Bells Will Be Ringing: A Sweet Lesbian Christmas Romance by Barbara Winkes

Author:Barbara Winkes [Winkes, Barbara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: UNKNOWN
Published: 2019-11-03T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Holly

“It’s already been a long day. You can go home and finish up tomorrow.” Holly looked up to find that the woman who had stepped inside the room, wasn’t Claire, but Maddy Crawford, the mayor of Chestnut Hill.

“Oh, it’s you.”

“Yes, me. I was hoping you’d let me take you to dinner.”

She and Maddy talked on a somewhat regular basis, but Holly hadn’t seen her since before Dana moved to town. She wondered what kind of rumors had reached Louanne’s aunt. She wanted to cry again.

“Sure, why not? I was about to leave anyway.”

“You know that while I’m at it, I’ll also try to convince you to come to the Christmas party. You don’t have to stay long. Just be with us for a while.”

“I’ll think about it,” Holly ascertained, prompting a smile from Maddy.

“That’s more than I’ve gotten from you in the last years, so I’ll take it.”

Holly was aware of Claire’s pensive gaze before they said goodbye outside the door, then Maddy drove them to La Dolce Vita. She couldn’t help thinking how uncomplicated things had been when she’d had dinner with Dana there…She’d been incredibly naïve to think they could stay that way.

She wasn’t surprised by Maddy’s choice of subject either.

“So I hear that you saved a woman from bleeding to death.”

Holly, however, was a bit baffled by the specific wording. Rumors could be like a game of telephone.

“If we’re talking about the same woman, it wasn’t quite as dramatic. Doug at the pharmacy thought she might need stitches, but we could do without. Wow. Some folks need to add some spice to every story.”

“How are you doing, Holly?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” If she was acting defensive, it was because Maddy had seen right through her, and it made Holly uneasy.

“You know that Louanne loved you more than anything.”

“Of course I know that.” She wasn’t going to cry into her lasagna. She simply wouldn’t allow it.

“Then you also know she would want you to be happy.”

“I am happy. I have a nice home, a satisfying job, and I…Come on, Maddy. We’re not going to have that conversation.”

“What conversation do you mean? You know I care about you, and so do the people in Chestnut Hill, even if some of them might go a little overboard with their good intentions. I know how hard you have grieved. We all have. But you deserve to be happy, too.”

“What is all this about me being happy? I’ve known this woman for less than a couple of weeks! And what makes you think I’m done grieving?”

Forget about good intentions. Holly jumped to her feet and took a few bills from her wallet. “I’m sorry. I can’t do this.”

She fled from the table and the restaurant, snowflakes mingling with her tears.

* * * *

Holly spent the rest of the evening on her couch, trying to get warm, admitting an irrational resentment against everyone she held dear. Louanne, for leaving her alone. Everyone meaning so damn well, when they didn’t understand what it was like to have all hopes and dreams ripped away abruptly.

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