Free A Christmas Hope by Joseph Pittman

All questions she could answer if asked, none of which she had. Nora would have responded: good questions, all of them. She supposed you could call it taking a break, or maybe a trial separation, though the word trial made her laugh, because those she preferred to win and in this case, well, there were no winners. Just lots of legal fees and a lot of hurt.
    â€œOkay, kid, enough wallowing, bet Mom’s got dinner ready,” she said, lifting herself off the cushions, bringing down the curtains on the bay window until the morning sun would beckon them again to rise. It was good advice, she thought, turn in for the night, curl up in the darkness until the brightness of a new day called to you, issuing forth its daily change. Nora had never been one to shy away from life’s challenges, and she wasn’t prepared to start now.
    Gathering up her coat and keys, she made her way to the front door, opening it up.
    The jangle of bells above her brought Thomas Van Diver to mind.
    â€œI’ll have to replace those,” she said, knowing the last thing she needed was a reminder each time a customer stopped in of the challenge ahead of her. Because those jangling bells rang like the jolly sound of Christmas, Santa and his magic sleigh flying through the night, bestowing gifts upon deserving children the world over. With each ring of the bell, Christmas would feel ever closer and she still had one huge gift to secure for under the tree.
    Would Santa remember to come to Linden Corners?
    Would he remember the wide-eyed, impatient five-year-old boy from so many years ago, so besotted with family and with memories and with a certain edition of a book that somehow meant the world to him? She hadn’t asked for details, and Thomas hadn’t offered them. Not yet, they would meet again, more clues would be revealed that would help Nora on her search.
    Nora wondered if the book really did still exist, and if so, where in the world it was. Had it been a rare edition, or something mass produced? It was a big world out there, the book just a thin slice of it, a story detailing one day of the year. She returned her thoughts to Linden Corners, imagining her world had just grown smaller, and instead, what she had found within the dreams of her new store, was a world of possibilities.
    November first and her thoughts were all about Christmas.
    She was reminded of her promise to Travis, that she wouldn’t screw up Christmas.
    Now that promise had been doubled, both youth and the aged were counting on her.

C HAPTER 5
    B RIAN
    F or reasons known only to the universe, the endless evolutions of the clock tended to move more quickly the last couple months of the year, as though time was eager for its big celebration before turning the page to a brand-new calendar. November would feed fast into December, and before you knew it the holidays would have come and gone in a blink of an eye, the sky over Times Square suddenly awash with bright streamers and confetti, ushering in for all that resolute sense of tomorrow, a fresh start. For Brian Duncan, one-time New Yorker and now permanent resident of laid-back Linden Corners, he remembered the strains of last Christmas—his and Janey’s first as a family, the struggles they endured over wishing to give the other the best possible holiday—and he was determined that this year was going to be free of drama. In fact, he was planning on perfection.
    Of course, the concept of perfection and the reality of a nine-year-old girl seldom went together. Square peg, round hole. You didn’t need the holiday season to tell you that.
    â€œJaney, come on, you’re going to be late.”
    â€œI know, I know, but I can’t find it.”
    â€œCan’t find what?”
    â€œIf I knew, I’d know where it was,” she said with her famous exasperation.
    Brian Duncan was standing at the base of the stairs, the grandfather clock in the hall signaling the advancement of time,