Belle Calhoune - An Alaskan Christmas

Maggie couldn’t really put her gratitude into words without explaining about the major losses she’d endured and the shameful circumstances of Sam’s death. It had cost her everything she’d worked so hard to build for her family. And she couldn’t afford to talk about it to anyone in this town. She’d uprooted her entire life in order to start over here in Love. And she wasn’t going to tarnish it by revealing her deepest, darkest shame.

Maggie wanted to be respected in this town. She wanted her son to be free of any stigma.

Maggie felt a tug on her sleeve. “Mommy. Can I go over to the jukebox?” She looked down at Oliver, who was pointing toward a tomato-red jukebox sitting in the corner of the room.

“Why don’t I show you how it works?” Cameron suggested. “Make yourselves comfortable at any table you like.”

Cameron walked away with Oliver at his side. Maggie watched them for a moment, feeling wistful about the lack of men in her son’s life. It made her ache to remember how many nights Oliver had cried himself to sleep over his father.

“Tobias told us about the loss of your husband when it happened. He was heartbroken for you and Oliver.” Jasper turned toward her and cleared his throat. “Maggie, Pastor Jack told us about the tragic circumstances.”

Maggie felt her eyes widening. A wild thumping began in her chest. The jig was up. Her secret had been exposed. “How did he know about it?”

“He contacted the pastor at your church to find out if we could do anything to make your transition to Love any easier. Although we already knew you were a widow, we didn’t know the specifics.”

“W-what did Pastor Baxter tell him?” she asked, her heart in her throat. Lord, please don’t let everyone here in Love know already about Sam holding up the grocery store. I want to protect my son. He’s innocent in all of this. It will be just like back home all over again. Name-calling. Finger-pointing. Judgment.

Jasper looked at her with sad eyes. “He told Pastor Jack that your husband was killed in a grocery store holdup.” He made a tutting sound. “It’s so very tragic for your family.” He began patting her on the back.

Maggie felt her shoulders slump in relief. She felt horrible for allowing this version of the story to go unchallenged, but for Oliver’s sake she had to keep quiet. He’d endured enough. And he was just a little boy. She couldn’t let the sins of the father be visited on the son.

“Grief is a process, Maggie. We know you’re probably still trying to wrap your head around such a profound loss.” Jasper’s blue eyes became misty. “Never fear. We’re here for you. We’re going to make sure y’all have a joyful holiday season.”

“Thank you, Jasper. I feel very blessed to receive such a warm welcome here in Love.” Maggie blinked several times, doing her best to hold back the tide of tears.

Suddenly, Oliver came racing to her side. “Mom. Sophie said I can go in the kitchen and make my own pizza.”

Sophie—the beautiful, Titian-haired waitress standing behind Oliver—was smiling down at her son as if he’d hung the moon. This town really was full of genuinely kind folks.

“Oliver is going to help me make a masterpiece,” Sophie said with a grin. The Southern twang and the red-and-white Santa hat perched on her head only made her appear more adorable, Maggie realized.

“That sounds like fun,” Jasper said with a nod. “I think I’m going to come with you and take some notes so I can whip up a pizza at home.”

Hazel let out a groan. “That’s all I need,” she groused. “I can already smell the burned pizza.”

Jasper scowled at Hazel.

“Come on, Jasper,” Oliver said, tugging at the mayor’s sleeve.

The look etched on Oliver’s face said it all. There hadn’t been a lot of smiles or laughter in the last year. Lately, Oliver had begun to turn a corner, but his grief had been all consuming for such a long period of time. He had shrunken down into a quieter, less joyful version of himself. Maggie wanted the old Oliver back, the one who laughed with abandon and didn’t seem afraid of the world around him. With Christmas coming in four weeks, she wanted Oliver to experience the wonder of an Alaskan Christmas.

At least for the moment her son seemed to be over the moon. She prayed this new adventure didn’t get old. Love, Alaska, was a small, quaint town where everyone knew each other. Maybe over time they would be embraced by the townsfolk.

Once Oliver headed toward the kitchen with Jasper and Sophie, Hazel turned toward Maggie. Compassion flared in her eyes.

“There’s no need to fret, Maggie. I’m the only one here in town who knows the truth about the holdup. And I’m not about to share your personal business with anyone, not even my husband,” Hazel said in a reassuring tone. “It’s not my story to tell.”

Maggie looked over her shoulder to make sure no one might overhear her conversation. “Thank you, Hazel. I appreciate you keeping it in confidence. I really don’t want everyone to know Sam was killed while holding up the store,” Maggie said in a soft voice. “I just want a clean slate.”

Hazel reached out and patted her on the shoulder. “Everyone deserves a shot at getting their life back on track. God loves you, Maggie. And pretty soon, this whole town will consider you and Oliver as one of our own.”

One of our own. Just the idea of it caused tears to pool in Maggie’s eyes. It was the very thing she hoped to establish for her son here in Love. She let out a sigh. Hazel knew her shameful secret, but thankfully she wasn’t going to divulge it to anyone.

Rather than being an innocent victim, her husband, Sam, had been the gunman holding up the grocery store. And he’d been shot in the process, losing his life and making their son fatherless. The ensuing media attention had been a vicious whirlwind. Maggie had been the recipient of hate mail, harassing phone calls and even a few death threats. She had been fired from her job and they had lost their housing.

This opportunity for a fresh start was a blessing from God. And Uncle Tobias. He had loved Maggie so much he’d laid out all the groundwork for her to rebuild her life in his hometown.

Most people wouldn’t believe it, but Maggie had been totally clueless about Sam’s illegal activities. In the end, she had paid dearly for believing in her husband. For loving him so much she’d had blinders on.

“Never again,” she murmured to herself as Hazel led her toward a table. In her humble opinion, love led to hurt and pain, loss and disillusionment. She had no interest in going down that road again. She was going to focus on her son and his well-being. She would be both mother and father for Oliver. Maggie wouldn’t be looking for love in this small fishing village.

Romance could go knock on someone else’s door.

Chapter Three

By the time Finn made his way to the Moose Café, his stomach was grumbling like a grizzly bear. Even though he was short on money these days, his belly hadn’t gotten the message.

Finn tried to stuff down the feelings of frustration with himself. In many ways it felt as if the past year had been about starting over from scratch. Although he had made positive strides, he was still miles away from where he wanted to be in his life. He couldn’t help but envy Declan.

While he’d been backpacking his way around the country and avoiding any hint of responsibility, Declan had been building up his company and cementing his ties here in Love. Now his younger brother was a newlywed and soon-to-be father. For a man like himself, who had always rejected the notion of settling down, Declan’s life looked pretty idyllic.

You’re not cut out for all that, he reminded himself. It would all just fall apart, just like everything else.