Cass swallowed hard. “I’m afraid you’re more caught up on things than I am around here. I’ve been in L.A., living Charlie’s life.”
Faye’s eyes twinkled even brighter. “And what was that like, Cassie? A lot different than here, I imagine. But you needed a change. You needed to get away from here for a bit. Did you gain some new perspective? Have any adventures?”
“Did I ever.” Cass sipped her coffee and began to talk, keeping her voice low so no one would overhear. Faye turned up her hearing aid and leaned in. It felt so good to tell the truth—and it felt so good to talk about Miguel.
“He sounds like a wonderful man,” Faye said. “My James was a medic in the war, back when we first met, and I think it was his capability, his concern for others, that made me fall for him.”
Cass stared down into her almost empty coffee cup. “All Miguel ever does is worry about others,” she said. “He’s the kindest, most endearing man on the planet. And I— Well, it feels like I’m in love with him. But how can that be possible in a week, right? I just need to forget about him.”
Faye chuckled. “Oh, honey. Anything is possible in a heartbeat, let alone a week. I fell for my James at first sight. Took one look at him and knew he was the one. I could practically see it all, right there in his eyes: the house, the kids, the fifty years of marriage.” Now her sparkling eyes lost a little of their light. “Of course, the heartache and him getting sick, that I couldn’t see. I could never have imagined losing him one day. Loss is the human condition, they say, and no amount of medicine can change that.” She released a sigh, but then she was back to herself again. “The thing is, those fifty years felt like they went by in the blink of an eye. Life is short, Cassie. Too short to be wasting time worrying about how long it takes to truly fall in love, or wallowing around in your hometown when the man you love is in Los Angeles, more than likely wallowing about you.”
“I doubt it. I told him the truth, and he was speechless. He said he didn’t know what to say.”
“And then what?”
“And then I left. Came back here.”
“Sometimes it takes people a minute to figure out what they need to say. That doesn’t mean it’s all over. If this Miguel is as caring and thoughtful as you say, then he’s the kind of man who needs a little while to process. It doesn’t mean it’s all over.”
“But how do I fix it? I’m here, and he’s there, and there’s nothing I can do.”
Faye was reaching for her purse. “No, I’ll get these,” Cass said, but Faye waved her away and put some bills on the table.
“I can’t answer that one for you, my dear. It’s Christmas, though. Magic happens at Christmas. Maybe the truth is you can’t fix anything. You just have to”—she waved her hand in the air as if casting a magic spell, and Cass half expected to see a puff of glitter or sparks—“let things run their course.”
Faye leaned in further. “With Charlie and Jake, too, alright? Just let them figure it out, don’t get involved. I won’t tell Jake what I know, and you don’t tell him, either. Stand aside and let true love win the day.” She cocked her head to the side. “I have a feeling this is all going to sort itself out.”
Then she stood somewhat gingerly and kissed Cass on the top of her head. “Now, I still have Christmas shopping to do, and the coming blizzard is about to make that impossible. I’d suggest you get back to that bakery and talk to your sister. And then, maybe give your Miguel a call? Wish him an early Merry Christmas. See if he’s figured out what he wants to say yet.” She smiled one last time, and then, with a tinkling of bells at the top of the café door, she was gone, out into the snowy afternoon.
Cass put on her coat and went back out onto the street, too. She turned toward the bakery, but her steps grew plodding. She had solved the issue with the starter, but she still had no idea what to say to Charlie, how to make things right again. Some of the things Charlie had said had really hurt her; she knew Charlie likely felt the same. She had spent the day saying the things that needed to be said—to Makewell’s, to Brett, to Faye. But she still couldn’t think of what to say to her sister.
Cass needed more time to clear her head, and then she could deal with Charlie—and also do as Faye had said and give Miguel a call. That was going to take a huge amount of courage, and she didn’t feel she had it yet. And she knew just where to get it: the familiar trails that surrounded the town. It had been too long since she cleared her head with a good long hike. Cass stopped at her car to drop off the Christmas presents she had bought for her parents and headed off in the opposite direction, away from the town and toward the mountains she loved. She still had time before the storm started, and luckily she’d dressed for the weather.