‘I intercepted the postman,’ he said. ‘Let me in, Georgia.’
‘No,’ she said flatly, and took the parcel from him. ‘Go away, Toby.’ She would have shut the door in his face, but he stuck his foot in it, wincing as she refused to give way.
‘Please. I just want to say I’m sorry.’
‘OK,’ she said tersely. ‘You’ve said it. Goodbye.’
He scowled. ‘Why are you like this? Everything was fine between us until the night of the party.’
She sighed impatiently. ‘There was nothing between us, Toby. Ever. We met briefly a couple of times, and against my better judgement I came to your party. But that was it. And whatever it was, it’s over.’
The smile vanished as he shouldered the door open and grabbed her by the wrist. ‘I don’t want it to be over!’
‘Nevertheless it is—right now,’ said a familiar voice from the landing.
Georgia pushed Toby away, breathing raggedly, and turned on Chance as he strolled through the door. ‘I don’t know why you’re here, but now you are would you remove your brother, please?’
Toby glared in fury at the tall figure standing over him. ‘What the hell are you doing here?’
‘Throwing you out,’ said Chance, and he seized his brother by the collar of his expensive leather trench. ‘It’s time you learned to take no for an answer, my lad.’
‘And you’re going to make me?’ sneered Toby with shaky bravado.
‘No.’ Chance released him and brushed his hands together. ‘Georgia can do that by calling the police to report you for stalking her. Bad news for a trainee solicitor.’
The effect on Toby was dramatic. He turned on Georgia in utter panic. ‘No. Please. Don’t. I won’t bother you again, I swear.’
‘Can I have that in writing?’ said Georgia bitterly.
Toby deflated like a pricked balloon. ‘I wouldn’t have hurt you.’
Chance thrust Toby outside on the landing. ‘It’s time you learnt that when a lady says no she means it!’
Toby looked from Georgia to his brother. ‘You want her yourself, don’t you?’
‘Yes, I do,’ said Chance grimly. ‘Not that she’ll have anything to do with me when I’ve got you for a relative.’
‘You needn’t be so insulting!’ Toby looked at Georgia. ‘Do you want him?’
‘No! I just want you both out of here right now,’ she snapped, and shut the door on both of them.
Georgia snatched up the parcel she’d dropped, annoyed because she felt so shaken at seeing Chance again. In a heavy suede jacket and rollneck sweater, he’d looked so good he’d not only put his smaller younger brother in the shade, but rocketed her recovery programme back to square one. She sighed and tore apart the cardboard on the parcel to reveal two hardback bestsellers. She’d been waiting for them to come out in paperback so she could afford them—something she’d mentioned fleetingly to Chance. He’d obviously ordered them online. She bit her lip. He certainly knew the right way to a woman’s heart—this woman, anyway.
The doorbell jerked her out of her reverie.
She picked up the receiver reluctantly. ‘Who is it?’
‘Nick Warner. May I talk to you, please?’
Chance’s father? Georgia pressed the release on the main door, and then waited in trepidation for the lift to come up. What on earth could he want? When the buzzer sounded she went into the hall and opened the door, then stared as Chance smiled, looking so pleased with himself she felt her heart thaw a little.
‘I thought it was your father,’ she accused.
‘I was rather banking on that. I knew you wouldn’t open the door otherwise.’ He looked down at her with such warmth and tenderness in his eyes her heart began to melt in earnest.
‘Do you want to come in?’ she said awkwardly.
‘Actually, I hoped you’d come out, Georgie. Will you have lunch with me?’
She hesitated for a moment, then decided against cutting off her nose to spite her face as her grandma had used to say when she was little. She was dressed for the occasion, and she certainly had nothing better to do. ‘All right. Thank you. Come in for a moment while I get a coat.’
Georgia left him in the living room and hurried to her bedroom for a jacket. She touched up her face and after a moment’s thought unpinned her hair from its twist and combed it loose on her shoulders. She might as well use all the weapons she had in her armoury. She frowned at her reflection. Who was she trying to kid? One look at Chance and she wanted to make love, not war.
He turned as she rejoined him, the heat in his eyes all the reward she needed for her efforts. ‘As I’ve said before, Miss Smith, I never had a teacher who looked like you.’
‘Thank you for the flowers and the books.’
‘I remembered you were looking forward to reading those.’
‘Good memory.’
‘Where you’re concerned, infallible,’ he assured her, and touched a finger to her sleeve. ‘I like this.’
‘It’s trying its best to look vintage 1940s teddy bear, but I bought it at cost from Amy’s shop.’
‘You look very cuddly in it.’ His eyes darkened. ‘But I won’t think about that right now. I’ve booked a table at the Chesterton.’
‘You were so sure I’d come?’
‘I wasn’t sure at all. I hoped.’ He smiled. ‘I thought it would make a change from fry-ups on the camping stove. Though I won’t enjoy the Chesterton’s finest more than the meals we shared, Georgie.’
Georgia felt uneasy as they walked through the town. She wished vainly that she hadn’t told Chance she was in love with him, certain it would make things awkward between them now. She was wrong. The food was good at the Chesterton, the service superb, and gradually she felt just as comfortable with Chance over the lunch table as during their tramps in the snow. But when he helped her on with her coat afterwards he spotted the mark Toby had left on her wrist and, oblivious of anyone looking on, raised her hand to press his lips to it.
‘I was going to let him off a good hiding,’ he said grimly, as they walked back. ‘But I’ve changed my mind.’
‘Change it back,’ she said peremptorily.
‘Why?’
‘Because it will cause trouble, and I don’t want my name cropping up again with your family.’
‘It will crop up soon enough, Georgie, when I tell them we’re together.’
She turned on him in consternation. ‘What?’
‘You don’t think I’m going to let you get away, do you? How could I explain to Luther and Ruby?’ He paused as they arrived at her building. ‘I’m coming up with you. We need to talk.’
As soon as the lift doors closed behind them Chance took Georgia in his arms and kissed her, and only let her go when the doors opened on her floor.
Heart thumping, Georgia unlocked her door and went ahead of Chance into the living room. She took off her jacket and dropped it on a chair. ‘Would you like to take yours off for a minute?’
‘Of course I would.’ He laid his jacket alongside hers, then led her to the sofa. ‘Now we talk. Or at least I do. And I want you to listen.’
‘Am I allowed to talk too?’ she demanded.
‘Only after I finish,’ said Chance firmly, and slid an arm round her. ‘This is what I have in mind. Lunch today was just the beginning.’
‘The beginning of what?’
Chance silenced her with a kiss. ‘If you keep on interrupting I’ll just have to keep on doing that,’ he said severely.
‘I’ve stopped,’ she said promptly.
‘You mean you don’t want me to kiss you?’
‘Make up your mind,’ she said tartly, and he smiled and kissed her again. This time the kiss went on longer, but at last Chance tore his mouth away and held her close, rubbing his cheek over her hair.
‘We should probably have had this conversation in public over lunch,’ he said huskily, and took in a deep breath. ‘To cut to the chase: I intend to come courting, Miss Smith.’
Georgia felt a great leap of delight. ‘Courting?’ she mocked. ‘I said you were born in the wrong century.’
‘You don’t fancy being courted?’
‘Oh, I do. Madly. But please go on.’
‘I’ll do whatever it takes to prove that I’m sorry and convince you that I want you. I shall wine and dine you, and take you to the theatre. You can introduce me to Amy—’
‘What as, exactly? Boyfriend?’
Chance laughed and scooped her onto his lap. ‘I’m a bit on the mature side for that.’
‘My lover, then?’ she said matter-of-factly.
‘God, yes.’ He kissed her gently, then not so gently, and with a groan deposited her back beside him. ‘Where was I? Ah, yes. When you’re teaching do you get weekends free?’
‘Yes.’
‘Then I shall drive over once or twice in the week, and you can come to me at Ridgeway for the weekends. And once I’ve persuaded you to overlook disadvantages such as Toby for a brother-in-law I intend to wed you and bed you and make you all mine—though not necessarily in that order.’
Georgia stared at him in wonder. ‘Was that a proposal I heard in there?’
‘I’ve never made one before, so maybe I didn’t get it quite right.’ Chance raised her hand to his and kissed it. ‘That’s what courting usually leads up to, my darling Miss Smith.’ He fished in a pocket and handed her car keys over. ‘One of the reasons why I’m here. But not the most important one.’ He sobered, his eyes looking down into hers with an intensity that made her pulse race. ‘I came to tell you I love you, Georgia Smith, and to make you admit that you love me.’
‘But I’ve already told you that,’ she said breathlessly.
‘I thought maybe I’d hurt you so much I’d killed your feelings for me. So I sent flowers and books, and came courting.’ He kissed her fleetingly. ‘I’ll do my damndest never to hurt you again.’
‘But tell me, Mr Warner, are you perfectly sure of my reasons for agreeing to your plan of campaign?’ She smiled challengingly. ‘I could just be lusting after your possessions. Which I am,’ she added, startling him. ‘At least after two of them.’
‘Luther and Ruby!’ He shook her gently. ‘Georgie, I don’t care why you agree as long as you do. Come home with me right now and stay over New Year to celebrate. You’ll have to if you want your car,’ he added, and grinned as he waved the keys under her nose.
‘Of course I’ll come.’ Her mouth drooped. ‘I wasn’t looking forward to New Year.’
‘You’ll like this one,’ he assured her, and kissed the smile back on her lips. ‘I’ve been very busy since the power came back on at Ridgeway. Once the thaw set in I went down to the cottage and had a look at your car, then got the local garage to collect it and give it a thorough overhaul—no, don’t interrupt. I haven’t got to the good part yet. It won’t even matter if it snows again. I’ve invested in a generator at last, so I promise to keep you warm one way or another, whatever happens.’
‘Actually,’ she said demurely, ‘I quite liked the method you used last time.’
His eyes lit with a hot blue gleam she liked enormously. ‘That’s good to know. I intend to employ that method every night—and part of every day—whatever the weather. Any comments?’
She smiled in such triumph he laughed and crushed her close.
‘Why the Cheshire Cat smile, Georgie?’
‘My idea of Christmas alone at Ridge Cottage wasn’t such a bad one after all, Mr Warner!’
‘Because it resulted in the best Christmas of my life, yes,’ he agreed, and shook her slightly. ‘But make a New Year resolution, Georgia Smith—promise me you’ll never try anything like it again!’
‘I promise.’ She grinned at him. ‘But at least I managed half of what I intended with my unusual Christmas.’
‘Half?’
‘I didn’t get peace on earth, but I achieved goodwill to all men—even Toby. Because without him I would never have met you, Chance Warner!’
ISBN: 978-1-4592-1471-2
MISTLETOE WISHES
Copyright © 2011 by Harlequin Books S.A.
The publisher acknowledges the copyright holders of the individual works as follows:
THE BILLIONAIRE’S CHRISTMAS GIFT
Copyright © 2010 by Carole Mortimer
ONE CHRISTMAS NIGHT IN VENICE
Copyright © 2010 by Jane Porter
SNOWBOUND WITH THE MILLIONAIRE
Copyright © 2010 by Catherine George
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Table of Contents
TITLE PAGE
CONTENTS
THE BILLIONAIRE’S CHRISTMAS GIFT: Carole Mortimer
LETTER TO READER
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
ONE CHRISTMAS NIGHT IN VENICE: Jane Porter
LETTER TO READER
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
SNOWBOUND WITH THE MILLIONAIRE: Catherine George
LETTER TO READER
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
COPYRIGHT
Mistletoe Wishes: The Billionaire's Christmas GiftOne Christmas Night in VeniceSnowbound With the Millionaire Page 25
