That went about as well as could be expected.
“Where did Ainsley go?” Dad asked.
I hitched my thumb over my shoulder.
Melonie set a huge pot of roses on the counter and rested her hands on her hips. “I can’t tell you the last time the words ‘I’m taking a break’ came out of Ainsley’s mouth. Half the time, I think that woman sleeps here.” She shook her head and started pulling roses out of the pots.
Dad stood next to me. “They didn’t have anything gold, so I decided to go with a dozen roses. Your mother is a sucker for them.”
This, I knew. Growing up, there had always been roses on the table, and the rose bush by the front door perfumed the air every spring. “I thought I was the one who was supposed to pick out the flowers.”
Dad shook his head and put his hand on my shoulder. “No, son. You were supposed to not be an ass to Ainsley, but I see that old habits die hard.”
“I wasn’t an ass,” I gritted out. “She insinuated something in which she had no idea what she was talking about.”
“Twisted that stick you have up your ass, did she?”
I pulled my gloves out of my pocket and slapped them against my hand. “I’ll be waiting in the car.” I stormed out of the shop, slamming the door shut behind me.
Four more days, and I would be out of this town.
In those four days, I was going to avoid Ainsley Crowne like the plague. Because whenever she was around, I was always the one who was an ass, and she was the perfect angel.
Four days.
Four freakin’ days.
*
Chapter 3
Ainsley
“Hand over the spoon and turn off the Hallmark movie.”
I growled at Melonie's outstretched hand and burrowed further under my blanket. “Not happening.”
“Then you need to tell me what happened between you and Silas today. He took off as soon as you did, and Hank, for once, wasn’t talking.”
That was surprising. Hank normally couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “There’s nothing to tell.”
Melonie sprawled out on the couch next to me. “Oh really? Because you normally storm out of the shop when a customer comes in?”
I turned my eyes back to the TV. “I needed coffee.”
“I make the coffee runs all the time.”
Looking at her out of the corner of my eye. “I thought it would be nice to say hi to Missy. You know, business owner to business owner.”
“That would make sense, except I know that it was Missy’s day off because I was over there in the morning and Barb told me she was gone.”
“I don’t like when you act like you know it all,” I grumbled.
“I don’t know it all. If I did, I wouldn’t be over here bugging you to tell me what the dealy-o is with you and Mr. Armani.”
“Mr. Armani?” I mumbled around a mouthful of ice cream.
“His suit,” she winked. “It was Armani. Totally Googled it after he left, since you weren’t around to make sure I was working.”
I stabbed my spoon into the ice cream and set it on the coffee table. “I wondered why nothing was done when I came back.”
She shrugged and grabbed the remote. “I don’t know how you can watch these movies over and over.” She pointed at the TV, but I snatched it out of her hand before she could turn it.
“My TV, woman,” I scolded. I tucked the remote under my butt and stuck my tongue out at her.
“Tell me about Silas.”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Please?”
“Don’t you have your fiancé to spend time with? I don’t know why you’re over here.”
“Because he’s just across the hallway watching football, and I don’t think I can take one more minute of him screaming at the TV. Tell me about Silas.”
I laughed and shook my head. “I’m not sure it’s a good sign you trying to escape your future husband.”
“I love him. His football crazy frenzy he gets into, not so much. Now, tell me about Silas.”
I grabbed the remote from under my butt and pointed it at the TV. “You’re relentless,” I mumbled as I paused my movie.
“It’s part of my charm.” She scooted closer and rested her head on my shoulder. “Now tell me about Silas.”
“Say Silas one more time,” I laughed.
“Silas, Silas, Silas. Now tell me about the damn man.”
I sighed and tucked the remote back under my butt. “I’m not sure I know much about the man anymore.” The Silas who had walked into Crowne Floral was far from the boy who had snuck into my bedroom years ago. Granted, he had a stick up his ass back then, but he was different when he was around me.
“But you knew the man before?”
“Yes, Melonie, I knew the damn man before.”
“I’m gonna need more than that. Did you know the man like you saw him walking down the street and said hey, I know that’s Silas, or was it more like you knew him in the biblical sense?”
“If I tell you, will you shut up and let me watch my movie?”
Melonie sat up and folded her hands in her lap. “I’ll zip my lips and blissfully watch whatever Christmas trainwreck you’re watching as long as you spill your guts. All of them.”
Where to start? Silas and I were from a time I didn’t like to think about. “I was seventeen, Silas was sixteen.”
Melonie gasped. “You robbed the cradle!”
I rolled my eyes. “Not really. He was only two months younger than I was. We dated all of junior and senior year. Then we broke up. The end.”
Melonie laughed. “Yeah, I’m not accepting that. That man made you run for the hills, so I know that there is more to it than you two broke up.”
“That is it. We broke up. He moved to L.A., and I stayed here.”
“But you stayed close to his parents.”
“It’s a small town, Mel. I can’t exactly ignore them. Besides, they had nothing to do with Silas and me. He had big dreams, and I wasn’t a part of them.” Silas had always talked about leaving town and traveling the world, while I loved living in Mills Grove and had no plans of leaving. “I should have known we weren’t going to work out and never started dating him. But we were both young and stupid. We thought our love could conquer everything. Oh, how wrong we were,” I laughed drily. “Love does nothing at the thought of being a thousand miles apart.”
Melonie scoffed. “Girl, we live in the time of technology. You totally could have made it work with Facetime, text messaging, and don’t forget sexting.”
“Melonie, I don’t think I can roll my eyes anymore tonight. You seem to bring the eye roll out in me. We didn’t have all of that stuff almost nine years ago. Hell, texting was just picking up speed.”
“So he took off and left you behind?”
“Yes. Whenever he talked about leaving, he never mentioned me coming with him. It was always, he was going to this and he was going there. Never a ‘we’ came out of his mouth.”
“Did you ask him if he wanted you to go with?”
I looked over at her. “You mean invite myself along? No, never. I wasn’t going to butt my way in if he didn’t want me there.”
“You know that’s ridiculous, right? He may have said me, me, me, but in his head, he might have meant we.”
I shook my head. “No, because that’s not what I wanted. When it came down to it, we both just had entirely different dreams. How can you be with someone who only wants to see your dream in their rearview mirror?”
“Oh, Ainsley. You were both so young and dumb.”
I laughed and grabbed the remote. “That we were, Mel. And now we’re both older and wiser.”
“And that means maybe you two can figure out a way to make things right.”
I unpaused the movie and settled back into the couch. “Things are right the way they are, Mel. Silas is just here for Christmas, and then he’ll be gone.”
Melonie jumped up from the couch and snatched the conta
iner of ice cream off the coffee table. “Well, I think that’s crap and that Silas is back here to grovel at your feet to take him back.”
I laughed and shook my head. “And that, right there, is crap. Silas Warlack begs for nothing. The man takes what he wants and doesn’t care about anything but himself.”
Mel sighed. “Well, I’m going to leave you to wallow in your Christmas movies, and I’m going to see if I can distract Mick away from the football game to spend a little time with me.”
“Then why are you taking my ice cream with you?” I protested.
“Because it’s a fifty-fifty chance of Corey picking me over football. With the ice cream, I’m good either way.” Melonie threw a wink over her shoulder at me and ducked out the door.
“Damn her,” I mumbled. I just couldn’t get back into my movie.
While the couple on TV was trying to figure out how to save Christmas, I couldn’t help but feel the holiday I loved was tainted by the one guy I had hoped to never see again.
The lights of the Christmas tree in the corner twinkled, and I couldn’t help but smile at the large pile of presents stacked up underneath. Silas had messed up my life years ago, and now I wasn’t going to let him destroy my favorite holiday.
*
Chapter 4
Silas
“What in the hell is going on here?”
“We’re getting ready for the rehearsal dinner.”
Mother bustled by me into the kitchen with a poinsettia under one arm and a white wreath under the other.
“What do you mean rehearsal dinner?”
I had woken up to both of my parents running around with their heads cut off, and two people in living room putting up two huge Christmas trees. It was chaos.
“For Melonie and Corey,” she tsked.
I grabbed a coffee cup from the cabinet and filled it to the brim. I was going to need all of the caffeine possible to deal with whatever was going on. “Should I know who Corey and Melonie are?”
“You met Melonie yesterday at Crowne Floral,” Dad called from the pantry.
Well, that explained that one. “But why are you having their rehearsal dinner here?”
Mother put her hands on her hips. “Well, because they’re getting married here, so it seems only right that they have the rehearsal here.”
“Can I ask why you are talking to me like I should know all of this?” I set down my cup and leaned against the counter. I was hungry, but I needed a few answers before I did anything else today.
After Dad and I had returned from town, Mother had talked nonstop all the way through dinner, but I couldn’t tell you a word she had said. Dinner had been delicious, as always, and I had fallen into bed by nine o’clock exhausted.
The one thing my mother hadn’t talked about was the fact she was not only having a wedding at the house, but the rehearsal dinner too.
“Well, I guess if you would call me, you would know what is going on.”
“I’m a busy man, Mother.”
She rolled her eyes and grabbed her cup of coffee from the counter. “If you can’t take the time to call your mother, then I think you’re too busy.”
“We’re not going to discuss my work schedule, Mother. What we are going to discuss is why you told me I would regret it for the rest of my life if I didn’t come here for Christmas.”
She flitted her hand at me and took a sip of coffee. “It was time for you to come home.”
“What?” I huffed. I had worried for the past five days that either one of my parents were dying, or they were about to lose their house or something. “You made me come all the way here because you thought it was time I come home?”
She shrugged . “I know it’s something that you can’t wrap your head around, but I missed my son. I was going to do whatever it took to get you back home. I know in your head you hate this place, but for me, it’s home, and I wanted my family in one place for Christmas. You took off for L.A. over eight years ago and never looked back on the people you left behind.”
“I didn’t leave you and Dad behind. I had my own life to live,” I insisted.
“I’m not talking about your dad and me, son.” She shook her head. “I’m afraid it’s been too long,” she mumbled under her breath.
“Too long for what?” I asked.
“It’s been too long for you to realize the things you left behind were the things that helped you become the man you are today.”
I splayed my hands on the counter and leaned forward. “I have no idea what you are talking about.”
“Then I guess it doesn’t matter, and I was wrong, Silas.” A sad smile crossed her lips. “I need to finish getting ready for tonight. Ainsley will be delivering the flowers soon, and I need to make sure the caterers are ready.”
“Ainsley?” I asked. She was going to come here?
“Yeah,” she replied absently. “It’s one of the busiest days for her right now, but she was nice enough to deliver since it’s for Melonie.” She waved her hand at me and grabbed the cordless phone. “Find something for yourself for breakfast, dear. I don’t have time to make anything more than coffee.”
I looked down at my quickly cooling coffee. “Thanks, Mother,” I mumbled.
She flitted out of the kitchen, and Dad peeked his head out of the pantry. “I found a box of Poptarts. You want one?”
Jesus. I couldn’t remember the last time I had a Poptart. “What flavor?”
A huge grin spread across his lips. “You’re favorite. Brown Sugar.”
My stomach growled, and I figured it was better than nothing. “I’m in as long as that box isn’t from when I lived here.”
Dad moved out of the pantry and shut the door behind him. “Nah, your mother always buys them in hopes you’ll come home, but I always eat them,” he chuckled. He handed me one of the silver packages, and it felt like I was sixteen again, getting ready for school.
“So, what’s with you and Mom having a wedding here?”
Dad shrugged and opened his package. “We have this big house that’s way too big for just your mother and me, but we don’t want to give it up.”
“Come on, it’s just a house, Dad. You and Mom could get one of those new condos I saw when I drove into town.”
“Rave Heights?” he asked over his shoulder. He filled a cup with coffee and proceeded to dunk his Poptart in it. “We’re not interested in moving into one of those ritzy places. We love where we live and have no plans of moving, Si.”
I opened my pack and stuck them in the toaster. “You know you’re eating those all wrong.” I looked over my shoulder at him. He had the Poptart raised mid-air and his head tilted to the right. “You need to heat them up, then eat them.”
“You the Poptart police now on top of being a very busy man?” he chuckled.
I held up my hands and turned back to the toaster. “Only trying to help.”
“You know what you could help me with?”
My Poptarts popped up, and I grabbed a plate to set them on. “What’s that?”
“The lights outside. I can handle the ones in the backyard, but I’m going to need you to do the ones in front, if you can.”
“Dad, how many more lights can you have?” Planes passing overhead were going to think the house was a landing strip.
“I just want a few floodlights and just a couple of strings around the columns out front.”
I rolled my eyes but nodded my head. “As soon as I finish my gourmet breakfast, I’ll get right on it.”
He winked and held up the box of Poptarts. “I knew I could count on you. I’ll leave these on the top shelf if you want more later.” He put them back in the pantry and headed out the back door with his Poptarts in one hand while he hummed “Oh Christmas Tree” under his breath.
I finished my Poptart and sipped my coffee.
So I was home for Christmas, nothing was wrong with my mother or father, and Ainsley Crowne was still as beautiful as ever.
Plus, she was going to be
here any time. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but I knew I needed to get showered and dressed before she showed up. Because even though she seemed to hate me, I couldn’t help but feel excitement at the idea of seeing her again.
After all, she was my first girlfriend. But then she also was the first to break my heart. Not that I ever let that shit happen again.
Ainsley was the first and the last I had ever let in.
I wasn’t dumb enough to make that mistake twice.
*
Chapter 5
Ainsley
Ugh. I knew that he was going to be here, but had hoped he would have been tucked away in his room making some important phone call, and wouldn’t have to see his handsomely smug face.
But I was out of luck.
He was outside, directly in my path.
Son of a gun.
I slammed my hand down on the steering wheel and wondered if I could just drop the flowers on the curb. Hank wouldn’t appreciate it, though.
“Just grab the flowers, walk past him, and drop them off,” I pep-talked myself out loud. Oh hell, who was I kidding? There wasn’t a way in hell that I was going to be able to make it past him without talking to him.
Last night, I went to bed telling myself that I wasn’t going to see him again. Reminding myself the man meant absolutely nothing to me. Then, my own mind had betrayed me, and not shortly after that, so had my body.
I dreamt of him.
A good dream.
Okay, okay. A freakin’ hot dream that left me wanting him so bad, I had to pull out my little toy to finish me off while I remembered the feel of him pressed against me.
My face heated at the wicked hot dream, and I fanned myself with my hand. “Not the time to be thinking about this, Ainsley,” I muttered.
So, Silas was still sexy as hell, but that didn’t change the fact he had left and didn’t return until over eight years later.
“Hey.”
My hand hit the horn, and I jumped, hitting my head on the ceiling. I rubbed my head and rolled down my window. “Uh, hi.”
Silas: A Scrooged Christmas Page 2
