He couldn't help but to shut her up in the only way that made sense to him, and perhaps get his point across to her.
Jason stepped in toward her, closing the gap between them, and caressing her cold cheek with his hand before he dipped his head to press his lips to hers.
He felt her stiffen beneath his touch, and he braced for her punch, but it never came.
A moment later her lips softened against his and then opened to accept his kiss. Lifting her hands, she pressed them to his chest, and only because he had on his thick coat, he knew she couldn't feel his heart pounding.
Jason slipped his other arm around her waist and pulled her in closer so that their bodies were pressed together. This was what he'd wanted since the moment he'd walked into her office and introduced himself. This was the brass ring—the winning sales pitch.
He didn't care about advertising at that moment, clients, or even the fact that Deb would make sure he never worked in the industry again. All he could think about was how warm Chloe made him feel, even as the cold bit at his skin.
As he pulled back, wondering what her reaction was going to be, he watched as her eyes remained closed for a moment before they fluttered open and stared into his.
"You kissed me," she said, and the cold carried her breath away in a cloud.
"I did. And you kissed me back."
"I did." Still her voice was light and airy. "Why did you kiss me?"
"Because I can't stop thinking about you. I've wanted to kiss you since the day I walked into your office."
"They day you took my job," she reminded him, and suddenly her voice wasn't as soft.
"I didn't know that. I never would have taken it if I'd known…" This time she cut off his words by moving in and kissing him.
But this time the kiss wasn't sweet and warm. There was a fury to it, perhaps even some anger as he wrapped his arms around her, and she draped herself around his neck.
People walked in and out of the Inn, and he'd heard someone whistle, but he couldn't break free. There was nowhere he wanted to be more than in her arms with her mouth pressed against his. Was this love? Was this guilt? He'd never felt anything like it before. He'd only met Chloe a few weeks ago, but he'd walked away from the job that meant more to him than anything just to be in this moment. It was worth it—of this he was sure.
She was breathless when she pulled away, and she gripped the lapels of his coat. "I can't do this. I can't fall into this."
"Into what?"
"Whatever this is. I can't start over with you here."
She hadn't let go yet, and he wasn't going to let her take off—not yet.
"Don't make that decision right now. Chloe, I want to be with you. I want to be with you enough that I rented a car and drove six hours just hoping I'd have a moment like this. I have no other motives than wanting to be with you."
Her eyes were searching his, but for what? Truth? He was speaking it.
"I have to go home." Now Chloe turned, but he caught her wrist and stopped her from heading down the steps.
"Stay with me, Chloe."
She shook her head. "I can't. My heart was already broken once this week. I can't let it happen again."
And with those final words, she turned and headed into the falling snow, disappearing under the shimmer of the streetlamp.
Chapter 27
Sleep didn't come. Chloe paced her small bedroom still painted pink with little roses on the wall. She walked in and out of the adjoining bathroom, flipping on and off the light.
Quietly she had made three trips up and down the stairs, pacing the house trying to clear her mind.
Jason Mitchell had left the city and come looking for her. What kind of madman did that? He walked away from the account she brought the firm. The account she thought he would take care of when she left. Of course, she hadn't intended on leaving.
She stood at the sink and looked out into the darkness through the window. She hadn't anticipated wandering around her parents' home in the middle of the night, dreading getting up to go work retail at Christmas time. God, she'd avoided retail at Christmas time like the plague when she was younger. Now, it was her escape.
Quietly, Chloe walked back up the stairs into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. Across the room, she noticed that her cell phone had lit up. Walking to it, she noticed there was a text message.
It was from Tyler Ashby.
I've had some schedule changes this week, so I'm heading to Aubrey Heights. Can we meet?
It was three o'clock in the morning. What was he doing texting her?
I look forward to seeing you, she texted back.
Chloe turned off her phone and crawled back into bed. She had to keep reminding herself that the new year was bringing her new opportunity. So, she wouldn't be catering to the every whim of a furniture heiress running a cosmetic company, but if she took Tyler's job offer, she'd be part of something bigger.
All she had to do was keep her focus.
But as her head hit the pillow, she was reminded of the reason she been pacing the house all night. Jason Mitchell was in town, and he'd kissed her. He'd kissed her senseless. Was that a Christmas miracle or Christmas disaster? She had no idea.
Chloe turned to her side and pulled the comforter up over her head. The only certain thing she knew was that if she didn't get any sleep, she was going to have a horrible day at work. And even in a place like Aubrey Heights, dealing with the general public at Christmas time needed all your attention.
Jason had bounded down the stairs by seven o'clock. The aroma of brewing coffee and baked goods had stirred him from a restless night of sleep.
As he entered the dining room and picked up a cup to fill with coffee from the carafe, he thought about the day ahead.
Stirring sugar into his coffee, and picking up a croissant, he sat down at the table he and Chloe had occupied the night before. The thought of her had kept him from a good night's sleep. She hadn't seemed very happy to see him, and that was disappointing. He wasn't sure what he had expected, but he had hoped she would have been a little more excited.
Then he thought of the kiss. There was a fluttering in his chest when it came to his mind. He had thought of kissing her the day he met her, perhaps he should have. What would have happened had he moved on that instinct weeks ago? He still would've had a scar on his forehead, he humored himself. He thought of her sitting in the emergency room filling out papers for him, what if he had kissed her then? Would things have been completely different? Would they both still be in the city? Or, would they both have been dismissed?
He took his first bite of the buttery croissant and wiped his mouth with a napkin that was arranged on the table. He hadn't opened his computer during the long hours of last night. It was a good chance that buried in his inbox was a release of his position. And if there wasn't one, he wasn't so sure he wouldn't write one himself.
Jason hadn't come to Aubrey Heights to beg Chloe back to work. No, in fact he had resigned to the fact that he would be fired for his actions. The only reason he had driven six hours in a rental car was to see her face. He wasn't going to leave Aubrey Heights without her in tow. And, if that meant he lived in Aubrey Heights the rest of his life, well, it seemed like a nice place to live.
He chuckled to himself as he lifted his coffee cup to his lips. Driving to Chloe's hometown, and surprising her at work had been the most spontaneous thing he had ever done. The kiss he planted on her, the night before on the porch, was equally, splendidly spontaneous.
Never in his entire life had he ever felt this way about anyone. He never would've chased any other woman down. Did that make him creepy? Was he some kind of stalker?
No, the fluttering he felt in his chest told him it was something different. He had fallen in love with the woman.
He set down his cup of coffee and pushed away the plate with the croissant. Dear God, he was in love with her.
Repeating it again and again in his mind seemed to only make him more l
ightheaded. What was he going to do about that? Sure, she had kissed him back last night, but she didn't accept his invitation to stay with him.
Jason ran his hand over his cheek and realized he had forgotten to shave. He wasn't going back up to do it. He had some thinking to do. If he blurted out the words I love you, would she run the other direction? If a woman did that to him, after only a few weeks of knowing him, he probably would run the other direction, too. Hell, she'd already thrown a stapler at his head. Perhaps he should mention it to her when they weren't at the quaint little store she worked at. He would hate to see her destroy anything by throwing it at him.
Perhaps he could find a moment with Chloe's boss. Maybe she could help him coordinate a time to get Chloe out of the store. Ideas began to explode in his brain. He was in one of the most romantic settings he’d ever seen. The snow. The cold. The scenery. Christmas sights and scents. It all surrounded them, and who wouldn't be pulled in by its charm?
Jason lifted his head as the front door to the Inn opened, and a man and a woman were greeted by the innkeeper. What a unique place Chloe Richardson came from. People with packed bags flooded to the small town to take in its magic. Sure, they did that in the city too, but no one noticed. Here, people noticed when someone else arrived in town.
Was Chloe immune to its magic? Or could he use it to his advantage? Was there enough magic left in Aubrey Heights to convince her to spend the rest of her life with him?
Chapter 28
With Christmas only one week away, Chloe was happy to see the store packed with people. She had hoped to be distracted so that she wouldn't think about her dinner date last night, or the kiss that followed after. It was nearing her lunch break, and she hadn't seen Jason walk into the store. He hadn't texted her or called her. Perhaps he went home.
That thought had her head spinning. Did she want him to go home? Did she want him to return to the city and the life that he knew? Did she want to return to that?
Chloe was busy restocking the candle section when the door to the shop open for the hundredth time. There was no need to look up, as Melanie swiftly moved to the new customer and welcomed them. It was only then she heard a high-pitched voice of the cosmetics diva.
Chloe looked up to see Gloria Vandenberg, dressed in what she considered a ridiculous outfit, running toward her in stilettos.
"Oh my God, Chloe. Is this the cutest store? And this little town," she tossed her hands in the air and the bracelets on her wrist clinked together, "it's like a Hallmark movie."
Setting the candle she was holding down on the shelf, Chloe tucked her hands into the pockets of her apron. "Gloria, what are you doing here?"
"What am I doing here? What are you doing here?"
Chloe focused on keeping the smile on her face. "I was let go. At this time a year, the only logical thing was to come home. So here I am."
Gloria leaned in toward her. "This is not where you belong. I hired you to take care of my advertising."
"And they fired me," Chloe said, and knew the smile had slipped from her lips.
"And that is why I fired them."
Chloe took a step back, her eyes now focused on the teal-painted lids of Gloria's eyes. "You fired them?"
"That Deb is a piece of work." Gloria crossed her arms in front of her. "She moved in as if she were my best friend. And that morning I hired you, that was glorious."
Gloria looked down at her claw-shaped fingernails and examined them.
"I've never seen anyone lose their temper quite like that," Gloria chuckled at the memory. "So you can guarantee when I showed up for that meeting, and William Mason had the nerve to tell me that you had been let go, and Deb was sitting at the table," Gloria threw her hands up in the air, "I let them have it."
Chloe pressed her fingers to her lips to keep from laughing out loud. "You left the firm over me?"
"I most certainly did. You're my girl."
"Well, I don't have anything to offer you right now. I don't even have a job other than this one."
Gloria gathered Chloe's hands in hers and held them tightly. "Like hell you don't. I want you to run the advertising department for Pop! Cosmetics."
The breath in Chloe's lungs whooshed out and caused her to go a bit lightheaded. "You want me to run your advertising department?"
"Yes. I don't make decisions lightly."
"No, no you don't. But I have to tell you, I have another offer."
Gloria let go of Chloe's hands and took a step back. "I'll pay you double."
Chloe laughed. "I haven't even negotiated that part yet."
Gloria lifted one of her manicured fingers. "Ah, then you really haven't taken the job yet have you?"
"What job is that?" Jason's voice came from behind the candle display, and Chloe watched as he walked toward them.
"How long have you been there? I thought maybe you left town," Chloe said and noticed that Gloria's attention had shifted toward Jason.
"I'm not done here quite yet," he said as he now turned his attention to Gloria. "Jason Mitchell," he offered, extending his hand toward Gloria.
"Jason Mitchell? Your name was on all those documents I tore up at that meeting the other day."
Chloe saw the humor of dance in Jason's eyes. "That was a mighty bold move," he said. "I heard all about the meeting."
Gloria pulled her hand back and pressed it to her chest. "I've always been told I'm a little bit dramatic."
To that, Jason laughed. "I think it added just the right touch. I wish I could have given them the same reaction when they fired me."
Chloe turned to him. "They fired you? They fired you because you came here? You have to go back. You can't throw that all away because you came here."
The humor was still fresh in his eyes, and he smiled at her which made her heart thump a little harder. "I told you I didn't want to be there without you."
"Be where without you?" Chloe turned when she heard Tyler Ashby's voice behind her.
His arm slipped around her waist, and he kissed her on the cheek. "It sounds like these people are trying to steal you away from me," Tyler humored before extending his hand to shake Jason's. "Tyler Ashby."
Chloe watched the humor disappear from Jason's eyes and a flash of irritation replaced it. "Jason Mitchell."
Tyler shook his hand, and then turned his attention to Gloria. Extending his hand to her, he said, "And you are?"
"Gloria Vandenberg," she said as she raised her jaw. "Pop! Cosmetics."
"Vandenberg," Tyler repeated. "I think our families were neighbors in the Hamptons."
Chloe watched as Gloria's attitude eased into friendly. "Ashby. I do think I recognize the name."
Tyler turned his attention back to Chloe, and taking both of her hands, he smiled at her. "When is your lunch break? I want to discuss our plans."
Chloe's throat went dry. She could feel the other two sets of eyes watching her every move. "I don't know when I can get away," she said.
"She's ready to go now," Melanie called out across the store.
When Chloe lifted her eyes to Melanie to send her a scowl, Melanie laughed and gave her a sign to leave. Perhaps it wasn't that she was setting her up, maybe the scene was causing problems. It sure was causing problems for Chloe.
Tyler gave her hand a squeeze. "Let's have lunch at the Inn. I'll meet you over there."
Just as Chloe took a breath to reject his invitation, she noticed Jason taking a step toward Tyler. "I saw you walk into the Inn this morning. You were escorted to your room with a woman."
"I most certainly was. It's a beautiful place isn't it? The Inn and this town. And to think I have both of my girls here." He turned and kissed Chloe on the cheek again. "I'll meet you there. I'll get us a table."
All three of them watched as Tyler walked to the door, giving Melanie a wave, before he walked out to the street.
"Girl! What are you into?" Gloria laughed. "You have a man who keeps two women? And then you got this one vying for your attention?" She ti
pped her head toward Jason. "No wonder you're not taking my proposal seriously."
"I am taking your proposal seriously," Chloe stammered as her hands shook. "I'm just a little surprised by it."
Gloria chuckled. "I'm going to go shopping. I want to see what this little town is all about. Maybe I'll go sit on Santa's lap." Gloria looked down at her phone, which was pink and blinged out with diamonds. "I have a meeting online at two. Why don't you and I meet at that cute little coffee shop at four and discuss your options."
There was no time to confirm or reject the invitation. Gloria turned and left the store leaving Chloe and Jason standing alone.
"So that was Tyler Ashby, huh?" He asked jamming his hands into the pockets of his coat.
"Yes, but what does that…"
"Well, it looks like you already have a man in your life. I'm not sure you're the only woman in his."
Chloe took a breath to explain the situation, but Jason quickly interrupted.
"I had hoped to spend Christmas here with you. It's quite a magical place. But, now that I'm unemployed, I guess maybe I'll go visit my mother in Florida."
"Jason…"
He held up his hand. "I was a fool to come here. I let my head and my heart get away from me. I will always be grateful for having known you," he said as he stepped in and kissed her on the cheek.
Chloe watched as he turned and left the store. Now she stood alone in the space where chaos had surrounded her. What had just happened? Jason had come for her. Gloria had offered her a job. And Tyler had swooped in, stirred it all up, and walked out the door.
"Are you going to get out of here or not?" Melanie called out across the store. "I don't know what's going on, but I can't focus if I'm concentrating on all the drama you're bringing in here," she laughed. "Go. Go get that man. And go secure one of those jobs. Your bigger than Aubrey Heights, Chloe. Now go."
Chapter 29
Chloe didn't even think to get her coat. Instead, she ran out the door of the shop and onto the sidewalk where the sun had tucked itself away behind snow clouds that began to cover the streets with snow again.
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