The December Market (Shelter Springs #2)

8

The holiday market hadn’t opened yet—and wouldn’t until noon the following day—but Rafe was already heartily sick of listening to Christmas music.

He had only been there an hour, checking out the first aid facilities and supplies in the small examination room on the edge of the conference center hall. In that time, he had already heard “Jingle Bells” and “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” twice.

He had a feeling it would be a long two weeks.

He liked Christmas music as much as the next guy. More, maybe. His sister was very musical. Julia played the piano and also had a beautiful voice. Every year, she sang in the church Christmas choir. Rafe had always enjoyed listening to her practice and perform.

Listening to his sister sing was one thing. Hearing relentlessly perky canned Christmas music over the conference center audio system was another entirely.

Apparently he was in the minority, though. Everybody else setting out their products at the various stalls seemed cheerful and eager for the market to start.

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

Rafe frowned at his cousin Izzy.

Pretty and bright, she had worked as a volunteer firefighter since she was eighteen and now was an emergency medical technician, training to be a paramedic. He wanted to think she had followed his own example, but Izzy had always walked her own path.

“Can’t wait,” he said dryly.

She laughed, brushing her long dark hair from her face. “You’re such a bad liar, primo. This will be torture for you. All this holiday cheer will make your teeth ache.”

“Hey. I have holiday cheer. We even have a Christmas tree up. We decorated it last night.”

“Did you? I have to come by and see it.”

“Definitely. Besides that, Isaac is pushing me hard to put up some lights on the house.”

“No offense, but are you sure that’s the best idea? The last time you tried hanging some Christmas lights, things didn’t exactly go well. And now you’ve got a bum arm that will make hanging lights a real adventure.”

“I tried to tell Isaac that. But he’s six years old and wants what he wants. If he wants twinkly colored lights on our new house, I’ll figure out a way to put them up. Don’t worry, though. If I decide to hang some lights, I’ll see if Joe or one of the guys at the station can come over and help me.”

“I can help you,” she retorted. “I’m one of the guys at the station, aren’t I?”

He held up a hand of apology to head off her annoyance. “Absolutely. But you won’t exactly have a lot of extra time over the next few weeks.”

“Point taken,” she said with a wry smile. “I can come out this Sunday or next, though. The market isn’t open on Sunday.”

“I’ll call you if I need you. I figured I would try to talk him out of it first. Maybe we’ll get an inflatable or something.”

She made a face. “You want to see inflatable Christmas decorations, just take him to Abuelo ’s new apartment. They have a whole army of them on the ground there.”

“I’ll do that.”

“Looks like we have everything we need,” Izzy said, stocking the last drawer with extra bandages. “We should be good to go for tomorrow. The last thing on the list is the safety inspection.”

“Oh right. Mike mentioned that.”

“I’ll let you handle it, since I’ve got to run to an appointment.”

“Thanks a lot.”

“You outrank me, anyway, Chief,” Izzy said with a grin, before she grabbed her coat from the hook by the door.

She pointed through the open door of the small first aid room. “There’s Amanda Taylor. She’s the boss lady around here and is probably the one you would work with for the safety inspection.”

Rafe looked in the direction she pointed, where he found Amanda Taylor, clipboard in hand, looking lovely as always.

At the sight of her, Rafe felt a little burst of heat, the same one he had felt every time he thought of her over the past few days.

Amanda appeared to be in the middle of settling a dispute between neighboring vendors about something. Power cables, by the sound of it.

“Are you sure you don’t have time to finish the inspection before you have to leave?” he pressed.

Izzy shook her head. “Considering I was supposed to be there fifteen minutes ago, no. Sorry.”

He sighed and picked up the fire department tablet with the checklist on it that they used for all public event safety inspections.

“Great. Thanks.”

Izzy smiled and waved at him as she headed out the door. After a moment, when yet another version of “Jingle Bells” started playing over the sound system, Rafe shut the door to the first aid room and headed over to Amanda and the two vendors.

She looked festive—and, yes, he could admit it— adorable in a holiday sweater with a grumpy cat on it as she gave the vendors a calm smile.

“You know the rules, Ed. You get one string of lights. We all have to work together here.”

The vendor frowned. “My stall is twice as big as his. I’m also paying more than he is for the space. Therefore I should get twice as many lights.”

“If we had unlimited power capabilities, maybe. But we don’t. You signed the same contract as everyone else that stipulated every stall gets one string of lights.”

Rafe did not know the guy, though he looked familiar. His stall offered hand-carved ornaments, walking sticks and other holiday decorations. Only fitting, since the guy was built like a tree.

He looked as if he wanted to get in Amanda’s face and argue the point. Before Rafe could step forward with the protectiveness he really didn’t want to feel, Amanda gave a disarming smile. She placed a calming hand on the man’s arm. “Keep in mind, we’re going to have bright overhead lights on throughout the market. You really don’t need more than one string of lights to compete with that. Besides, your wonderful items will do more than any Christmas lights could to bring in shoppers to your stall, trust me. Everyone is going to love your work, Ed. I know I do. I want to buy one of your walking sticks for my grandmother. I’m definitely stopping by first thing tomorrow when you’ll have the biggest selection.”

“They really are great,” the other vendor said. “I know my grandchildren would love one of those whistles you have for sale, though their parents might not. How long does it take you to make one of those?”

The crisis seemed to be averted as the two men talked now about their various crafts.

Amanda had a way of calming people. He didn’t know exactly how she did it, but he could tell everyone seemed to have complete confidence that she could solve their problems.

As soon as she moved away from the two men, other vendors hurried up to talk to her. Rafe waited on the sidelines until they seemed to be done, looking slightly less frenzied than they had as they approached her.

“I’m told you’re the one I need to speak with about the final safety inspection.”

She looked up from her clipboard, startled, and he was interested to see a smudge of color rise on her cheekbones.

“Oh. Rafe. I didn’t see you. Sorry. I’m a little distracted today.”

“Understandable. You seem to be in the middle of a few things.”

“Only a few,” she said with a small smile.

“I don’t want to give you one more thing to add to your list, but I apparently need to walk through the market for the final safety inspection before the doors open tomorrow.”

“Of course. We’re very focused on safety here. We want the Shelter Springs Holiday Giving Market to be a positive experience for everyone.”

“We have the same goal, then.”

Rafe admired the team that had been working so hard behind the scenes to put on the market. Many organizations claimed they were committed to altruism and philanthropy, but the market organizers followed through. Each year, the market raised thousands of dollars for various causes around the community. This year, as their signs proudly proclaimed, a portion of all sales would be split between the local food bank and the after-school program that Rafe sometimes sent Isaac to when he had to work but couldn’t make other arrangements with his family members who helped out.

Before Caitlin left, Rafe never imagined how difficult juggling childcare could be for a single parent, and he was grateful for caring teachers and well-run extracurricular programs.

“Is there a good time this afternoon we could do the safety inspection?”

She appeared to consider her schedule, looking down at the clipboard again. “Now works as well as any other time,” she finally said. “I can show you around as soon as I drop off these vendor maps at the information booth.”

“Great. I’ll walk with you.”

He suspected that if he let Amanda out of his sight, she would end up being waylaid by other people who needed things from her and it might be another hour before he could find her again.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that. I’ll only be a minute. I can meet you back here.”

“No problem. I can use the exercise.” It was only a small white lie as he had worked out in his home gym that day, focusing on leg exercises and hand weights with his good arm. He would hate to lose muscle tone while his left arm was stuck in a cast.

Rafe worked hard to stay fit. He took his job as a firefighter and paramedic seriously and didn’t want any health issues to interfere with his ability to carry out his duties.

The endorphins from working out also helped with his restlessness and frustration over being sidelined from doing what he loved.

“Suit yourself,” Amanda said, her tone brisk as she set off through the market.

As he had predicted, on the way to the information kiosk, she was approached by four other people asking her questions. She treated everyone with calmness and cordiality, even when two people were upset about the Wi-Fi speed inside the building for processing payments, something Amanda likely had absolutely no control over.

At the information desk, they found Liz Cisneros Shepherd and her new husband, Steve.

Their relationship had been the talk of Shelter Springs the previous Christmas. Liz was the younger sister of Steve’s late wife, who had died many years ago from cancer.

Rafe had heard the gossip, with some people saying how strange it was that Steve was marrying his wife’s younger sister now. As far as he was concerned, if they were happy together, it was nobody else’s business.

“Hi, Amanda,” Liz said with her cheery smile. “Love that sweater! I haven’t seen it in your collection. Is it new?”

Amanda looked down at her sweater with a rueful smile. “Yes. Opal Barnes knitted it for me. She gave it to me when I dropped off a few meals for the sisters after their terrifying ordeal last week.”

Rafe raised an eyebrow. So he and Isaac had only been two more on Amanda Taylor’s charity list. He wasn’t sure how to feel about that. Her concern on their behalf had been heartwarming, if more than a little unexpected. It was somewhat deflating to know she handed out kindness indiscriminately.

Amanda was someone who worked hard for the people of Shelter Springs. How much did she receive in return?

“I love it,” Liz declared, angling her head for a closer look at Amanda’s sweater. “I think I might even like this one more than the hamster sweater that was my favorite last year.”

“I’m sure you’ll see that one again. It’s still in the rotation.”

“I look forward to seeing them every year.”

Amanda smiled at the other woman. He saw her smile include Steve Shepherd, though that one was a little less genuine, he was interested to see.

“Wearing so-called ugly sweaters throughout the month of December helps me get in the holiday spirit. I’m not naturally this festive, you know.”

For some reason, she sent a sideways look toward Steve Shepherd. It took Rafe a moment to understand, remembering that Amanda had once been engaged to marry Steve’s son. An engagement that had ended in tragedy.

They had that in common, he realized for the first time. Each of them had lost someone they loved.

“This time of year sometimes seems to overflow with memories, doesn’t it?” Steve said quietly. “Unfortunately, not all of them are easy.”

“No. They’re not.”

“I try to focus on the holiday memories that bring me joy,” Liz said. “I still remember sledding in the park with Jeanette, driving around to look at Christmas lights with my family, sitting by the fire while my mother read Christmas stories to us.”

Amanda smiled softly. “I try to remember the good moments too, even when it’s not easy. And every year, just like my ever-expanding ugly sweater collection, I try to add a few more memories.”

She gestured to the information desk. “Do you have everything you need here?”

“Yes. We have maps, charts and our own little FAQ.”

“And you’re fully staffed with enough volunteers?”

“Oh yes. I think everyone at the Shelter Inn who’s not working at our booth wants to have a turn at the information desk. Our residents love to be in the middle of the action. For the next two weeks, the place to be in Shelter Springs is here at the market. Birdie and Paolo plan to be here nearly every day.”

Rafe glanced at Amanda and saw her mouth tighten slightly at the way Liz seemed to link her grandmother and his grandfather together automatically.

“That’s great,” Rafe said. “I’m glad Abuelo has something to distract him this year from his own sad memories of my grandmother.”

Amanda looked as if she wanted to say something, but whatever it was, she swallowed it down. “Thank you both for agreeing to organize the info desk volunteers.”

“We’re excited,” Liz said with a smile. “It’s shaping up to be an amazing market. Bigger and better than ever.”

“I hope so.”

“Thank you again.” Amanda hugged the other woman. After a pause, she hugged Steve as well.

If circumstances had been different, the man would have become her father-in-law. Rafe wasn’t at all sure why he suddenly found that idea so discomfiting. He was certain it probably wasn’t a good idea to try to analyze his reaction.

When they walked away from the information desk, she turned to Rafe. “Where should we start with the inspection?”

He looked down at the tablet and the digital checklist he had to go through.

“I need to examine the exit doors and look over your evacuation plan in the event of an emergency. I heard you talking to a few of the vendors about their light displays. I need to check the electrical system to be sure it’s adequate for the load. And finally, I need to check the food vendors to make sure they’re following fire safety procedures with their cooktops and ovens and have fire prevention mechanisms in place.”

She appeared momentarily overwhelmed at the list but seemed to square her shoulders. “Okay,” she said brightly. “Lead the way. I’ll come along with you to answer any questions you may have.”

She already looked exhausted. He imagined she had probably been on her feet all day, working through the details of the market.

He wanted to tell her to find a chair somewhere, put her feet up and take a rest. Unfortunately, he needed her help. The job would take at least twice as long without her along to explain things.

“Since we’re close to the inside food court, let’s check that out first.”

“What do you need from me?”

“I just need you to stick close in case I have any questions.”

And because I like the way you smell, like sugar cookies and strawberry candy canes. Of course he couldn’t tell her that. It shouldn’t matter to him how she smelled. He was here to do a job, and the sooner he forced his attention back to the checklist, the better for both of them.