Читать книгу A Mistletoe Christmas - Carla Cassidy - Страница 10
ОглавлениеJAKE HANSON HATED CHRISTMAS. Every year he swore that when the holiday approached he’d get on a plane, leap on a train and leave the small town of Mistletoe, Texas, where everyone went just a little more than crazy at Christmas.
The madness started just after Thanksgiving, when colorful lights were strung and the gazebo in the town square was draped with ribbons and candy canes and the ever-present mistletoe.
It was a week before Christmas, and the mistletoe madness had nearly reached its peak as he parked his truck in front of the Mistletoe Café.
He got out of his truck and hurried toward the café door, eager to get out of the cold and get some dinner before heading back to his silent, empty two-story ranch house.
The heavenly scent of warm muffins and hot coffee greeted him, along with the clink of silverware and the laughter of friends dining together, which shot a surprisingly sharp pang of loneliness through him.
“Jake!” Suzie Walker, the red-haired owner of the establishment, met him at the door, a sprig of mistletoe in her hand. She raised her hand as high as it would go, which thankfully didn’t reach near the top of his head.
“Are you going to bend down so that we can share a kiss under the mistletoe?” she asked. Her bright blue eyes sparkled with merriment.
“Not a chance, Suzie. Roger would beat the living heck out of me if he saw me kissing his wife.”
She dropped her plump arm down and gave him a look of mock disappointment. “I haven’t managed to snag a single kiss because of that big fat old man of mine.”
Jake smiled. Roger was a big fat older man, who made a perfect Santa each year for the children of Mistletoe. “How about you snag me a booth so I can get some dinner?” He pulled his Stetson off his head.
Suzie sighed. “Follow me, cowboy.”
As she led him toward a booth in the back, he raised his hand and nodded to nearly everyone he passed. He’d grown up with most everyone in the café. The town’s total population was only between 1,800 and 2,000 people, small enough that practically everyone knew everyone else. However, at this time of year there were always tourists drifting in and out of town.
As he passed the booth in front of the one Suzie was leading him to, he saw his neighbor, Melody Martin, seated alone. On impulse he stopped at her booth. “Melody, mind if I join you?” He slid into the seat across from her before she could reply. He smiled at her and set his hat next to him. “I hate to eat alone.”
“Oh...I... Sure,” she stuttered in surprise.
“Well, then,” Suzie said, looking at Jake and then at Melody. “I’ve already taken Melody’s order. What can I get for you?” She looked back at Jake.
“Whatever the special is—that should do it,” he replied, slightly shocked at his own forwardness now that he was seated across from the first woman who had captured his attention in years.
“Meat loaf, mashed potatoes and a Mistletoe muffin,” Suzie replied.
“And coffee,” Jake added.
As Suzie left to head to the kitchen, Jake looked across the table and noted the bright red coat and the shopping bags that took up most of the booth beside Melody.
“Where’s your daughter?” he asked. He didn’t know a lot about Melody, but he knew she was a widow and had a six-year-old daughter.
“She’s spending the evening with a friend. It gave me the opportunity to do some Santa shopping for her.” She wrapped her hands around a cup that he saw held the famous Mistletoe Toddy, a mulled-cider drink with all kinds of secret ingredients assured to bring happiness.
Bah humbug, he thought. He looked around the busy café and then back at her, feeling slightly ill at ease. “I really didn’t give you a chance to say no before I sat down. If you’d prefer that I sit someplace else, I’ll move.”
“You’re fine,” she replied with an easy smile that shot a touch of warmth through him. “I was just thinking that it isn’t much fun to eat alone. I’m so used to Libby filling every silence.”
“How’s the dance business going?” he asked as he worked his way out of his leather coat and set it next to his hat beside him.
“Good. We had our Christmas recital last night, so classes are officially finished until after the New Year.”
Melody had bought the house nearest his ranch eight months before and had immediately built on a dance studio in the back. According to local gossip, half the kids in town now took lessons from her.
Suzie arrived with his coffee, and after she left, Jake took a drink, wondering what the heck he was doing sitting across from a woman he found ridiculously attractive when he had no intention of ever having any kind of serious relationship with a woman again.
Melody wore a blue sweater that perfectly matched her eyes. She had the elegant features of classic beauty but didn’t appear to be wearing any makeup except for a touch of mascara.
“So this is your first Christmas here in Mistletoe,” he said as he set his cup back on the table. “What do you think?”
Her blue eyes sparkled as she shoved an errant long dark strand of hair that had escaped the low ponytail behind her shoulders. “I think it’s all wonderful. There’s such joy in the air, and it’s amazing how the whole town comes together to create Mistletoe magic. What about you? Don’t you love it?”
“Ms. Christmas...meet the Grinch,” he replied.
She raised a perfect dark brow. “Really? You don’t like Christmas?”
“A far as I’m concerned, I’d be happy if we all just skipped this holiday.”
“But from what I’ve learned, mistletoe and Christmas is important to the town. It’s what made the town, and the mistletoe has become a profitable cottage industry.”
The conversation halted as Suzie arrived with their orders. Meat loaf, mashed potatoes and one of the muffins the café was known for, and for Melody, rabbit food—a salad with grilled-chicken strips.
“What brought you and your daughter here?” he asked once they were alone again. “I heard through the grapevine that you were from the Dallas area.”
She picked up her fork and smiled once again. She had a beautiful smile, and he felt as if he’d just swallowed a shot of scotch that warmed him from head to toe.
“I’ve learned that the grapevine is pretty healthy here in Mistletoe.”
He grinned. “By morning, everyone will know that you and I had dinner together, and trust me, there will be embellishments.”
“At least neither of us is married, so there can’t be too much of a scandal,” she replied in amusement. “Anyway, to answer your question, it’s true we’re from Dallas. My husband passed away two years ago, and it wasn’t long before I realized Libby and I needed a change, a place to start over. We’d visited Mistletoe a couple of years ago and I decided it was a good place to make a new beginning.”
“Have you always been a dancer?” he asked. She looked like a dancer, tall and lithe and graceful, the exact opposite of what he’d always thought to be his type.
“Always. I had a studio in Dallas, so it was only natural that I’d open one here. Not only does it pay the bills, but I love it. Do you dance?”
He laughed, the sound a bit rusty to his ears, making him realize that he couldn’t remember the last time he’d laughed out loud. “I can manage a Mistletoe two-step if I’m forced, but that’s about it.”
For the next few minutes they fell silent as they focused on their meals, and once again Jake found himself questioning the impulse that had made him jump into the seat opposite her.
He hadn’t looked twice at a woman for over five years, but the first time he’d encountered his new neighbor, a spark of something had lit inside him.
Lust, he told himself. It had been so long since he’d been with a woman he’d forgotten what lust felt like, and he certainly didn’t understand why the dark-haired, blue-eyed beauty across the table from him seemed to stir it up inside him.
“Tell me about your daughter,” he said, certain that a discussion about a little girl would squelch any inappropriate thoughts he might entertain.
Again she flashed him that wide, beautiful smile. “Libby is the love of my life. She’s bright and giving and makes me laugh. She’s also precocious and willful and occasionally throws a temper tantrum when she doesn’t get her way.”
“Sounds as though you’ve got your hands full.”
“In a good way,” she replied easily.
He relaxed a bit. Not only was he not interested in any kind of a long-term relationship with a woman, he especially wasn’t interested in kids.
They both turned to look as bursts of laughter came from the front of the café. Suzie had managed to get her mistletoe over the head of old George McKnight, and as the two shared a kiss, the crowd clapped its approval.
“That’s a tradition I don’t particularly like,” he said as he focused his attention back to Melody. “I also don’t like New Year’s Eve kisses. I think kisses should mean something and should only be shared between people who love each other.”
He felt the flames that filled his cheeks. What was he doing sharing that with a woman who was a virtual stranger? The madness of Mistletoe had obviously made him truly crazy.
“That’s a nice sentiment,” she replied softly.
“Thanks,” he replied, and motioned for a check from Suzie. He felt the sudden need to escape. He needed to get back to his ranch, where there were no Christmas decorations and no mistletoe anywhere in sight.
Suzie arrived at the table with the check, and Jake looked at Melody. “Since I invited myself to your meal, I’d like to buy your dinner.”
“That’s not necessary,” she protested.
“Consider it a Christmas gift,” he replied as he stood and grabbed his coat and hat from the booth next to him. With a murmured goodbye, he left the booth and hurried to the cashier. He paid the bill and then put his hat on his head and left the café.
As he drove home, he knew he’d mentally gone around the bend. He hated the tradition of a kiss under a sprig of mistletoe, and yet he couldn’t get the vision of Melody Martin in his arms beneath the shiny green leaves with their waxy white berries.
* * *
MELODY RELEASED A deep breath as Jake left the table. Once again she curled her hands around her cup of warm Mistletoe Toddy.
The man was sin on legs, she thought. His slightly shaggy dark hair begged for female fingers to thread through it. His eyes were an interesting shade of silvery-gray, and his rugged features came together in a way that radiated both strength and handsomeness.
His pasture came very close to her yard, and she had spent far too much time over the past several months standing at her kitchen sink and watching him ride his fence line.
Long-legged, broad-shouldered and with a slender waist... The man could have been a pinup model in a Cowboy of the Month calendar.
Town gossip had let her know that he was a loner who came in the café often to eat but didn’t do much socializing. Not that it mattered to her; the very last thing she’d ever want in her life again was a cowboy.
Been there, done that and had the heartache that would last a lifetime. Her marriage had been a happy one, and at least she had Libby to fill some of the space that had been emptied in her heart when Seth died.
Moving to this little town with its community closeness and aura of joy had been a good decision. Libby was thriving, as was the dance studio, and it was only occasionally after Libby went to bed that the ache of loneliness unexpectedly gripped Melody.
Tonight there would be no time for loneliness. Once Libby was asleep, Melody would creep out to the car to retrieve the gifts she’d bought, and then wrap them and hide them back in the trunk of the car.
There would be no time for loneliness in the next week. There was so much going on in the town, events and fun that she and Libby intended to immerse themselves in. There were sing-alongs and tours of the local mistletoe ranches, a night of caroling and of course a visit with Santa.
She glanced at her watch and realized it was time for her to load her packages into the car and head out to pick up Libby. She took a last drink of the yummy hot toddy and then pulled on her coat, grabbed her shopping bags and hurried toward her car, which was parked in front of Carrie’s Christmas Shop.
Within minutes she was on her way to Laura and Jack McKinny’s house on Mistletoe Lane. Their daughter, Megan, not only took dance lessons at the studio, but she and Libby had become best friends.
Mistletoe Lane was decked out for the season with bunches of mistletoe hanging from every streetlamp, along with trailing red ribbons. White sparkling lights created a lovely shimmer on the whole street.
Laura greeted her at her front door with a warm hug. “Did you get finished with what you needed?” she asked.
“Santa shopping all done,” Melody replied. “I can’t thank you enough for keeping Libby busy so I could get out alone.”
“No problem. Want to stick around for a cup of coffee?” Laura asked.
“Rain check?” Melody replied. “To be honest, I’m exhausted and ready to get home and settled in.”
“Then, next time,” Laura replied with a friendly smile. She was one of the first women Melody had made friends with when they’d moved here. Laura was a teacher at the grade school and her husband worked at the bank.
She took a couple of steps down the hallway. “Libby, your mom is here.” Girlie groans filled the air.
“That sounds like her ‘not so happy to see me’ noise,” Melody said.
Laura laughed. “They’re at that age.” She rolled her eyes.
Libby came running up the hall, her long dark pigtails bouncing with each step. “Mom, my princess doll was just about to meet her prince.” Blond-haired Megan ran just behind Libby.
“I guess she’ll have to wait until another time to meet her prince. It’s time for us to head home. Now, what do you say to Ms. Laura and Megan?”
“Thank you for having me over. I had a super time,” Libby said. “And maybe Megan can come over real soon and we can play at my house.”
“That sounds like a plan,” Laura said as she handed Libby her coat.
“Thanks again,” Melody said, and then she and Libby headed to their car.
“I had such fun,” Libby said as she buckled her seat belt. “We played games and then got out all of Megan’s fashion doll stuff. She has a ton of it.”
“I’m glad you had a good time. Did you eat dinner?”
“We had mac and cheese and hot dogs. Megan is my best friend ever. We’ve decided we’re going to get married on the same day and we’ll buy houses next to each other and our husbands will be best friends, too.”
As Libby continued to chatter, Melody found her thoughts drifting back to the unexpected dinner with Jake. Why had he decided to join her?
She hadn’t been averse to his company, and he certainly hadn’t been hard to look at from across the table, but it seemed out of character from what she’d heard about him.
She had to confess that she’d entertained a silly crush on him since the moment she’d first seen him. But she’d decided when Seth died that there would be no more cowboys in her life. If she ever decided to marry again it would be to a lawyer or a banker who didn’t work with horses that could kick them in the head and kill them.
Libby was still talking about her time with Megan when they arrived home. Home was a nice little ranch house with three bedrooms, an airy kitchen and a living room.
She’d used most of Seth’s life-insurance money to build the dance studio on the back of the house, knowing that teaching dancing was what she knew and was what would put food on the table and keep the lights on.
There was also a small barn complete with running water and several hay bales that Melody had bought a month ago when Libby had decided she’d like to have rabbits. By the time Melody had bought a cage and the hay, Libby had changed her mind.
It was after seven, and she pointed her daughter toward the bathroom. “Bath time,” she said. “And then I’ll read you a story before you go to bed.”
It had been a long day for both of them, and Melody was hoping to get her daughter to sleep early so she could take a little time to unwind and dance a bit in the studio and wrap the presents she’d bought that day.
With the Santa shopping done, she had nothing to worry about for the rest of the week except enjoying the town activities and immersing herself in the Christmas spirit.
It was close to eight-thirty by the time she finally got Libby into bed. She sat down next to her daughter and pulled the blanket up around her neck, then kissed her strawberry-scented cheek.
Libby slammed her hand against her cheek to keep the kiss there for the remainder of the night. It was a routine that had begun when she was little more than a baby.
It was also a routine that Melody read to Libby each night before the lights went out. She wanted her daughter to love reading, to know that by reading you could explore all kinds of new worlds.
Although she knew eventually Libby would be asking for electronic readers and computers that played games and whatever, for now Melody was glad that the toys on Libby’s Christmas list had been of the nonelectronic type. Time enough for all that later.
When she had finished reading for the night, Libby reached up and placed her palm against Melody’s face. “I can’t wait for Santa Claus to come,” she said drowsily. “He’s gonna have a big surprise for you.”
“For me?” Melody smiled at her sleepy daughter. “I already have the best present in the world, and that’s you.”
Libby’s hand fell to the bed and she smiled with sleepy secretiveness. “You just wait. I wrote a note to Santa to tell him what we want, but I didn’t give it to you to mail. I mailed it all by myself so you wouldn’t know the secret.”
“Enough talk of Santa and secrets,” Melody said. “Now it’s time to sleep.”
Libby nodded and closed her eyes, and before Melody left the side of her bed, Libby fell asleep.
Whatever Libby had asked Santa for Christmas, she hoped she had it in the trunk of her car, because there was nothing worse than a disappointed six-year-old at Christmas time.
It was just after eleven when she’d wrapped the final present and tucked it back into the trunk of her car. Still wide-awake, she sat down on the sofa and stared at the Christmas tree that had yet to be decorated.
Christmas Eve she and Libby would pull out the ornaments and tinsel, the twinkling lights and the angel to dress the tree. The past two Christmases had been bittersweet, as they’d pulled out ornaments that Seth had bought to make the perfect cowboy Christmas tree.
There were hats and boots, saddles and horses, and each and every one of them reminded both Libby and Melody of what it had been like to be a real, complete family.
Maybe this year she wouldn’t use those particular ornaments. Instead they’d string popcorn and use ribbon and mistletoe and make aluminum-foil stars and do an old-fashioned tree.
Why continue reminding themselves of what they’d lost? New beginnings and new decorations, she thought drowsily. The impromptu meal with Jake had been nice, but she would never seriously entertain a relationship with a cowboy again.
Still, as she fell asleep, it wasn’t visions of sugarplums that danced in her head; rather, it was the hot, handsome Jake who invaded her dreams.
