Page 10 of This Christmas

“Sounds good, George. I’ll see you on Saturday?”

“I’ll be there with bells on.” He laughs and holds his hand over his belly, even though he’s not sporting the traditional Santa belly. The last I knew he stuffed his red pants with one of those fake stomach paddings. That’s how serious he takes being Santa.

“Will I see you at the tree lighting on Friday?” he asks.

“I’ll be there,” Noelle says.

“Of course, I’ll be there, too. Why wouldn’t I?”

“I just thought with Zane back . . .”

Hearing the wordsZaneandbackin the same sentence shakes my foundation. Not much, but enough to make me pause and question whether I heard George clearly.

“What do you mean?” It's the clarity I need.

“I stopped by Bernie’s this morning. He said Zane is here for Christmas.”

“Oh.” I haven’t seen this man since I left him on the train platform, with stupid promises of how we’d make the distance work. The first weekend he was supposed to come home, something came up. And then something else. And something else again.

“Well, it’ll be good to see him.” It won’t be but I refuse to let him ruin my holidays. The past is the past, water under the bridge. It was clear then as it is now, Zane was meant for whatever he found in New York City. I’m not going to let his return take up space in my head.

As soon as the door closes, Noelle slams her hand down on her desk. I glance at her, unprepared for her wide eyes.

“Girl!”

I shake my head.

“Did Bernie say anything about Zane coming home?”

Another shake. “No, and I think he would’ve mentioned it to my dad or me. We’ve been sending staff over there to help because Bernie can’t do it alone.”

“Do you think Zane is in trouble? That’s why he just showed up?”

Unfortunately, the idea of Zane being in trouble makes me smile. It’s evil, I know. And not very much in the spirit of the holidays, but I can’t help it.

“You know, all those big city attorneys are always getting in trouble with drugs and . . . stuff.”

“Stuff?”

Noelle shrugs. “You readPeoplemagazine. You know what stuff I’m alluding to.”

Sadly, I do and am very thankful I chose to run a small-town practice. I’d rather help people and see the good I’ve done on a daily basis versus having a client who is nothing but a number and paycheck at the end of the day.

I can’t imagine Zane being in some type of trouble, but then again, I haven’t seen him in ten years. Who knows what kind of man he is these days. All I know is, I’m not the same person I was when he left for his fancy internship.

Or maybe I am.

“The stuff, as we’re calling it, I don’t see someone like Zane doing anything to hurt others. But yes, I’ve read a ton of stories where corporate law has someshady characters and are often arrested for drug possession.”

“Maybe that’s why he’s back. He needs to visit his dad before he goes to the big house.”

I roll my eyes at Noelle’s drastic assumptions. Whatever the reason, my ex is back, and his timing couldn’t be worse. If this were any other time, I’d take vacation and let Zane be here without me being in his face. As it is, chances are, as soon as I walk outside, we’ll run into each other. Unless he’s not planning to work at the store while he’s in town.

Noelle gives me a smirk and I shake my head. The best thing for me to do is ignore what George said and if I run into Zane it might be wise of me to pretend I don’t know him. Although, I suspect that won’t go over very well. But then again, maybe he doesn’t care to see me because he’s the one who left and never returned. He didn’t even bother to come and clear out his stuff from our Boston apartment and left me to deal with the lease that I couldn’t afford by myself.

With that thought maybe I should file a lawsuit against him to recoup the money he owes me. The only thing I hope is that when I do run into him, we can be cordial and there won’t be any awkwardness. It’s not like I still love him. I stopped a long time ago when he chose the city over me and decided that his job was more important than the love we had for each other.

I give Noelle a long look and then head upstairs to my apartment needing some space. In my living room, I go to the windows overlooking Main Street. I don’t know if I expect to see Zane on the street, holding asign sayingHere I am, Evebut I’m looking. And I hate myself for caring. He left me. Us. This town we both love. Well, I love. He abandoned me. Worse of all, he left his beloved dad. High and dry. And all alone.