“Everything is wonderful,” she said, smiling at him like a little girl who’d just been given a bowl of her favorite flavor of ice cream. “The food is incredible.”
“I’m glad you’re enjoying it.” Rather than drop his arm, he continued leaning close to her, warming her with his presence and attentiveness.
After the meal, Levi walked onto the stage and delivered a heartfelt message about the Center for Hope. Immediately following his speech, an auctioneer began the auction for various items Kat had talked people into donating. There were tickets to sporting events, coastal vacations, cases of wine, massages at exclusive spas, and many other contributions.
Once the bidding wrapped up, a band took the stage and dancing commenced.
“It would be a shame for you to miss out on my dance moves,” Mike teased, rising from his chair and holding his hand out to Taylor. “May I have the pleasure of this dance?” He bowed to her then kissed the back of her hand.
“You certainly may.” She blushed at the heated look in his eyes and allowed him to lead her to the dance floor.
Together, they swayed in time to the music, neither saying anything as they danced. When the song ended and another began, Taylor took a step back and began to pull her hand from Mike’s, but he held on.
“Going somewhere?” he asked with a devilish grin that weakened her knees.
“No,” she whispered and stepped forward, back into his arms.
He studied her for a long moment before he bent his head closer to hers. “Have I mentioned how gorgeous you look this evening, Miss Taggart?”
Pleased, Taylor smiled. “You did not mention anything in those exact words.”
Mike chuckled. “By all means, I should rectify that immediately. You look stunning, beautiful, elegant, glorious, and awesome. You may have even stolen my breath away, at least for a minute or two.”
Her left eyebrow quirked upward. “All that? My goodness. You look quite handsome, too, Mr. Clarke, for a big burly and surly electrician.”
“Thank you, I think.” His dubious expression made her laugh.
He pulled her a little closer and lowered his voice, brushing his lips close to her ear. “Honestly, Taylor, you look incredible. I’m very fortunate you agreed to be my date this evening.”
“I’m glad you invited me, Mike. Thank you.” Her cheeks glowed from both his words and proximity.
Mike admired the pink hue of her cheeks as he guided her through the next dance. The light spilling from the chandeliers above them fell on her head in molten streams of burnished gold. Her hair gleamed like satin and his fingers itched to run through the swingy layers flirtatiously framing her heart-shaped face.
In the weeks he’d known her, Mike had paid attention to the creamy perfection of her skin, the amazing clear-blue depths of her eyes, and how entirely kissable her lips appeared.
He licked his lips, wondering how much coaxing he’d have to do to get her to kiss him. Just once.
The combination of the evening, the atmosphere, and their formal wear had gone to his head.
In an effort to cool his amorous thoughts, he dredged up memories of attending the gala the previous year with another bubbly redhead, one who broke his heart. No matter how hard he tried to give in to the anger, resentment, and pain he usually felt when he thought of Julia, his thoughts circled back to Taylor and how much he enjoyed holding her close.
The woman smelled amazing and looked even better. As he maneuvered her around the dance floor, he couldn’t help but notice other men watching with envy and admiration. For the life of him, he couldn’t understand why someone as lovely as Taylor Taggart hid her looks behind messy hair and clothes better suited to a costume party. Regardless of her clothing choices, Mike was deeply attracted to her, to her gentle spirit and fun-loving way of embracing life.
“Are you having fun, Taylor?” he asked, as he twirled her beneath his arm.
Her face softened and her lids half-closed over her expressive eyes. “Mmm. It’s a wonderful event, Mike. I’m so glad you invited me.”
His hand, possessively resting on her waist, nudged her closer as they moved to the rhythm of the song. “I’m glad I did, too.”
Levi claimed Taylor for the next dance. Mike wandered over to where Kat sat at the table visiting with her grandfather and smiled at the older man. “If you don’t mind, sir, I’d like to dance with the woman who bewitched my brother.”
“By all means, young man,” Lewis said, motioning toward the dance floor. “Maybe you can get her to tell you what names they are considering for my great-grandchild.”
Kat accepted the hand Mike held out to her. She glanced back at her grandfather and wrinkled her nose. “I’m not telling anything.”
Mike led her to the dance floor, glad it was a slower dance so they could talk. “How are you feeling, Kat?”
A weary sigh escaped her. “Honestly, I’m exhausted. I don’t remember the gala being so tiring last year. If I sit down for long, Levi might have to carry me out to the car.”
Mike chuckled. “I don’t think he’d mind in the least, but I’m sorry to hear you’re worn out. Do you think being pregnant might have something to do with it?”
Kat nodded. “Yes. Thank goodness, I’m past the morning sickness phase. The last few weeks, I’ve just wanted to sleep. Molly tries to talk me into a power nap in the afternoons, but I can’t quite bring myself to stretch out on the couch in my office.”
“You better get all the rest in that you can,” Mike said, noticing how Kat glowed with the aura of approaching motherhood. “Once that little one arrives, you’ll wish you could grab a few of those naps you’re giving up now.”
“How’d you get so smart?” she asked, grinning at him.
“I was born that way.” He crossed his eyes and made a wacky face.
“That’s for sure. I almost fell over when I saw you without that abominable beard and shaggy hair. I’d nearly forgotten you’re almost as handsome as your brother.” Kat laughed and then sobered. “I missed your teasing and seeing that charming smile. It’s nice to see you happy again, Mike.”
He nodded. “It’s nice to feel happy again.”
Kat tipped her head toward Taylor as she danced with Levi. “Does the woman dancing with my husband have anything to do with your newfound happiness?”
Mike shrugged. “Now, what would give you an idea like that?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Kat said airily then pinned Mike with her gaze. “Perhaps the way you can’t take your eyes off her, or how you hang on her every word. And maybe, just maybe, the fact that you finally shaved and got a haircut so you could look like a respectable date tonight.”
He narrowed his gaze and glared at her. “Circumstantial evidence at best, Kitty Kat.”
She laughed. “By the red creeping up your neck, I’d say I was right. You do like her.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Mike scowled. “She’s nuttier than a holiday fruitcake. She dresses like a closet exploded all over her, and she’s just… I don’t know… she’s…”
“Beautiful. Sweet. Funny. Kind.” Kat grinned. “Are those the words you were searching for?”
A sheepish grin altered the appearance of his face from agitated to boyish and utterly charming. “Yeah. Those are good words to describe her.”
Kat turned so she could watch Taylor laugh at something Levi said. “She’s absolutely wonderful, Mike. I’ve never known you to be so critical of the clothes someone wears or if they dance to their own tune. I think Taylor is a breath of fresh air, especially when I’m used to working around people who do their best to conform to the norm instead of stand out in the crowd. I like her and you’d be a complete idiot not to at least see if there’s something to pursue with her.”
“Look, Kat, I concede Taylor is special, but that doesn’t mean I want to be in a relationship with her. I don’t want to be in a relationship with anyone. I tried that once and you know what happened.”
Exasperated, she
huffed and took on a bossy tone he’d heard only a few times since he met her. “Now you listen to me, Michael Flynn Clarke, and you listen good. What happened with Julia was horrible, but you have to get over it and let go of your anger and fears. Just because love ended badly the first time you gave it a go doesn’t mean every woman will break your heart. Did you ever stop to think that if Julia walked away from you that easily, maybe she wasn’t meant to be yours in the first place?”
Mike stared at her, annoyed she brought up his painful past. However, he couldn’t dismiss the wisdom of her words.
“Don’t be so stubborn you miss out on what might be the best thing that will ever happen to you.” When the song ended, Kat accepted Mike’s arm as he led her off the dance floor. “You think about what I said before you do something stupid, you big dolt.”
Mike grinned at her name-calling and kissed her cheek. “Thanks, Tiger.”
“Hey, get your lips off my wife,” Levi said, thumping Mike on the back as he stepped next to him.
“You’d be surprised how often I hear that exact phrase.” Mike smirked and caught Brenna’s hand in his as she walked past him. “Dance with me, coffee girl.”
“If you insist,” she said, following him out on the dance floor. They watched as Lewis Kingsley danced with Taylor.
Mike returned Brenna to Brock and sat at the table, growing more jealous and irritated as a string of men asked Taylor to dance. She didn’t turn any of them down, smiling graciously to each one.
When she turned her blue gaze his way with a pleading look, he stood and headed her direction.
“May I cut in,” he asked a man who had all the coordination of a scarecrow in a hurricane.
“Well, I… I…” The man stammered, hesitant to give up his opportunity to dance.
“Thanks, man,” Mike said, edging him away from Taylor and taking her in his arms, swinging her across the dance floor.
“I thought you’d never come back.” She expelled a relieved sigh and relaxed as he held her. “I’m going to call the telepathy hotline and demand a refund on my certification as a card-carrying member of extreme mental powers. Obviously, it doesn’t work.”
Mike laughed at her teasing. “Don’t do anything drastic. I’m here, aren’t I? It must work a little.”
She shook her head. “Nope. My powers are definitely broken.”
“Try again. Send me a mental message and let’s see if it works.” He maneuvered her toward several large Christmas trees at the edge of the dance floor.
Taylor closed her eyes and bit her bottom lip with pearly white teeth, pretending to be deep in concentration. Mike tamped down the urge to lavish her with kisses right there in front of anyone who happened to look their way.
After a few moments passed, she opened one eye and studied Mike before she opened the other. “Did it work?”
“Hmm…” His eyes rolled upward, as though he was deep in thought. Suddenly, he guided her behind the trees, blocking them from the view of the rest of the ballroom. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her close against him. “Yes. I believe it did. You said you couldn’t wait one more second for me to kiss you. Is that right?”
Eyes already sliding closed, Taylor’s lips parted in a tempting invitation. “How did you know?” she whispered before his mouth claimed hers.
Fiery sparks shot through him as she returned his ardor. He moaned and deepened the kiss, considering how he’d managed to live so many years without the splendid wonder of loving Taylor Taggart.
Breathless, she finally broke the seal of their kiss and stepped back. “Wow, Mike! That was… I didn’t… When did you…”
“Come here, Taylor,” he growled, once again wrapping her in his arms and delivering deliriously scrumptious kisses that left them both with weakened resolves and knees.
At the sound of the band’s final notes fading away, Mike took her hand and led her from behind the trees to their table. Brenna and Brock had already left, offering to take Kat’s grandfather home while Kat and Levi stood at the door to thank everyone for attending.
Mike bid his family good night, reclaimed Taylor’s coat and held it while she slipped it on. His hands lingered on her shoulders far longer than was necessary, but she merely turned her head and gave him a heated look.
With their fingers twined together, he led her outside. It didn’t take the valet long to return with his pickup. Mike helped Taylor inside, generously tipped the valet, and then hurried around to the driver’s side.
As he pulled into the late night traffic, he glanced across the darkened pickup cab at Taylor. She looked so lovely in the muted light it made his heart ache with longing. How could he be in love with the crazy little loon?
He grinned as he thought of the encounters they’d had the past few weeks: Of watching her play air guitar with a pine garland draped around her neck. Of seeing the gentle way she greeted the elderly and engaged the youngsters who dropped by the warehouse. Of her unwavering energy and devotion to the festival.
With sudden clarity, he knew what he felt for her wasn’t a passing fancy, but something real, something he refused to acknowledge or admit.
Chapter Eight
“Where did you and Mike disappear to Saturday night?” Brenna asked as she helped Taylor arrange wreaths on a large stand Brock constructed from pegboard.
“We were at the gala the whole evening.” Taylor hesitated to confess Mike had tugged her behind a grouping of Christmas trees and kissed her senseless. Even without a sprig of mistletoe in sight, she’d never been kissed so thoroughly in her life. He’d left her more than unsettled. She’d returned home baffled and disconcerted by the entire evening.
Clueless as to why he’d asked her to go in the first place, she’d been astounded by his continual compliments throughout the evening. She’d never had anyone treat her with such kind consideration and genuine care.
Despite her head assuring her it was a bad, bad idea to get involved with Mike, her heart whispered that she should find more opportunities to kiss him.
“Then why do your cheeks look like bright red holly berries?” Brenna pointed to her own cheeks, stuck out her lips, and batted her eyelashes.
Taylor laughed at the silly face and tossed a plaid bow at Brenna. “Did you and Brock have a good time?”
“We did. I hate to leave Alex as much as I have lately, but my parents are always more than willing to babysit. Between him and Avery’s two little ones, they’re getting pretty good at this grandparenting thing.”
“I should say. Your mom practically needs her feet tethered to the ground when she talks about her grandbabies.” Taylor arranged a garland along the top of the stand and reached for the bow she’d tossed at Brenna, wiring it in place.
“She really does. I’m just happy to have help with Alex when we need it.” Brenna handed Taylor another wreath to hang at the top of the tall stand. Taylor leaned down from her spot on the ladder and lifted it up to the hook where she wanted to hang it.
When she glanced back down, Brenna was digging her phone out of her pocket. “Be right back,” she said, then stepped away to answer a call.
Taylor fluffed the silver bow on the wreath she’d just hung and bent back to study it. Leaning farther than she intended, gravity pulled at her and she would have fallen off the ladder if strong hands hadn’t settled on her thighs and held her in place while she regained her balance. The sizzle shooting from the point of contact to every extremity affirmed who had their hands on her tight-covered legs.
“Hi, Mike,” she said without looking down at him as she clung to the ladder.
“How’d you know it was me?” Although she was no longer in danger of falling, his hands remained fastened on the backs of her thighs.
“It’s that mental telepathy thing. I’ve decided not to demand a refund. It might work a little after all.”
He chuckled and slid his hands down her legs, causing thoughts better left alone to float through her head.
She turned o
n the ladder and faced him. “What, exactly, are you doing, Mr. Clarke?”
The wicked grin on his face made her insides morph into a molten mess. “If you aren’t sure, I better take you aside and give you a little lesson.”
“I don’t believe that will be necessary.” Taylor tossed a disparaging look at him, even though she wanted to encourage him to offer any lessons he deemed appropriate. “What are you doing here?”
“I had a lull between emergencies today, so I thought I’d drop by and see how things are coming along here.” He waited until she took two steps down the ladder to circle her waist and set her on the floor. His hands lingered on the red fabric of her short overalls. For once, he didn’t mind seeing the overalls, since it gave him the opportunity to smooth his hands up her silky green tights. She wore a green and white striped shirt, green high-top sneakers, and had her hair caught into two braids on either side of head, although most of her hair had already escaped the confines.
She looked… adorable.
Mike didn’t stop to consider when or how his opinion of her sense of style altered. All he knew is that after repeatedly kissing her Saturday night, he couldn’t get enough of her. He’d sat beside her at church yesterday then asked her and her uncle to join him for lunch at a restaurant. The food wasn’t as good as the meals Brenna served at the bistro, but it was one of the few places open on Sundays.
He’d gone to work that morning, determined to keep his mind off Taylor Taggart and his infatuation for her. Instead, he’d spent hours thinking about her.
After he’d answered a call to help someone with a blown fuse, he decided to stop by the warehouse.
Under the guise of checking on their supply of extension cords and power strips, he really just wanted to see Taylor.
He walked inside and saw her up on a ladder, chatting with Brenna. By sheer luck, Brenna received a call and went to answer it, leaving Mike to admire a back view of Taylor without anyone catching him. Fortunately, he happened to be right behind her when she almost fell off the ladder.
Untangling Christmas (Silverton Sweethearts Book 3) Page 6