Page 3 of Soldier’s Christmas Crush (Trinity Falls: Home for Christmas #4)

JENSEN

J ensen watched Willow smile that secret smile of hers.

She had always been fun to talk to, even when he was a little kid that mostly wanted to talk about stuff like which dessert was best or how many days were left before summer vacation.

But now… well, Willow had grown up while he wasn’t looking, into a distractingly pretty young woman. She even smelled nice, like there was a hint of vanilla in her hair.

You’re already in the doghouse with her brother. You can’t notice stuff like that.

It had always been kind of cute back when she was just an awkward tween, batting her eyelashes and blushing at him all through middle school. That kind of thing was easy to brush off when they were kids.

But they weren’t kids anymore. It would be a very different story if she flirted with him now .

She’s not flirting though. So why am I even thinking about it?

He should have been relieved, but for some reason he felt vaguely disappointed instead.

“Let’s get you home,” he said gruffly, tearing his eyes away. “Ryan will call when your car’s ready. Where are you staying?”

“I’ve got an apartment in town,” she told him, shaking her head.

“You’re home for good?” he asked, looking over at her again without meaning to.

“I’ve got a job waiting for me at Tarker County General,” she said, nodding.

She looked really happy about it. Something about that filled his chest with a sensation like warm honey.

“That’s great, Willow,” he told her. “I knew you would do amazing things with your degree.”

She bit her lip and all the good feelings dissipated. The last time he’d talked to her about her career, her brother had turned his back on both of them.

They drove on in silence for a few minutes.

Though he hadn’t spoken to her since that night at the party, Jensen knew that no one else understood the pain he felt at being shut out by Ransom like Willow did. It was bad enough to lose a best friend—he couldn’t imagine how it must have felt for her to lose the support of her brother.

“I’m really sorry about what happened,” Willow said softly after a few minutes. “I knew he didn’t approve of me joining the Army. But if I had any idea he would cut you out like that, I never would have told him I talked to you.”

The heartbreak in her voice cut him to the quick.

“Hey,” Jensen said, glancing over. “Don’t you feel bad for one second. Your brother has always been very protective of you, that’s all.”

“And I appreciate it,” she said right away. “Believe me, he was the best big brother I could have had growing up.”

“He just didn’t want you in harm’s way,” Jensen said. “I should have understood that he’d look at it like that.”

Willow smiled down at her hands and shook her head.

“What?” he asked.

“I know it cost you your best friend,” she said after a moment. “But you should also know that it meant a lot to me that you took the time for that conversation—you’re the reason I joined up, and I’ll always be grateful.”

Jensen nodded. He was too moved to try and say anything in reply, so he focused on the road.

She seemed to relax a little, her attention moving to the view out the windows.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she murmured.

“I remember when I first came home,” he said, nodding. “I mean, I always loved Trinity Falls, but the wide-open space and the trees… it was all better than I remembered.”

“Yeah,” she said, smiling out the window. “I guess I never appreciated it before I saw the rest of the world. I used to think winter was just brown and gray here, but look at all this. ”

They were passing houses with beautiful greenery hung from the porch railings and red-ribboned wreaths on the doors. Lights and decorations in the yard would come alive with even more color as soon as the sun went down.

“And the snow makes it look like a Christmas card,” Jensen agreed. “So where are we headed?”

“I’m renting the apartment over Carla’s Place,” she said.

“Oh, that’s great,” he told her.

Carla’s Place was Natalie Cassidy and Chris Bell’s grandmother’s old house.

When Carla Bell passed a few years ago, the two of them turned the first floor into a hangout for the town’s seniors.

A bunch of the businesses in town donated food and drinks, as well as funds toward the utility bills.

The rent Willow paid to live in the upstairs apartment would probably add to the pot.

“It stays quiet at night,” she said. “And if I get lonely during the day, I’ve got all the company in the world downstairs.”

“I’ll bet,” Jensen chuckled, as he pulled onto Park Avenue. The older folks would definitely gravitate toward a sweet young woman like Willow.

“ Cookie ,” a little voice announced suddenly from the back seat.

Willow turned back with a smile for Henry.

“That’s right, buddy. We just passed the bakery,” Jensen said. “Sometimes Mal gives you a cookie, doesn’t she?”

“Yes,” Henry said softly, as if he had just remembered that Willow was in the front seat .

“Well, we’re taking our friend home right now,” Jensen told him. “But maybe we can stop for a cookie on our way back to our house.”

He frowned, wondering if Willow would think he spoiled his boy. It was just that Henry didn’t talk much, so Jensen liked to encourage him when he did.

“I like sweets too, Henry,” Willow said gently.

Jensen had to chuckle at that understatement. Willow had a serious sweet tooth when they were kids, and that hadn’t changed if her bags from the farm were anything to go by.

He pulled up in front of Carla’s Place. The wide front porch he remembered was still there, but there was a swinging bench hanging from it now and plenty of chairs so folks could get a little fresh air.

“Stay in here with Henry for a second and I’ll carry your tree up,” he offered.

“Oh, no,” she told him. “I’m fine.”

“I can’t let you carry a tree upstairs all by yourself,” he said.

“Have you seen the tree?” she asked, quirking an eyebrow.

He chuckled again. She wasn’t wrong. Her tree was more like a branch compared to the one he and Henry had picked out and set up last week.

He thought about Willow all by herself in the apartment with her tiny tree and felt a little pang of sympathetic loneliness.

“Let me at least carry it to the door,” he said.

“Fine,” she told him. “If you insist.”

There was that sweet smile again .

He hopped out of the car, grateful for the cold air against his heated skin, and a break from her delicate perfume.

The tree was light enough to carry one-handed, and he turned to her when he passed her window to see if she was laughing at him for insisting on carrying the little thing. But she was turned toward the backseat, like she was talking to Henry again.

It was funny how Henry had taken to her. He normally clammed up completely with new people. He wasn’t exactly being chatty with her, but it was pretty impressive that Willow had heard him speak at all on their first meeting.

Jensen bypassed the front porch and went up the spiral fire escape staircase on the side of the house, leaning the tree against the wall at Willow’s doorstep. He couldn’t help taking a quick glance in the window while he was up there.

The space was small but neat and tidy. He could see a kitchenette and the opening to a bedroom with the foot of a bed and its soft pink comforter just in view.

Jogging back down the stairs, he found Willow still turned around talking to Henry. He grabbed her bags out of the back and started to carry them up too.

“Wait,” she called out to him.

He turned to see she was hopping out of the truck.

“Let me see those,” she said.

He came over obligingly and she grabbed the bag with the pies, set it down in the passenger seat, and began rummaging through it .

“Here we go,” she said brightly, pulling out a familiar white box with the Cassidy Farm logo. “A cherry pie for you and your dad, Henry.”

“My favorite,” Jensen said.

“I remember,” she told him with a shy smile. “It was nice to meet you, Henry, and you too, Dusty.”

Henry didn’t reply, but Jensen couldn’t help noticing that the stuffed bear wiggled in Willow’s direction in a friendly way.

“I guess I’ll see you around town,” Willow said, handing the box to Jensen.

She looked a little sad, and he wanted to say something more. But what was there to say? He could ask about Ransom, but she might feel weird answering.

I wish things could go back to how they used to be.

But he knew that wasn’t on the table, and there was no point even thinking about it, let alone saying it.

“Sure,” he told her instead. “Good luck with your tree.”

That earned him a beautiful smile, and the next thing he knew, she was carrying her own bags up the spiral stairs to her door.

He waited until she was inside before he got back in the truck.

“ Pie,” Henry practically squeaked.

Jensen smiled and looked in the rearview mirror to find Henry grinning at him.

His heart warmed instantly, and the world was bright again.

Henry had always been small for his age, so getting into a front-facing seat was something they had waited for. It was so much fun to be able to see his little face now.

“That’s right,” Jensen told him. “We’re going to go home and have some cherry pie.”

“ Yes ,” Henry agreed, hugging Dusty under his chin.

“Okay, buddy,” Jensen said. “Here we go.”

He could tell by Henry’s snuggling that he was going to be lucky to get him home before he fell asleep.

“Let’s put on some music,” Jensen said, flipping on the radio.

The local station was playing all-Christmas-music, all-the-time during the holidays, just like when he was a kid. “Deck the Halls” was on, and the cheerful strains filled the truck.

“Do you know this one, bud?” Jensen asked Henry, pausing for a moment before continuing. “It’s about decorating the house for Christmas and putting on your nice clothes so you look extra sharp.”

He glanced in the mirror, and Henry was smiling at him over Dusty’s head.