“Okay, my friends. I’m taking you all into the barn and giving you a beauty treatment. Taryn’s salon is now open for business.”
Twenty minutes later, they were in their respective stalls munching a small helping of oats. She worked her way down the line with the grooming tote, brushing their thick winter coats, untangling manes and tails, complimenting them on their good looks.
She ended with Honey Butter. “You looked good in that video, buddy, with Pete riding you bareback.” Her hand stilled as she treated herself to a replay of that moment.
With a sigh, she resumed her vigorous brushing. “So here’s the thing. After making a mistake and marrying the wrong guy, I’m not interested in getting involved with anyone right now. But I got caught up in the moment and kissed Pete when we were up in the bucket.”
The palomino snorted.
“Look, that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. Wasn’t thinking ahead. Wasn’t thinking at all. Then we had the blizzard and…things have escalated.”
Across the way, Fifty Shades whinnied.
She laughed. “Yep, you said it! Like a gallop across the meadow that’s somewhat out of control.” She went around to Honey Butter’s other side, finished brushing him, and picked up a smaller brush for his mane. “Anyway, I needed a timeout, so I sent him home until tomorrow. I think it’s the right thing for both of us to take a break.
Honey Butter nodded his head.
“Thank you! It is a good plan. Twenty-four hours will give us both a chance to cool off and gain some perspective. Because this might work if we just don’t get too emotionally involved.”
Junior’s nicker from the next stall sounded like laughter. Then Spike made the same comment.
“Okay, you guys. Laugh if you want, but I say it’s possible. A friends-with-benefits sort of arrangement. Casual but fun. That’s what I’m going for.” She stood in front of the palomino and brushed his forelock. “Wish me luck.”
Honey Butter gently bumped his nose against her chest.
“Thanks, sweetie.” She gave him a kiss and put away the brush. “Appreciate the support.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Good thing Taryn had mentioned Christmas shopping. He’d already shopped for the rest of his family. The gifts were wrapped and hidden in his closet at home. That left him free to spend the afternoon coming up with ideas for Taryn.
It turned out he had several and he didn’t want to narrow the list so he got everything. He couldn’t expect her to open all of them on Christmas at Wild Creek Ranch, though. That would shine too bright a spotlight on their new relationship. One present was enough for the family gathering. The rest he’d take over Saturday night as a surprise.
And why not a bottle of champagne from the Eagles Nest Market for their special night together? He could stick it in an insulated cooler in the back of his truck, both to disguise it and make sure it didn’t freeze. When Otto, the market’s owner, spotted him buying the champagne, he convinced him to get a small poinsettia in a decorative pot. That also could go in the cooler along with the Christmas cookies he’d picked up at Pie in the Sky.
The following afternoon he put the cooler in the bed of his truck along with the box of gifts. Then he threw a tarp over everything and used a few rocks to keep it in place.
He parked in front of the walkway. She’d shoveled that since he was here and cleaned off the porch steps, too. The twenty-four hours he’d been gone seemed much longer. Leaving the motor running and the heater on, he went up the steps and across the porch.
She opened the door before he could knock. “Hey, there.” Instead of her parka, she wore a white winter coat he’d never seen. Her dark green scarf looped around her neck matched her jeans, which looked new. Her polished black boots were unfamiliar, too, and she was wearing makeup.
“Whoa. You look amazing.”
“Thanks.” She stepped out and closed the door. “I’ll switch to my parka when we feed, but today feels like dress-up time.”
“It does. Dusted off my best hat for the occasion. Guess I shouldn’t kiss you, though.”
“Better not. The lipstick’s supposed to be kiss-proof but when I blotted it, some came off. I doubt you want to be wearing lipstick when we walk into Pills and Pop.”
“I’d rather not.” He took off his hat. “I’ll just have to kiss you somewhere else.” Leaning down, he drew her wool scarf aside and pressed his mouth against her warm throat. Her pulse fluttered beneath his lips and he nipped her soft skin. Gently. He didn’t want to leave a mark.
She sucked in a breath. “That’s…very...”
“Hope so.” He lifted his head and gazed into her eyes. “Good to see you again.” He resisted the urge to repeat the kiss. “We should get going.” Putting on his hat, he tugged on the brim. “Don’t want to miss Josh’s big moment.” He took her hand and started back down the walkway. “You’ve shoveled a lot of snow since I was here.”
“Yep. It’s almost as good as mucking out stalls for organizing my thoughts.”
“All organized, now?” He helped her into the truck.
“Uh, huh.”
“Glad to hear it.” He hurried around to the driver’s side and climbed in. Once they were headed down her road, he glanced over at her. “Want to share any of those neatly organized thoughts?”
“Maybe later. In front of the fire.”
He sucked in a breath. “O-kay. Now let’s change the subject so I don’t drive into a ditch.”
She laughed. “Fair enough. This is the first time I’ve been on this road since your uncle bladed it. Excellent job.”
“He’ll love hearing you say that.”
“I’ll get a chance, right? He’ll be at Wild Creek Ranch for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day?”
“He wouldn’t miss it. He’s a party guy. He’ll be at Pills and Pop for Josh’s big moment with Santa, too. He said it’s his duty now that he’s Great-Uncle Brendan. He takes that seriously.”
“Not as seriously as your dad takes being Grandpa Quinn, I’ll bet.”
“You have no idea.” He turned onto the main road leading to town. “If he could have gotten away with it, he would have hired an entire film crew for this Santa gig.”
“Did he at least hire Caitlin?”
“Yes. Gage and Emma were fine with that.”
“Then she’ll be there. I look forward to seeing her. She did such a terrific job on Wednesday that it’ll be great to tell her so in person.”
“My dad and Kendra are very happy with her work. Near as I can tell, she’s become the official McGavin/Sawyer family photographer.”
“Then she may be able to afford an assistant sooner than she thought.”
“She wants one?”
“Partly to help her schlep her stuff around. Then she can concentrate on the job and the client.”
“Then, yeah, I predict she’ll be able to hire somebody soon. This combined family is very good at creating photo ops.” Traffic grew heavier as he neared the outskirts of town, heavy being a relative term when it came to Eagles Nest. Three vehicles lined up on either side of the town’s only stoplight qualified as a traffic jam. Four was considered freeway-style gridlock.
Taryn peered out the windshield. “I’ve never seen it like this.”
“Neither have I, but it’s the Saturday before Christmas.”
“Last chance to tell Santa what you want for Christmas.”
“What do you want?” He tossed it out as a joke, but discovered he was extremely interested in her answer.
“That’s easy. A full roster of guests for the summer season. And a tractor. And if Santa’s really feeling generous, a beautiful appaloosa.”
“That’s it?”
“Oh, wait. I want to hear the horses talk on Christmas Eve. What do you want?”
“A parking space.”
“Oh, come on, you have to think bigger than that.”
“Okay. I want my own house. And a barn.” He’d never said that to anyone. Had ba
rely admitted it to himself. For some reason it popped out now as he scanned the street in vain looking for something to open up.
“You do? I thought you were perfectly happy at your dad’s.”
“I am happy there. I wouldn’t say I’m perfectly happy. In the back of my mind, I’ve been thinking that it would be nice to have my own place. I think it’s time.”
“Where would it be?”
“Around here, naturally. I—ha! Backup lights. That spot is mine.”
“Woo-hoo!”
“And it’s only two doors down from Pills and Pop.” He put on his turn signal, waited for the other vehicle to back out, and pulled in.
“So you want a house and barn for Christmas?”
“Maybe not for Christmas, exactly, but soon. I want furniture that belongs to me. My own fireplace.” He shut off the motor and flashed her a smile. “Let’s go see Santa.”
Opening his door, he hopped down and went around to open hers. “I can’t believe this entire crowd is going to watch Josh sit on Santa’s lap, but I still predict Pills and Pop will be standing room only.”
“I can take it.” She put her hand in his and climbed down. “As a teenager I stood for hours in a sea of people at music concerts.”
“Me, too.”
“Rock?”
“Country.” He kept hold of her hand as they stepped up on the sidewalk and started toward the drugstore.
“I should have known. You were humming I Like It, I Love It in the shower night before last.”
“How did you hear that all the way in the laundry room?”
“Um, I might not have left right away.”
“Why not?”
“That was a sexy move, handing your clothes out through the door.”
“What was I supposed to do? Throw them at you?”
“You did the right thing. I just wasn’t prepared to see your bare arm come out. And then I realized it was connected to the rest of you.”
He started laughing. “I should hope to howdy. Otherwise we’re living in a horror flick.”
“You know what I mean. I was picturing you naked, and thinking about that temporarily nailed me to the floor.”
“Oh.” He grinned. “Thanks for telling me. I can live on that for weeks.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
So Pete wanted a place of his own. Not surprising, now that he wasn’t in business with his dad anymore. Maybe he’d buy something closer to Crimson Clouds, so he’d have an easier commute.
Having him nearby would terrific, but it wasn’t like he’d hired a real estate agent and was looking at property. They’d had an idle conversation about what they’d like for Christmas and she’d learned something new about Pete.
“Hey, you two!” Caitlin approached the drugstore from the other direction. “I’m so glad I caught you. Quinn just texted me and said it’s a madhouse in there, but I wanted to share something cool with you.” She glanced at their linked hands and smiled but didn’t comment.
Taryn caught the glance. She hadn’t thought about the significance of holding hands with Pete in public. In Eagles Nest it was probably an announcement of sorts. Oh, well.
“What’s your news?” Caitlin’s eyes sparkled as if she expected it to be something personal and romantic.
“I put your video up along with info for next year’s Christmas special. It looks awesome, too.”
“That’s great! I’m amazed you got that done in the middle of a blizzard.”
“Just made it before we lost power. It’s so lucky you came out when you did.”
“I thought of that, too. Anyway, my news is that the clip I put on my site of Pete helping Josh play the kazoo has gone viral.”
Pete shoved back his hat. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope. It’s showing up all over the place. People are turning it into memes with captions like Party On. The exposure should be great for my business, so I wanted to thank you.”
“I’m glad it’s doing good things for you.”
Taryn pulled out her phone. “I’m going to look for it.”
“Just search Cowboy with baby playing kazoo.”
“Got it! So cute. This one’s titled Make a Joyful Noise. I love it.” She glanced up at Pete. “You’re famous.”
“For about fifteen minutes. Tomorrow it’ll be a video of a duck wearing a bikini.”
“Sadly, that’s true.” Caitlin glanced at the time on Taryn’s phone. “I need to get in there.”
“After you.” Pete held the door for her and motioned Taryn through.
Quinn hadn’t exaggerated. The drugstore was wall-to-wall Eagles Nesters of all ages creating cheerful chaos. The jukebox played peppy Christmas tunes and people jiggled in place, but there would be no dancing on the black and white tiled floor today. Most everyone had a soda fountain treat in a to-go cup which they sipped or spooned up while they waited in a line that wound through the store’s aisles.
Those who merely wanted to watch, like Taryn and Pete, had the biggest challenge. Only the top of Santa’s ornate chair, perched on a raised platform, was visible above the crowd. Mrs. Claus, aka Ellie Mae Stockton, used a bullhorn to keep the proceedings organized.
Pete glanced down at her. “Want something from the fountain?”
She grinned. “And how do you propose to get it if I do? Fly over there?”
“I’ve noticed there’s a system. I give money and my order to someone next to me and they pass it from person to person until it gets to the counter. Eventually the order will get passed back to me.”
“I want to order something just to see how that works. A peppermint milkshake, please.”
“I’ll get one, too. Simpler that way.” He handed money to a person standing next to him and like the old game of telephone, the order traveled through the crowd.
“I’m fascinated. When we used to play telephone, the message always ended up garbled. We may not get peppermint milkshakes.”
“I hope we do. Now I want one.”
“Can you see Gage and Emma in that line?”
“No, but I know he’s there. Gonna text him.” He took out his phone and sent the message. “Ah. He’s fifth in line for Santa.”
“That’s great but I don’t know how we’ll ever see it.”
“He just explained it. Anyone who goes up and has relatives in the crowd tells Ellie Mae. She’ll clear a space for us. When Josh is done, we move out and let others stand there.”
“Awesome. This is a lot more organized than it looks.”
“That’s Ellie Mae for you. Supposedly she worked on the set of several major film productions. When I see something like this, I tend to believe it.”
“Two pineapple shakes, coming over.”
Pete glanced at the person. “Not peppermint?”
The guy smiled. “I know that’s what you ordered, but looks like this is what you got. You okay with that?”
“Yes, we are,” Taryn said. “Thank you.”
Pete handed her one of the shakes. “Like you said, the telephone game.”
“I like pineapple shakes.”
“I like ’em, too, but they’re not very Christmasy.”
“They are if we say they are.” She lifted her to-go cup. “Mele Kalikimaka.”
He laughed and raised his. “Mele Kalikimaka to you, too. Ever been to Hawaii?”
“Yes. You?”
“Not yet. And I sincerely doubt I’d go at Christmas, so my knowledge of how to say Merry Christmas in Hawaiian is wasted.”
“No, it isn’t. We just used it.”
“So we did.” He smiled and took another sip.
“I keep meaning to ask if you’re in the talent show.”
“I am.”
“Doing what?”
His eyes twinkled. “You’ll find out.”
“Aww! You’re not going to tell me?”
“What fun is that? It’s Christmas, the season of surprises. This is just another one.” He paused. “Speaking of that, are you in i
t?”
“Not this year. I’m considering it for next year. Could be extra fun for the Christmas guests if their hostess performs. I plan to get tickets for everyone who registers.”
“Good idea. So what’s your talent?”
“I have many.”
“I know that. I meant what are you—”
“You’ll find out.”
He laughed. “Nicely played.”
“All relatives of Josh Sawyer, front and center, ho, ho, ho.”
“That’s our cue.”
“Except I’m not a relative.”
“Doesn’t matter. You’re with me. And the category’s flexible, anyway.” Grabbing her hand, he threaded them through the crowd to the front.
“Move it on back, folks! Josh has a large entourage.”
“Isn’t that the truth.” Taryn looked around at all the familiar faces, Sawyers and McGavins mixed together. Badger was there, along with the Bennett family, which was closely tied to the McGavins.
She made sure to give a smile to Uncle Brendan, who returned it before continuing his conversation with Jo Fielding. Josh’s loosely defined family included about thirty people.
“He’s about to go up.” Pete sounded excited. “Would you hold my shake so I can take pictures?”
“Absolutely.” Judging from all the phones in the crowd, she’d have no trouble getting copies if she wanted them.
Josh couldn’t ask for a more authentic Santa. From the pure white trim on his red velvet suit to the polish on his black boots, he was spectacular. His snowy beard curled just enough and his wire-rimmed glasses perched on his nose at the exact angle to make him look jolly yet wise.
Gage held one of Josh’s hands and Emma held the other as Josh toddled up to Santa wearing a green elf costume, complete with hat. He stared up at the man sitting on a large golden chair trimmed with faux jewels.
The crowd went still, as if it was holding a collective breath waiting for the little boy’s reaction.
Santa leaned down and held out both white-gloved hands. “Want to come up, Josh?”
Gage and Emma exchanged a glance and let go of his hands, giving him the choice to stay or leave.
“Da-da!” Josh lifted both arms and Santa scooped him onto his lap.
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