Christmas Duet: A Big City, Small Town Christmas Romance Bundle

by Gina Robinson

She rid him of his undershirt, unfastened his jeans and slid them off his hips, kissing passionately in the process. She was lost in feel of his bare skin against hers. In the emotion crackling between them. In the connection she'd never felt with another man.

  Her soul hummed with joy as she pulled Ryan down to the plush rug in front of the fire. It wasn't exactly the bearskin rug of fantasies, but it was good enough. In fact, it was perfect. The fire and Ryan felt hot on her skin as he braced over her, kissing and stroking her.

  Her nipples budded as he stroked and caressed them. She wrapped her legs around him. "Now, Ryan, now."

  He thrust into her and the world collapsed to a symphony of just the two of them. If joy and forgiveness could be expressed as physical pleasure, this was it.

  If she'd been in her rational, thinking mode, she might have worried that they'd have forgotten how to move together after all these years. But she wasn't, and that definitely wasn't the case.

  They moved in perfect union as her pleasure built and built as she rocked with him and their lips didn't part. He kissed her and thrust until she gasped and moaned into his kiss. Finally, she arched up as waves of pleasure crashed over her. He moaned, too, and they collapsed together, spent.

  He finally broke the kiss and stared into her eyes. "I love you."

  Maybe it shouldn't have been unexpected, but it was. She hesitated as her pulse raced and her spirits soared.

  "It's all right," he said. "You don't have to respond in kind. I just thought you should know."

  "No, that's not it." She had to make him understand. "It's just...I can't believe you still do, after everything and all the years."

  He smiled and shrugged as he pulled a plush throw off the sofa next to them, threw it over them, and pulled her into the crook of his shoulder to cuddle.

  The fire still blazed next to them, but she had to admit the side of her away from it was cool. His gesture was thoughtful.

  "True love never dies—" He cut himself short as he realized what he was saying. "Sorry. I don't mean... Shit. I'm bungling this."

  "No, you're not." She snuggled closer. "I love you, too. And that's not a platitude or an obligatory 'I love you.' I've loved you nearly all my life, Ryan."

  He smiled and neither spoke as they listened to the Christmas music and the fire burning.

  "As fantastic as this is," Ryan said at last, "this floor is getting hard." He leaned up on one elbow. "Come to bed with me. Spend the night."

  She looked up at him and laughed. "Are you crazy? Harry will kill you if I don't come home tonight. Is that what you want?"

  He laughed. "I'd be willing to brave it."

  "The last thing you need so close to Christmas is to be on his naughty list." She stroked Ryan's cheek. "Seriously, Ry, I have to go back to the lodge." She paused, trying to put her feelings into words. "Right now, this is so beautiful and new again. I'd like some time to cherish it and keep it just between us.

  "If Harry and Margie find out, and your mom, well, we don't need the pressure, do we?"

  She studied him, but his expression was masked.

  "No, you're right. Just between us." He grinned.

  He looked happy. She was relieved. She just needed a little time to think things through. She hadn't come to his cabin expecting to seduce him, thinking he'd confess his undying love for her and that she'd admit her feelings.

  She loved him. She really and truly did, and it seemed like a Christmas miracle. But even miracles had logistics, and she just wasn't sure how they were going to work them out. Right now, she didn't want to think about them.

  "But I can ask you out, right? We can be seen in public together? This isn't a clandestine relationship?"

  "You already took me snowboarding, so I'd say no, we're definitely not clandestine. We're just not letting the world in on how serious we are."

  "So you'll go out with me?"

  "Depends on what you have in mind."

  He was grinning and studying her. "Come to the Christmas Eve Santa Ski with me."

  "What!"

  "Come on, Tara. I want to spend Christmas Eve with you and I'm on duty that night, for at least part of it. Come with me to the party. You've already braved the mountain. You can do it."

  He was right. They were moving past the past, putting it behind them and making bright, shiny new Christmas memories. "Okay."

  "Okay?"

  "Sure."

  He laughed. "Okay, it's a date."

  She glanced at the clock on the mantel. "Oh, crud! Time slipped away from me. I didn't realize how late it's gotten. I have to go." She reached for her clothes.

  "You don't have time for one more?" His eyes were devilish.

  "Maybe one."

  "Then I'll walk you home."

  Ryan walked home from the lodge in the gently falling snow. He couldn't remember a December this snowy, ever. But he loved it. The snow lit up the night and matched the glow of his spirits.

  Tara loves me. He couldn't push the thought away. It danced through his mind over and over again.

  On his porch, he dusted the snow from his shoulders and shook off his hat as he stomped the snow out of his boots. Inside, his cabin was toasty warm and his new Christmas tree glowed.

  The sight of it made him smile, not that he'd stopped grinning since making love with Tara. He'd probably sleep with a grin on his face.

  He hung up his coat and hat and pulled off his boots before walking to his tree. The little thing was pathetic, but his grin grew at the selection of animal ornaments Tara had brought for him. And then he spotted an ornament he hadn't seen before. Tara must have hung it.

  A shiny gingerbread boy snuggled into a branch. He grinned, thinking of her having the twin gingerbread girl on the tree at the lodge. The two should be together, hanging side by side forever...

  And then Ryan got an idea, a wonderful, terrible, brilliant idea that made his heart race. He went to the bedroom and pulled open his sock drawer. Nestled beneath the socks and underwear, he found a small ring box. He carried it into the living room, sat beneath the tree, and opened the lid.

  Tara's diamond engagement ring winked back at him, catching the multicolor lights of the tree. It wasn't a big ring, but it was what he could afford back then.

  What did a guy do with an engagement ring a girl returned? He'd never had the heart to try to pawn it. Another woman would never want a castoff ring. And besides, there'd never been another woman he wanted to marry.

  She deserved a bigger, better, more modern ring. But this one would make a nice placeholder, a perfect gift for Santa to pull out of his bag.

  An entire proposal plan hatched right there. Santa would be handing out gifts at the Santa Ski party at The Basin Lodge. Ryan would wrap this one up and have Santa give it to Tara. And then he'd go down on one knee and propose. That would be the perfect new Christmas memory to erase, as much as possible, the old sad ones of the Basin. A new start.

  His heart pounded away. Maybe I'm jumping things, moving too fast...

  But he knew his heart. He'd waited for her for ten years. He couldn't let her get away now. And if she refused him? Well, it was better to know now, before he wasted any more of his life dreaming of a woman he couldn't have.

  He reconsidered for just a second—was a public proposal the best plan?

  Ah, hell. He'd have Santa give her the package and find a secluded corner for her to open it in.

  She loves me. After all this time. She said yes once. Why would she say no now?

  15

  Tara woke in the morning with a smile on her face. And it was all because of Ryan. Last night had been wonderful. Just the sense of relief and forgiveness was a gift she'd badly needed, but add in the intimacy and she felt like she'd already had Christmas.

  She stretched and sat up and then she remembered. Today's the day Cheryl Jones from Northwest Resort Management Services is coming.

  There was so much to do before she arrived. Like making sure her grandparents were truly open to
listening and that Harry would actually show up as promised. No mere down-in-the-back excuse was going to get him out of it.

  Tara felt a pang of guilt when she thought about Ryan and his desire to buy the lodge. But she was also optimistic. If they got married someday, Ryan would own the lodge just like he'd always dreamed. She smiled at the thought. In the meantime, NRMS would make sure the lodge stayed profitable and provided a good income for her grandparents for the rest of their lives.

  As she knew all too well, it was one thing to love Ryan. It was another to make the relationship work. And right now, she didn't have any kind of clear vision about how it might, other than if they took things one day at a time they stood a fighting chance.

  Tara slid out of bed and went to the window. It was still snowing. The world looked lovely and Christmassy. But this had to be some kind of a record snow year. There was already a good four feet of snow outside. And that was where it wasn't piled up. The parking lot was getting smaller and smaller as Harry or Ryan plowed the snow and had to put it somewhere. The same was true with the winding lake road. But for now, Tara vowed to enjoy it.

  She headed to the shower, humming "Jingle Bells."

  Most of the gifts—in reality, prizes—for the Santa Ski were locked in the safe at The Basin main lodge. Even though it ran contrary to general measures of security, Ryan wasn't about to trust Tara's ring to that. He went directly to Jim Dickson to entrust it into his care.

  "You sure about this?" Jim stared at the wrapped jewelry box with Tara's name on it in his hand.

  "There's no one else I'd trust with it."

  "Oh, you can trust me, sure enough. I'll lock it in the gun safe. No one will get it there. It's just..." Jim hesitated. "Are you sure a public marriage proposal is the best thing and is going to net you a genuine answer?

  "I always wondered about boys who proposed on big screens at football games and the like. Put on the spot like that, what's a girl supposed to do? Look like a bitch by turning the poor guy down? I expect that often happens later in private."

  Ryan shook his head. "Oh, this isn't really all that public, Jim. Not like that, anyway. All you have to do is hand her a small wrapped present. I'll corner her and make sure she opens it where there are no prying eyes."

  "Still, everyone will want to know what's in it."

  Ryan shrugged. "No reason she has to tell them if she doesn't want to. Tara knows how to evade questions when she wants to. I can even cover, saying I didn't know what to do with that damn ring after all these years and thought she should have it regardless."

  Jim arched a brow. "Well, you seem to have an answer for everything." With his long white beard, curly white hair, and rotund belly, it felt almost as if Ryan was speaking with the real Santa. The committee had done a good job in picking Jim to be Santa this year. In fact, he probably had the job for life.

  "The thing is, I can't make hers the first gift of Christmas. The people at the Basin would have my head for that. But I can work this in somewhere in the middle where it will be less conspicuous. I don't think any of the other merchants will have a problem with that."

  "Sounds good to me." Ryan grinned.

  Jim held out his hand for Ryan to shake. "Good luck, young man. I hope this is your Christmas."

  Cheryl Jones from Northwest Resort Management Services Corp., NRMS, was personable, charming, and professional. Frankly, Tara was impressed with her as she sat down with her grandparents and Cheryl in Harry's private office.

  "We've done a thorough analysis of Echo Bay's financial performance, assets, profit margins, and facilities. After inspecting them today, personally, I'm favorably inclined toward the lodge and its possibilities," Cheryl said.

  "I'll have more information for you after I get back to the office and input my observations. But let me say, I do believe NRMS can be hugely valuable to you and our partnership profitable for all of us.

  "First, let me give you a quick analysis of our fees and services." Cheryl glanced at Harry and Margie.

  Tara studied them, too. Tara already knew about NRMS's services and fees, but she had butterflies in her stomach—would Cheryl think there was enough profit possibility to partner with Echo Bay Resort, and how high of a percentage would NRMS demand? The upper five percent of their range? Or was there enough profit potential to only take three percent?

  Harry sat with his arms closed, not looking at all receptive to the idea of hiring NRMS. Margie looked only slightly more willing to think about things.

  "My team will develop an annual strategic business plan, along with defined financial goals and performance measures, as well as quarterly performance reports. We'll also make a five-year property improvement plan. We want to upgrade this place and make it a destination resort." Cheryl smiled.

  But Harry was on the verge of a scowl.

  "We'll take over the daily operation of your property as well as sales and marketing, accounting, hiring, human resources, and guest services."

  Harry was definitely scowling now. "And how much will that cost me?"

  Cheryl remained unfazed by Harry's gruff nature. "I'm getting to that, Mr. Jansen. Our rates are very reasonable. We work for either a flat monthly retainer fee, or take a percentage of proceeds.

  "In Echo Bay's case, I believe a percentage is to everyone's advantage, at least from what I've seen so far."

  "And that percentage would be?" Harry seemed to cross his arms more tightly. His knuckles looked white.

  "In your case, I have to admit they'd be at the upper end of our range—five percent."

  Tara let out a breath she'd hardly been aware of holding. Five percent. Not good.

  "Five percent!" Harry looked about ready to come out of his chair. "That's more profit than we make."

  Cheryl didn't lose her smile. She laughed and held up a hand. "I understand, Mr. Jansen. But we intend to make you so much profit, that while we'll be taking our share, you'll be making more than you ever have before.

  "We have years of experience in streamlining operations while maintaining the feel of the establishments we manage and improving them at the same time.

  "You've done an excellent job of keeping this lodge running and homey. But just from a quick look around I can name half a dozen relatively inexpensive improvements that would return tenfold on your investment and pay for our services.

  "And then there are elements in your operation that I've observed that can be quickly changed to cut costs and up your profit margin."

  Margie leaned forward, looking at least somewhat interested. "Such as?"

  "Well, for example—your fire-lighting man," Cheryl said. "I've never seen an establishment have a separate staff member purely for lighting one fireplace."

  Tara stepped in. "You mean Carter? He's been doing that job for years, over twenty of them. He really doesn't cost much. And, though we'd never admit it publicly, keeping Carter employed is really a bit of charity. He's disabled and without this job, I don't have any idea who would hire him. He'd lose all his self-esteem. He takes so much pride in this job. And his services make us unique."

  Cheryl's smile didn't slip, not in the slightest. It became clear to Tara that she was used to hearing such objections.

  "Oh, we can keep the fire-lighting ceremony, if you will. We'll have another fulltime staff member do it. We can even outfit that person in a special uniform. You see, we're not trying to change what's working here."

  "But what about Carter?"

  "By paying Carter, you're losing money. If you referred him to a charitable organization for employment, you could make a personal contribution toward work for him and write it off."

  Laying Carter off didn't sound very charitable at all. Tara couldn't help frowning. Her two grandparents didn't look like they thought so, either.

  "I'm sure we can work something out," Tara said. She'd never meant to put Carter's job on the line.

  Cheryl nodded. "Of course we can. But I must be frank. Unless you're willing to make the changes we sug
gest, we can't guarantee we'll be able to work with you. You're working on a very thin profit margin. Even at five percent of proceeds, we'd be taking a risk by taking you on and working for the least money we possibly can. Unless we can quickly increase revenue, we could all be in trouble."

  "What about staffing?" Margie asked. "Would you keep our staff on?"

  Cheryl nodded. "All of them who perform up to our standards, absolutely!"

  Even her gentle-mannered grandma frowned at that. Tara could almost read Gram's thoughts as she worried about Kathleen and Stormy and the others.

  Tara had to head off any further questions. "I'm sure all of them will, Gram. Kathleen, Stormy, the maids, they're all topnotch."

  Cheryl nodded. "And of course, we'd put them all through our training program and give them ample opportunity to prove themselves before making any judgments."

  Thank you, Cheryl.

  Tara cleared her throat. "Tell us about the new manager you'd bring in to run the place. I think Gram and Grandpa, as well as the community, would expect you to hire someone local, someone they knew they could trust." And, of course, Tara had the perfect candidate in mind.

  Cheryl pursed her lips as if in thought. Finally, she nodded. "We like to support the community. We need their support. If you have any candidates in mind, we'd appreciate the recommendation. We'll certainly consider any viable applicant."

  Tara had thought about it all morning. Ryan had the touch with the lodge. He'd be the perfect person to manage it. He'd hate watching anyone besides Harry run it. If they could swing a comparable salary to what he made at Copper Creek, she was sure he'd take the position. It seemed like a winning solution for everyone for the time being. "I was thinking Ryan Sanders would jump at the opportunity—"

  "Jump!" Harry nearly jumped out of his chair. He pounded the desk in front of him, startling them all. "You're crazy, girl, if you think that. Ryan wants to own this place, not be told how to run it by outsiders who've never spent more than five hours in this place."

  Ryan was apprehensive all day. Deciding to propose could do that to a guy, he supposed. But he also knew Tara, Harry, and Margie were meeting with the property management company. Tara had told him about it earlier, back when she'd thrown it in his face. Knowing Tara, she'd feel obligated to take the meeting. Canceling at this late date was out of the question. But he expected she'd send them packing now, politely. Although Tara had no idea he was planning to propose, it only made sense to leave things as they were while they pursued their relationship.