She’d missed him desperately the last week or so. Missed going into work every day and seeing him. Missed teasing him and hearing him laugh. Missed working with him and sharing the victories and defeats of running The Buzz.
And every night, alone in her bed, she missed the feel of his arms around her. Missed the sound of his breath in the darkness and the heated touch of his hands on her body.
She closed her eyes and swayed slightly under the onslaught of memories rushing through her. Rachel’s heart ached as her gaze swept the crowd, searching for the one man she most longed to see. But he wasn’t there and in the ocean of people, she might as well have been alone.
Two hours later, the DJ began playing “Here Comes Santa Claus,” and the gathered children erupted in excited cheers.
A voice in Rachel’s ear said, “Santa’s here, and hey, it’s a good one.”
“Excellent,” she answered and followed the crowd as the people slowly moved toward the decorated Christmas tree and the “throne” that had been set up for Santa.
Then the man himself stepped out from behind a panel of velvet curtains and paused midstage for a hearty belly laugh. His voice rolled out across the room and sent a chill straight up Rachel’s spine.
Her heartbeat quickened and her mouth went dry as her gaze locked on the tall man in the red velvet suit. The red hat, white wig and beard, bushy eyebrows and rectangular glasses perched low on his nose did a good job of disguising his true identity.
But Rachel would have known him anywhere.
Shane.
She wove through the crowd, excusing herself, apologizing, but never stopping. Her gaze on Santa, she headed straight for him. And halfway there, his gaze found hers. She felt the power of his stare slam into her and for the first time in more than a week, she felt wholly, completely alive again.
“Merry Christmas,” Santa shouted, his gaze still on Rachel.
The children shrieked and clapped and the gathered adults got into the spirit of the thing, too. Women in diamonds, men in designer tuxes smiled along with the kids, enjoying the thrill of the moment.
Rachel stopped alongside Santa and looked up into Shane’s beautiful green eyes. She didn’t want to make too much of his being here. Of his playing Santa. Of the quickening jolt of her heartbeat.
But how could she not?
How could she not hope that somehow, someway, they might find each other in the magic of this night?
“Santa’s got some work to do,” Shane whispered, “but once the presents are distributed, you and I have to talk.”
“Shane…”
His eyes actually twinkled. “Santa.”
She nodded even as one of the kids moved in close and started tugging at her hand. “After, Santa.”
Shane grinned and immediately bent down to scoop up the little girl who was staring at him as if he held the answers to all of the universe’s questions. Perching her on his hip, he tapped her nose with the tip of one finger and said, “Now, let’s see what Santa’s got especially for you!”
For an hour, Rachel worked side by side with Shane. His laughter rang out and inspired hers. The kids were awed and touched and thrilled with the gifts the Elliott foundation had purchased specifically for them. The real magic of Christmas hummed in the air as the crowd began singing along with the carols pouring from the stereo.
Outside, the snow started again and turned the ballroom into a picture postcard. And when the last of the children’s wishes had been satisfied, Santa took Rachel’s hand and pulled her backstage.
“You were wonderful tonight,” she said, taking a cautious step back from him even as her heart urged her to move in closer. “The children loved you.”
Shane pulled off the hat, wig and beard, then carefully took off his glasses and set them aside before turning to Rachel. “I’ve never had so much fun,” he admitted. “And it’s all because of you.”
“What?”
“You, Rachel,” he said, reaching for her, dropping his hands onto her shoulders and pulling her slowly toward him. “I played Santa tonight because I knew you’d be here. Knew you’d like it. And I hoped you’d give me a chance to say what I should have said a long time ago.”
“Shane…” Her throat felt incredibly tight. As if air were just too thick to penetrate it.
“Just listen,” he said quickly. “Please.”
Rachel nodded because she simply couldn’t speak. She locked her knees to keep herself upright and stared into his beautiful eyes.
“I miss you, Rachel,” he said, his voice gruff, raw. “I miss seeing you every day. Miss hearing you laugh. Miss the way you nag me into doing what needs doing.”
She found her voice at that. “I don’t nag, I—”
“You do,” he interrupted, “and I need it, God knows. Nothing is right with me, Rachel. Since you left, there’s no light. There’s no laughter. There’s no…anything.”
“I miss you, too, but—”
“No,” he said quickly, pulling her even closer, tipping her head back until she was staring straight up into his eyes. “No buts, Rachel. Just the simple truth. Without you in my life, I’ve got nothing worth having.”
She swallowed hard and let the tears crowding her eyes begin to fall.
“I love you, Rachel,” he said, his fingers digging into her arms as if holding on to her meant life itself. “I think maybe I’ve always loved you. I just never knew it until you were gone.” He bent his head, kissed her gently, lightly, then said, “You’re everything to me, Rachel. You make me want to be a better man. A man who deserves you.”
Her heart thundering in her chest, Rachel could hardly believe she was hearing him say all the things she’d dreamed of hearing. Her soul lit up like Christmas morning and hope for a future filled with love swept through her.
“If you let me,” he said, hurrying on as if unwilling to stop talking long enough to hear her answer, “I’ll spend the rest of our lives proving to you just how much I love you.”
“What are you saying?” The words squeaked out of her throat. She was pretty sure what he was getting at, but she wanted no mistakes. No misunderstandings. Not about this.
“I’m proposing, Rachel!” He dragged her tightly against him and wrapped his arms around her, holding her in place. “For God’s sake, haven’t you been listening?”
Rachel laughed and nodded. “Yeah. I really have. But I don’t think I’ve heard an actual question yet.”
He gave her a brief smile. “I’m getting to it. This isn’t easy for a man, you know. What if the woman you’re asking says no?”
She smiled back at him. “Just a chance you’re going to have to take, I guess.”
“Well,” Shane said, “a very wise woman I know told me recently that nothing worth having comes easily.”
“I like her already,” Rachel said, loving the feel of Shane’s arms around her, there in the dark. From the room beyond, Christmas music drifted on the air and conversations came muted, as if from a distant planet.
“Yeah,” he said, “me, too. But this is about us.”
“Us,” Rachel echoed. “I like the sound of that, too.”
“Glad to hear it,” Shane said, lifting one hand to smooth her hair back from her forehead. “Marry me, Rachel. Let me marry you.”
“Yes.”
His smile was quick and broad. “Just like that?”
“Just like that,” she said, nodding. “Although, I’m not going to work for you anymore.”
His smile faded abruptly. “Why the hell not?”
“Because,” she said, “I’m going back to school. I always wanted to be a teacher. I think I’d be a good one.”
“I think you’d be a great teacher,” Shane said, dipping his head for another quick taste of her. “I’ll miss having you at the office, but as long as you come home to me every night, I’ll be a happy man.”
“I do love you, Santa,” she said, going up on her toes to meet him for another kiss.
His glued
-on, bushy white eyebrows wiggled expressively over his twinkling green eyes. “Then how about a sleigh ride?”
Epilogue
The tree was still up, the garlands and lights still twining around the great room at The Tides. And with all of the Elliotts gathered at the family home for New Year’s, the noise level was pretty impressive.
Shane wandered through the crowd, listening to snatches of conversation and smiling at the sudden bursts of laughter that shot up and flavored the air. He glanced across the room, caught Rachel’s eye and felt again the punch of sheer joy that was a constant companion these days. With Rachel’s love he could do anything. Face anything. And he looked forward to a future of loving her and the children they were already trying for.
The stereo was suddenly turned off and each of the gathered Elliotts turned to look at the older man standing beside the roaring fire in the hearth.
“I think it’s time for a speech,” Patrick Elliott announced, lifting a glass of champagne to his family.
“Now, Patrick,” his wife chided, “’tis no time for one of your long talks. The family’s here, we should be celebratin’.”
Shane watched as his father dropped an arm around his wife’s shoulders and pulled her close.
“You’re right, Maeve,” Patrick said, “as always. But, the idea was for Shane to give the speech. As the new CEO of EPH, it’s only fitting.”
Around him, applause erupted and Shane grinned. Gannon slapped him on the back and gave him a shove toward the front of the room. Erika held their baby daughter as if she were made of spun glass and smiled up at her husband.
Tag had his fiancée, Renee, trapped under a ball of mistletoe and the lovely woman showed no signs of trying to escape. Michael stood beside the chair where his wife, Karen, practically glowing with her very short hair, sat enjoying the fun.
Shane kept walking, stopping long enough to snag Rachel’s hand and drag her along with him. He grinned at Summer and her rock star Zeke, huddled with Scarlet and John, no doubt planning the double wedding that Maeve was already fretting over.
Outside the living room, the night was cold and moonlit, pale silvery light glancing off the mounds of snow, illuminating the grounds. Inside, warmth filled the gathered Elliotts and touched Shane more deeply than ever before.
Fin lifted a glass to him and gave him a wink. He grinned at her and her husband, Travis, who’d flown in from Colorado with Bridget and her husband, Mac, just for this traditional party. In a corner of the room, Daniel and Amanda were cuddling, ignoring everyone else. And to round out the crowd, Jessie and her husband, Cade, were talking with Liam and his fiancée, Aubrey, about their upcoming wedding at their Napa winery. Collen and Misty were cuddled up together, as if they were alone on an island. And Bryan and Lucy were kissing under the mistletoe. The family was together and happy. A great start to a New Year.
Finally, though, Shane was at the head of the room and as his parents stepped to one side, he pulled Rachel close against him. His heart swelled as she leaned into him.
“I’m a lucky man,” he said, lifting his glass to the faces turned toward him. “I found the woman I was meant to love and the work I was meant to do.”
“Hear, hear!” Gannon shouted and was quickly shushed by Erika.
“But,” Shane continued, looking from one beloved face to another, “I think this year we all got lucky. When Dad started his little contest, I thought he was trying to drive a wedge between us.” Shane glanced at his father and smiled. “I should have known better.”
Patrick smiled and kissed Maeve.
Renee gave Tag a friendly slap and stepped out from under the mistletoe to listen.
“The Elliotts have come together this year,” Shane said, lifting his champagne glass even higher. “We’ve rediscovered our family ties and forged the bonds that connect us one to the other, even tighter than they were before. We’ve passed our own tests, we’ve faced our fears…” He paused to nod at Michael and Karen. “And we’ve come out the other side. We’ve found love and we’ve found each other.”
Liam whistled and Fin applauded.
“Old wrongs have been righted,” Shane went on, with a nod at Fin and Jessie. “And the future stretching out in front of us looks bright.”
“Well said,” Patrick called out.
“To the Elliotts,” Shane shouted, “together, we’re invincible!”
And as the family celebrated, Shane pulled the love of his life into the circle of his arms. Together, they shared a kiss that promised a future filled with all the love and hope anyone could ask for.
ISBN: 978-1-55254-757-1
Copyright © 2006 Harlequin Books S.A.
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About the Authors
Kara Lennox
Kara Lennox is the bestselling author of more than fifty published novels of romance and romantic suspense. She has been published by Silhouette and Bantam Books as Karen Leabo, and currently writes for the Harlequin American Romance, Silhouette Desire and Signature Select lines as Kara Lennox. Some of her more popular series for the American Romance line are How to Marry a Hardison and Blond Justice.
Prior to writing romance, Kara was a freelance writer with hundreds of magazine articles published, as well as brochures, press releases, advertisements and business plans. She has also earned a paycheck at various times as a magazine art director, a typesetter, an exercise instructor, a sales clerk for a boutique that was a front for laundering Mafia money (she found out later), a telephone survey-taker, and a blackjack dealer. But she’s happiest now, living her dream as an author.
Kara’s books are often cited for their groundbreaking, quirky or otherwise unusual subject matter. She has written about ostrich ranching, Mayan archeology, brain tumors, child abandonment, jewel theft, witchcraft and storm chasing—in addition to a full complement of cowboys, brides and babies.
Kara is a member of Romance Writers of America, Dallas Area Romance Authors and Chick Lit Writers of the World. She is a popular speaker and workshop presenter at writers’ conferences around the country. She loves reader mail and answers all she can.
Barbara Dunlop
Barbara penned—well penciled, actually—her first major work of fiction at the age of eight. It was entitled How the Giraffe Got His Long Neck and was released to rave reviews. Unfortunately, the print run of one copy hindered distribution. But the experience whet her appetite for celebrity and acclaim.
Three years later she became a reporter for the venerated publication The Berry Street Times. With a circulation of 11, this forum allowed Barbara to reach even more faithful readers.
After writing her first romance manuscript, she discovered the efficiency of word processing and email distribution. Her beleaguered friends and relatives courageously plowed through each and every story, continuing to provide encouraging feedback.
When Harlequin offered to publish Barbara’s stories under the Duets and Temptation imprints, it was a dream come true. Not only are her friends and relatives still compelled to read her
stories, but they now enjoy the privilege of paying for them and placing them in prominent positions in their homes. Barbara knows this, because she routinely checks their bookcases while listening to their effusive compliments and wondering what could possibly have caused all those peculiar facial tics.
If you’d like to visit Barbara’s web site, please go to www.barbaradunlop.com. She loves to receive email. The address is [email protected].
Roxanne St. Claire
Roxanne started writing stories during eighth grade algebra class to escape x. She didn’t know what x equaled. She didn’t believe x actually equaled anything. Letters belong in words and words belong in sentences and sentences belong in the most magnificent place of all…books.
Books have been her passion since she galloped through Black Beauty at nine, breezed through Gone with the Wind at 11, soared with The Moonspinners at 13, and then wallowed in the Valley of the Dolls right around the time her braces came off and she discovered…boys.
Although she reads anything and everything—including four newspapers a day—Roxanne has never left the comfort of romance novels for very long. While attending UCLA, she worked at a Los Angeles TV station where the news producer convinced her to legally change her last name from Zink to St. Claire so he could do a segment on how to change your name, complete with cameras in the courtroom when the decree was pronounced official. Only in L.A.!
After graduating with a degree in mass communications, Roxanne appeared on the sitcoms Laverne & Shirley and Bosom Buddies and hosted a talk show called Between the Piers. Since it soon became evident she didn’t have a future as Loni Anderson or Jane Pauley, she took her glamorous, legal name into the world of public relations and immediately found her niche. By day she promoted products and people, but at night…she still read and scribbled tales of love and adventure.
Dynasties:The Elliots, Books 7-12 Page 83