Caden gave Jocelyn one last smile and then slowly pulled his Corvette away from the curb. She was no longer the kid he had left. Over the years, she had become a beautiful woman. But he quickly pushed the thought aside. He couldn’t allow himself thoughts like that. If Mallory said yes, then Jocelyn would become his sister-in-law. She was definitely off limits. He took a deep breath to clear his mind and then headed over to Mallory and Jocelyn’s old house.

It would be strange not to have their father greet him at the door with his serious snarl. But of course, Caden had only been eighteen then and Mallory’s father had always viewed him as a guy trying to steal his daughter’s virtue. But it wasn’t like that. Caden had always respected Mallory and had never tried anything with her, other than kissing. They had had plenty of make-out sessions while they were dating, but it had never gone any farther. Caden wanted to be married to her before they did anything more.

As he drove through the main street of Christmas Cove, past the storefronts that said Santa’s Workshop and the Ornaments Galore store that were both open all year, he felt like he was truly home for the first time in a long time. While he was growing up, shops like these always screamed commercialism, but now it just said home.

As if it knew where to go, the Corvette pulled out of town and followed the backroads to Mallory’s house. Snow-laden tree limbs covered the road that would be green this summer, creating a canape over the road. In autumn, the branches turned into a canape of color. He knew he should go see his parents first, but he had waited all this time to see Mallory and he didn’t want to wait another minute.

Soon, he pulled down the road leading to their house and a Camaro was sitting in the driveway. Instinctively, Caden knew it belonged to Mallory. His heart fluttered as he pulled his car to a stop behind hers. He turned off the engine but didn’t get out.

Memories flooded his mind as he looked up at the white, two-story house. The pond in the back of the property that he knew was there was where he had spent many hours with Mallory, or with Jocelyn when Mallory wasn’t there. The wooden front porch that spanned the width of the house held a lot of memories for him, too. It was where he had sat with Mallory at the top of the stairs and they shared their first kiss… and it was also where she had broken up with him. Looking at the porch and paging through memories, he knew he never really had gotten over the devastation that Mallory had inflicted upon him when she told him that she had never loved him and that she never wanted to see him again. And now, he sat in his car, parked in her driveway, feeling like that same brokenhearted schoolboy.

He was about to pull away when the door opened. Mallory stepped out onto the porch, her dark brown hair radiating reddish highlights in the sunlight. She narrowed her eyes, trying to see who was in the car, as she pulled her sweater around her. When she saw it was him, a broad smile spread across her lips and she motioned for him to come in.

His heart fluttered with just the simple gesture. Caden got out of the car and closed the door behind him. “Hello, Mallory. It’s been a long time.”

She smiled and nodded. “A long time.” She quickly recovered herself and replied, “What am I doing?” She bounded toward him down the stairs, reminding him of a happy St. Bernard puppy, and threw her arms around him. “Caden, it’s good to see you!” She reached up to give him a kiss, but he turned, giving her his cheek instead, not sure what he wanted.

“It’s good to see you, too,” he replied.

Mallory pulled him toward the house, her long wavy hair swinging over her shoulders, her makeup done to perfection, as usual. “Come on in! I don’t have a lot of time right now. I’m going to a photoshoot, but we can talk for a little bit.”

Caden suddenly felt overwhelmed and he needed a minute to process. “I don’t want to hold you up. Maybe we can get together later on tonight, if you don’t have any plans.”

She shook her head as a broad grin spread across her lips. “No, not at all. At least, as long as the photographer gets what he wants.” She stood straighter and cocked her head to the side, obviously knowing the effect she thought she had on men. “You want me to call you when we wrap?” She looked up at him and batted her eyes.

Caden smiled. “Sure. That sounds good.”

“Great!” She held out her hand. “Give me your phone.” Caden did as she asked. She clicked a few numbers, and then handed it back to him. “I put my number in your phone and then texted myself. I’ll call you later.”

He nodded, unable to believe she was able to do that in just a few seconds. “What would you like to do tonight?”

She shrugged. “Surprise me.” Then she looked into his eyes. “Caden, it was good seeing you again.”

But obviously not good enough to cancel her plans, even though he wouldn’t have wanted her to just for him. But still… “I’ll see you later.”

He started to turn away, when she planted a kiss on his lips, catching him off guard. “Until then,” she breathed and then skipped back up onto the porch. She turned around and blew him a kiss.

After giving her a slight smile, he climbed back into his car and shut the door. He started the engine, finding himself in a hurry to leave, even though he wasn’t sure why. He had waited all these years to see her again, and now, he couldn’t wait to get away.

As he backed out the drive and onto the street, he guessed that the old saying was true that you couldn’t go back home again. When he was younger, he was infatuated with her glamor and her flirtations. But now, she no longer had the same effect on him. He was no longer a boy and could see past beauty. And so far, he didn’t like what he saw.

Caden pushed on the gas, backed out of the driveway, and headed back toward town, wanting to see the sights before heading over to his parents’ house. He was lucky that his parents were still alive and well. On one hand, it would be nice to live near them again, to help them out. But on the other hand, he wondered if he wanted to live in a town again that’s main form of capitalism was Christmas. But now that he was here, he knew he could easily get used to it again.

He drove back through the winter wonderland of ice and snow that covered everything, as if ordered specifically for the town, enjoying the festive feel. Somehow, Christmases away just didn’t compare. And whether he stayed or not, he was glad he’d be spending the holidays here in Christmas Cove.

Soon, he pulled back into the town square, enjoying the Danish and Swiss architecture that added to the town’s appeal. The Christmas tree lot was set up in the town square under a wooden overhang in the center of town. He pulled to a stop and turned off the engine. His father was busy with a customer, so he waited in the car until he finished, not wanting to distract him from his customer. There were a few other men working the tree lot, too. Business must have been booming.

His family owned the local tree lot and it had become their primary source of income. His father had hoped that Caden would take over the family business one day, but was equally thrilled when Caden had decided to join the Navy. His father, Noah, was an ex-Navy man, too, and was thrilled when he had told him that he was going to serve. But what he was most proud of was that Caden had decided to serve his country… no matter which branch of the service he chose.

He looked over and his mother, Emma, was sitting in a lawn chair, watching. There were other customers, but she was sitting. So unlike his mother. He wondered if something was wrong. Most of the other men were helping customers and one was carrying a tree to a lady’s car.

Caden decided to chance his father losing a sale and got out of the car. As soon as he closed the door, his mother’s eyes brightened and she slowly rose to her feet. Guilt rushed through him when he noticed how frail she looked, mentally kicking himself for not having visited sooner. She held onto the back of the chair as tears came to her eyes.

“Stay there, Mom. I’m coming to you.” Caden rushed across the tree lot and scooped his mother into his arms, letting her sob onto his chest. “Mom, it’s okay. I’m here.” Tears came to his own eyes, too. How could he have waited so long to come back?

His father walked over and rubbed her back. Tears were in his eyes, too, when he looked up at Caden. “Emma, come on back and sit down.” Then he looked up at his son in warning. “I’m sure Caden’s going to be staying for a while. At least through Christmas.”

“Yes, Mom. I’m going to be here for Christmas.” Then he scooped his mother into his arms with ease and carried her back to her chair.

“Ooohh. You didn’t have to do that.” She patted his arm as her eyes shone with pride. “But I’m so glad that you’ll be here for the holidays. We’ll have a good ol’ fashioned Christmas.”