“When?”
“Christmas.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it.” The weathermen liked promoting ominous conditions to improve their station’s ratings.
“Might be a good idea to bring the herd in closer. Put ’em in the pasture behind the house.”
The acreage in back of the ranch house was heavily wooded, which provided shelter from the hot summer sun and cold winter winds. “Wouldn’t hurt to move them later in the week and put out extra feed.”
“I’ll get the barn ready for the mamas and their babies,” Burt said.
“Let’s wait and see if the storm hits before you go to all that trouble.”
“I can help out a lot more than you let me, you know.”
His father meant well, but most of the time his assistance made more work for Cooper. Besides, Burt admitted he didn’t enjoy doing chores anymore. Too bad Finley didn’t need a babysitter. Burt was a pro at goofing off with the twins.
“You got plans for tonight?” Burt rubbed the sandpaper back and forth against the rough edges of the caboose.
“Nope.” Cooper never had plans.
“Good, ’cause we’re going on a sleigh ride.”
What? “Since when have you wanted to take a sleigh ride?”
“Since Finley invited us along with her and the boys.”
“Finley called?” Cooper ignored the leap his heart took inside his chest.
“She wants us to meet at her house at seven.”
Cooper checked his watch. He had four hours to work on the train, eat, shower and drive into town. “Then quit bugging me so I can finish my work.”
Burt chuckled, then set the caboose on the workbench and motored out of the barn.
Cooper’s blood pumped faster through his veins as he thought about the kiss he and Finley had almost shared the other day. With the boys and Burt in the sleigh, there’d be no hanky-panky between them. Maybe it was best they had chaperones. He had a feeling once he got a taste of Finley, she’d become addicting, and she was a habit he couldn’t afford to get hooked on.
* * *
“THEY’RE HERE! THEY’RE HERE!” Flint tugged on Finley’s coat sleeve, pulling her out of the rocking chair on the front porch of the Victorian.
“Slow down!” she called as she hurried after the twins. Cooper hopped out of the passenger side of the van and gave high fives to the boys. The butterflies in her stomach beat their wings, and she pressed her hand to her midriff to squelch the fluttering. Cooper glanced her way and smiled—the first true smile he’d given her since they’d met. Holy smokes, the man was handsome.
She stopped in front of him. His short-cropped beard reminded her of a dangerous outlaw. If there was ever a man who looked right at home in Texas, it was Cooper Hollis. While the boys watched Burt position his chair on the lift, Finley’s eyes remained glued to Cooper. What was it about this man that tugged at her soul?
“I hope you and Burt didn’t have other plans.” That was a stupid thing to say—if they’d had plans, they wouldn’t have accepted her invite.
“Nothing other than watching TV.” He removed his cowboy hat and shoved his fingers through his thick dark hair. She suspected he was as nervous as she was tonight.
As Burt stowed the chair lift in the van, Tuff spoke. “I don’t want to go on the sleigh ride.”
“Yeah, can we go to Santa’s Village instead?” Flint asked.
“But you both wanted to take a ride earlier,” she said.
“Well, now, I have to say I’m not too enthusiastic about getting in a sleigh and riding down the block.” Burt’s gaze focused on the church next door, where Viola Keller chatted with a group of ladies.
“C’mon, boys.” Burt spun his chair. “Let’s visit Santa.”
“Stay right by Burt! Don’t wander off!” Finley stared dumbfounded as Burt led the way up the block, stopping in front of the church to wave to Viola. The older woman excused herself and walked over to Burt and the boys. A moment later the group continued on together. Evidently, Viola wanted to visit Santa, too. “Burt did that on purpose, didn’t he?”
“Yep.”
Finley had trouble meeting Cooper’s gaze. “We don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”
“Have you changed your mind?”
She wished things weren’t so awkward between them. “Not really. I hate letting coupons go to waste.”
“Coupons?”
She looked both ways, waiting for an opportunity to dash across the street. When an opening in traffic appeared, she grabbed Cooper’s hand and they hurried to the other side. After reaching the sidewalk, she reluctantly released his hand and removed the flyer from her coat pocket. “Two for the price of one.”
“Save that and take the boys for a ride another day. I’ll treat tonight.”
“I asked you—” She caught herself before she said out. She didn’t want him to believe this was a date, even though technically it was. Sort of.
They walked side by side, hips bumping once, but once was all it took to warm her blood. The town owned the sleighs used for the Christmas rides and local ranchers supplied the horses. The drivers worked for free and donated their tips to a fund set up to buy presents for needy families in the community. Texans were prideful people, but there was something about a child not receiving a toy from Santa that made even the most stubborn parents accept a gift for their son or daughter.
There were two couples standing in line, and all four loaded into the sleigh. The driver nodded to Cooper. “The next one is five minutes out.” He flicked the reins and the horses trotted off.
“How’s the store doing this holiday season?” Cooper asked.
“Holding steady.” She smiled. “How’s the deer business?”
“I’ll have to keep an eye on the herd. Burt said the weathermen are calling for snow on Christmas.”
Finley searched for something else to talk about. “Thank you for letting the boys paint the buckboard with you. They haven’t stopped talking about the fun they had.”
“They’re good kids.”
Silence stretched between them. “Have you ever taken a sleigh ride before?” she asked.
“Once.” He stared down the sidewalk as if something had caught his attention. Before she could ask him about it, the next sleigh pulled around the corner.
“Good evening, folks.”
“Hello, Sam.” Finley introduced the men. “Sam, this is Cooper Hollis. He owns—”
“Buckhorn Ranch,” Sam said. “My father-in-law, Ben Dunkin, bought several deer from you not too long ago.”
“He sure did.” Cooper shook Sam’s hand.
“Ben isn’t too happy that I married his daughter and moved her down the road to Buffalo Gap.”
“Sam runs his own plumbing business,” Finley said, accepting Cooper’s help into the sleigh.
“I try to get back into Ben’s good graces once a year by volunteering to drive the Christmas sleighs.” He glanced over his shoulder. “There’s a blanket beneath the seat if you get chilly.” He clicked his tongue and the horses moved forward.
After a block, Cooper whispered, “Are you cold?”
“A little.”
He spread the blanket across their laps and Finley slipped her hands beneath the warm cover. A moment later she felt Cooper’s knuckles bump her thigh. She didn’t think—she just grabbed his hand and threaded her fingers through his. His grip was warm, his skin callused, and she shivered as she envisioned his hands caressing her naked body.
“You said you’d been on a sleigh ride once before?” she whispered.
“With Denise.”
Drat. She hadn’t meant to bring up painful memories tonight. “I’m sorry.”
“It wasn’t meant to be. What about yo
u?” he asked. “What happened to the boys’ father?”
“I met Alexander when I studied abroad in Greece.” His olive skin and dark eyes had attracted her immediately, and he had swept her off her feet.
“How come you didn’t marry?”
“I didn’t discover I was pregnant until after I’d returned to the States. When I told Alex, he’d already been accepted into graduate school in Iceland.” She shrugged. There was no sense making excuses for Alex. He cared more about his career than he did his sons. “He’s working toward a doctorate degree in geology.”
The sleigh hit a bump in the road and she almost landed in Cooper’s lap.
“Sorry, folks. Couldn’t avoid the pothole.”
“Anyway, Alex stayed in Iceland, and to be honest, it was probably a good thing.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Alex was old-world Greek, and if we’d married, I would have been expected to move to Greece and live with his family while he pursued his education.” She smiled. “I wanted more out of life for myself. I love my sons and I love being a mother, but I also like running a business. I just wish the store didn’t take up so much time. I worry the boys are getting shortchanged.”
As Finley’s words soaked into Cooper’s brain, he released her hand and placed his own on top of the blanket—away from temptation. A busy woman like Finley barely had time for herself, let alone him or helping with Burt.
Who says you have to become a couple? Just enjoy spending time together when you can.
The desire to take a chance with Finley was strong, but an honorable man wouldn’t pursue a woman with children unless he was prepared to make a commitment down the road, which Cooper wasn’t.
Sam pulled the sleigh to the side of the street and sat as still as a statue without saying a word. Cooper checked over his shoulder, but there was no traffic on the road. He glanced at Finley, who pointed above their heads to the Texas star hanging from the streetlamp.
“You know what they say about mistletoe, don’t you?” she asked.
A person didn’t grow up in Mistletoe, Texas, and not learn that kissing a girl beneath the sprig of greenery could be interpreted as a promise to marry or a prediction of a long, happy life together.
It’s a superstition. He’d kissed Denise beneath the mistletoe and she’d dumped him.
You know you want to kiss her. Cooper’s heart lurched inside his chest when Finley smiled at him. An invisible magnet pulled his mouth down to hers. He kept his eyes open, wanting to see her beautiful face as they kissed. When their mouths touched, her brown lashes fluttered closed. A shiver rippled through his chest and a not-so-gentle tug gripped his groin when he snaked his fingers through her hair. She tasted like moonlight and magic. And her hair was as silky as he’d imagined.
She broke off the kiss too soon and glanced at the back of Sam’s head. He’d forgotten they had a chaperone.
“You folks ready?”
“We are.” Finley snuggled closer to Cooper and a powerful yearning caught him unawares—a need to care for someone and have them care back. And maybe even love.
Love?
No. He meant... Hell, he didn’t know what he was thinking anymore. But if the feelings Finley inspired in him after one kiss were any indication of his growing attraction to her, then he was in trouble. Big trouble.
“It’s going to be a busy week at the store,” she said. “I’m getting ready for a huge sale Thursday.”
“What kind of sale?”
“A pre-Christmas sale. I’m opening the store at eight and closing at nine.”
“What are you going to do with the boys that day?”
“Pray they behave themselves. I bought a new Christmas DVD and I’m counting on them watching it over and over.”
“I’ll come get the boys that day.” The words were out of his mouth before he realized he’d spoken them.
“Seriously?” Finley’s eyes lit up with excitement. “They’re a handful. Are you sure?”
“I’ll give them a tour of the ranch and we’ll feed the deer. If they get tired of hanging out with me, Burt can teach them how to play checkers.” And they’d have a chance to make Finley’s birdhouse.
She curled her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. “Thank you, Cooper. That’s the nicest Christmas present anyone has given me.”
CHAPTER SIX
THE LAST THING Finley needed to do Wednesday evening was close the shop early and spend two hours at the hair salon, but she couldn’t resist a little holiday pampering after the boys had been invited to a sleepover at a friend’s house.
You just want to draw attention to yourself tomorrow when Cooper picks up the twins.
Okay, fine. She admitted that she wanted to look pretty for Cooper. After the kiss they’d shared during the sleigh ride, she was more certain than ever that she wanted to see where things might lead between them. She’d come to the conclusion that her life would always be busy and there would never be a perfect time for a relationship, so she might as well jump in with both feet and see what happened. Once her sons were back in school after the winter break, she intended to ask Cooper to join her for lunch in town. Keeping that positive thought in mind, Finley entered Mistletoe Locks Beauty Salon.
“Look whose ears must have been burning,” Maybelline said. The salon owner took pride in the fact that her mother had named her after the famous makeup company.
Finley touched her ears and played along. “They feel a little warm. What are you saying about me?” She hung her jacket on the peg by the door, then sat in the waiting area. Dozens of miniature mistletoe bouquets hung from the salon ceiling. Maybelline went overboard with the mistletoe—who were you going to kiss in a beauty shop?
“I was telling Joyce—” Maybelline nodded to the stylist who rolled Mrs. Crandall’s thinning gray hair. The older woman’s daughter dropped her off once a week for a shampoo and style while she ran errands “—that it’s about time you found yourself a man and a father for your boys.”
Uh-oh. Evidently, a bystander had witnessed her and Cooper’s kiss during the sleigh ride. She feigned innocence. “What are you talking about?”
Maybelline and Joyce exchanged grins. Then Joyce said, “If you don’t want to be the talk of the town, then you shouldn’t kiss cowboys in public.”
Finley gasped.
“Everyone knows you and Cooper kissed during your sleigh ride Monday night.”
“Sam should have kept what he saw to himself,” Finley said.
“Sam told his wife, and you know Doreen—she reads all those romance novels and thinks everyone in the world deserves a happily ever after. She told Suzie down at the café and Suzie told Helen at the dental office and Helen—”
“I get it.” Finley scowled. Great. The gossipmongers would scare Cooper off.
“You know,” Maybelline said, “I think Patricia feels guilty that her daughter broke off her engagement to Cooper.”
“It’s too bad Cooper doesn’t have any siblings to help him care for Burt.” Joyce sprayed Mrs. Crandall’s curlers with styling gel before helping her to the dryers. “I don’t know how he manages both the ranch and his father.”
Maybelline stepped in front of Finley and played with a strand of her hair. “Did you want another conditioning treatment?”
“I thought I might try a new style.”
The beautician’s tattooed eyebrows arched into her hairline. “You haven’t done more than trim an inch off the ends in years.”
Joyce joined her boss’s side and studied Finley. “It’s because of Cooper, isn’t it? You want a sexy look that will make him all hot and bothered.”
Hot and bothered? “I thought it was time to update my hairstyle, that’s all.” She glanced between the women. “Maybe something a little more sophisticat
ed.”
Maybelline nodded. “A bob.”
“With side-swept bangs,” Joyce added. “You have beautiful eyes, and bangs will accentuate their color and size.”
“We’d have to cut off at least four inches. Is that okay with you?” Maybelline asked.
Finley tapped her shoulder. “Maybe to here.”
“A little shorter will look better.” Joyce lifted Finley’s hair. “An inch above your shoulder.”
“Okay. If I don’t like it, I’ll let it grow.”
Maybelline and Joyce fussed over Finley for the next hour until the cut was perfect, then faced her chair toward the mirror.
Finley hardly recognized herself. The bob made her appear more mature and confident. “I look like a businesswoman.”
The bells on the door jingled and Mrs. Crandall’s daughter entered. “Finley McCarthy, is that you?”
“It’s me.”
Phyllis smiled. “So it’s true?”
“What’s true?” Finley asked.
“You and Cooper Hollis are dating.”
“We’re friends.” She ignored Maybelline’s eye roll.
“That’s what they all say.” Phyllis glanced at her mother nodding off under the dryer.
“Give me five minutes and I’ll have her hair combed out,” Joyce said.
“Leave her be. I’ve got a few more errands to run.” Phyllis paused at the door. “All men start out as friends, Finley. Until you get them into bed.” She winked and left the salon.
“So?” Maybelline stared at Finley’s reflection in the mirror.
“What?”
“Have you invited Cooper into your bed yet?”
“That’s personal, Maybelline.”
“She hasn’t slept with him,” Joyce said. “Too bad. I bet Cooper’s good in the sack.” She held up her hands. “I’m not interested in him. I’m perfectly happy with my big potbellied teddy bear, Gerald.” She put away the blow-dryer. “He turns a blind eye to my gambling. What more could a girl ask for?” Everyone in town knew Joyce had a love affair with internet poker.
Finley rummaged in her purse for her wallet. “You two should drop by the store tomorrow and finish your Christmas shopping. Everything will be half off.”
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