Between Christmas and Romance

by Shanna Hatfield

  Tim must have sensed my enjoyment of dessert and coffee because when he caught my eye, he had a lopsided grin on his face that made my heart skip a few beats. What was it about hunky men and cute grins that caused a woman’s brain cells to deplete at warp speed?

  “I think Carol is enjoying dessert, Aunt Charli,” he said, giving me a teasing wink.

  “It’s beyond delicious, Charli. Thank you for all the work you put into this spectacular meal.”

  Charli flapped a hand my direction. “It was nothing, Carol. I love to cook and enjoy baking.”

  “And the worst part is that she whipped all this up in the time it would have taken me to get the turkey in the oven and make the pie,” Nancy said, giving her sister a disgusted look.

  The conversation was light and pleasant as we finished our dessert. Everyone but Nancy helped with the dishes and putting dessert away.

  “Since you’re here, would you like to see a little of the ranch?” Tim asked, looking at me.

  “I’d love to, if you’re sure you don’t mind showing me around.” I still wasn’t sure where I stood with Tim, or even if I’d decided he was a friend instead of a foe. But I really wanted to see the ranch.

  “Come on,” he said, leading the way to a large laundry room off the kitchen. Chore coats hung on hooks and boots in various stages of scuffed, dirty, and coated in mud sat on a rubber mat on the floor. He lifted a tan canvas coat from a hook and held it for me. “Wear one of Nana’s coats. That way you won’t have to worry about ruining yours.”

  “Thank you,” I said, slipping my arms in the sleeves that were a few inches too short, but not bad, all things considered. The coat was a little big in circumference, but it was warm, and that was the important thing.

  “There should be gloves in the pockets,” Tim said as he shrugged into a coat that had seen better days, but appeared clean.

  I pulled out a pair of leather work gloves and slipped them on as we walked out the back door and down the steps.

  He gave me a tour of the barn, pointed out the bunkhouse and other outbuildings, and stopped at a corral so I could pet a beautiful bay horse.

  “Rowan likes you,” he said as I ran a hand over the horse’s neck.

  “The feeling is mutual. Yours?” I asked.

  He nodded, then took an apple from his pocket. Amazed, I watched as he broke it in two with his bare hands. He handed me half of it. “If you feed him, you’ll have a friend for life.”

  Gingerly, I held out the apple to Rowan. When he muzzled it from my hand, I smiled so broadly, my cheeks hurt. Tim dropped the other half in my hand and Rowan gladly took it from me.

  “Thank you for that, Tim,” I said as we headed in the direction of the house. Brutus walked with us while two cow dogs napped at the top of the bunkhouse steps. I couldn’t seem to keep my hands off of Brutus’ soft fur. Since his head came up to almost my waist, it wasn’t hard to reach out and pet him.

  As we walked, Tim pointed out a treehouse his great-grandfather had built, a sign his great-aunt had painted, and tractor he’d helped his grandpa restore when he was home on leave the year before Bill passed away.

  We were almost up the house steps when the door opened and Ross, Derek, and Jack trooped outside. All three men removed their hats and tipped their heads politely.

  “It was a pleasure to meet you, Carol. I hope you’ll come out and visit us again,” Jack said with a grin that made his mustache twitch.

  “I enjoyed meeting all of you, too. Thank you for making me feel welcome today.” I smiled at each of them.

  “Come back anytime,” Ross said, or maybe it was Derek. The other one rapidly nodded his head.

  I gave them another smile before Tim escorted me inside the house. As he helped me out of his grandmother’s chore coat, his fingers brushed against my neck and I fought down a shiver generated by the brief touch. What was it about this guy that affected me so?

  And it couldn’t all be attributed to a gorgeous smile and hunky body. I wasn’t that shallow.

  “I should probably get back,” I said, although I had thoroughly enjoyed my time at the ranch.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to stay for supper? Aunt Charli’s serving leftovers.”

  Thoughts of more fabulous food were almost enough to change my mind, but not quite. I wasn’t sure how much time around Tim I could handle before I gave in to one of the loony urges racing through my mind to give him a hug, or a kiss, or cuddle on the couch with his fingers entwined with mine.

  Yep. Definitely time to go.

  We walked into the kitchen to find Nancy and Charli at the table with newspaper ads spread out around them.

  Tim groaned. “Please tell me the two of you aren’t thinking about driving somewhere to shop tomorrow? Nana, you know you can’t do that with your hip.”

  Both women glared at him like he was a few bricks shy of a whole wall.

  “You won’t believe it, honey,” Nancy said in a syrupy tone. “But they have this modern marvel called a computer that lets you shop online from the comfort of your own home.”

  From the corner of my eye, I watched Tim start to say something then snap his mouth shut at his grandmother’s sarcasm. “Okay, Nana. Shop all you want. Carol is ready to go so I’m gonna take her home.”

  “Oh, must you leave so soon, darling?” Nancy asked, holding out a hand to me.

  I took it between mine and gave it a gentle pat. “You all have been so gracious and kind and I appreciate it more than you can know, but I’ve got a super busy day tomorrow, so I better get home. Thank you, again, for inviting me today. It’s the nicest Thanksgiving I’ve had in a long, long time.”

  Nancy squeezed my hand and smiled. “You come anytime you want, Carol. We’d love to have you. I hope you do great tomorrow.”

  “Me, too,” I said, then turned to Charli. “It was fabulous to meet you and thank you for the best food I’ve eaten since I can’t even tell you when.”

  “You are most welcome.” Charli hopped up and hurried over to the massive refrigerator. “Let me send you home with leftovers.”

  “Oh, I couldn’t,” I said. I’d already crashed their holiday after beating on Tim. I wouldn’t feel right taking more.

  “I insist. We’ve got enough leftovers in here to last for days. You get your coat while I put a few things together.” Charli smiled at me as she took bowls out of the fridge and set them on the counter. “It’s no trouble at all.”

  “Don’t argue with her,” Tim whispered in my ear. When his breath, warm and smelling slightly of mint, caressed my neck it made tingles roll from my head to my toes.

  Slightly dazed, I allowed him to lead me back to the front door where I’d left my coat and purse. He held my coat for me like a perfect gentleman. As I fastened the buttons, he grabbed his coat then hurried down the hall toward the kitchen. He wasn’t gone long when he returned with a bag full of plastic food containers.

  “No. That’s way too much,” I said, reaching for the bag as I walked to the kitchen.

  He grabbed my arm, pulling me to a stop in the hall. “Just take it. You’ve made Nana so happy by coming and Aunt Charli loves to cook. Seriously, take the food and enjoy it.”

  I would have argued, but when I looked into his eyes, all I could think about was delectable chocolate. Mutely, I nodded my head and let him guide me out the door and down the steps.

  We were almost to the highway when I felt the need to break the silence that fell between us.

  “Nancy’s never mentioned your parents. Where do they live?”

  His jaw tightened and I caught a hint of a wince. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the bruise from where I kicked him or thoughts of his parents.

  “Forget I asked. My curiosity gets the best of me sometimes,” I said, sounding lame even to my own ears.

  “No, it’s okay. My mom was never into the ranching thing, but she had her life goals planned out by the time she was ten. She graduated from high school with honors, attended Harvard
, became a doctor, and has a booming obstetrics practice. Mom met Dad in college. He’s a corporate attorney who works almost as many hours as Mom. Growing up, I had a nanny, rarely saw my parents, and spent all my vacation time at the ranch with Nana and Pops. My parents nearly disowned me when I joined the service instead of going to college, but they eventually got over it. They still live in Washington D.C. and rarely visit. They came for my grandpa’s funeral, but that was the last time we’ve seen them. I know it breaks Nana’s heart, but she hides it well.”

  Wow. It looked like I wasn’t the only one with issues.

  “I’m sorry, Tim. I know what it’s like to be at odds with a parent.”

  One of his dark eyebrows winged upward. “You do?”

  I nodded, wishing I hadn’t said anything. Of course, anyone who knew me from my childhood years had witnessed firsthand the agony visited upon me by Darcy Ledford Bennett, my mother.

  “By the time I was three, my mother decided what she wanted me to be when I grew up and set about making it happen. Unfortunately, her plans and mine were galaxies apart. After I lost my dad, things between us fell completely apart. I haven’t spoken to her in years.”

  “I’m sorry, Carol. That’s rough.” His hand slid across the seat and clasped mine. Warmth unlike anything I’d ever experienced flooded through me. “How old were you when your dad passed away?” he asked.

  “Eighteen. It was right before I graduated from high school.” I sighed and looked out the window. “Dad was brilliant and fun and wonderful. Any good memories I have from my childhood are because of him. He was a wildlife technician. His job is the reason we moved to Christmas Mountain when I was four. Before that, we lived in California, but I don’t remember much about it. Mom hated it here, but she’s a freelance grant writer and can work from anywhere. The morning after I graduated, I packed my car and left town. My mother threatened any number of dire consequences, but when it came down to it, I was an adult and could make my own choices.”

  “That must have been hard, to leave like that, and so soon after losing your father.”

  The sympathy in Tim’s eyes wasn’t helping my emotional state. However, I had lots of practice at shoving down a lump in my throat and acting like everything was fine. “It was hard, but I survived.”

  “When was the last time you spoke with your mother?”

  I picked at a non-existent piece of lint on my sweater. The last conversation I had with my mom wasn’t pleasant. Horrific would be a better description, but the little bit of sharing my past with Tim made me feel marginally better than I had in a while. “I’ve spoken to her twice in the last nine years. I called her a few days after I left home to let her know I was fine. Because she sounded so cold when she finally stopped yelling at me, I told her I got a job at a truck stop as a waitress and had found my true calling. She hung up on me.”

  Tim grinned. “Was any of it true?”

  I shook my head. “No. I was at a truck stop eating breakfast at the time and I did eventually spend a month working as a waitress, but it is definitely not my true calling.”

  His grin broadened. “What about the next time you talked to her?”

  “That was four years ago. I was…” I paused. I couldn’t exactly tell him where I’d been or why I was there or all my efforts to leave the past behind me would be in vain. “I was shocked to hear from her. She was getting married and invited me to the wedding.”

  “Did you go?”

  “No. No I did not, and because of that, I don’t think she’ll ever forgive me. I received a scathing letter in the mail after the wedding letting me know she’d disowned me and never wanted to hear from me again.”

  “I’m sorry, Carol. No parent should be that way. It’s just wrong in so many ways.”

  The lump I’d managed to tamp down earlier was about to completely fill my throat. Not only that, but I felt tears stinging the backs of my eyes. I forced my thoughts to happy things. To my store. To Hemi. To Christmas. To good-looking cowboys with hearts made of marshmallows.

  That last one almost made me smile and the lump receded, allowing me to breathe.

  I glanced up and realized Tim was almost to Rudolph’s Reads. He didn’t bother to park in one of the clearly outlined spaces, instead pulling up parallel to the curb. Since there wasn’t another car to be seen in the entire block, I didn’t think anyone would mind.

  He started to cut the ignition, but I grabbed his hand. “Don’t bother getting out, I can see myself inside. Thank you for today, for coming to get me, bringing me home, and showing me the ranch. And for being nice even when I clobbered you.”

  “I don’t know about clobbered,” he said with a frown although his eyes smiled. “It was my pleasure, Carol. You really are welcome at the ranch anytime. Nana would love to see you, and Aunt Charli would too.”

  I wanted to ask if he’d be happy to see me, but refrained. Quickly gathering my things, I had my hand on the door handle, when something overtook me. Call it a loss of all sense. Call it a turkey hangover. Call it the need to feel connected to another human. Whatever the reason, I leaned over and kissed Tim’s cheek, the one I hadn’t accidentally scratched in the throes of my ninja impersonation.

  One moment he was staring at me, confused. The next, his arms were around me and his lips captured mine.

  Caught off guard, I didn’t push him away. Rather, my hand slid up his arm and around his shoulder. His kiss started out gentle and sweet, and he tasted like spearmint gum blended with something dark and dangerous. The combination was about to prove lethal to my system.

  The kiss deepened, gained intensity, and bright sparks of light exploded behind my eyes. I could have happily remained with his lips locked to mine for eternity. Then the reality of where I was and what I was doing slammed into me with the force of a freight train.

  With a jerk, I pulled back.

  At the wounded look on his face, I placed a quick kiss on that seductive mouth and hopped out of the pickup before I found myself necking with him in front of the store like we were sixteen with rampaging hormones.

  “Thanks, Tim. Have a nice evening.” I shut the pickup door and unlocked my front door. He didn’t pull away from the curb until I was safely inside the store. I managed to walk upstairs, put away the leftovers, and sink onto my couch before my legs began to shake.

  Tim Burke might be opinionated and way too perceptive, but he was definitely a phenomenal kisser.

  Chapter Five

  Miracles happened in Christmas Mountain because I somehow survived Black Friday and Small Business Saturday without losing my mind. In fact, the store had been so busy, I hired one of Josie’s friends to help out through Christmas.

  People loved our book tree, the elf in the window, and all the decorations that made the store a festive place to visit. Rather than serve coffee, I filled the pot with hot spiced cider each day. And Christmas carols played on a continuous loop, which made me deliriously happy.

  Karen had the great idea to set up a gift-wrapping area so we could offer customers free gift-wrapping for in-store purchases or charge for gifts purchased elsewhere. We put up a sign that all funds collected would be donated to purchase toys and clothes for needy children in our community.

  Aiden hated wrapping gifts, but the rest of us got into it and had a lot of fun creating pretty packages. I could just imagine them nestled under a tree, waiting for the recipient to claim them Christmas morning.

  Multiple times, I’d thought about calling Aspen Grove Ranch to see how Nancy was doing. Okay, fine. I admit it. It wasn’t just Nancy I wanted to connect with. I wanted to check up on Tim. After that sizzling kiss Thanksgiving evening, I couldn’t get him out of my mind. Maybe we had a few missteps at our first meeting, and that whole Karate Kid moment was definitely a strike against me, but I’d enjoyed his company. Especially when his lips captured mine.

  Thoughts of that kiss nearly drove me crazy. Convinced it hadn’t affected him at all, I assumed that was the reason I hadn�
�t heard from him. With Christmas rapidly approaching it was probably for the best. I just needed to survive what was turning out to be a stellar season for my business. I’d taken four steps toward the Christmas section at the front of the store to restock a selection of Christmas cards when I bumped into my friend Joy and her son, Max.

  “Hey, what brings you into Rudolph’s Reads?” I asked as I gave Joy a hug and smiled at Max.

  “Just a little shopping,” Joy said, perusing a table of sale items Josie had arranged the previous evening.

  “If there’s something you’re looking for specifically, let me know. If you don’t see it out here, I might have it back in the storage room. We’ve had trouble keeping the shelves stocked recently.”

  Joy grinned. “I’m so happy for you, Carol. It’s wonderful to see the store doing so well. You’ve brought new life to it.”

  “Thank you. I feel like here is where I’m meant to be.”

  She nodded and glanced at Max who looked thoroughly bored.

  “Do you mind if I borrow Max for a few minutes? I just got some new books and I’d like his opinion on them.”

  Joy looked at her son. “What do you think, Max? Go with Carol or hang out with me while I shop.”

  “Carol,” he said, grinning at his mother.

  “Take as long as you need to shop, Joy. I can keep him busy,” I whispered as I motioned for Max to walk with me to the children’s section.

  After showing him two new books about galaxies and outer space geared specifically for children, he plopped down in a chair and started reading. I straightened shelves and helped a man searching for a book about traveling to Germany find what he was looking for, all while keeping an eye on Max.

  Twenty minutes later, my phone chimed and I took it out of my pocket. Joy was at the cash register, ready to go.

  “I think your mom is ready to leave,” I said to Max. Reverently, he set the books back on the shelf where I’d taken them from and followed me to the front of the store. I’d make sure Auntie Carol wrapped up those books as his Christmas gift.