“Do what the woman says,” Gemma added, her eyes wide in mock fear.
“You guys aren’t helping,” Chloe shot back. Her shoulders were tense under her purple cashmere sweater.
Brianna waved her hand. “They’re helping as far as I’m concerned.”
If Brianna was any bit as stubborn as her sister, Jordan knew this argument could go on for a lot longer, so he stepped forward and placed his coffee cup on the desk with a loud thunk. “Don’t I get a say in this, ladies?”
Four sets of bright eyes turned toward him.
“Yes, yes you do,” Chloe said, rushing to his side. The light touch of her hand on his arm sent a thrill up his spine. “You’ve got much better things to do than go to some boring family dinner. Tell Brianna you don’t want to go.”
“Brianna.” He made direct eye contact with her sister and held it for a moment. The left side of his mouth twitched in a small small. “I’ve got nothing better to do. I’d love to go.”
She cheered as Chloe huffed into her coffee. Worried he might have crossed a line, Jordan playfully bumped his shoulder into hers and was glad to see a small smile form on her worried face. He was interested to meet the rest of the family who’d raised such a strong woman. Her sister was certainly a trip.
“My fiance, Aaron, will be there, so you won’t be alone,” Brianna said to him with a triumphant grin on her face.
“Her absolutely handsome fiance,” Laurie said breathlessly, grabbing at Brianna’s left hand to gaze at the diamond band.
“You mean perfect.” Chloe snatched her hand from Laurie, her eyes jealously taking in the facets of the diamond.
All Brianna could do was smile and gaze happily at her own ring.
“How’s the wedding planning going?” Gemma perched herself on the edge of the desk with her drink in hand. “I haven’t even started. There’s just too much to do. It’s overwhelming.”
“We haven’t even picked out a date yet,” Brianna said with a shrug. “Silly Aaron, he’s so busy with work these days. I’m afraid we’re just going to have to pick a day and drive over to the courthouse.”
The women cried out at the injustice.
“You know Momma will kill you if you elope,” Chloe growled.
Brianna nodded her understanding. “But that’s what you have to do, ladies, when your man is just too busy with his job to plan a wedding. You’ve got to do whatever it takes to nail him down.”
Jordan leaned back onto his desk and frowned to himself. It was beginning to feel like the nineteen fifties in here with talk of nailing a man down with marriage. Hadn’t talk like this died off with women’s liberation? He glanced over at the thermostat on the wall. Someone must have turned up the heat. Sweat had begun to build around his collar.
With both of his parents divorced and remarried, he’d been through a couple weddings. They didn’t seem like anything someone should aspire to. In fact, he remembered being bored out of his mind.
“Look at us, making this young man so nervous,” Brianna declared, turning her attention toward him. He balked, but tried to keep his cool as he smiled back at them. “I swear, talk of white gowns and wedding rings can make any man turn puce green.”
“I’m okay.” Jordan shook his head and laughed. He really was being an idiot. Half of his college buddies were married by now, many had children. Just because his own parents had disastrously stunk at marriage didn’t mean it was all bad.
“Just be sure to bring Momma some flowers tomorrow night,” Brianna said, patting him on the shoulder. “And don’t bring up politics at the dinner table. Daddy is a judge and he has the ability to throw you into lock up overnight if he doesn’t like the words coming out of your mouth.”
Jordan could feel the blood leaving his face. Chloe had never mentioned her father was a judge. Suddenly, the family dinner had taken on a whole new level of seriousness. What had he gotten himself into? If only he’d kept his big mouth shut.
“He won’t throw you in lock up.” Chloe gave her sister a hard disapproving look. “And you don’t have to bring flowers, if you don’t want. My family is very relaxed.”
Brianna smiled mockingly and slowly shook her head from side to side behind Chloe’s back, mouthing the words lock up to Jordan. He couldn’t tell if she was serious or pulling his chain.
“How’s rehearsal going, Chlo?” Brianna asked her sister, suddenly changing the topic to something that didn’t make Jordan want to vomit. “Every time I run into Ashley Lynn down at the gym, she’s practically drooling with jealousy. She knows your play kicks hers out of the water.”
“We’ll have to see.” Chloe bit at her thumbnail and shrugged. Worry lines scored her forehead. “She’s already made an appearance at a rehearsal. She can’t help but insert herself.”
“Who is this Ashley Lynn?” Jordan asked. It was obvious to see that none of the girls liked her, but he couldn’t figure out why. “Is she a blood-sucking leech?”
“Close enough.” Brianna raised her eyebrows and pursed her lips. “The most evil woman I’ve ever met. And I’ve met some doozies.”
“She’s not that awful,” Laurie said, her eyes soft with concern. “I’m sure she has her reasons why she’s so…”
“Abrasive?” Chloe blurted.
Gemma chuckled. “Rude?”
“How about just plain psycho?” Brianna ended.
Laurie turned red, but didn’t rebuttal. Jordan felt intrigued by the mutual hate going through the room. He’d never been behind enemy lines before, hearing the inside reasons why girls liked to fight.
“She’s Aaron’s ex,” Brianna turned to him with a determined frown. “So, naturally, I hate her. But really, she’s not a very nice person. She used to put on all the Christmas Eve plays before now. I think she’s jealous of Chloe.”
Chloe shook her head, her large dangling earrings knocking against her neck. “She can’t be jealous. She’s the one that turned down the play this year. If she wanted to do it, she should’ve said so.”
“Whatever.” Brianna downed the rest of her drink and tossed it in the trashcan on the other side of the room with a cheer. “She’s jealous of my brilliant baby sister. I’m allowed to say that. Just like I’m allowed to warn Jordan that he better treat my baby sister well.”
“Alright, Bri, we’ve got work to do,” Chloe said with an embarrassed grimace, taking a hold of her sister’s arm. She led her to the door, almost forcefully. “Thanks for the coffee. Say hi to Aaron for me.”
“Will do.” She blew them all a kiss and then winked at Jordan. “See you at dinner. Don’t be late.”
As she walked out of the office, Jordan wondered if it was too late to take back his acceptance of dinner. As much as he wanted to see where things could go with Chloe Walker, he hadn’t signed on for this.
A night with the Judge’s daughter might turn out to be a nightmare instead of a dream.
Chapter Eight
Chloe buried her head on the granite countertops of her parent’s kitchen, trying and failing to breathe slowly through her nose. “I can’t believe you invited him to dinner,” she cried, looking up at her mother tossing salad nearby. “I am a young woman - no, a young professional. You can’t just invite my coworker over for family dinner without my permission.”
Her mother smiled softly. She had the same full cheeks as her daughter and long slender fingers. A pink cable-knitted sweater hugged her frame above a pair of light-washed Levis. “I am your mother, Chloe Walker. Doesn’t matter if you’re three or seventy-three, I can invite whomever I want to our family dinners. And I want to meet this young man.”
Chloe groaned into her sleeve. She’d made the mistake of mentioning him to her sister last week and now her family was practically picking out wedding colors. It was a little premature for her taste. Besides, nothing had even happened between Jordan and her. She wasn’t sure it ever would.
He’d very nearly kissed her that night in her apartment, she was sure of it. But over a week had
gone by and…nothing. He hadn’t asked her on a date. Hadn’t mentioned their closeness in the apartment. And certainly hadn’t tried to kiss her again.
Normal Chloe would’ve marched up to him by now and demanded an explanation for his behavior, but this Chloe was too worried about scaring off one of the leads in her Christmas Eve play to confront him. Rehearsals had been going so well lately.
Everyone had their lines down. The singing didn’t make her want to pull her braids out. With only four days left until showtime, it was absolutely necessary everything went perfectly. She couldn’t scare Jordan off. Besides, he was scheduled to leave right after the play. It wasn’t like this was meant to be a relationship. All she had to do was get through tonight without total and complete embarrassment and avoid chasing Jordan off.
Easy enough - for some other family.
“He’s here,” Brianna squealed, peering out the front door. Headlights shown through the windows a second later, confirming her observation. “Oh, and he brought flowers!”
Chloe’s heart rate picked up a notch as she listened for the sound of his door closing. A moment later and he was at the front door, rapping his knuckles on the heavy wooden door.
“I’ve got it,” she announced, almost pushing her sister out of the way. With a deceptively calm smile, she opened the door to Jordan’s handsome face. “Welcome, stranger.”
“Thanks.” He stepped in and held out a small bouquet of pink and yellow lilies that gave off a divine scent that tickled her nose. “I brought these for your mom. I wasn’t sure what to get. Tell me I wasn’t a complete idiot.”
She chuckled and took them from him, warmth building in her chest at the sight of his nervousness. Maybe he did like her. He wouldn’t be so nervous if he didn’t care. “You did great. I’ll put them in some water.”
Leading him deeper into the Walker clan den, Chloe put the flowers in a vase and introduced him to her mother. She smiled warmly and shook his hand, her eyes glittering with unsaid thoughts as she glanced at her youngest daughter.
He already knew Brianna, of course. She was the one to blame for this entire family dinner fiasco. They apologized that Brianna’s fiance couldn’t make it that night. Aaron had been called back in to work. That had been happening a lot lately.
“Daddy’s getting off late from work,” Brianna announced after introductions were made. “A big custody case down at the courthouse. He’ll be here any minute.”
The news seemed to make Jordan swallow loudly. Chloe bumped him with her shoulder and gave him a quick reassuring smile. He had no reason to be nervous tonight. It wasn’t like they were dating and her father was going to meet him on the porch with a shotgun. He was simply a coworker. This was a professional relationship.
She was the one who hoped to get out of this night unscathed.
“Here comes the Judge,” Mrs. Walker announced a few minutes later, spotting the headlights flashing through the lacy curtains of the living room.
The atmosphere in the kitchen suddenly changed. Everyone busied themselves with getting the last few place settings ready and putting the food on the table. By the time the tall and regal Judge Walker strode into the house, supper was ready and everyone had lined up like an old-fashioned greeting party.
“What a welcome,” he said in a booming voice as he walked into the kitchen. He had a smooth shaved head and small wire-rimmed glasses that gave him a scholarly look. A loose tie hung from around his collar, which he pulled off as soon as he hung up his coat. “I see we have a guest.”
“Daddy, this is Jordan Davis.” Chloe cleared her suddenly tight throat. “He’s my coworker and also the lead in my musical. I’ve told you about him.”
Mr. Davis eyed Jordan, his generous lips pursing into a frown. “So, this is the boy you had over to watch movies the other night?”
Her cheeks burned with embarrassment. Turning to her sister, she glowered at the tattle-tale and then turned back to face him. “Yeah. We were doing research together.”
For goodness sake, she was nearing thirty. He didn’t need to scrutinize her male friends so harshly anymore. And he certainly didn’t need to know about the kiss that almost occurred at the end of that movie night.
“Nice to meet you, sir.” Jordan extended a hand. He was the essence of calm and collected, smiling and nodding his head. “I’ve never met a Judge before today.”
“That’s a good sign,” Judge Walker said, taking his hand in a firm grasp. “Means you’ve never been in trouble before.”
“No, sir.” He shrugged, glancing at Chloe. She swore she could see a bit of humor in his eyes. “I don’t have enough time to get into trouble. Your daughter’s been running us all ragged with rehearsals.”
“Yes, Chloe can be single-minded when she has something she wants to accomplish.” The Judge put his arm around her and kissed her forehead. She rolled her eyes, but smiled. “Takes after me in that way. Now, where’s my supper?”
Jordan made it through the meal with an impressive ease. He laughed at the Judge’s cheesy jokes, listened to Brianna complain about wedding details, and even managed to compliment Mrs. Walker’s cooking with sincerity. Chloe had worried that with his past he’d have a hard time in a family situation, but it seemed to be the opposite. He acted like this was an everyday occurrence for him. He was a natural.
“What I want to know is…” Judge Walker sat back in his chair and patted his full stomach. They’d spent the entire dinner talking and reminiscing about childhood stories and how kids today are stuck behind electronics. He grinned at Jordan and then at his daughter. “Did Chloe ever tell you about Mr. Snuffles?”
“Daddy, no,” she protested. Her mother and sister moaned in mock sympathy for her, but with grins plastered on their faces. “Can’t we just get through one family dinner without rehashing that story?”
Jordan smiled and looked back and forth between the Judge and his daughter. “What story?”
“It’s terribly boring.”
“She means embarrassing,” Brianna added with a smirk.
Chloe gave her a hard look. “I mean totally unnecessary. Come on, Jordan. I’ll give you a tour of the house.”
“Not until I hear this story,” he replied with a laugh.
She grabbed his hand to pull him from the table, but he resisted her desperate pull and instead held her hand tight underneath the privacy of the table, his thumb rubbing circles along her skin. The sensation sent a thrill through her, her nerves burning with a desire she couldn’t name.
“When Chloe was five, she was obsessed with weddings,” Brianna started, her eyes sparkling with humor. “We’d just attended our cousin’s outdoor wedding, so she thought it was the best thing in the world. When I wouldn’t play with her, she enrolled her teddy bear, Mr. Snuffles.”
“Except the only wedding dress Chloe had was just big enough to stuff Mr. Snuffles into,” Mrs. Walker added. She tried to hide her smile from her daughter, but failed miserably.
“So, little Miss Chloe comes marching up to me while I’m working on a case for trial and asks to borrow one of my suits,” Judge Walker said. He rubbed his belly again and chuckled. “She said she couldn’t get married without a suit. But I wasn’t about to let her borrow one of mine, so I told her to get creative. Little did I know how creative she could be.”
Chloe buried her head in her arm and groaned. “Please…stop.”
“I found her outside in the pouring rain ten minutes later,” the Judge went on to say, ignoring his daughter’s pleas. He could barely keep in his laughter. “Standing stark naked next to a raggedy old teddy bear in a stained white dress.”
Another groan came from Chloe’s lips.
Jordan squeezed her hand and laughed. “Why would she do that?”
“That’s exactly what I asked when I’d scooped her up and brought her inside,” the Judge replied in a roaring voice. “She gave me a reason only a five year old could come up with. If she couldn’t get married in a wedding suit, she’d ge
t married in her birthday suit.”
Laughter spilled from every person at the table, except for Chloe. She closed her eyes against the mirth and took deep cleansing breaths that did nothing to keep the heat from rising in her cheeks. Daring to take a peek at Jordan, she saw him grinning at her, amusement and another emotion she couldn’t name in those brown eyes. His expression made her stomach flip.
“Alright, I think we’ve embarrassed me enough for one night.” Chloe pulled on Jordan’s hand again and this time he got up to follow her, releasing her hand beneath the table. Her family collectively groaned, but didn’t call them back to the table. They’d had their fun.
She mourned at the lack of his hand on hers, but felt relieved he’d finally had enough of her humiliation. Leading him through the living room and upstairs, she paused at all the interesting spots, like her old bedroom which had been transformed into a workout room, and then took him through a pair of glass french doors.
“This is my favorite room,” she told him, turning on a small lamp in the corner. The light revealed walls of shelving that housed more books than they could count. A giant oak roll-top desk stood in the middle of the room with a high-backed leather chair. “It’s daddy’s office. Back when he practiced law, he spent a lot of evenings in here working on cases. He’d let me crawl under his desk and read while he worked. For a long time, I thought I wanted to be a lawyer, too.”
Jordan ran his hand along the desk and looked at her. A solemn frown pressed his mouth into a line. “You have a really great family, you know?”
She gave him a small smile. “I know. I’m lucky.”
“Very lucky.” He looked out the door that stood behind the desk and opened out onto a balcony. Great big fluffy snowflakes had begun to drop lazily to the ground. “I didn’t think families like these existed anymore.”
She didn’t know what to say, so she opened the door to the balcony and walked out to watch the snow fall. It wasn’t fair that he’d grown up without a tight family. If she had one wish, it was that everyone got to experience a family like hers growing up. But that wasn’t the reality. She stared out at the quiet streets of New Hope, Christmas lights twinkling in the distance. Moments later, she felt him move beside her, his shoulder warm against hers.
Caroling in the Snow: A New Hope Sweet Christmas Romance - Book 2 Page 5
