Stuck On You (A Christmas Novella)

by Gibson, Rhonda

  “Sheila, would you mind meeting today instead of tomorrow?”

  She wondered why he needed to change the date. Her gaze moved to the unfinished manuscript. “No. When and where do you want to meet?”

  “In about a half hour. . .at Carly’s Cookie Jar?” His voice sounded strained.

  Sheila laid the pencil down and picked up her purse. “I’ll see you there.”

  “Thanks.” He hung up.

  Her gaze moved to the irritated cat. “What do you think is wrong, Chrissy?”

  As if she understood, Chrissy looked up and meowed.

  “Yeah, I don’t know either, but I’m going to find out.” Sheila picked up the cat and carried her out of the office. She put the pet down in the hallway and shut the door.

  Morgan set Sheila’s hot chocolate down in front of her. “So how’s the book coming?” He took the seat across from her.

  “Pretty good. I’m about halfway through the first draft.”

  He watched her take a cautious sip of her drink. “Do you mind telling me about it?”

  “’Course not.” She laid the cup down. “I named the hedgehog Hannah. She has two sisters. Her sisters want her to share the pretty bows she’s tumbled upon.” Sheila’s words continued to tumble from her lips.

  Morgan enjoyed the way her eyes lit up as she told him about the story.

  “Hannah doesn’t want to share her pretty bows. She’s tired of giving her sisters everything. But I haven’t decided yet how I’m going to make her change her mind.” She picked up her cup and took another sip.

  “You are what they call a seat-of-the-pants writer, aren’t you?” Morgan asked, leaning forward in his chair.

  Sheila smiled. “As a matter of fact, I am.” She bent forward and met him in the middle of the table. “On small books like these, I write strictly seat-of-the-pants. Meaning I don’t bother plotting out the whole story. Now with my larger books, I do plot. I create a synopsis. Using that outline, I write the book.”

  With their faces so close together, Morgan felt as if they were in their own cozy corner of the world, even though the rest of the shop was full of mall shoppers.

  Two children stood at the table in the back corner, decorating cookies with their mother. “How are you going to make this book Christian?” Morgan asked. He inhaled the sweet scent of her perfume.

  “I don’t make them Christian. If I try to put Christianity into the books, they come off sounding preachy. So I write them and pray my faith comes through.” She sat back.

  The noise level in the store rose as a group of teenagers entered Carly’s Cookie Jar. “I need to make another trip to the Pet Connection. Would you like to go with me?”

  Her gaze moved to the noisy teens, and she nodded.

  Morgan took her hand as they walked past the teens. He felt her slim fingers intertwine with his. Walking toward the Pet Connection, he considered releasing her hand, but since she didn’t seem to be in a rush to free his, Morgan decided to enjoy the sensation of feeling like a couple.

  They walked around the long line of children and parents waiting to see Santa. Morgan felt her tug on his hand and for a second thought she was trying to remove hers from his. He loosened his fingers from hers. She continued to hold his.

  He stopped to find out if she wanted to see something.

  “Aren’t they adorable?” Sheila asked, pointing to Santa, who held twin children in his lap.

  He looked in the direction she pointed and observed Santa. They were close enough that he could see Santa’s deep, laughter-filled blue eyes surrounded by wire-rimmed glasses. His red outfit seemed quite luxurious and authentic-looking, with thick white fur around the collar, down the front of the coat, and at the cuffs. His pants were tucked into black boots, and he wore a red hat with white fur that was generous enough to hide his hair. His beard could have been real; Morgan wasn’t sure if it was or not. A big tummy and joyful laugh completed the illusion of old St. Nick. Morgan watched as the twins took turns whispering in Santa’s ears. They pointed back to their parents and then returned to whispering. “They are cute. But I’ll bet they’re full of mischief.”

  “All children are at that age.” A light pink filled her cheeks. He wondered if she were remembering Sheila Lynn’s visit to Santa.

  “True.” He lowered his voice and teased, “I do recall a certain young lady looking for a husband for her beautiful aunt.”

  More color joined the pink. She looked up, and a grin touched her face as she added to his playful banter, “And I remember a silly elf who didn’t have nearly the class this one does. Remember him?” Morgan pulled a shocked, wounded face and looked to the other elf in question.

  She wore a forest green tunic, tights with one green leg and one red leg, and red pointy-toed boots that had bells. Her hat was red and green striped with red fur. Still trying to look wounded over her comment he said. “Well, some elves wear their bells in all the wrong places.”

  Her laughter brightened his day.

  They watched the twins return to their parents, and then Sheila returned her attention to him. “What are you getting at the pet store?”

  Still she didn’t release his hand. He smiled. “I was given a new puppy for Christmas.”

  They continued walking.

  “This Christmas?” She tossed her empty hot-chocolate cup into a trash can as they passed.

  “There’s Santa!” the cry rang out as a family with several children hurried past them. One of the older children bumped

  into Sheila while trying to grab the one running toward Santa and his elf.

  Sheila stumbled into Morgan. He held her close and looked down into her upturned face. “Yes. This Christmas.”

  “Oh.” The sound came out rushed from between her slightly parted lips.

  He fought the urge to kiss her right there in the middle of the mall. Morgan knew he wanted their first kiss to be special. The more he was around Sheila Fisher, the more he knew God had handpicked her just for him. Still, one kiss wouldn’t hurt anything. He leaned forward.

  A mother’s voice broke into his thoughts of kissing. “I’m terribly sorry. At this time of year, it is so hard to contain their excitement.”

  Sheila stepped away from him and turned her attention to the woman. “No harm done,” she assured her.

  The family continued on in their wild dash through the crowded mall.

  Morgan continued to hold on to her hand and led her the last few steps to the pet store. Had she realized he was going to kiss her and pulled away? Or had she just been polite and answered the woman, unaware of his intentions?

  Sheila followed him into the pet shop. He still grasped her hand tightly as if he were afraid he might lose her in the crowd. She liked the feeling of being a couple and for a moment thought he had been about to kiss her if the woman hadn’t interrupted and reminded her they were standing in the middle of the mall.

  He pulled her past the display window filled with colorful birds. “You never did say why we’re here,” she reminded him.

  “Noel needs obedience classes.” He answered, stopping by a glass wall that allowed customers to view the various puppies and kittens they had at the store without touching them.

  She noted that his voice no longer held the teasing it had earlier. He seemed a little more standoffish, and she wondered if it had anything to do with their run-in with the family. “I’m assuming Noel is the puppy you got for Christmas?”

  “Yes. She’s a Great Dane, and according to the book I bought last week, she needs to be trained. So here we are.” He indicated a sign-up sheet resting on a table beside the door that led into the glass room.

  Sheila couldn’t say he was rude, but he wasn’t the fun-filled man of a few minutes earlier. She gently pulled her hand from his. “Okay. I’m going to see what kind of toys they have for cats.” She walked away from the puppy section of the store in search of the cat items.

  The store felt festive like the rest of the mall. Decorations hung f
rom the ceiling and along poles throughout the store. Over the cash register, she noted several sprigs of mistletoe dangling over the cashier’s head. A sign hung on the pole beside her read, Beware of the Mistletoe—You Never Know Where It Might Be Hanging. The price tag on it was unreadable from where she stood.

  Sheila shook her head. That sign didn’t even make sense. She continued through the store. She couldn’t believe all the Christmas items they had for animals. She saw Santa hats made just for dogs and cats. Sweaters for all kinds of animals hung on end caps. She ventured past a cage where little brown, raccoon faced Ferrets sported red, silver, and green jingle bell collars. A smile touched her lips. Chrissy wouldn’t be too happy with her if she brought home one of those.

  She located the cat aisle. In search of a fun toy, Sheila walked past the colorful collars, food dishes, and various food and treat books until she came to the right section. This store had every kind of entertainment a cat lover could imagine, from climbing and scratching posts to little dangly toys.

  Sheila picked up a peacock feather that had a bell tied to it with long ribbons. The jingling sound reminded her of Morgan’s elf hat. She wondered briefly if he’d signed Noel up for the obedience class yet. As if just thinking about him brought him to life, Morgan stepped around the corner and sked, “What kind of cat do you have? I saw a sweater back there that says, ‘Merry Christmas.’

  The sales gal says if you have a mild cat it would make the perfect Christmas gift.”

  The twinkle was back in his eyes. Whatever had bothered him earlier seemed to have vanished like the scent of evergreen after Christmas morning. “Chrissy is not a sweater-wearing type of cat.” She could just picture her feline ripping to shreds anyone who tried to put a sweater on her. Not a pretty picture.

  “Not laid back enough, huh?” He picked up a mouse with a long tail.

  “Afraid not. She’s more of the ‘I’m the queen, not now’ type of cat.” Sheila put the peacock feather away. “She’s really not very playful at all.”

  Morgan came closer to her and grinned. He stood so close she could smell the earthy scent of his cologne. “What about you? Are you the playful type?”

  “I think so. Why?”

  A smile touched his lips, and he pointed up.

  A sprig of mistletoe hung over her head. “Trapped by mistletoe, what’s a girl to do but pucker up?” With that, Sheila pursed her lips, closed her eyes, and leaned toward him.

  She let Morgan take her gently in his arms and kiss her, right in the middle of the Pet Connection. She’d read somewhere that a twenty-second kiss told a person how much you loved them. Sheila allowed herself the luxury of melting into his arms and kissed him back.

  It might have been twenty seconds before he pulled away, but she couldn’t be sure. Morgan looked into her wide eyes and smiled. “Thanks. I enjoyed that.”

  Heat filled her cheeks, and she confessed, “So did I.”

  A teasing glint entered his now smoky blue eyes. “Well enough to go to dinner with me tonight?”

  Chapter 9

  So this is what it feels like to date someone on a regular basis, Sheila thought as she tossed another discarded outfit onto the bed. She and Morgan had been going out regularly every evening for the past week. He’d taken her to dinner one night, and a romantic carriage ride in downtown Snowbound another night. Last night they’d gone to a play rehearsal at his church then out for hot chocolate.

  Tonight they were going Christmas caroling with the singles group she’d met the night before, and Sheila couldn’t decide which sweater to wear. She stared at the remaining clothes in her closet. Knowing it would be really cold, she settled on a green wool pullover. It wasn’t her prettiest, but it would be the warmest, she decided.

  She finished dressing and moved into the bathroom to apply makeup and fix her hair. If her clothes couldn’t be pretty, she’d make sure her face and hair looked nice. A smile touched her lips as she looked at her reflection. If anyone had told her three weeks ago how silly she’d act over a man today, Sheila Fisher would have laughed. But now here she stood in front of the mirror, trying to make herself look as good as she could for Morgan.

  Since their first kiss, he’d been nothing but a gentleman. He’d kissed her good night a couple of times. She’d forgotten how cold it was outside and just enjoyed spending a few minutes on the front porch with him. As she applied a light layer of lip gloss, Sheila thought about her feelings for the artist. She loved when he called her on the phone “just to chat.” His laughter warmed her insides as no one else’s could. For the first time in her life, Sheila felt sure she was falling in love.

  The ringing phone drew her from the romantic thoughts, and she laughed as she hurried to the living room and picked up the receiver. “Hello?”

  “You sound happy.” Morgan’s warm voice filled her ear and sent a shiver of delight down her back.

  She sat down in one of her plush armchairs. “I am.”

  “Because I called?”

  One of the things she loved about him was his playful banter. “Well, honestly I was happy even before you called.” She twisted the cord with her index finger and smiled.

  “You were thinking of me, weren’t you?”

  “As a matter of a fact, I was. Are you wearing your elf outfit tonight?” she teased.

  “Oh, you cut me to the core. You were only happy because you thought I’d be wearing that silly costume.” He moaned into the receiver.

  She laughed.

  “No, seriously I called because I have to break our date tonight.”

  Disappointment filled her voice. “Oh?”

  “My mother has invited me to come out for dinner, and I told her I would. I’m really sorry. I don’t see my parents enough, and, well, you know how it is. Can we go out tomorrow night? I really am sorry.”

  Why couldn’t he invite her to his parents’ with him? Sheila wondered but didn’t ask. “I can’t go tomorrow night. I promised Sarah I’d watch the kids for her.” She heard the sound of a beep on his end of the phone.

  “I’m sorry, Sheila. That’s Mom on the other line. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  They hung up with swift good-byes. Sheila dragged her feet as she walked slowly back to the bedroom and pulled off the wool sweater. She dressed in a pair of gray sweatpants and a long-sleeved, pink, oversized T-shirt. She put the clothes back in her closet. Scooping up Chrissy, she walked back into the living room. “I guess it’s just you and me tonight, Miss Chrissy.” She set the cat down on the armchair.

  It bothered her that Morgan hadn’t invited her to his parents’. Didn’t he feel the same way about her as she did him? She walked into her kitchen filled with gingerbread men. Turning on the teakettle, she pulled down her favorite mug and the container that held her hot chocolate.

  Sheila didn’t know how to answer her own question. It wasn’t as if they’d been dating for months. He may not have any feelings at all for her other than someone to have fun with. She sighed.

  Morgan hated letting her down like that. He could have kicked himself when his mother called to remind him dinner would be at seven. His parents wanted help putting up their Christmas tree. It was tradition, and he knew without asking that his mother didn’t want a stranger coming along with him.

  Sheila wasn’t a stranger to him, but she was to his parents. He knew his mother would never have agreed to share what she called her “special evening” with him, so he hadn’t even asked.

  Any other night, she would have welcomed Sheila, but not tonight. He sighed.

  The more time he spent with Sheila, the more he wanted to spend with her. She was sunshine on a cold day to him. He pulled into his parents’ driveway.

  He noticed a new red car sitting in the drive and wondered when they’d purchased it. Morgan knew it didn’t belong to either of his brothers, because neither one of them had mentioned the new wheels when he’d talked to them on the phone.

  As he walked t
o the door, Morgan made the decision to tell his parents about Sheila. He wondered what they would think of him when he told them he’d fallen in love. They’d probably be shocked since he and Sheila hadn’t known each other very long, just a few weeks, but when he told them God was in control, Morgan knew they’d accept Sheila into their family. He was thankful his two brothers were both out of town or he’d get the ribbing of his life. They would never understand love at first sight.

  He laughed as he entered the house. It hadn’t been love at first sight but was pretty close. Morgan closed the front door behind him and hung his coat on one of the hooks by the door. “Mom, Dad?”

  “We’re in here, son,” his father called from the den. “Your mother has decided to put the tree up in the den.”

  “Well, I just think it will be cozier in here this year,” his mother said.

  Morgan saw that several boxes of decorations and the Christmas tree box had been brought down from the attic. “I thought I’d be bringing those down,” he said, coming farther into the room.

  “Your mother couldn’t wait.”

  His mother ignored the sarcasm in his father’s voice and pointed to the far corner of the room. “Would you move the tree over there, son? Your father refused to move it one inch more into the room. I don’t know what’s gotten into him lately. It’s bad enough he bought that red monster out there without even consulting me, and now he’s refusing to help out around here.”

  At the age of seventy-two, his father still got around very well. But Morgan hated the thought of his climbing up and down the ladder that ran to the attic. He decided not to get into the argument about the new car but wanted his mother to know he didn’t like the fact they didn’t wait for him. “Mom, you should have waited for me to help you and Dad,” he said, pulling the heavy box into the corner she indicated.

  “Nothing’s gotten into me,” his father grumbled as he stalked off to the kitchen.

  His mother hugged Morgan. “Come on into the kitchen. I made pot roast for dinner. That ought to sweeten him up, and if that doesn’t work, I made his favorite lemon pie.”