The Christmas Blueprint by Sinclair Jayne

Author:Sinclair Jayne
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance
ISBN: 9781957748528
Publisher: Tule Publishing Group, LLC
Published: 2022-09-19T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

The excitement Sophia experienced all weekend carried through to Monday morning. Her sales were up from last year and, late last night, as she’d sat in a fragrant bath in an attempt ease her sore muscles, she’d placed more orders with local vendors and artists on her tablet. Even though her shop didn’t open until ten, she’d arrived hours early to tidy up.

The Christmas Walk was next weekend, which meant overhauling her window displays and adding a sidewalk sales area. She had the wonderful arched trellis from last year, and she planned to hang felted animal ornaments a local artisan made. They weren’t traditional Christmas ornaments but instead showcased local birds, animals and some magical creatures reputed to live deep in the Siskiyou National Forest.

She was also going to introduce a new product Riley had made after so many of her beloved birch trees in her yard and around town had died due to a beetle infestation. She’d had to have them cut down, and even as she’d mourned the loss of the white bark branches that had framed her small riverside craftsman home, she’d taken some of the felled branches, embedded small LED lights along the branches, and then “planted” them in a black pot with black garden rocks. The effect was stunning. She’d given Sophia one for Christmas last year, and Sophia had been so enamored, she’d begged Riley to make a couple for the entrance of her store—paying her, of course.

Riley had actually created a whole series of white birch light trees—small table lamps, and larger floor lamps. Zhang’s grandfather had been captivated by the process, so he and Riley had worked on several designs together. Now Mr. Shi often joined Riley in her workshop or collected items on his long walks or flea market hunts and brought them back for both of them to figure out a design to repurpose. Seeing Riley let loose her creative side made Sophia happy, but it also niggled her conscience. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d tried to sketch and it had been even longer since she’d painted.

Maybe someday.

She turned on the small fountain that Mr. Shi had made with stones he’d found on his walk along Bear Creek or in the hills of Zhang’s vineyard: Fire Ridge. Zhang had been so grateful to Riley for embracing his grandfather and giving him a purpose and also to Sophia for inviting him into her store to help with feng shui tips, but she felt like she was gaining as much if not more than she was giving. Mr. Shi had been insistent that she incorporate more nature and a water element in her store. When he’d brought in the fountain, someone had tried to purchase it even as he plugged it in to show her how it worked.

Sophia now stood in her window facing Main Street, smiling at the memory. She could see herself in her reflection as the sun hadn’t begun to rise yet. She could just imagine what Zhang’s grandfather and Riley could do to the Mill Market.

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