The Christmas Cookie Collection Read online

  DEDICATION

  To Linda Brooks Bagwell,

  PR director at Weatherford College.

  Your love of books and authors

  has enriched our community,

  and your personal support has led

  to a friendship I treasure.

  You are appreciated!

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I want to acknowledge the quaint lakeside community of Granbury, Texas, that inspired my fictional town of Twilight. The local legends, historical landmarks, friendly welcoming faces, beautiful lake, and Old West charm are simply irresistible. Granbury is truly unique.

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  Twilight, Texas (pop. 6,000), is a quaint tourist town on the banks of the Brazos River that feeds into Lake Twilight. The hamlet was founded in 1875. How the town got its name is a subject of heated debate, but the prevailing legend among romantics involves two teenage sweethearts separated during the War Between the States. Circumstances tore them asunder, but they never stopped loving each other. Fifteen years later, they met again at twilight on the banks of the river in the spot where Twilight now stands. A statue in their honor has been erected in the park next to the town square.

  There’s a rumor that if you throw pennies into the park’s fountain you will be reunited with your high school sweetheart. Many reunited high school lovers come to Twilight to get married, and, in fact, there is a thriving matchmaking business in town, focusing exclusively on helping ­people reconnect with long-­lost loves.

  With its stately courthouse, surrounded by lovingly refurbished buildings of Old West–style architecture, Texas Monthly voted Twilight the Prettiest Town Square in Texas. The combination of the pristine blue lake and the intriguing history—­lore has it that Jesse James used hidden river caves near Twilight as a hideout, and the real John Wilkes Booth escaped the law after shooting Lincoln and took up acting at the Twilight Playhouse—­lend a magical air to this quirky but close-­knit community filled with warmth and small-­town camaraderie. In the summer months, tourists flock there, drawn by the water, the odd little curio shops, acclaimed community theater, and lively town events.

  But Christmas is the season when Twilight truly shines. There’s the Dickens on the Square weekend that includes a Dickensian parade to kick off the event. Visitors can meet a one-­shoed Miss Havisham, express their respect for Sydney Carton, shake hands with David Copperfield, and hoist Tiny Tim upon their shoulders. There are free trolley rides, horse-­drawn carriages, and pajama parties for the kids at Ye Olde Book Nook.

  The theatrically inclined can learn about the town’s romantic history from the annual holiday play at the Twilight Playhouse, often starring local-­girl-­turned-­movie-­star, Emma Parks. Afterward, grab a hot chocolate at Rinky-­Tink’s ice cream parlor, where a seat at the front window will allow full view of the locals decorating the tree on the town square. Romantics can stroll hand in hand through an over-­the-­top light display at Sweetheart Park and throw that penny into the Sweetheart Fountain. And when it’s time for bed, spend a night in the angel-­filled rooms at the Merry Cherub.

  For all the fun and frivolity, make no mistake, while the events and legends and traditions are great fun, the heart and soul of this town lie in the generous ­people who live there. Especially the local knitting club, a group of town matriarchs who not only give advice and counsel, they’re also mischievous matchmakers. Each year this group organizes and decorates the Angel Tree for those less fortunate and spends their Christmas Eve delivering food and gifts and well wishes to those in need, embodying the true spirit of Christmas—­unconditional love.

  Enjoy your stay.

  CONTENTS

  Dedication

  Acknowledgments

  Author’s Note

  Carrie

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Epilogue

  Raylene

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Christine

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Epilogue

  Grace

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  About the Author

  By Lori Wilde

  Copyright

  About the Publisher

  Carrie

  CHAPTER ONE

  Carrie MacGregor hated Christmas.

  She despised the endless smiles and constant cheeriness, the forced ho-­ho-­ho-­ing. She loathed the cheesiness of tinsel and blinking multicolored lights and plywood Santa Claus cutouts decorating every lawn in Twilight, Texas. She dreaded the commercialization of gift-­giving, the continual overeating, the ubiquitous music, and the stressful push-­pull of relatives’ unrealistic expectations.

  Yes, okay, she too was a Christmas cliché—­the obligatory Grinch. Every family had one. Bah-humbug.

  Her only goal for the next six weeks was to get from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day as quietly as possible. No fuss. No tears. No drama. No memories. She refused to dwell on what the holidays represented to her—­lost love, dashed hopes, a broken heart.

  Breathe. Put one foot in front of the other. Take it day-­by-­day.

  Funny, she sounded just like her dad, Floyd, an AA member who had been clean-­and-­sober for four years, with only one accidental fall off the wagon. That was something to be grateful for, at least.

  Right now, it was Thursday. A week before Thanksgiving, and tonight was the last meeting of the year for the Sweethearts’ Knitting Club. The members of the club would be here soon. She had the refreshments laid out in the community room at the new Yarn Barn.

  Her older sister, Flynn, had originally started the yarn shop, but Carrie had taken over the business after the first store on the town square had burned down three years ago. She’d reestablished it in the shopping center on the bluff overlooking Lake Twilight. She was damn proud of herself, only twenty-­five years old and running her own successful business. Especially when, not so very long ago, she’d been engaging in self-­destructive activities. Grief could make a girl do crazy things.

  Carrie paused a moment from unpacking a box of yarn that had just arrived on the UPS truck, a skein of red and green alpaca yarn clutched in her hand. Through the big plate glass window, she gazed out at the lake. A sailboat swooped gracefully by, reminding her of the time Mark had taken her sailing.

  For a split second, Mark’s handsome face popped into her mind, but she squelched the image of him as quickly as it materialized. No fuss. No tears. No drama. No memories. That was her holiday mantra.

  A knock on the door announced the arrival of the first members of the Sweethearts’ Knitting Club. Ten minutes early, but Carrie didn’t mind. The lively group of knitters would keep her darker thoughts at bay. She abandoned the box of yarn and went to greet them.

  She opened the door to four of the six knitting club members who stood there with containers clutched in their arms. “What’s all this?”

  “Surprise!” they exclaimed in unison.

&nb
sp; “We know how tough Christmas is for you.” Sixty-­something Patsy Cross sailed over the threshold, a golden garland trailing from the cardboard box she carried. After more than forty years, she and her high school sweetheart, Sheriff Hondo Crouch, were finally getting married this Christmas Eve. Lately, the normally no-­nonsense businesswoman had grown quite giddy.

  “We’re going to decorate the Yarn Barn!” added plump Belinda Murphey, a relentless optimist who ran the local matchmaking ser­vice. She was in her forties, long married with five kids. She wore a blue-­and-­white Frosty the Snowman stockinet-­stitched sweater.

  Carrie forced herself not to roll her eyes. “Please, you don’t have to do that.”

  “We want to do it,” cocoa-­skinned Marva Bullock assured her. Marva was the principal of Twilight High, and in the course of her job had punished Carrie more times than she cared to remember. “You’ve worked so hard rebuilding the Yarn Barn and creating a cozy place for us to meet. You deserve this.”

  “Besides.” Elderly Dotty Mae, who smelled of peppermint schnapps and mentholatum, patted her on the shoulder. “We promised your mama we’d look after you. She knew that dying on Christmas would forever mar your holiday.”

  Her mother’s death five years before from the lingering disease of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis was only part of why Carrie hated Christmas. Mark Leland was the other half of the equation.

  Forget about him. Ancient history. Old news.

  Kind of hard to do, though, when she was in a room filled with women who had married—­or in Patsy’s case was about to marry—­their high school sweethearts.

  You and Mark weren’t sweethearts, you were just hot and horny.

  “We’re not going to knit?” Carrie asked, scrambling to think of a way to circumvent the decorating.

  “Nope,” Belinda sang out, and then scratched at a crusty white patch on her sweater. “My kids had a food fight at the dinner table. Looks like I took mashed taters to the ta-­tas. Oh well, we’ll pretend it’s just snow.” Belinda laughed. She had a thing for alliteration. All her children’s names started with K’s. “Like the Kardashians,” she was fond of saying. “Patsy, I just thought of something. Do you realize you’re going to be Patsy Calloway Cross Crouch?”

  “Let’s not bring that up again.” Patsy started plucking the pieces of a nativity scene from the box she’d settled onto the refreshment table next to the crudités. Lamb, donkey, baby Jesus. She paused long enough to snag a purple radish from the platter, swish it in ranch dressing and pop it into her mouth.

  “You really don’t have to do this,” Carrie said. “I can handle my own decorating.”

  Marva wagged a chiding finger. “You’re not fooling us. We know you won’t do it if left to your own devices.”

  “Well, yes, that’s sort of the point.”

  Dotty Mae reached up to pinch her cheek. “You live in Twilight, dear. It’s your moral obligation to uphold Christmas tradition.”

  “Is it too late to move?”

  “Far too late.” Dotty Mae reached into her box and produced a twelve-­inch-­tall cardboard gingerbread man and woman. “You’re indigenous.”

  All around Carrie, the ladies were stringing lights and positioning figurines and hanging stockings. Taking over her shop. Four surrogate mothers doing what mothers did—­butting in.

  “Doesn’t anyone want to knit? I got a fresh yarn shipment in today,” Carrie enticed, making Vanna White motions at her new display.

  Before anyone could answer, the door opened and Raylene Pringle flounced in. Ever since her high school sweetheart and husband of thirty-­five years had left her last Christmas, she’d been as down in the dumps about the holidays as Carrie. Everyone had been tiptoeing around Raylene since her split with Earl. No one knew how to take her anymore.

  She’d stopped dying her hair, which was once Miss Clairol platinum blonde, but was now steel gray, and she’d quit wearing her famous short shirts. She had on baggy blue jeans, cowboy boots, and a faded black Rolling Stones T-­shirt with a big red tongue sticking out at everyone.

  Carrie breathed a sigh of relief. At last, an ally.

  “I’m here,” Raylene drawled. “What the hell do you want me to do?”

  “Help us set up the Christmas tree,” Marva said brightly.

  “Not a Christmas tree, too.” Carrie groaned.

  “It’s not for you.” Patsy spread green felt on the floor in front of the window facing the parking lot. “It’s for your customers.”

  “We need some music,” Belinda said, and the next thing Carrie knew, Dean Martin was singing over the store’s sound system about how cold it was outside. Hard to buy into when it was a balmy sixty-­two degrees in North Central Texas.

  “Got anything to drink?” Raylene asked.

  “There’s coffee, fruit punch, and iced tea.” Carrie moved to the refreshment table.

  “Let me rephrase. Have you got anything substantial to drink?”

  “I think Jesse might have left a beer in the back of the fridge during the Halloween party,” Carrie said, referring to her brother-­in-­law who was also Patsy’s nephew. Halloween. Now that was a holiday. Costumes. Tricks and treats. Goblins. Ghouls. There was nothing sentimental about Halloween.

  “Thank God for Jesse.” Raylene sauntered over to the dorm-­sized refrigerator that Carrie stored behind the checkout counter. She fished around until she found the long-neck bottle of Lone Star and twisted off the cap.

  “Terri just pulled into the parking lot,” Patsy called out as she sorted green plastic tree limbs by size.

  “What is she bringing?” Carrie muttered. “Santa himself?”

  “Don’t be grouchy, Grinch.” Belinda smiled and ruffled Carrie’s hair as she passed Dotty Mae a handful of candy canes.

  “I’m not fourteen,” Carrie protested. “And I’m not Flynn.”

  “We know.” Marva opened a bag of potato chips. “You can knit.”

  Even though Carrie’s older sister couldn’t knit, the group had made her an honorary lifetime member of the Sweethearts’ Knitting Club. Everyone in town loved Flynn. She was one of those magnanimous ­people, who always put others first, herself second. Carrie, on the other hand, was selfish and ornery and stubborn. The wild-­child MacGregor. If she and her sister were ever cast in a remake of Gone With the Wind, Flynn would be Melanie and Carrie would have to play Scarlet. The sassy heroine everyone loved to hate.

  “Don’t try so hard to be Scrooge,” Patsy said. “Jesse called and told me what you did for them.”

  “Who me?” Carrie glanced away. “I didn’t do anything.”

  “If not you, then what little fairy sneaked over to their house, cleaned up and left dinner in the refrigerator?” Patsy asked.

  “Dunno, maybe Tinkerbelle?”

  Okay, yes, she’d done it, but only because Flynn had sounded so exhausted when she’d talked to her last night. Flynn was in her last year of college, getting her teaching certificate in elementary education and eight months pregnant with her first baby. Jesse helped out as much as he could, but besides running his own motor­cycle shop, he was working a second job at Home Depot to get health insurance, pay ­Flynn’s tuition and put away extra money for the baby.

  The door burst open and dark-­haired Terri Longoria—­the final member of the Sweethearts’ Knitting Club—­rushed inside, eyes sparkling. Terri ran Hot Legs Gym and looked the part. Toned. Firm. Athletic. She appeared half a decade younger than her forty years.

  “Guess what!” Terri exclaimed.

  “What?” obliged the other ladies.

  “Remember when I was on Fear Nothing?”

  Several years ago, Terri had appeared on a reality show where she was required to gulp down a bucket of earthworms. She’d fearlessly dived in, eaten the wriggly lunch in two minutes flat and won ten thousand dollars for her efforts. On
the evening that the show aired, the entire town of Twilight had been glued to their television sets cheering on one of their own. Ever since then Terri had become something of a local celebrity.

  “Please tell us you’re not going to eat earthworms again.” Belinda looked worried. “I about gagged watching you do that on TV.”

  Terri waved a hand. “Although there was some talk about me returning for an All-­Stars show, Fear Nothing got cancelled last season.”

  “Oh, thank goodness,” Dotty Mae said. “I know you enjoyed it, but that show was uncivilized.”

  “So what’s the big news?” Marva asked, handing Patsy the Christmas tree stand.

  “I’m on Burt Mernit’s mailing list,” Terri bragged.

  “Who’s Burt Mernit?” Raylene took a pull off her beer.

  “He created Fear Nothing and a bunch of other reality shows,” Terri explained. “He’s got a new show that debuts in January, but they’ve already been filming episodes for the last several weeks. It’s sort of like MythBusters but with the focus on fables, legend and folklore.”

  “And you’re going to be on that show?” Patsy guessed.

  Carrie retreated to the corner. She contemplated slipping out the back door and abandoning the knitters to their busybody decorating but dismissed that thought. She had to be here to make sure they didn’t go nuts with the Christmas cheer. She glanced around the room. Far too late for that. Sighing, she poured herself a cup of fruit punch.