Puppy Wishes & Candy Kisses (Kringle Falls #1)

13. Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

S nowflakes fluttered to the ground.

The next morning, Candi stared out the window at the flurries. She didn’t know what to do with herself. She wasn’t used to sitting around with nothing to do. And with Christmas a couple of weeks away, there were so many things to do before the big day.

Since she didn’t have much money, she liked to make gifts for her friends. However, when she lost her job, she’d kept herself busy by knitting scarves for everyone. She only had one to finish. Luckily, it wouldn’t take her long to complete it, once she got home.

She checked the time. When it was finally 9:00 a.m., she called the shelter in Maine. The phone rang and rang before it switched to the answering machine. She left a brief message and her phone number. She hoped they would call her right back. By now they must think she wasn’t coming, when that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Odie barked at her and then ran to the back door. It was time to go out into the cold. She called for the other two. She wasn’t going outside more than once. With their leashes on, they headed out.

While they took care of business, she crouched down and scooped up some snow. She pressed it into a ball between her gloved hands. She noticed how well it held together. This was perfect snow to make a snowman.

Memories started flooding her mind of how her mother would help her make a snowman each winter. Her mother had as much fun doing it as Candi did. They were good memories that filled her heart with love. She wondered if Michael had similar memories. She hoped so.

After the pups were back inside, she got an idea. She moved to the front yard where there was a lot of undisturbed snow.

She pulled out her phone and turned on some Christmas music. Since no one lived close by, she turned up the volume. She sang along as she made a great big snowball. She rolled it into position and then started on the second snowball. She had to be careful with this one because if she made it too big, she wouldn’t be able to lift it by herself.

After testing the weight every now and then, she finally had to stop. It took all of her might to lift the snowball into position.

Now there was only one more to go. It didn’t take her nearly as long to make the head. She positioned it on top and then picked up some extra snow to reinforce the neck.

She stepped back and looked at her creation. She couldn’t help but think her mother would be proud of her effort.

But she wasn’t finished. This was the hard part. She needed eyes, a nose, and mouth. Not to mention some clothing. Hm ...

She rushed back inside. It was only then she noticed how cold she’d gotten. She made a cup of coffee to warm herself up.

While she defrosted, she checked her phone to make sure she hadn’t missed any calls. Though, she didn’t see how that would be possible since she’d been playing music on it. A call would have interrupted the carols. Still, she looked. As she suspected, there were no missed calls.

As though by sheer willpower, the phone rang. When she looked at the caller ID, she found it wasn’t the shelter. It was Michael.

She pressed the phone to her ear. “Hey, aren’t you supposed to be working?”

“Well, hello to you too.” There was a smile in his voice. “I just wanted to check in. Is there anything you need?”

Immediately, the items she needed for the snowman came to mind, but she dismissed them. She would make due with whatever she could find.

“Not that I can think of. Are you coming home soon?” She didn’t miss how domesticated this conversation sounded, but she refused to admit to herself that it meant anything. Michael was just being nice.

“Do you need me to?”

“No.” She stopped herself from admitting she was bored without him around.

“Oh.” Was that a note of disappointment in his voice? Or was she just imagining things?

An awkward silence ensued. She wondered if he’d been expecting a different answer.

Deciding it was best to change the subject, she asked, “Is there anything special you’d like for dinner?”

“I was thinking we’d go into town for dinner. What do you think?”

Considering she wanted to see more of Kringle Falls, she loved the idea. “I think it’s a great idea.”

“Good. I’ll see you later.”

“See you then.” As she disconnected the call, she worried her bottom lip.

What was she going to wear to dinner? She had no idea where he was taking her. Maybe she should have asked a few questions. But it was too late now. She wasn’t calling him back. She didn’t want to make a big deal out of this date.

There was a distinct hiss as she sucked in air. She halted her thoughts. Why in the world did she refer to their dinner as a date? He hadn’t asked her out. Well, he had, but there had been absolutely no romantic intention behind it. Right? She couldn’t let herself think that his invitation was anything more than it was—a friendly gesture.

To keep herself from dwelling on the dinner invitation, she chugged what was left of her coffee, and then she went in search of items for the snowman.

First, she headed to her bedroom. She rummaged through her suitcase and came up with a red knitted scarf. A friend made it for her a few years ago. She smiled as she ran her fingers over the soft yarn. But the scarf was all she came up with.

She headed to the kitchen and found a carrot. But he still needed eyes and a mouth. She already knew she had no chance of finding a top hat. But she’d make do with what she was able to find.

She checked on the pups, who were all asleep in the living room. It looked like daycare central with those furbabies sprawled about.

Now she needed to figure out something for the snowman’s eyes. She turned in a circle, hoping something would come to mind. Perhaps she’d have better luck out in the workshop. The more she thought about it, the more she liked the idea. She slipped on her boots and coat.

In the workshop, she flipped on all of the lights. Surely there would be something out here she could use. It had to be something that Michael wouldn’t miss.

She moved to the garbage can. It was filled with scraps of wood. It was then that she got an idea.

She pulled out bits of wood and put them on the workbench. She reached for his cordless rotary tool. She attached the saw attachment, and then she set to work cutting little squares. They ended up all different sizes but for her purposes, it didn’t matter.

She grabbed a paint brush and the black paint. In no time she had fake coal. Luckily the paint was fast-drying. They’d be ready in no time.

After checking on the pups again, she moved on to the snowman. She stood back and inspected it. She decided it needed a little more snow here and there. Then she added the carrot nose and wrapped the scarf around the snowman’s neck. She broke a couple of twigs from a nearby tree and used them for the arms.

She rushed back to the workshop. She not only grabbed her faux chunks of coal, but she spotted an old broom. She rushed back outside.

A few minutes later, the snowman was complete. And he wasn’t too bad if she did say so herself. She reached for her phone to take a picture, but before she could press the app, the phone rang.

She was relieved when she saw it was the shelter calling her back. She pressed the phone to her ear. “Hello.”

“Ms. Goodman, this is Betty Graham. I just got your message. I’m sorry to hear about your accident. Are you all right?”

“I am. And so are the puppies. But the van didn’t fare as well. It’s in the garage being repaired, and that’s why I won’t be able to make it to the shelter until the end of the week.” She refused to acknowledge that it could be longer.

“I’m really sorry about your troubles, but I’m not going to be able to take the puppies.”

“But...”

“My husband surprised me with plans for a holiday cruise. The shelter is almost empty.”

This couldn’t be happening. Desperate, Candi asked, “What if I was able to get the puppies to you tomorrow?”

“I’m afraid that still wouldn’t leave me enough time to find them a proper home. I hope you’re able to make other arrangements.”

Candi wasn’t sure what to say. She knew this was her fault. If she hadn’t gotten lost and wrecked, the pups would have been there, and hopefully, found their forever homes.

“Oops. That’s my other line. I have to go. Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas.” Candi ended the call.

She forgot about taking the photo of the snowman. She went inside and took off her coat and boots.

She sank down on the couch. Tears stung the backs of her eyes. Nothing was working out and it was her fault.

The pups got up and gathered around her. It was like they knew there was something wrong. Tater Tot licked her cheek.

She ran her hand over each of them. They were each so sweet and loving. They deserved to have their forever home. And it was her fault that hadn’t happened.

Her vision blurred with tears. How had she let this happen? She’d had a simple job—she had to drive to Maine. That was it. And she’d failed.

He couldn’t wait to get home.

Michael couldn’t remember the last time he’d been anxious to go home. For so long, he’d thought he’d never be happy again, but he was happy. Candi had given him back so much.

He was tempted to call Stan’s Garage and bribe them to take even longer repairing the van. It wasn’t like he would really do something like that, but the fact the thought had crossed his mind told him a lot.

He wheeled his pickup into the driveaway. His attention was immediately drawn to the snowman in his front yard. What in the world? He let out a laugh. It was cute and goofy all at the same time. Candi was forever surprising him.

He turned off the engine. He was glad he’d asked her to dinner. It just seemed like the right thing to do after she’d turned his house back into a home—a warm, comforting place.

He moved to the side door. He let himself into the mudroom and was quickly greeted by Tank followed by Odie and Tater Tot.

“Candi?”

“In here.”

He kicked off his boots and hung up his coat before heading to the living room. He found her sitting on the couch without the television on. He sat down in the armchair at the end of the couch.

When he looked at her, he noticed her splotchy complexion and bloodshot eyes. His chest tightened with worry. “What’s wrong?”

She glanced away. “It’s nothing for you to worry about.”

His voice softened. “Candi, talk to me. Maybe I can help.”

She hesitated so long he didn’t think she was going to open up to him. But then she said in a soft voice—so soft that he had to strain to hear her, “I took too long. The shelter won’t take the puppies now, and I can’t keep them. My lease forbids pets.”

He felt bad for her. “What about the shelter where you got them?”

“The building has been sold. The shelter no longer exists.”

He knew this was the place where he should offer to take them, but he couldn’t do that. His work had him away from home for long periods of time. And there was the part where he wasn’t ready to open his heart. He had built such a tall and deep wall around it that he didn’t even know if it was possible to tear it down.

There had to be a better solution. He gave it some thought and then something came to him. He didn’t know if it was a sure thing, so he didn’t want to say anything until he had something concrete.

He got to his feet. “I need to make a call.”

Candi didn’t say anything as he made his way upstairs and entered his bedroom. With the door closed, he placed the phone call.