The Holiday Secret

“I understand,” he said. “But your parents insisted on a closed adoption to protect you. It could be they were afraid something like this would happen down the road.”

A familiar ache bloomed in Ellery’s chest at the mention of her parents.

She’d always known she was adopted. According to Ray and Candace Marshall, Ellery was a dream they’d carried in their hearts until the moment she’d become part of their lives. What they’d failed to reveal were the details surrounding Ellery’s birth—or the fact she’d once been part of a larger family.

“I know Mom and Dad thought they were acting in my best interests at the time,” Ellery said softly. “But I’m an adult now.”

“Exactly,” Jameson agreed. “And that’s why the timing of their letter troubles me. The Kanes could have reached out to you long before now.”

Before she’d inherited a sizable estate is what he really meant.

“You said that my brothers cited ‘unique circumstances’ when they contacted the adoption agency and asked that my records be opened,” Ellery reminded him.

“That doesn’t mean their motives are trustworthy,” Jameson muttered.

“I appreciate your concern...but do you trust me?”

Jameson’s sigh funneled through the speaker. “Of course I do. Most of the time you’re a very levelheaded young woman.”

Ellery smiled. “A levelheaded young woman with an advantage. I know my brothers’ names but they don’t know mine. I’ll observe, not engage,” she said. “You’ll get a full report when I come back and we’ll figure out the next step.”

“You promise you won’t tell anyone why you’re there?”

“I promise.”

“In a town that size, you won’t exactly blend in.”

Jameson still sounded skeptical, but Ellery sensed a softening in his attitude and pressed her advantage.

“I’m staying at an inn a few miles outside of Castle Falls,” she told him. “There’s a festival starting this weekend that draws people from outside the community, so I doubt anyone will notice one more visitor. It’s a good plan, don’t you think?”

“I think I made a mistake when I let you sit in on some of my closing arguments,” Jameson retorted.

It was, Ellery knew, as close to a blessing as she would get from the attorney.

Her smile expanded to a full-blown grin.

“I’ll see you soon, counselor.”

Chapter Three (#u484cf79b-4cd4-5297-bc1c-ac565409bce0)

After dropping Bea off at school, Carter returned to the inn to get started on his to-do list.

He cut through the dining room to grab a pastry and had to duck to avoid a ball of mistletoe hanging from the chandelier. One he was sure hadn’t been there the day before.

Based on past experience, Carter knew it was only the beginning. Not a single nook or cranny escaped the assault of pine garlands, twinkling lights and shiny ornaments during the month of December.

Now that Bea was old enough to help her grandmother with the annual transformation, she was all-in. A herd of plastic ponies grazed next to the sheep in the nativity set on the coffee table and Carter could barely see outside through the flurry of paper snowflakes covering the windows.

It’s Jesus’s birthday, Daddy. And birthdays are special.

Because the star that Carter dutifully placed on top of the tree every year wasn’t half as bright as his daughter’s outlook on life, he kept his feelings about Christmas to himself.

Pretended that things like peace and joy weren’t far beyond his reach these days.

The double doors that separated the kitchen from the dining room swung open and his mom breezed in. With her dark blond hair woven into a neat braid and a pristine white apron over her navy wool sweater and jeans, there was nothing pretentious about Karen Bristow.

Most of the guests didn’t know that their innkeeper, who’d gained a reputation for serving mouthwatering comfort food, had studied at a prestigious culinary institute on the East Coast.

“You must be in stealth mode today,” she teased. “I didn’t hear you come back.”

“What can I say? I take my duties as a silent partner very seriously,” Carter said.

His mom chuckled. “The light in the atrium burned out yesterday and I couldn’t find the ladder. Do you know where it is?”

As a matter of fact, Carter did. But it was safer to dodge the question than admit he’d hidden it after he’d spotted Karen teetering on the top rung, feather duster in hand, attacking a cobweb on the ceiling.

“I’ll take care of it.”

“Your to-do list is already a mile long,” Karen said. “And this is supposed to be your day off.”

“Cutting firewood is relaxing.”

His mom smiled and shook her head. They’d had variations of this conversation in the past but Carter couldn’t convince her that spending time outdoors, no matter what he was doing, didn’t fall under the category of work.

“You skipped breakfast.” Karen lifted the coffee carafe and tested its weight. “We have a new guest and I was hoping you’d have a chance to meet her before you disappeared into the woods.”

“Bea already introduced us,” Carter said curtly. And Ellery Marshall was the reason why he planned to stay as far away from the house as possible. “She decided to stop by Ellery’s room and give her one of the snowflakes she’d made at the library.”

Karen didn’t appear nearly as shocked by his daughter’s unsanctioned visit to the guest wing as Carter had been.

“You know Bea. No matter what craft project Maddie assigns to the children, she always makes extras to give away.”

“To a woman she’d never laid eyes on before last night?”

“Ellery Marshall is close to Maddie’s age and you know how much Bea likes her. Maybe that’s why they bonded so quickly.”

True. The local librarian and Ellery Marshall were both in their midtwenties, but as far as Carter could tell, that was the only thing the two women had in common. Maddie Montgomery had grown up in the area and her recent engagement to Aiden Kane, a man as fiercely devoted to the family business as he was to his shy fiancée, proved that Maddie was content with life in a small town.

Ellery reminded Carter of a rare butterfly that had briefly lit in Castle Falls. Looking for, in her own words, a change of scenery. And when she grew tired of the view from her upstairs window, she’d go back to where she belonged.

Like Jennifer had.

Which meant the last thing Carter wanted was for Bea to “bond” with his mother’s newest guest.

“How long is she planning to stay?”

“I’m not sure,” Karen admitted. “Ellery decided to go day to day.”