Natalie turned back to Shawn, a soft smile on those kissable lips. “Really?”
“Really.” He couldn’t help himself—he reached out a brushed a strand of hair away from her cheek. Her skin was just as soft as he’d imagined. “I’ve even got a Santa suit I dress up in to bring them some Christmas cheer. I’d love it if you’d come with us today.”
She glanced at Jorge, then back at Shawn. “Are you sure?”
He nodded. “I mean, as long as you don’t have other plans.”
“Nothing very exciting. I’d love to come with you. Thanks for inviting me.”
“My pleasure,” Shawn said.
He meant every word.
CHAPTER TEN
This so wasn’t how Natalie had imagined today going. It was a thousand times better. When she’d stormed to Shawn’s cabin that morning, determined to give him a piece of her mind, she’d figured he’d get defensive and upset. Instead, he’d apologized multiple times.
The tender boat, only half-filled with employees from the Ocean Dream and a few tourists getting a late start to their day, skimmed along the glittering blue surface of the ocean. Natalie had never been to Mexico before, but she had a feeling she was going to love it. The sun shone brightly overhead, warming her skin. She could taste the salt water on her lips. A soft breeze ruffled her hair and the brim of her sun hat. The employees laughed and talked, clearly enjoying the break from the ship, while the tourists snapped pictures with their cameras.
She glanced over at Shawn, unable to hold back a grin. He’d donned a Santa suit, complete with pillows to pad his stomach and a white beard and wig. It was adorable and hilarious, all rolled into one.
Shawn caught her staring and his mouth quirked up in a grin, making his beard hang at a funny angle. “What?”
“Nothing, Santa Claus,” Natalie teased. She was amazed at how comfortable she felt around him after the tension of just an hour earlier. They’d fought, but they’d also forgiven. “Are you dying of heat stroke yet?”
“Getting pretty close.” Shawn tugged at the fury collar of his Santa coat. She could see the tiny beads of perspiration forming along his forehead, just beneath the fur cuff of his hat. “It’s got to be at least eighty degrees today.”
Natalie nodded and brushed back her hair, enjoying the cooler sea air as they raced toward the dock. “Still feels like the holidays to me. I’ve never really related to a white Christmas.”
Shawn shifted, his arm brushing hers. Natalie tried to ignore the shivers racing up and down her side. They were all alone in their corner of the boat, the seats surrounding them empty. A swirl of unfamiliar languages combined into a gentle and soothing cadence, mingling with the clicks of cameras.
“Have you ever seen snow?” Shawn asked.
“A few times,” Natalie admitted. “I try to go to as many of Wyatt’s games as possible. The novelty of snow sort of wears off when you’re freezing in a cold stadium seat.”
She expected him to comment on her brother—the guys she’d dated in the past had never missed an opportunity to talk football, not that she and Shawn were dating—but instead, Santa Shawn just nodded, the fluffy white pompom on the end of his hat bouncing up and down with the movement. “The appeal of snow wears off pretty quickly when you’re shoveling it from your driveway. Have you always lived in a desert?”
Natalie nodded. “Born and raised in Arizona. To me, winter is whenever the temperature dips below sixty degrees.”
Shawn chuckled. “My first Christmas on the Ocean Dream, I couldn’t get over how weird it was to be running around in shorts while doing my Christmas shopping at ports.”
“Does it snow a lot in Sunset Plains?” Natalie had always thought of Oklahoma as a warm, humid place.
“Not often, but we get ice storms that knock out the power for days. We loved it as kids because they’d have to cancel school. It was like a mini-vacation.”
Natalie tried to imagine a ten-year-old Shawn eagerly watching a storm rage from his front window, hoping desperately he wouldn’t have to go to school in the morning. “What would you guys do without power?”
Shawn shrugged. “We’d all bundle up in about a billion layers of clothes, then play games in front of the wood burning stove. Mama would make hot chocolate and sometimes read books to us while we played.”
The picture he painted sounded so cozy. Natalie suddenly wanted to visit Sunset Plains and experience the warmth of a winter storm for herself. “It sounds nice.”
“Oh, I’m pretty sure my mama hated it.” Shawn chuckled, tugging again at the collar of his Santa suit. “Me and Tanner used to cut the hair on Cassidy’s dolls when we got bored. She’d go cry to our parents and we’d get in so much trouble.”
Natalie adjusted her sunglasses, soaking in Shawn’s presence. She wanted to discover his deepest secrets and figure out what made him tick. “What are Tanner and Cassidy like?”
“They’re great.” Shawn adjusted, stretching his bad leg out beneath the row of chairs in front of them, and Natalie wondered if it bothered him more than he let on. “Tanner is very logical and practical. He’s in Texas right now, working on his masters in meteorology. And Cassidy…” A look of pain slashed across Shawn’s face. “Well, she’s had a hard year. Her fiancé left her at the altar in June, but I think she’s doing better now. She’s planning on opening a cupcake shop in downtown Sunset Plains soon.”
“That’s awful. Being left at the altar, I mean.” Poor Cassidy. Natalie’s own boy troubles suddenly didn’t seem so bad. Sure, guys had dated her to get closer to her brother, but at least none of them had done more than lie about their feelings.
“She was pretty torn up for a while, I think, but she’s doing better now.”
The boat bumped against the dock, putting an end to their conversation. The Ocean Dream employees remained seated, letting the tourists disembark first.
“What now?” Natalie asked as they waited for the cruisers to file off the boat.
“I’ve hired a van to transport all the gifts,” Shawn said. She wondered if he realized he’d swung an arm casually along the back of her chair. What would he do if she leaned into him? “But most of us will walk to St. Marguerite’s. It’s only a few blocks away.”
The last of the tourists had disembarked, and the employees were now gathering up the various wrapped packages and handing them to those waiting on the dock.
As Natalie and Shawn helped hand over the gifts, she worried about Shawn’s ability to walk a few blocks. He didn’t grimace with pain, but his gait was still more unsteady than she was used to. But maybe that was the sway of the tender boat. She wasn’t about to question his ability to take care of himself again, especially not in front of all of his coworkers.
“I think that’s it,” Shawn said, looking around. He gave a nod to the employees looking up at him with expectant smiles. “We can go ashore. Jorge and Azumi will ride with the gifts to St. Marguerite’s, and the rest of us will meet them there in a few minutes. The nuns said we can quietly bring in the gifts through the kitchen so the children don’t see.”
Heads bobbed up and down in understanding, then employees stepped onto the deck. Shawn took the single step up more carefully than the others, putting weight on his good leg. But when he turned around and held out a hand, there was no sign of distress on his face.
Natalie carefully placed her hand in Shawn’s, heart pounding furiously in her chest. His grip was steady and strong as he guided her up the stairs. When she stepped onto the dock, he didn’t release her hand. His warm fingers wrapped around hers, urging her closer to his side.
He held up their hands. His eyes, hidden behind wire rimmed spectacles, were guarded and vulnerable. “Is this okay?”
“Yeah,” Natalie breathed, giving his hand a soft squeeze. It was more than okay.
Jorge and Azumi jumped into the white box van that would carry them to St. Marguerite’s. The rest of the employees followed on foot, with Shawn and Natalie bringing up the rear.
Brightly colored buildings lined both sides of the streets, and the squawk of seagulls filled the air. Shawn kept a slow, steady pace, and they soon fell behind the rest of the Ocean Dream employees.
“Sorry,” Shawn said, and there was a vulnerability in his tone that Natalie had never heard before. “I’m afraid I don’t move quite as fast as most.”
Natalie squeezed his hand and leaned into him. “I don’t mind.”
She heard his soft intake of breath, then a slow release. “Okay.”
The street opened onto a town square bustling with tourists in knock-off sunglasses and locals dressed in colorful clothes. Pop-up shops filled with trinkets and postcards lined the streets, their proprietors shouting in broken English as Natalie and Shawn walked past.
“I didn’t expect Mexico to be so colorful,” Natalie said.
Shawn raised one eyebrow, setting the beard off kilter again. She laughed and reached up to adjust it.
“You’ve never been to Mexico?” he asked.
“If Wyatt hasn’t played there, I probably haven’t visited.”
“I still can’t believe you’re Wyatt James’s little sister.” Shawn shook his head, as though amazed.
Some of the warmth left Natalie’s body, and her hand felt suddenly cold and clammy in Shawn’s. “He’s not really any different than anyone else.”
“What’s he like?”
The cold was spreading to her chest, squeezing it painfully. Natalie swallowed hard. “He’s my best friend. He was never an obnoxious big brother and always let me tag along with him and his friends to the movies, or drove me and my friends to the mall.”
“He sounds great.” Shawn gazed down at her. “I’d love to meet him someday. I’d love to meet your whole family.”
Natalie swallowed and looked away, pretending to be interested by a stand of postcards. She’d been so certain there was chemistry between her and Shawn, but all her old insecurities came flooding back. “Maybe one day,” she said, keeping her tone noncommittal.
“Santa Claus!” A group of shoeless kids with dark skin ran up to them, smiling broadly and pointing. “Santa Claus!”
Shawn immediately dropped Natalie’s hand and held up his harms. “Ho, ho, ho,” he said, the timber of his voice a few notes deeper than usual. “Feliz Navidad.”
The kids laughed and ran away.
Natalie glanced up at Shawn. “Wow. I’ve never been out on the town with Santa.”
He winked, making the beard twitch and his glasses slide down the bridge of his nose. “We’ll keep it our little secret.”
Our little secret. Secret Santa. She wondered again if he’d sent the cookies. But if he hadn’t, bringing up Jase seemed like a good way to ruin the afternoon, so she decided to keep quiet for now.
“I thought, after we’re done at St. Marguerite’s, maybe I could show you around the port,” Shawn said.
Natalie wrapped her arms around herself, conflicting emotions battling inside. Just because he liked football didn’t mean he was only interested in her because of her brother. He’d grown up in Oklahoma, for heaven’s sake. Wasn’t football practically a religion there? “I’d like that.”
They rounded a corner, and Natalie recognized the white van up ahead. The rest of the Ocean Dream crew had already arrived and were pulling presents out of the van and carrying them inside.
“That’s the orphanage,” Shawn said unnecessarily. “It’s also a school, all run by Catholic nuns.”
“That’s so sad,” Natalie said quietly. She gazed up at the adobe bricks, noticing cutout snowflakes pasted in the upper windows.
“It is,” Shawn agreed. “I wish we could do more to help them.”
Natalie put a hand on his arm, waiting until he looked at her. “You’re a good man, Shawn Erickson,” she said softly.
He rested his hand on hers for the briefest moment before dropping it. “Thanks for coming with me today, Natalie. It means a lot to me.”
“Thanks for asking me.”
Shawn cleared his throat and pointed around the side of the building. “Once we’ve got all the presents inside, I’ll go around to the front door and ring the bell. The nuns know we’re coming and have everything set up for Santa’s visit. They’re really excited.”
Natalie took the pile of present Jorge handed to her and tiptoed through the back doors of the school. The kitchen’s appliances were ancient, but the counters were spotless and everything was neat and tidy. They stacked the presents on the long counter as quietly as possible while the laughter of unsuspecting children floated to them.
Once the presents were all stacked, Shawn said in a whisper, “I’m going to go around to the front now.”
Jorge nudged Natalie in the back, smiling brightly. “Natalie should hand you the presents.”
Natalie’s eyes widened. “Me?”
Jorge nodded. “It’s easy. They’re separated into different piles based on age.”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Natalie looked around self-consciously at the other cruise staff. “You’ve all been working for so long toward this day, and I just got here. One of you should hand Shawn the presents.”
“We get to watch the children’s delight as they open them,” Azumi said. “That is more than enough payment for our time. We’ll make sure you give the right gifts to the right child.”
Shawn’s warm hand rested briefly on her cheek, the touch so fleeting she wondered if she’d imagined it. “I’d love for you to help me.”
Natalie swallowed hard, then nodded. “Okay.”
“See you in a second.” Shawn flashed her a grin, then disappeared through the back door.
Natalie glanced around at the other employees, but none of them seemed to resent her presence. Instead they were all smiling, their eyes bright as they listened to the children playing in the other room.
A loud knock echoed through the building, then the front door opened and Natalie heard a distant, “Ho, ho, ho!”
Everything went completely silent before loud squealing filled the building. “Santa Claus! Santa Claus!”
The kitchen door quietly opened, and a nun peeked inside, her head covered with a habit. She stood aside and motioned with one hand for them to hurry.
Natalie picked up a stack of presents and followed the others into what seemed like a living room of some sort. A scraggly Christmas tree with homemade ornaments sat near a faded armchair with a large rip in one arm from which the stuffing fell out. A bright rag rug covered the wood floor, and two couches were angled toward the tree. Colorful pictures decorated the walls. They were obviously drawn by the children and featured Christmas trees, reindeer, snowflakes, nativities, and other Christmas themes.
Natalie worked with the cruise ship employees to quickly stack the presents beside the armchair, careful to keep them grouped together by age. She could still hear Shawn in the front entryway, talking in Spanish to the excited children. She hadn’t known he spoke a foreign language. There was so much she didn’t know about Shawn, but she wanted to learn about every facet of his character. She thought he might feel the same way about her.
They’d just finished stacking the last present when Shawn entered the room, surrounded by nearly two dozen children. The boys wore white collared shirts and navy pants, while the girls wore plaid jumpers—obviously school uniforms. They ranged in age from maybe six or seven to perhaps fifteen, but the sparkle in the older children’s eyes said they were just as excited as the little kids.
Shawn continued speaking in Spanish. Natalie couldn’t understand a single word he said, but he sank into the armchair and children began excitedly crowding around him. A nun with a wrinkled face clapped her hands and said something, and the kids began lining up, the older ones at the back and the younger ones at the front.
Shawn sank into the armchair and motioned the first child forward, a little girl with expressive brown eyes and a toothless grin. Shawn began talking to her, obviously asking a question. Her hands flew about animatedly as she spoke. S
hawn listened patiently, and a minute or two later, he held out a hand to Natalie.
She stared at it, then sprung forward. “Oh! A present. Sorry, I don’t speak Spanish.”
Shawn smiled and said something to the little girl, which made her laugh.
“I told her my elf was distracted by all the beautiful drawings posted on the wall,” he said.
Natalie placed a square box in Shawn’s hands and smiled at the beautiful little girl. “Yes, that’s right. You are all very talented artists. You’ve made this room beautiful.”
Shawn repeated her words to the little girl, who giggled and wrapped her arms around Shawn’s neck, then pranced over to a nun with a kind face and began rapidly speaking.
For over an hour, Natalie handed out presents as Shawn spent time with each child. He didn’t rush them through their stories, and by the time the last gift was handed out, all the adults in the room were blinking back tears.
This was what Christmas was all about. And as Natalie watched Shawn brighten the lives of these children who had lost so much, she knew her heart was in trouble. Because she was definitely falling for him.
Shawn rose and waved a hand in farewell. Natalie hugged the children and said adios, pretty much the only Spanish word she knew, before following the rest of the employees out of the room.
Outside, the cruise staff shared hugs and thanked each other for their hard work. Natalie looked around for Shawn, but didn’t see him anywhere. When he finally appeared a few minutes later, he wore khaki-colored shorts, a blue T-shirt, and sunglasses. His hair was tousled from the Santa hat, but she thought she’d never seen a more handsome man.
“Ready to go?” Shawn asked.
Natalie adjusted her floppy sun hat and nodded. “Definitely ready.”
“Okay then.” Shawn took her hand in his and pulled her down the street. “Let’s go. There are so many amazing sites I want to show you, and we’ve only got a few hours to see them.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Match Me by Christmas Page 9
