Maybe he was right. He hadn’t been the same for the last few years. Victoria had left his life in shambles. It had taken everything in him to gather all the pieces back together again. It was thanks to Craig and his sweet wife that Lander had made it through the toughest spots as well as he had.
He waded through the light dusting of snow, dragging his small suitcase behind him and almost knocked. Had he done that, his mom would never have let him live it down.
“Mom, Dad? I’m home,” he announced as he threw the door open.
He was assaulted by the smell of fresh baked bread and a wave of heat from the crackling fireplace. He tossed his coat on the chair next to the door and slipped out of his shoes.
“Lander?” His mom appeared in the doorway with flour on her chin and dough all over her hands. “I thought you’d be here later.” She smiled and threw her arms around him, careful not to get flour all over his clothes.
“I thought I’d have a layover in Chicago, but they switched up my flight. It ended up being non-stop all the way here.”
“Well, get everything put away in your room and come help me in the kitchen. We have guests coming for dinner, love.”
Lander pecked his mom on the cheek and ran upstairs to unpack the small amount of clothing and toiletries he had brought with him. His room was at the top of the stairs and it looked exactly as he had left it. The walls were littered with trophies and medals from his Math and Science Olympiads, and there was a distinct lack of sports trophies. His old computer sat in the corner of his room along with his Nintendo 64 and SNES. He smiled. It would be fun to play those again.
The bookshelf was lined with books by David Eddings, Anne McCaffrey and Terry Goodkind. It had been a long time since he had read anything for enjoyment. His job didn’t allow for a lot of downtime. He told himself this, anyway. Most of the other people he worked with regularly took holidays off for their families. Lander had worked more and more since his breakup with Victoria. Without a relationship, he had more spare hours to fill, but that wasn’t the only thing that drove him to work twenty-four seven. Part of him didn’t believe there was anyone else out there for him. Why waste time dating if you’ve already lost the woman of your dreams?
With his position in the company and his name everywhere in the athletic world, women only chased after him for one reason—his money. He could have his pick of women from the highest reaches of society, but he wasn’t looking for that kind of relationship. He wanted something real, and knowing that was unlikely, he had thrown the towel in. Lander finished up and slid the suitcase under his bed, then ran downstairs to help his mom.
She was working on a pie. His favorite. “Wow, blueberry pie? What’s the special occasion?” he teased.
His mom smiled at him. Her rosy cheeks and dimples showed her inner kindness. She was an angel and he knew how lucky he was to have such a loving mother. She still looked so young. She was fifty-seven years old, but distinctly lacked many wrinkles or signs of aging. She had sprays of silver in her light brown hair, but it only made her look distinguished.
“For you of course, silly. You haven’t been home for a long time. Your father and I have been so busy traveling. How long has it been since you were home?”
“Twelve years,” he replied solemnly. He promised himself he would never come back to Montana after leaving it in the dust, but here he was—staying with his parents for the next month. He had been so terrified of getting stuck in a small town doing nothing for the rest of his life that he had run to New York City, the exact opposite of his hometown.
He decided to change the subject when he noted the frown that had crossed his mother’s face. “Who are we having over for dinner? There has to be more than just the three of us with all this food.” He made a sweeping motion over the mounds of food being prepared in the kitchen.
“Oh, just some friends of ours. You probably remember them. I think you were friends with their daughter back in the day.”
He knew immediately who was coming for dinner.
“The James’,” she continued. “Their daughter is back in town as well. Today I think. We thought it would be a fun little reunion.”
“Of course. I didn’t realize you knew her parents that well.” He tried to keep his expression straight, but it was a futile effort. His mother always read him, no matter how hard he tried to avoid it.
“We started traveling together a few years back. By golly, I think it’s been around eight years now. They’re the couple we keep going on cruises with. You know, the couple that we took to Spain?”
Lander vaguely recalled his mother talking to him about their trip to Spain and how much fun it had been. “I guess I just didn’t realize you were so close. That’s great that you found good people to do life with.”
He had started to peel potatoes without his mom even asking. She made the best mashed potatoes imaginable and he couldn’t wait. Most of the meals he ate in New York were on the go. Although healthy, they lacked that homemade quality that he had grown up with. Of course, that helped him stay in shape, but he was on vacation.
After a long, comfortable silence, his mom put the pie in the oven and leaned on the counter near her son. “Now Lander, tell me how you are really doing.”
His mom was the one person he could always talk to. Of course he hadn’t told her everything that happened with Vicki, but he told her enough that she understood why he was so devastated. “I’m okay. Craig made me take some time off. Told me the company would be fine while I was gone and that I was supposed to get to know myself, or some other enlightened advice.”
She nodded, a piece of her curly blond hair falling into her face. She blew it out of her way. “It’s good advice,” she replied, confidently.
He had his doubts, but Craig had insisted for so long. “All right, but if I end up leaving early because I can’t stand the boredom, you have to promise not to take it personally.”
“Trust me, love, we know things can be quite boring around this tiny town. Why do you think we travel so much?” Her laugh was warm and brought back happy memories from his childhood.
“When do you think they’ll be here?”
“Who?” she asked, seemingly distracted.
“The James’.”
She winked at him. “They,” she emphasized the word they, “will be here in about thirty minutes. They’re going to help us cook up our dinner.”
He hadn’t felt nervous until now. What would he talk about with Aurie? He could imagine what their conversation would look like. Hey, sorry I haven’t talked to you in a while. How’s the last twelve years been?
He didn’t have long to dwell on it. The doorbell chimed and his mom jumped, startled out of her own little world.
“I’ll get it,” Lander volunteered. He ran over to the front door and in walked Aurelia James and her parents.
He had to remind himself to breath. She was absolutely breathtaking. He’d had the exact same reaction to her on the plane. Even though she had just spent a few hours on a plane she looked fresh and unrumpled. Her long brown hair was loose on her shoulders, and her makeup, if she had any on, was natural and accented rather than hiding something. She had the most gorgeous blue eyes he had ever seen. Not to mention she had grown into her curves. She had never been a thin willowy girl growing up, but the way her hips curved now… He shook his head, trying to clear his mind.
How long had he been staring at her? They must have asked him a question, but he hadn’t heard what it was. They were waiting for him to say something.
“Sorry, I’m a bit tired from the flight. What did you say?”
Mr. James chuckled. “We were just saying it was good to see you.”
Lander felt his hands begin to sweat. He couldn’t recall ever being this nervous in his life. That was saying something, considering the kind of people that he worked with on a daily basis. What was wrong with him? “It’s good to see you as well, Mr. James.”
“Aurelia!” His mom squealed and r
an over to throw her arms around her neck. A piece of dough came off of her hands and lodged itself in Aurelia’s hair. “Look at you, all grown up. You are gorgeous.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Perry.”
Lander walked over to Aurie and reached out to pick the piece of dough from her hair. Her eyes went big and just after he grabbed it, he realized she thought he was making a move on her, in front of her family.
He sputtered in embarrassment at what she thought. “You just had some dough, there, in your hair.” He pointed.
“Lander, have you and Aurie kept in contact at all?” His mom looked as though she was innocent, but he sensed she had something in mind. It felt like a trap.
He hesitated before speaking, so Aurie cut in. “No, not at all.”
“Good, well then you two have a lot to catch up on. Why don’t you all head out back to the porch and talk? Let us take care of the meal while you both rest. You must be exhausted from so much travel.” She poured some hot water in a mug for each of them and added a bag of peppermint tea before shooing them out of the kitchen.
Lander felt like a fish out of water. How long had it been since he talked to a girl that he didn’t work with? What would they even say?
The tea was soothing and brought back memories of winter days spent out on this very porch sitting next to Lander. His mom made the best food too. Aurelia’s belly growled in anticipation, reminding her she hadn’t eaten since this morning. All she had for breakfast was a small muffin.
Lander must have heard her ferocious stomach. “Hungry?”
Aurelia nodded. “I haven’t had much since this morning. I hate flying and didn’t have an appetite after breakfast.”
“Well, good thing Mom is cooking.” He sipped his tea and stared out at the snowy landscape.
Aurelia couldn’t wait for dinner.
He cleared his throat and spoke after a few moments of silence. “Where are you living now? I haven’t heard anything about you since right after high school. Tell me everything.”
He had that goofy grin on his face that Aurelia used to love. Even with the goofy grin he was dreamy. The movie stars that she worked with had nothing on Lander Alan Perry.
“Well, I live in New York City most of the time, but I travel periodically around the world. It kind of depends on where I’m needed. I try to stay in the States when I can though, unless it’s for a vacation. I don’t take enough of those, either.” She bit her lip. She hadn’t meant to reveal so much about her job to him. If he really was the only person in this small town that didn’t know she was ridiculously wealthy, then she wanted to keep it that way as long as possible. Of course she didn’t think she could keep the secret for long. Someone was bound to spill the beans.
“Wow! Around the world, huh? Your business must be doing really well.” He looked genuinely surprised, which only solidified her belief that he didn’t know about her success. Having always been a terrible liar, he probably still was.
“I do alright,” she commented.
“That’s really impressive. I wish I would’ve known you lived in New York as well. That’s where I’ve been living. We could have met up or kept in touch.”
“Well, look at you, you are obviously dressed nice, you were flying first class, so you must also be doing well for yourself. What have you been up to?” She really was curious. Her nerdy friend from years past hadn’t been outgoing or flirty. This man sitting next to her was filled to the brim with confidence, even though she could still see a little bit of the shy boy inside.
He shifted in his seat and set the mug of tea on the small table next to the wicker chair he sat in. It looked to Aurelia like he was uncomfortable, but she couldn’t tell. “Well, I met Craig in college and we dropped out together to start a company. We do athletic marketing and it’s a lot of fun really. I thought I wanted to be an athlete, but being so into computers, I also wanted to stay inside a lot, and those two goals don’t really mesh that well together. Now I get a little bit of both in my life. I get to be around athletes and talk to them about their marketing goals and what they want their career to look like, but I also get to work behind a desk when I want to. It seems to be the best of both worlds.” He grinned at her and then turned back to the beautiful view they had of the sun setting down below the peaks of the mountains. It lit up the behind the snow-dusted evergreen trees, creating what looked like a surrealist painting.
“Sounds like you have everything you ever wanted.” Aurelia was uncomfortable now. She had everything in her career life that she could ever want, but one thing still eluded her. It was the one thing that she could find for anyone else in the world, but never for herself—true love.
Lander sighed and ran his hand through his blond hair, frowning. “Not everything, really. But work is good.”
She wondered what that meant, but Lander wasn’t her best friend anymore. After all this time, he was a stranger. Someone that she used to know. Her mother called from the back door that supper was cooking, and they were going to play a game together. Both Aurelia and Lander went back inside without another word.
Everyone sat around the table, stuffing their faces after Mr. Perry said grace. Lander had to keep himself from moaning when he sampled the homemade mashed potatoes. His mother was a skilled cook and he rarely ate anything that delicious. Of course, this meant he would have to run more tomorrow to make up for the increased caloric intake, but right now, it was worth it.
He looked up and his mom smiled at him from across the table. His father, who had clapped him on the back before dinner started, was just as engrossed in savoring the food on his own plate.
“Lander, why don’t you tell everyone how your company is doing.” His mom beamed with pride. He had forgotten to tell his mom that he was hoping to keep his success as quiet as possible. He didn’t want to brag, and Aurelia didn’t seem to recognize him from his corporation. Of course, she wouldn’t. She’d never really been into sports, and unless she was watching ESPN now, she wouldn’t have seen his interviews or advertising.
He didn’t know why he wanted to keep it a secret. Probably just because most people treated him different when they figured out what he did for a living. They usually became nicer, but it was all a facade. Sometimes they just wanted a front row seat to a sold-out game.
“Oh, yeah, it’s doing well. I talked to Aurelia about it outside. She doesn’t follow sports so she hasn’t seen my work or anything.” He hoped the subtle hint would get his mom to lay off the topic.
Aurelia’s mom, Veronica, looked intently at Lander. “So you are in advertising then? Your parents told us a little about what you do, but they were kind of vague on the details.”
Relief flooded through him as Lander realized that his parents were just as reserved about bragging and hadn’t told their friends about his primary income or his success.
“I just work with athletes and market for them. I help them figure out what they want out of their career and then find a way to accomplish it.” He shoved another bite of food in his mouth. “It’s very fulfilling.”
Mrs. James gazed down her nose at him and he felt as if she were scrutinizing his answer. He fidgeted with the fork in his hand and then tried to redirect everyone’s attention.
“It sounds like Aurelia is very successful,” he commented, hoping to get out of the hot seat.
Aurelia glowered at him and when her mom tried to speak, Aurelia interrupted quickly. “It’s not much, but I enjoy it.”
He had wanted to take the attention off of himself but redirecting to Aurelia hadn’t worked. “So I hear you all travel together. How have your vacations been?”
Mr. James looked over at his mom and dad and smiled. “It’s been a blast. We’ve been able to get away every three months or so to travel around the world. Being retired has its perks, you know.” He winked.
Everyone laughed and continued to eat the meal with idle chit chat about traveling, silly stories from when Lander and Aurelia were young, and compliments on t
he food. After seconds on every dish and a plate full of blueberry pie, Lander felt the familiar, but almost-forgotten, food coma hit. His eyelids drooped ever so slightly and his body felt heavy. “I’m going to go snooze,” he said in a daze. This was followed by some sympathetic chuckles and murmurs of agreement. He excused himself to his old room and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
Chapter 2
Washing the dishes was calm and relaxing. Something Aurelia didn’t mind doing in the least. Her mother stood next to her, rinsing and drying each dish as it came to her. Aurelia had enjoyed the week she spent with her parents. It had been strange at first to have the Perrys over so often and go over to their house as well, but she was starting to get used to it. Lander and Aurelia had spent a lot of time chatting and talking, but it was all small talk, nothing deep or intentional.
“So what do you think you will do with the rest of the time after Christmas?” her mother asked. Veronica James was always good at conversation, a skill Aurelia lacked.
She scrubbed at a particularly stubborn spot on the pot and answered absently. “I dunno, just work I guess. I have a client that I can’t seem to match up. It doesn’t make any sense either. He’s fairly good looking, wealthy and easy to talk to. He just has the most picky tastes. Won’t even meet the girls I’ve suggested as his matches. I have one more chance to present someone, and if I can’t find him anyone it’s going to ruin my streak.” She scrubbed even more viciously at the spot that wouldn’t come off.
“I’m sure you’ll find someone for him. You always do, you know. Have you had your assistants working on it as well? Or anyone at the office?” She took the pot from Aurelia before she managed to scrub the coating off of it in her frustration.
Love, Snow and Mistletoe: Four Sweet Christmas Romance Novellas Page 18
