Chloe put her arm around her friend. “Honey, you were finally getting your time with Cooper. I didn’t want to take away from that.”
“I call bullshit,” Kendra told her but laughed.
Chloe laughed. It was time to change the subject far away from her. “Have you all had lunch yet?” They told her they hadn’t. “Fantastic. I know this great little restaurant just a few steps from here. Come on. I’m starving.”
They walked down the stairs and through the back door of Zellene’s. Chloe waved at the kitchen staff. She stopped by Bev.
“Are we crowded? We want to get a late lunch.”
“There are a few tables empty. You’ll just have to push them together.”
“Great.” Chloe smiled and led the way to the dining area. She had to admit, she was on cloud nine since Storm had called. She was thrilled to be going to his home for Christmas day but a little worried about how his mother would receive her. He might have said Chloe being there wouldn’t bother his mother, but what would she really think of Storm inviting her for dinner.
Chloe had two waiters push tables together and as soon as the women were seated, they placed their orders. They spent the next hour, laughing and eating. At one point, they all turned on Patsy about FBI agent Micah Turner.
“Oh, dear God. Get off it. I’m about as interested in him as he is in me.”
“So you admit it then?” Isabella smirked.
“Shut up, Bella. He is not interested in me. We rub each other the wrong way too much to ever have anything happen between us.”
“Maybe you should try rubbing each other the right way,” Chloe said with a waggle of her eyebrows.
Patsy gasped as the women laughed. “You’re all horrible. I don’t know why I hang out with you all.”
“Because you love us,” Shelly said with a laugh.
“There’s a thin line between love and hate and you, my friends, are right on the edge,” Patsy muttered making the women burst out laughing again.
“So what colors are you thinking of, Chloe?”
“Well, as you know, Kennie, my favorite color is blue so I’d like to paint the rooms in different shades of blue. You know, the men think we women should do the painting so I’m counting on you all to help.”
They all groaned.
“I hate to paint, but I will try to help out. I repainted the animal hospital and I think I had more paint on me than on the walls,” Roni told them.
Chloe glanced around the table at each woman. She loved them like sisters. She’d always been closer to Kendra for some reason, but she loved them all. They’d all gotten so close. Closer as each one of them married the man of their dreams and she had been either an attendant or helper in all of the weddings, except for Emily and Shelly’s. Emily had married Lucas at the courthouse and Chloe hadn’t known Shelly yet when she married Nathan. She envied them all. They all seemed so happy with their lives and she wanted the same for herself so badly. She wanted it with Storm.
However, she’d decided when he brought her home, that she wouldn’t make a fool of herself over him anymore but all he had to do was call and ask her to spend Christmas day with him and Mandy, and she was dancing on air. Now she was resolved that she was going to do her best to get that man. She loved him, and if she didn’t at least try, she knew she’d regret it for the rest of her life and life was entirely too short not to go for what she wanted. She wanted Storm Bateman and she might come out of this with a broken heart, but how she felt about him was worth the risk. A risk she was willing to take.
After a good meal with great company, the women parted ways with promises to get together to paint the apartment.
Later, she sat in her house, staring out the window. Taking a deep breath, Chloe picked up her cell phone and punched in a number. When she heard Albert’s voice, tears filled her eyes.
“Albert, it’s me...Chloe.” Her voice was raspy from the tears clogging her throat.
“Oh Chloe, honey. We’ve been so worried about you. How are you?”
“I’m good. I’m back in Dry River. I’m so glad I listened to you, Albert. I would have been miserable and so would David. He’s happy now.”
“I know, honey. Are you doing all right though? Moneywise?”
“I will be. I’m working on it. How are you and Jennifer? I miss you both so much.”
Albert chuckled. “We’re fine, don’t worry about us. I’ll give Jennifer your love. She’s been so worried.”
“I should have called sooner, but it’s been hectic. Have...have my parents said much about me?”
Albert cleared his throat. “Not to us. They fired us the day of your wedding. They had a feeling I’d helped you make your decision, and I didn’t deny it when they asked me.”
Chloe gasped. “Oh no! What are you going to do?”
“Don’t worry about us. We have enough money to retire on. In fact, we might just come to visit you one day.”
“Please do. I’d love to see you both. I love you both very much.”
“You know we love you. We’ll visit in the spring. How does that sound?”
“Sounds great. All right then...I’ll let you go for now but stay in touch, please. Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas to you too. Love you.” He hung up.
Chloe couldn’t believe her parents had fired them. Well, in all honesty, yes she could. Her parents were not nice people. She hoped that one day they’d change their ways but it didn’t look like it would happen any day soon.
Chapter Eleven
Storm was sleeping soundly when he heard Mandy talking to him from beside his bed. He did his best not to smile as he continued to feign sleep. He knew what she wanted and he suspected it was far too early for anyone to be up yet.
“Daddy,” she whispered. “Santa came. Daddy?” She leaned closer to him and patted his cheek. When he didn’t open his eyes, she crawled up on the bed and sat on his chest. “Daddy,” she said in a louder voice. He felt her lean down close to his face. “Daddy!”
He opened one eye. “What?”
“Santa came. Come on, get up. Hurry!”
He glanced to the patio doors. “It’s still dark out, Amanda Jo.” Then he looked at the bedside clock and groaned. The digital numbers showed four fifteen.
“Are you going to get up?”
Storm scooched up against the headboard and pulled her against his chest. “Do I have a choice?”
Mandy giggled. “No. I want to see what Santa bringed me.”
“Brought, and what makes you think it can’t wait until the sun’s up?”
“Daddy,” she whined.
Storm sighed. “All right. Let me up. Go out and turn the lights on.”
“They’re already on. I looked to make sure he did come and he did!”
“He probably just left too,” Storm muttered as he swung his legs over the bed. He wore sweatpants because he knew she’d be in here first thing in the morning, but he thought the sun would be up too. He usually slept in his boxer briefs and since Mandy was standing on the bed with her little hand on his shoulder, he was glad he’d thought ahead. He glanced over to her. “Are you in a hurry?”
“It’s Christmas, Daddy.” She kissed his cheek and he was sure his heart burst. She really was precious.
“I know, baby. If you’ve been out there, you already know what he brought you, so why do I have to get up?”
“He left me wrapped presents too,” she whispered as if it was the most special secret ever.
Storm chuckled. “Imagine that.”
He stood, scooped her into his arms when she nearly leaped into them, and carried her to the living room. The lights were on, just as she’d told him they were. He set her down and watched as she slowly stalked toward all the gifts, her hands out, her little mouth in an angelic round pose, the word oh frozen there, and her eyes wide. There was nothing like experiencing Christmas through the joy of a child.
Storm ran his hand down his face and yawned. He’d only ju
st gotten to bed around twelve-thirty after putting her bike together and traipsing out in the frigid cold to retrieve the dollhouse he’d hidden in the barn. He flopped down in the recliner and watched her. She looked back to him and grinned with excitement.
“Can I open them?”
“Of course you can. What else would you do with them? Unless you want to wait until Nana gets here.”
“No.” She touched the handlebars of her pink bike and turned to look at him. “It’s so pretty. I love pink.”
“I know.” Inwardly, he cringed at thinking of the pink walls in her bedroom.
Mandy pulled on the streamers hanging from the white bike handles. Then she ran her hand over the seat. He was glad he’d gotten her the bike and looked forward to helping her learn to ride it and eventually take the training wheels off. Of course, it would have to wait until the snow cleared...or he supposed she could learn to ride in the barn. He yawned again as his thoughts drifted.
When he glanced over to her, he saw she was just sitting on the floor staring at the presents.
“Mandy? Open your gifts, sweetheart.”
“I got so many, Daddy. I don’t know what to pick first. Can you come down here?”
Storm stood and then sat beside her on the floor. “Well, you have to start somewhere, so just pick one. At the rate you’re going, I’ll have to go back to bed and wait. You can wake me when you make up your mind.”
Mandy giggled then picked up a box and ripped off the paper in which Claire had so carefully wrapped them. Storm shook his head and leaned back against the sofa as she squealed through all the gifts. So, he’d gone a little overboard. She was his baby and deserved it all. Glancing over to the clock, he saw only an hour had passed. Mandy was busy with her new toys and things so he pushed himself up and headed to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee. He leaned back against the counter while the coffee brewed.
After pouring himself a cup, he walked back to the living room and came to a halt when he saw Mandy asleep on the couch. He smiled, shook his head, and set his cup down then he picked her up and carried her back to her bedroom. After tucking her in, he returned to the living room and turned the TV on to watch the news.
Storm sipped his coffee and thought about the plan for the day. Once his mom and stepdad arrived, he’d go pick Chloe up and bring her back to the ranch. Her car still wasn’t dug out and could be buried until spring at this rate. He glanced up at the TV to see the weatherman announcing more snow, but not much accumulation was expected. Thank God, for small favors but Storm knew it was just a reprieve. January and February were tough on Wyoming. Even March saw snow at times, especially in the early part of the month but nothing to the point of no one being able to go anywhere.
Finishing his coffee, he stood and stretched. Not much sense to going back to bed now, he’d just be up in an hour so he figured he could check the horses while Mandy slept. The men had the day off so he needed to feed and water the horses himself. He headed back to his bedroom to dress, after which he walked through the living room, and into the kitchen. He pulled out a chair and sat to pull his boots on then stood to get his coat and hat. After pulling on his coat, he placed his hat on his head then pulled his gloves on as he walked out onto the porch.
It was bitterly cold and the wind was howling. Although it wasn’t actually snowing, the wind blew loose snow so hard across the yard that he could barely see the barns. He shook his head thinking that it looked like the horses would be staying inside today. He held his hat on his head, strode to the barn, and entered. The aromatic warmth felt good. Storm pulled his gloves off and stuffed them into the pockets of his sheepskin coat then fed the horses and checked their water. He refilled their buckets and talked to each of them while he mucked out the stalls.
An hour later, he entered the back door and stepped into the kitchen. After shedding his coat, hat, and gloves, and hanging them up, he got himself another cup of coffee. He then walked down the hallway to check on his daughter. Slowly pushing the door open, he stuck his head in to see her still sound asleep. Must be nice. He’d known she would have him up before dawn on Christmas morning though...each year she’d gotten earlier. He hoped that wasn’t a pattern because he hated to see what next year would bring.
Storm sat in his recliner to watch the TV. He leaned his head back and the next thing he knew, he heard his mom calling his name. Damn. He must have fallen asleep. Shaking the sleep from his head, he lowered the footrest, stood, and stretched. It was going to be a long day.
“In here, Mom,” he called to her.
Jaya and Drew Hill entered the living room. She hugged him and then he hugged Drew.
“Where’s Mandy?”
Storm grinned and chuckled. “She woke me up at four fifteen, opened her gifts, and then fell asleep. I put her back to bed. She’s still there.”
Jaya laughed. “It’ll get worse as she gets older. Could you go help Drew carry in the gifts from the car?”
“Of course.” Storm narrowed his eyes at her. “You didn’t go overboard, did you?”
Jaya glanced behind Storm at the variety of opened gifts, and toys then raised an eyebrow at him. “Like you didn’t?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Storm mumbled making Jaya and Drew laugh.
“Go you two. I need to start prepping for dinner, as well as make some breakfast for you and my girl, right?”
Storm shrugged then kissed her cheek. “Oh, Mom...by the way, we’re having a guest for dinner. I have to go pick her up in a couple of hours.”
“Her?”
“Chloe Baxter. She didn’t have anyone to spend Christmas with, and Mandy wanted her to come.”
“And you too?”
Storm glanced at Drew to see him looking everywhere but at him. He looked back to his mother. “It’s not like that.”
“Sure, honey. We’ll have plenty so she’s more than welcome. Now, you two go do what I asked and I’ll check on Mandy.”
Storm and Drew walked out the back door to where his parents’ SUV sat parked by the steps. Drew reached into the back and pulled a pile of Christmas presents out. He handed them to Storm then reached in for more.
“Why do I get the feeling Mom doesn’t believe me about Chloe?”
Drew looked at him. “You are asking the wrong person here, Storm. That woman can say one thing and I know damn well, it means something entirely different and I don’t always know what it is. We’ve been married thirty years and I still don’t know how she does it, son.”
Storm laughed. “At least she keeps you on your toes, Dad.”
“Yep, and I love every minute of it. Let’s get these inside and under the tree before she comes out here looking for us.”
They carried everything inside and took it to the living room to place it around the tree. Storm looked at the clock then whipped his head around when he heard his stepdad chuckle.
“What time are you supposed to pick Chloe up?”
“I’ll leave in an hour.”
“Papa,” Mandy squealed as she jumped onto Drew’s lap.
“Hi cupcake...was Santa good to you?”
“He was. Did you see my bike?”
Storm grinned as he watched Mandy tug on Drew’s hand and had him sit on the floor with her. She picked up each present and showed it to him then her eyes widened when she saw more presents. Jaya entered the room and Mandy ran to her giving her a big hug then made her sit on the floor too.
“I’m going to give Chloe a call,” Storm said as he left the room. He entered his bedroom and punched in her number on his cell phone.
“Hello,” her voice croaked sounding hoarse.
“Chloe? Are you all right?”
“No. I’m sick, Storm. I’m sorry I can’t make it. I’m so sorry to disappoint Mandy but I feel awful, and I’m probably contagious. I’ll give you her gift when you come by to start work on the apartment.”
The level of disappointment that he wouldn’t see her today shocked him. “All
right. I’m sorry you’re not feeling well. Let me know if you need anything, okay?”
“I will. Storm? Thank you for inviting me though. Give my love to Mandy and explain that I wish I could be there, and please, give my apologies to your family.”
“Sure. Yeah, I will. Take care.” Storm hung up and after taking a deep breath that seemed to do nothing to ease the strange ache in his chest, he walked to the living room to break the news to his family.
THE FIRST WEEK OF JANUARY was unseasonably warm which usually meant a cold front would be moving in soon, but for now it felt wonderful as Chloe painted the bathroom. It was the last room to be painted. The guys were coming by in a few minutes to lay the carpeting and haul some of her furniture over from the house. She was leaving the larger pieces at the house. There was only so much room here at the apartment. A new family was moving into the house at the end of the month and she was thrilled with the young couple. They were from Utah and moving here for a new job he’d been offered as a partner in a law firm. She was a full-time mother to their three-year-old twin daughters. Chloe loved them the minute she met them, and she had a good feeling about them.
A knock on the door startled her and she ran down the hall to pull the door open.
“Shouldn’t you ask who it is before you open the damn door?” Storm growled as soon as the door opened.
“Since I was expecting you, I didn’t feel the need. Who pissed in your corn flakes?”
Lucas chuckled and pushed Storm into the room. “Hi, Chloe. Damn, smells like paint in here.”
“Probably because I’m painting, Lucas.”
“Smartass.” He glanced around. “Hey...not a bad place.”
“It was a lot worse before, wasn’t it, Storm?”
Storm shrugged then walked over to the windows and looked out. Chloe frowned then looked at Mont, who shrugged one shoulder and shook his head. In turn, Cooper, Linc, Nathan, and Dakota all shook their heads too.
“We’ll clean out the flue first then we can work on the carpeting. I brought a shop style vacuum,” Cooper told her. “I use it in the motorcycle shop, so it’s a big industrial one.”
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