A Tree for the Billionaire (Southern Billionaire Romance Book 4)

by Michelle Pennington

  “This is weird, isn’t it?”

  “What is?”

  Kate raised her head and looked at him. “Being here like this. It’s just so different.” She smiled. “And you almost seem like a normal guy.”

  Chris clenched his jaw, not sure how he felt about this. “Is that a good thing?”

  Shrugging, Kate reached out and ran her fingers through the swirling bubbles in front of her. “It’s good for you. I’ve been worried about you. You’re so…” Her voice died away, and she looked up at him with wide, worried eyes.

  “You might as well be honest,” he said. “What am I going to do? Fire you?”

  “Maybe. And honestly, I’m enjoying this cabin too much to risk being sent packing.”

  He smiled. “Since I’m only here to figure out what it will take to get you to stay, that’s the last thing you have to worry about. Now, I’m so what?”

  “Mechanical. Driven. Unreachable. You just don’t seem to have a lot of human connection in your life.”

  The truth of her words dug at him, but even as he acknowledged it in his head, he couldn’t help but argue. “You know how often I go out socially. And I’m surrounded by people all the time.”

  Kate’s eyes pierced him. “But when was the last time you called someone just because you missed them, or bought someone a gift just because, or vented to a friend?”

  Chris didn’t waste time trying to think of when. “You do those things?”

  She nodded sadly. “Most people do.”

  Stretching his arms out along the edge of the hot tub, he sighed. “After a string of failed relationships, I decided after Gemma that I was going to give up on being normal. Clearly, I’m not built for it.”

  Kate’s rosy lips turned down. “I don’t believe it.”

  “You’ll have to trust me on this one. Now, what was it you wanted to talk about? I’m pretty sure it wasn’t this or the issue of your resignation—which is what I want to talk about. So, what was it?”

  At least that brought a smile back to her face, though the mischievous gleam in her eyes worried him.

  “I’m going to talk you into going with me to get a Christmas tree tomorrow.”

  He couldn’t help but laugh. “No. You’re not.”

  Kate raised her eyebrows. Clearly, the challenge had been accepted. “Why don’t you like Christmas, Mr. Warren?”

  Chris hated that she’d called him Mr. Warren again. He’d discovered just how much he enjoyed having her call him Chris. But he let it slide without comment. “Well, can you explain why you do like it?”

  Grinning, she leaned forward a little. “That’s easy. My earliest memories of Christmas were so magical. The whole world seemed like a wonderland. The decorations, the lights, the food. Mostly I guess I loved the anticipation and the way everyone seemed to be happier and spend more time together. We just had all these cool traditions like making goodies and then taking them around to our neighbors. We decorated the tree together as a family, and there was this big church in my town that did a Christmas pageant every year with real camels and a donkey and the choir dressed like angels.”

  “The only tradition we had was my parents’ party––that I wasn’t invited to––and me opening gifts they’d paid other people to buy for me while they suffered through their hangovers.”

  Kate frowned. “But you always do so much charity work. Didn’t you learn that from your parents?”

  Shrugging, Chris looked up at the dark sky. “In a way. But for them, I think it was mostly about good press.”

  He could feel her eyes on him so he looked back at her, even though he dreaded seeing pity or judgement there.

  “Well, I know firsthand that you’re not like that. I’ve set up enough of your donations to know that. My mom and dad never had tons of money, but every year, we would buy gifts for a family in our town who didn’t have much. We’d have a big meeting every year to choose who we were going to help.” Kate chuckled. “If we didn’t pick who my dad nominated, he’d just do it for them anyway, and we’d help two families that year.”

  “That’s really nice. You had better examples than I did.”

  She shrugged. “My parents are really great like that. They made everything fun, but meaningful too. I’ve missed it so much the last couple of years since I haven’t been able to get home.”

  “I’m sorry about that. If my Christmases had been more like that, I would have understood better what people were giving up. I mean, I saw stuff like that in advertisements, but I just figured it was all just made up.”

  “What were your Christmases like?”

  “The only thing I remember from when I was little was the enormous pile of presents under the tree and having to wait so long to open them because my parents didn’t get up until after noon. Like I said, they always had a big party on Christmas Eve, so I spent that time getting in the way of the staff and, well, getting into trouble. They had staff to take care of me, of course, so even that rarely got their attention. As I got older, the gifts got more expensive, and they spent less and less time at home. It always seemed like they were buying me off.”

  “Chris, I’m sorry.”

  “It is what it is. Not much different than the rest of the year actually. But still worse somehow.”

  He waited for Kate to say something, but she was silent. From her expression, he knew she had plenty of thoughts passing through her mind, but none of them escaped her lips. Feeling bare and exposed, Chris crossed his arms in front of him and wished he hadn’t said anything. Ashamed for dumping so much bitterness in her lap, he stared off into the distance. The moonlight reached down into the valley, but only skimmed the tops of the trees. Except on the peaks where the trees stood tall in its halo.

  He’d only looked away for a moment before the sound of rippling water caught his attention. When he looked back, he found Kate drifting across the hot tub. Moving to sit next to him, her leg brushed his lightly. All his muscles tensed.

  What was she doing?

  As they faced each other, Kate reached up and rested her hand against his face. The hot water from her hand was soothing, but somehow, his body was on high alert. Her eyes searched his as her thumb brushed softly across his cheek.

  “It’s not too late.”

  “For what?”

  “For you to have happy memories of Christmas.”

  “What if I don’t want any?”

  She smiled, but it still looked sad. “You only say that because you don’t have any. I’m going to change that.”

  Feeling as if he was caught in her gravity, Chris leaned closer, tilting his head but restraining himself from closing the distance. “Making me happy isn’t part of your job description.”

  Kate tilted her chin up and brushed her lips across his, as soft as a butterfly’s wing—not quite a kiss, just a caress that might have turned into one. Then she pulled back a fraction to say. “We both know this isn’t about my job.”

  She stood up then, sending the water cascading off her smooth, gleaming skin. As she moved across the hot tub and got out, wrapping her robe around her, Chris asked, “Why are you getting out so soon?”

  Kate knotted the tie on her robe. “It got too hot for me. I’ll see you at breakfast.”

  She slipped into her room, sliding the glass door closed behind her with a finality that made the vacancy she’d left all the more sharp and meaningful. He groaned and ran his hands over his face. A click sounded from the switch on the wall as the water stilled and the light went out. Time was up.

  Chris only realized he’d forgotten to bring out a towel when he got out and a gust of cold air swept over his wet skin. Instantly chilled, he hurried inside. Leaving small puddles on the floor of his bedroom, he strode to the bathroom and gratefully grabbed the first towel he saw. As he dried off, he tried to block his thoughts, desperate not to examine the things Kate had said, the way she’d made him feel.

  But his lips burned where hers had brushed them.

  I
t didn’t matter what she meant by it. At least that’s what he told himself.

  And he definitely was not going to have anything to do with Christmas trees.

  Chapter Nine

  Kate still hadn’t completely figured out how to get Chris to come tree hunting with her, but she knew that getting coffee in him would be a good start. She’d had several packages of his favorite brand shipped to the cabin, so by the time he came downstairs, she had it ready for him along with an omelet and a pan of cinnamon rolls.

  When their eyes met, she looked away quickly. What had she been thinking last night? She’d come so close to kissing him—her boss. In a way, the caress had felt more intimate than a kiss. He would know how she felt about him now.

  She kept her back to him because she knew her face would be redder than the tomatoes she was dicing for her own omelet. The only reason she hadn’t run away in the dead of night to hide her shame was that she had work to do here. This was no longer about some stupid power game between them. She wanted to do this one last thing before she said goodbye to him—make his life better even when she was no longer a part of it.

  “Good morning,” Chris said.

  “Good morning.” There. She sounded normal, right? Not like someone who was freaking out inside? “Why don’t you sit down? I’ve got your breakfast ready.”

  “You don’t need to serve me, Kate. Is this mine?” he asked, picking up the plate with his omelet.

  She nodded and poured a cup of coffee for him. “And there are cinnamon rolls if you have room.”

  He smiled. “Oh, I noticed.” As he went to sit at the table, he asked, “Have you seen Shaun this morning? We have a merger in Thailand going south, and I need him on it.”

  “I haven’t seen him.” Kate slid the omelet she’d been cooking onto a plate and laughed. “When I came down to put the soup away last night, I was walking around turning out lights and found him in the theater room. He was so engrossed in the movie he was watching that he didn’t even hear me come in. It was A Princess for Christmas. I almost died. But since it was just starting, I have a feeling he might have stayed up late.”

  Chris wrinkled his nose. “A Princess for Christmas? Sounds stupid and sappy.”

  “Don’t knock it till you try it. Okay, so I have a surprise for you.”

  Looking up from his plate, Chris raised his eyebrows. “Yeah. I’ve been wondering how you’d try to trick me into tree hunting with you today.”

  “Well, since you’re going to be so blunt, I won’t try to be subtle. I’ve arranged for you to meet the Meadow Ridge Women’s Shelter at a local tree farm to donate a tree. They’re really excited.”

  “Why does a shelter want a tree? Wouldn’t they rather have a cash donation?”

  Kate smiled. This was going better than she expected. “Well, a tree will brighten up the place and make it a little more festive. But of course, you’ll make a sizable donation as well.”

  “And your tree.”

  “Oh, we might as well pick one out while we’re there, don’t you think?”

  “Devious, but impressive. I can’t say no, can I? This is going to be one expensive Christmas tree.”

  “Everything you do is expensive. And I know how much you give to charity anyway. Stop grumbling and eat up so we can go.”

  “But how in the world did you get this set up so quickly?”

  “Do I dare give away my trade secrets?”

  “Yes. Spill it.”

  “I knew that pastors tend to get up early, so I called down to one of the churches in Meadow Ridge. And he basically took care of the rest.”

  Chris shook his head but didn’t say another word. He finished off his food and scooted back from the table. “If we’re going to leave soon, I’d better talk to Shaun before I leave.”

  A few minutes later, they met by the front and were soon driving along the winding road into town. All the silent alone time unnerved Kate, so she reached out and turned on the radio.

  “You’re listening to KKXM, All Christmas, All the time.”

  “It’s official,” Chris said. “I’m not going to survive this weekend.”

  Kate sighed. “Fine. If Jingle Bell Rock is too much for you, maybe you can handle this.” She turned on the car’s bluetooth and handed her phone to Chris. “Here, I have a playlist with instrumental Christmas music, all classical. It’s called Christmas Chill Out.”

  Chris chuckled softly and read through her playlists. “Get A Move On. Beach Escape. Find My Zen…”

  “Uh, you don’t need to read through all of them.”

  “Wait. Wow. Mr. Warren is Driving Me Nuts. Okay, we’re listening to that one.”

  Kate squeaked and grabbed for the phone, nearly running them off the road in the process. The swerving startled Chris into throwing his hands out protectively, so as soon as her tires were squarely between the road lines again, she grabbed the phone. “Never mind, I’ll do it.”

  “You know, you make a better assistant than a driver.”

  “You make a better boss than passenger.”

  When Kate got to a straight stretch, she quickly turned on the playlist she wanted, relaxing immediately when the first notes of “Carol of the Bells” came through the speakers.

  Following the car’s GPS, she easily found the tree lot and parked. “Put on your cheerful and generous benefactor face,” she told Chris.

  He rolled his eyes and got out of the car. As they met at the front of the car and walked through the arched gateway onto a large lot, she saw a small group of people ahead, huddled in the doorway of a small metal building. She didn’t blame them. It was miserably cold this morning. When they got close, she smiled. “Good morning! I’m looking for Mr. Adair.”

  A tall man with grey hair at his temples and a red nose stepped forward. “Ms. Ryan? Welcome! This is Mrs. Barnaby who runs the Women’s Shelter.”

  Kate smiled and shook hands with both of them and then introduced Chris. After all the introductions were over, she said, “Well, let’s go pick a tree!”

  Even in the cold, the whole group was cheerful as they walked through the rows of cut trees for sale. When the ladies from the shelter had chosen their tree, Mr. Adair got started loading it into the truck they’d brought with them. Kate smiled when Chris went forward and gave a card to Mrs. Barnaby.

  “This is my secretary’s number. Please call him, and he’ll make arrangements for a donation to your shelter.”

  Mrs. Barnaby practically glowed. “Thank you so much, Mr. Warren. Your generosity will bless a lot of lives.”

  “It’s a pleasure.”

  “Merry Christmas.”

  “Thank you. You too.”

  As the ladies from the women’s shelter pulled away with their tree, Kate walked up next to Chris. Smiling, she said, “Ready to pick ours out now?”

  He looked sideways at her and pointed randomly. “That one looks good.”

  Kate turned to face him and narrowed her eyes. “Which one? The eight-foot spruce or the seven-foot fir?”

  “Whichever one you want.”

  “What I want is for you to care just a tiny bit. I want you to feel a little, itty bitty spark of ownership and affection for this tree. Even if you just have to pretend that you’re interested, I would really appreciate the effort.”

  After waiting out her verbal explosion, Chris sighed deeply and then forced his best smile, the one he used for banquets and photo shoots. “Kate, I think that spruce tree is perfection itself. I’m sure we could walk this whole lot over again and not find a such a lush, symmetrical tree.”

  Kate rose up on her tiptoes and tugged his beanie down over his eyes. “You are infuriating. But you have good taste in trees. Come on. Let’s find Mr. Adair.”

  Thirty minutes later, when the tree had been tied to the top of the SUV, Mr. Adair shook their hands. “Thanks a lot, folks. Stay warm. You heard they’re forecasting a mess of snow for tomorrow night, didn’t you?”

  “No,” Kate said. “We had
no idea. Will it be bad?”

  “Naw. They say we’ll get about ten inches or so. Of course, if you’re up higher in elevation, you’ll get more than that. Might want to stock up on milk and toilet paper.”

  “Thanks for the warning,” Chris said. As they got in the car, he asked her, “Do we have enough toilet paper?”

  Kate chuckled. “We’re fine.” As they headed back up the mountain, she turned down the Christmas music and said, “By the way, you were great back there.”

  “You know I like to support charitable organizations.”

  “Yes, but I meant, you were really friendly and relaxed with those people.”

  “I’m not some kind of unfeeling monster, Kate.”

  His voice had a decidedly annoyed tone to it now, which made her feel bad because she’d been trying to compliment him. “That’s not what I meant. I’ve always known how kind you are. It just doesn’t always break through your shell though, and it did today.” Kate chuckled. “It makes me hopeful that you’re actually going to help me decorate this tree.”

  Chris leaned back against the head rest. “You are one relentless woman.”

  “Remember that whenever you think about resisting me.” Too late, she realized the way her words could be taken. She glanced sideways at him and saw that he was smirking at her. But he said nothing, which she was glad for. She turned up the music again and let the gentle notes of Greensleeves ease the awkwardness away.

  Chapter Ten

  Chris was determined that he was not going to help decorate Kate’s tree, even if Shaun was. He watched them from the couch as he checked stocks on his phone. It was odd how people got so excited about Christmas trees. What a strange tradition: to drag a tree indoors and cover it with stuff.

  “Are the ornaments all even?” Kate asked, stepping back from the tree to look it over.

  She was only a few feet away from him now and was dressed in leggings and a long t-shirt again, like that night he’d gone to her apartment. Just like then, he couldn’t help but admire her petite, feminine figure. She still had her contacts in, but her hair was up in a bun. Why did he have such a hard time not looking at her?