Free Starlight in Her Eyes by Joann Durgin Page A

station’s lobby, gathering and tagging items for the annual holiday toy drive.
    As he’d worked beside her, Colin had chatted with and gotten to know more of the staffers for their show and the news programs. He seemed to genuinely care about others by asking them questions about themselves and their jobs.
    As she’d watched him, Serena admired his ability to make friends easily, something with which she’d always struggled.
    Serena suspected Colin had made one of the sizable monetary donations that mysteriously appeared in their collection bin. How had it gotten there when she’d been standing beside it the entire time? The only times she’d turned away had been to say a few words to her co-workers. She’d pulled out the cashier’s check—astounded by the number of zeroes—and shown it to Colin with a quirked brow. “Do you know where this check came from?” Nothing was written in the memo line of the check to give her a clue.
    In response, Colin’s wink was sly and mischievous. “Why, an elf pranced across the lobby and dropped that check right in there, he did.” He angled his blond head toward the donation bin. “Jolly little fellow. And he specifically told me that the gorgeous woman with the chestnut-colored hair should ask no questions.”
    Silly man, but he possessed such a good, pure heart. A number of children in the Philadelphia area would benefit from Colin’s generosity during this Christmas season. He’d also asked her about the holiday bonuses paid to the cleaning staff and she was aware—although she’d never tell Colin—that an anonymous donation had been made and earmarked for Toni, the woman from the housekeeping staff who regularly cleaned his office.
    Sitting on the sofa to pull on her snow boots, Serena frowned as she recalled Paulina’s comments in the coffee shop.
    Women like Paulina—professional, aggressive, and not ashamed to openly flirt with a man in the presence of another woman—drove her crazy.
    She had no reason to judge Paulina although her blatant flirting with Colin upset Serena more than she’d liked. That incident had called upon a dose of the somewhat limited Christian compassion she felt for the news anchor whose office was only a few floors above hers and Colin’s. What an unsettling thought. She’d witnessed such behavior from different women on multiple occasions when she’d been with Graham. Where did it end? Would Colin continue to resist such attention or would he succumb to the temptations?
    Give your burdens over to the One who can handle them much better than you.
    “Thank You, Jesus, for not giving up on me,” Serena said under her breath as she called to Lily and tugged on her gloves. After wrapping her red, knit scarf around her neck, she put on her ear muffs. Philly snow was often wet and heavy, so it never hurt to be prepared. She’d rather be too warm than chilled to the bone even though tonight was milder.
    A short time later, arriving at the tree farm, Lily darted out of the car and zigzagged through the snow as she examined every tree.
    Watching her with an amused smile, Serena bought a cup of hot cocoa from the local neighborhood kids—the same ones who set up the lemonade stands every summer—and requested extra marshmallows and chocolate drizzle. She needed to live dangerously every now and then. She’d called to Lily to join her, but she was much more interested in her current task.
    Serena relished the warmth of the hot chocolate as the liquid slid down her throat in all its rich glory. The scent of cocoa filled her senses. What a treat.
    Christmas carols played over loudspeakers and white lights winked from swaying lines strung up around the perimeter of the tree farm.
    If she didn’t watch it, she might just catch the Christmas spirit sooner than later this year. That thought made Serena smile as she took another sip of her hot chocolate.
    “Mommy!” Lily jumped up and down and motioned to her from the top of a small incline.