The next morning was a Tuesday, but I decided to postpone my shopping until Thursday. It meant a few more days on the floor, but I think at that point my body had simply surrendered to the torture. That and Thursday was the only day that week when we'd have just one room occupied at the inn.

The Elliots left Wednesday, and the Ramirezes were staying until Friday morning. After that, we'd have a few brief hours to prepare before the tidal wave of weekend guests arrived. With only one couple to entertain on Thursday, it seemed like the most advantageous time to step out of the house.

To prepare, I spent all my free time on Tuesday and Wednesday plowing through the work I was supposed to be doing back in the city. My reports and forecasts for clients' stock portfolios became a rather tedious chore by the end of Wednesday night. However, looking out my window to watch Jordan haul out strings of lights or armfuls of wreaths made the task a bit more enjoyable.

With Gina's notes now in hand, he moved at lightning speed, pulling out a couple artificial trees for inside the house and adorning the railings and rooftop with sparkling white lights. Wreaths with large crimson bows sat in front of every window and simple electric candles decorated each sill. Christmas had finally come to the Hound and Sparrow.

"You sure you don't want me to take you to the station? I can watch the inn tonight. I won't even charge you for it."

Jordan spared a quick sideways glance and a playful smirk before returning his attention to the road before us. We cruised along the main street, which was bedecked with wreathes, garlands, and bows. It was all very festive and the Christmas music pouring out of Jordan's radio accompanied it nicely. A man with a rich, cheerful voice was singing a delightful tune that repeatedly wished the listener a holly, jolly Christmas. Before I realized it, a content smile had found its way to my face, and it remained there until the decorations tapered off as we shifted from the touristy town's center to the utilitarian strip malls for the locals.

"The offer is, once again, appreciated, but, really, there's no point. It's not worth the hours on the train just to stand in front of a closet that doesn't particularly have any better clothes than what I have now. My wardrobe is meant for boardrooms, not for trekking through Small Town, USA."

"I can't even imagine you in a suit at this point." He shook his head and a light laugh danced on his lips.

"Why not?" I looked in the side-view mirror, finding myself a bit worse for wear, thanks to the stress of the past few days. "This is not what I usually look like."

"Sure, I know, but it's the only version of you I'm familiar with."

"You've seen me in a suit. I'd come straight from work that first night I was here."

"Yeah and I had trouble seeing you then, since all I could really see was the color red." We turned down another side street and what looked to be a large shopping plaza stood a few blocks away. "It was also dark, and I was tired. And you know what, you may only know yourself as a woman with a nice suit and her hair pinned back, but I like the you that wears jeans, a sweater, and a messy bun. She's a lot nicer than that woman I met that first night."

"I suppose it is far more comfortable." I looked back at my reflection, trying to remind myself of what I looked like in a blouse and blazer.

Jordan dropped me off in front of a department store that he claimed was all reasonably priced, as it was more intended for the locals rather than tourists. Though he added, in the summer when campers flooded the streets, it saw a lot more action from out-of-towners than it did from the typical inn-going crowd.

He then headed off to pick up a few things from the hardware store on the other side of the plaza. As for me, I took a deep breath and made my way inside.

On one side of the expansive store were groceries and a pharmacy, while on the other side they had clothing and home goods. To my great fortune, the women's section was front and center, though I had to navigate through some of the junior's clothing before finding racks more in line with my tastes.

I grabbed a few pairs of pants, including a couple pairs of jeans to try on, as well as several shirts and a proper winter coat. With a shopping cart full of wares, I headed off to find a fitting room, only to end up doing circles somewhere near electronics.

"I've been by here twice now," I grumbled. "Where are the fitting rooms?"

"They're in the back by the active wear. We're talking about getting them moved one of these days, but something else more pressing comes up and so there they remain."

I jumped a little in surprise and then turned to find Tim standing behind me in a crisp button-up shirt and a pair of khakis. Pinned to his chest was a rectangular badge with his name and the title of manager denoted below it. He greeted my a bright, infectious smile.

"Hey Lyn, how's it going?"

"All right, just getting clothes, since I can't keep wearing the same thing every day."

"Wow, really?" His smile grew even wider, and it hid his eyes behind his bright red cheeks. Give that man a couple more decades and he would be a perfect Santa. "Does that mean you're thinking of staying?"

"Well, I mean, I'm going to be staying longer than expected, but I'll have to go home sometime."

"Ah." His face dropped and his eyes looked at his shoes. "So you're still planning to sell it, then?" He sighed, then looked up with a forced smile. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to sound like I'm upset about it. I suppose I was just hopeful."

"You wouldn't be the only one." I tried to keep a groan out of my voice.

"It's not your fault," he said with a shake of his head. "I understand why you'd want to sell. You have a life elsewhere. One that's far different from our life here. No one can expect you to just pick up and move all because someone you never even knew used to live here. It's just..." He sighed and shoved his hands into his pockets. "It's just that she always used to talk about little Maddie. She... she was my karaoke partner. Whenever she had a free night, we'd go to the karaoke bar and sing until they kicked us out. Sometimes she'd drink and her tongue would get loose. You know, everyone in town was ignorant of Gina's past and I can't say I'm any different, but when she had a bit to drink she'd talk about things she wouldn't normally."

"Like what?" My brow rose with curiosity, and my interest brought me a step closer to Tim.

"She'd go on and on about how much she missed you. For a while I thought maybe you had died. I mean, that's how little she told us about her family. But she eventually admitted that you were out there somewhere and she'd never see you again. She'd tell me over and over again about the day she got to hold you in her arms and how sweet your laughter was. She said your smile was the first thing she thought of in the morning and the last thing she saw before she fell asleep."

"She..." Words hurt as they tried to break past a lump in my throat. I coughed a couple of times to dislodge it, but it still pulled at my voice. "She ever say why she never got to see me again?"

"No." A sympathetic frown pulled at his lips as he shook his head. "She wised up and realized the drink was helping her slip into places she didn't want to be. So she kept to water and after that it was all smiles and song. Which is great, you know, but I'm just sad she never got to say what she needed to say."

I nodded my head, but I didn't have any words for him. We stood there in silence as a couple of other customers passed by and said hi to Tim. Eventually, he spoke up again.

"Well," he said with a consoling sort of cheerfulness, "she'd just be so happy to know you were even in that house, Lyn. I mean it. She would be over the moon to know family got to live in her home."

"That's great," I said with a fragile smile. "I'm glad I can offer her that." I cleared my throat and looked to the back of the store, where a sign for active wear hung. "I should go try these on. Jordan's probably done with his shopping by now, and I don't want to keep him waiting."

"Of course," he said with a genuine grin on his face. "Now you go to lane four when you're ready. I'll have Lauren ring you up with my employee discount. Think of it as a thank you gift for taking care of the inn while you're here."

"Okay, thank you Tim."

He gave me a wave, and I turned for the fitting room. Once secured inside the little stall, I took a seat on the simple bench and placed my face in my hands.

It had been a while since I allowed myself to mourn someone's death.