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Chapter 35
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2021-03-11 13:05:52Memory’s lungs were burning as she fought for air. Between the laughing and the running, she couldn’t draw a solid breath, but once there were a few other teams between themselves and Kirsten and Maison, Dak stopped, doubling over as he was also caught in a fit of laughter. He let go of her arm, and it suddenly felt as if Memory were missing a part of herself.
“Focus,” Memory managed to get out. Her cheeks were beginning to ache from so much joking around in the cold. “We don’t even have a game plan.”
“Do we need one?” He was beginning to regain his ability to breathe, still grinning at her.
“Sure,” Memory said, dropping the bag on the ground between them. “Who’s going to make what part of the snowman? Do we have enough snow right here? What is this snowman wearing? How will we make sure the leashes aren’t too heavy for his faux stick a
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Christmas Memory Chapter 36
“Huh? Oh, yeah.” She shook her head, pulling her thoughts away from where they’d drifted to, the fact that her grandma wasn’t there with the rest of the family, and then turned to consider where she should start rolling the bottom so that it would end up where she wanted it to. With a decent plan, she dug in, gathering as much snow as she could into her arms and then working it into a ball, though it was wider than it was tall. She worked it around the ground in their area, noticing Dak had moved away a bit to start on the middle so they wouldn’t be needing the same snow. In the back of her mind, she noted he’d called her Mem, something no one had ever done before. It was odd—but she sort of liked it, kind of like when her dad called her Ree.Memory rolled up what she thought was enough snow for the bottom and then backed up a minute to look at it. She glanced at Dak and saw he had the middle and was working on t
Last Updated : 2021-03-11Christmas Memory Chapter 37
“Or not,” Dak replied in response to her statement. “It looks great, Mem. Come on. Let’s get the hat and the dogs. Oh—and the arms.”“All right.” She wasn’t completely satisfied, but she knew he was right. There were other things that needed to come first. She took the hat, which had the same logo for the humane society, and put it on top, melding the edges into his head so it would stay put so long as a huge wind gust didn’t come along--like the one the other day that had caught her off guard.Dak had the faux twig arms inserted. “Is that deep enough?” he asked, scrutinizing his work.“I think so. This one needs to go in a little bit more because it’ll be holding the leashes.” Memory gave the snowman’s right arm a few more twists. “All right—did you get collars, or just leashes?”“G
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Dak reached over and put his hand on her arm, squeezing it slightly. She looked up at him, sinking into his chocolate brown eyes. He didn’t say anything, only held her glance for a second, and then let go, getting up to go start hooking the dogs to the snowman. He didn’t have to say anything, though. The brief contact, even through her coat, had been enough to let her know how he felt, and a rush of warmth rippled to her core, understanding and support renewing her strength in a way she hadn’t experienced since Grandma had left her.Memory couldn’t dwell on it. She had to finish the snowman. Leaving the dogs to Dak, she cleared the bags and other items out of the way, taking all of the trash from the collars and leashes and as many empty bags as she could and shoving them inside of one another until she was left with one small brown paper bag with handles. She moved that aside and started working on the snow.It
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Lots of other snowmen and snowwomen dotted the landscape, and there were several spectacular entries. Her family was standing in a group, including Ellie and Anson, just behind Memory, but they seemed content to give her and Dak some space, so Memory stood where she was and thought about their chances of winning. It wasn’t about the prize for her; it was about the message. She just hoped people were getting it.Dak leaned in close to her ear. “People are talking about our snowman....”“They are?” She hadn’t been listening to anyone else’s conversations, but as she tuned in to what the others were saying, she did notice a lot of people pointing and mentioning how cute it was. She also heard people talking about the shirt and hat and how clever it was to put the logo on it. Memory’s face lit up. Maybe even if they didn’t win, they could do some good.She felt a hand o
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Cornerstone Baptist Church was nicely decorated for Christmas, with three large trees on the stage behind the pastor, twinkling with white lights, red and gold trimmings reflecting the Christmas spirit. That wasn’t what was keeping Dak’s mind from focusing on the sermon though—it was the woman sitting in the pew in front of him, all the way at the other end. He knew he needed to listen to what the pastor was saying, but Memory looked so beautiful in the bright blue sweater she was wearing. It made her eyes glitter like sapphires. Not that she’d even looked at him for more than a few seconds. But for Dak, it had been enough to keep his mind wandering.Ellie was sitting next to him, one of her new friends and the woman’s husband on the other side, and they were all captivated by the sermon. Who wouldn’t be this time of year? The story of how God sent his son to Earth as a tiny baby who would save the world was one of the
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Dak didn’t bother to stop and grab his coat off of the wrack where he’d hung it when he and Ellie had first come in. Memory wasn’t in the hall anymore, which meant she’d probably already made it outside. The faint scent of vanilla lingered in the air near the doorway, so he knew she’d come this way. He squeezed around a few people chatting and finally made it out the exit. Not even feeling the cold air, he stepped out into the snow and looked around. Memory’s Accord was headed out of the parking lot. Dak dragged his hand down his face....“You didn’t catch her?”Ellie’s voice made him jump. “Where did you come from?” He hadn’t even seen her trying to leave the sanctuary. It was like she had just appeared next to him.“Originally? Hoboken.” She rested her hand on his arm, no longer joking. “Honey, I’m sorry. I guess she
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The scent of cardboard was overpowering, and Memory was ready to get out of the stock room. She felt like she’d spent the last two days in there—opening boxes and repackaging ornaments to ship out. When the order had come in Saturday afternoon, she’d been thrilled. The handmade ornaments she’d purchased from a local crafter almost two years ago had been taking up space in the storage room for far too long, and now, they’d be decorating a tree in Buffalo that had lost a lot of ornaments in a recent snow storm. Still, she’d be happy when she was done boxing everything up so she could get the ornaments in the mail and get back to enjoying the season.The sound of the bell on the front door let her know her first customer of the morning had arrived—at least, that’s what she was assuming from her view of cardboard and bubble wrap. While part of her was glad to be leaving the cramped work space for a few minutes,
Last Updated : 2021-03-11Christmas Memory Chapter 43
“It’s snowing. Hard.” Memory stood next to the front window of her shop, watching the snow plummet to the earth like the down of an angry goose.“It’s fine,” Ellie assured her, straightening the items behind the cash register. “Caroling is better with a little snow.”“This isn’t a little snow. Look at it, Ellie. It’s practically a white out.”Ellie chuckled. “Honey, just because you don’t like to sing, that doesn’t mean you should let it ruin your evening. You haven’t had much time to see Dak at all this week, and if I recall, he’s not going to be here too much longer. You should probably spend your time wisely.”Memory pulled herself away from the window and checked the clock again. It was a quarter till 5:00. She’d be locking up soon, heading home to eat dinner and put on as many layers
Last Updated : 2021-03-11
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Christmas Memory Epilogue
Helen perched on the windowsill right outside of the ballroom, Ann on one side and Joe on the other. Coming to earth to visit her family disguised as a bird had taken a little bit of getting used to, but she was glad Michael had agreed to let her drop in from time to time since she’d done such a good job of fixing the meet-cute gone wrong. Of course, he didn’t know Helen had actually been on her way back to heaven when Memory and Dak worked out the final conflict themselves, but none of that would’ve happened if Helen hadn’t taken on the assignment to begin with. As long as nothing else went awry, Helen’s great-great-great-granddaughter would discover a way to virtually eliminate cancer. Of course, that wasn’t Helen’s primary focus for now. She chirped happily as she peered in the window, glad to see the house in even better shape now than it had been when she and Joe had bought it right after they got married.I
Christmas Memory Chapter 72
Opening the book to the page where the feathers were placed, she squinted to see if there was anything particularly important about that entry. Reading by the light of the Christmas decorations behind her, she felt as if she could hear her grandma’s voice echoing in her ear with each word.I do worry about Memory. We are so close. When I pass away, which hopefully won’t be for many years, I am afraid she will be lonely without me. She is an old soul for someone so young, and she has given up so many opportunities in her life because she is so attached to me and this town. I do hope, one day, she will meet someone who is as generous and caring as she is, who gives so freely of themselves, and who appreciates history and tradition the way my sweet Memory does. I fear she may never give anyone a fair chance to prove himself to her, though. If I am still alive when he comes along, I’ll have to do my best to conv
Christmas Memory Chapter 71
She didn’t—the number was disconnected. Memory held her phone away from her face and stared at it, listening to the obnoxious tone on the other end and the message telling her she’d dialed incorrectly on repeat. Pressing the button to disconnect the call, she rested the phone against her chin. Part of her thought perhaps Ellie had been a figment of her imagination—but other people had seen her, spoken to her, interacted with her. None of it made any sense....Memory put her phone down and grabbed her purse, remembering what Ellie had said right before she left. The journal. She’d mentioned she should read it. Maybe Ellie wrote her a message in the journal to explain what was going on. She opened her bag and dug through it, feeling around in all of the mess, but the journal wasn’t jumping out. “What in the world?”She turned on the overhead light and opened her bag wide, pulling out the lar
Christmas Memory Chapter 70
No longer thinking linearly, Memory took off for the back of the store, grabbing her coat and shoving her arms into it, dragging the insurance policy through the sleeve with her fist. She snatched up her purse and dug for her keys, running to the back door and flying through it, barely getting it shut before she jammed the key in to lock it.Her car sputtered when she turned it over. “Not now! Come on Bertha, let’s go.” The second time, it cranked, so she said another quick thank you to heaven before throwing on her seatbelt and backing down the alley a ways before she flung the shifter into drive and took off headed for the Candy Cane Lane Inn.The sun was beginning to set, and Christmas lights glowed from every yard and rooftop, but she didn’t pay any attention as she concentrated on getting to her destination as quickly as possible without breaking too many driving laws. She found a parking spot on the street
Christmas Memory Chapter 69
Eventually, Memory managed to get control of herself again, though her throat continued to spasm as she choked stuttered breaths through her constricted airway. She felt around for her phone and found it between two boxes, figuring she must’ve dropped it when Dak had hung up. She didn’t even want to hear his voice at the moment, but she was curious about that second message he said he’d left. Her hands were shaking as she dialed into her voicemail.“Hey, Mem. Are you okay? I’m at the store, but the door’s locked. It’s not 3:00 yet. I hope you’re not upset about Ellie. I know how much you’re going to miss her. Me, too. Listen, I wanted to tell you in person, but since I don’t know where you are, and you might need some good news about now, you should know, I found something you’ve been looking for at your grandma’s house. I think you’re going to want this piece of paper I have i
Christmas Memory Chapter 68
As soon as he was gone, the tears sprang free. Memory swiped at them with both hands before she slammed her fists into the counter. It all suddenly made sense—Dak had to have known about the house all along! He was never interested in her. He just wanted the house with the perfect ballroom. Beardly was probably an associate of his.It wasn’t 3:00 yet, but Memory was done. She flew across the room to the door and locked it, flipping the sign as she went, and then switched off the lights, shooting to the back of the building where she could be alone. She went into the stock room and dropped to the floor, her arms tossed over a box, her head buried on top of them. Her shoulders shook as wave after wave of tears rippled through her.After a few minutes of thinking through the situation, she realized she wasn’t just sad—she was angry. How dare he come in here, to her town, and try to take advantage of her? To pretend
Christmas Memory Chapter 67
Thankful for a moment to herself, Memory went behind the counter and pulled out a tissue, wiping at her eyes. She waved her hands in front of her face, willing the tears to stay away. After a couple of minutes, she thought she had control over herself, repeating that she hadn’t just lost her grandmother again—Ellie was just a friend.Remembering that her phone had been ringing, she pulled it out and saw she had a missed call from Dak. “Dang it,” she mumbled, wishing she’d had a chance to talk to him. She missed him already, even though she’d seen him earlier when he stopped by to pick up her key. Hopefully, he had good news about the roof. She clicked into her voicemail and listened to his message. Though she had no idea what he was talking about, he sure sounded excited, which made her laugh.She raised her thumb to click the button to call him back when the bell chimed. Trying to hide her disappoint
Christmas Memory Chapter 66
The ticking of the clock registered in Memory’s head even over the Christmas music as it drew closer to 2:00. That’s when Ellie would be leaving, and even though she’d made Memory promise not to try to talk her into staying again, she wasn’t sure she could keep that promise.They’d been busy most of the morning into the afternoon, which hadn’t given them much time to talk. Memory was dreading the moment her new friend had to say goodbye. Despite Ellie’s inability to commit to ever coming back or willingness to tell her exactly where she was going, Memory was hopeful they’d meet again soon.The last customer from the latest rush walked out the door, bags in hand, and Memory turned her attention to the clock. She didn’t like what she saw.“I’m sorry, dear.” Ellie came around the counter, already untying her apron. “But I have to go.”
Christmas Memory Chapter 65
Dak pulled his SUV into the drive of Memory’s Victorian home, glad to see Ralph’s work truck parked to the side, a ladder propped over the west wing. He imagined the roofer was already assessing the situation. Dak checked the time. It was already almost 1:30. He’d told Ralph his meetings might run long, but he had no idea he’d be almost an hour late. Frustrated, he pulled the keys out of the ignition and dropped them in his pocket, heading up the snow covered drive.At least he’d gotten the offer on the factory put together and sent off. His agent said she thought they wouldn’t hear anything until after the first of the year, but that was understandable. It was a solid offer, and he was confident even Corbin Beardly couldn’t compete with. When he’d run into him the night before at the diner, Corbin had mentioned having something up his sleeve, said he was onto something pretty special, something Dak would b
