“Oh, how scary!” Sian exclaimed. “We love that little pup, don’t we, George? I’m so glad he’s home safe.”
Noelle’s heart settled in its beat. Warmth spread through her as she recalled how Tristan wished he could’ve brought Sampson home sooner to spare her any anxious worry.
“And we went to high school together,” Tristan volunteered.
“Oh! How delightful!” Sian said. “I don’t know why I didn’t think to ask. After all, you’re both about twenty-five, right?”
Noelle’s feelings cooled as high school recollections came flooding back. So many shared classes, but never a shared look or even a shared word between them. It was as if Tristan Burke looked right through her. It was worse than being despised. She was invisible. “We are the same age,” Noelle offered, giving Tristan a sideways glance as she moved away from him. She didn’t like how his presence pressed her heart into that familiar flutter, as if she was still in high school. She wiped her hands on her pants once again.
Noelle sidled up to Sian, but she couldn’t help but steal another glance toward Tristan. He’d always been cute, but he’d grown up downright handsome. And he filled out a pair of jeans and that blue flannel shirt nicely, too. Noelle turned away. She didn’t want to get caught up in the web of Tristan Burke. She’d given up on him the day she graduated from high school.
Pasting a smile on her face, Noelle took a deep breath and exhaled. “So! What would you like me to help Tristan learn?”
“Since he’s going to be doing double duty, we thought he’d spend the first few days with George,” Sian said. “Then, later this week, he can spend some time with you at the front desk.”
“Lovely,” Noelle said. Oops! She needed to change her tone. Clearing her throat, she said, “Well, the closer we get to the weekend, the more there will be to do, so I’m sure there’ll be plenty I can show him.”
Tristan looked her full in the face. “I’ll look forward to it.”
“Yes, well … it’s not that hard.” Noelle worked at being flippant. “You’ll catch on in one sitting, and then you’ll be good to go.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Tristan replied. “George told me you have a degree in hospitality and you used to work for the Four Seasons in Hawaii. I’m sure it’ll take me longer than an afternoon to figure it all out.”
Noelle didn’t know what to think. Was Tristan teasing her? And what else had George and Sian told him? Did they tell him about Kendall? Noelle pushed thoughts of Kendall aside. There would be no reason for Sian or George to mention Kendall, and thinking about him just created static in her head. She cleared her throat and studied Tristan, looking for any sign of a joke or a taunt, but there was nothing. Instead, his blue eyes were filled with warm goodwill. And there was something else. Was there a new sense of maturity in Tristan’s gaze?
Sian interrupted her thoughts. “Tristan is here for the winter months, so we think he’ll be a great help with the holidays coming up. His family’s apples are all harvested, and although there’s winter work to do for the trees, he thought it would be nice to work in town a few days a week.”
Tristan laughed. “Actually, it was my mother’s idea. She and Sian are friends. They cooked this up between them, and here I am.”
Irritation burned inside of Noelle. Was he showing up at her work just for something to do?
Other thoughts began to crowd into her mind. How close were Sian and Tristan’s mother? Did Tristan’s family need the money? Their orchard was on the small side, but one of the best in the valley.
New thoughts pinged. Was he still dating his high school sweetheart, Courtney Sanders? Oh, why did she care? If he was going to work part-time, maybe he’d spend most of his time with George and she wouldn’t see him very often. A pinprick of disappointment needled Noelle, but she dismissed it. There were more important things to worry about than Tristan Burke’s employment and dating profile.
Chapter 4
Pushing the house door open from the garage, Noelle was greeted by Sampson. All of her earlier concerns about working with Tristan flew from Noelle as she bent down to scoop up the wiggly pup, who whined with happiness as he eagerly licked Noelle’s face.
Noelle’s heart lifted, and she laughed as she met her mother in the kitchen. “Who needs a boyfriend with love like this?”
Her mother joined Noelle’s laughter as she reached in to embrace Noelle and Sampson. “How was work?”
Noelle put Sampson down, and he scampered around her feet for a moment before settling down to chew on his newest bone. “Sian and George hired someone new.” Noelle sat down at the table.
“Oh? You don’t sound too happy about it.”
“I’m not.”
“How come?” Her mother sat down in the chair opposite Noelle while Cory came into the kitchen carrying his backpack and placed it on the table.
Noelle gave her brother an annoyed look.
“Cory,” her mother said. “Your backpack doesn’t belong on the table. Noelle and I are having a conversation, and you need to respect that.”
“I know. I know. I’m just grabbing a quick cookie before heading up to my room.”
Becky shook her head. “Nope. That won’t do.”
Sampson left his bone and hurried to Cory, who picked up the puppy. “Hey, little dude. You don’t care about my backpack on the table, do you?”
Sampson licked Cory’s face.
“What are you and Noelle talking about, anyway?” Cory asked as he moved toward the table. He put the backpack on the floor and settled into a chair with Sampson on his lap.
“Why are you so nosy?” Noelle asked, her annoyance growing.
Corey shrugged. “Just am.”
“We’re talking about work.” Noelle hoped her brother would find the topic boring and move upstairs.
He leaned his elbows on the table. “Oh, that reminds me. Do you think Sian and George would hire me after football season?” he asked. “It’d be great to have a little extra spending money.”
Noelle shook her head, her annoyance abated. “I wish you’d said something sooner. They just hired someone new, and this was his first day. I’m supposed to train him on front-desk duties later this week.”
Cory let out a sigh as he stroked Sampson. “You don’t look too happy about it. Who’d they hire? Maybe he won’t last.”
“Oh, he’ll last.” Noelle frowned as the earlier irritation kindled over Tristan’s hiring. “They hired Tristan Burke.”
“That nice young man who returned Sampson?” her mother asked.
“The same,” Noelle replied.
“Wow! That’s amazing,” Cory said. “Did you know Tristan Burke was the greatest quarterback in all of Icicle Creek high school history?”
Contempt rolled through Noelle. “Yeah. I know.”
“That is so cool!” Cory said. He looked down at Sampson. “Isn’t that cool, little dude?”
“Gosh, Cory, I didn’t know you were such a fan,” Noelle muttered.
“After he came by with Sampson this morning, I checked out his picture in the winner’s circle at school. It’s still in the glass case of the athletic department, along with the trophy they won for taking state in the double-A playoffs that year.”
The old angst between high school adoration and recent agitation flared up as Noelle frowned at her brother. “Yeah, and he dated the prettiest cheerleader and had the best group of friends ever. He was an honor student and just all around the perfect guy.”
“Yeah.” Cory grinned. “A little like me. So, why don’t you like him?”
Noelle pursed her lips and looked at her mother, who was trying to hide a smile. “I had class after class with the great Tristan Burke, and he never spoke a single word to me. We sat next to each other half the time, and he couldn’t even be bothered to look at me.”
Cory stared at his sister. “Nissy! Did you have a crush on him?”
Noelle blinked. She never told anyone of her high school crush, and to hear her brother blurt it o
ut with happy abandon made her shrink inside. Denial blossomed within, but the color rising in her face gave her away. “Maybe I did back then, but not anymore. Now, I’m just irritated that I have to train him to do my job.” Noelle reached over and stroked Sampson’s head. The puppy moved over and licked her hand.
Her mother placed her hand on Noelle’s free arm. “This doesn’t have anything to do with Kendall, does it?”
Tension filled Noelle, and she wished to dodge her mom’s question. Withdrawing her fingers from her mom’s, Noelle could feel herself begin to squirm in spite of her best efforts to maintain an inner calm. “Why would it have anything to do with Kendall?”
“I’m just thinking you might be more open to Tristan’s company if it weren’t for Kendall,” her mother said.
“Nope. My dislike for Tristan is all about Tristan.” The hope for relief around her declaration eluded Noelle, but she refused to dwell on it.
“Kendall!” Cory spat out. “I sure hope it doesn’t have anything to do with that jerk.”
Noelle looked at her brother as her desire for composure slipped into anxiety. These conversations with Cory always followed the same unhappy trajectory. “We all know how you feel about Kendall.”
“Well, let me just reiterate my opinion,” Cory said. “He’s a class-action jerk.”
Noelle dismissed her brother’s declaration as the familiar wistful yearning for Kendall overcame her. Recollections of sun-drenched Hawaiian sands she’d shared with Kendall burst into her memory in full color. He was her first adult love, and the memory of warm, sun-drenched skin played upon her mind. “Just because you don’t like someone doesn’t make him a jerk.”
“Yes, it does,” her brother insisted. “And I would remind you that you had good reason to leave him.”
Noelle’s defenses rose. “He had some wonderful qualities, Cory. He was warm and generous.” Noelle resisted the urge to touch the opal pendant in the shape of a cluster of turtles that hung around her neck.
“Yeah. He was Mr. Wonderful, and then he wasn’t.” Sarcasm laced her brother’s words. “But how would I know? I’ve only spent a few hours in his company, and he hardly talked to any of us during that one visit.”
Noelle sucked in her bottom lip. She had nothing to offer on Kendall’s behalf for the story her brother was about to tell. Kendall’s one and only visit with her family was a disaster that left little room for argument. It continued to trouble her.
“It still makes me mad to think about it,” her brother continued. “You’d been dating a year when he finally agreed to come to Icicle Creek, and when he gets here, he spent the whole time with his nose in the air.”
Noelle’s voice rose in pitch as she did her best to defend her ex-boyfriend. “We were working together in Hawaii! Airline tickets don’t grow on trees. Besides, Kendall had his own family to visit in L.A., and he’s a city boy, Cory.” Noelle offered as the last of her defenses skidded into distress.
“Yeah, and that doesn’t make the rest of us hillbilly yokels with stupid values.” Her brother let out a pent-up breath. “Look. I’m sure he had some great qualities over there in Hawaii. But he didn’t like us all that much, and he didn’t even think enough of you to pretend otherwise.” Her brother leaned over Sampson and whispered, “Plus, he cheated on you with that Sophie girl, Nissy—”
Noelle’s heart rushed its beat as she hurried to silence Cory. There were just too many uncertainties. “Her name is Sophia, and we don’t know that for sure.”
Her brother gave her a doubting look. “He made no effort to give you any other explanation.”
Noelle’s heart beat fast against her ribs as she searched for the words that would deflect her brother’s truth. “But he did offer an apology.”
“Which means he was guilty of something,” her brother replied. “As I see it, that’s unforgivable. I’m glad you left him. When the two of you were together, we hardly saw you, and when you were here, you never stayed for more than a couple of days. You’d think with the long flight from Hawaii you could at least stay a week or so.” He shifted in his seat. “We missed her, didn’t we, Mom?”
“Yes, we did,” her mother said. “But we also respected your decision of who you chose to date. And we realized while you were working in Hawaii, it was hard to get home as often as we or you would’ve liked. Didn’t we, Cory?”
Her brother sat back in his seat while Sampson let out a big sigh. “Not really.” He turned toward Noelle. “Look, you said it all. Kendall was a big-city boy, and that can sound glamorous. But in your heart, Nissy, you know you’re a country girl. I don’t care if you’re working at the Four Seasons in Hawaii or Hong Kong, for that matter. You’re still Icicle Creek through and through. Everything you need is right here.”
The familiar and hungry desire to leave her small town and push out into the world crept into her heart while the cherished satisfaction of home pulled at her. “I’m not sure about that, Cory,” Noelle said gently.
“Well, I’m sure enough for both of us. And Mom knows it, too. Don’t you, Mom?”
“I know that you love your sister enough that you want her home,” her mother said. “You love her so much you bought Sampson for her.”
Her brother waved off her comment while he pulled the puppy close. “All I’m saying is that if I was a girl and I had to choose between Tristan Burke and Kendall the jerk, I’d vote for Tristan.”
Affection and irritation mixed in Noelle’s heart. Not every little brother wanted his sister to live at home. But that didn’t give him free rein to make her decisions for her, especially when it came to matters of her heart. She turned toward Cory in hopes of settling the argument. “Let’s just call a truce, okay? If Tristan was interested in me, which he isn’t, his chances were used up long ago. And right now, I’m not interested in dating anyone. Okay?”
“Don’t wait too long,” her brother admonished. “Tristan isn’t going to wait forever.”
Noelle smiled, trying to lighten up the conversation. “Since you’re so fond of him, why don’t you start a fan club?”
Her brother stood, balancing Sampson on his arm and against his chest. Grabbing a cookie from the counter, he gave Noelle a winning smile. “What a good idea.” He stuffed the cookie in his mouth and picked up his backpack, swinging it across his shoulder, and headed upstairs.
Noelle’s mom squeezed her hand. “Give him a chance, will you?”
Noelle turned to her mother. “You mean Tristan or Cory?”
Her mother gave her a warm smile. “I mean Tristan, of course. Cory already has your heart, I know that.”
Noelle sighed. Her little brother could be infuriating. “He did have my heart until he threw me over for Tristan Burke. At least he won’t be able to influence Sampson.”
“That puppy loves you to the moon and back.”
Noelle heard Sampson running down the stairs, his nails hitting the hardwood as he scurried to be by her side. Trying to find his footing on the slick surface, he ran into Noelle’s leg. She laughed and reached down to pet Sampson, who quickly danced out of the way and licked her hand while wagging his tail. Her earlier angst around her conversation with Cory dissipated in Sampson’s company.
Noelle felt a tug on her other hand and looked up at her mother. “I’m serious about Tristan,” she said. “Give him a chance. You may find that he’s all grown up and worth a second look.”
Noelle shook her head. Even though she appreciated Tristan’s returning of Sampson, that didn’t obligate her to spend time with him, and nothing could entice her to pursue the great quarterback from Icicle Creek high school after all this time. She had worked too hard to put her senior crush in her rearview mirror. And what about Kendall? Noelle pushed thoughts of Kendall deep, but the old love crept through her mind like tendrils of ivy.
“I know what you’re thinking,” her mother said.
Noelle gave her an inquiring look.
“Don’t throw good time after bad.”
Noelle shook her head. “What—”
“I’m talking about Kendall. Remember how confident you were when you decided to leave him and come home?”
Contrition coursed through Noelle as her doubts took shape. “I wasn’t confident. I was angry, and the two things aren’t the same. I thought I knew what I was doing, but I didn’t.”
Her mother raised her eyebrows. “Are you sorry you left him?”
There it was. The one question Noelle kept trying to dodge along with the anguish that tagged along. Noelle glanced out the window before turning her attention back to her mother. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “I never gave him a chance to clarify things. I hissed at him and ran away, and I wonder if I would’ve stayed if we could’ve worked things out.” The full force of her admission chilled her.
Sampson began to whine. Grateful, Noelle rose from the table. “This little one needs to go out,” she said. But even as she snapped on Sampson’s leash and led him to the door, Noelle’s thoughts stayed with Kendall.
After all this time, Noelle had hoped to be able to move past her doubts around leaving Kendall, Hawaii, and her job. It was done now, and after nine months, the questions were most likely obsolete. But that didn’t stop them from swimming to the surface of her mind. She still wondered if she and Kendall could’ve worked things out. Did she still love him? Or, maybe more importantly, had he ever loved her?
Chapter 5
Four days later, the snow had disappeared from Icicle Creek under the onslaught of fresh skies and an autumn sun that warmed Tristan’s back as he stood in the entrance of the inn. Noelle was settled at the front desk, her long auburn hair brushing against her face as she looked over the invoice before handing it to the customer. Tristan had always considered her pretty with summer-green eyes, cheeks that held a tint of apricot, and glossy hair that curled at the ends. Studying her closely, he concluded that her lovely high school looks had matured into stunning adult beauty. He blessed Sampson, along with George and Sian and the lucky stars that brought the two of them together.
Christmas In Icicle Creek: Home For The Holidays Page 3