fuzzy yipped, and Jace couldn’t tell if the pup was trying to push them together or remind them that they were only in this until Christmas Eve. One thing was certain: Jace was losing it. Since when did he try to read a dog’s mind for advice on his love life?
Adaline squared her shoulders. “It sounds like I need to get Fuzzy home. He’s had a taxing day.”
He’s not the only one. Jace folded the photograph and placed it safely in his pocket again.
“I have an idea, though. Belle and I are going to the library tomorrow to try and find Gram’s old wedding announcement in the newspaper archives. I’m trying to recreate Gram’s cake for Ford and Maple’s wedding. I’ve got photos to go by, but I’m hoping to find a newspaper clipping that contains a full description of the cake’s flavors. Belle is a school librarian and knows all the ins and outs of that kind of research. If a newspaper article exists, she’ll be able to find it.”
Adaline placed her hand over the picture, tucked away in his short pocket. Jace’s heart leapt at her touch. “Maybe she can help you get to the bottom of this mystery too.”
“I’d like that. The more information I have, the better,” Jace said.
If he walked into room 212 with nothing but the photograph and a few unconnected dots, Gus would surely stonewall him. Jace knew his uncle, and this wasn’t going to be easy, no matter how he sliced it. But if he had a name, or a date, or any scrap of information that tied everything together with a neat, shiny bow, they might have a chance at a real talk. A real relationship.
Just in time for Christmas.
“I’d love to tag along.”
“Perfect.” Adaline nodded. Fuzzy relaxed in her arms, but the dog’s attention was fully fixed on Jace. His mouth was open and relaxed with a playful expression, almost like he was smiling. Maybe the Cavalier was truly on Jace’s side, after all. “It’s a date.”
The Bluebonnet Public Library was located in a historical building on Dogwood Drive, just a few blocks north of the chapel and right next door to town hall. Built in the late 1880s from limestone mined locally in the Hill Country, the library was now a registered Texas landmark. A row of six rocking chairs spanned the length of the covered porch.
Adaline had spent a lot of time here when she was a kid. Gram had always been a big reader, and she liked to bring Adaline and Ford to the library on weekends, where they were allowed to check out three books each. Thinking about it now made Adaline’s throat close, especially when a grandmotherly-looking woman draped in a forest-green knit shawl walked toward the picture book section, hand in hand with a young girl dressed in a Nutcracker ballet–themed Christmas sweater.
Memories of Gram were everywhere in Bluebonnet. As bittersweet as those memories might be right now, at least she had them. Adaline couldn’t imagine what it would feel like to stumble upon evidence that someone she loved had a whole different life that she knew nothing whatsoever about. Her heart went out to Jace. His uncle was the only family he had left, and right now, Gus almost felt like a stranger to him. For reasons Adaline would never understand, the older man seemed determined to keep it that way.
Maybe today Jace will find some answers.
The thought buoyed Adaline as she waited for Jace and Belle near the circulation desk. She was already in good spirits, because she’d come straight to the library from her meeting with the leasing company about the storefront currently occupied by the day care center.
The space would be available for move-in on January 1, which was perfect for Comfort Paws. It would give them plenty of time to get settled before starting a new training class in early spring. Even better, such an imminent move-in date meant the leasing company was highly motivated to find a new occupant. The rent they originally discussed was far too high for Comfort Paws, but when Adaline found out the management company hadn’t shown the space to a single interested party besides her, she proposed a reduced rent with built-in tax credit for leasing the property to a nonprofit. Much to her astonishment, they agreed.
And this time, she thought as she directed some serious side-eye out the window toward the mayor’s office next door, I was smart enough to get it in writing.
She had a fully executed lease agreement in her handbag. Come January, Comfort Paws would have a physical home. Adaline’s head was whirling with possibilities. Their modest grassroots therapy dog organization could expand its reach. Without having to rely on donated space, like the pet clinic lobby after hours or Jenna’s dance studio on weekends, they could offer training classes and certify teams several times a year. They could hold training camps for therapy dog teams located all over the state. They might even be able to bring in specialists to help train dogs and their handlers for more advanced work like crisis intervention pet therapy, first responder pet therapy support and placement in settings beyond health care and schools, like airports and courtrooms.
You’re thinking too big again. Getting carried away, as usual.
The doubt crept in, but this time, Adaline pushed it away. She’d learned her lesson after her town square reservation fell through. She had a signed contract and enough money to pay the deposit plus the first six months of rent tucked away in the Comfort Paws business account, thanks to the hot chocolate fundraiser and the donations they’d managed to collect. They still needed that grant from the Texas Veterinary Association, but if they didn’t get it, they’d have six full months to raise enough funds to cover the rent for the second half of the year. Adaline would sell her special doggy gingerbread cookies year-round if she had to. At long last, the fact that she was “a lot” was finally paying off.
Adaline couldn’t wait to tell the other Comfort Paws girls. Not spilling the beans to Belle this morning was going to be next to impossible, but she wanted to give them the good news as a group. She’d just have to keep her lips zipped for once in her life. She could do that, right?
Just as she was contemplating that question, the person who’d no doubt laugh out loud at the idea of her keeping a secret walked through the front door of the library and headed her way. Adaline’s stomach fluttered, and when he bent to kiss her cheek, his Christmas tree farm scent seemed extra potent, like he’d just been out chopping wood with that axe of his in a frosty forest.
Too bad she couldn’t bottle that smell and sell it. Comfort Paws would be set for life.
“Hi, there,” she said as he tucked his hands into the pockets of his shearling coat and blew out a breath. “You okay? You seem antsy.”
“I’m great. Just hoping this works and we can find enough information to get a conversation going with my uncle.”
Adaline tucked her arm through his and gave his elbow a squeeze. “It’s going to work. I know it will.”
Maybe she was on a high after her triumph at the leasing office, but Adaline just knew everything was going to work out. The past few times she’d seen Gus at the senior center, he’d been a different man. Decent, almost. Beneath his bitter, crusty exterior, he longed for connection, just like everyone else did. The photograph Jace had found could be the catalyst that changed his relationship with his uncle forever.
A quiet laugh rumbled through Jace as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “Are you always this optimistic?”
She grinned up him. “You know me too well already to even ask that question.”
He did know her. He saw her. From the moment he’d rolled into town, Jace Martin had seen her in a way that no one else did—not her family, not her friends, not anyone. He remembered the Adaline she’d been back before the world had taken its toll on her—before mismatched relationships had made her feel like she was too much to love.
Jace liked that girl, and by pretending to be in love with him, Adaline was beginning to realize she liked that girl too. She wanted to be that girl again.
“Thank you for this,” Jace said, and the tenderness in his gaze made her believe anything was possible.
Only one rule left to break. Her heart thudded in her chest. There were only three days left until Christmas Eve. Having a clear time frame for their make-believe romance was supposed to be the most important rule of all. Now it hung over her head like an anvil...
Or mistletoe.
She couldn’t figure out which.
“You two certainly look cozy,” Belle said as she walked up behind them from the library’s research room.
“Morning, Belle,” Jace said.
“Oh, hi!” Adaline unwound herself from Jace to give Belle a hug. “I didn’t realize you were already here.”
“I got here early to try and see how far back the online archives go for the Bluebonnet Beacon.” Belle’s eyebrows raised. “We’re in luck. They date all the way back to 1960. I’m hopeful we can find what both of you are looking for.”
Belle led them to the computer she’d been using to access the Beacon’s archives with her credentials from the Texas Library Association. Jace and Adaline pulled up chairs and the three of them squeezed in front of the monitor, shoulder to shoulder.
“Let’s start with you, Adaline, since you already know when Gram got married.” Belle’s glittery manicured nails tapped away on the keyboard. “What’s the exact date of the wedding?”
Adaline gave her the information, and within seconds an article popped up onscreen.
Belle gasped. “Look at this. Gram’s wedding landed right on the front page of the Beacon’s Community Events section.”
“Jackpot,” Jace said.
Adaline scanned the words onscreen. The article was glowing and detailed everything about the wedding, from the names of the attendants, all the way down to the designer of the shoes Gram had worn. Halfway down the page, her attention snagged on a grainy black-and-white photograph of her grandparents standing on the front steps of Bluebonnet Chapel. She and Jace had been in that exact spot yesterday, and in just a few days, Ford and Maple would walk down that same aisle. History truly had a way of repeating itself, didn’t it?
Except what Maple and Ford had was real. She and Jace were merely pretending to walk in those same footsteps. At least she thought that’s what was still going on.
“Look, sweetheart.” Jace pointed to a section of text three paragraphs down from the picture. “There’s a full description of the cake—just what you need to recreate it.”
Adaline leaned forward, greedy for every last detail. “Fresh vanilla bean and cherries in the sponge. I already guessed that part since Gram told me years ago she had a cherry vanilla wedding cake, but wow. The cake had a fresh tart cherry filling with almond undertones. I never would’ve known that. Most vintage wedding cakes had buttercream between the layers.”
“I can print the whole article, if you like,” Belle offered as she guided the cursor to a row of icons at the top of the screen.
“Please.” Adaline clapped her hands. “This is perfect.”
She was already itching to get back to Cherry on Top and whip up one last practice bake. She’d need to make a trip to Bluebonnet General for fresh cherries, but she already had almond extract on hand that she’d made herself using slivered almonds and Tito’s vodka—a Texas favorite, since it was crafted and distilled in Austin. Homemade extract was so much better than the bottled stuff, it wasn’t even funny.
But first, they needed to unravel the truth about Gus.
She turned toward Jace. “You brought the picture, right?”
“I’ve got it right here.” He reached into his shirt pocket for the photo and set it on the desk in front of the computer. Then he powered on his cell phone and handed it to Belle. “I also took photos of all the horse show pictures that showed the same woman, just in case that might help.”
“That was really smart.” Belle scrolled through the horse show images with quick flips of her thumb. “There’s a placard in most of these with the name of the horse show and the date it took place, so I’ll bet we can find her name that way. Then we can search the Beacon archives for any articles that mention her name and Gus’s together in the same story.”
Belle set the phone down and switched her attention to the more informal snapshot. Her eyes widened. “You weren’t kidding. That dog looks exactly like Fuzzy. It’s even got the cute spot right on top of its head, just like he does.”
“I know, right?”
When Adaline first brought Fuzzy home, she’d read everything she could find about Cavalier King Charles spaniels. The marking on Fuzzy’s head was known as the Blenheim Spot. Sometimes it was called the Duchess’s Thumbprint, because according to legend, in 1704, the Duchess of Marlborough had a beloved Cavalier who kept her company while her husband was away fighting at the Battle of Blenheim. The duchess stroked her little dog’s head whenever she was anxious, and soon the Cavalier gave birth to a litter of puppies who all had a distinctive spot on top of their heads, right where the duchess’s thumb usually rested.
Adaline loved this bit of trivia, just like she loved the way that the past was so interconnected with the present. Fate felt like a long, twisting curl of ribbon, wrapped around a Christmas gift tucked under a tree. It was time to pull the ribbon the loose.
Jace read off the names and dates of various horse shows, while Belle typed away at the keyboard. The results from each show were easy to find, and once they were able to match up the placements with the ribbons tacked to the horse’s halter in each picture, they landed on a name.
“Marilyn Miller.” Belle leaned back in her chair and cast a questioning look at Jace. “Does that sound familiar?”
“Never heard it before.” He frowned.
Adaline sighed. “This is weird. I was hoping we might find out her last name was Martin.”
Maybe Gus really had been a lifelong bachelor like Jace had originally thought. Maybe the bridal veil he’d found had never been worn.
Were they going through all this trouble just to discover that he’d been left at the altar?
On Christmas?
Adaline’s stomach twisted. This was beginning to feel wrong. Maybe she shouldn’t have been so eager to encourage Jace to go prying into Gus’s history.
Too late now, though. They’d already tugged the ribbon loose, and the truth was unfurling right before their eyes.
She glanced at Jace, and their gazes met...held. Adaline could sense his conflicting emotions. They were so thick they filled the entire room. He wanted to know, and at the same time, he didn’t. Maybe Gus had kept the truth about himself locked away for a reason.
“Guys.” Belle swallowed with an audible gulp. “I found it.”
Adaline’s mouth went dry in an instant. She found Jace’s hand and wove her fingers through his as they both turned their attention toward the computer monitor.
An image of a newspaper article more than fifty years old filled the screen.
Tragedy Strikes Bluebonnet: Marilyn Miller Martin’s Life Cut Short in Train Accident on Christmas Eve
Bluebonnet, Texas—The tight-knit community of Bluebonnet is reeling from the devastating loss of Marilyn Miller Martin, a beloved resident whose life was tragically cut short in a train accident on Christmas Eve. Marilyn, 24, was returning home from a horse show when the incident occurred, leaving family, friends and neighbors in shock and mourning.
Born and raised in Bluebonnet, Marilyn was a vibrant member of the community known for her passion for horses and her unwavering kindness. She was deeply involved in equestrian events, often seen competing in horse shows throughout the state and volunteering her time to help others in the equestrian community.
Marilyn’s love for horses was matched only by her love for her family and friends. She was known for her infectious smile, compassionate heart and willingness to lend a helping hand to anyone in need. Her presence brightened the lives of those around her, and her absence will be keenly felt by all who knew her.
The circumstances surrounding Marilyn’s untimely passing have cast a shadow over the holiday season in Bluebonnet. The train accident, which occurred as she was traveling home to celebrate Christmas with her loved ones, has left the community grappling with profound grief and disbelief.
In the wake of this tragedy, the people of Bluebonnet have come together to support one another and to honor Marilyn’s memory. Tributes pour in from friends and acquaintances, recalling her warmth, generosity, and the joy she brought to those around her.
Marilyn leaves behind her husband of less than one year, Gus Martin, and her beloved Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Charlie, a wedding gift from her husband, along with countless friends, all of whom will cherish her memory and the indelible mark she left on their lives. As Bluebonnet mourns the loss of one of its own this Christmas, Marilyn’s spirit will live on in the hearts of those who knew and loved her.