With light hearts and more protests from the children, they moved with the crowd back onto the train. The kids were tired. The excitement had taken a toll. They crowded into their seat, quieter but still talking about the wonders of the light displays.

After the train rolled on again, chugging smoothly through the deep forest and over Blackberry Mountain toward Whisper Falls, a pair of elves passed out foam cups of hot chocolate loaded with mini-marshmallows. The overhead lights dimmed, bathing everyone in shadows. Toward the front of the car, Miss Evelyn sat under a spotlight on a high stool and read a Christmas story. Lana suspected the elves read similar stories in the remaining cars.

The rocking of the train and Miss Evelyn's story lulled the passengers, including herself. More than one woman leaned her head on the shoulder of the man beside her. Lana was tempted to do the same.

The semilit car created an air of privacy as though dozens of other people weren't sitting nearby. She felt cocooned between the cool window and the warm, masculine man.

Mellowed by the thoughts, she sipped at her cocoa, the taste sweet on her tongue.

"Mustache," Davis murmured, leaning close enough to make her pulse misbehave.

"Hmm?" she asked, head tilted toward him.

In the shadows he leaned closer, grinning. He touched her upper lip. "Marshmallow mustache."

"Oh." Before she could raise her hand to clear it away, Davis touched his lips to hers. Tender, sweet and over too quickly.

"I think I got it for you." His grin had become a gentle, quizzical smile. His eyes held questions though Lana had no adequate answers.

"Great." She touched her mouth, breathless. One very innocent, friendly kiss and she could hardly think straight.

"Let me know if I didn't." He winked. "Or better yet, have another drink."

Have another drink. The old familiar phrase meant something different in Lana's world than marshmallow-laden cocoa.

She'd had too many drinks too many times with too many different men. Though she'd not touched alcohol for nearly two years, she couldn't forget what it had done to her.

She squeezed Davis's arm in an apology he would never understand and turned to stare out at the passing night.

"Hey."

Not this time. This time she talked to him. If she was going to shut him down, she was going to give him a reason.

Davis took Lana by the shoulder and gently tugged.

She turned her head, her hair swishing against her sweater, her eyebrows lifted in question. "Hmm?"

"What's going on? You invited me on this trip. We've had a terrific time. At least I have. I thought you were enjoying yourself, too."

"I am."

"Then what's the deal? Why do you disappear like that?"

Her head tilted. "Did I?"

He gave an annoyed sigh. "Are you intentionally trying to frustrate me?"

"Why would I do that?"

"I don't know. That's why I'm asking. I like you, Lana. You know I do. I'm a guy. You're a girl. It's only natural that I'd want to kiss you."

She closed her eyes as if his words were too hard to hear. Her rusty voice sounded small and tired. "I like you, too."

"Good." He pulled her unresisting hand into his. "Let's start over then. I like you. You like me. Life is good."

"It's not that simple."

"Then explain it to me because I must be slow. Maybe I'm too dumb or out of practice to get the message when a woman is giving me the brush-off." He sounded testy, even to himself. So, okay, he was testy. She was making him crazy.

"I'm not trying to... Today has been-" she searched for the words, staring around the darkened train "-a beautiful dream."

His anger dissolved, fizzled, died. "For me, too. You, me, these kids. Pretty special stuff."

"Yes." The affirmation was a mere breath but he heard it.

He heard something else. too, a yearning that was answered deep in his heart. At that moment, he thought he understood. "You're scared."

She offered a small smile. "Terrified."

His protective gene activated. "Don't be. It's just me, your friendly neighborhood handyman, and you, the most amazing woman I've met in a long time. We can handle anything together."

And I think I'm in love with you.

He didn't say that, of course, but the words coursed through his veins, like a steady beat of his heart.

"Oh, Davis." Lana turned completely away from the window to lay her head on his shoulder.

Now they were getting somewhere. He didn't know what dragons she battled, but he wanted to slay them all.

He found her cheek and caressed the soft, smooth skin. "Give us a chance. Okay?"

She sighed, a warm, breathy, marshmallow sigh against his jaw. After a painfully long moment, she nodded. "I'd like that."

Her admission slammed into him with g-force. Finally.

Davis figured he might as well test the waters. See if she meant it. He touched her cheek, her eyelids, her mouth. And then he kissed her again.

Mr. Kendle loved the Christmas Express article. So much so that he gave Lana a byline and a small raise in pay.

Feeling happier than she could remember, Lana walked with a purposeful stride down Easy Street, the chilly breeze in her hair and the smell of the river in her nose. Her boot heels tapped music on the sidewalk. Her red scarf lifted on the breeze, bouncing against her faux-leather coat, as if to keep the beat.

Yesterday had been wonderful. The ending had been even better. For a few minutes guilt had tried to ruin the day, but Davis had pushed his way past her shame and given her hope.

Maybe she could be different. Maybe she could let go of the past. Maybe she could love and be loved by a good man.

Did she dare believe?

Her years in music had made her a night owl and last night, long after Sydney was asleep, she'd stayed up so buoyed by hope and happiness that she'd written another new song from start to finish. A love song.

This morning the music poured through her mind and soul. She hummed as she did errands and gathered ideas for future articles, enjoying the blast of holiday music coming from a bullhorn speaker above Classy Girls Boutique.

A short time later she drove to Haley Carter's home for the promised lunch date. The Carters lived on the edge of town on a small acreage surrounded by trees and an enormous garden. Various garden plots lay all around the house, though they were mostly sleeping under mulch for the winter months.

Everything about the white frame cottage screamed, "artsy." Haley's folk art was visible on the porch, in the yard and gardens and inside the house.

"Come on in," Haley called before Lana could knock. "I have my hands in dough."

Having visited before, Lana knew the way and passed through the living room to the kitchen. Baby Rose sat on the floor banging a spoon against a plastic bowl. Haley stood at the counter mixing a fragrant dough. Flour powdered the front of her green blouse.

"Bread?" Lana asked. "Smells great."

Haley scratched her chin against her shoulder, hands deep in the dough. "The fabulous tree ornaments we're making for the bazaar."

"You really think you can teach me well enough that people will buy them?"

Haley hitched her chin toward Lana's coat. "Take off your coat, roll up your sleeves and we'll find out. Lesson one in progress while lunch bakes."

Lana did as she was told and soon had her hands in the soft, elastic dough.

"I hear you had a date with Davis last night."

"How did you hear-" Lana shook her head. "Never mind. This is Whisper Falls." She told Haley a little about the Christmas Express. "You and Creed should go."

"It sounds fun. We will. But that's not the part I wanted to know. Tell me about you and Davis. Did you have fun together?"

"We did." Lana smiled down in the dough. "We really did."

Haley had her back turned but she spun around, eyes wide with sudden comprehension. "I think you're falling in love with him."

Lana tweaked a shoulder. "Maybe."

"Oh, you are. I know the symptoms. Just look at the way you sparkle and the energy pouring out of you. I bet you wrote another song."

Lana's mouth dropped open. "How did you know that?"

"Because falling in love made me more creative. It's what artists do. If we're sad, we create. If we're happy, we create. But love is the best motivator of all."

"Davis invited Sydney and me to go with them to the Blackwell's Ranch. He and his kids cut their own Christmas tree from the woods. Apparently, it's a tradition he started after his wife died. And he asked us to go along."

"You're going, of course."

"Well, yeah. Sydney and I need a Christmas tree, too."

They both laughed and Haley bumped Lana's side with hers.

Lana needed more than a Christmas tree. She needed to have her head examined. Sooner or later, she and Davis must have a long, open conversation about some very painful subjects. If their budding relationship was to have a chance, he'd have to know everything, even the worst. He deserved to know.

But today she was too happy, too hopeful to worry about the ugly darkness in her past.

"We're going on horseback?"

The surprise on Lana's face was exactly what Davis had expected.

The five of them had arrived at the Blackwell Ranch on a cold Saturday, eager to cut fresh Christmas trees, and now, they were walking toward a large, dirt corral. A light dusting of snow covered the ground like powdered sugar on cake.

Davis allowed a small, teasing grin. "Did I forget to mention the horses?"

Lana squinted her eyes at him in pretend anger. "Yes, you did."

"Is that a problem? You're not scared of horses or anything, are you?"

"No. Well, maybe a little. They are awfully big. But it sounds...adventurous. I am dressed for it." She glanced down at her jeans and cowboy boots, the latter older and lower-heeled than he'd seen her wear before. "But Sydney's wearing tennies."

"So is Paige. We aren't going far and Austin's horses are used to kids. They don't care what's on your feet."

"And how would you know that?" she asked. "Do the horses speak to you? Do they tell you all their secrets?"

He liked when she joked around. Today she was light and easy and sparkling. "Nothing as mysterious as that. Nathan went through a horse obsession last year. Austin gave him lessons for a while on old Tinker. All three of us got to do some riding."

"All my animals are gentle as overgrown dogs." Austin came out of the barn, leading a pair of horses, a large bay and a buckskin. Austin was a tall man, taller than Davis by several inches though the boots added a couple more. Broad and well-muscled in a rough-hewn leather coat and white cowboy hat, Austin was a quiet man with a big presence. Davis was proud to call him friend. "Ever ridden before?"

"I actually have." Lana eased toward the bay, gloved hand extended. "A friend of mine owned a ranch outside Nashville. But I haven't in a long time."

It was one of the few times she'd mentioned her life in Tennessee. Davis was curious to know more, to know everything about the woman who was rapidly invading his heart and life.

The ride on the Christmas Express had done him in. Since that night, he thought about her all the time, smelled her gardenia perfume in his sleep and spent every free moment at her house. Most of the time the two of them worked on the house while the three kids romped like cubs or did homework. Sometimes they just hung out. They watched TV together, played checkers-always a formidable match-or listened to music. Often Lana would sing for him-spurts and starts of whatever composition she was working on, slightly self-conscious because the song wasn't finished, but wistful and dreamy. He wondered if she'd eventually return to Nashville. If she even wanted that. He didn't know much about music, but he knew what he liked to hear. If Lana wanted another shot at the stars, he wanted it for her.

Davis caught her elbow. "Are you sure you're okay with the horses? If you're not, we can walk. It's no big deal."

Her smile convinced him. But then that smile of hers could turn his brain to vanilla pudding. "The kids will love going by horseback, Davis. A memory to treasure forever."

"That's what I thought." The five of them looked like a family making memories together.

"Come over here, Sydney." Lana reached back to where the kids hopped and danced and ran in circles like animations. Smoky vapor exited their noses, three fire-breathing dragons. Sydney stopped immediately to obey. "Put your hand out. Let the horse smell you."

"Like dogs do?"

"Exactly."

The little girl, her curly brown hair poking from beneath a hooded coat, eagerly offered her palm. Both horses leaned in, naturally curious, for a sniff. Sydney giggled, a sound that touched Davis for some reason. She was a shy, sweet little girl with a great giggle. He wondered if she'd ever wanted a dad the way Nathan wanted a mom.

Not to be left out, Nathan and Paige let the horses sniff, and then rubbed their gloved hands down the noble necks.