A Christmas Collection: Four Sweet Holiday Romances

by Victorine E. Lieske

  He let out a grunt and stalked into the house after her. The smell in the kitchen stopped him. Dorothy shooed him into the other room. “No sneaking any food. It’s almost ready. Why don’t you and Charley get situated at the table?”

  Since when did his help boss him around? His house was falling apart. Alexander scowled at her but did as she said, taking his seat at the head of the table. When Charley walked into the room, he motioned to her chair. “I guess Dorothy wants us seated.”

  She grinned at him, and he noticed for the first time she had a dimple on her left cheek. “Great. I’m so hungry, I could eat a house.”

  “Don’t you mean horse?”

  Charley wrinkled her nose. “I’ve never liked that saying. Who wants to eat a horse? They’re smelly and have all this hair. What an unappealing thought.”

  He couldn’t figure out if she was crazy, or if she was playing with him. “You’d rather eat a house?”

  She shrugged, her gaze dipping to the table. “It would have sounded lame had I said I was so hungry, I could eat a hamburger.”

  Alexander couldn’t help it. He laughed, and the biggest smile appeared on Charley’s face, along with the dimple again. “Oh my gosh, I wasn’t sure you could laugh.”

  Had he been in that foul of a mood since she arrived? He sobered. “Of course, I can laugh.” He didn’t mean for it to sound so irritable, but he couldn’t take back his words. But he did soften his voice when he spoke again. “I simply have lots of work to do and I don’t see a need for lollygagging.”

  “Did you just say the word lollygagging?” Her laughter rang out, echoing through his house. “Why do you talk like an old man?”

  He gasped at her, but her giant smile erased his annoyance. Why was it hard for him to stay mad at this woman? He tried to keep a straight face, but he felt his lips twitch. “I was raised by my grandfather, and I was taught to speak proper English. And I’m often busy, so I don’t have time to mess around.”

  “What is it you do, if I may ask?”

  “I have a company I run from this house. I’m in software development.” Alexander had never realized how boring his job sounded until this moment. Charley nodded as Dorothy came out of the kitchen carrying a tray with their food on it.

  As they ate, Charley chatted about how much she was looking forward to finding treasure in the boxes in the garage and how excited she was for Christmas. She had an energy about her that he had never seen in a person. When she laughed, she did it with her whole being. It was like she couldn’t wait to go out and experience life. Had he ever felt even a small part of that? He doubted it.

  When they were finished eating, Charley looked out the window and gasped. “It’s snowing! Oh, my gosh. Come on.”

  She tugged on his arm and he stood, unable to refuse her. “Where are you going?”

  “Outside, of course.” She pulled him toward the front of the house.

  “Wait.” He took her elbow. “This way.” He led her to a sliding glass door that opened to the back deck. She grinned at him then walked outside without her coat.

  “Look at this.” She stared up at the large snowflakes coming silently down, her hands out as if to catch them. “Isn’t it magical?”

  He made a conscious effort not to frown. He hated the snow. Hated everything about winter, but she obviously was enchanted, so he didn’t say anything. He stepped outside and slid the door shut, joining her on the deck.

  “It’s so quiet out here,” she said, her voice almost reverent. “I love how peaceful it is. You are so lucky to live in such a beautiful home. I love Florida, but there’s constant street noise. Don’t you love the quiet here?”

  He hadn’t thought about it, but maybe she had a point. It was nice. He nodded and shoved his hands in his pockets. “I suppose.”

  She pointed to the deck chairs in the corner. “Do you come sit out here when the weather is nice?”

  Not anymore. He used to enjoy the deck. He’d sit out here with his wife and they’d watch the birds. But that was a long time ago. He clenched his jaw. “No.”

  She peered out at the trees. “What are you planning on doing for Christmas? Are you having any family over?”

  “I have no living family.”

  She turned to him, her eyes wide. “Oh. I’m so sorry.”

  The last thing he wanted was her pity. “Don’t be. I’m fine here by myself.” He slid his hands into his pockets.

  A sadness entered her eyes. She turned away. “So, you’re not going to go anywhere for Christmas?”

  “I prefer being alone.”

  “Oh.” She was silent for a few moments before she rubbed her bare arms.

  “Let’s go inside. It’s cold.”

  She didn’t move. Flakes of snow were starting to stick to her dark hair. “In a minute. I want to watch the snow a little longer.”

  He shrugged out of his suit jacket and placed it over her shoulders. She smiled up at him. “Thanks, Mr. Norris.”

  “It’s Alexander.” He stepped back, surprised at his own words. Why had he said that? What was wrong with him? He didn’t want her calling him by his first name, did he?

  She nodded, her smile widening. “Thanks, Alexander.”

  He frowned and took another step toward the door. “You can stay out here as long as you’d like.” He didn’t wait for her to answer. He slipped inside the house and walked to his office, shaking his head. What was that all about? He was being stupid.

  Now she was going to be more informal with him. Not that she’d been particularly formal before. But now she was going to think he was encouraging her behavior. Which was not the case. She was just the hired girl. She would do her job and then leave. It was stupid to think anything could transpire between them. Not that he was thinking of her that way.

  He opened his office door and the black kitten scampered over to him, letting out a tiny cry. He bent and picked her up. She’d been half-frozen when he’d found her behind the house. Luckily, she was old enough to eat food. He opened another can of cat food and set her on the floor with it. She attacked the meal like she hadn’t been fed that morning. He chuckled and crossed the room to his desk. “Don’t eat it so fast. You’ll get a stomach ache.”

  The kitten ignored him, and he sat down on his leather office chair. He woke his computer up and clicked to check his email. The screen blurred as his thoughts swirled around in his head. He was going to regret allowing the woman to stay on, he knew it. But there was nothing he could do now. It was like watching a train wreck. He was powerless to stop it. All he could do was watch it happen.

  Chapter 4

  Charley loaded another box into the back of the truck. This was box number five for the day, and nothing of value had been found. She was starting to wonder if there were any antiques in the garage at all. There certainly were a lot of clothes. Women’s clothes. What a single man was doing with all those clothes was a mystery. Maybe they were his mother’s things. That would make sense, if he was dealing with her estate. But if that were the case, his mother dressed quite young.

  She dusted off her hands and walked back into the garage. The door rolled down, but the short time it had been open had dropped the temperature once again and Charley blew heat on her fingers. Maybe she would go in the house to warm up for a minute before starting on the next box.

  As she opened the door to the kitchen, Dorothy waved her inside. “Come on in, hon. Do you need a break?”

  “Yes. I just need to get warm.” Charley climbed onto a stool sitting by the counter.

  “I’ll make you some hot cocoa, if you’d like.” Dorothy didn’t wait for confirmation. She opened a cupboard and brought out a sauce pan.

  “That sounds delicious. Thank you.”

  As Dorothy worked, Charley shifted on the stool. She’d decided to ignore her own resolution and wore another one of her favorite pairs of socks. The left one was red, white, and green checkers, the right had matching colors in stripes. She wore a green pleated skirt so sh
e could show them off. If Alexander didn’t like them, too bad.

  A doorbell rang and Dorothy turned, patting her hair. She seemed flustered. “I’ll go get that.” She walked toward the mud room that connected to the back of the kitchen.

  “I thought the butler got the door.” Curious, Charley slid off the stool to follow Dorothy.

  “This is the service entrance bell. It’s probably a package, and most packages that come are for me.”

  The mud room was one quarter the size of the kitchen, with windows all along the back. Dorothy opened the door and a man in a UPS uniform stood there holding a package from Amazon. He had a serious George Clooney look-alike thing going on, with salt-and-pepper hair. When he saw Dorothy, his smile widened, his laugh lines crinkling. “Good afternoon, Dorothy.”

  “Hello, Paul.” Dorothy smoothed the front of her apron. “How are you today?”

  Paul leaned against the door jam. “Fine.” He handed her the package. “You order another book?”

  Dorothy blushed. “You know I love to read.”

  “What is it this time? Another Patterson novel?”

  “Dean Koontz.”

  “Ah, the latest Jane Hawk, I suppose?”

  She laughed and fingered the package. “You know me too well.”

  Charley rocked back on her toes. This was too cute to watch. All kinds of questions filled her head.

  Paul stood there, grinning for a moment longer before Dorothy seemed to realize Charley was standing behind her. “Oh, Paul. This is Charley. She’s an antique appraiser.”

  Charley took a step forward and stuck her hand out. “A pleasure.”

  He shook her hand. “Nice to meet you. Well, I best be going. I have a lot of packages to deliver. This time of year is a bear.”

  “I bet.” Dorothy grinned at him then waved as he turned to leave. “Bye,” she called.

  After Dorothy shut the door, Charley put her hands on her hips. “Oh. My. Gosh. You like him.”

  Dorothy shook her head as she walked back into the kitchen. “What? Don’t be ridiculous.”

  “Come on. You’re blushing ten shades of red.” Charley held in a laugh. How cute was that? They were adorable, flirting with each other like that.

  Dorothy brought her hand up to her face. “I am?”

  “Spill it. Who is he?”

  “No one.” Dorothy pulled the cocoa out of the cupboard. “He’s just the delivery man.”

  “Whom you have a crush on. Admit it. It’s obvious he likes you.”

  Dorothy jerked her head around. “Really?”

  “You mean you hadn’t noticed? He is totally into you.” Charley grinned. “And he’s hot.”

  Dorothy fanned her face. “He is, isn’t he?” She laughed. “Oh, listen to me. I’m so silly.”

  “Well, I don’t think you’re silly. I think he likes you.”

  Dorothy waved away her comment. “Just you sit down. I’ll get that hot chocolate for you.”

  Charley sat back down on the bar stool and put her elbows on the counter. “How long have you worked here?”

  Dorothy paused, looking up at the ceiling. “I was hired twenty years ago by Mr. Norris senior. Alexander was just a boy.”

  “A boy? How old is he?”

  The smile slid off Dorothy’s face. “Grief has a way of aging a person.” She opened the fridge and pulled out the milk.

  “Did his mother recently pass?”

  Dorothy shot her a look. “No. His wife.”

  “Oh.” Charley sucked in a breath. That was worse than losing a parent. No wonder he didn’t want to go through the boxes in the garage. “How long ago?”

  “Two years.”

  She bit her lower lip. That explained why he was grumpy. He was still grieving his wife. And Charley was probably a reminder of this because of why she was there. To get rid of all his wife’s things. Sympathy made her heart squeeze. But two years was a long time. He needed to get past it. “Has he dated anyone since?”

  Dorothy shook her head. “No.”

  “He should. It would help him heal.”

  A smile formed on Dorothy’s face. “You’re right.” She stirred the liquid in the sauce pan, glancing back at Charley. “What are you doing tonight?”

  Charley choked on her spit. “Me? What are you, crazy?”

  Dorothy’s gaze traveled over her. “You’re young and pretty. Why not you?”

  “First of all, he’s too old for me.”

  “He’s thirty.”

  “Oh. Is that it? I guess I was thinking he was older. But still, too old for me. I’m only twenty-two. He’s quite a bit older than me.”

  Dorothy shook her head. “Not so much older that it wouldn’t work.”

  “But he’s my employer. My father would kill me if I screwed up this job.”

  An eye-roll and a snort came from Dorothy. She poured the hot liquid into a mug.

  “And besides, he’s mean and grumpy.”

  “Who’s mean and grumpy?”

  Charley jumped at the sound of Alexander Norris behind her. Before she could think of something plausible to say, words started tumbling out of her mouth. “My father’s…gardener. He’s terrible.”

  Alexander’s eyebrows rose. It looked like he didn’t believe her, so she just kept talking. “Yep. He curses…at the roses. And talks down to the lilies. I don’t even know why my father hired him. He’s so rude.”

  Alexander stared at her, his face a mask of stone.

  She slid off her stool. “Well, I best be getting back to work.”

  “Don’t forget your hot chocolate.” Dorothy handed her a mug.

  “Thanks.”

  Dorothy turned to Alexander. “Do you want a cup?”

  He frowned. “I don’t drink chocolate.”

  Charley was going to slink off into the garage, but sometimes her mouth ran away with itself. This was one of those times. “Maybe you should. Maybe it would make you smile more.” Before he could answer, she opened the door and walked out, her fingers shaking.

  How could she have talked to him like that? She was asking to be fired. But it had felt good to say that to him, and she hid a smile as she sipped her cocoa. The door to the garage opened and Mr. Norris stepped out.

  Crud. Here it was. He was going to fire her now. She set her mug down on a shelf she’d cleared off yesterday and clasped her hands together in front of her. “Do you need anything, Mr. Norris? I mean, Alexander?” It felt weird to call him that.

  His gaze traveled over the boxes remaining in the garage. He stayed silent for a moment, taking in the space she’d cleared out. Then he stepped back. “Your work so far has been satisfactory. You may stay and finish.”

  Charley knew she should shut up and let him leave, but she couldn’t help it. Words came flying out of her mouth. “Satisfactory? Really? I can’t believe it. I’ve done satisfactory work!” She clapped her hands together. “I must go tell all my friends on social media.”

  Alexander’s lips twitched. “You might want to tone down the sarcasm, Miss Davis. I could still let you go.”

  “Wait, I thought we were on a first name basis here. Now I’m back to Miss Davis?” Why was she still talking? Charley knew she should get back to work and ignore his condescending tone, but for some reason, her mouth wasn’t obeying her.

  He took several steps closer to her, until he was standing just inches away. “I made a mistake yesterday.”

  She swallowed, suddenly aware of his broad shoulders and musky smell of his cologne. He towered over her, and it made her feel even shorter. “A mistake hiring me?” she asked, her voice small.

  His lips twitched again, but they stilled so quickly she thought maybe she imagined it. “No. A mistake in telling you to call me Alexander.”

  “Oh.” She had to break eye contact because his gaze was so intense. The garage grew suddenly too hot. “What should I call you?”

  He leaned down closer to her, until his mouth was next to her ear. Her heart pounded at his proxim
ity. “I honestly don’t care anymore. Just don’t call me the gardener.”

  Her cheeks burned with embarrassment as he stalked toward the door. Before she could think of something to say, he was gone. Charley stood there, staring at the door handle, wondering why her breath seemed to be so shallow. Why had the simple conversation shaken her so much?

  Chapter 5

  Alexander sighed and slumped into his office chair, a headache beginning behind his forehead. He was tired and suddenly depressed. He pulled up a file on his computer and stared at the numbers. He needed to get this report to his accountant.

  He clicked on the keyboard, but his thoughts wandered. Since when did he become such a sour person? He had not thought of himself that way before, but overhearing Charley talk about him, he had to admit he had been quite rude over the past two days.

  When did his life turn into something so boring? He had known he was a work-a-holic, but he thought that just made him passionate about his business. Looking at it from someone else’s perspective, it made him bitter and alone. He frowned, not liking that assessment.

  The kitten hopped up onto his desk and he picked her up, stroking her fur. “We need to get you a home,” he said out loud. He didn’t care if it made him look senile, talking to a cat. For some reason, it soothed him. And maybe he could pretend that he wasn’t turning into a crabby old man at the age of thirty.

  The kitten licked the side of his hand, then curled up in his arms, purring. Now he couldn’t type and finish his work. He sat back in his chair. Oh, well. He could take a break. He scratched her fur behind her ears.

  His office door burst open and Charley ran in, almost stumbling on his rug but catching herself before she face-planted. “I’m sorry to disturb you, sir, but I just couldn’t wait to show you what I found.” Her smile stretched wide, her dimple deep. She held a book in her hands.

  “This is truly a treasure. Look at the dust jacket. It’s in fantastic shape. That almost never happens. Most of the time, the dust jackets are completely gone. When they’re not, they’re torn, but not this one. The book was printed in 1897, and some of the illustrations inside are hand-painted. Hand-painted! I estimate the value to be over five thousand dollars.” She gingerly held the bird-identifying encyclopedia out so he could see. He immediately recognized it, and his throat closed.