Christmas in Pine Island: A small town holiday romance

fondly contemplates his memories with his dearly departed sister, trying to figure out which story to tell. He leans forward, enthused as always when referring to Jenny, though his hand stays protectively on mine as if just to remind me that he’s always by my side.
I stroke my thumb against the back of his hand, encouraging him to continue.
“Jenny and I used to drive all the way to the countryside upstate with our sleds in tow. We’d get as far from the city as possible so we could spend hours and hours lugging those sleds up the hills there. Man, it was like a twenty-minute trek uphill and a thirty-second slide down. But it was so worth it. I landed on my ass more than a few times. Jenny always thought that was hilarious.” Jake pauses, his voice turning bittersweet. “Those memories with her . . . I’ll have them forever, you know? Every Christmas, I think about those days with Jenny . . . I can still hear her laugh. I can still see her hair whipping in the wind. I want Ryan to have memories like that with us.”
“You’re going to make all of us cry, Jake!” Morgan sniffs, dabbing at her eyes. “My mom and I used to go sledding, too.”
Jake perked up. “Really?”
I smile as I watch him cock his head, probably trying to picture my supermodel bestie doing anything outdoorsy.
“Yeah. It was awesome,” Morgan says. “But the thing I looked forward to each year was building snowmen. My mom and I did it every Christmas! Except they weren’t just any snowmen. They were snow fashionistas. We’d dress them up like the models we saw in magazines.”
“That’s my girl,” Eric chuckles beside Morgan.
Jake laughs too, but he’s still lost in his memories. “If I could, I’d move out of the city in a heartbeat,” he murmurs. “Especially with a baby on the way. Life is just better out there.”
I choke on air, my heart lurching in my chest as Jake’s admission catches me off guard. I take a sharp breath, which only Chloe seems to notice, though I pretend it’s just heartburn. I wave away her worried look before sinking slightly back against my seat.
Jake has never mentioned moving out of the city! The Big Apple is my home. It’s where we met. It’s where we work. It’s where my friends are.
My heart is in this city.
I swallow hard. This baby is about to change everything, isn’t it?
I know we’re going to have to consider things that never would’ve occurred to me before, but I’m not ready yet. Everything is happening so fast!
I take a deep, calming breath and remind myself I want to meet this little one growing inside of me more than anything. I want to provide my baby with the best life possible, but every day I seem to uncover something that makes me feel even more overwhelmed when it comes to the prospect of motherhood. It suddenly feels like I’m no longer in the driver’s seat of my life.
When did this baby take control?
“Well?” Eric asks.
I hear his voice distantly, but it doesn’t register. A moment later, Jake gently squeezes my arm. I lift my chin, bewildered, to find everyone staring at me.
Oh no. Has Eric been talking to me?
“W-well?” I echo, stammering.
“Whose side are you on?” Morgan asks. She grins at me, clearly expecting me to side with her. “Team Morgan or Team Donovan?”
Seeing my confusion, Jake clarifies. “What kind of Christmas do you want: country or city?”
Morgan wiggles her eyebrows pointedly when Jake says the word, ‘country’, plainly making her stance known.
I clear my throat, eyes darting nervously around the cluster of the people I love most. There’s no way I'm picking a side. But I might have one little suggestion that could prove useful.
“Actually . . . the other day I was researching fun field trip locations for my students and I came across this cozy Christmas tree farm upstate. I'm not sure whose team I'm on, but the place looked beautiful. It’s in Pine Island. Maybe it could be a compromise?”

Morgan May
“Pine Island,” Donovan frowns. “Never heard of it.
I hate to agree with him, but my mind is still caught on the word ‘farm.’ I may have been raised in Kansas, but it’s been a long time since I’ve roughed it.
“A Christmas tree farm?” I repeat, uncertainly. “Would we be, like, bunking in a barn or something?”
Stacy shakes her head. “No. There’s a lodge to stay at. It’s seriously beautiful. Look it up online. It’s called Everett’s Christmas Lodge & Tree Farm. I really think it might be the best of both worlds with what you guys are looking for—sort of an upscale country Christmas.”
Donovan scoffs. “Upscale and country shouldn’t exist in the same sentence.”
I roll my eyes at him, already typing the name of the place into my phone so I can prove him wrong. When the images from the website fill my screen, I gasp. I shake my head slowly back and forth, not sure why I'm surprised that Stacy pulled the perfect solution out of nowhere. That girl’s prepared for anything!
“What do ya think?” Stacy asks.
“I think you’ve already got this whole mom thing down, don’t you?” I note with a laugh.
Stacy’s eyes widen. “What do you mean?”
I laugh. “Just that you’re already a pro at shelling out a compromise. Even the Grinch of our group can’t deny you found the perfect solution.” I shove my phone in Donovan’s face and cross my arms, smirking smugly as I wait for his argument.
I look back at Stacy conspiratorially, expecting to share a victorious grin with her, but she looks like she’s seen a ghost. I ran through my last words worried I’d said something offensive.
Nope, nothing but compliments that should’ve made my bestie preen. Instead, her smile vanishes like a light switch flicking off.
It’s weird, but then again, she’s probably just not used to being referred to as a mom. It must take a