CHAPTER 8
***RYAN***
The sun was shining for the first time in days when Ryan walked out of his last final of the semester, thoughts of the future spinning through his mind. It would only be a few short months until he was certified to teach in his own classroom, and he couldn’t wait. He had so many plans once he had his own classroom that they were brimming over in his head. He’d been dreaming of being a teacher for so long that it was hard to believe it was really going to happen. The fight to get where he was had been long and hard, but he was almost there.
Looking forward to celebrating the end of the semester with the rest of his friends that night, he took a shortcut through campus even though it meant tromping through the melting snow and arrived to find the fraternity van backed up to the garage, back doors open, the engine running. Wondering who was using it in the middle of the afternoon, he skipped the front door and went directly to the garage, surprised to find Paula loading cookie baskets into the back of the van.
“What are you doing?” he demanded, putting his hands on his hips. “Hattie hired someone to deliver these, you shouldn’t be doing this.”
Paula carefully loaded the baskets she’d been carrying before turning to look over at him, a scowl on her face. “Unless I missed it, Hattie is the one in charge around here,” she said. “If you have a problem, take it up with her. I’m tired of defending myself to you.”
Without even giving him a chance to speak, she turned and headed back into the house, letting the door slam right in his face when he followed her. Trying to control his temper, he flung the door open and stomped into the kitchen behind Paula, ready to lay into her, but then he saw Hattie standing by the table, a clipboard in her hands.
Ignoring the look Paula gave him, he strode over to Hattie. “What happened to Trevor?” he asked. “I thought he was going to do the deliveries for you.”
“His mom broke her hip and he had to cancel on me, but we’ve got it handled. You don’t need to worry,” Hattie said. “I got permission to use the van and Paula volunteered to do the deliveries. She’ll have them all done by the end of the day. She’s very organized. I don’t know what I’d do without her.”
“Well, isn’t that nice?” he said, trying to ignore the I told you so look on Paula’s face as she gathered another armload of baskets. “There are a lot of deliveries to make, I’d be happy to pitch in. I’ve got a few free hours before we’re supposed to go out and celebrate the end of the semester tonight.”
“Oh, Ryan, that’s very sweet of you, but it’s really up to Paula,” Hattie said. “I wouldn’t want to overstep. She’s worked very hard putting together a schedule that works for her.”
“Oh, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind the help; one of us can drive, and the other can make the deliveries. It will all go so much faster,” he said, walking over and taking the clipboard from Hattie. “I’m sure you have other things you need to be doing. I’m really happy to help.”
“Well, I could get started on the cake for the Dean’s Christmas dinner,” Hattie said, looking longingly at the stove. “It’s going to have twelve layers of chocolate cake and three different fillings. I’ve got hours of work to do, but the baskets come first.”
Paula was on her way to the door, but she paused as the satisfied smile disappeared from her face and she turned back around. “Hattie, I don’t mind letting Ryan help if it would free you up to do something else,” she said, shooting him a dirty look. “But I am perfectly capable of doing this on my own. Maybe he can just stay here and help me load up when I stop back for more baskets.”
“We could do it that way or we could just take them all at once and sort them on the road,” he said, then saw the look on Paula’s face. “I mean if that works for you, I’m just here to make things easier for you, that’s all.”
“Aren’t you sweet?” Hattie said, then looked over at Paula. “He’s always been such a big help, you don’t mind doing things a little differently, do you?”
“No, that’s fine,” Paula said, shooting daggers at him with her eyes. “We both just want to help. I’m sure we can find a way to work together.”
“Excellent,” Hattie said, a big smile on her face. “I’m going to get started on that cake.”
Feeling triumphant, he tucked the clipboard under his arm and started gathering up baskets. “Do you want to drive or hand out the baskets?” he asked, starting for the door, his arms full. “I’m happy to do either, it doesn’t matter to me.”
“How about you stay here?” Paula hissed at him. “What do you think you’re going to gain by going with me? Are you afraid I’m going to steal your crappy van and run away with the baskets? Or maybe there’s something in the van that you’retrying to hide? Then again, you could just be paranoid and a little…”
“I’m just trying to help Hattie, she’s always been there for us, and I have some free time since I’m done with finals,” he said. “Maybe if you didn’t think the entire world revolves around you, you’d see that I’m just doing something nice for the woman who has been taking care of me for the last four years.”
“Well, excuse me, remind me to give you a medal when we get back,” Paula said, heading for the door. “I feel so honored to be allowed to work with a saint like you, but you’d better get a move on. You’ve already made us ten minutes late.”
It wasn’t until he piled the baskets he’d been carrying into the back of the van with the others that he realized what he’d volunteered to do. He might have won that round with Paula, but he’d signed himself up for an entire afternoon of work, and it was clear that she knew it too when she walked by him and tossed him the keys to the van, a big smile on her face.
“You can drive, I want to hand out the baskets,” she said, then climbed into the passenger seat and tooted the horn. “Get a move on, Ryan, we’re already behind schedule.”
***Paula***
Quietly seething in the passenger seat, Paula was plotting her revenge as they drove to the first drop-off location, more than just a little annoyed that Ryan had ruined the entire experience. She’d been looking forward to playing Santa or at least one of his elves and spreading some Christmas cheer, but now, with the Grinch riding next to her, the fun had completely evaporated from the day.
“I don’t know why you had to come along and ruin everything,” she finally said when they pulled up to the firstlocation. “I could have done this all alone, it’s not rocket science, and you’ve got as much Christmas spirit as…”
“You could always quit, then you wouldn’t have to put up with me,” Ryan said, shrugging his shoulders. “I warned you, remember? I’ve got my eye on you and I’m not backing down.”
His words did something to her, but not what he wanted. A burst of desire rushed through her, making her entire body begin to tingle, and she felt her cheeks beginning to get hot. Slightly breathless, she cursed under her breath, opened the door and jumped out, stomped around to the back of the van, threw open the doors, and grabbed the first basket on the list.
When she got back, Ryan was looking much too pleased with himself. “I’ve decided I’m going to enjoy watching you scramble in and out of the van, making deliveries from my nice warm comfy seat,” he said, putting it into gear. “Where to next, boss?”
