Mistletoe In Montana: A Christmas Novella Read online

  She sank back down on to the mattress and let out a gigantic sigh. Last night’s kiss had been memorable. And oh so sweet and tender. She placed her finger on her lips and closed her eyes. She could almost feel his lips on hers. If nothing else she could relive this moment over and over again to her heart’s content.

  Would they share another kiss? She had no idea, although the very thought of it sent her pulse skittering.

  A kiss is just a kiss. An ornery voice buzzed in her ears. It didn’t change anything between them. There were still mountains standing between them. All the kiss had shown was that they were still attracted to one another. It said nothing about the hurt and pain she had once caused Luke. It told her nothing about whether or not Luke had moved towards forgiving her for breaking his heart and abandoning him for Hank.

  A quick glance at the clock on the bedside table confirmed that it was time to rise and shine. A quick shower had Brenna feeling fresh and invigorated. After pulling on her favorite pair of jeans and a comfy sweater, she made her way downstairs, her stomach grumbling in appreciation as the smell of bacon wafted under her nose. The sound of silverware clattering against plates sent her straight to the dining room. A quick glance let her know that other than Luke, she’d been the last to arrive. A chorus of good mornings greeted her.

  “Mmm. Something smells good,” Brenna gushed as her eyes swept over the breakfast dishes laid out on the side table. She began piling her plate with an abundance of food.

  “Your mother, bless her heart, got up early this morning to cook this amazing breakfast for us,” Hector said, his eyes blazing with love for his wife.

  “It’s your welcome back home breakfast, Brenna,” her mother said, her beautiful face lit up with a smile. Brenna felt warm and fuzzy inside at the notion that her return to Merry was being heralded as a happy occasion. After all the missteps in her past, she’d worried that she wouldn’t be welcomed by her family.

  Lizette giggled. “You should come back home more often if it gets us a breakfast feast like this,” she teased.

  “She’s back home for good,” Daphne blurted out. She clapped a hand over her mouth and looked over at Brenna. “Didn’t you tell them yet?”

  All eyes turned toward Brenna. Everyone began talking at once. Brenna placed a finger over her lips. “Shh. Everyone hold on. I planned to tell you last night, but with the storm and Luke’s truck running off the road—I just forgot.”

  “This is wonderful news,” her father said tearfully. He bowed his head, clearly overcome with emotion.

  “It will finally feel like Christmas with everyone here under one roof,” Isabelle said, nodding her head enthusiastically. Lizette jumped up from her seat and rounded the table so she could hug Brenna. “I knew you’d come to your senses one of these days!”

  Come to her senses. Yes. It was true. After Hank left her it had almost felt as if a fog had been lifted. For the first time in a very long time she had been able to see things clearly. The pain had been acute. Clarity had shown her that she had been living a lie. She had given up so much in the pursuit of fame and glory. And it hurt to know that she might never get her old life back.

  “Morning Luke,” Daphne announced, bringing Brenna out of her thoughts.

  “Sorry for being the last to the table,” Luke said as he walked into the dining room, a sheepish expression etched on his face. “That bed in your guest room is like sleeping on a cloud. I was in heaven,” he chuckled.

  “No apologies necessary. We were just celebrating Brenna’s news. She’s back home for good,” Hector said. “Finally, our prayers have been answered.”

  Luke clapped Hector lightly on the back and smiled. “I know how happy that makes you.” He said nothing to indicate that he had already been privy to her news. She was grateful for Luke’s discretion. She didn’t want her family to think she was already confiding in Luke. Brenna didn’t think she could stand it if her family made insinuations about her rekindling a romance with him. With all the gazes and pointed stares amongst her family, she knew that they had already begun to question where things stood between the two of them. That could get old rather quickly.

  For the first time she wondered if it had been wise to come home right before Christmas. As it was, memories of her relationship with Luke continued to wash over her. With Christmas fast approaching, she was bound to start thinking about the wedding that she and Luke had planned once upon a time. Even though it had been eight long years, she remembered every detail down to the accent colors and the food they had planned to serve at the reception. Knowing Luke and his keen mind, she imagined he did also.

  “Take a plate and get some food. It’s all set up on the side table,” Hector said, pointing his fork toward the spread on the buffet table.

  Brenna tried not to stare at Luke as he helped himself to a generous serving of bacon, grits, sausage, eggs and pancakes. He looked scrumptious this morning. His dark hair was damp from the shower. His broad shoulders filled out one of her father’s sweaters. He radiated strength and goodness. Lizette wiggled her eyebrows at her from across the table. Brenna felt her cheeks getting flushed. Her sister had caught her in the act! Brenna made a point to focus on her plate rather than on Luke. Knowing Lizette’s bluntness, she wouldn’t hesitate to make a joke about it in front of everyone at the table, including Luke himself.

  Luke sat down at the table. “Thanks for giving me shelter last night,” He said with a grin. “Looks like the worst of it is over now except for digging my truck out of that ravine.”

  “Is someone taking care of that for you?” Brenna asked, meeting Luke’s gaze from across the table.

  “I already called Dean. He’s going to swing by and pick me up. A friend of his is going to tow it to town.” Dean Templeton. Luke’s younger brother. Brenna had once been friends with Dean, until her break-up with his brother had made her public enemy #1. The two brothers had always been close, so it didn’t take a genius to figure out that Dean would harbor resentment toward her for hurting Luke.

  “It was our pleasure to host you,” Hector said. “You’ve always been special to this family, Luke. Like one of our own.” Brenna felt the heat of four pairs of eyes trained on her.

  Brenna tensed up. What her father was hinting at was that Luke had almost been family. Until she’d messed things up. Would she ever truly be forgiven for her poor choices? God had forgiven her. Why couldn’t everyone else?

  “We have news,” Hector announced. He nodded at Isabelle.

  “We have decided to host one last Santiago Christmas gathering at Half Moon Ranch,” Isabelle announced from the head of the table. “Your father and I discussed it last night and it’s been decided. Since the Christmas season has always been so heartwarming for this family, we realized that not having the party would be detrimental to us all. We need to celebrate the season like we always do. That way we can say goodbye in style to the ranch.”

  Hector winked at his wife from the opposite end of the long table. “We’re going to invite all our family and friends to gather with us this one last time. No tears. Just happiness. And gratitude for all our blessings.”

  Lizette clapped. “I love the idea of having one last blow-out Christmas gathering.”

  Daphne sniffed back tears. “I’ll try not to cry. I’m going to invite some friends from school.”

  “The more the merrier,” Isabelle said. “Everyone is welcome.”

  Luke leaned in and put his arm around Daphne. She leaned in and lay her head down on his shoulder. Watching the two of them was heartwarming. Luke had always played the role of protective big brother for her baby sister. Daphne had looked up to Luke and he had watched over her and given her advice about boys and making good grades in school. It was reassuring to see that the two were still close. At least she hadn’t ruined that relationship.

  “Please invite your family, Luke. It’s been far too long,” Isabelle urged.

  Uh oh. Brenna froze. The Templeton family had been furious with her in
the aftermath of her break-up with Luke. She hadn’t seen them since. The one letter of apology she’d sent to them had been ripped in two and sent back to her in California. That, in itself, had spoken volumes.

  “Thanks,” Luke said with a nod. “I think they’d like that.” He swung his gaze toward Brenna. He shot her a questioning look. Was he trying to figure out if she would welcome the idea of coming face to face with his parents? His siblings? The truth was that it made her incredibly nervous. And she hated to think of herself being self-conscious at her own family gathering.

  “Oooh. We can play the pickle ornament game,” Daphne said in a boisterous tone. “My favorite.”

  “I haven’t played the pickle Christmas tree game in quite some time,” Brenna said with a chuckle. The family tradition of hiding a pickle Christmas ornament on the tree was believed to have originated in Germany. In the Santiago household there was a prize given to the party guest who managed to locate the pickle ornament on the crowded tree. It always ended up being a fun game. One year no one had ever managed to find the pickle on the tree. It wasn’t until Christmas morning that they had remembered where they had hidden it—all the way in the center of the tree, buried amongst a multitude of ornaments.

  “You didn’t bring this tradition to your own home?” Lizette asked, a surprised expression etched on her face.

  “No,” Brenna said in a soft voice. “As much as I’ve always loved Christmas, it just wasn’t the same in California. Hank thought Christmas was an artificial holiday, so we didn’t celebrate it in a meaningful way.”

  Her mother’s gasp rang out in the room. She bristled in her seat. “He clearly doesn’t know anything about the birth of Christ or the true meaning of the holiday.”

  Her father grumbled to himself. Her sisters looked shocked. Luke avoided eye contact and continued to stuff food into his mouth.

  Heat suffused Brenna’s cheeks. It was a humiliating admission. There had been no spirituality in her marriage to Hank. He hadn’t attended church services with her, nor had he led his life in a way that was consistent with being a Christian. As a result, over time Brenna’s own attendance at church had waned and she had found herself veering away from her faith.

  Being divorced by Hank had given her back her salvation. With nothing left to hold onto, she had come to the realization that God was her cornerstone. He would never forsake her. And even though it had been terrible to have her marriage blown to smithereens, it had highlighted how unhappy her life had become.

  “This Christmas will be different for you,” Luke said. “You’re right where you should be.” She met his gaze across the table and felt lifted up by the encouraging smile on his face.

  Her heart pinged as her chest tightened. Oh no! No. No. No. She couldn’t allow herself to fall back in love with Luke. Returning to Merry and Half Moon Ranch had been all about reconnecting with her family, spending the holidays with them and making up for all the pain of the past. It hadn’t been about Luke. Or had it? On some level hadn’t she always known that her heart would lead her straight back to him? But it scared her to death knowing that Luke still had so much of an effect on her.

  Tears misted in her eyes. Luke had always been so supportive of her. How she’d missed that tender quality. “Thanks, Luke. There’s truly no place like home.”

  Daphne leaned across the table. “Luke. Can you stay and make the Christmas cookies with us?” She crossed her hands in front of her. “It would be like old times.”

  Luke slid his gaze over toward her. “If it’s okay with Brenna, I’d love to stay. I don’t want to overstep though.”

  She knew it wasn’t wise to be in Luke’s presence any longer than necessary, but she couldn’t say no to Daphne’s humble request. “Of course it’s fine. Like Mama always says, the more the merrier.”

  Luke’s smile was genuine. He stood up from the table and gathered up his plate. “Let me help clear the table, then I’m going to call Dean and tell him to swing by later this afternoon.”

  “I’ll help you,” Brenna offered. “It’s been a while since I’ve cleared up the family table.”

  “Was that the maid’s job in California?” Lizette teased.

  “Sometimes, although most nights I ate by myself, so there was only one plate to clear,” Brenna explained as she reached for the used plates and utensils. Everything stilled at the table, save for the noise of the plates being gathered up. She knew she’d once again shocked her family by giving them a glimpse into her lonely life in California. But part of becoming a new Brenna was lifting back the veil and being truthful about her experiences. For the last two years she had been getting stronger and growing into the person she wanted to become. She couldn’t sugarcoat it for her family.

  As she and Luke gathered up the dishes and walked down the hall toward the kitchen she felt a little bit lighter than she had yesterday. Little by little she was shedding her layers and letting go of the things she had been holding on to so tightly. She couldn’t help but feel that the magic of Christmas was already in full effect.

  Christmas music blared on the radio as cookie preparations were in full swing. Luke tapped his foot on the kitchen floor to the beat of “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” one of his all-time favorite holiday songs. He didn’t know if it was due to the special circumstances of Brenna being home for Christmas, but the song resonated with him. Every word. Every verse.

  “One cup of sugar. Two eggs,” Luke read the ingredients from the Christmas cookbook he had pulled off the shelf a few minutes ago. He was trying to be helpful so that he could aid in the baking of the sugar cookies.

  “Don’t worry about the ingredients, Luke. I know this recipe by heart,” Brenna said. “We spent our childhood making sugar cookies.”

  “Me too,” Luke admitted. “But I could never remember the recipe by heart. A few times I tried to wing it and the results were downright disgusting.” He shuddered at the memory.

  Daphne, Lizette and Brenna all laughed.

  “Seriously. Do you know how bad sugar cookies have to be for growing boys not to eat them?” Luke joked.

  “Did someone set the oven?” Lizette asked as she mixed the ingredients for her batch of cookies in a big red bowl.

  “Oops. That was my job. I forgot,” Daphne squealed as she darted toward the stove.

  Luke glanced down at his red and white frilly apron. The girls had insisted that they all wear silly Christmas aprons. Luke had begrudgingly put it on. The words ‘Kiss the Elf’ was printed on the front. Maybe Brenna would see those words and seek inspiration from them. For the life of him he couldn’t stop thinking about kissing Brenna last night. The kiss had been powerful. It had reminded him of the good old days.

  And even though it might sound strange to most people if he voiced it out loud, it had helped to soothe the bitterness of the past. Little by little he was realizing that Brenna had matured and grown over the last eight years. She had been barely twenty years old when they had gotten engaged. Would she have made a good wife for him? Would he have been a worthy husband? Or had their youthful relationship been doomed by immaturity from the very beginning?

  On some level he had forgiven her, although he couldn’t pretend as if those old hurts were fully healed. Being here with her this afternoon and doing something light-hearted and fun showed him that they could be in each other’s orbit without the past swallowing them up. He was enjoying himself and the easy camaraderie they shared.

  Whenever a great Christmas song came on they all hooted and hollered, then began singing at the top of their lungs. They had decided to have a cookie bake-off, with each of them making a separate batch of cookies. Luke looked down at his bowl of ingredients and frowned. He may have gotten a wee bit ambitious in trying to recreate his mother’s famous gingersnap cookies. He let out a sigh. It was too late to turn back now.

  Brenna leaned in and sniffed the aroma of his cookie batter. “Mmm. Those smell good.”

  “Thanks,” he said. “I’m a littl
e worried about the taste though. I skipped a few ingredients that I couldn’t find on the shelf.”

  “Uh oh,” Brenna said. She quirked her mouth. “It’s not good to omit ingredients for cookie batter.”

  He placed his finger at his lips and said, “Shh. Don’t tell your sisters. I’m in this to win it.”

  Brenna giggled and made a face. “You’re going to have a hard time beating my sugar cookies.” She shrugged. “I’m just saying. I’ve got a secret ingredient I’m working with.”

  Luke rolled his eyes. “Stop all the smack talk. Sugar cookies are the traditional Christmas cookie, but ginger snaps add that extra special touch.”

  “You two are both nuts,” Lizette said as she opened the oven and pushed her cookie tray inside, then gently shut it. “My thumbprint cookies are going to take the prize. And they are going to be the first out of the oven.”

  Daphne held her tray up in the air. “I’m about to put mine in. These shortbread cookies are going to be scrumptious.”

  For the next hour cookies were being shaped, baked, cooled on racks and nibbled on.

  Luke inhaled the wonderful aromas floating around the kitchen. It smelled heavenly. He wished he could bottle up this scent and take a whiff of it whenever he needed to feel uplifted. He hadn’t even realized how much he’d missed being around the Santiago sisters.

  Luke had to admit that each woman had baked a fantastic cookie for the cookie stroll. His own cookie had turned out surprisingly well. They were all pretty evenly matched.

  Brenna let out a sigh as she bit into one of his gingersnaps. “Oh these are delicious,” she raved. “I don’t know how you did this with missing ingredients, but you sure pulled it off.”

  “I’ve got skills, that’s how,” Luke teased. He pointed down at his apron. Daphne giggled and reached up and pressed a kiss on his cheek. Lizette followed suit and leaned in on the other side and kissed his other cheek. All eyes turned to Brenna, who shifted from one foot to the other.