The Christmas Piano Tree: What's Christmas without a tree? (A Kissing Creek novel Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

Miriam barked. “Drag him in here?”
    Kristen panicked. Oh, God, if Miriam went out to the stable and found the homeless vet, she was had. Worse yet, what if he’d knocked out their Santa and stole the presents? Zeke was no pushover, but what if he took him by surprise?
    It would be her fault.
    Christmas ruined.
    She wanted to sink into a hole.
    “I’ll help you get Zeke on his feet, Betty Ann,” Kristen said, careful with her words. She had no idea if Betty Ann had seen the homeless vet.
    “Zeke needs more than an extra pair of hands to get him into his Santa suit, Kristen,” said Betty Ann, laughing. “He’s as tipsy as a groundhog without a shadow.”
    Kristen let out the breath she’d been holding, relieved. She was happier than she should have been to find out the soldier wasn’t to blame for Zeke’s predicament.
    He reminds me of Scott, no other reason .
    “I knew we should have fired that handyman, sister, when you found him sneaking the cooking sherry,” said Miriam, looking smug.
    “The poor man needed a job.” Betty Ann winked twice at Kristen.
    What was up? she wondered.
    “ And a hot meal,” she finished, giving her their secret signal that a homeless vet had shown up. So she had seen him.
    Kristen nodded. The handsome soldier must have set Betty Ann’s heart racing. She looked positively radiant. Not surprising. The man’s good looks and arrogance had knocked her off her orbit, she admitted, but it stopped right there.
    “So what do we do now, dear sister? ” Miriam emphasized. She was totally oblivious to the anxious looks passing between the two women, making Kristen grateful she had a one-track mind when it came to the school’s business. “We’ll be out of a job if we don’t impress our donors with a great Christmas program.”
    Kristen’s ears perked up. What was this? She’d heard rumblings about the Oakes sisters’ cash flow problems, but she’d dismissed it as gossip. Until now.
    “We need a Santa for the girls,” continued Miriam, grabbing her cell. “I’ll call Sheriff Hogan.”
    Betty Ann shook her head. “That won’t work, Miriam. His office said he’s investigating a robbery over at Carey Bank.”
    Rattled, Kristen knocked over a cupcake, squishing its snowy peak. A robbery? On Christmas Eve? Bad news for folks in this town. Phineas Carey owned nearly every mortgage in town, including hers. She’d never seen the man when he didn’t have a dour expression or a ready finger to point the blame on someone else for his money problems.
    If the sheriff didn’t recover the stolen funds, she feared the banker would come calling, wanting his mortgage money. She could expect no sympathy from him.
    She hated the queasy feeling hitting her, making her ask because she had to: “Did they get away with a lot of money?”
    Betty Ann clasped her hand to her ample bosom in a dramatic manner. “A whole month’s cash deposits, according to Mr. Carey.”
    “Just our luck,” said Miriam, wringing her hands. “Mr. Carey’s daughter is a student here. If the banker finds any reason to have another fit that could be our undoing if he doesn’t make a sizeable donation this year.” She turned to her sister. “How’s your ho ho ho , Betty Ann?” Her tone was curt, insistent.
    “That Santa suit makes me look fat,” whined her sister, refusing to be talked into what was for her an awkward situation. Kristen ached for her. Betty Ann referred to herself as a happy-sized woman, but that was only to disguise the hurt she suffered every time Miriam put her down because of her weight. 
    Miriam narrowed her eyes. “If the shoe fits.”
    “How can you do this to your own sister?” Betty Ann said, miffed.
    “Do it, Betty Ann. Now .”
    “Please, Miriam. Everyone will laugh at me.”
    Kristen turned away, embarrassed to be listening to this, especially for Betty Ann’s sake. The woman had taken her under her wing, shown her kindness, and she loved her sugar cookies, the pure joy