Unforgettable Christmas Dreams: Gifts of Joy

by Rebecca York

  She’d thought she had it all, but deep down, if she were being brutally honest with herself, she knew her ex-husband wasn’t everything she made him out to be. She’d placed him on the highest of pedestals, and he had nowhere to go but down.

  She clutched the feather pendant dangling from her neck. Lifting it, she pressed her lips against it. “Mom, this one is for you.” Eliana flicked her right blinker on and made the turn down Love Street. Lines of people walked down the side of the road, hopping from one restaurant and bar to the next. Considering it was the day before Thanksgiving, she was shocked to see so many people out in the streets.

  Her heart plummeted to the pit of her gut as she pulled into a small parking lot in front of her establishment. A dilapidated sign hung sideways from a tree in the entryway. It read: Castaways on the Inlet and Castaways Marina, only red spray paint covered half of it. The excitement that had been bubbling in her gut for the last few days burst into a ball of fiery fear. She parked next to a shiny white pickup truck. God, she hoped that vehicle belonged to her contractor. Her feet hit the pavement with trepidation. She couldn’t fail. Not at this. Not this time.

  The overgrown landscaping made the outdoor tiki bar look like a jungle, not a little piece of beach heaven like the pictures showed on the realty app. The tall palm trees made it difficult to see the lighthouse, not to mention the beautiful waterway. She squeezed the straps on her handbag and bit back the tears forming in her eyes. She’d interviewed, via the phone, three different contractors. Her ex-husband, Gino, had told her not to hire anyone until she met them face to face. He didn’t think she should push opening Castaways so soon, but she figured he wanted her to fail, so she ignored all his warnings.

  And now she stood in the middle of a mess and had only a month to make it right or lose her shirt since she’d already dropped a pretty penny in advertising and the hiring of a couple promoters to wander up and down the Riverwalk, giving out discounted drink coupons and half-off appetizers. She thought it was a brilliant plan, but not if she didn’t have a restaurant and bar to promote.

  No. She wouldn’t allow herself to think that way. Squaring her shoulders and puffing out her chest with pride, she mentally removed every negative thought.

  She would not fail.

  “This place is closed,” a male voice boomed across the warm Florida air. A big cloud floated in sky, hovering over the shoreline, threatening to take away the sun and douse the land with rain.

  “I know.” She turned in a circle, searching for the owner of the voice, but he was nowhere to be found. “Hello? Who’s out there?” A cold shiver glided down her spine. She’d talked to the contractor a few days ago, and he’d assured her things were moving along nicely. Deep down, she had a bad feeling; however, she’d be damned if she would admit to Gino he’d been right. That she didn’t have what it took to be a successful business owner.

  “I’m down by the dock,” the man said.

  She stepped over a fallen stool, noticing that one of the legs had been broken off. “Scott? Is that you? Why haven’t you started construction like you said?”

  “Not Scott and I’m down on the docks,” the man said.

  She made her way through the open space, stepping over the metal tables that were tossed about on the ground as if a hurricane had blown through. The contractor should have installed the new tables as well as redoing all the bars, which were left exposed to the elements, and the wood counters had warped. She’d special-ordered new counters and was told they had come in, but they certainly hadn’t been installed yet. The framing for the small indoor eating area also should have been completed, but it appeared her contractor had done absolutely nothing since she’d hired him.

  A tall muscular man wearing a dark V-neck shirt and jean shorts jogged up the steps from the dock. “Castaways isn’t scheduled to be open until Christmas.”

  “I know,” she said, swallowing the lump in her throat. No way in hell would she be able to get this place ready in time for her grand opening. Not unless her contractor planned on working day and night. She pulled out her phone and tapped the contacts icon and brought up Scott Rollins’ phone number.

  “Then why are you here?” he asked, standing in front of her with his hands on his hips and a sexy smile sprawled across his scruffy face. His blue eyes sparkled like the sunrays hitting the Intracoastal. A tattoo on his biceps peeked out from under the fabric of his sleeve. She couldn’t tell what it was, but she kept her gaze focused on it while she listened to Scott’s voicemail.

  She held up her index finger and brought the cell to her ear. “Hi, Scott, this is Eliana Quinn, and I’m at Castaways, and nothing that we discussed has been done. Please call me as soon as possible.” She ended the call and stuffed her phone in her back pocket. “Sorry about that, but I’m the new owner, and it seems my contractor hasn’t done his job.”

  “You’re Eliana Quinn?” he asked with an arched brow.

  “I am. Why do you ask?”

  “I’m Levi Grayson. For the last three months, I’ve been sending you a rent check for keeping my boat at your dock.” He turned, pointing to a fishing charter with the name Morning Wood painted across the stern.

  She choked on her laughter. “You seriously named your boat Morning Wood?”

  He smiled big, showing off his perfectly white teeth. “I have it tattooed on my shoulder as well.” He lifted his sleeve, showing off a black tattoo of an anchor with the same words etched in his skin. “Nothing like holding a hot rod in your hands first thing every morning.”

  Her jaw dropped open, and she gasped.

  “Sorry. I have a tendency to be rude.” He shrugged. “So, tell me how on earth you plan on being open for Christmas? Because I’m here every day, and since you bought this place, only once have I seen workers here, and that hadn’t lasted very long.”

  “Really?” She rubbed her right temple, unsure if it was this man’s crudeness that bothered her so much, or the fact that her ex-husband might have been right about her decision-making. “Up until last week, Scott had been sending me text messages about the progress.”

  “What about pictures? Did he send you any of those?”

  “He said the camera on his phone was broken, but he’d email me some. Obviously, I never got them,” she mumbled as she took a long hard look around. Minutes after she’d signed her divorce papers, she’d come across an ad on the internet for Castaways. Her degree had been in hotel/restaurant management, and even though she hadn’t worked in the field since she’d been in her late teens, she was positive she’d be able to handle it.

  She still had that confidence.

  But first, she had to fix the place up.

  “What’s the name of the contractor?” Levi asked.

  “Turtle Creek Construction.”

  “Shit,” Levi said as he ran a hand over his face. He glanced to the sky. “Scott Rollins, right?”

  “Yeah. You know him?” she asked with a squeaky voice. She cleared her throat. “Have you seen him around lately?”

  “Follow me. I’ve got something you need to read.” He pressed a firm hand on the small of her back, giving her a little nudge. “And you’re going to want to be sitting down with a stiff drink in your hand for this.”

  She took two steps to the side and glared. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

  “I have my iPad on my boat, and there is something you need to see. So, I’m going down to the docks. Feel free to follow. Or not. Your call.”

  “Are you always such an asshole?” She scurried across the sandy floor, two paces behind Mr. Cranky Captain.

  “My ex-wife would say that I am.”

  Eliana laughed. “That’s why she’s your ex.”

  He waved his hand over his head. “That, and the fact she slept with our neighbor while I was in the hospital.”

  “Ouch.” She could certainly relate to his pain, but she wouldn’t share her sad divorce with a perfect stranger. It had less to do with the utter humiliation she s
till felt to her core, and more to do with the fact she didn’t want her past life pushing into her bright future. The next time she allowed her ex to crawl into her psyche would be when she could call him up and tell him how wrong he’d been.

  Glancing back at Castaways on the Inlet, she vowed to herself that she would turn this place around if she had to do all the work herself.

  He stepped onto the boat and held out his hand.

  “You want me to get on this thing?” Having lived in Vermont her entire life, she’d spent more time on the ski slopes than near a lake. She could count the number of times she’d been on a water vessel on her right hand, and all three times she had gotten seasick.

  “Well, I’m not handing you my iPad while there is water between the boat and the dock.”

  She narrowed her stare. “I’m not a klutz.” Instead of continuing to protest, she took the hand he offered. The boat rocked, forcing her forward, right into his arms.

  “And that’s why you’re on the boat and not the dock.” He steadied her by the hips with his strong hands. His piercing blue eyes tore through her body like a twister spinning across the open fields, churning up everything in its path. The last thing she needed was a cranky, yet insanely sexy fishing captain trying to sweep her off her feet.

  She swallowed, ignoring the waves rocking the boat. “What is it that I need to see?” Taking a seat in the bow of the boat, she took the iPad and scrolled through the blog post flashing on the screen.

  Local Businessman Under Fire for Fraud.

  Turtle Creek Construction has been in business in South Florida for the last year. In that year, Scott Rollins, owner, has successfully completed renovations at three different establishments and had landed contracts for various businesses on the new Riverwalk. However, his most recent contract with three different companies and their complaints about his work had promoted an investigation. When we tried to contact Mr. Rollins, he refused to take our calls, and it has been reported that he is no longer in the area. If you have been ripped off by Mr. Collins and his fraudulent construction company, please contact Rumble and Lee, Attorneys at Law.

  “Sounds like someone doesn’t like his work, so they want to destroy his good name.” She said the words, but she didn’t believe a single one. She couldn’t admit, not even to herself, that she’d made a huge mistake and that mistake just might cost her the biggest dream she’d ever had.

  “A buddy of mine lost fifty thousand dollars by hiring Scott. I know of three other businesses in the area that are out a shit-ton of money, and no one has heard from him in two weeks, and if he shows his face in this town, he better hope he gets arrested before my buddy finds him.”

  All the air in her lungs flew out like a rocket ship soaring for outer space. A sudden tightness around her neck made it difficult to breath. Her heart struggled to maintain a steady beat. She let go of the iPad and gripped the cushion, holding on as if the boat were about to capsize.

  “What the hell?” Levi caught the tablet right before it landed on the fiberglass bottom. “Oh shit.” He knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his warm ones. He ran his thumbs gently over her skin. “Look at me,” he said softly. “Now breathe in through your nose nice and even.”

  She gasped, desperate to fill her lungs, but instead they burned as if someone lit a blowtorch inside her body.

  “Slow breaths. Like this.”

  Staring into his calming blue eyes, she let her body relax with the waves lapping against the boat. She concentrated on the sounds of the birds chirping from above and the warmth of the sun on her face.

  “That’s it,” Levi whispered.

  The last time she’d had a panic attack had been the day she’d told her husband she wanted a divorce. Gino had laughed in her face and walked away, taking all the oxygen with him. It had taken her a good half hour to regain her composure, and it was in that moment, she vowed he’d never take the wind out of her sails again.

  With shaky hands, she tucked her hair behind her ears and eased in another deep breath. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t sweat it. The information I just handed you is a lot to take in.” He reached into a cooler and took out two beers. He twisted off the cap and handed her a cold brew. “You’re not alone, and if you want, I can put you in touch with my buddy, Liam Walker.”

  “Who’s he?” She took a sip of the bubbly beverage. It tickled as it reached her gut.

  “One of Scott’s victims and he’s also working with a lawyer and a PI.”

  “He can work with them all he wants, but until someone finds Scott, everyone is shit out of luck.” And she was out her life savings and no way to pay her rent.

  Levi raised his beer. “Liam and I are both retired Navy SEALs, and we know people with certain skills. Trust me when I say, Liam is going to find that weasel and make him pay in more ways than one.”

  “That’s great, but it doesn’t help me now.”

  “You can push back your opening,” Levi said as if it were the obvious solution. “If you don’t mind me asking, how much did you give Scott up front?”

  “I mind,” she muttered before taking a large swig. “I ordered new custom-made bars and tables. They were shipped here a month ago, and Scott assured me they would be installed before I got here today.” She shifted her gaze to the sunrays dancing across the ripples of the Intracoastal waters. “You didn’t happen to see that shipment, did you?”

  “I wish I had, but I have charters just about every morning. I don’t get back until after lunch, and I’m often back out in the afternoon. I will say that I’ve been keeping a lookout for things because I was wondering how the hell you were going to open this place in a month.”

  Tears stung her eyes.

  There is no way you will be able to turn that place around and run a successful business. You will be back within six months begging me for money.

  Like hell would she ever beg Gino for anything.

  And she’d die before she returned to Vermont. There was nothing left for her there anyway.

  “Well, thanks for the beer and the information. I haven’t been to my apartment yet, so I better make sure I have a place to live because you know, Murphy’s Law and all.” She stood and stumbled right into his arms, again. “Sorry.”

  “No worries.” He guided her to the dock and handed her a business card. “If you need anything at all or want me to hook you up with Liam, just give me a call.”

  “Thanks.” She stuffed the card into her back pocket. With her head held high, she made her way back to the parking lot, keeping her tears at bay as she stepped over a metal stool. Somehow, she’d manage to open this restaurant, without the help of a man, if it was the last thing she did.

  Chapter Two

  No. Don’t do it. Don’t even think about it.

  Levi snagged his tool kit, a shovel, and a couple other gardening tools from the back of his pickup and started chopping through the overgrown landscaping. Ever since he’d found out Castaways had sold, he’d been hoping the new owner would take care of the bushes and trees and restore this place to its original beauty. With the announcement of the grand re-opening, he figured this would have been done months ago. Every morning he’d pull into the parking lot hoping to see a work crew, and every day he’d been disappointed.

  More than once, he thought about cleaning up the rusted tables and chairs, but since his customers could come around the other side, using the public parking lot, he didn’t see the point in doing other people’s work.

  To know the new owner had been one of Scott’s victims made Levi’s blood boil. Scott was one of those men who could charm anyone. He had a big personality, and for a couple of years, he’d done incredible work around the Jupiter area. His construction business was in high demand until one day, out of the blue, Scott was gone.

  Levi started with the unruly overgrowth at the waterfront by the entrance to the docks, doing his best to ignore the desire building in his gut. Eliana had his libido soaring to Mach five w
ith no chance of landing anytime soon.

  He tried to tell himself she was just another attractive woman and that he could easily keep his distance. If he really needed that itch scratched, he could go see Desiree. They had a great understanding, and he barely had to speak to her at all. She didn’t have time for a relationship, and she certainly didn’t make demands of his time. If she called and he said no, she’d respond with catch you next time.

  Their connection had been purely physical. Nothing more. Nothing less.

  But Eliana stirred more than his need for sexual pleasure. The moment his eyes soaked in her natural beauty with her long dark hair, aqua eyes, and kind smile, they reminded his heart of what he’d lost.

  Oh hell. He’d never had it in the first place. His marriage had been an illusion, and his ex-wife had been the devil.

  He snagged the shovel and jammed it into the ground under one of the half-dead bushes. He could help Eliana out and keep his hands to himself.

  “Are you doing landscaping work now?” Stephanie Peter’s voice grated across his ears. It was like fingernails on a blackboard.

  He shivered. “You know me. Jack of all trades.” He didn’t bother to stop what he was doing to glance over his shoulder. Stephanie might be a looker with her long blonde hair, perky breasts, legs that went on forever, and killer almond eyes, but that was just the candy coating covering up a ruthless woman who would toss her own mother under the bus.

  If his ex-wife had been the devil, Stephanie was the devil’s worst nightmare and not a woman he wanted to wrangle.

  Ever.

  “Did the new owner hire you?” Stephanie asked, tapping her open-toed sandal, her arms folded across her chest. “Have you seen her?”

  “How do you know the new owner is a female?” Immediately, he wished he hadn’t asked the question.

  “It doesn’t matter, but if you do see her or talk to her, please give her my contact information and ask her to call me.”