A Christmas Worth Billions (Countdown to Christmas Book 4) (2 page)

The snow had begun falling again, and David could only see a few feet in front of him as he made his way out of the city. He turned on the radio to keep him alert, but every station played Christmas music. Her favorite.

David was grateful to pull into the church parking lot at last. He hoped the meeting wouldn’t go too long so he could get home. This was the longest he’d been out of the house since he’d moved, and he could feel the anxiety creeping up on him.

Warmth washed over him as he walked inside the small church. Candles lined the room, and there were no other people sitting in the pews.

“Ah, there you are. I was wondering if you would come.” Reverend Smith came forward to shake David’s hand and led him into his office.

David sat in the chair across from the pastor. “Sorry about that. The snow didn’t help much.”

Reverend Smith laughed. “I can imagine.”

“So what did you want to talk to me about?” David shifted in his seat, uncomfortable.

“I wanted to see how you are doing. I know you’ve been out and about to go running, but that’s all I’ve seen. Frankly, David, I’m worried about you. Sarah wouldn’t have wanted you to suffer like this.” His eyes were sad.

David clenched his fists. The reverend had never even met Sarah, but he’d heard about her not long after David had moved in. He forced himself to calm down, and sighed.

“I know. I’m trying.” He ran his fingers through his hair.

“It’s hard to get past losing a loved one.” The reverend stared at the desk in front of him. “But if we don’t move on, we’re not allowing ourselves to heal, and that helps no one.”

David leaned forward. “You’ve lost someone?”

“Yes. I was married once. She was the love of my life. I let her loss get the best of me, and I became very bitter. It wasn’t until I learned that service was the only thing that would help get past the grief that I was able to move on. Now I’m able to serve in a capacity I never thought possible.”

“So you want me to become a pastor?” David asked, his eyebrows raised.

Reverend Smith laughed. “No. Not unless you want to, but I do think you could find a few ways to serve here.”

David studied him for a moment. “What do you mean?”

Reverend Smith sat back in his chair. “These old knees of mine won’t allow me to climb the stairs to the bell tower anymore. I miss the sound, and I would like someone to ring the bells for services every morning. All the instructions are up there, along with several choices of songs. Do you think that’s something you could do?”

“Do I have to decide right now?” David asked. He knew the reverend was right, but that meant he’d have to leave his house more often than he had before.

“No, just give me an answer on Sunday.”

David nodded and stood. “Fair enough. I’ll get back to you.”

“Thank you. Merry Christmas, David.” The reverend followed him out of the office.

“Merry Christmas.” The words were bitter in his mouth. As he turned away, he bumped into a beautiful woman, knocking the money she’d been holding to the ground. He knelt and picked up the few coins to give back to her. Their eyes met, and he was mesmerized by her green eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

Her smile lit up her face, and the dark circles under her eyes were almost unnoticeable. “It’s fine. I should have watched where I was going.”

“I was the one who ran into you. Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes, thank you. If you’ll please excuse me, I need to get back to my children.” She moved past David and walked over to Reverend Smith.

David heard something about tithes as he walked past two children huddled in the doorway. They stared up at him, and he winked. They smiled back before turning away.

The snow made it hard to see as David trudged out to his truck and grabbed a brush so he could clean the windshield. Snow had fallen in the few moments he’d been in the church. Before he climbed into the truck, he stared up at the bell tower that stood tall and proud. It was exposed to the elements, and that didn’t seem too appealing, but … Sarah would have loved the music.

David sighed and drove away. Service. It shouldn’t have been such a novel concept to him, but he’d been used to doing everything for money. It was how he’d made his billions. But wasn’t that what Sarah had been arguing about in the car that night? He’d become too consumed by money and forgot the little things.

The garage door stuck for a bit before finally opening slowly. David parked the truck and walked inside. He left his snowy shoes next to the door and changed into warm pajamas before climbing into bed. He rolled over, picked up his phone, and typed in a few words.

I’ll ring the bells for you. And thank you for the opportunity.

Chapter Two

Lily woke to the coughs from her oldest, Mary. She climbed out of bed and wrapped her blanket around her shoulders. She’d need to find a way to pay for more gas for the house. It was too cold in here for her children. At least they’d be warm at school the next day. She went into Mary’s room and climbed into bed with her.

“It’s okay, sweetie. Come here.” She brushed Mary’s hair away from her face. “It’s nearly morning.”

“I’m cold, Mommy.” Mary snuggled in closer.

“I know.” Lily kissed the top of Mary’s head. “Just sleep. We’ll find a way to warm our house, okay? I’ll make this better. Christmas is coming, so people will be out shopping and they'll need a place to eat.”

Mary nodded, and soon, her breathing slowed. She coughed again, but didn’t stir. Lily stared off into the dark, remembering how it had been before. She’d been able to afford whatever Mary and Patrick had wanted, but then things at the diner had gone downhill. Now all of the money was put into paying off store expenses, leaving her nothing to pay bills at home. If they could just get past this cold spell, it wouldn’t be so bad. Lily pushed the thought away that it wasn’t even Christmas yet. It’d be a long time before winter was over, and so far, it had been harsh. If it kept going, they’d have to go to the church to ask for help.

It was something that Lily wanted to avoid. She wanted to show she could do this on her own. Her mind drifted back to the man she’d met in the church. She’d seen him jogging past her home a few times, but had never seen him in church. He was handsome, and from the clothes he wore, the rumors were probably true that he was a billionaire. Far beyond her league.

* * *

“Bye! I’ll see you two after school.” Lily smiled and waved as Mary and Patrick ran into the building. They waved back before disappearing inside.

Lily made her way to the family diner and smiled at her customers as she walked to the office to grab her apron.

Lily's best friend, Ann, looked up from the note she was writing. “Oh, there you are, Lily. A few bill collectors have called, and I didn’t know what to say. ”

“I was hoping they’d give us until after Christmas.” Lily sighed. This diner had been her grandma’s, and Lily had done everything she could to keep it open.

“Well, if business keeps going like today, you should be able to pay a few of those bills. Could you help out before you call them back? Spencer called in sick, and Cindy hasn’t shown up yet,” Ann said.

“Of course.” Lily grabbed her paper and pen and headed toward the first table. “Welcome to Nelly’s Diner. May I take your order?”

The family rattled off what they wanted, and Lily did her best to keep up. When she read it back, they had to make a few corrections. She loved the diner, but she preferred to stay behind the scenes, making the food.

She passed the order on to the cook and made her way to the next table, where a young couple sat. They ordered eggs and toast, and complimented her on the decorations. The same Christmas decorations that had been used when her grandma owned the place. She didn’t have the heart to switch them out.

The bell over the door rang, and the man from the church the night before came in. Lily’s heart fluttered, and she considered hiding in the back, but she took a deep breath and walked over to the counter. “Hi. What can I do for you?”

“Hey, how’s it going? I didn’t know you work here.” He smiled.

“I own the diner, but I’m usually in the back.” She wanted to check her hair to make sure it wasn’t a mess, but she kept her hands on the counter. He was just another customer. Another customer who was extremely good-looking.

He sat on the barstool. “Ah. I guess that makes sense. Can I get a coffee and some toast?”

“White or wheat?” She wrote down “coffee” in the notebook.

“Surprise me.” He rubbed his hands together.

Lily smiled and went to the kitchen to fill the order. She prepared the pieces of toast and poured his coffee before heading back to the counter. “Here you go.”

He laughed. “One white and one wheat. Clever.”

“Thank you.” She nodded and moved on to the next set of customers. She couldn’t help noticing that he kept glancing over at her, and she felt her face redden.

When he was finished, she walked over and picked up the cash he’d left to pay for his food. Her stomach dropped when she saw the hundred-dollar bill wrapped up in the smaller bills. She looked around to find him, but he’d already left. On the receipt, he’d written,

Buy something for those beautiful children of yours.

~ David

Lily’s eyes filled with tears as she rolled the money up and shoved it in her pocket, and put the rest into the register. She wanted to give it back, but Mary and Patrick needed coats. She closed her eyes and said a quick prayer of thanks before moving on to the next customer. She’d pay David back. Someday.

“Are you okay?” the older lady asked.

“I’m fine, thank you. Are you ready to order?” Lily got her paper and pen ready.

The woman pointed at the pancakes. “I’ll have that, and some extra bacon.”

Her husband closed the menu and handed it to Lily. “I’ll have the special with some orange juice.”

“Great. I’ll have that right out to you.” She smiled and turned to walk away.

“Was it that David character? What did he say?” the woman asked.

Lily looked back at her in surprise. “You know him?”

The woman nodded. “He lives next door to us. Never says much, and doesn’t get out. I’ve heard he hasn’t been the same since his wife died.”

“His wife died?” Lily asked, frowning. How awful for him.

“Just recently. That’s why he moved here.”

“Edith, that’s enough. You don’t need to be telling that poor man’s life story.” The old man shook his head. “Don’t mind her. She gets bored sitting inside all day.”

“It’s okay. I’ll place your order.” Lily smiled to herself as she walked back to the kitchen. She leaned against the wall to get her bearings. Too many things had happened in the last few minutes, and she hadn’t been able to process it. She walked over to Ann and pulled out the hundred-dollar bill.

“Look at what one of the customers left me.” She held out the money and the note from David.

Ann read it, eyes wide. “I’m thinking the splitting of tips doesn’t count here, right?”

Lily bit her lip. “Are you sure? It’s a lot of money.”

“You must have made quite an impression on him. He didn't take his eyes off you.” Ann smiled. “
And
he’s cute.”

Lily took a pot of coffee to refill the mugs. Was she the only one in the whole town who didn’t know anything about David? She went back to her office and called the collectors to set up payments. They would be willing to wait until after Christmas, but she wondered if she’d even be able to pay then.

She went to find Ann, putting on her coat. “Hey, I need to get my kids. I’ll be back later.”

Ann waved and went back to taking orders.

Lily clocked out and hurried down the street to the small department store. She couldn’t wait to see her children’s faces when they saw their new clothes. Usually, they had to wear what clothing she could find, and it was always too small or too big for them. Poor Mary had grown so much in the last month, nothing fit anymore.

The choice of clothing was almost overwhelming as she tried to guess what sizes they should be wearing. Maybe it would have been better to bring them. She started for the door, deciding to come back later.

“Excuse me? Can I help you?” a woman asked. She obviously worked there, by the name tag and polo shirt she was wearing.

Lily hesitated. She wanted to run, but the woman’s smile was kind. “I need coats for my kids, but I don’t know their sizes. I’ll just come back.”

“I can help you. How old are they?” the lady asked, walking toward the children’s section.

“My daughter is nine, and my son is seven. They’re both small for their age, but my daughter is going through a growth spurt.” Lily watched as the woman riffled through the racks.

“I’m guessing they’re around these sizes. Do you see one you like?” The woman held up a few. Lily checked the thickness of the coats, along with the prices.