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Chapter Five

“But I want to go, Gramma!”

The tearful declaration echoed around the lobby as Ellery came down the stairs on Saturday afternoon.

Bea was looking up at her grandmother, arms crossed, her stricken expression a dramatic change from the happy little girl Ellery had spent time with over the past few days.

Ellery slowed down, unsure of what to do. She didn’t want to interrupt the conversation but she didn’t want it to appear like she was eavesdropping, either.

“I know you do, sweetheart, but your daddy was called in to work and I have to wait for our new guests to arrive.” Karen looped her arm around her granddaughter’s shoulders and gave them a comforting squeeze. “But we can still do something fun. Why don’t you pick out a game and I’ll make some popcorn, okay?”

“Okay.” Bea’s sigh stirred the wisps of golden bangs on her forehead. She trudged toward the door, feet scraping the floor with every step, so downcast she didn’t notice Ellery standing at the bottom of the stairs.

Karen did. “I’m sorry, Ellery.” Her smile looked a little rueful. “When there’s a five-year-old in the house, life isn’t always contained to the family suite.”

“And it shouldn’t be,” Ellery said swiftly. “The inn is also your home.”

“Boundaries can be tricky, though.” Karen sighed. “Carter and I chose different careers but in some ways they’re very similar. We’re both on call 24/7. Most of the time we can make it work with some creative juggling...”

“But not today?” Ellery guessed.

Karen glanced at the doorway, making sure Bea was out of earshot.

“Carter planned to go to the parade with Bea, but his supervisor said they needed him tonight. And then fifteen minutes ago, a woman called and reserved two rooms. She guessed their party would arrive between six and eight, so I can’t take his place. I realize plans change, of course, but I hate to disappoint her.”

Ellery knew she might be overstepping, but it had bothered her to see Bea looking so dejected, too.

“She can go with me.”

“Ellery... I can’t ask you to do that,” Karen protested.

“You didn’t. I offered.” Ellery smiled. “I enjoy Bea’s company.”

Karen’s expression clouded suddenly, and Ellery realized the innkeeper’s hesitation didn’t stem from concern for her granddaughter. It was for her son.

“I don’t want to put you in a difficult spot, though,” Ellery said quickly. “Carter—”

“Trusts me to decide what’s best for Bea when he’s at work,” Karen interjected firmly. “And I think that going to the parade with you this evening falls into that category.”

Ellery wasn’t sure he would agree, but it was too late to retract the offer. Nor did she want to.

Karen thought that Ellery was helping her, but it was the other way around.

The night she’d arrived at the inn, Ellery had been looking for a “base camp.” A place to stay while she gathered information about her brothers. But God, as always, had given her so much more.

Karen’s warm hospitality reminded Ellery of her mother and Bea’s giggles healed the tender places in a heart still rubbed raw from grief.

“Do you want to finish getting ready while I round up Bea’s snowsuit and boots and tell her the good news?” Karen asked.

Finish?

“I’m ready.” Ellery paused. Glanced down at the outfit she’d chosen. “Aren’t I?”

“Well...” Karen cleared her throat. “You’ll be outside a few hours and the air always feels colder when you’re standing in one place.”

A tactful way of saying that no, she wasn’t.

“I didn’t think I would be spending a lot of time outdoors while I was here,” Ellery admitted.

In fact, she hadn’t thought much about her wardrobe at all. After Ellery made the decision to go to Castle Falls, she’d tossed a few things into her suitcase and was on the road before she could change her mind.

“No worries.” The familiar twinkle stole back into Karen’s eyes. “I’m sure we can find something to keep the cold at bay.”

A few additional layers might insulate Ellery from the falling temperatures, but Ellery doubted they would protect her from the chill in the air whenever her path crossed with Carter’s.

His attitude was confusing.

But what Ellery found even more confusing was why it bothered her so much. Her life was complicated enough without adding Carter Bristow to the mix.

Ten minutes later, Ellery was buckling Bea into the booster seat she’d borrowed from Karen.

“Are you excited, too, Miss El’ry?” Bea piped up from the back seat.

“Yes, I am.” Excited. Nervous.

Really nervous.

The butterflies that had taken up residence in Ellery’s stomach after her decision to go to the parade weren’t fluttering. They were performing acrobatics.

And the Lord, He is the one who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not forsake you.

The verse Ellery had leaned on, rested in, clung to, after her parents died rose in her mind. Calmed her heart and the butterflies.

Nothing happened that took God by surprise. No path His children walked where He wasn’t at their side.

And sometimes—Ellery smiled as Bea chattered on about story time at the library—He provided another companion for the journey.

The wrinkles in the winding ribbon of road smoothed out as Ellery passed a large wooden sign that welcomed visitors to Castle Falls. A barricade across the road prevented people from continuing down the main street, but Ellery caught a glimpse of brick storefronts that gave the town an appealing turn-of-the-century feel.

Like the inn, the town was dressed in its holiday best. Strings of colorful lights graced the lampposts and fresh greenery filled the oversize planters stationed at the crosswalks, but Ellery imagined that Castle Falls would look beautiful no matter what time of the year.

She turned down a side street near the park and spotted an empty parking space. Bea bounced out of the back seat, eyes shining, and slipped her hand into Ellery’s when they crossed the street.

Heads began to turn in their direction as they wove their way through the people gathered together on the sidewalk.

When Ellery assured Jameson that a lone visitor in Castle Falls wouldn’t draw more than a passing glance, she hadn’t considered that people would recognize Bea. And judging from the open curiosity on their faces, they were trying to figure out the connection between Ellery and a local county deputy’s adorable daughter.

“I hear music, Miss El’ry!” Bea would have plunged off the curb if Ellery hadn’t taken hold of her hand. “The parade is going to start!”

Ellery’s heart began to thump, matching the staccato rhythm of the drums in a marching band.

Everyone’s attention turned toward the music but Ellery found herself scanning the faces of the people on the opposite side of the street, looking for...strangers.

Ellery tamped down a sigh.

Everyone was a stranger.

But what did she expect? That three men she’d never laid eyes on before would be easy to spot in a crowd?

“There’s Daddy!” Bea pointed a chubby finger at the squad car cruising down the street.

“I don’t think...” Ellery started to say, but the words died in her throat.

Because Carter was leading the parade.

Carter would rather chase bad guys than be the opening act for a high school marching band decked out in fake antlers and red plastic noses.

Not that he’d been given a choice.

Carter had had no idea when he’d been called into work for a “special assignment,” it would involve the annual parade. A parade Carter should have been watching from the sidelines, with Bea.

It’s your hometown, Bristow, Carter’s supervisor had said. Consider it an honor.

An honor? No. More like a punishment.

Riverside, the town’s main street, was only three blocks long and yet it was crowded with moments he’d rather forget.

He’d been home on leave for the first time when he’d met travel blogger Jennifer St. John. She’d checked into the Evergreen Inn on her way to the Great Lakes Circle Tour, seeking out “backwoods beauty” on her latest adventure. To say that Carter was flattered when Jennifer had asked him to show her some of the sights around the area was an understatement.

Jennifer was stunning and vivacious—and Carter had fallen hard. In his pursuit of her attention, it didn’t matter they’d been raised in different environments. Had very different goals.

Carter’s mom had expressed some concerns about the relationship, but he’d brushed those aside, as well. Sure, Jennifer came from a wealthy family, but she was assertive, not entitled. Goal driven, not self-centered.

And the most amazing thing? She seemed to be wild about him, too. Delayed her trip so they could spend more time together.

Carter had been devastated when Jennifer announced it was time for her to move on. Earning a coveted spot with the SEALS meant going off the grid for months at a time, and he had no doubt there would be guys lined up to take his place at Jennifer’s side.

A week before Carter was deployed again, though, she’d shown up at the inn to say goodbye. Carter’s fear of losing Jennifer was stronger than any misgivings he’d had about marrying a woman he’d known less than a month. He’d stumbled through a proposal and wonder of wonders, Jennifer accepted.

It wasn’t until Carter had begged her not to give up on their marriage only a few years later that he’d found out why.

Unbeknownst to Carter, Jennifer had posted a photograph of her local “guide” on one of their outings and her popularity had skyrocketed. As she began to document their romance, her followers had clamored for more. Carter had unwittingly provided it in the form of a proposal.

Jennifer had never loved him. Not really. She’d loved what Carter had done for her career. He’d been convenient. And their child was collateral damage when Jennifer decided a family didn’t fit her long-range goals.

Three-quarters of the people waving at the squad car weren’t privy to all the gory details, but there was no hiding the fact Carter’s marriage had crashed and burned.

One more reason he avoided the town.

You have to replace some of the bad memories with the good ones, his mom had said.

But it was difficult when the bad ones had become embedded in his heart like shrapnel.

A flurry of movement on the sidewalk caught Carter’s eye.

A six-foot-tall Dalmatian wearing a gaudy plaid tuxedo was handing out candy canes along the parade route. Dash, the animal shelter’s official mascot, was a fixture at events like this and never failed to attract a crowd of his own.

Carter watched Dash pause in front of an attractive young woman and two little girls. Everyone who’d turned out for the parade boasted more layers than Karen’s beef Wellington, but Carter recognized Anna Leighton and her twin daughters immediately. The Leightons were the only family in town with hair the color of a newly minted penny.

Anna reached for a candy cane, but Dash was faster. In a daring move, he planted a kiss on the back of Anna’s hand...and instantly blew his cover.

Liam Kane.

Carter still hadn’t sent back the response card for the couple’s Christmas Eve wedding. Maybe because he was still trying to figure out why he’d been invited.

Liam and his brothers ran Castle Falls Outfitters a few miles outside of town, but their paths hadn’t crossed until Aiden, the youngest of the three, was involved in a hit-and-run.

Aiden had a reputation for being a daredevil, so his claim that a vehicle had forced him off the road had been met with skepticism in the community...and in his own family.

Carter had believed the guy, though. There were times when his own survival had been dependent on his ability to discern whether or not a person was telling the truth, and something in Aiden’s story had pushed Carter to do a little more digging.

When the driver of the vehicle turned out to be the younger brother of one of the teens Aiden had been mentoring, he’d decided not to press charges.

Carter had heard that both Justin and Tim Wagner had been spending a lot of time with the Kane family since then, learning how to build canoes and maybe some valuable life skills, as well. A risky move on Aiden’s part—believing in second chances—and Carter hoped the boys wouldn’t take advantage of it.

His role in the case had officially ended when he’d filed his report, but apparently the Kane family thought they owed him something for doing his job. Hence the invitation to the wedding.

But as far as Carter was concerned, weddings ranked right up there with Christmas.

If it were up to him, he’d happily skip them both.

Dash moved to the next family and Carter did a double take.

The child standing next to the Leightons looked familiar, too.

Because it was his child...

Thank you, Mom.

Relief poured through Carter as his gaze cut to the woman standing next to Dash. He choked back a laugh.

Not only had she brought Bea to the parade, his mom must have taken his daughter’s advice on what to wear for the occasion.

The knee-length down coat Karen insisted would never go out of style had, at least a decade ago. A leather bomber hat, complete with fur-lined earflaps, had been a Christmas present from Bea the previous year. The gaudy purple-and-red scarf that covered her face from nose to chin, a thank-you gift from a knitting group that had stayed at the inn.

Carter glanced in the rearview mirror just in time to see the woman standing next to Anna’s twins lift her face toward the sky. The scarf slipped a few inches and Carter almost stomped on the brake, which would have made him responsible for a massive pileup of reindeer and musical instruments he would have been hard-pressed to explain to his supervisor.

Several people in the crowd shifted position, blocking Carter’s view, but he knew he hadn’t been imagining things. A delicate profile. A swatch of hair as dark and glossy as a coffee bean.

Ellery. Incognito.

Carter’s grip tightened on the steering wheel.

Why had she brought Bea to the parade?

A question you’d probably know the answer to if you’d listened to your mom’s voice mail, an inner voice chided.

But Carter had been helping a young mother locate the car keys her toddler had tossed in a snowbank a few minutes before the parade started and then a guy had tried to drive around the barricade...

Now he wished he’d taken the time.

It wasn’t that Carter didn’t trust his mom’s judgment. He did. What he didn’t trust was the tiny spark of something that flickered to life whenever Ellery was nearby. Like finding an ember in the ashes of a fire you thought had been stamped out.

He’d been burned once before, though, when he’d listened to his heart and not his head.

“Look, Miss El’ry.” Bea’s voice dropped to an almost reverent whisper as they strolled down one of the snowy paths fanning out from the pavilion after the parade. “Ponies!”

Ellery followed the little girl’s gaze to a sleigh parked under a nearby lamppost. She smiled at the description. Not ponies, but a matched pair of coal-black Friesians. The team stood shoulder to shoulder, their breath creating plumes of frost in the air. The bearded driver, clad in a buffalo-check flannel shirt and bib overalls, resembled the lumberjacks in the sepia photographs on display in Karen’s gathering room.

Ellery was about to suggest they walk over and say hello, but Bea had already changed direction. Ellery’s feet almost slid out from under her as she struggled to keep up.

The driver flicked the brim of his wool cap when they approached. “Good evening, ladies. Stanley Potter at your service. Are you ready for a little jaunt around the park?”

Bea clapped her hands over her mouth and the only sound that slipped out was a tiny squeak.

Ellery laughed. “I think that means yes.”

“Up you go, then.” Stanley held out a gloved hand and helped them onto a narrow wooden bench behind the driver’s seat. “Diamond and Opal will be happy to take you on a scenic tour of the town.”

He clicked his tongue and the team lurched forward, the rows of tiny silver bells attached to their leather harnesses playing a merry tune.

She studied the storefronts as the sleigh turned onto main street, hoping to see her brothers’ last name on one of the signs. Ellery’s brief online search before she’d left home hadn’t yielded any clues as to what her brothers did for a living, nor did they show up on any of the popular social media sites.

But then again, Ellery didn’t, either. Her parents had stressed the importance of connecting with people face-to-face and encouraged Ellery to do the same.

But what if there’d been more to it than that? What if they’d been afraid that her biological family would somehow find her?

Even as the thought sprang into Ellery’s head, it felt like a betrayal.

Lord, I’m questioning everything these days...

“Whoa!”

Ellery grabbed Bea’s hand as Stanley pulled back on the reins.

The team tossed their heads in response to the abrupt command but obeyed. The center of the street seemed like an unusual place to stop, so Ellery leaned forward.

“Is something wrong?”

“I’m not sure,” came the cheerful response. “We’ve never been pulled over before.”