Harlequin Heartwarming December 2020 Box Set

by Cari Lynn Webb, Linda Warren, Mary Anne Wilson

  Once in the office, Libby finished getting the printer working and laid out the blueprints Seth had given her on the drafting board. She secured them in place, then moved back and opened her laptop. She couldn’t go online with no internet at the ranch, but she could pull up what she’d worked out for the suite off the blueprints before she came to the ranch and add her new ideas to that.

  She didn’t know how long she’d been in the office, but when she looked up and out the window, daylight was waning. Snow was being swirled crazily by the wind. The dog had left without her noticing, and she got up to find Jake. He was on the couch and the dog was lying on the floor at his feet. She smiled as she went over to the pair, who both turned toward her at the same time.

  Taking a seat on the couch by them, she reached to scratch the dog’s head. “He’s fickle, huh?” she asked.

  “He’s practical,” Jake said. “And he’s housebroken. He whined to get out and came back okay. I got away before he could start licking me when he came inside. He had some more food, too.”

  The dog had been at the house for mere hours, but it already felt like he belonged. “Thanks. I got lost in working on the plans. I’m glad you let him out. He’s so skinny, but he smells good. All I had was my vanilla-and-roses shampoo for his bath, and I used it sparingly.”

  “What are you going to call him?” Jake asked as he turned to rest his left arm on the sofa back.

  “I have a few ideas. Maybe Beau. I think he’s got a good heart. Or Buddy, but that’s kind of blah. Lucky, for obvious reasons.” She hesitated, then told him the name she actually thought she liked the most. “What do you think of Pax?”

  His reaction was to frown as he looked down at the dog. She killed the impulse to get his attention and tell him she’d go with one of the other names. But when he finally looked up at her, he surprised her.

  “I think it fits.”

  * * *

  JAKE KNEW THE name was right. “The Pax who wore that collar was at the ranch when I was. Sarge found him on the side of the road, almost dead. But he made it. He turned out to be big and smart and loyal. He looked like a Doberman/shepherd mix, but both of his ears stood up.”

  “Another survivor,” he read on her lips.

  “Sarge had a gift for knowing one when he saw one.”

  He saw her eyes become overly bright before she leaned down to get closer to the dog and frame his muzzle with her hands. Jake knew she spoke to him, but he couldn’t see what she said before the dog licked her face. She turned back to Jake as she wiped at her cheek. He thought she looked sadly happy, if that was possible.

  “You know, sometimes life just gets so good I can hardly stand it.”

  His life was surprisingly good for this brief bit of time. A warm house, a dog and this woman smiling at him—a scene right out of a Norman Rockwell painting. “The dog has it good,” he conceded.

  “So, he’s Pax?” Liberty asked.

  “Yes, he is.”

  “Thank you. I can tell he’s been through a lot and now he’s clean and fed and…” She shrugged, a shaky motion of her slender shoulders under her pale blue thermal. “He’s got a new name and a forever home. When I leave here, he’s coming with me.”

  He studied her and didn’t miss the unsteadiness in her hand as she stroked Pax’s head again. He would have given Liberty anything she asked for right then, if he could have. Agreeing the dog was hers was easy. “If he’s here when you leave, he’s all yours.”

  “Why wouldn’t he be here?” she asked, a slight frown touching her face. “He knows he’s wanted. No one ever ran away from being wanted.”

  Her words were tangling him up inside, and he didn’t like the memories that came with them, of times when he hadn’t been wanted. Before he’d come to the ranch, he’d run away four times and thought of doing it many more times. “Pax would be a fool to run away from you,” he said before a bolt of pain shot through his right ear. It was gone before he could even raise his hand to touch it.

  When he felt Liberty’s hand on his shoulder, he didn’t acknowledge it for a few seconds. When he finally looked toward her, any hope that she hadn’t noticed what happened was gone. He could see it in her eyes.

  She drew her hand back. “Are you dizzy or—”

  “No. Just an earache. They come and go.” Pax stirred, then eased away from Liberty and went closer to him. Before Jake knew what the dog was going to do, his front paws were on the couch, and his face was right in Jake’s as he proceeded to lick him frantically.

  “Get down!” Jake said sternly and was astonished when the dog moved back immediately and sat down on the worn carpet.

  Liberty bent forward to stroke Pax’s neck, then glanced up at Jake. “Are you okay?”

  Jake wanted to get past whatever had happened. “Fine, good,” he said. “So, what’s on your agenda?”

  “Work, but I sure wish I had cell signal out here. I hate being cut off like this.”

  “You know they have a word for your phobia?”

  She frowned. “What phobia?”

  “The fear of being without a cell signal. Nomophobia.”

  Her expression shouted skepticism. “You made that up.”

  “No, a guy named Cal Harris, who helps me with my hearing problem, brought it to my attention.”

  “So he made it up?”

  “No, he’s the one who read about it.”

  “If that’s true, then you can understand why I want some relief from it?”

  He knew she was working up to asking about maybe going to find the signal she craved. Without saying anything, he slowly got up and went toward the entry. He was totally stable as he took the single step up, and he knew Liberty would follow him. She couldn’t help herself. When he got to the front door, he swung it open wide and sure enough, Liberty was right there. When he felt her touch on his back, he smiled to himself. She was so predictable.

  Pax shot past them and bounded out into the snow, leaping high in the air as he ran. When Liberty came around to his side, Jake glanced at her and saw the uneasiness in her expression as the dog headed out of sight. “He’ll be back,” he said.

  “Did you open the door to let him out?”

  The heat of the house was at his back, the cutting cold of the outside world at his front, and Liberty was right by his side. “No, that was his idea. I just wanted to see how deep the snow is so far. It’s pretty deep, so going anywhere is out of the question for now.” He hoped she got the point he was trying to show her.

  Just then Pax was back, running full tilt for the door. Stepping aside, Jake missed the impact that would have surely buckled his knees. Once inside, Jake shut the door, and Pax shook so violently that a clump of snow from his fur flew through the air and caught in Liberty’s hair by her right ear.

  Without planning to, Jake reached to swipe it off, then found himself cautiously brushing the tips of his fingers down the satiny warmth of her cheek. For a moment he was mesmerized by the connection. Green eyes met his, and there was a flash, a moment when they both recognized that something more than casual contact was happening.

  Jake drew back, but he wouldn’t apologize. He wouldn’t have meant it right then if he had. But he wouldn’t touch her like that again. He saw Liberty start to say something, but she ended up turning away. When she met his gaze again, it was as if what had happened between them never had. “I’ve decided I’m going to decorate the tree now, before I go back to work.”

  “I thought you were going to wait for Roger to do it with you.”

  “I was, but I think I’d like to have it done when he gets here to surprise him. Would you sit on the couch and let me know if I put too much stuff in one area, or if the tree looks crooked?”

  He could do that for her. “Sure.”

  She turned and headed into the great room with Pax all but glued to her. Jake went to th
e couch to grab a fresh thermal. Some snow had hit him too on the shoulder and melted going down his arm. But he stopped himself. Any other time he would have stripped off the damp shirt and put on another one, but he couldn’t do that with Liberty around. For one, he didn’t want to horrify her if she saw the scars on his back.

  So he crossed to the chair Liberty had sat in earlier. He pulled the closest chair to it closer and sat down, putting his feet up on the second chair.

  Liberty was taking packages of lights out of a plastic sack. As she opened the first box and started unwinding them, he spoke up. “You’d better test those before you put them on the tree.”

  “Yes, of course,” she said, coming over to hand him the string she held. “Why don’t you test these, and I’ll test the next ones.” His simple suggestion pulled him into what he didn’t want to do—decorate the tree. He’d never liked the fuss around Christmas. He hated socks and underwear for presents and he hated getting an apple in the small stockings that hung on a shelf by whatever tree was in the house he’d been assigned to. But he’d swallow all of that to make sure the lights on Liberty’s tree worked.

  That led to opening boxes of ornaments and ropes of sparkling silver and gold tinsel. When the tree was draped in everything Christmas, he easily set a glittering gold star tree-topper in place. Then he stood back to assess it.

  Liberty was right beside him, her arm brushing his. When he looked at her, she said, “I’ll plug the lights in.”

  “No, I’ll do it. You stand right there and get the full effect.”

  “Wait,” she said, then ran to turn off the overhead lights in the great room and then the office. Finally, the kitchen went dark, and she came back to Jake. He could only make out what she was saying because of the glow from the fire in the hearth. “Okay, I’m ready.”

  He went to the side of the tree to plug in the lights, and he positioned himself so he could see her face before he put the plug in the outlet. As the lights flashed on, he was rewarded when she smiled, an expression of wonder and happiness. He could have looked at Liberty like that forever and never gotten tired of it. And oddly, he’d kind of enjoyed decorating the tree with Liberty. That surprised him.

  CHAPTER NINE

  JAKE WAS SO close to falling into a place where he knew he didn’t belong that he had to get distance. His life was a mess, and even if he got back to that life, he wouldn’t drag her with him. He had a feeling that if she was in his life, she’d complicate it on levels he’d never see coming. That couldn’t happen. He’d seen it in other test pilots. They gradually walked away from their careers, usually saying they couldn’t put their family through the worry that came on every test flight. Or they had problems because they hesitated or didn’t go that extra step needed in a test. He never wanted to have to choose between what he felt born to do and caring about someone.

  His life was only his to live.

  And Liberty had Roger. He had no business even thinking what he was right then. “All the lights work,” he said as he moved back to his chair to sit down and get farther from her.

  “Wow control your enthusiasm,” she said as the Christmas lights twinkled and danced off the shiny glass ornaments. “Not much for Christmas, are you?”

  He shrugged. “I told you I’d take fireworks over Christmas any day.”

  “But this tree lasts for as long as you want to keep it in the house. You could keep it in until your birthday. Fireworks are gone as soon they explode.”

  Liberty hurried over to a bag that still had something in it. She took out several red-and-white boxes and brought them over to where he was sitting. “Candy canes, the final touch on a perfect tree.”

  She dropped the boxes on the other chair, then opened one and handed it to him. “You take the high part, and I’ll take the low part.” She grinned. “Maybe I have a bit of Scot in me.”

  He figured she had more than a bit of child in her, and he did what she wanted. When the tree was dripping with the red-and-white candy, he turned to her. “Anything else?”

  “No, it’s perfect, well, except for presents, but they’ll come. It’s the most beautiful Christmas tree I’ve ever seen,” he watched her say. “The snow’s outside, and all we need now is some Christmas music playing as we sip mulled cider.”

  “I can supply some music, but you’re on your own with the mulled cider,” Jake said. “But first, I’m going to find something for dinner.”

  When he went into the kitchen, he flipped on the overhead lights and opened the refrigerator. He was startled by Liberty’s hand on his arm. When he turned, she said, “I found some meat in the freezer before I left this morning, and I took out two steaks. I’m not sure about how to cook them. Maybe fry them, or roast them in the oven?”

  One way or another, she’d ruin the meat and he knew how to barbecue steaks but didn’t want to right then. “That’s too much to do,” he said. “How about some packaged mac and cheese? There’s always boxes of that here.”

  “I think I can do that,” she said right away.

  “No, I’ll do it. You sit and enjoy your tree.”

  He turned away and headed for the pantry. This time she didn’t follow him, and before long, he had the boxed pasta done and in a bowl on the table where he’d set two places for them. “Comfort food,” he announced.

  Liberty came toward him but went past the table and up into the kitchen. The overhead lights went off again before she turned on the light in the fan hood over the stove. When she came to sit down across from him, she asked, “Can you see what I’m saying without the overhead lights on?”

  “Not a problem,” he said, then thought of something and stood. He motioned to the bowl of pasta. “Help yourself. I’ll be right back.”

  He headed past the pool table to a cupboard set flush in the wall to the left of the office door. He pushed a panel and it snapped open, showing old electronics from the seventies and eighties stacked on two shelves at eye level. The lower shelves were filled with LPs in their original sleeves, cassette tapes and CDs in jewel cases.

  He switched on the CD player, which was the size of a small suitcase, then crouched to scan the lower shelves and saw what he wanted. He pulled out a CD of Christmas music and put the disc on the tray that automatically slid in. He turned and called to Liberty. “Give me the thumbs-up when this is loud enough.” She’d been watching him and nodded. He pressed Play, then slowly adjusted the volume until he got the signal from Liberty. He went back to the table and sat down again. “It’s older Christmas music.”

  She smiled at him. “‘Silver Bells,’ one of my favorites.” She glanced at Pax, who was settling by her feet. Looking up at Jake, she said, “Thank you, this music is perfect.”

  “I’ll take your word for it,” he said. Then he remembered something he wanted to say to her. “With more snow coming, will you promise not to push to get out of here to go to town for shopping or whatever until it’s safe?”

  She put another spoonful of macaroni on her plate, then looked up at him before taking more. “I knew that’s why you opened the front door earlier. Sneaky,” she said with a smile.

  “What?”

  “You let me see how much snow was out there so I wouldn’t suggest doing something risky, didn’t you?”

  She got him good. “Well, did it work?”

  “Actually, it did. It was hard enough driving last night, so, yes, I agree not to push to get out of here until the roads are cleared. Besides, they’ll be ready tomorrow, won’t they?”

  This would test her agreement. “No, they start with the town first, next the major roads in and out, and then they make their way out here.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Great.” Then she shrugged. “Okay, but the minute we can get back into town, I need milk, fresh fruit and some treats for Pax.”

  She seemed to be in a mood not to challenge him, so he kept going. “Okay, how ab
out we take my truck into Cody, do some food shopping for you, find a cell signal to treat your addiction and see Sarge again when it’s safe?”

  “When did you start being logical and cautious?” she asked, and he knew that she was teasing him.

  He knew exactly when he’d started—when he’d met Liberty. He wasn’t usually protective, but he owed Seth that much, and he owed her, too. He didn’t want anything to happen to her because he let it happen. When he finally left, he’d leave her here safe. “Enjoy it while it lasts,” he said, and motioned to the macaroni and cheese. “Can I have some?”

  “Yes, of course,” she said, and pushed it over to Jake.

  The food was passable, but the company was better. They talked about anything that came up without arguing. “I’ll feed Pax after we finish here,” she said.

  The dog sat up to look from one of them to the other, as if he understood what Liberty had just said. When Jake said, “He’s spoiled already,” the dog’s ear that could stand up did.

  “He deserves to be spoiled. Everyone does, just a bit.”

  “Are you spoiled?” he asked as he pushed his empty plate back.

  “No, I guess not. Well, maybe some.” She smiled at that. “My mother always makes my birthday cake the way I like it.”

  “How’s that?”

  “I love carrot cake with sour cream frosting, and she makes it every year. It’s wonderful.”

  He’d never tasted it but she certainly looked happy thinking about it. “When’s your birthday?”

  “New Year’s Eve.”

  “So how old are you this year?”

  “Guess,” she said, smiling.

  He shook his head. “Oh, no, I’m smarter than that. If I say too young, you’ll think I’m lying. If I say too old, things won’t go well.”

  “How old are you?” she asked.

  “Thirty-two.”

  “Well, I’ll be twenty-nine.”

  “What should I say? I would have never guessed that, then leave it up to you figure out why I said that?”