Christmas Lights on Evergreen Avenue by Tara Watson

Author:Tara Watson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: christmas romance, clean christmas romance, wholesome christmas romance, sweet christmas romance, small town romance, rivals to more, holiday romance, clean holiday romance, sweet holiday romance, wholesome holiday romance
Publisher: Tara Watson
Published: 2018-12-14T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Winnie was trying—and failing—to drag Santa’s sleigh into position when Dan pulled up in front of the house. He jumped out of the truck and jogged towards her, arms filled with something that smelled delicious.

“That thing is huge. You can’t move that yourself.”

“So I’m realizing,” she said with a sigh.

“I’ll help after lunch. But first, we should eat this before it gets cold.” He waved what looked like a slice of pie in front of her, and her stomach rumbled.

“Fine. But don’t expect me to share that pie.”

Dan grinned, and her stomach flipped at the sight. “Don’t worry, I got a slice for me, too. I have no intention of depriving you.”

He bent to pick up her crutches without her needing to ask, and Winnie thanked him before leading him inside.

“It’s exactly like I remember,” he said, peering around.

Winnie swallowed back unexpected guilt. He’d been a semi-regular visitor while her father had been alive. Once he’d passed, Winnie hadn’t been comfortable inviting Dan over for obvious reasons. Not the least because she didn’t want him getting ideas.

He’d been inside her house more recently, of course, hanging his jacket and helping Jane bring up her lights from the basement, but she hadn’t been with him either time, and maybe he hadn’t looked too closely.

“You haven’t made many changes,” he commented.

“No,” Winnie admitted. “Part of it is that it doesn’t quite feel like my house yet, you know? And no one goes into another person’s home and starts rearranging the furniture.”

“You and your dad lived here together, though.”

“Yes, but it was always that I was living with him, not the other way around. That probably sounds ridiculous.”

“It doesn’t,” Dan said. “I was the same in my parents’ house. It’s why I moved out as soon as I could, I was a guest in my own home. I couldn’t put stuff where I wanted, or hang my own paintings on the walls. They even stopped letting me have a Christmas tree before I was a teenager. I wanted a place where I could decorate how I wanted.”

“And was it everything you wanted it to be?” she asked. “I’ve never had a place like that.” Her eyes moved over the house that was still more her father’s than hers.

“It was great, but it still wasn’t right. I don’t think I’m destined for city living.”

“And now?”

“Definitely the right town,” he hedged. “But I talked to Jane about finding somewhere bigger. My apartment doesn’t leave much room for growth.”

Growth as in a family? Her stomach somersaulted at the idea. But why? She wasn’t jealous, no way. The scent of the pie caught her again. Hunger, that was it. Nothing more.

She spun on her crutches as gracefully as she could and kept moving.

“You don’t have a tree,” he said in surprise. She looked over her shoulder to find him peering into her living room.

“Nope,” Winnie said, and then moved towards the kitchen. She was pulling plates and cutlery from the cupboard when he followed her in.

“Why not?” he asked.

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