On Christmas Tree Cove by Sarah Vance-Tompkins

Author:Sarah Vance-Tompkins
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance
ISBN: 9781954894655
Publisher: Tule Publishing Group, LLC
Published: 2021-10-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

December 20

Morgan was lost in a world of her own. Her hands were jammed deeply into her pockets as she crossed the street in front of Hillcrest House. The For Sale sign on the front lawn was an unnecessary reminder her reality was changing faster than she could cope. Yet putting Hillcrest House on the market wasn’t what was occupying her thoughts.

The kiss.

It had been one week since they’d kissed, and it was still on her mind. They fit together perfectly, like two pieces of a puzzle that had finally come together after a very long time apart in the bottom of a box.

In the graying light of dusk, snow clouds were gathering far off on the horizon of Lake Michigan. Morgan had always been able to feel a snowstorm in her bones, like her mom. She paused long enough to take a deep breath. Christmas Tree Cove smelled of fresh lake water, balsam and cedarwood.

His soft lips. The tickle of his beard. His ice-blue eyes.

A moment later she was sprawled across the snowy ground, flat on her back. Complete wipe out. Felled by an icy patch underneath the snow. Her emotions were as scattered and shaken as she was. She scrambled to her feet and dusted off the snow.

“I kissed Jesse,” she said. “What was I thinking?”

She paused momentarily, waiting for a response from her mom. Instead, the voice inside her head answered.

Of course it’s Jesse. No one will ever compare to your first love. Let it go, Morgan. It doesn’t mean anything. Not to him.

And it shouldn’t mean anything to her either. She didn’t need to make a habit of kissing random people. Especially people who were providing her with a paycheck for the next three months.

She closed her eyes. All she could see was Jesse. His wide mouth. His warm eyes.

Kissing Jesse. Stop.

She wasn’t aware she had walked up the steps of the Kimuras’ front door. “Stop,” she said. Mrs. Kimura opened the door faster than Morgan was expecting, surprising them both. “Kissing Jesse.”

“What?” Mrs. Kimura asked.

“Nothing.” Morgan’s cheeks flushed.

“Oh, Morgan. I’m so glad you’re here,” she said with a smile in her voice as she ushered her through the front door. “We heard you’re working in Fish Village.”

She nodded. “I’m setting up Jesse Taylor’s fine arts photography gallery.”

“How do you like working for Jesse?”

“Kissing,” Morgan responded with the first word that popped into her mind.

Mrs. Kimura’s sharp, indrawn breath brought Morgan back to reality. “You kissed Jesse Taylor? I’ll put the kettle on. Tell me everything. Spare no detail.”

“Wait!” Morgan followed her into the kitchen, where Mrs. Kimura moved quickly to put the teakettle onto a burner and fill an infuser ball with loose tea leaves. “What did I say?” Morgan asked.

“You said you’d been kissing Jesse Taylor.”

“No. Not kissing,” Morgan protested, making an exaggerated “ick face” to sell her lies. “Not me. Not Jesse. I was sorting through some of the recent photographs he’s taken for clients. A surprise proposal. Out at the lighthouse. It was very sweet.

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