Dear Santa(24)

“Hey, buddy,” Billy teased, “that’s my girl.”

His girl! Lindy couldn’t have hidden her smile if she’d tried.

“The French side of his family comes out every now and again,” Billy said, as he placed his arm around Lindy’s waist and steered her out the back entrance, where he’d parked the truck.

Billy helped her inside, then walked around the front. Once inside, he started the engine and let it warm up enough to clear the frost off the windshield.

“I had the most marvelous day,” Lindy told him, and it was the truth. Every aspect of their afternoon and evening had been simply wonderful. Even seeing Brian with Celeste hadn’t hampered her time. This day would be one she long treasured.

    “I don’t want it to end,” Billy said.

“I don’t, either.”

“Good. Let’s stop off at the Wine Press. There’s a special ice wine I’d like you to taste. It’s a favorite of mine, and I think you’ll enjoy it, too.”

Ice wine would be a treat. The grapes could be harvested only in climates where temperatures dropped to below freezing. The grapes were kept on the vine to sweeten until the first frost of the season. They were then handpicked, generally in the dark of night, after the grapes had frozen. The excessively sweet wine wasn’t to everyone’s taste. Lindy happened to like it. The bottles were narrow and thin, and often expensive, due to the labor costs.

“I’d like that,” she said.

“It’ll give me a chance to check in with the night manager, too. It might be my day off, but I make a habit of checking in at some point during the day.”

The responsibility of being an owner/operator must weigh heavily on Billy. It told her he didn’t likely have time for a relationship, not with him working six days a week. Even on his day off, he ran interference. The restaurant was constantly on his mind, as it should be. Billy understood this could be only a holiday romance. She was of the same mind.

    Even though it was after eight, the restaurant was busy; every seat at the bar was taken. Billy secured a table and left Lindy while he went to check in with the manager. When he returned, he had the bottle of ice wine and two special glasses that resembled miniature wineglasses.

He sat next to her and poured them each a small amount. “A little goes a long way with ice wine,” he said. Again, the wine was one from Washington State. Only northern climates had the necessary temperatures cold enough to produce ice wine.

“The Toronto area has some wonderful ice wines as well,” he said, as he gently clinked his glass against hers.

“What shall we toast?” Lindy asked.

“How about we toast to Santa.”

Lindy laughed. “To Santa,” she said, and raised the glass to her lips.

The wine was extrasweet, and cold. It tasted a bit like honey and came to life in her mouth. She smiled to herself, thinking this was like a cavity in a glass.

“Do you like it?” Billy asked.

“It’s wonderful.” It was the perfect complement to their magical day.





CHAPTER TEN





Lindy’s mom watched Peter every Thursday, so Lindy was able to spend the morning with her precious nephew. He was a ball of fire. This precocious four-year-old had wrapped his way around her heart from the day he’d been born.

Chad’s wife worked at a small arts-and-crafts store owned by her parents. Now that Ashley was pregnant, she worked part-time, helping her parents out two days a week. Because Lindy’s mother had them for dinner on Thursday nights, that was the day she also kept Peter. After a long day on her feet, Ashley appreciated not needing to rush home and prepare dinner. Lindy’s mother was thoughtful that way.

For this evening, her mother had a Mississippi pot roast simmering in the Crock-Pot, which, Lindy knew, was one of Chad’s favorites. After spending the morning entertaining Peter with Beau’s help, Lindy got Peter down for his nap. He resisted until she promised him a sledding trip in the park after Christmas. Once she was sure he was asleep, she slipped away to meet Peggy for lunch.

    Following their food scavenger hunt, when Peggy learned Lindy would be spending Wednesday afternoon with Billy, she’d insisted they meet so she could hear all the details. Lindy had stopped by Peggy’s office earlier and solved a minor back-end website problem. Peggy used that excuse to pay for Lindy’s lunch, but Lindy knew it was more to drill her about her day with Billy. Lindy had agreed, mainly because any time spent with Peggy was sure to be fun.

Lindy parked and noticed that her friend had already arrived and was seated in a booth by the window in the fifties-style diner, known as the Big Apple Diner. Even knowing she was about to undergo an inquisition, Lindy was happy to see Peggy.

She slid into the booth. “Hey, girl,” she said, as she reached for the menu, which was tucked behind the old-style jukebox.

“Hey, yourself,” Peggy greeted. “So, don’t keep me in suspense, how was your date with Billy the Kid?”

“Can I look at the menu first?” Lindy teased.

    “No. I’ve only got an hour; I’ve already ordered for us. I want details.”

“What did you order?”

“Cobb salads for us both. Now spill.” She cocked her head to one side and grinned shrewdly, as if seeing Lindy’s smile told her everything she needed to know.