Coming Home to Christmas Cove

"Would you like to see your ring again, Mrs. Spencer?" Jocelyn Taylor asked the silver-haired woman. When Mrs. Spencer brought the ring into the jewelry boutique the week before, the staff had dubbed it The Christmas Ring because of the story behind it.

The elder woman nodded, a smile donning her lips. "Yes, if you're sure it's not too much trouble."

Jocelyn smiled. Mr. and Mrs. Spencer used to own the jewelry store, but sold it a few years back. Now, they couldn't seem to stay away. They had been coming into the jewelry store ever since Jocelyn started working there when she graduated from college. Although she had majored in Business Administration, Jocelyn couldn't find a suitable job in the town. Since Roxanne, the new owner, hired her, Jocelyn had worked her way up to manager and helped to turn the store around. Jocelyn had taught Roxanne about business management, and Roxanne, in turn, had taught her the jewelry business. Together, they made a good team in the town where Christmas lived three hundred sixty-five days a year-Christmas Cove, Washington.

"Please, tell us the story again." Kiki, a salesperson and Jocelyn's best friend, leaned onto her elbows on the glass counter, settling in. If Roxanne had been there, she would have thrown a fit.

Mrs. Spencer waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, you don't want to hear that old story again, do you? I've told it to you a hundred times."

"Please?" Kiki batted her big, blue eyes and pooched out her lip. Her expression was so comical that Jocelyn had to laugh.

"Well...." Mrs. Spencer folded her hands primly at the edge of the counter. "Long ago, my father bought this ring for my mother while he was stationed in France during WWII. While he was away, he had missed my mother so badly that he swore that he'd propose to her the moment he saw her again."

"And what did she say?" Kiki's eyes were wide, her auburn hair falling over her arms. "Did she say yes?"

Jocelyn gently nudged her shoulder with hers. They had both heard the story many times before, but Jocelyn enjoyed hearing it just as much each time.

"Well, not at first." Mrs. Spencer's eyes danced with excitement. "Although she knew my father before he left, she didn't know him well enough to say yes. So, he asked her out on a date. He had proposed to her for the first time a week before Christmas right here in this town and she turned him down." She leaned in for effect. "But, by the end of the week on Christmas Eve, he proposed to her right there again...." She pointed through the large, plate-glass windows to the gazebo in the town square.

"And she said yes." Kiki's eyes widened as she straightened her posture.

"And she said yes," Mrs. Spencer repeated, as if Kiki hadn't said a thing.

Kiki sighed dreamily. "It's the most romantic story I've ever heard."

"Here at the boutique, we call it The Christmas Ring, you know," Jocelyn interjected, pulling the sparkling ring out from inside the case. The ring was simple, but gorgeous. Out of all the rings that had come through the Christmas Cove Jewelry Store, it was, by far, the most beautiful.

Mrs. Spencer's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Really?" She smiled, quickly recovering herself. "Well, it's very fitting, isn't it?"

Kiki sighed, a hopeless romantic. "Someday, my future husband will propose to me on Christmas Eve, too."

"Oh, really," Jocelyn stated in disbelief.

"Are you dating someone, dear?" Mrs. Spencer was a romantic, too. Jocelyn guessed that they all were.

Kiki smiled proudly. "No, ma'am. I'm not even dating anyone." She shrugged. "I guess I just haven't met the right man yet."

Mrs. Spencer gave her hand a gentle pat. "There, there. Give it time. When you meet the right man, you'll know it." Her voice was filled with pity, as if being single was an affliction.

"But how do you know?" Kiki asked like a small child as she folded her arms at the edge of the counter.

"Well..." Mrs. Spencer's eyes lit up, clearly enjoying herself. "You get a fluttering in your stomach and your heart beats ridiculously fast at just the mere mention of him. So much so that you think it'll burst...."

"Really?" Kiki was leaning against the counter again, her eyes wide.

Mrs. Spencer nodded. "But how you really know is when you can't live one more day without him in your life."

Jocelyn stopped cleaning and leaned against the counter, caught up in the older woman's romanticism. "How many years have you been married, Mrs. Spencer?"

She sighed. "Too many to count, I'm afraid."

"We've been married for forty-eight years this Valentine's Day." Mr. Spencer walked in at the tail end of the conversation. Then he reached over and took her hand in his. "She was twenty-three, and was so beautiful she took my breath away." He raised her withered hand to his lips and kissed it, never taking his eyes from hers. "And she still is."

"Oh, you ol' smoothie." Mrs. Spencer blushed as everyone laughed.

"No, I'm truthful," Mr. Spencer corrected, and then turned his attention to Jocelyn and Kiki. "She's the most beautiful woman I ever saw." Then he looked into her eyes and smiled.

That was what Jocelyn wanted one day. A love to last the ages, a lifetime love, but she feared that it just wasn't meant to be.

"Well, now...." Mrs. Spencer patted her husband's hand and then looked up at Jocelyn. "I think we've taken up enough of these young people's time."

Jocelyn walked around the counter, tucked the woman's hand into her arm, and walked her toward the door. "Never. You come in any time you like. It's always a pleasure to see you." At the risk of shooting herself in the foot, she had to ask, "But are you absolutely certain you want to sell the ring? I mean, it's been in your family a very long time."

The elder woman nodded. "Yes, I am. We never had children and I want it to go to someone who will cherish it the way I have. It'll bring good luck to a deserving couple, I'm sure."

Jocelyn could only wish for such a love, but love like that was only found in fairy tales.

"You'll call me when it sells, won't you?" Mrs. Spencer raised her drawn-on eyebrows.

Jocelyn smiled. "Yes. Of course we will." She turned to Mr. Spencer. "Will you be okay driving home?"

He smiled. "Yes, of course. I may be getting old, but I'm not an old coot yet."

Jocelyn laughed. "No, I didn't mean-"

"He knows that," Mrs. Spencer interrupted. "He just likes to tease."

"Well, you both be careful driving home." Jocelyn opened the door for them and cold air rushed in, chilling Jocelyn to the bone. She almost went back for her coat, but knew she would only be out for a moment. Jocelyn never tired of the landscape. A blanket of crisp, white snow glistened in the sunlight. In the center of town was the square, where the gazebo set, decorated with colorful Christmas lights, along with the rest of the town. It was only three weeks until Christmas, the busiest time of year for Christmas Cove. At night, it would become a Christmas wonderland, complete with Santa Claus in the gazebo, listening to the wishes of children.

"We will," Mr. Spencer said when they were outside and then tucked his wife's arm into his. "Someone has to keep her out of trouble."

"Oh, now...." Mrs. Spencer lowered her voice conspiratorially to Jocelyn. "Truth be told, he's the one who needs someone to keep him out of trouble." She patted Jocelyn's hand. "You'll see someday soon, I'm sure."

Of course, Jocelyn knew Mrs. Spencer was talking about the day when she fell in love and got married. "I don't think so."

A crease formed between Mrs. Spencer's eyes. "Whatever do you mean, dear?"

Jocelyn let out a deep breath as she walked them to their car. "Not everyone is as lucky as you." She opened the car door for the elder woman.

Mrs. Spencer climbed into the car as her husband waited, ever the gentleman. Although he was a bit older than his wife, he still took very good care of her... as Jocelyn suspected he always had.

"Don't close yourself off from love, my dear." Mrs. Spencer slid her legs into the car, and then looked over at her husband. "You never know when lightning will strike."

Jocelyn always enjoyed it when the couple came into the shop."You two be careful driving home."

Jocelyn stepped back and Mr. Spencer closed his wife's door, zipped up his coat, and then walked over to the driver's side. Jocelyn just hoped that one day, she would have that, but she doubted she ever would. Jocelyn had given her heart away a long time ago and, somehow, never got it back.

As she waved goodbye, her thoughts went to Caden. She had been only thirteen when he left and he was eighteen. He had been her sister, Mallory's, boyfriend at the time and he had always thought of Jocelyn as his little sister. When Mallory was busy with photoshoots or makeup lessons, trying to become a model, Caden and Jocelyn spent a lot of time together skating on the lake behind Jocelyn's house in the winter, playing football in the summer, or just watching television together. In fact, he spent more time hanging out at their house than his own. But although Jocelyn had a crush on him, she would never do anything to hurt her sister.