Chapter 5

When the bus reached Middletown station, Landon was surprised to find Derek instead of Grace waiting for them.

“Welcome home, Bro,” Derek greeted Landon. “Nice to see you again, Mrs. Petersen. You too Callie.”

“Derek!” Callie run to Landon’s army buddy and hugged him tight.

“Thank you for taking care of my son, Derek.”

“It was my pleasure, Mrs. Petersen. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him. I’ll drive you to the cabin. Come on.” Derek grabbed a couple of suitcases and headed to his truck.

“Where is Grace?” Landon asked, grabbing the rest of the luggage.

“She had things to do and asked me to pick you up. Don’t worry, she and Scout are fine.”

They made small talk during the trip. Mainly, catching up with the local gossip.

When they finally arrived and entered the cabin, Landon carried his bag to his bedroom and found a tux hanging there in front of him.

“What is this?” he asked Derek. “I’m pretty sure it wasn’t there when I left.

“Looks like a tux to me,” Derek said.

“I can see that, smarty pants. What is going on?”

“There’s a party at the community center and you are invited,” Derek winked at his friend. Then he checked his phone and said, “Take a quick shower and I’ll help you change, the carriage will be here any minute.”

As soon as Landon got out of the bathroom, Derek helped Landon to put on the tux.

“What did you mean by carriage? Derek, you need to start talking right now.”

“I plead the fifth.”

“What about my mother and sister, I can’t leave them alone.”

“We’ll be fine, Bro. I remember where everything is from our previous visit. We can take care of ourselves. By the way, you look very handsome in your tux.”

There was a soft knock on the door and Landon opened it to find a carriage beautifully decorated with Christmas garland, green velvet bows, and multicolor lights. The driver was wearing a beautiful outfit and a top hat.

“Your carriage is ready, sir.”

He looked back but Derek had already gone through the back door.

Landon shook his head, climbed into the carriage and sat alongside a huge bouquet of roses.

The coach headed for the road and out to town.

Middletown was about as bustling as a little town could get at Christmas. There were lavish decorations up and down Main Street.

“Where are we going? This is not the way to the community center.”

The driver ignored Landon and kept driving.

There was cedar strung over shop windows, wreaths hung from each street lamp on the main street, and shopkeepers outdid themselves with store displays. Landon had to admit it would be pretty nice if he were into the whole Norman Rockwell scene.

Finally, the carriage stopped in front of Grace’s place. Landon was surprised to find that his girlfriend was waiting for him dressed as a princess.

“Landon! What a beautiful surprise! Your note left me speechless!”