Beneath the Mistletoe by Tracey Devlyn

Author:Tracey Devlyn [Devlyn, Tracey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Steele Ridge Publishing

4

Ross Kingston took a moment to stretch out his back. His newly minted sixty-year-old body couldn’t cook all afternoon anymore without suffering muscle kinks and aches.

After several hours of constant movement, his helpers had taken a moment to freshen up and change before taking the steaming dishes to the barn for their Solstice Celebration kick-off dinner. The pre-festival get-together had started out with just his immediate family huddled in their dining room, noshing on finger foods. He always had a notepad at his elbow to jot down any last-minute items that came up during their conversation.

A few years later, the Steeles wanted in on the fun and the festival expanded. Expansion meant more logistics and complications—and those were always better discussed over a warm, hearty meal.

Familiar footfalls preceded the pressure of a warm palm digging into the area between his shoulders. “How are you holding up, love?” Sandy Kingston proceeded to massage out hours of him looking down at either a countertop or stove.

“Same as you, I suspect.” He lifted an arm, and the love of his life snuggled into his side. He kissed her blond head and inhaled her light jasmine scent. “Feel refreshed and ready for hours of eating and talking?”

She nodded. “It’s my favorite part. Plus I can’t wait to see how everyone looks.”

Every year, his wife would come up with a holiday theme and she would make costumes for everyone who worked the event. Family members always wore their outfits to the pre-festival gathering, so that she could make last minute alterations, if necessary. The costumes added ambiance to the festival and helped visitors identify staff.

His love wasn’t much of a chef, but she killed it at the sewing machine. If her environmental engineering career hadn’t panned out, she could have been an Oscar-award–winning costume designer.

One by one, Santa’s helpers returned to the kitchen, smiling and proudly wearing their pointy caps, blue buttoned-down coats, wide black belts, and blue leggings. All except Johona Blackwell, who would be working behind the scenes, with him and Sandy.

“How do they fit?” his wife asked.

He could almost feel her excitement at seeing her creations on full display. But she wouldn’t show it for fear of influencing their feedback. She understood that if the wearers weren’t comfortable, the experience would leave them with a bad taste in their mouth and they would come to dread the festival, each year. A situation that would suit no one.

“You picked the perfect fabric,” her sister Joan said. “It’s warm and soft.”

“And comfortable.” Eddy Steele bent at the knee and did a couple of semi-squats. “I might trade in my jeans for these legos.”

“Leggings,” Joan corrected. “Make sure you wear a long shirt, or you’ll shock the town.”

His brother-in-law lifted the flap of his jacket, revealing an impressive package for a man in his seventies.

“Good Lord, I could’ve gone the rest of my life without having seen that,” Lynette said.

Chuckling, Ross turned to his wife. “Ready?”

She nodded. “Let’s get everything to the barn before it gets cold.

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