I swallowed hard. This was hard for me to talk about.
I pulled her into a tight hug and rumbled, “It was a few years ago that I stopped believing in love… and started hating Christmas.”
Concern glinted in her eyes. “What happened?”
“I—” The words froze in my throat.
But then she gently ran her fingers across my chest, making tiny circle patterns, and I felt myself being lulled back into comfort.
So I took a risk and told her. “I dated a woman named Tiffany for a while. One year I got called out on an emergency job at the Harrington’s on Christmas Day. They’re a big enough client that I couldn’t say no. Anyway, I thought I’d be gone longer, and I decided to surprise Tiff by getting home early. That’s when I found her in bed with a guy named Joey, who lives a couple of towns over in Deer Springs. After that, our relationship obviously ended, but so did any pleasure I got out of Christmas. Every year it just reminds me of what happened.”
Chloe’s mouth dropped open. “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not. Imagine if I had married her. That would have been a real shitshow. Instead, I found out the easy way that she was only half-interested in me. And to think I’d planned to propose that day. A Christmas engagement. What an idiot I was.”
Chloe hugged me tight and whispered, “I like a man to befull-interested. And I also like Christmas weddings.”
I chuckled at that. “I bet you do. I could see you getting married in a Christmas elf wedding dress with reindeer for bridesmaids.”
She dropped tiny feather kisses into my beard that made me never want to let go of her again. “You better believe it. But only if the groom is Santa.”
We were stumbling around in dangerous territory.
Last night counted as a first date in my book, and here we both were dropping wedding jokes. I tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear.
Chloe made me believe in love again. About its possibility.
I could imagine snuggling under the covers with her every winter, and trips to the lake when the summer days got hot. A pumpkin patch visit in the fall. A different wreath on the door for every season. She’d be the type of woman to make traditions for us, and I’d happily go along with all of it.
My voice was husky and low. “I guess you probably want a man who would let you decorate for Christmas.”
She shifted until she was lying on my chest, staring up into my eyes. “I’d settle for one grumpy Santa.”
Definitely in dangerous territory now.
If I kept going in this direction, she was going to end up being Mrs. Chloe Harris by the end of the day. So I shifted the mood. “Let’s make a game plan. Let’s go check on the roads to see if it’s safe for you to drive yet. If not, you’re coming to Rod’s with me for Christmas.”
When we got outside, we saw that a blanket of snow was still covering everything. Under the snow would be ice. With the steep mountain roads, there was no way she could safely drive back to Fernwood.
Throwing an arm around her, I said, “Looks like I get to keep you a little longer.”
She sighed. “I’m happy about that. But I’m kind of freaking out about work. They’re not going to like this.”
“You said you work at a diner? They can’t getthatworked up over missing a shift.”
Chloe bit her lip. “You don’t know my boss.”
Chapter 17
Chloe
“If you don’t come in today, you’re fired. Simple as that.”
Tears streaked down my cheeks. “I need this job. I always fill in when people need time off. You know I wouldn’t be doing this if it were safe to drive!”
My boss, a temperamental old shrew, said, “Honey, that’s not my problem. It’s Christmas. Do you know how many people called out today? Either show up for your shift, or don’t bother coming back.”
When I hung up the phone a feeling of dread snaked up my spine.
