Two strong arms pulling her against a muscled chest interrupted her musings. “There you are. I missed you,” David said as he nuzzled the back of her neck. “I woke up, and you were gone. I knew you hadn’t left because ... ”
“Because it’s my house?” She turned her head so she could see him. His bed hair and morning scruffy face were sexy as hell. Not to mention the feel of his body pressed against her back.
“Something like that,” he said.
“I was making coffee to bring back to bed for us.”
He turned her around and pulled her hard against him. “I’d rather have you in bed than coffee.”
“You have me now, here.”
“I’m not crazy about sex on the kitchen floor. It’s not nearly as comfortable here as in your bed. As in any bed, for that matter.”
“I’ve never had sex on the kitchen floor.”
He sighed. “Okay, if you need to check it off your bucket list, I’m your man.” He moved the bar stool from under the breakfast bar as if to make room for them on the floor.
His expression, some weird combination of resignation and arousal, made it difficult for her to keep a straight face. “It’s okay. I’ll take your word for how uncomfortable it is,” she said.
The sound of the coffee maker expelling the last bit of water interrupted. “Coffee’s done. Do you take milk or sugar?” she asked.
“Black. Thanks.”
She filled two mugs. “Good. That makes it faster.” Handing him one mug she said, “Now, about that more comfortable place to make love.”
• • •
Thanks to the comfort of her bed, breakfast ran into lunch. After they’d showered and eaten, Hannah asked, “What’s on your schedule for today?” hoping the answer was, “Nothing but you, sweetheart.”
“You don’t have a Christmas tree yet. I thought we’d go get one for you and decorate it together. Assuming you have lights and ornaments.”
“Of course I do. I just don’t always get around to dragging it all out.”
“No wonder you don’t feel the spirit. You don’t have that fresh evergreen smell greeting you every time you walk into the living room. Or see the lights reflected in the ornaments. I bet you don’t even have any Christmas music to listen to while we decorate.”
“You’re really into this, aren’t you?” She rolled her eyes. “Yes, I have Christmas CDs. My mother made sure of it. I’m not sure where they are, but I can look.”
“Tree first. I know this great tree farm where we can cut a fresh tree so it lasts all the way to Twelfth Night.”
“Which branch of Judaism celebrates Twelfth Night?”
“That would be my late grandmother, the Episcopalian.” He grabbed her coat from the hook by the door. “Enough questioning of my motives and religious upbringing. Unless you have a waterproof drop cloth, a saw, and some rope, we’ll have to stop by my apartment.”
“Do I want to know why you have a waterproof drop cloth, a saw, and rope? Are you some kind of serial killer?”
“You’ve been watching too many crime shows.”
• • •
Their perfect Friday evening segued into an even more perfect Saturday, which ended with a dinner they cooked together and another night of sweet explorations in bed. Hannah had to admit—to herself, if not yet to David—that cutting down a cute little tree and decorating it with him while listening to Christmas CDs had been fun. It made her feel like she was part of the season in a way she hadn’t felt since she was a kid. But how could it not? He was so full of enthusiasm it was hard to resist.
On Sunday, Hannah was scheduled to work and David had to meet his sister to pick up a birthday gift for his niece. They parted with a lingering kiss.
After work that evening, as she finished up hand sewing the doll clothes for Hannah, too, and wrapped a Harry Potter Lego set for her other secret Santa, the younger Hannah’s little brother, she realized how eagerly she was looking forward to the party at SafePlace. It was partly because she’d see David, but she also had to acknowledge she wanted to be part of the celebration with the kids. Wanted to see the expression on Hannah, too’s face when she opened her gifts.
She also had to admit she was feeling the urge to bake snickerdoodles and gingerbread men. Maybe even take a plate of them to SafePlace during her lunch break to surprise David. Was it possible he had begun to convince her that there was something good in celebrating the season? Should she give in and admit he was close to winning the bet? She wasn’t quite ready to do that, but decorating a tree and baking cookies were surely steps in that direction.
Chapter 7
Hannah almost didn’t make it out of her office on Tuesday to deliver the cookies she’d made for David. Between helping her staff take care of people who’d put off shopping and were now racing through the store in a panic, and nailing down the last-minute details of the party at SafePlace, she had barely a moment to breathe. But finally, she squeezed out fifteen minutes to make her delivery. David’s assistant wasn’t around when she got to his office, but his door was open and she could see he was in.
He was on the phone, his back to her. She paused outside the door, not wanting to interrupt.
“Look,” he was saying. “I know I promised I’d take care of her, but I had no idea what it would entail. She requires one hell of a lot of attention.”
There was a pause, as he apparently listened to whoever was on the other end of the call.
He laughed. “I know. I know. I owe you. But when you asked me this favor, I thought it would be a lot easier than it turned out to be. She’s cute in her puppy dog way, but you’re asking a lot by leaving her to my tender mercies.”
Another pause.
“Like I said, she’s really high maintenance. I’m looking forward to Christmas being over and getting her out of my hair.” He paused for a response, then laughed again. “I just mean I’ll have my life back. I have other plans, you know, for how I want to spend my free time.”
Who was David talking to? Who was he talking about? Who did he owe ... ? A poisonous answer slithered its way into her mind. No, it couldn’t be. Could it? He didn’t mean ... Did he?
Not wanting to hear any more, Hannah backed away from the door as quietly as she could. Once in the hall, she took off at a run, anxious to get out of the building before anyone saw her. Her head hurt. Her chest was tight. She had to get away.
A block later, she realized she was still clutching the paper plate piled with David’s cookies. A panhandling homeless woman with a small child caught her eye. Even the little boy’s profuse thanks for the unexpected gift weren’t enough to ease the pain in her head.
Slipping into a Starbucks, she sat in the corner with an eggnog latte and tried to sort out what she had just overheard.
First, she’d heard the man who professed to love Christmas say he wanted the holiday over and done with so he could get his life back. Second, he’d undertaken a responsibility at the request of someone he owed a favor to. Third, he’d been taking care of someone—not just someone—a woman, who demanded a lot of attention.
Who would be out of his life—out of his hair—after Christmas? The answer seemed obvious. With the party over, she would be. But did he really think of her as cute in a puppy dog way? Or as high maintenance?
No matter how she parsed the sentences, there was only one answer she could come up with. He’d paid attention to her because he promised Mr. Austin he would. Mr. Austin, who had done so much for SafePlace. But why would Simon Austin ask that favor of David? Granted, there had been quite a few complaints sent to corporate from dissatisfied customers over the past few weeks, but had there been so many that he was worried about her management of his store?
Or was he concerned she’d taken on more than she could handle, with Angie gone and the SafePlace campaign to organize? He’d seemed worried about it that first meeting in her office. Had he asked David to step in and help? Maybe he had. David had offered to help at almost every turn, h
adn’t he? Was that just to please Mr. Austin?
Crap. Why hadn’t she seen it before? David wasn’t interested in her. He was just another man trying to advance his career by using her, doing what had been asked of him because he wanted the money Simon Austin could contribute to SafePlace. She’d thrown herself at David like a fool, and because he wasn’t crazy, he’d caught what was so eagerly pitched. Just because he headed a program that helped kids and abused women didn’t mean he was any different than any other guy.
Damn. Damn. Damn. David had suckered her into caring about Christmas—about him—when he wasn’t much better than the-dipshit-whose-name-was-forbidden. She’d been right all along. Christmas spirit was bullshit, nothing more than an excuse to use people to get what you wanted for yourself.
She finished her coffee, crumpled the cup, and tossed it into the trash. She didn’t need David Shay’s help to get through Christmas. And she’d make sure Mr. Austin knew it before the week was over. As for David—she’d give him what he wanted. After this week, she’d be out of his life.
She shut down the voice in her head asking if she was sure that was what she wanted, and went back to her store.
• • •
Hannah threw herself into her work, putting in extra-long days, taking over the hours of parents on staff who needed flexibility to attend their kids’ school programs, and making sure she was slated to be there the very busy day after Christmas and the following weekend. She even canceled her time off over New Year’s. She’d show Mr. Austin and everyone else she could do everything that had to be done, and do it well.
The store closed at four on Christmas Eve, and most of the staff eagerly walked to SafePlace for the two-hour party they’d all done so much to organize. Mandy and one other staffer had spent the better part of the afternoon there, directing the caterers and helping SafePlace staff arrange tables and chairs. Hannah was the only person reluctant to go. She knew she couldn’t escape David in person as easily as she’d avoided his phone calls and texts over the past few days, messages that had started out sweet and sexy and had become progressively more hurt and confused as she continued to ignore them.
The party was a roaring success. The Santa they’d hired was amazing. The kids put on a wonderful program explaining the significance of the holidays featured in their decorations. The food was delicious. The face painting, balloon animals, and photo booth were hits.
The best part, for Hannah, was it was so crowded she’d been able to get away with only a superficial greeting to David when she arrived. She hadn’t been able to avoid seeing the hurt look in his eyes, but she’d steeled herself to ignore it.
She looked around for Hannah, too, but the little girl found her first.
“Hannah One, you were right! Santa knew where I was and brought me the most beautiful doll in the world. Her name’s Isabelle, she has blonde hair just like me, and she came with lots of clothes. I even got a shirt like one of hers.” The little girl grabbed the adult Hannah’s hand. “Come see her.”
Hannah allowed herself to be dragged over to a table where a tired-looking woman and a small boy were sitting. “Mommy, this is Hannah One. She told Santa where George and I were so he could find us.”
The woman put out her hand. “I’m Lisa, and I’m so happy to meet you. My Hannah talks about you all the time. You and David are her two favorite people in the world right now.” She turned to her children. “Hannah, George, would you go get us two cups of juice and some cookies?” The children tore off to the food table.
“I wanted a chance to say thank you in private. You have no idea how much it meant to my daughter when you told her you’d take care of Santa finding her. She was worried, more for her brother than for herself, I think, but she believed you when you reassured her. And David told me you designed and made all those clothes for Hannah’s doll. They’re beautiful. You’re very talented.”
Hannah ducked her head, embarrassed at the compliments. “Thank you. I had a wonderful time making them.”
The children returned, carefully carrying two paper cups of juice and a plateful of cookies. “We got one of each kind, Mommy, because we weren’t sure what you wanted,” Hannah said.
George put the plate on the table. “Can I go back to building Hogwarts now?”
“As long as you keep it all in the box. You don’t want to lose any of the pieces before we even leave the party.”
Hannah was aware of David before she saw or heard him. She swore her hair stood on end, her breath caught, her heartbeat increased. It must have been the smell of his cologne or something that set her body off, but whatever it was, she knew without turning around that David Shay was standing behind her.
“Sorry to interrupt, Lisa, but I’d like to talk to Hannah for a minute,” he said.
Without turning around, she asked, “Is there a problem with something?”
“Let’s talk privately.” He took Hannah by the elbow, leaving her no option unless she wanted to make a scene, and led her to an empty classroom. “What’s with the cold shoulder?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“You’ve been ignoring my texts and phone calls. You barely spoke to me when you got here. What did I do that pissed you off?”
“I’ve been busy.” She made as if to leave, but he grabbed her arm.
“Maybe we should—”
Shaking off his hand, she said, “Maybe we should just let it go. You won’t have to deal with me after today.”
“Won’t have to ... ? What the hell does that mean?”
“Just what I said.” She made it to the door and looked out. “There’s Mr. Austin. I need to make sure things have been done to his satisfaction.” Not letting David detain her any longer, she escaped back into the crowd.
“Mr. Austin!” Eager to get away from David, Hannah almost shouted to get her boss’s attention.
He turned abruptly. “Hannah. There you are. I’ve been looking for you to tell you what a wonderful job you and your staff did with the party.”
“I’m glad you’re happy.”
“I know it added more to an already busy season for you, but I was confident you were up to it.”
“You seemed concerned about that when we first talked.”
“Concerned? About you? Never. There’s nothing I can throw at you that you can’t handle.” He grinned at her. “Which leads me to the second reason I wanted to talk to you. I’m about to do a major overhaul of all the stores, and I need a project manager working with me in corporate to oversee it.” He put his hand on her shoulder. “Interested in the job?”
“Me? Working with you in corporate? Of course I’m interested. I’m honored you have that much confidence in me.”
“I’ve always had confidence in you. You can do anything. You already do everything, as far as I can tell. Which brings me to the last thing I want to say. One of Santa’s helpers told me you’re quite a good clothing designer. And I was impressed by what you made for your secret Santa present. How would you like to meet with one of our clothing manufacturers to see if we can get him interested in producing your line for my stores?”
Hannah didn’t answer right away. Couldn’t answer because she was afraid she’d burst into tears or dissolve into nervous giggles. Finally, after she took a deep breath, she said, “I’m overwhelmed.”
“Thank David for that last idea. He was the one who urged me to look at your work.”
“David? I thought—”
“He’s quite a fan, you know.” Mr. Austin smiled. “I think in more than a professional way, but that’s for you to sort out between the two of you.”
“Oh, I’m sure not. Like he told you over the phone, he’ll be happy to get on with his life now that he doesn’t have to worry about working with me on this party.”
“I haven’t talked to David on the phone in weeks. We have lunch once a week and do all our business there.”
“But I heard him.”
“Whatever you heard, you misu
nderstood.” He looked over Hannah’s shoulder. “I just got the signal that I’m expected at the podium for my little speech. Let’s get together after the first of the year and work out your transition to corporate.” He gave Hannah a pat on the back. “And merry Christmas.”
“Thank you, Mr. Austin. The same to you.”
Hannah stood, dazed, while her boss wrapped the party up and her staff came by to wish her Merry Christmas. But when she saw David headed toward her, a determined look on his face, she bolted. She couldn’t face him. Not until she figured out how to bluster her way out of being rude to him about that conversation she’d overheard and still hadn’t figured out.
Chapter 8
“So, what you’re telling me is your party was a success, you got an offer of a huge promotion, and the guy you’ve fallen for got you a shot at having your clothing designs considered for production—geesh, are there any more wishes left in the magic lamp you found, and can I have them?” Sarah asked.
“Sarah, you’re not listening to me. He wants me out of his hair. He has other plans for his life.” Hannah was pacing the floor in front of her housemate.
“So, we’re focusing on the David Shay part of this story, not the job or the clothing line. Gotcha. Okay. What I hear is you trying to hold onto an idea you’ve got stuck in your head about a conversation you apparently misunderstood.”
“But it was so clear when I heard it.”
“Did you ask David about it?”
“Of course not. It was too embarrassing.”
“But not embarrassing to have your boss tell you David’s interested in you while you try to get him to say he dissed you.”
Hannah stopped pacing and looked up at the ceiling. “Oh, crap. You’re right. I screwed up. Now I’ll have to get up the courage to face David and ask him to explain. Probably even apologize. But I have no idea what to say.”
There was a knock at the door. Sarah looked through the security peephole and said, “Better figure it out quickly. He’s here.” She opened the door. “Hi, David. Come on in. I hear the party was a success.”
Tidings of Love Page 38
