Hometown Holiday Reunion (10 page)

In reply, Erin held up her hand and rocked it. “We squeaked through last year, but we have some new funding starting up January first. I'm really hoping we can attract a full-fledged veterinarian to come and stay for a while. Our last one was a fill-in, and with our shoestring budget, we couldn't pay him enough money to become permanent.”

“Can't you use a vet from around the area?”

Frowning, she shook her head. “We need an all-rounder who can manage pets and a variety of wildlife. Someone like that isn't easy to find for the salary we're offering. Most vets have staggering college loans, so they have to make enough to cover those payments and then have some kind of life besides.”

“Hey, Erin.” Her little brother Josh, who towered over her, leaned forward to get her attention from the other end of the bench. “I was talking to the clerk at the farm store today, and he said he knows someone who just graduated from veterinary school and might be interested in coming here.”

Her heart jumped at the news, and then cold, hard reason swept in to blow her excitement away. “Coming here or staying here?”

“He didn't say.”

“Did you maybe think to get a name?” She loved him to pieces, but he was the least organized person she'd ever known. How he could be familiar with every inch of ground on the farm but be totally clueless about important details like names was beyond her.

“Shore did.” Grinning, he held his hand out to show her some faded scribbling on his palm. “Aren't ya proud of me?”

“I'd be prouder if you'd put it in your phone and could text it to me.” The grin widened, and she shook her head at him. “You lost another one, didn't you?”

“Yeah. That's why I get those super-cheap models. They always fall outta my pocket when I'm working and I don't realize they're gone till someone like you hassles me about typing stuff into my phone.”

“Whatever.” Taking out her own sleek cell, she snapped a picture of his hand and squinted at the result. The name was more or less illegible, but thankfully the number was clearer. “I can't read any of these letters.”

Consulting his hand, he said, “Heather Fitzgerald.”

“A woman,” Bekah commented from her seat next to Drew. “Sierra and I were saying not long ago how great it would be if we could hire a female vet.”

“Definitely,” Lily chimed in with a smile down at her stepdaughter. “Girls can do anything boys can do, right, Abby?”

Big brother Mike glowered his opinion of that. “Will someone please tell me when this place turned into a beauty parlor?”

“The day you brought Lily home,” Erin retorted.

“Actually, she followed me here. I tried everything I knew to get her to leave.”

“Actually,” Lily echoed him sweetly, “I just wanted riding lessons. The rest was your idea.”

“You really liked her, Daddy,” Abby reminded him. “That's why she kept coming back.”

Cam laughed, grinning across the table at Bekah. “Is that your story, too?”

“Not exactly.”

Hugging Drew's arm, she gave him a smile filled with gratitude. She didn't say anything more, but from where Erin was sitting, words couldn't have done her expression justice. Somehow, her goofy older brother had found the one woman on the planet able to see through his overgrown kid routine to his generous heart and love him just the way he was.

Seeing two of her brothers so happily married was wonderful, and she wished them nothing but the best with their wives. Still, there was a tiny part of her that couldn't help being envious of the joy and contentment they'd found. Wanted it for herself, even though she had to admit she didn't have the slightest idea about how to go about getting it.

Then again, she reminded herself, a brand-new year was right around the corner, full of possibilities and potential. As an adult, putting the old year behind her and starting with a clean slate had become one of her favorite things about the holidays. No matter what had gone wrong during the past twelve months, she liked knowing that the future could be anything she wanted.

She just had to figure out how to make it happen.

Chapter Five

T
wo nights later, Erin was back in her mother's kitchen refilling a tray with pigs in a blanket when she heard a knock on the back door. Framed in the Christmas lights was Cam, who held up a hand in greeting. She couldn't imagine why he hadn't come in the front like everyone else, so she wiped cooking spray off her hands with a towel and opened the door. “What are you doing out here?”

“Nice greeting. You get many visitors?”

“Sorry. I was surprised to see you skulking around back there, is all.”

“I'm not skulking,” he corrected her as he closed the door behind him. “I'm avoiding. Did your mom invite the entire population of Oaks Crossing?”

“Pretty much. It's the first New Year's party she's thrown since Dad died, so she wanted to do it up right.”

“Go big or don't bother,” he added with a grin. “That's the Kinley way.”

He settled on a stool and broke off a small bunch of grapes before popping one in his mouth. While she picked up where she'd left off rolling hot dogs in dough, she casually asked, “So, how did things go for you yesterday?”

“Fine,” he replied in between bites. “Nothing broke, and I got started on the year-end bookkeeping and inventory.”

“That's good, right?” By the glower she received in reply, she assumed she'd gotten that one wrong. Frustrated by his insistence on seeing the gloomy side of everything, she flattened her palms on the island and nailed him with her best mom look. “Cam, you have to stop being such a grouch. It's bad for you and everyone who has to deal with you.”

“Meaning you?”

“Well, yes, if you want to know the truth. Why don't you at least try looking on the bright side for a change? Who knows? You might even like it,” she added with a little grin.

“You mean, like a New Year's resolution?” She nodded, which only made him frown. “I've never been into those. Most folks end up ditching whatever new habit they promised to make, and then they feel guilty about it.”

“I have no doubt that if you put your mind to it, you could improve your outlook. I'm not talking blinding rays of sunshine here. More like something in the tan range.”

“What makes you think I can even manage that?”

Although he was still arguing with her, she detected a slight twinkle in his dark eyes that told her she'd snared his attention, if not his agreement. “You have a fabulous sense of humor, even if it is a tad sarcastic. That means you know when something's funny, and you can appreciate the humor in a situation. Just listen to that part of you more often, and you'll be much happier.”

“And so will the people who have to deal with me,” he said, echoing her earlier comment.

“Exactly.”

Popping the last grape into his mouth, he picked up two of the plastic stem glasses she'd filled with ginger ale for guests. Handing one to her, he held his in the air. “Here's to new perspectives and a year full of good things to come.”

“I'll drink to that.”

They tapped glasses to seal the toast, and Erin sipped the bubbles while Cam downed his in one gulp.

“Great vintage, but not much kick,” he joked. “Last year, I celebrated New Year's in Vegas with my buddies.”

She hated to consider what kind of mischief they'd been up to. “I've heard that's a crazy place all year long. I can only imagine what they do for New Year's.”

“Whatever you've seen on TV, it's ten times bigger and brighter. It's fun but not something I'd share with my family, if you know what I mean.”

What a life he'd had since leaving their tiny hometown, she thought with more than a smidgen of envy. While she cherished being close to her family, she had to admit she wouldn't mind having a chance to spread her wings just a little, to see what they could do.

But at her age, with a child depending on her, she'd have to settle for something a bit more doable, like opening a pet store. That would be an adventure, too, and she wouldn't have to leave the ground to make it happen. Quite honestly, she wasn't sure if she considered that a plus or a minus.

“So, what's your resolution for next year?”

Cam's voice pulled her from her brooding, and she gladly focused on something more concrete. “To adopt Parker and make Pampered Paws a raging success.”

“I'm no expert, but those sound like goals, not new behavior. What else've you got?”

His opinion rankled at first, but after a few seconds, she recognized that he had a point. She tended to be very task-oriented, believing that if she did X, Y would happen. Although she acknowledged that she was far from perfect, she'd never really thought much about how to be a better person.

“I'm not sure.” Inspiration struck, and she decided to risk asking him for advice. “What do you think I should improve?”

To her surprise, he laughed. “Not a chance. I've been married, and that's a troublemaker question if ever I heard one.”

“Oh, come on. You must've noticed something these past few days. Just be honest, but nice,” she cautioned, pointing at him for emphasis. “I promise not to take it wrong.”

Leaning back in his chair, he folded his arms and studied her for a long, uncomfortable few moments. Erin felt like a bug squirming under a magnifying glass, and she fought the urge to take back her request.

“Okay, but you asked.” Pausing, he went on in a somber tone. “I think you take things too seriously.”

“I have a lot of responsibilities, you know,” he chided her with a tilt of his head, and she couldn't help laughing at herself for proving him right so quickly. After all, she'd just told him to be more positive about his situation, so she had to be willing to take some criticism in return. “Okay, you got me there. It's true.”

Leaning forward, he rested his arms on the counter and folded his hands in an earnest pose that in her mind didn't fit his cocky personality at all. “With the rescue center, your new business and being a single mom, you've got a lot to manage. You do it all really well, but you have to remember you're still Erin, and she needs to breathe once in a while.”

“You sound like you know that from personal experience.”

“Yeah,” he admitted on a heavy sigh. “For the past ten years, all I did was breathe. It was fun, but—” He shrugged as if he couldn't find the words to express what he meant.

“It was lonely,” she filled in the blank for him, adding a sympathetic smile. “Even though you got to spend New Year's at a casino with your bachelor friends.”

“Yeah.” Glancing through the hallway into the crowded living room, he came back to her with a wry grin. “Don't tell anyone, but I actually like this a lot better.”

“Don't worry,” she assured him with a wink. “Your secret's safe with me.”

When they reached the dining room, Erin paused to assess what they had enough of and what needed replenishing. The old buffet on the side wall held two spiral hams, a platter of roast beef and whole chickens so big they could have passed for turkeys. Alongside the meats were bowls of different gravies, baskets of rolls and four different kinds of salad for anyone who'd made a diet part of their plan for the coming year.

There was an entire table of finger foods for the kids, which was where she and Cam set their blanketed pigs and chicken fingers. The tater tots were running low, and she made a mental note to pop some more into the oven. The desserts were holding up well, but that was probably because folks hadn't finished their meals yet.

Cam let out a low whistle of appreciation. “Maggie really outdid herself in here. How are we ever gonna eat all this food?”

“Oh, you know Mom,” Erin replied as she straightened up some cockeyed platters and bowls. “She makes way too much, then shuttles the leftovers to folks all over town. Including us.”

“Did you know that if you nuke snickerdoodles in the microwave long enough, they smell like freshly baked cookies? Taste like 'em, too.”

He added a boyish grin totally at odds with his tall, dark and dangerous appearance, and she was struck by how much more at ease he seemed than when he'd arrived. Apparently, her impromptu scolding had done Cam some good.

“Five minutes to midnight!” Josh hollered, hanging on the door frame as he leaned into the dining room. “Y'all better grab someone to kiss, 'cause the ball's about to drop.”

Before she could chide him for being an idiot, he was gone. When she turned to Cam to apologize, she found him studying her intently. “What?”

“Just wondering who you kissed last year.”

“Funny,” she shot back, sidling past him, “I was wondering the same thing about you.”

Chuckling, he followed her into the living room where about a hundred guests were clustered around the humongous-screen TV Lily had bought Mike for Christmas. The expansive view of Times Square was incredible, and Erin heard the announcer saying there were over a million people crammed into the theater district of Manhattan. Even more hung out of windows, bundled up against the cold while they gazed up at the ball covered in crystals and lights.

Cam took two glasses of ginger ale from a nearby table and offered her one. Normally, she enjoyed New Year's, but for some reason, this one felt very awkward to her. As if sensing her discomfort, he leaned in and murmured, “Don't look so panicked, bug. I'm not gonna kiss you.”

“Thanks.”

“Unless you want me to,” he amended with a shameless grin.

Shaking her head, she muttered, “Does that usually work for you?”

“What?”

“The charming scoundrel routine. The women up north must fall all over you when you look at them like that.”

“Like what?”

“Oh, don't play dumb with me,” she retorted, laughing in spite of herself. “You know exactly what you're doing, and I'm not buying it. I've known you too long to fall for that.”

“Can't blame a guy for trying,” he said, grinning at her as if he couldn't care less that she didn't want to share the traditional midnight kiss with him. Or anyone else, for that matter. She'd had her fill of being someone else's plus one, and was more than happy to finally be doing things her own way.

Most of the time, anyway. Thankfully, Parker came over to join them, and she put her grown-up problems away for later. Cam handed him a stemmed glass of ginger ale, and he stared up at his new friend with hero worship in his eyes. “Thanks.”

“No problem. What've you got in mind for the New Year?”

“I'm gonna win the ten-and-under division of the Bluegrass Science Fair,” her foster son replied immediately.

“Yeah? What're you planning to build?”

“I haven't decided yet,” Parker confided soberly, “but when I do, I'm gonna make sure it's the best project there.”

“I'd like to see that.”

Parker's face lit up the way it had the first time the two of them had bonded over their shared love for Cam's old truck. “Could you come? That would be so cool!”

“Just let me know when and where. I'll be there.”

Erin's trouble radar started pinging, but she didn't want to spoil their moment. Parker had been disappointed and outright mistreated by so many of the adults he'd known, she was adamant that anyone who made a promise to him had to be beyond certain that they were capable of keeping it. While she didn't doubt that Cam meant to attend the regional event, she wasn't at all convinced that he would end up coming.

The concern she felt must have showed on her face, because Cam leaned toward her to murmur, “I'll be there, Erin. I promise.”

Dad had always said a man's true intentions showed in his eyes, and when she looked up into Cam's she saw nothing but quiet confidence. Then, as if her attention had knocked something loose, another emotion drifted in to twinkle in the dark depths. She knew she should break the unexpected connection with him, but she couldn't make herself look away.

While they stood there staring at each other, she was vaguely aware of everyone else in the room counting down the final ten seconds.

“Happy New Year!” everyone shouted, cheering and toasting to mark the occasion.

“I did it, Erin,” Parker crowed proudly, giving her a quick hug. “I stayed up until midnight.”

“You sure did, honey. Good for you.”

Flashing her a delighted smile, he bolted away with Abby and several young cousins, making a beeline for the dessert table in the hallway.

True to his word, Cam didn't kiss her, not even on the cheek. Instead, he tapped her glass with his and smiled. “Happy New Year, bug.”

“You know,” she informed him primly, “you're the only one who calls me that anymore.”

“Well, you know me. I'm partial to the classics.”

“Whatever. Happy New Year to you, too,” she relented with a smile of her own. “I hope it turns out the way you want.”

“Back atcha.”

After downing his drink, he gave her a cocky grin and sauntered off to mingle with the other guests. Erin watched him go, admiring the confident way he moved through the crowd, shaking hands and trading small talk as if he was in the dining room at the Oaks Café. She'd always considered him kind of detached by nature, and she was impressed by this new side of her childhood tormenter.

When she realized she was staring after him, she jerked herself back to reality and started collecting empty plates and cups for the trash. In the kitchen, she ran into Bekah, who'd stepped in and taken over replenishing the buffet without even being asked.

“What a party,” she approved, pulling out the tater tots Erin had shoved into the oven earlier. “I didn't think it was possible to top Christmas, but you guys really know how to celebrate the holidays.” As proof, she tugged on the waistband of her jeans.

“Oh, stop,” Erin chided with a laugh. “You're the tiniest one in the family besides the kids.”