Christmas In Love: A Greenbank Holiday Romance (Greenbank Holiday Romances Book 1)

by Karen Thornell

  He slid into a seat near his parents. His mom absently patted his hand and poured him a glass of water. His dad scooped some mashed potatoes onto his own plate, before his loud voice—which matched his outgoing personality and large appearance—aimed a question at Cade.

  “So, who’s the pretty girl you’ve been helping this afternoon? All sorts of bets have been made and I, for one, would like to know which is going to win. So, tell me son, are you secretly engaged, trying to pay for your room and board through less-than-savory avenues, or just lonely?”

  The words were said in jest, with his father’s signature grin, but that last one cut a little too deep. He was lonely. Especially over the holidays when everyone else had another half. He liked being Uncle Cade, but he would like to be a husband and dad himself. The emotion attached to those thoughts surprised him, and he wasn’t willing to dissect them just now.

  “Sorry to disappoint, but I’m just helping a friend.”

  Immediately, his sisters started talking over each other, asking him questions. Even their husbands and a couple of his nieces joined in. It was easy to ignore the questions he could decipher in the cacophony, so he simply cut himself some ham and started eating.

  “Hey, wait.” Brooke’s voice sounded over everyone, stopping all but the most enthusiastic of interrogators. “Since when do you have a friend in this town you’ve never been to?”

  Everyone looked at him.

  Cade swallowed. Well, crap. He hadn’t anticipated that maneuver. Nonchalantly, he pushed food around his plate, took a bite, and swallowed a gulp of water before saying, “I ran into someone I knew from med school.” Please leave it at that.

  No such luck.

  “Who?” Abby asked, her food forgotten as she leaned across the table to look at him.

  “Well...” Could he make up a name? He’d never been a great liar, but probably could be now, when the circumstances required it. Yet suddenly he couldn’t think of a single female name. Not even his sisters or nieces. He sighed. “It’s Natalie.”

  Brooke’s husband looked confused—he hadn’t been around for that relationship—but the others gaped at him.

  “Natalie Taylor? The Natalie Taylor?” Brooke demanded.

  “The very same.” He tried to take another bite of food, but it was nearly impossible to swallow. The table was quiet. Except for the kids threatening a food fight, of course. He chanced a glance at his mom.

  She didn’t look surprised. Of course not. She must have known his ex-girlfriend ran the Bed and Breakfast. No wonder she’d pushed him to stay there instead of the hotel. Traitor.

  “Are you dating again?”

  “What is she doing here?”

  “Mom, did you know she lived here?”

  The questions were fired off faster than an automatic gun. Cade pretended deafness and enjoyed a few bites of mashed potatoes.

  “Cade! You can’t just drop that on us then refuse to answer any questions.”

  Cade flicked a glance at his oldest sister. “Last I checked, I didn’t have to tell anyone about my personal life.” Maybe if he ate his food fast enough, he could skip out early.

  “Yes you do,” Abby said.

  Cade raised an eyebrow.

  “We’re your family!”

  “Right now, you’re all just a bunch of nosey relations I didn’t get to pick myself.”

  “Of all the—”

  Abby’s husband laid a hand on her hand with a look. Not an unkind look, but it stopped her words.

  “Oh, cut it out, all of you, or Cade will leave as soon as he’s done shoveling food in his mouth.” Mom talked over everyone, who suddenly quieted.

  Abby eyed Cade with a mixture of frustration and resignation. “Sorry, Cade. We know it’s your business. It's just that we haven’t heard about Natalie in almost four years. Not since...”

  “Yeah.” Cade didn’t want her to finish the sentence. Didn’t want her to say something about how the last time the family discussed Nat, he’d been getting his sisters’ opinions on a ring. He’d been planning to propose on New Year’s Day. Except Nat stopped talking to him, then he’d gotten her letter saying she couldn’t do it anymore—she wasn’t the right girl for him, and it was better they end things before they got ‘too serious.’

  He’d tried to track her down and have a conversation. But when he got to her apartment, the landlord said she’d already moved out. She didn’t answer his calls.

  The table was quiet for a minute longer, until mom spoke again. “I’m going to grab the cookies. There are a lot, and they need to be frosted by tomorrow, so don’t think any of you are getting out of it.” She spoke to everyone, but her eyes lingered on Cade for a moment. She raised an eyebrow, and he nodded, almost imperceptibly. Satisfied, she walked around the kitchen island and into the large pantry beyond.

  It was almost midnight by the time Cade pulled his car into a spot behind the Bed and Breakfast. There’d been over a hundred cookies to frost for his mom to take to neighbors, plus what felt like nearly a dozen kids who needed to be put to bed at varying points in the night. Cade had learned two things; bedtime as a parent was both a wonderful and a terrible thing, and he was really, really bad at decorating cookies. He was pretty sure his mom redid a few of his when she thought he wasn’t looking. And he didn’t think the half-dozen she’d sent home with him were for his benefit, but rather so she didn’t have to give them out to neighbors.

  When he walked into the inn, with the tinkling sound of a bell announcing his arrival, he was surprised to hear voices in the dining room.

  He could have just gone up to bed. He was exhausted, mentally and physically, but at least one of the voices belonged to Nat, so his feet took him to the dining room instead.

  Nat and April were sitting at the far end of the table with a plate of cheese and crackers in front of them and a mess of Christmas decorations around them. They didn’t notice him stepping through the doorway at first, which allowed Cade to study Nat.

  She was stunning, with that auburn hair reaching just below her shoulders—shorter than she’d kept it when they were dating. Her jawline was delicately defined, leading to the curve of her neck which was currently concealed by a turtleneck sweater. Her lips were perfect, and incredibly soft if memory was to be trusted. Which it was. He’d relived enough of their kisses—so the memories stayed fresh.

  Suddenly, the room was boiling. He cleared his throat, and both women looked up at him. He set the cookies on the sideboard.

  April’s expression lifted, but Nat looked away almost as soon as he caught her eye. She was, apparently, still thinking about what he’d said that afternoon.

  “Cade,” April said, motioning him forward. “You’re just the unbiased opinion we need. Come here.”

  With unsure steps, Cade came further into the room. Nat was glaring at April, so whatever they needed was either really bad, or really good.

  “We’re having a bit of a disagreement,” April smiled at Nat, who glared back. “Think you can help us settle it?”

  “I’m not sure it’s such a good idea for me to get involved... I do live here, you know. I’d rather not make the proprietor angry enough to change out my shampoo bottles for glue or put a snake in my bed.”

  Nat’s lips twitched upward before she continued to glare at April and ignore Cade. It felt like she was always ignoring him.

  “It’s okay, Cade. If she throws you out, I have a spare bedroom.”

  Nat’s glare intensified.

  He laughed. “Okay, what’s up?”

  “You were there when Natalie agreed to go on a double date with me, right?”

  Was this a trick question? “Yes...”

  “Exactly. See, Natalie?”

  Definitely a trick question.

  “I never said I wouldn’t go on the date with you!”

  “You just said you wouldn’t!”

  Cade considered possible escape routes. The door was the easiest, but the window was closer.

&nbs
p; “No, I said I couldn’t find a date.”

  Cade scoffed, and they both looked at him. He waved them on. Nat couldn’t get a date? Unbelievable. But relieving. He’d gladly step in for the hordes of idiotic men she could have chosen.

  “You’re not even trying. You were talking to three different guys yesterday!”

  Cade sat down, fully invested now. Could he work himself onto this date?

  “Until one turned out to be a rude jock, the other only wanted to hook up, and the last is busy.”

  “Fine. I’ll have my date bring a friend for you. He’s talked about his best friend in glowing terms, I’m sure he’ll fit the bill.”

  “Going on a blind date doesn’t sound very fun.”

  Cade agreed with Nat.

  “You could just recall the challenge...” April said, sounding hopeful.

  Cade now agreed with April.

  Nat’s glare reemerged. “We never recall challenges.”

  April looked disappointed, but unsurprised. “Then you’ll let me find your date?”

  Nat sighed. “Fiiiiine.”

  April beamed. “Awesome. I’m going to go home now before I crash here. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She stood up and waved to Cade, “thanks for your help!”

  Cade’s returning smile probably looked more like a grimace. It felt more like a grimace, too.

  The front door jingled, then closed. Cade watched Nat, who studiously ignored his gaze. She stood. “Well, goodnight.”

  As she passed, Cade grabbed her wrist. Not hard, just enough to stop her from walking away. She glanced down at his hand, then into his eyes for the briefest moment. He hadn’t realized the only light in the room came from the fire. It wasn’t very bright at all—casting shadows around the room and warm light across her face.

  She was waiting; he needed to say something. “Sorry if I played a part in forcing you into a date you don’t want to go on.”

  Her shoulders lifted in a shrug, successfully pulling her hand out of his. He almost caught hers again but stopped himself.

  “It’s fine, this isn’t about me anyway. It’s about April. She wants that life, you know. The husband, family, kids. But she keeps dating dirtbags, so I thought finding a guy completely different from her usual would help.”

  “And you?”

  She looked at him again, and he stood, drawn in by her eyes and the warmth of the fire.

  “What about me?” She took a step back when he drew level with her.

  “Don’t you want that life? Husband, family... kids?”

  For a second, her eyes seemed to search his, looking for something. He would have given her anything she wanted at that moment. She pressed her lips together, and her expression seemed to hold regret, pain... and something else? Cade couldn’t decipher it fast enough before it was gone. She stepped around him.

  “Not now,” she said.

  What did that even mean?

  “Why not?” He turned to ask, but she was already out the door. He could have followed, but something in her voice held a finality and a dose of raw emotion that told Cade she couldn’t continue the conversation.

  He stood in the room for a couple more minutes until he heard Nat lock the front door and leave through the kitchen.

  It was fine. He didn’t need to press a conversation she didn’t want to have.

  But as he stood there, his mind refusing to clear the image of her face when he’d asked if she wanted a family of her own, he realized something. That emotion he hadn’t understood was suddenly clear.

  Longing. She’d looked at him with a mirror image of the longing that seemed to have taken up residence in his own chest.

  That knowledge, coupled with a strong desire to not lose this woman again, reaffirmed what he’d decided at the hotel. He would win back Natalie.

  At least, he would try his hardest to.

  Chapter 8

  Natalie

  “I found you a date!” April sang, as she walked through the front door, twenty minutes after five. She was never on time.

  “Hello to you, too.”

  April stuck her tongue out.

  “Well, yay to not being a third wheel.” It was all the enthusiasm Natalie could muster. Poor April. Natalie couldn’t even guess how they were friends. April was sweet, optimistic, and peppy. Natalie was... not.

  April looked a little disappointed, but didn’t say anything until Natalie logged out of the computer.

  “Hey, can I borrow your black heels?” April asked when Natalie walked around the desk.

  “This is a heels kind of date? I hadn’t even planned on changing.”

  April looked Natalie up and down. “Even though that sweater is on backward?”

  “Back—what?” Natalie looked down and laughed dismally. “I’ve been wearing this all day!”

  April patted her arm consolingly. “I doubt anyone even noticed.”

  “You noticed.”

  “I’m above average.”

  “That you are.” Natalie laughed again as she pulled the sweater over her head once they reached her suite of rooms. It was a nice setup, with a large room, closet, and en suite bathroom. Plus, it was near enough to the entry that she could generally hear if there was a problem, or if she was needed for something. “I guess this explains why Cade was staring at me this morning,” she said, dropping the sweater to her bed.

  “I can say with absolute certainty Cade wasn’t staring because of your backwards shirt.”

  Natalie scrunched her nose teasingly at April’s grinning expression. “You didn’t answer my question, is this a heels sort of thing?”

  Thankfully, April didn’t press the conversation. “Nope, it’s not. I want to borrow them for a work Christmas party.”

  “Then sure, go ahead. Wait, actually,” April stopped walking toward Natalie’s closet and raised a brow in question. “You can borrow my heels if you let me out of this date.” There was no way April would, but it was worth a try.

  “Oh, be quiet, you’re the one who made the challenge.”

  “I regret it already. More than the time I challenged you to eat both our meals on girls’ night after you complained that I only got an entree for the free dessert. Then you threw up in my car.”

  “Yeah. Not one of my finer moments,” April pressed

  “Or mine. I cleaned it up, you’ll remember.”

  “Oh, I remember. Like you’d let me forget.” April made a face at her after setting down her makeup bag.

  “Okay, fine, I’ll go on the date. So, what kind of date is this?”

  “Nice jeans are probably fine. We’re just going to dinner and ice cream. Will you let me curl your hair? Your hair looks so pretty curled.”

  Natalie narrowed her eyes at her friend. “This date is about you. Not me. I don’t even like to date. You know why.”

  April froze in the act of walking to the bathroom for the curling iron. She stared at the floor for a minute and seemed to be deciding something. When she finally looked up, Natalie was surprised at the fierce look on her face.

  “Listen, Natalie, you may think this challenge is meant for me, but I think it’s just as much meant for you.”

  Natalie rolled her eyes.

  “No. Seriously. You think just because—”

  “Don’t,” Natalie cut in.

  “Come on, Natalie. Just because...”

  Natalie gave her friend a warning look.

  April huffed. “Just because you have some... problems... doesn’t mean you can’t be in a relationship.”

  “The only worthwhile relationships lead to marriage. You know I don’t want to get married.”

  “I do not know that.” April rounded on her, staring her down. “And you don’t know that either. In fact, I think you do want to get married, you’ve just spent the last four years convincing yourself you don’t want to so you can avoid some hard conversations. You’ve convinced yourself for so long, you’ve even started to believe it.”

  “I do believe it,”
Natalie sputtered. “No, I know it! I don’t want to get married, April.”

  “What about Cade?”

  The question surprised her. As did the quiet way April asked it. What about Cade? That was a story from years ago. The ending had already been written.

  “He deserves better than me, April. He deserves someone whole and capable of giving him what he wants most.”

  “I think what he wants most is you.”

  Natalie opened her mouth to disagree vehemently, but April cut her off.

  “I understood when you ended things with him, Natalie. I understood that you needed time to process everything you’d found out... I didn’t agree with how you went about it, but I always assumed you’d go back to him. Apologize. Explain. This can’t be that much of a wedge between you two. You were so in love, I always thought you’d work through it.”

  Natalie felt the air rush out of her. Her arm dropped from where it was trying to tuck a stray hair back into its clip. “You never told me that.”

  “Of course not. I’m your friend, not your parent. I probably should have told you, though. I shouldn’t have enabled your hiding. Because that’s what you've been doing, Natalie. Hiding. And you don’t have anything to hide from. There is Nothing. Wrong. With. You.” She said each word as if there was a period after it, staring at Natalie with a hard expression.

  Natalie felt the familiar surge of emotion that still came after she thought about her ‘problems,’ but she tamped it down. In four years, she hadn’t faced those emotions head-on. She wasn’t about to now. Everything was fine just how it was; she didn’t need to open old wounds. Besides, there was something wrong with her. Something big.

  “Natalie, your diagnosis doesn’t have to be the end of all your dreams. It doesn’t have to be the end of anything.”

  The door jingled, and Natalie thanked the heavens for the divine intervention. Granted, the heavens owed her after the life she’d been dealt, but she was still glad for a way out of this conversation.

  “Come on, that’s probably our dates.”

  April glared at her—which was surprising since Natalie was the one prone to glaring—but followed her from the room. “You can’t just ignore this, Natalie. Cade or your... problems,” she whispered as they made their way through the kitchen, waving at Jason as they skirted around his many preparations for breakfast. Occasionally, he came in at night to prep for the next morning, so he wouldn’t have to be in as early the next day. Natalie never minded, but was especially happy to see him now because it meant it was easier to ignore April.