The next day, Maggie returned to the Bluebonnet Café through the back alley door after going home for lunch. Instead of the normal cacophony of pots and pans and sizzling grills, the kitchen was silent. She pushed open the door to the front lobby area, which was buzzing with chatter and a tense energy. Her staff intermixed with customers as they pressed their noses to the glass windows and door. The sound of police sirens filled the air out on Main Street. She’d heard the sirens when she drove up and parked in the back, but she hadn’t expected to see a commotion like this out front.

“What’s going on?” she asked one of her waitresses.

The woman blushed all the way to the roots of her bleached blonde hair. “Sorry, Maggie, but there was a robbery at the bank. We all wanted to see what was happening.” She pointed. “See—every police car in town is there. I think they cornered the robber over near Donut Daze.”

Sure enough, the three Candle Beach police cars were circled around the donut shop. She could just make out a man standing opposite the cars.

A loud crack filled the air and the crowd recoiled in horror.

“Oh my goodness,” a customer said, lifting her hand to her mouth. Her wrinkled skin had paled under rouged cheeks. “The robber fired at the police officers.” Another shot rang out.

Maggie’s world stood still and an icy chill numbed her body. Jake was at work today. If every police officer in the city had responded to the call, he would be out there. He could be injured—or worse. At that moment, it hit her how much she cared about him.

She pushed her way through the crowds to look out the window. Her heart beat triple time as she fought to see. First Brian and now Jake. Were her worst fears coming true a second time?

A crowd had gathered down the street about a block away from the donut shop. A police officer had her arms outstretched, urging them not to get any closer. Maggie ran out of the café toward the crowd. She had to know if Jake was hurt. Her eyes darted between the police cars. One officer was talking on his radio, but she didn’t see any others. No ambulance had arrived yet. Where was he?

She kept trying to peek around the police officer in charge of crowd control, but wasn’t able to see anything. At the edge of the gathering, it looked like she could make it through and get closer. She knew it was dangerous, but she didn’t care. She had to know if he was safe.

“You can’t go down there.” Gretchen’s hand held her back. Maggie stared at her friend with wild eyes.

“Jake could be over there. I can’t see what’s going on.”

“It isn’t safe, Maggie.” Her friend put an arm around her and forced her to wait. Finally, law enforcement called an all-clear and the crowd surged forward. She broke away from Gretchen and tried frantically to locate Jake.

“Maggie,” someone called to her.

An arm reached out and caught her. Jake stood before her, dressed in his police uniform, without a scratch on him. She looked over to the crowd and saw they were watching as the suspected bank robber was cuffed and put into a waiting car.

She started sobbing and her legs buckled underneath her. He caught her and pulled her close.

“I thought you were dead,” she managed to eke out.

“Oh Maggie, Maggie.” He brushed her hair back and wiped a tear away with his thumb. She pressed her face into his cupped hand, memorizing the warmth of his touch and shape of his hand. “I’m so sorry you were scared.”

She looked up at him with tears blurring her vision and blubbered, “They said there were shots fired and I knew you’d be here. I was so worried.”

Jake smiled and stroked her hair again. “He shot toward the police car, but there wasn’t anyone in it. He managed to maim the town square sign though.” He pointed to the edge of the grassy lawn.

She stared at the sign. The bullets had hit the wooden sign’s edge, splintering off some of the paint. The Chamber of Commerce would need to get it fixed.

She closed her eyes for a moment before gazing at the sign again. “So lucky no one was hurt.”

He released her and turned her around to face him. “I’ve got to get back to the crime scene.” He patted her shoulder and looked reassuringly into her eyes. “It’s okay. Everyone’s fine.”

She nodded then watched as he joined his co-workers near one of the police cars. He retrieved a clipboard from the car and scribbled something on it with a pen. He was okay. Everything was okay.

She repeated the mantra to herself, but her eyes kept returning to the mangled sign. It could have been so much worse.

She trudged back to the café. The day’s events were exactly what she’d feared. Would she have to live every day wondering if it would be the last time she’d see Jake?

* * *

She tossed and turned all night, still unsure of what she should do. The next morning would be Christmas Eve. She lay in bed and stared at the ceiling. She had a rare two days off as the café would be closed on Christmas Day. When she finally woke at seven o’clock, Alex was still in bed. She took an hour to get ready and sat down with her morning coffee and her checklist.

Her parents were hosting a Christmas Eve dinner and Jake would be attending. Her parents had met him before, but this would be the first time they spent a significant amount of time with him. What would they think of him? He was so different from Brian, but wonderful in his own way. And he loved Alex, which was a huge plus in her book.

The thought of dating again, much less being in a serious relationship, made her somewhat queasy. Things with Jake had started out serious even though they hadn’t dated long. They both knew this wasn’t some fling. As a single parent, she didn’t have the luxury of a fling. But it did feel odd to give up some of her independence.

She busied herself preparing the pies and rolls for the evening meal. She rolled out the pastry crust for a berry pie and marveled at how soothing it was to do something so simple. She probably wouldn’t have enjoyed the experience so much if she’d had to make the forty-plus pies Velma had committed them to make for customers. Her new hire, Angel, was working out well and had proven to be a talented baker, taking a huge weight off of Maggie’s shoulders.

She finished prepping the pies and put them in the oven. Next, she took out the spiral cut ham and mixed up the glaze. Brian had loved ham and she’d made it for every holiday. Did Jake like it too? There was so much she didn’t know about him, but she felt oddly close to him just the same.

* * *

Jake arrived at Maggie’s parents’ house at six o’clock on the dot. He paused on the porch and took a deep breath before knocking on the door. He’d met her parents before when dropping Alex off, but spending a holiday with them was a whole new ball game.

Maggie opened the door with her hair up in a messy bun and a white apron smudged with something brown. She wore an oven mitt on one hand. “Come in.”

He pecked her on the cheek and followed her inside. Her mother Charlene stood at the kitchen sink, drying off her hands. He handed her a bouquet of flowers.

Her face lit up. “Thank you, tulips are my favorite. How did you know?”

“Oh, a little birdie told me so.” He winked at Maggie. “What can I do to help?” He looked around the kitchen. With the exception of a pan of fudge that Maggie was cutting into, it was immaculate.

“Nothing. You’re our guest. Why don’t you head into the den with Maggie’s dad and Alex. We’ll be eating in about five minutes.

He nodded. His stomach knotted at the thought of being virtually alone with Maggie’s dad, Will. He’d had little interaction with him in the past and Will had been rather reserved.

He entered the den, where Will and Alex were watching a cartoon. Alex’s face lit up when he saw his uncle.

“Uncle Jake!” He ran over and hugged him.

Will looked at Jake with approval. “He seems quite taken with you. I’m glad you decided to stay around.”

His spirits rose. Maggie’s normally taciturn father had complimented him! He realized with a start that he hadn’t had to meet the parents of his date since he was in high school. None of his relationships as an adult had been serious enough to warrant meeting the parents or having them meet his. His stomach twisted. Things were moving fast with Maggie, but somehow it felt right. He knew without a doubt that he loved her and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. But did she feel the same way? She still had the remains of a wall up around her heart and he wasn’t sure when she’d let him break through that barrier.

He stuck his fingers in his jacket pocket and ran them along the velvety box in his pocket. He planned to give it to Maggie later that night.

“Dinner!” Charlene called.

They all sat down at the table and Maggie brought in the ham she’d prepared. Her mom followed with numerous sides.

Jake’s stomach grumbled. This feast rivaled his mother’s cooking.

“This looks delicious, Mrs. Johansen.” He dipped his fork into the pile of mashed potatoes on his plate and put some in his mouth.

“Charlene, please. I think of my mother-in-law when you call me Mrs. Johansen.” She grimaced.

“I will.” He put more food on his fork.

“Good, right?” Maggie asked. “My mom is famous for her mashed potatoes.”

He nodded, his mouth busy eating his third bite of potatoes. “Delicious.”

Charlene beamed. “It’s nice to have someone else here for the holidays. All my family live out of state and it gets lonely with just the four of us.”

“I’m happy to be here.”

“How are you liking Candle Beach?” she asked.

“I love it so far. The small-town atmosphere is really a nice change of pace from the big city.”

“Maggie tells me you’re working for the police department now. How do you like that? I’ve heard Chief Lee is good to work for.”

“So far, so good.” He chewed some ham. “I wasn’t sure what I’d do after I got out of the Army, but it seems to be a good fit for me.”

“And you plan to stay in town?” He felt Will’s eyes heavy upon him.

“Yes, sir.” He took Maggie’s hand. “I’ve been getting to know your daughter and grandson better. I plan to stay in town for a long time.” His eyes met hers and her face filled with joy.

Her father nodded. “Good.”

“Ahem.” Charlene cleared her throat and looked around the table. She gave her husband the evil eye. “We’re happy to have Jake here today. No more interrogations. Now, please pass the green bean casserole.”

He looked at her gratefully. He’d forgotten what it was like to be grilled by a girlfriend’s parents.

After dinner, he helped clear the table and then pulled Maggie aside. “When do we open presents?”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t you open presents on Christmas Eve?”

She laughed. “No, we save them for Christmas Day. I’d forgotten about the Price family tradition of opening gifts on Christmas Eve.” She put her hand on his upper arm and looked around, as if searching for any onlookers. Seeing no one, she kissed him lightly on the lips.

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist. He kissed her back and then let go. “I have a present for you, but it can wait until tomorrow.”

“I’m looking forward to it.” She tapped him on the nose with her index finger.

“So what does your family do after dinner then if you don’t open presents?”

“Aha! So you don’t know about the board game extravaganza.”

He shot her a quizzical look. “No, I must have missed that on the invitation.”

“We play Monopoly every year after dinner. We have since I was a little kid. It’s our family tradition.”

Monopoly? He shrugged. Every family had a different way of doing things, and he intended to be a part of this one for a long time, so he’d better start with the traditions now.

She grabbed his hand and led him into the family room where everyone else had gathered.

* * *

Maggie watched Jake laugh as he rolled the dice and moved his piece onto Boardwalk.

Her father smiled smugly. “You owe me six hundred dollars.”

“Highway robbery.” Jake glared at him.

She smiled, her heart filled with joy. She didn’t know what she’d been worried about. He fit in with her family, perhaps more so than Brian had. She sobered at the thought of her deceased husband. It still seemed crazy that he’d never get to see his son open Christmas presents. But it had been a long time since he died. She needed to move on, and she knew with all her heart that Jake was the right person.

Alex rolled the dice and landed on one of his grandfather’s spaces. “Oh, man.”

“Yeah, you and me both, buddy.” Jake pulled Alex against him and gave him a hug. “Your grandfather got me too.”

Alex relaxed into his chest, his face flushed from the day’s excitement.

When the game wrapped up, Maggie packed up to go home. Everyone gathered in the entry hall.

“Thanks for bringing the ham, honey,” Charlene said.

“No problem.” Maggie hugged her and then her father.

“Thank you for your hospitality.” Jake put his arm around Charlene’s shoulders and squeezed lightly, then shook Will’s hand.

Her parents smiled and waved goodbye to them, kissing Alex as he scooted past.

“Merry Christmas, Grandma and Grandpa!” he shouted from the porch.

Outside of the house, Maggie asked, “Do you want to spend the night at my place?”

He stared at her open-mouthed, and she realized immediately what she’d said.

“Oh. That didn’t come out right.” Heat crept up her neck. “I meant to sleep on the couch. I thought you might want to see Alex when he wakes up and opens Santa presents.”

He smiled at her and took her hand. “I’d love to.”