As she sat back and read back what she’d written so far, she couldn’t decide what she really thought about Luke. All she knew for sure was that if he needed her to be Miss Christmas, that’s what she’d be. He didn’t know about her past, and she wanted to make sure it stayed that way.
Now more than ever, she needed to keep her personal life personal, because the less Luke knew about her, the better.
Chapter Twelve
Luke answered the phone in the lobby on the third ring. With the cell service always going down, he was thankful his parents had insisted on keeping their landline.
As he picked up the handset of the black 1930s antique phone, he smiled. They’d also insisted on using his great grandparents’ original phone. He used to make fun of it when he was a kid, but now he appreciated it.
“Christmas Lake Lodge,” he answered, sitting down in the chair next to the phone because the phone cord didn’t stretch far enough for him to stand.
“Hello, Merry Christmas,” the male voice on the other end of the phone said cheerfully. “My name is Colin, and I’m calling to talk to the owner or whoever is in charge of the upcoming Christmas Camp.”
Luke sat back in the chair. “That would be me, Luke. I’m the owner’s son. How can I help you?”
“I was hoping to get a reservation,” Colin said. “I went on your website and saw that you’re already sold out, but I know Riley and was hoping there was a way to still make this happen?”
Comet trotted into the room and sat down next to Luke.
“Oh, so you’re a friend of Riley’s?” Luke asked.
“Yes,” Colin said. “We go way back to college. I saw her interview on TV, and I knew I had to come see her.”
“Well, we do have a few rooms available. We are trying to keep the group small, but if you’re a friend of Riley’s, I’m sure we can make an exception . . .”
“That would be great,” Colin said. “Thank you so much.”
“Sure, no problem,” Luke said. “You can just go back on our website and send all your information through the contact form. I’ll process your reservation in the morning. How long did you want to stay?”
“The whole time,” Colin said. “Whatever that is. The weekend, right? If that works for you?”
“That works,” Luke said. “I’ll put you down for the whole weekend and let Riley know.
“No!” Colin pleaded. “Please don’t tell her I’m coming. I want it to be a surprise.”
“Oh, okay,” Luke said. “I won’t say anything. Your secret is safe with me.”
“Perfect,” Colin said. “And when I get there maybe you can help me plan some special activities with Riley.”
Luke gave Comet a confused look. “Well, you know she’s hosting all the Christmas Camp activities?”
“Yes, I heard, but I’m talking about when she has free time. Some special romantic dates. I have some ideas, but I might need some help in making them happen.”
“Romantic dates?” Luke asked, surprised.
“The more romantic the better,” Colin said. “You know how Riley loves romance.”
“Yeah,” Luke said, thinking he didn’t really know Riley at all. “Whatever you need.”
“Great,” Colin said, sounding relieved. “I’ll send you that information right now, and I’ll see you soon.”
“Safe travels,” Luke said before hanging up the phone.
He had no sooner hung up when the phone rang again. He instantly picked up and laughed. “Did you forget something?”
“Hello? Is this the Christmas Lake Lodge?” a different male voice asked.
Surprised, Luke shifted in the chair. “It is. I’m sorry. I was just talking to someone else, and I thought they were calling back. How can I help you?”
“My name is Brendan, and I’m calling about your Christmas Camp . . .”
“I’m sorry. We’ve completely sold out,” Luke said.
“But I know Riley,” Brendan said.
Luke lifted his eyebrows. “Really?”
“Yeah,” Brendan said. “We go way back. We dated. We used to live together.”
“Got it,” Luke said, even though he had no clue to what was going on. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m actually living here in Colorado,” Brendan said. “I work at the Mountain View Ski Resort. After I saw Riley on the news and found out she’d be up here hosting the Christmas Camp, I knew I had to come see her. I tried to reserve the weekend on the website, but it said you were sold out. Is there someone I could talk to a manager or the owner so I can explain why it’s so important for me to be there?”
“That would be me,” Luke said. “I’m running the camp.”
“Great!” Brendan said enthusiastically. “Then I’m talking to the right person. So can you help me make this happen? Do you have room for one more? I know Riley will be really happy to see me.”
“So she asked you to come?” Luke asked.
“In a way, yes,” Brendan said. “If you saw her TV interview, I’m the guy she was talking about. That’s why I want to surprise her.”
Luke laughed. “Oh, I bet she’ll be surprised.”
“So we can make this happen?” Brendan asked, sounding hopeful.
“Yes, I think we can,” Luke said. “Just go on the website and send me your contact information and how long you want to stay, and I’ll confirm your reservation in the morning. Our Wi-Fi is down right now, but it should be back up tomorrow.”
“Oh, I know how that goes.” Brendan laughed. “The Wi-Fi woes of living in the Rockies.”
“Exactly,” Luke said. “Thanks for understanding. We’ll look forward to seeing you soon.”
“And please, don’t tell Riley,” Brendan said. “I want to surprise her. This is going to be epic.”
“Got it,” Luke said. “I won’t say a word. Have a great night.”
“You too,” Brendan said before hanging up.
After Luke hung up the phone, he looked over at Comet. “That was weird. Two guys both wanting to surprise Riley? I sure hope she likes surprises.”
Luke had just stood up and was walking over to check the fire when the phone rang again. He paused and looked at Comet. “Seriously? Please, tell me this isn’t another someone wanting to surprise our star author.”
Comet trotted over to the phone and stared at it as it rang again.
“Just hold on,” Luke said to the ringing phone as he walked over and picked up the handset.
“Christmas Lake Lodge, may I help you?” he asked.
“I hope so,” another male voice replied in a commanding tone. “I’m Tyler Caldwell. I’m an entertainment attorney from Manhattan, and I’m calling to reserve a space at your Christmas Camp. I know you’re full, but . . .”
“Let me guess,” Luke cut in. “You know Riley?”
“Yes,” Tyler said, sounding surprised. “How did you know? Did she tell you about me?”
Luke hid a laugh. “Uh, no. Let’s just say I had a hunch.”
“I’m hoping to surprise her,” Tyler said.
Luke couldn’t help but laugh. “She must really love surprises.”
“She’s always loved surprises from me,” Tyler said, his voice full of confidence.
“You can just fill out the reservation request online,” Luke explained for the third time.
“Thank you, and I’ll see you soon.”
“See you soon,” Luke said back before he hung up the phone and looked at Comet again.
“I don’t know what is going,” he told Comet. “Riley said she’s not dating anyone, but there are three guys coming up here to see her.”
Comet lay down and put his head between his paws as if he could see trouble coming. Luke laughed.
The phone rang again.
“Oh, come on!” he said
. “There can’t be another one . . .”
But this time, it was his mom.
“Mom, I’m so glad it’s you,” Luke said.
His mom laughed. “Why do you sound so relieved? Is everything okay at the lodge? With Comet? I’m sorry I missed your call yesterday. I didn’t even realize my phone battery had died.”
“Mom, everything is fine—the lodge, Comet, we’re all good. And I told you, you have to remember to plug in your phone every night before you go to bed,” Luke said.
“I know. I know,” she said, still laughing. “I just forgot. Blame it on my ankle.”
“Is everything okay?” Now it was Luke’s turn to sound concerned. “How is your ankle doing? Do you need anything?”
“I’m fine,” his mom said. “The doctor says everything is healing well. I just need to stay off it and take it easy, but I’m worried about you. I wish I were there at the lodge with you for Christmas Camp. I can’t believe I’m missing this. And you sounded stressed when you picked up the phone. What’s going on?”
Luke rushed to reassure her. “Don’t worry. Everything’s great. We’re just getting some last-minute reservations that I wasn’t expecting—friends of the author’s or something like that. They all want to surprise her.”
“Well that sounds lovely. What’s she like? Riley Reynolds,” Mom asked. “I loved all her books, and I’m about to read her most recent one, Heart of Summer. I’m finally getting a chance to catch up on my reading now that I’m being forced to spend so much time sitting around.”
“But you’re sitting around by the pool, right?” Luke asked with a laugh. “Aunt Mary sent me a picture.”
She laughed, too. “Well, that is one of the perks of hurting yourself in Florida. It has been sunny and seventy here almost every day. No wonder everyone retires down here.”
“Well, I’m just happy you’re recovering. That’s the most important thing,” he said. “Don’t worry about anything here. I have everything under control.”
“And Riley?” she asked. “What’s she like?”
He had hoped he’d successfully avoided the question, but apparently not. “She’s okay,” he said.
“Just okay? I’m going to need a little bit more than that.” She chuckled.
Luke shrugged. “I don’t know what you want me to say.”
“I’ve seen her picture in her books. She’s very pretty, don’t you think?” his mom asked.
He rolled his eyes. He knew exactly where she was going with this, and he needed to shut her down fast.
“Yes, Mom, she’s pretty, but no, Mom, I’m not interested, so don’t even go there. And those friends of Riley’s who are all coming to Christmas Camp? They’re all guys.”
“So?” she said. “You said they were just friends.”
“Honestly, I don’t know what they are,” Luke said. “Besides, I have way too much going on in my life to worry about dating.”
“There’s a thing called work-life balance, and you need to find it,” his mom said.
Luke laughed. “Mom, you’re watching way too many of those daytime talk shows. My life is great just the way it is. As soon as we sell the lodge and get you settled in Florida, I need to head back to Europe and my job, as planned.”
“Well, sometimes life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans,” she said.
Luke laughed again. “And now you’re quoting John Lennon?”
“Whatever it takes,” his mom said sweetly. “I love you, son, and I just want you to be happy. I don’t want you to miss out on any opportunities that are right in front of you.”
“Mom, if you’re thinking Riley is one of those opportunities, I told you she’s already taken. But I promise I’ll work more on that balance you’re talking about if that would make you happy.”
“That would make me very happy,” she said. “Oh, sorry, your aunt is calling me. I better go. But keep me updated. I don’t want to miss anything. I have a really good feeling about this Christmas Camp.”
“I hope you’re right,” Luke said. “You take it easy and let me know if there’s anything you need.”
“I will,” Mom said. “And don’t forget . . .”
“Forget what?”
“Keep your heart open because anything is possible at Christmas,” his mom said happily.
Luke laughed. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, too,” she said.
Chapter Thirteen
The next morning Riley woke up to a Santa alarm clock calling out, “Ho! Ho! Ho! Time to get up and go! Ho! Ho! Ho! Let’s go! Go! Go!”
Still groggy and struggling to make sense of what she was hearing, Riley sat up in her sleigh bed, and looked around her room.
“Ho! Ho! Ho! Time to get up and go! Ho! Ho! Ho! Let’s go! Go! Go!”
Her eyes landed on a stuffed Santa sitting on her nightstand. Only this was no ordinary stuffed toy. This was a Santa alarm clock, and it was getting louder and louder with each Ho! Ho! Ho!
“Ho! Ho! Ho! Time to get up and go! Ho! Ho! Ho! Let’s go! Go! Go!”
“You have got to be kidding me,” she said, grabbing the Santa and shaking it, trying to get it to stop.
“Ho! Ho! Ho! Let’s go! Go! Go!”
“No! No! No!” Riley said back to the Santa and then finally found where the batteries were hiding in Santa’s black boots.
“Ho! H—”
The Santa finally stopped when she yanked all the batteries out.
“Ha! Take that, Santa!”
As she victoriously set the Santa back on the nightstand, she noticed her laptop, phone, and iPad were surrounding her on her bed.
It all came rushing back to her.
She’d stayed up late trying to do some research on traditional Christmas activities so she’d have some ideas to give to Luke this morning, only she couldn’t get the Wi-Fi password to work to get online. After she’d unpacked, she’d gone back downstairs to see if Luke could help her with the Wi-Fi, but the lobby and kitchen had been empty. She’d followed another hallway and found a charming library with floor-to-ceiling bookcases on each side of a vintage fireplace, but still no Luke.
She’d finally given up and gone back to her room, where she’d continued to try to get at least one of her devices online. She must have fallen asleep trying.
When she heard Comet bark from outside her door, she grabbed her phone to see what time it was. She was shocked when she saw it was already eight in the morning. She usually got up at six.
When she heard Comet bark again, she rushed to the door in her black silk pajamas, flung the door open, and laughed.
Comet was sitting there wearing a Santa hat. “Very funny, my friend,” she said, still laughing.
As Comet trotted off, she grabbed the first thing she saw in her closet, dressed quickly, and headed downstairs.
She found Luke and Harry in the lobby. Both men did a double take when they saw her.
“Good morning,” she said, as she smiled back at them, wondering what they looked so surprised about.
“Good morning,” Harry said.
The way Luke was still staring at her with a perplexed look on his face made her glance down at her outfit.
She wondered what was wrong. Am I wearing two different shoes? Is my top on backward?
Nope. Everything looked good to her.
She was wearing black leather pants with one of her favorite black silk blouses, along with her black leather pumps and a simple pearl bracelet and earrings.
“What?” she finally asked when Luke just continued to stare.
“Sorry,” he said. “I was just trying to figure out where you were going all dressed up like that.”
Riley laughed. “This isn’t dressed up. This is one of my casual outfits. For Christmas Camp.”
When both Harr
y and Luke looked at each other and back to her, she put her hands on her hips. “Okay, guys. What is it? What’s wrong?”
Harry was the first one to speak. “I don’t think anything’s really wrong . . .”
“Right,” Luke added. “I think that outfit is . . . very nice.”
Riley arched an eyebrow. “Very nice? Why do you say that like very nice is not so nice at all?”
Harry tried to cover up a laugh but didn’t do a very good job. “I think what he’s trying to say is that, around here, we’re pretty casual.”
Riley frowned. “I get it. I live in Arizona where we’re really casual too—jeans, T-shirts, flipflops—but if I’m hosting an event, I have to dress the part. So that’s what I’m doing—or at least trying to do.”
“But this is a Christmas event,” Luke said. “You’re wearing all black like you’re about to step into a board meeting.”
Riley laughed. “What is it with everyone being against black?”
“It’s fine,” Harry said. “It’s just not very, well, you know, Christmassy.”
But Riley didn’t know. She stared back at both of them.
“And up here, we host events wearing jeans, not black suits,” Luke said.
Riley gave him a look. “This isn’t a suit. Sheesh. What do you want me to wear?”
“Jeans would be better,” Luke said.
“What?” Riley asked, and she didn’t even try and hide her confusion. “You’re saying I’m supposed to host this Christmas Camp in jeans? You’re kidding, right? How is that professional?”
“Well, I don’t know about professional, but I know jeans are a lot more practical for the kinds of activities we usually do around here,” Luke said. “Or ski pants would work.”
Riley’s eyes grew wider. “Ski pants? We’re going skiing?”
“No, but you know, with all the outdoor activities we’re going to be doing, some kind of winter pants for the snow would be the best, whatever kind you have.”
Riley looked down at her outfit again and then back up at Luke. “This is the warmest thing I have. I was going to pick up some things in New York, but I didn’t have a chance . . .”
Christmas Ever After Page 9
