Holly, Jolly, and Oh So Naughty (Festive Flames)
Holly, Jolly, and Oh So Naughty: Chapter 8

Knowing I shouldn’t put any stock into how successful dinner was with Lily and actually preventing myself from doing so are two different things.

Ever since dinner, I’ve been unable to get her out of my head way more than normal. The image of her in that stunning red dress is on constant rotation in my mind, as is how good it felt to sit and talk with her again. Like always, she made me feel seen. Like I was the most important person in her entire world just for a few hours, and it was like no time at all had passed.

I kept bracing myself for her to ask why I had left and why I had gone back with my father, but the question never came. That was probably a good thing, as I think the night would have taken a different turn had our conversation gone that route.

Luckily, everything stayed fun and dare I say, romantic. My feelings for Lily are still as strong as ever, though I was unclear on exactly how she was feeling. Her smiles felt like little secrets that I needed to earn.

Our ‘date’ had gone down well at work too, since the very next day I turned up to work, Margret was all over the news. She kept telling me over and over again how wonderful Lily is and how I’d made an excellent choice. It also made her very understanding about fielding calls from my mother as, in her words, Lily is far too gentle to be subjected to an overbearing mother until she’s ready. People in this town really have a lot of respect for Lily, and it shows.

So, my job is no longer on the line, and I am no longer seen as someone bringing in trouble. Instead, Margret and Taylor are happy to help me dodge my overbearing mother, and after a quick Google search, Taylor was able to forward the call back to herself. That loop gave us a few days of peace as my mother tried to work out how she kept calling herself.

One thing I didn’t count on was how quickly the news would spread around town. When I was out shopping for groceries, people I had never seen before came up to talk to me like we were old friends, and they all had something in common.

They all praise me and congratulate me on dating Lily. She’s a sweetheart, a great catch, deserving of love and more. The more I go about my day, the more I learn just how loved she is in town. Deirdre from the bookstore stopped me in the butcher’s for twenty minutes to tell me all about Lily’s favorite books and how to surprise her with stories. Aaron from the convenience store told me all the details about her favorite snacks and how often she comes in for bottles of wine.

Heather at the pharmacy warned me that breaking Lily’s heart would get me castrated and chased out of town, while Frank from the candy store told me that Emma is the key to Lily’s heart.

Lily’s family is huge. Everyone in this town looks out for each other, and this is no different. While it’s overwhelming in some areas, it’s rather wholesome in others.

And it gives me a bottomless pit in my stomach when I consider the consequences of people learning that our date was fake. This spurred me to reach out to Lily, but that thought slips from my mind when I return to the inn one night and replace none other than Emma at the front desk pressing the stamp against various ink-covered sheets of paper.

“Well, hi.” I smile at her as I approach the front desk. “Are you the new hire?”

“Yep!” Emma waves the stamp high in the air, then brings it down onto the paper. “Gotta make sure the stamps work.”

“Oh, of course.” I nod quickly. “Is your mom here?” I glance behind Emma and see David busy on the phone. If Emma is here, it’s not much of a leap to expect Lily to be around the corner, but Emma shakes her head and my heart sinks.

“Mommy’s working.”

“Oh, of course.”

“She’s got some big–some big project that she has to finish so I get to come here and make sure only good people get in!”

“Am I allowed in?” I grin.

Emma tilts her head and squints up at me, then she slams the stamp down onto the paper. “Proceed!”

Chuckling, I’m about to head to my room when something catches in my mind. “You’re mom’s working on a big project, you say?”

Emma nods seriously. “Big pigs in the city.”

“Do you mean big wigs?”

Emma’s eyes narrow. “No, they’re big pigs. Says so on her page.”

“Her page?”

Never have I felt so utterly useless as the moment Emma pulls my phone out of my hand, types something in, and then hands it back. The Instagram page on display is indeed for Big Pigs in the City, a butcher shop celebrating its sixtieth anniversary.

“Big pigs,” Emma states firmly. “Mommy’s making them their fancy cake.” She climbs up onto the counter and leans over my arm, then taps a few buttons and pulls up the page for Sweet Noel. A half-second of scrolling and Emma brings up some pictures of a half-finished pig made entirely out of cake. Lily poses in the picture with an icing mustache, and I can’t help but laugh.

“Wow, that’s amazing. That whole pig is a cake?”

“Mmmhmm. Mommy’s also making sugar snap bacon. I got to taste test!” Emma slides carefully back into her seat and returns to her stamping while I scroll through the account.

The page is filled with mouthwatering desserts, cakes, and designs that are almost hard to believe are edible. There’s an entire toaster that looks so real until the next picture shows Lily cutting into it with a large knife. Back when I knew Lily, cooking was her passion. She’d talk animatedly about her dreams of becoming a top chef, and cake decorating was only a hobby, a way to disconnect from the stress of the kitchen.

It’s amazing to see that hobby become a career for her.

“Well, thank you for showing me,” I say to Emma. “I know exactly who to reach out to the next time I need a fancy cake to celebrate something. Or a youngster to help me with my phone, apparently.”

I’d never considered myself unskilled with social media, but it barely factors into my life other than seeking out websites on a browser. It never occurred to me to replace Lily on social media.

Suddenly, the outer door swings open. At first, I barely spare the man a glance Until I recognize him. Just as I do, Emma slides off her chair and runs to him with a cheer.

It’s the man from the bakery. The one I saw hugging Lily. The way Emma runs to him and hugs him with a gigantic smile on her face confirms my fear. This is Emma’s father. It’s got to be.

“Hey, sport. I’m here to pick you up. Your mom’s gonna be working later than she intended but she wants me to bring you to the bakery, sound good?”

“Okay!” Emma nods quickly, but something prevents me from leaving.

“I’m sorry, who are you?” I ask, approaching the man.

“I’m Mark. Who are you?”

“Sorry, I just… I know Lily, and I know Emma, but I don’t know you and I’m not sure how comfortable I am with your just coming in here and taking Emma.”

“He’s a teacher!” Emma declares with adorable innocence, and I would maybe let this go if I weren’t desperate to get some clue as to who this man really is.

“Lily and I go way back,” Mark says, and his face stiffens. “Call her if you don’t believe me.”

I hesitate. I don’t have her number and had been planning on asking her father to give it to me, or using the number for Sweet Noel after I’d Googled what it was.

“I’m not trying to accuse you of anything,” I reply stiffly. “It’s just strange to me because I don’t know you.”

“And I don’t know you, pal,” Mark snaps. “Who the hell are you, anyway?”

“It doesn’t matter who I am. You’re the one who’s wandered in off the streets and is trying to take Emma without even speaking to her grandparents. Bit strange.”

“Listen, pal, I don’t need to explain anything to you because Emma is my responsibility, understand?”

Before I can reply, Hillary appears from the dining room and smiles widely. “Mark! How lovely to see you. Are you here for dinner?”

So, he’s known to them.

Mark shoots me a withering glare, then smiles widely at Hillary. “Not tonight, no. I’m here to collect Emma.”

The heavy realization that I may have just accosted Emma’s father, someone who would be prominent in Lily’s life, weighs on my shoulders, so I head for the stairs and leave them to it.

As I climb, I catch snippets of talk about a daddy/daughter dance that makes Emma squeal excitedly, and my heart sinks.

Fooling myself into thinking I have a chance with Lily is dangerous, but our date went so well that it’s impossible not to get caught up in the old feelings resurfacing with new ones.

And now there’s Mark. Mark who has the family I should have had.

Being forced to leave Lily all those years ago is the biggest regret of my life.

But I’m going to fix it.

Mark be damned.