Holly Jacobs - A Valley Ridge Christmas

“Thank you, Maeve.” Josie hefted herself to her feet.

“Do you want me to carry him up for you?” Maeve asked.

“No, I’m fine,” Josie assured her.

“The stairs are a bit steep and narrow.”

“Are you saying I can’t fit up a narrow staircase?” Josie asked.

Maeve felt utterly embarrassed. “No, honestly, Josie. That’s not what I meant at all. I would—”

Josie held up her hand, interrupting Maeve’s apologies. “I was just kidding. Honest. Boyd tells me all the time that my sense of humor is warped. I’m afraid he’s right.” She picked up the toddler and went through the living room to the stairs.

Maeve turned to Lily. “Thank you so much for helping. I’ve just met Boyd and Josie, but I know they’d pitch a fit if I offered to pay for her visit, but maybe we could work it out on the sly.”

“No need for that,” Lily assured her as she started to put on her layers. “I meant what I said. I don’t even have to ask Neil to know that he’ll work something out with them. Last spring he got paid in chickens for a home visit. I used to watch stuff like that on TV when I was younger, but really, I didn’t imagine it ever working in this day and age.

“Neil insists he didn’t go into medicine to be rich. Plus, we’ve got honey-do jobs galore at the practice. Neil is a very gifted doctor, but he’s hopeless when it comes to a paintbrush or screwdriver. Ask me sometime about the time he decided to change a washer in the bathroom faucet.” Lily shivered as if to say the project hadn’t gone well.

Maeve didn’t know what else to mention. That was part of her problem when it came to making friends. She was no good at the easy give and take, but she did ask, “How are the wedding plans?”

“Everything’s in order. Mattie keeps teasing me, but I don’t see what’s wrong with being well prepared. Look at last night’s blizzard. I know Valley Ridge gets snow in November, but normally not this much all at once. I have a bunch of friends with plows on standby in case we get another storm and...” She let the sentence fade. “Short of some unexpected volcanic eruption, I’ve planned for every contingency I could think of.”

Maeve was impressed. “Well, if you need something, you only have to holler.”

“All I need is you there,” Lily assured her. “Of course, if you need a date...”

Maeve could see it coming from a mile away.

“...I know someone,” Lily finished. “One of my patient’s grandsons moved into her house to help her out. He’s a very nice guy.”

Maeve sighed. “If I decide I need a date, I’ll let you know.” She wasn’t sure what happened to turn half of Valley Ridge’s minds toward fixing her up, but it had been bad ever since Mattie and Finn, and Sophie and Colton were married.

She took that back. She knew exactly what had happened.

Tori Allen—her summertime volunteer at the library and Sophie’s rediscovered daughter—that’s what happened. Or rather who happened.

Tori had decided that Maeve needed to get out more and she’d not so subtly tried to fix her up whenever she could. And for someone who lived in Ohio and only came in to Valley Ridge for visits, she managed quite a bit. She’d tried to convince Maeve to date the town’s bachelor cop, Dylan. But she was pretty sure she’d dissuaded Tori from making that particular match. Dylan was a nice enough man, but he wasn’t what Maeve was looking for.

To be honest, Maeve wasn’t exactly sure what she was looking for in a man. But she was certain that when she found him, she’d know. Immediately. That’s how it had happened when her mom met her dad. And after her father passed away, her mother had fallen head over heels for Herman Lorei, a new farmer in town. It was good to see her mom happy again.

Yes, someday Maeve would meet the man for her. Until then, she’d wait. She wasn’t willing to settle.

“Well, if you change your mind...” Lily let the offer hang there a moment. “My client’s grandson is cute.”

Maeve grinned. “Thanks, Lily. I’ll let you know.” But don’t hold your breath. “Thanks for everything.” Maeve saw Lily out and hoped that she’d dissuaded her friend from playing matchmaker. After all, she had Tori, the teenage yenta matchmaker-wannabe, on the job.

Maeve was comfortable. And she was busy. Between her paid job at the winery in Ripley and her volunteering at the library, there weren’t enough hours in the day. She wasn’t actively looking for a relationship. She was content to wait until she found him, or he found her. And if it never happened? She’d be okay. Ms. Mac, the school principal, had never married but seemed perfectly happy with her full, productive life. She’d made such a difference in Maeve’s life.

There were fates much worse than being single.

She glanced at the clock.

Since Maeve’s boss, Gabriel, had called and said not to even try to get to Ripley today, she could cross the now-clear parking lot to the library and catalog a few of her new books.

She hadn’t heard a peep from upstairs, so she left Josie a note on the table with her whereabouts and cell phone number, and took a pile of books with her.

She doubted anyone would be out today and even if they were, she doubted they’d be in desperate need of a library book, but still, as was her practice, she went to turn on the small neon open sign in the library window—before she remembered there was no power.

Well, that was that. Maeve would leave the books to be cataloged some other day.

As long as she was dressed for it, she decided she’d walk the few blocks to the grocery store and buy some more milk. She had some meat in the fridge and could easily put together a stew for herself and her unexpected guests. She should probably think about moving the contents of the refrigerator outside if the power didn’t come back on soon.

And while she was out, she might as well stop at Valley Ridge Farm and House Supplies for the salt and some more lamp oil, just in case the power wasn’t restored by nightfall.

She hadn’t exaggerated this morning when she told Boyd that she normally went on foot to the shops in Valley Ridge. She rarely drove anywhere other than to work. If Valley Ridge ever approved a budget that would pay her for her work at the library, then she would probably be able to give up driving all together. Well, mostly. She crossed over the bridge that spanned Cooper’s Creek, then past the schools. She continued up Park Street, past the familiar shops. As she approached the grocery store, she found that a number of Valley Ridge residents were already there. The owner had a generator that kept the freezers and refrigerators running. Her shopping done, she headed back toward home. The Farm and House Supplies store was on the way.

The store took up most of the block of Park Street right before the schools. The parking lot and outdoor yard comprised a great deal of it. Jerry carried mulch, stones, some bricks and other basic items he stored outside. She looked past the empty lot and saw the top of the old Culpepper place.

She walked around the block to get to the residential street where the Culpepper house was located. From Park Street there wasn’t much to see apart from the roof. Standing in front of it now, she recalled how people said that it had good bones. The bones of the Culpepper place were becoming better disguised with every passing day as neglect etched itself onto the facade. The stonework was covered with ivy that was dead and brown given the cold. As for the yard, she knew there was no lawn under the snow, but rather a collection of weeds that the neighbors occasionally mowed. Most of the windows were boarded over, and the corner of the porch had begun to sag in a way that gave the impression the entire porch would someday completely slide off the house.