by Megan McCoy
She almost giggled, but thought better of it. Had they? Oh, the Christmas tree thing. “I will never doubt you again,” she said grandly.
“Good girl.” He smiled at her and for some reason those words made her feel odd inside. Kind of melty and gooey. Weird. She was not a melty and gooey kind of person. She was all business and all goal oriented. She wasn’t even one to watch those silly Christmas movies on tv that all her friends couldn’t get enough of this time of year.
She did love the holidays though, the music that drove other people crazy, the decorations, the cookies, the holiday parties, and socializing, the rush of retail shops. She even loved the snow, but she was not wild about the icy sleet.
“Oh, no!” she gasped as they watched a car slide through an intersection. Luckily, no other cars were coming, but it meant that the roads were getting slick. “I might close up early and head home before it gets worse,” she said. “Can we do a rain check and do the tree another day?”
“I think that is a very wise decision,” he agreed. “As far as I know, this is going to stop before midnight, so hopefully tomorrow the streets will be clear.”
“I hope so,” she said. “I have a full day of work tomorrow.”
“How about after work for the tree assembly then?” he suggested.
“I’m sorry, I can’t. I’m going to an office decorating party that I’ve already committed to,” she said, feeling regretful. She would almost rather do the tree with this handsome, enigmatic male than go to the party with all her friends. No. She wouldn’t. Friends came first, she reminded herself.
“Decorating someone else’s office instead of yours?”
“Apparently they are entering the town’s business decoration challenge and my friend is wanting to do it up big. She’s that kind of person. Me, I’m going to do the tree and maybe some strings of lights around the desk or something. I’m too busy to enter the contest this year. Maybe next year.” She smiled at him and was pleased to see him smile back.
“Always good to have goals,” he said. “Well, one day later in the week then. Do you need anything from your office?”
She shook her head. “No, with the weather this bad, I’m not going to take a chance on the roads later on. I’ll just head home and work from there.” The wind howled and the sound of the sleet hit harder on the car. Her phone rang and she glanced at it, then over at him and apologized. “It’s my brother. If I don’t take it, he will think something happened to me.” Mike nodded as if he understood, so she answered. “Hank? You okay?”
“You know I am. I’m coming over to give you a ride home. You at the office? I don’t want you out in this.”
“I am perfectly capable of driving home,” she retorted. Then oddly, the phone was taken from her hand. What?
“Hank, you don’t know me, but my name is Mike Murphy, and I just took your sister to lunch. We had some business. I’m going to drive her home, then will make sure she gets back to her car in the morning.”
She could hear Hank asking some questions, but felt too much in shock to do much of anything. Who were these two men to decide how she was getting home? “I can drive!” she protested. Then muttered under her breath, “Merry Christmas to me, I’ve been infantilized.” Somehow, she knew she wasn’t driving home. Looking at the sleet, that kept coming down harder, she actually felt a little happy about that. But, not really.
A few moments later, Mike handed her back her phone, and she heard her brother say, “Okay, you are in good hands. Call me when you get in safely.”
“Yes, Daddy,” she said as sarcastically as she could muster.
He just laughed. As usual.
She hung up, silently vowing to give him a piece of her mind when she got home and was alone.
“He just worries about you,” Mike told her. “Now, punch your address in the GPS for me.”
I just obeyed him like a little robot, she thought as she did what she was told. “I could just tell you where I live,” she protested after the fact.
“I need to come back in the morning to pick you up for work,” he said. “What time do you want me here?”
“Seven,” she said. “I have a lot to do tomorrow.”
“No problem.”
She’d been kidding. She didn’t have to be at work till nine, and it would still be dark at seven, but thought... Well, what was she thinking? Was she trying to make it difficult for the two people attempting to help her out this sleety, nasty afternoon? Why?
Locking her apartment door behind her about ten minutes later, she looked around her small place. It suddenly felt lonely. It never felt lonely. Weirdly, she missed Mike already. Why? And why was he being so nice to her? Strange. She liked it, but she needed to remember he was older and probably set in his ways, and was just a nice person. He’d do this for anyone, more than likely.
Well, not really strange, she began over-thinking. Most people were nice to her, but in a different way than Mike was being nice to her. He was being nice to her like Hank was nice to her, but in an odd sort of way. One she could get used to, probably. She shook her head and wished she’d started something in the crockpot for supper. Not that she was hungry now, but she would be later, and it was nice to come home to a place that smelled like home cooking. Oh! She could make some cookies or a treat for tomorrow since she had an unexpected afternoon off.
She would take a quick shower to get the sleet off her and then get comfy and bake. Wow! What a great idea, she told herself. She often worked seven days a week, so this was a rare treat. And she didn’t have to worry about scraping her car in the morning, she’d be chauffeured to work. Living the life of a princess, she told herself.
Chapter 3
“How sick is she?” Mike asked.
“I’m not a vet, how would I know?” Max said. “I am taking her to the vet now. I don’t know when I’ll be back. You have to supervise the decorating tonight.”
“I do not,” Mike said. He’d had such a good day. He didn’t want to end it on a low note.
“Yes, you do. This is important to Lucy and won’t be bad for our reputation either.”
“Lucy’s happiness is not a priority of mine,” Mike said, but sighed. He knew how much Max loved little Gypsy and he was fond of the tiny poodle himself. But supervising a bunch of giggling women who would want him to do things like untangle cords and reach the high stuff was not really what he wanted to do this evening.
The day had started off well. The sleet had stopped before midnight, all the streets were cleared and the sun was shining as he left his place to drive to Ellie’s apartment. Having lunch with her had not scratched his itch and he wanted to know her better.
She had brought out two cups of steaming coffee with her and told him, “I don’t know how you take it.”
“However you made it is just fine,” he assured her as he opened her door and noticed she was warmly dressed in some kind of pants that did marvelous things to show off her most excellent rear end. “Thank you. That was thoughtful.”
“I brought you a couple cookies too.” She handed him a napkin while she put both the cups in the cup holders. His car suddenly smelled like Christmas.
“You were a busy girl last night,”
“I don’t get much time to play in the kitchen,” she confessed. “It is always a treat when I do.”
“Do you have aspirations to be a chef?”
She shook her head as she nibbled on the cookie in her hands. “Nope. I love what I do, but baking is a fun hobby. I like to go hiking around the lake too. Do you have a fun hobby?”
Oh yes, he had a very fun hobby, but it wasn’t quite time to tell her about it yet. Yet? He smiled. “I like to tinker with my dad’s classic Corvette when I get time,” he said. “Hoping to restore it.”
“That sounds interesting,” she said unconvincingly.
“Don’t lie,” he told her. “It isn’t a good look on anyone.”
“That wasn’t a lie!” she informed him. “It was a socially
accepted convention, to make conversation. If I’d said, ‘Ew, boring!’ that would have stopped conversation and you wouldn’t have told me anything else.” She looked him in the eyes and said, “Right?”
“Well, I would have laughed, but I get your point. But you wouldn’t have had to say ‘ew,’ you could have said something like ‘Not my cup of coffee, but I’m glad you like it.’ This is very good coffee, by the way, and the cookies are fantastic.”
“Breakfast of champions,” she agreed. “Not often I get a ride to work and isn’t it gorgeous out?”
“It is.”
“Everything just sparkles, but selfishly, I hope the morning of the parade is Indian Summer. I want it warm.”
“That’s because you aren’t wearing fifty pounds of padding and a velvet suit,” he said.
“That is true, but think of all the little Girl Scouts and the marching bands who aren’t wearing that much protection.”
“I can sweat so little girls can march in comfort,” he said as magnificently as he could.
“There you go, taking one for the team.” She patted his leg, then yanked her hand back as if it were scorched.
That amused him. She amused him.
He had escorted her to her office door and after she went in, he scraped the windshields on her car in case she had to leave this morning. The roads were cleared, she’d be fine. He’d gone to his office and put in a satisfying day of work crunching numbers and sending out reports to clients. He’d managed to avoid Lucy most of the day, which worked quite well for him.
And now.
“Fine, Max. I’ll do it for you. But you owe me one. Or six. Or a six pack. Let me know how Gypsy is when you hear something.”
He hung up and scowled. He really had no idea what was going on this evening. Biting the bullet, he went in to ask the flighty blonde, hoping she had plans for an hour of work, and then would hightail it out of there.
Now be nice, he reminded himself. “Hi, Lucy, how was your day?” he asked as he walked into the office. She looked up at him from the computer and smiled as if she had no clue he thought she was a ditz.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Murphy,” she said, almost professionally. He was impressed. “Max said that you were going to be here for the decorating tonight in case we need something. Like pizza.” She looked up expectantly at him and he sighed.
“Use the company card and order all you need,” he said.
“Thank you, sir. That is what Max said, too, but I wanted to double check.”
That was a good plan. He almost approved. “How long is this going to take?” he asked.
“Ordering the pizza?” She cocked her head at him quizzically.
And we let her have the card, he thought. “No, the decorating.”
“Oh, a few hours I imagine. We are going to try our hardest to win. Won’t that be great!”
He almost asked her what they would win, but decided he didn’t care. That was Max’s issue and problem. She’d be bawling on Max’s shoulder if they didn’t win, not his.
Hours. Wonderful. Good thing he had some paperwork to do. “I’ll be in my office if you need me,” he said. Try not to need me, he thought.
“I’ll bring you some pizza when it comes, what kind do you like?”
“Doesn’t matter,” he said, turning to leave. He was glad Max liked her. Someone needed to. He felt sure she was a nice person. He just had to get to know her. Or did he?
Settling down in front of the computer, he started to work, vaguely hearing people arriving and women laughing. What would his office look like when he went out? Might be about the same if the wine flowed and the mouths didn’t stop running.
After what seemed like an eternity, there was a knock on his door. “Pizza delivery!” a familiar voice announced.
Ellie? “Come in,” he called.
“Mike!” she said as she walked in with two plates of pizza. “I just learned this was your office and offered to bring you food. Are you hiding from all the women?”
Was he? Maybe. “Just letting you all do your thing and then will be locking up when you go. I didn’t know you were coming today. Is Lucy one of your friends?”
“She sure is. We all love her despite...” her voice trailed off and he laughed.
“Yeah, I know,” he assured her.
“Lucy is a doll, and she’s really smart, despite appearances,” she assured him. “Just a little flighty sometimes.”
“How did you meet her?” he asked and took a piece of hot pizza from the plate she offered him.
“We’ve known each other since we were kids,” she said, settling down on the couch.
He got up and joined her. Better than eating over his computer, after all. “Small town living. Have you lived here all your life?”
They sat and ate slowly for about half an hour, while they talked, and he felt that feeling again, more and more. What feeling? The feeling that he needed her, needed her to be his. Strange, but true.
“Well, I better get back to decorating,” she said, obviously reluctantly.
He liked that. “What time am I coming to your office tomorrow to help with the tree?” he asked. Tomorrow was good. He needed to see her again tomorrow.
“I don’t know your schedule, what works for you,” she said, and lowered her eyes in a way that mesmerized him. Submissive. He approved.
“I will be there at four,” he said, knowing he planned to take her to dinner, then take her home after.
Ellie smiled in a way that pleased him. “Perfect. I will be happy to see you then.”
He sat back and watched that gorgeous ass in those tight blue jeans walk out of his office, and thought of a few things he’d like to do to it. And her. Then he glanced at the clock and frowned. He needed to call Max and see if there was an update on Gypsy.
Ellie walked back into the room where Lucy, Izzy, Joni, Shana, and Bella had finished pizza and were back to decorating. It did look very festive. “Are we doing the outside too?” she asked.
Lucy shook her head. “I have a couple guy friends coming to help Max with stringing the lights and putting out the inflatables as soon as the weather clears up. They are doing tours for the charity Carol’s Hope, here in town. You buy a ticket and then they put you on a bus and tour all the offices and buildings that entered. I’d buy one, but I’m the hostess for here.” She looked at them all pointedly.
“Depends on the day,” Ellie said. “I’ll at least donate if I can’t go.”
“If you don’t go, you can’t vote, but donations are good.” Lucy smiled.
Ellie agreed. Carol’s Hope had been founded by one of the ladies in town who had been left as a young mother with four little kids to feed. She’d had no special skills and scrambled for work, as back then there weren’t the social services that were available now. When she made it through nursing school, and was on her feet, she started the charity, named after her mother. It was a food bank for hungry people, a clothing store for people who had need, and a one stop location for information on how to apply for benefits, help with resumes, job opportunities, rides to appointments and other services. The charity thrived on the backs of many volunteers and the town’s donations.
Ellie and her friends had all worked there during high school as part of their mandatory volunteer hours for high school and she knew what a good resource it was for the people of the town. It was a good charity to give to and she hoped to help however she could. I’m doing the parade, she reminded herself. That was enough on her plate for this year. If she could do the tour, she would, if not, she couldn’t. Idly, she wondered if Mike would be going on the tour. Probably not. He was entered in the contest for one thing, and he’d told her that other than playing Santa, he wasn’t that into the holidays. She couldn’t imagine that; for her it was a magical time of year.
Opening a box, she found a delightful set of Rudolph characters, including the Bumble and Hermie. “Lucy! Where did you find these?” she asked. She loved that Rudolph story!
“I can do that.” Ellie headed in that direction, trying to put the thoughts out of her head that centered on the handsome man just right behind that wall.
“So, how do you like working here?” she asked Lucy while they all worked.
“She likes one of the bosses, at least,” Shana teased.
A sharp stab of something weird went through her. Jealousy? Why? She didn’t own Mike or was even dating him or anything.
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Lucy flipped her hair back. “I am the ultimate professional and know much better than to fall for a boss.”
Laughter erupted around the room. They loved Lucy, but they knew her too well. She grinned and said, “Well, Max is kind of cute.”
Ellie turned, so as not to show the relief on her face. Max. Must be the other partner. She put down the fluffy, faux snow mat, then started arranging the figurines. Her thoughts were whirling. What had happened just then? She couldn’t be falling for a man she just met, could she? He was a little, well, authoritarian, and bossy, just like her brother who drove her nuts. Was she just so overwhelmed right now that ceding a bit of her power felt good, even if it was just someone else scraping her car windows? That was probably all it was.
An hour later, she looked around the large room. It looked amazing. Lucy had found marvelous decorations and had amazing ideas for vignettes. There was a nativity scene in the front bay window, surrounded by herds of sheep, goats and camels. Her little Rudolph display was quite adorable. The tree was utterly stunning in shades of blue and silver. There were candles everywhere. Stockings hung over the small fireplace in the corner. Lucy had even hung a sled on the wall. Fresh evergreens draped around the room and while the smell was marvelous, Ellie wondered who was going to be vacuuming up the needles every day. The entire room looked amazing and very much the epitome of the holidays. Lucy had great taste and the group of friends had had a wonderful time, but most of them had to work the next day, and it was getting late.