Match Made in Valley View (Valley View Book #2)

Chapter 16

THANKSGIVING

My alarm goes off at 6 am on Thanksgiving morning, but compared to a normal morning, this is actually sleeping in. Instead of making my way downstairs to the bakery, I am going to finish prepping the turkey and get it in the oven. My siblings are here for our Thanksgiving and I am planning on a lunchtime meal. I throw on a fluffy robe, slide into my slippers and make my way into the kitchen. Holden is sleeping on the couch, so I try to stay as quiet as I can.

I did most of what I needed to do last night before we went to bed so this morning, all I need to do is get to bird in the oven and I can go back to bed for a bit. I start to wash my hands and I accidentally drop the bottle of soap in a loud thud. When I go to pick it up, it slips out of my hand and bounces around the sink.

“Shhhhhh,” I hear Holden hiss from the couch.

“Sorry, sorry!”

Holden groans from the couch, now bothered by the lights. He throws the blanket over his face and says a few swear words under his breath. Being the sensitive, loving sister I am, I walk over and yank the comforter off of him and he yelps like a girl.

“Damnit, Holly! It’s fucking 12 degrees inside.”

‘Oh, hush, it isn’t that cold, the heat is on.” He scrambles up and pulls the blanket back from me and angrily lays back down.

“Go back to sleep you baby.”

Holden holds up a middle finger out from underneath the blanket, “Screw you!”

I laugh as I walk back into the kitchen. I pull the bird from the fridge and pre-heat the oven. Once everything is prepped, I toss it into the oven and head back into bed. I slide into bed and pull the covers back over me as my sister, who is sharing a bed with me, stirs in her sleep.

“What did you do to him?” She grumbles.

“He was being an ass, so I pulled off his blanket.”

She giggles, “That’s so mean. Well done, sis.”

Hannah has been here since Monday and Holden came in yesterday morning. I haven’t seen them since Easter, so I am so happy that they both agreed to travel to my small town for Thanksgiving. I planned out the perfect holiday meal for the three of us, but part of that requires getting the bird in early. I’m following the recipe that our mom always did. It never turns out the same, but I try it every year.

I settle back into sleep, taking advantage of a full day off from the bakery to get some real rest. A couple of hours later, Holden barges into the bedroom screaming something at me. I can’t totally tell what it is as I try to come out of my daze, but I realize that I’m really cold.

“What’s going on, Holden?”

“Your power went out, Holls.”

“What? Fuck, you’ve got to be kidding me.” I drag myself out of bed and wrap myself in the robe again. There is an obvious chill in the house and as expected, none of the lights are working. 

“Can you go downstairs and check the bakery?” I ask Holden.

“Yeah, is your breaker down there?”

“Yeah, for the apartment is right at the end of the stairs before you go outside. The bakery one is inside the break room.”

“Okay, I’ll check the bakery and then see if it was just a tripped breaker.” Holden puts on his sweatshirt and shoes and heads downstairs. Hannah comes out of the bedroom already in layers with a blanket wrapped around her.