Kat looked at Kelly. “But if he’s living like a hermit, what makes you think he’s going to snap out of it?”
Luke snorted. “Kelly’s got a cousin who Zach seems to be attracted to. Kelly’s got it in her head that Beth and Zach are made for each other.”
Kat looked at Kelly and began to laugh. “I have a feeling that you do that a lot—try to set people up that is.”
Kelly grinned. “Who me?”
When Kat rolled her eyes, Kelly began laughing too.
“Where are Steve and Melinda today?” Kelly asked Luke suddenly. “Usually, one or the other of them if is here when an event has anything to do with Crystal Visions.”
“Have I met them yet?” Jason asked.
“Once,” Luke answered with a grin. “Remember the redhead who was arguing last week with the tall muscular guy in the lobby? It was that day we were trying to organize the Crystal Visions party for the kids when you were here eating lunch.”
Jason began to laugh. “Oh, yeah. The two that we made the bet on?”
“Bet?” Kelly asked.
“I told you about that, Kel,” Luke answered reaching up to a branch and hanging an ornament. He lifted another from the tray and attached a hook. “How long before they get together do you s’pose? Whoever loses gets to dish out dough for a fancy dinner for all of us.”
“I want in,” Kelly said. “Those two belong together. How much time did you give them?”
Luke turned thoughtful. “Eh, I said another year.”
“Nah,” Kelly answered firmly. “I say July at the latest.”
“I don’t know. They were sure going at it that day,” said Jason. “I’d say maybe a little longer. I’ll go with September.”
“Nah. They’re just arguing more these days because they’re getting more frustrated with each other,” Kelly insisted. “It’ll happen soon.”
At that point, Kat was laughing hard just listening to their conversation. Friendly banter flew back and forth for several more minutes.
Luke hesitated. “Did I tell you that Melinda used to be Hawk’s girl?”
The mood suddenly turned serious.
“Aw, man. No, you didn’t. You must’ve forgotten,” Jason answered.
Kat looked at Jason and raised a brow.
Jason blinked for a moment and then cleared his throat. She’d sure love to know what it was that made him keep doing that when she was ready to ask him a question. He had the strangest look on his face again right now.
“Uh, Hawk was the only one who didn’t survive the attack on our airbase the day that me, Luke and Zach Logan were all injured,” Jason explained.
Kat grimaced nodding her understanding.
“Still,” Luke continued, turning grim as he hung another ornament. “It could’ve been a lot worse than it was. Two bombers exploded.”
It was a somber moment, and everyone was silent for the next few minutes until they were finished decorating the tree. Now approaching six o’clock, there were very few individuals remaining besides employees. Many of the guests had wandered off into the bar or headed to the smaller restaurant to eat dinner.
“Okay, so how does this auction work tomorrow?” Kat asked Kelly as she and Luke began pulling on their coats.
“I think they’re going to begin a little earlier than usual—around two in the afternoon—because of the weather forecast. Supposedly, they’re projecting six to eight inches of snow tomorrow night.”
Kelly continued, “There are hundreds of antiques and artisan items to bid on including jewelry and paintings. And then there are things like hotel rooms and services that will be given away by companies from all over the country. One of the banquet rooms next door is packed with physical items, and there’s a long list of services available posted in the lobby as well as in the banquet room. There’s even a bunch of items that will be offered online. The auction is virtual too, so bids will be coming in from everywhere.”
“How do I dress for this?”
Kelly answered, “Formally.”
And Luke rolled his eyes.
Kat grimaced. “Shoot. I didn’t expect to have to dress up until Christmas Eve.”
Kelly smiled looking at Luke and talking in a sing song voice. “Dinner and dancing later in the evening.”
Jason laughed when Luke groaned.
Kat grinned and turned back to Kelly. “I splurged when I arrived and booked an appointment to have my hair done here at the inn’s salon for Christmas Eve. I wonder if I can get in tomorrow morning instead?”
“Probably not.” Kelly answered wearing a wry grin. “Tell you what, why don’t you cancel? Coincidentally, I have connections in town and I can take you into my mom’s salon tomorrow. I’ve got a bunch of things to do in the morning anyway. By the way, you’re both invited to our Christmas Eve party. Luke and I can meet you here for breakfast Kat, and you can go along with me while Luke stays here and hangs out with Jason.”
When Kat looked at Jason, he nodded his agreement.
“Sounds good,” Kat said.
Kelly wrapped her arms around Kat and gave her a hug. “I’ve had so much fun with you guys today.”
“Me, too,” Kat answered hugging Kelly back.
Luke reached out and wrapped an arm around Kat’s shoulders, and when Kat gave him a peck on the cheek, he chuckled.
“Eight tomorrow?” Kelly asked as she and Luke began walking away.
“See you then,” Kat answered with a smile.
* * * * *
He was alone with Kat at last.
Now what, Jason thought as he watched Luke and Kelly walk away.
When Luke turned back and gave them a wink before walking out through the breezeway with Kelly, Kat laughed softly.
“You have to have one of the fattest kitties I’ve ever seen,” she finally said.
Her statement came out of the blue and, startled, Jason began to laugh. Kat had a natural way of putting people at ease.
“Yeah, she is,” he answered. “I could’ve swear she wasn’t as heavy a couple of weeks ago.”
Kat smiled. “How about something to drink before dinner?
“A beer would be great,” he answered smiling. “Let’s try to reserve a table in the restaurant. Seating is a little more limited with the other restaurant space being used for the auction.”
Kat nodded. “We could always eat in the café again—I wouldn’t mind.”
“Yeah,” he answered. “That’s an option. But it looks like a lot of the guests are eating elsewhere tonight since the weather’s still good.”
Jason and Kat walked through the lobby and after talking to the hostess standing near the restaurant entrance, they were able to reserve a spot for an hour later.
Heading into the bar first, they spent the next few hours talking and laughing about nothing in particular. Kat told him that her dad had finally sold off his business, and her mom and dad were beginning to travel more since her dad had retired. Anne Conlin wanted to keep working a little longer so Pete didn’t get on her nerves.
Jason talked about his dad’s retirement from the Air Force, and how his parents had settled in Florida before his grandparents had decided to follow them down there, because there had been a few worries about his grandmothers’ health.
Kat never said a word about her boyfriend the entire night, and Jason wasn’t quite sure what to think about that.
“It’s gotta be weird not spending Christmas with your family this year?” Jason asked.
“Yeah. But mostly I’m happy that they’re finally getting away. Dad seemed to be working ten times harder getting his business ready for sale than he did before he decided to sell. Do you usually spend Christmas with your family too?”
“Yeah, mostly.” He grimaced. “There were a couple of years I missed when I was serving overseas.”
They sat for a few lingering moments in the restaurant. As usual, the food had been delicious. The beautiful red rose in a vase, and the view of the moon overhead from
the window overlooking the lake where they sat at their table struck Jason as beautifully romantic. They were the last people there and Jason watched Kat’s lovely face as she spoke and sipped on coffee after dinner.
Damn. He could sure get used to this.
Kat yawned as if she couldn’t help it.
He grinned. “Ready for sleep?” Even to Jason, his voice sounded tinged with regret.
“We’ve been going non-stop all day.” She grinned wryly, looking reluctant to admit it.
This time they traveled up the elevator to her room together, and Jason lingered at the door observing the emotions play on Kat’s face. Those jade green eyes of hers were so expressive.
Should he kiss her? For a moment he was considered it; he wanted to do it so much.
But not yet—the timing just didn’t seem right.
Instead, he sighed and pulled her into his arms. Keeping his arms wrapped around her, he just stood there and held her, thinking about how she felt so right.
“Goodnight, Jason,” Kat finally whispered softly, drawing slowly from his arms.
She tugged the keycard from her purse and slipped it through the sensor.
“See you in the morning Kat,” he answered quietly, holding her gaze until she closed the door.
Chapter Ten
Jason had dreamed of Kat last night, he remembered as he rode the elevator down to the lobby the next morning.
Well, during the little bit of time he’d actually spent sleeping, he thought wryly, stepping out from the elevator. At least dreaming about Kat was better than having to deal with some of the nightmares that’d been keeping him awake this past year. A few hours spent in the jetted tub had helped him relax a little more than he’d been doing at home.
When he entered the café’, Kat was already there sitting and drinking coffee with Luke and Kelly.
“Long time, no see,” Jason said with a grin sliding into the booth beside Kat.
“I’ve seen more of you these past few days than I have in the last month,” Luke said dryly.
Kat gave Jason a sleepy smile when he laughed.
“You’re awfully quiet,” Jason said, giving Kat a nudge with his elbow.
“Hah. I’m always like this until after I’ve had my first cup of coffee.”
Everyone laughed.
Soon a waitress appeared at their table and they were ordering breakfast.
Half an hour later, Jason was watching Luke hand over the keys for the truck to Kelly. Bending over, she gave Luke a quick kiss and winked at Jason.
“C’mon, Kat,” she said. “Let’s get out of here and get moving on updating your look to drop dead gorgeous.”
Kat laughed as she lifted a hand in farewell at Jason and Luke while Kelly tugged her along through the restaurant.
Jason checked his watch. “We have a couple of hours to kill.”
“I’ve got something for us to do first,” Luke said as they got up and walked over to the register. “Kelly made me promise.”
Luke insisted on paying for Jason’s breakfast before they made their way into the lobby.
“Alright. What did Kelly make you promise?” Jason finally asked.
Luke pointed towards a hallway encased in glass. “Head that way.”
When they walked down the hallway and reached the gift shop, Jason turned to Luke with a smile on his face. “Kelly must’ve read my mind. I was thinking about picking something up for Kat at the auction for Christmas, but something from here would probably be a heck of a lot better.”
“I’ve done a lot of shopping here for Kelly.” Luke hesitated, looking sheepish. “In fact, the owner designs custom jewelry and she’s making me a ring.”
Jason’s eyes went wide. “You don’t mean…?”
Luke nodded his head up and down looking embarrassed.
Jason slapped Luke hard on the back. “Congratulations, Luke! You and Kelly are great together you know.”
Luke appeared to be humble. “Yeah, so she keeps reminding me,” he answered dryly. “Anyway, I already asked her this past summer and she said yes. But we wanted to keep it between the two of us for a while. Even though I’m not so great at the romantic stuff, I’m planning on asking her again on New Year’s Eve to make it official.”
Jason laughed. Who’d have thought? Luke had never really seemed the type of guy who would be ready to settle down, and Jason had always known there was probably a really good reason for that. But Kelly must’ve helped Luke conquer his demons.
Moments later, they were walking through the shop when Jason came upon exactly the right gift. Luke nodded his approval when Jason showed him the musical Christmas globe. “Maybe you should get her a little something else too, that isn’t just about Christmas. I bought Kelly a necklace here and she wears it all the time.”
Jason strolled up to the display counter and saw what he wanted right away.
“Is that jade?” he asked the cashier, pointing at a pendant.
“Sure is,” she answered, pulling out the box. Two dragonflies shaped from delicate silver filigree surrounded a heart carved from jade.
“That color of jade reminds me of the color of Kat’s eyes,” he said to Luke.
Luke grinned. “Hah. I’m not the only sucker around here.” Luke made a gagging noise, pulling his T-shirt collar like a rope around his neck.
The cashier began to laugh.
It was nice to see Luke back to his old self, but Jason was rolling his eyes when he pulled his wallet from his pocket to pay for the gifts.
After they left the gift shop, he and Luke spent over an hour in the huge banquet room located down the hallway investigating the items that were on the list to be auctioned off.
Paintings and framed photography were hung above shelves of items on display against the walls, while the larger items such as sets of china, glassware and pottery had been arranged on top of the tables that had been set up in rows across the room.
This was going to be a long day, Jason thought glancing at the list of miscellaneous goods and services that were also going to be auctioned off.
Luke peeked at the list over Jason’s shoulder. “There will be two different auctioneers going at it at the same time this year, because they have double the amount of stuff they supposedly had last year. Most of the smaller items will be displayed online first, and then the jewelry and more exclusive items will be taken care of before dinner according to Kelly.”
Jason nodded as his eyes searched the room. Despite the forecast for winter weather, guests were beginning to show up in their formalwear. “I suppose we should think about getting dressed?”
Luke grimaced. “Yeah. My tux is hanging in Kelly’s office, so we need to stop there first.”
People were coming in droves through the entrance from the lobby, and Luke and Jason had to wait for the elevator. “There’s another elevator at the end of the hallway,” Luke said. “But by the time we walk down there, it probably wouldn’t be any faster making it upstairs than it would be waiting here.”
“I noticed you’re still avoiding the stairways,” Jason said when he and Luke were finally riding up. Wedged beside them, three other couples rode along with them.
“Yeah. This prosthetic’s pretty new. I’m doing a bunch of exercises but the impact can really rip up the end of my leg.”
Jason became thoughtful. “Yeah, I can see how that would happen. You know, it’s totally different for me with my hand. You and I each have a slew of different problems to deal with.”
Luke nodded his agreement.
Jason and Luke walked out from the elevator when they reached the fourth floor. The offices for the Dragonfly Pointe Inn were located over the bar. Although the restaurants and the bar were soundproofed, music from the jukebox and noise from the multiple big screen televisions still sent vibrations through the rooms overhead.
When Luke unlocked Kelly’s office, the first thing he did was step over to her desk and pick up a box along with an official sealed letter.
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br /> “Something came for you today by the way,” Luke said with a grin. “With his special agent credentials, Jake Loughlin was luckily able to sign for you. I have a feeling I know what it is.”
Luke handed over the box and letter to Jason.
Dumbfounded, Jason stared at the envelope and package. “I don’t understand. I was just promoted last year.”
Luke shrugged. “All you do is travel and work, Jas. Truthfully? I’m not surprised.”
Jason cleared his throat. “C’mon. Grab your tux and let’s go down to my room so we can get dressed. I’ll open the letter and the box there. I need a minute to absorb what’s going on.”
Luke gave him a rueful smile.
Jason scowled. “Plus I have to make a speech on behalf of the wounded warriors today, and I need to make a few notes about what I need to say.”
They moved down the hallway to wait for the elevator.
“I don’t know how you do that, man. I’d freeze up if I always had to get up in front of hundreds of people and talk.”
Jason grinned. “Captain Zach Logan was always pretty good at it too. Which reminds me..?”
There was a ping and the elevator doors sprung open. Surprisingly, it was empty when Luke and Jason stepped inside.
“Yeah. He’ll be dropping in for a little while later on today,” Luke answered.
Stepping out from the elevator once it stopped on the second floor, they strolled through the hallway to Jason’s room.
Moments later, Luke began assembling the pieces of his black tux. Quickly, he began stripping off his shirt and jeans while Jason headed into the bathroom to give himself another shave.
When Jason returned to the bedroom, Luke was already dressed but he was standing in front of the mirror over the credenza fidgeting with his tie.
“What? No clip on?” Jason said.
“Hah, hah,” Luke answered mockingly.
Jason walked over to where his uniform was hanging in the closet. Reaching for his pants first, he cursed when they slid from the hangar and dropped down onto the ground.
“Wait a minute. Didn’t you grab your functioning prosthetic yesterday when we were at your house?”
With a frown, Jason nodded before clumsily dragging his T-shirt off from over his head. Then he pulled out a case from the bottom of his clothing bag.
Two Hearts Christmas Wish Page 10