The Maverick's Christmas Secret by Brenda Harlen

Author:Brenda Harlen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2022-09-11T20:56:55+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Roberta held on longer and tighter than usual when Sadie greeted her with a hug the next morning. Yeah, it was going to be a tough day for both of them, but hopefully it would be made a little easier by spending some of it together.

Sadie mourned not only her sister’s death but the way she’d lived the last few years of her life. She hadn’t really been surprised to learn that Dana had been killed in a drunk driving accident. She had been surprised to discover that her sister hadn’t been the one driving.

But really, the how and why didn’t matter so much as the fact that she was gone. And while Sadie missed her sister every day, she knew Roberta mourned the loss of her child every minute.

“I want to stop at The Watering Can,” Roberta said, as she buckled herself into the passenger seat of Sadie’s SUV.

“I thought you might.”

Their original plan had been to have breakfast and then go to the cemetery, but her mom had apparently changed her mind and Sadie wasn’t going to argue with her.

Instead, she drove directly to the local florist. Roberta had ordered a bouquet of dark purple calla lilies. They’d been Dana’s favorite flower—striking and sexy, just like Dana. (Sadie was fond of sunny gerberas—ordinary and plentiful.)

At the cemetery, Sadie stood close to her mom, her arm across her shoulders, attempting to provide both emotional support and a physical barrier against the biting cold. Although both women had dressed appropriately for Montana in December, the subzero temperatures and frigid wind gusts dissuaded them from lingering.

“I’m trying to hold back my tears,” Roberta confided in a shaky voice. “Because I’m afraid if I cry, they’ll freeze on my face.”

Sadie laughed softly. “They probably would.”

“I can almost hear your sister chastising us for standing here in the cold, letting our feet go numb.”

“Dana was never much for rituals.”

“But this is important,” Roberta said. “To show that we remember.”

“You don’t have to prove anything to me,” Sadie told her. “I know you miss her every day.”

Her mother nodded, stifling a sob.

“So why don’t we go somewhere warm and remember happier times?” she suggested.

Roberta nodded again.

And that’s what they did. Over plates of Belgian waffles piled high with strawberries and whipped cream—one of Dana’s favorite indulgences—they shared their fondest memories, crying a little and laughing a lot.

“I’m not sure I’ll ever stop grieving the daughter I lost,” her mother confided. “But I’m always grateful, too, for the wonderful daughter I still have.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Sadie said, sincerely touched by her words.

“So...” Roberta dabbed at her eyes with the corner of her napkin “...tell me what’s new with you.”

“It’s December,” she reminded her mother. “Which means that the shop is crazy busy—and so am I.”

“I’m glad you love your work, but I worry that you’re going to burn out. It seems as if every year, the shop’s hours get longer and you work harder.”

“Beth and Lynda do a lot, too,” Sadie pointed out. “And I hired two students for the holiday season this year.

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