Christmas Camp Page 2

  “I’m sure that means a lot to them.”

  Haley scrolled through more pictures. “It does. They want this to be our family project. Not that I have the time, but at least I can help them with the money. At least that was my plan.” She held up another photo for Kathy to see. It was of Haley with her parents standing in front of a beautiful grand Victorian. They were all smiling.

  Kathy nodded. “Nice.”

  “And don’t think you’re getting out of helping. I already told my mom how great you are with design.”

  “Uh, graphic design not home design,” Kathy scoffed.

  Haley put her arm around Kathy. “Uh, ‘tomayto, tomahto. We’ll find some way to put you to work. By the way, how are you with plumbing?”

  “Plumbing?”

  “Yeah, a pipe burst. They haven’t had any hot water, so my parents have been staying at my place.”

  “Well, at least someone is,” Kathy said. “You’re never home. I don’t even know why you keep your condo, you practically live here. All you do is work. When was the last time you even went on a date?”

  Haley gave her a pointed look.

  Kathy laughed. “Okay, I told you I was sorry about that guy.”

  The last blind date Kathy had set her up with had been a disaster. The guy had said he was taking her out for a nice dinner, but they had ended up at a juice bar where he’d told her she could order any drink she wanted as long as it was a medium, because his last girlfriend always said a large was too much. He’d spent the rest of the date talking about his ex. It was reason number 427 why Haley didn’t want to waste time dating right now. She had more important things to do, like convincing Larry to give her a shot at Tyler Toys. She headed for the door.

  “I’m going to go talk to Larry and get this account. Wish me luck.”

  “Luck,” Kathy said as Haley hurried out the door.

  As Haley headed down the hall to Larry’s office, she saw Tom go into the break room. She figured it was the perfect chance to do a little recon on Tom’s Christmas decorations and see what Larry was so impressed by.

  She frowned as she got closer to Tom’s office. She hated admitting it, but Tom had done a really great job. The outside of his office was covered in twinkling white Christmas lights and all the glass windows had magnificent wreaths hanging from them. The biggest wreath was on the office door. Haley leaned closer and sniffed it. Yup. The wreaths were real. Tom’s office even smelled like Christmas!

  When she peeked in, the first thing she noticed was a giant Christmas tree in the corner. It had to be at least seven feet tall! It was decorated with multicolored lights and traditional red and white ornaments that went perfectly with all the candy canes.

  Haley was in awe. “He even has candy canes.”

  “Want one?”

  Haley whipped around to find Tom standing behind her. He grinned and held up a candy cane. “I was just putting some in the break room, but you can have this one.”

  Of course, you were putting candy canes in the break room, Haley thought. That’s because you’re a Santa wannabe pretending to be an ad executive.

  Tom waved the candy cane in front of her. He was waiting for her answer.

  Haley shook her head. “No, it’s okay, thanks. I’m trying to cut down on sweets.”

  “At Christmas?” Tom laughed. “How’s that going for you?”

  “Not so well.” Haley fought to keep smiling. “But if I’m going to eat sugar, it’s gotta be chocolate. I have to make it worth it.”

  Tom entered his office. “I have chocolates in here, some chocolate Santas and chocolate Christmas truffles.” He held up a candy dish in the shape of a snowman.

  Haley shook her head. “Thanks, but I’m good.” As she continued walking, Tom called out after her.

  “They’re here if you change your mind!”

  Haley just kept walking and muttered under her breath, “Chocolate Santas, seriously? What next?” She didn’t have to wait long for an answer when she heard Christmas music coming out of Tom’s office. The song was “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” She sighed, knowing the song would now be stuck in her head all day.

  Not able to help herself, she hummed the song as she entered Larry’s office. He was on the phone, so he motioned for her to sit down. While she waited for him, she glanced around and noticed that he, too, had his own Christmas tree. It was much smaller than Tom’s, but it was still really pretty with silver ornaments and a sparkling star on top. He also had a wreath. She smelled it before she saw it. She must have missed the “everyone get a wreath” memo. She looked over at Larry’s bookcase. It was twice as big as hers and made out of beautiful, rich mahogany. She estimated that he had at least three dozen Addies.

  Her eyes were also drawn to his family pictures. He was the proud father of two Ivy League college students and never missed a chance to show off his daughters, Shannon and Sydney. Haley knew he’d met his wife, Ellen, in grad school when she was a free-spirited art major. He always said she was the yin to his yang.

  As soon as Larry hung up the phone, Haley stood up. She was ready for round two.

  Her eyes flashed with determination. It was showtime. “Larry, thank you for giving me the chance to pitch you my ideas for Tyler Toys.” But before she could say more, Larry stood up.

  “I don’t need to hear your pitch,” he said.

  Haley looked stunned, then excited. “Really? So, you’re giving me the account?”

  “No.”

  Haley’s smiled faded. “I don’t understand.”

  Larry handed her a brochure he took from his desk. “You said you’d do anything to get a shot at pitching this account.”

  “Right . . .” Haley looked confused. “Whatever you need me to do.”

  “I need you to do this.” He handed her a glossy brochure.

  Haley glanced at it. It was for a pretty little place called Holly Peak Inn that was tucked away in the mountains. “I don’t understand. You need me to go on vacation?”

  Larry shook his head and smiled slowly. “No, I need you to go to Christmas Camp.”

  “What?” Haley sputtered, looking at the brochure again.

  “For a holiday attitude adjustment.”

  Haley laughed out loud but stopped when she saw that he was dead serious. Her eyes grew wide. “Wait, what? You want me to go to a . . . Christmas bootcamp?!” Haley couldn’t believe what she was hearing. This had to be a joke, right? So why wasn’t Larry laughing? He couldn’t be serious, could he? How did such a thing even exist? Her mind was whirling. She could barely focus on what he was saying.

  “It’s called a Christmas Camp,” Larry said. “Remember three years ago when I took that vacation before Christmas?”

  “Of course, it was the first time you’d taken a break around Christmas.”

  Larry laughed. “And that was exactly my wife’s point. She was complaining that we never spent Christmas together as a family anymore. So, she signed us all up for this Christmas Camp. The girls had to cancel their ski trips. They weren’t any happier about it than I was, but we all did it. We didn’t have much choice. You know my wife.”

  Haley nodded and laughed. Ellen was relaxed and laid-back, but when she put her mind to something, watch out.

  Larry went over, picked up one of his family pictures, and showed it to Haley.

  Haley studied it. It was of Larry and his family posing with a snowman in front of a pretty inn. She looked closer and recognized the inn from the brochure. “This was Christmas Camp?” she asked.

  “It was.” Larry smiled as he remembered. “And it’s one of our favorite pictures together as a family. That week we all spent at the inn changed us, in a good way. I’ll always be thankful for that.”

  Haley looked confused. “Why? What made it so special?”

  “That’s something you need to find out for yourself.” Larry gave her a reassuring smile. “But I will tell you this—I think it will help you if you really want to pitch the Tyler Toys acco
unt.”

  Haley’s spirits lifted. “Wait, so does that mean if I go to this Christmas bootcamp thing, I get to pitch Tyler Toys?”

  “Christmas Camp.” Larry corrected her again.

  “Right, sorry. Christmas Camp. But if I go, I get to pitch?”

  Larry held up his hand to slow her down. “What I’m saying is if you go, I’ll let both you and Tom pitch me your best ideas, and then I’ll decide who can have the account. I’m trying to help you here, but I can’t make any promises.”

  Haley’s smile faded a little. But at least she was still in the game. She took a deep breath. She could totally do this. How bad could a little Christmas Camp be?

  Larry went over to a box and pulled out one of those ridiculous Christmas sweaters people thought were so hilarious to wear. To be clear, Haley had never been one of those people. Larry tossed the sweater to her.

  “And you’ll need to take this with you.”

  Haley caught the sweater, then wished she hadn’t. Her eyes hurt just looking at it. If there was an ugly sweater contest, this one would surely win first prize. It was holiday hideous. It was bright red and green and looked like a glitter gun had exploded on it. On the front, there was a giant Santa face. His rosy-red cheeks were furry, just like the white snowballs that were dangling from the sleeves of the sweater and lined up along the hem. It was a Christmas mash-up of the silliest kind.

  As Larry sat back down at his desk, he fired off one more snowball. “And don’t forget to bring back the certificate.”

  “Certificate?” Haley’s voice cracked. She was starting to feel like she was trapped in a Christmas snow globe that someone wouldn’t stop shaking.

  “Yes, the one the Christmas Camp gives you to prove you did all the holiday activities. I want you to have the full Christmas experience. You better get going. It starts tomorrow.”

  Larry picked up his phone. Haley realized this was her cue to leave. She fought to keep smiling and tried to look excited.

  “So, this is for a full week? There’s no mini-weekend version I could do?”

  Larry crossed his arms and sat back down in his chair. “If you don’t think you can handle a week, I’ll just give the account to Tom now . . .”

  Haley’s eyes flew to him. “No. A week is fine! A week is great. I can just work on the Tyler Toys campaign while I’m there. Like you said, I’m sure it will be the perfect place to find some Christmas inspiration.”

  “Great.” Larry looked genuinely pleased. “Then I’ll have both you and Tom pitch me your best ideas a week from tomorrow.”

  Haley smiled back at him. “I’ll be ready.”

  Larry had already picked up his phone again.

  “And, Larry . . .”

  “Yes?”

  Haley was no longer doing her power pose. She wasn’t trying to be a superhero. She was just being herself, someone who was truly grateful to get a chance at making her dream of partner come true. “I just wanted to say thank you for giving me this shot. I know I’m not the obvious choice for this account, but I promise I won’t let you down.”

  Larry smiled back at her. “I know you won’t, Haley. You never do. Good luck.”

  As she walked out of the office, Haley let out a huge sigh of relief. She was still in the game.

  But then she heard it.

  It was coming from Tom’s office.

  Christmas music.

  And this time the melody that Haley wouldn’t be able to get out of her head was “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” . . .

  Chapter 3

  The sun was setting as Jeff Jacoby walked along the Boston waterfront, taking in all the breathtaking Christmas decorations. It was his favorite time of day. Magic hour. It was the last hour of sunlight, when the light was softer and more diffused, giving everything a golden glow. It was also the time when all the twinkling Christmas lights would turn on, transforming Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park into a magical winter wonderland.

  As Jeff admired a group of the boats in the harbor that were also decked out in Christmas lights, he thought about how much his dad would appreciate all the decorations. No one loved Christmas more than his mom and dad. But now that his mom was gone—after losing a brave battle with cancer two years ago—Jeff couldn’t wait to have his dad move into the city so they could spend more time together.

  Jeff stopped and looked up with pride at Crane Wharf. It was a four-story gray granite building that was built back in the early 1800s. He was the architect responsible for coming up with a plan to save the wharf after it had been earmarked for demolition. Through a painstaking process, preserving the wharf’s original brick walls and yellow pine beams, the landmark had been turned into luxury condos with a few longtime Boston businesses remaining on the ground floor.

  Jeff looked up at the top corner unit. It was the condo he’d had his eye on for his dad. He thought it was perfect for him. It had a fantastic view of the harbor and was only a short walk from his own condo, a renovated three-story walk-up in the North End. He really believed his dad would love it in Boston—once he got used to the idea of moving. And that was the big challenge, trying to convince his dad to move.

  Jeff knew it wasn’t going to be easy, because his dad loved his home and business at Holly Peak Inn, tucked away in the mountains a few hours from Boston.

  But like it or not, even though his dad didn’t like to talk about it, the reality was that the inn was losing more money every year, and his dad couldn’t afford to keep it. Now that his mom was gone, Jeff also didn’t like the idea of having his dad up there all alone. He had spent the last year looking for the right person to buy the inn, but it had proved more challenging than he had planned for. The only interest had come from developers who just wanted to tear the place down, and he knew his dad would never go for that. Finally, a few months ago, he had found someone, a banker who was looking for a vacation home for his family, so it was perfect. Now all he needed to do was get his dad on board. But time was running out. The buyer needed an answer by the end of the year, and so far, his dad had done a great job of avoiding the topic. Whenever Jeff called, the only thing his dad wanted to talk about was his Christmas Camps.

  Jeff knew the Christmas Camps were his dad’s pride and joy. They were special weeks at the inn, between October and Christmas, that his dad and mom had created to help people find and embrace their Christmas spirit. His parents had always believed in the power of people disconnecting from their hectic lives so they could reconnect with what mattered most, things like friends, family, community, and love. During the Christmas Camp week, guests participated in all kinds of traditional holiday activities. A lot of the activities Jeff had grown up doing himself, like the mountain hike to find the perfect Christmas tree and volunteering at the local community center to put special Christmas meals together for families that needed a little extra help during the holidays.

  Jeff knew putting on the Christmas Camps was a lot of work—especially now that his mom was gone, so he’d agreed to go up and help his dad. He also hoped that it would give them a chance to talk about the future, and he could convince his dad that selling the inn was the right decision.

  Jeff figured his dad knew exactly what he was up to. It was hard to get anything past him. He was as smart as he was genuine and kind. But no matter what happened over this next week, Jeff would at least be able to spend some quality time with his dad. It had been a while, too long. The wharf project had consumed so much of his time, but now that it was almost finished, he could take a quick break before starting on his next project in the New Year.

  Jeff took a couple pictures of the wharf with his phone to show his dad, who always liked seeing the projects he was working on. As he continued walking, he headed to his favorite street in the North End, Hanover Street. The quaint little street was one of the oldest in Boston, and home to some of the best Italian restaurants in the city. Jeff planned to drive up to his dad’s first thing in the morning, but first he needed his s
ecret weapon.

  He smiled as he walked into a bakery that was decorated for Christmas. In the corner was his favorite Christmas tree, which had cookies for ornaments. Customers were encouraged to take one. The robust man behind the counter saw him and waved.

  “Jeff, come on over! I have your order all ready for you!” the man said with his thick, booming Italian accent. He held up a big pastry box. “A dozen cannolis. The best we have!”

  “Thanks, Mike!” Jeff inhaled deeply as he headed for the counter. He savored the smell of fresh bread just out of the oven. He always loved coming into this bakery. Mike and his Italian family owned it, and while it was famous for its cannolis, it was also popular for all kinds of other homemade Italian treats, like biscotti and tiramisu. But today Jeff was all about the cannolis because they were his dad’s favorite.

  Mike proudly opened the pastry box he was holding so Jeff could see inside. “I put a couple of extra ones in here for you to try,” he said. “Everyone loves the pistachio at Christmas!”

  “I don’t know if anything can beat your amaretto ones.” Jeff grinned as he took out a cannoli that had drizzled dark chocolate on top and was covered with powdered sugar. He admired it for only a second. He couldn’t help himself. He had to take a bite. From the first taste, he felt transported to a foodie heaven.

  He shook his head in wonder. “I don’t know how you do it, but these are so amazing! I don’t know if they’re going to make it to my dad’s!”

  Mike laughed, then grabbed two more cannolis and put them into the box. “For the road. They’re on me. Merry Christmas.”

  Jeff was touched. “Thank you. I know he’s going to love these.”

  Mike nodded and looked pleased with the compliment. “Tell your dad he needs to come back. It’s been too long!”

  “I agree, and I’ll tell him. Say hello to your family for me. Merry Christmas!”

  “Don’t forget a cookie!” Mike pointed at the tree.

  Jeff grinned as he took a frosted snowman cookie off the tree and took a bite. The Christmas cookie tree ornaments never got old. They always made him feel like a kid. “Thanks, Mike!”