The Lion Loves a Lady (A Second Chance Christmas in Bear Creek Book 3)

by Harmony Raines

  “You have.” Julius grinned, too. In fact, the two people before him began to resemble a pair of Cheshire cats.

  “She’s a guest in the hotel,” Lilly continued.

  “Even better.” Julius’s eyes widened and Charlie could almost hear his mind racing as he tried to figure out how he could help get this newly bonded pair together. “Who is she?”

  “Penny. Penny Granger,” Charlie told Julius. He was in too deep to keep this to himself now.

  “Lady Penelope Granger?” Julius chuckled.

  “A Lady? She’s an actual Lady?” Charlie asked. No wonder Julius thought it was amusing. What would a Lady want with a man like Charlie who lived in the mountains...with a woman and a child? Wow, he would look like the worst catch in the world.

  “Yes, her father is an Earl.” Julius’s eyes danced with laughter. “He and his wife have visited here a couple of times. Which is why Lady Penelope decided to spend Christmas here.”

  “I don’t follow,” Lilly said. “Why isn’t she spending Christmas with her family? Or her husband, I thought she was married?” Lilly was great at digging out information in a subtle way.

  “She is. Or she was...” Julius paused. “This is not my story to tell.”

  Charlie nodded. “Her husband cheated on her.”

  Julius inclined his head in agreement. “He broke her heart.” Julius stepped forward and placed his hand on Charlie’s arm. “And now she has you to mend it for her.”

  “I’m not sure a lion shifter from the mountains is what a Lady is looking for,” Charlie confessed.

  Julius shook his head. “Lady Penelope is searching for the one thing we are all searching for...love.”

  “And you can love her. Your love is stronger and deeper than anyone else I’ve ever met,” Lilly told him. “You just have to put yourself out there and claim her.”

  Charlie shook his head. “Her parents won’t freak that I have nothing to offer her?”

  “No. All they want is for their daughter to be happy.” Julius rubbed his hand together. “Now, what can I do to help?”

  “We have to get them together.” All signs of Lilly’s tears were now gone as she schemed with Julius.

  “I’ll go and talk to her. Maybe she wants a guide around town.” Julius looked thoughtful. “Leave it with me.”

  “I should get back to work.” Lilly stood on tiptoes and kissed Charlie on the cheek. “I’ll speak to you later.”

  “I’ll pick Sally up from school as usual,” he promised. It was Sally’s last day at school before the holidays and Lilly was working a long shift so she could have more time off during the holidays.

  “Thanks. But if you have something else to do, or if you are busy with someone else…” She opened her eyes wide and inclined her head as if it was a secret code.

  “I will be there for Sally,” Charlie assured her.

  “Stay here and I’ll go and talk to Lady Penelope,” Julius said.

  “I’ll wait outside, I need some fresh air.” Charlie backed out of the door, not sure what he’d gotten himself into. But he was grateful for their help. Because now that he knew Penny wasn’t tied to a husband she loved, he wanted to do whatever it took to make her his.

  A Lady, his lion mused. Who would have thought?

  Fate sure has a sense of humor, Charlie agreed.

  He only hoped fate was not playing a trick on him. Would Penny’s parents really accept him when he had nothing to offer? He’d lived a life of hard work, taking what jobs he could, while also supporting Lilly and Sally. Not just financially, but with his time and attention. These last couple of years had been the toughest, with Lilly studying to become a teacher, he’d picked up most of the chores around the house along with the school run.

  But he wouldn’t change a thing. And he only hoped Penny...Lady Penelope would see him for who he truly was. A man ready to love and cherish her for the rest of their lives.

  Chapter Five – Penny

  Penny left the dining room with Harvey and Felicity, they walked together to the stairs and then parted ways. The couple intended to visit Bear Creek and perhaps buy some last-minute gifts, while Penny desperately wanted to visit the mountains. She needed to feel the wind in her hair and let go of her pain and guilt over her ruined marriage.

  Wanting to escape the world for a little while, she ran up to her room, grabbed a thick, warm coat and went outside, taking the rear entrance out into the gardens. The cold hit her instantly and she pulled her scarf up around her face, her eyes lingering on the mountains high above. It was too dangerous to go up there alone. If something happened and she couldn’t get help, she would die of exposure.

  Her heart sank. Just like her marriage, this vacation was not going as she’d hoped.

  But there must be other things she could do, or maybe there was a guide she could hire.

  Penny walked around, it was too cold to stand still for too long, but she was not ready to go back inside yet. Wandering down the path leading to a small stone building by the frozen lake, she let go of the tension in her shoulders

  “I married my mate here.” A male voice behind her made her jump, she’d been so lost in thought that she hadn’t heard his approach. “Julius.” The man held out his hand. “I’m the hotel owner, I met your parents when they came to stay.”

  “Julius. Yes, my mom and dad really loved it here.” She placed her hand on the stone wall of the folly and looked up at the gargoyles looking down on her. “This would be a perfect place to get married.”

  “Maybe one day you will get married here, too.” He arched one eyebrow. “I’d gladly host your wedding.”

  Her brow creased. “I’m already married. At least I was. And I don’t think I’ll be doing it again anytime soon.”

  A strange expression crossed his face and he tilted his head on one side as he looked at her. “You never know what life has in store for you.”

  “I don’t know if I want to know.” She gave a short laugh. “My mom told you what happened, didn’t she?”

  “Yes, she did. And I’m so sorry you got hurt.” Julius took a step closer. “Do you believe in fate, Lady Penelope?”

  “Oh, please call me Penny.”

  “Do you believe in fate, Penny?” Julius asked again, a strange faraway look in his eyes.

  “I used to. But now I’m not so sure.” She cocked her head to one side. “But you do, don’t you, Julius?”

  “I do. I have to. It’s part of who I am.” A sadness crept across his face. “I know your story, so it seems only fair that I tell you mine.”

  “You don’t have to.” She sensed it was not an altogether happy story.

  “I think I do. It might help you understand that fate moves in ways we can never completely understand.” He motioned toward the stone folly. “We can sit in here or we can go back to the hotel and sit somewhere warm.”

  “This is just fine.” They entered the folly, the stone cold, and the air even colder. But she didn’t want to be inside, perhaps she thought the cold might purge her soul of the sadness she could not shake off.

  “Here.” He took off his coat and set it down on one of the stone seats.

  “Won’t you get cold?” Penny asked. She didn’t want to be responsible for Julius, who was a man in his fifties, judging by his silver-gray hair, to catch a cold at Christmas.

  “I have warm blood.” He inhaled deeply and a cloud of vapor whooshed out of his mouth. “I’ve lived here for so many years the cold no longer bothers me.” He glanced at her sideways as if assessing her. Why did people keep doing that? Were they afraid she might break, or collapse in a flood of tears?

  “This must be a beautiful spot in the summer when the sun shines on the lake.” Penny closed her eyes and tilted her head back as if she could feel the sun on her face. When summer came once more, perhaps her life would be filled with warmth and light again.

  “It is a special place. Which is why I chose it when I married my Catherine.” He smiled as Penny open
ed her eyes and looked startled.

  “You named the hotel after your wife, how romantic.” She placed her hand on his. “Tell me your story. Make me believe in love and romance again.”

  He nodded, a sad smile on his lips. “I didn’t name the hotel after my wife. I named it after my mate, the woman I fell in love with but who I thought belonged to another.”

  “Oh, unrequited love.” She sighed at the sorrow in his face.

  “I saw her a long, long time ago. She wore flowers in her hair, and she was rushing to marry another man. But I knew she was the only one for me.”

  “Did you tell her?”

  Julius shook his head. “How could I? She looked so happy, and when I saw her meet her husband-to-be, I knew she was happy, and I had to walk away. I was a stranger to her.”

  “What happened after that?” Penny asked quietly.

  Julius took a moment, as if reliving the whole thing in his head. “Over the years, I saw her.” He looked down at the ground before raising his eyes to Penny’s. “I kept tabs on her. Always knew where she was living. But then they had a child and I knew I had to let her go. For both our sakes.”

  “But you found each other again.”

  “We did. Fate brought us together and we will be together now for eternity.” He took a deep breath. “I still mourn the lost years when we could have been together. But then I let it go because I have her now and these are the happiest days of my life.”

  “But the hotel, you said you named it before Catherine was your wife.”

  “I came here and buried myself in work. I transformed the hotel, named it after the woman I loved and cherished it as I wanted to cherish her.” Julius stood up and walked to the stone archway, looking out onto the lake. “She raised her children. She lived her life. I had no idea her husband left not soon after I saw her last.”

  “And you think it was fate that you met again. Which means fate kept you apart.” Perhaps fate was not a good thing after all.

  “Fate brought us together. I have to believe that. It’s part of who I am. But fate brought us together at the time we needed each other most. It chooses the perfect person for you.” He sat back down and took hold of her hand. “And your fate is right here, right now.”

  “How can you know that?”

  “Will you trust me?” Julius asked.

  “Yes.” Was it stupid to put her trust in a man she’d only just met? Yet there was a sincerity to Julius that she couldn’t ignore. He wanted her to be happy. Just as her mom and dad wanted her to be happy, no matter what.

  Julius let out a long sigh, grinned and then got up, offering her his hand. “Come with me.”

  “Okay.” She frowned as she placed her hand in his. Penny sure hoped he didn’t intend to make a move on her. She assumed when he said he was in love with his wife and would be for eternity that he also meant he was faithful to her.

  “There’s someone I’d like you to meet.” He led her back toward the hotel.

  “Are you setting me up on a blind date?” Penny asked, wanting to tug her hand out of the hotel manager’s and run the other way. She’d lost track of the number of times well-meaning friends had tried to set her up with the ideal man, only for it to end in embarrassing disaster.

  It was why she had fallen so hard for Laurence. She’d met him by chance. Or so she thought. She’d fallen in love with him for who he was, not because one of her friends had told her he was handsome, smart and charming.

  That’s why his betrayal had dented her confidence in herself so completely. The relationship had been all on her, No one else was to blame.

  “Kind of like a blind date,” Julius answered as they neared the entrance to the hotel but didn’t go inside. “But this man comes pre-approved.”

  “Pre-approved? You’ve vetted him thoroughly?” Penny joked.

  “Not me.” Julius guided her around the side of the hotel, making sure she didn’t slip on the icy pathway.

  “Then who?” Penny groaned. “Don’t tell me my mom had anything to do with this.”

  Julius chuckled. “All your mom did was book you into the hotel. She had no idea what, or who, was waiting here for you.”

  Intrigued, she let Julius take her around the side of the hotel, walking under the bare trees that would soon blossom and bud in the spring. They passed another door leading into the hotel, which she assumed was a back entrance for staff to use. As they kept going, a thrill of excitement coursed through her. It was as if she were standing on the edge of an abyss and wasn’t afraid to jump into it with no bungee attached and no safety net to catch her.

  “Where are we going?” Penny asked, her teeth chattering, but not from the cold.

  Julius stopped and turned to face her. “Will you do me one thing, Penny?”

  “That depends on what it is,” she replied warily.

  “Will you allow yourself to believe in fate for one day?” His eyes misted up. “I promise you, you won’t regret it.”

  “Julius, you are kind of frightening me now,” she admitted.

  He smiled, his face lighting up like the sun. “There is nothing to be afraid of. Nothing at all.”

  As he turned away from her, a man appeared from behind a truck. Not just any man, but the guy she’d seen last night. And this morning. Charlie.

  “Charlie is my fate?” Penny asked, blushing furiously as she realized what she’d said.

  “Yes.” Julius sighed happily. “This is the reason you came to Bear Creek. I’m certain of it.”

  “No, I came here to escape a family Christmas filled with people asking me if I was okay. I came because I didn’t feel strong enough to keep from falling apart.”

  “Or maybe you came to find yourself. And happiness.” With that, Julius walked away. “Take a chance, Lady Penelope. What have you got to lose?”

  Penny knew exactly what she had to lose because she’d already lost it once. And she didn’t think she was strong enough to pick herself up from heartbreak again. Yet as Charlie came toward her, a look of pure longing on his face, she was ready to take a chance on love one more time.

  “I thought he was married,” Penny asked, wanting to be absolutely sure she wasn’t walking straight into another terrible relationship.

  “No, Charlie is not married,” Julius confirmed. “But that story is his to tell.”

  And Penny wanted to hear it.

  Chapter Six – Charlie

  “Hi.” He grinned, his top lip stuck to his teeth.

  “Hello.” Penny looked a little bemused and a rush of fear swept through him. What had Julius told her? Whatever it was, he’d gotten her here and Charlie was grateful for that.

  He ran his tongue across his teeth and walked around his truck to meet her. “How are you?”

  “I’m not sure,” she said honestly.

  “Do you want to get a coffee or something?” Damn, that was lame. His lion agreed.

  “I’m not sure.” She looked confused and put her fingers to her temple before looking back at the hotel as if searching for an escape.

  “I could drive you into town,” he offered.

  “I didn’t really plan on going to town today.” Her eyes flickered up to the mountains. “I kind of wanted to go up there.”

  Charlie swung around and looked at the snow-covered peaks. Low clouds hung over them, but there was no imminent threat of snow. “I’ll take you.”

  “You will?” Penny’s excitement shone through her reservations.

  “Sure. I live in a cabin along the lower slopes. I keep an ATV for when the weather is really bad. We could ride it into the mountains.” He took a couple of steps toward her. “It would be safer than walking, plus this way you get to see so much more than you would on foot.”

  “I’d love to. I really would.” She ground her heel into the ground, which was covered in a thin layer of snow that had fallen overnight. It had frozen and walking anywhere would be treacherous until the temperature warmed a little.

  “Listen, I know
you don’t know me, but Julius is the hotel owner and we go back a long way.” He indicated the hotel. “I do most of the odd jobs around the place.” He closed his eyes and cringed inwardly. “That makes me sound like a bum of some kind.”

  “Because you don’t hold down a steady job?” she asked. “Neither do I.”

  His face cracked into a grin. “But I am not a Lady.”

  Her eyes scanned his body appreciatively. “I can figure that out for myself.”

  “What I mean is you probably have a big house somewhere, while I live in a small cabin that I built with my own two hands.” He held up his hands as exhibit A and B.

  “I live in a big house, but it’s not mine. So there, you have more than me.” Her body language softened. “Julius told me to trust in fate.”

  Charlie nodded. “I’m beginning to trust in it myself.”

  “Why? What does fate have to do with us meeting?” Her direct question took him by surprise.

  “Maybe if you come with me into the mountains, I could show you.” He rubbed his hand over the stubble on his jaw. “That makes me sound all kinds of creepy, doesn’t it?”

  “Just a little.” She nodded, her thumbs looped into her jeans. “But I like your honesty.”

  “I will always be honest with you,” Charlie promised.

  “Even if I ask you if my butt looks big in this?” She shifted her weight to one side. She was flirting with him? That was a good sign.

  “Your butt will never look big to me.” He burst out laughing. “I don’t think there is a correct answer to that question, is there?”

  “Nope, but you get full points for trying.” She closed the space between them and looked into his eyes. “I want to trust you, Charlie. But you should know right now, that is not easy for me.”

  “I’d like to change that if you’ll give me a chance.” He held his hands up. “No strings. You can tell someone where we’re going. I have nothing to hide from you.”

  “Okay. Let me leave a note with the person at reception.” She turned around and walked back to the hotel, going around the side of the building and into the hotel lobby.