Page 57 of The Christmas Dash

“Oh come on, Bethy. Snow is so cool, don’t you think?”

I look around at the white landscape as I inch my car out of town. He’s right. Everything looks clean and fresh. Like Mother Nature washed away all the ick of the world and gave everyone a blank slate.

“It is.”

“I miss snow that sticks.” He sounds wistful.

I hold my tongue, not voicing the first thought that springs into my head. You didn’t have to move away. You didn’t have to play music professionally. Why did you?

Okay, so it’s three thoughts. But I give myself a mental pat on the back for not saying any of them out loud. I don’t need to hear Gabe’s excuses—haven’t let him give them to me. It wouldn’t change anything.

“Am I dressed alright?” I ask. “You still haven’t told me where you’re taking me. Or where I’m taking you.”

He swings his gaze around. I feel his eyes on me as they sweep up and down my seated frame. My traitorous pulse kicks up.

Why? Why does Gabe McKenzie studying my attire for an outing—a work-related outing, I might add—make me feel zippier than any and all of Cal Kell’s attention?

I force my eyes to stay on the road. Out of necessity, sure. I don’t want to hit a patch of black ice or anything. But also because if I look over to Gabe, he’ll see the flush in my cheeks and the uncertainty in my eyes. I don’t want to feel this way around him. It’s good that I have the prospect of a date with Cal on the horizon. He’s who I need to focus on. A Dasher Valley resident who won’t leave me behind for the bright lights of stardom. I ignore the voice that’s telling me he did leave for the city, because he’s back.

“You look great.” Gabe’s simple declaration sends all thoughts of Cal galloping straight out of my head.

I blink and regrip the wheel. “Thanks. You sure I don’t get a hint as to where we’re going?”

“Drive east and you’ll run into it.”

“Okay, Magellan.”

Gabe laughs, and the rich sound of it fills the car. It’s like sweet syrup, and I want to drizzle it on top of everything.

I can’t help but smile. “Seriously! Am I going in the direction of Valley Peak or The Home Depot? Not all of us are good with north, south, east, and west.”

“Head toward The Home Depot.”

I feel a V form between my eyes as I try to place where we’re headed. Once we get past The Home Depot, we’ll mostly be in neighborhoods. There are a couple new apartment complexes and some parks scattered throughout the sprawling subdivisions, but I can’t think of anything that I’d consider a candidate for a stop on the Christmas Dash.

When I make it to the four-way stop sign on the outskirts of town, I face Gabe. “You realize this is a Dasher Valley–based event, right? If I go any farther, we’ll be out of town.”

He motions me ahead. “Trust me. This is a Dasher Valley hidden gem.”

I freeze, the memory of his text telling me he decided to do the show flashing through my mind. I swallow.

“That’s what people say about you.” I take my foot off the brake and drive onward.

“Beth, I didn’t . . . I wasn’t trying to—”

“It’s fine. No biggie.” I keep my eyes on the road, grateful he stays quiet. I can’t have a conversation about our past right now. Not when I’ve got the Christmas Dash to plan, all the holiday festivities to handle, and the looming decision on the Dasher Valley 8 pressing in on me.

The landscape changes from houses to open swaths of farmland, and that’s when it dawns on me. “Wait . . . we’re going to Felipe Ferguson’s farm?”

“Just a little farther.” Gabe ducks his head so he can see out my windshield, but there’s a smirk on his face that tells me I’m right.

Excitement bubbles in my chest when he says, “Turn here.”

I flick on my blinker and turn onto a dirt road. There’s a worn sign that spells out the name of the farm in faded white brushstrokes.

“He’s okay with us coming out here? With this being a stop on the Christmas Dash?”

Felipe is a character. Eccentric, but sweet. He ventures into town occasionally, but mostly he sticks to his hobby farm, which is rumored to include a troop of reindeer. Xander approached him about bringing them into town for the kids to see as part of the Christmas Kickoff.