My Only Christmas Wish

by J. M. Jeffries

  Darcy finished her wine. Maybe she needed to talk to her mother, but she was suddenly too tired. “Thanks, James.” She bent over to kiss him on the cheek. “I still don’t feel better that he kissed me.”

  “I’ve never known a woman to get so upset over something as simple as a kiss.”

  “I don’t know why he did it.”

  “Maybe because you’re an attractive, intelligent and fun-to-be-with type of woman. Why would any man want to kiss a girl like that?”

  “You’re just not helping.”

  James pushed himself to his feet. “I know. I’m such a guy.” He kissed her on the forehead and started her toward the door. “Don’t be so harsh on the man. I suspect he doesn’t know why he kissed you, either.”

  “Men.”

  He opened the door and as she walked out he took the wineglass still clutched in her fingers. “Good night, Darcy. And stop worrying.”

  He closed the door and as she stamped down the stairs, she could hear James howling with laughter.

  * * *

  Why the hell had he kissed her? What was he thinking? Eli stomped on the accelerator as he roared through downtown Atlanta toward home and his daughter waiting for her good-night kiss.

  He prided himself on being in control of his business, his life and his emotions. He didn’t know where the impulse to kiss her had come from.

  A light turned red and he jammed the brakes. As he waited for the light to change he thrummed the wheel with restless fingers.

  Yeah, he liked her. He’d grown to like her even more as this last week had progressed. Despite being in competition with her, she had a lot to like. When had he stopped thinking about winning and started thinking about seduction? That would be an incredibly foolish move.

  The light turned green and he moved forward through the intersection. His thoughts whirled. Darcy Bennett was not the kind of woman a man could indulge with in a casual relationship. If she loved a man the way she did Bennett’s, she would give everything she had to make things work.

  For the moment of that kiss, she’d been right there with him. Her lips had been soft and willing, and he could feel the way she leaned into him that she’d wanted the kiss as much as he did.

  What was it about this kiss that bothered him so much? He’d dated since his wife’s death. He’d kissed other women. But somehow this kiss had been different.

  Darcy wasn’t like the women he’d always dated. The usual dates were society women with marriage on their minds and who made men number one on their agenda. Yeah, Darcy was a society woman, but she was more interested in her store—his store. He had the feeling her love for her store would always come first. But would the store always be first? What about her family? Didn’t someone say she’d been married? What happened with that? Had she sacrificed her marriage for her store?

  Eli didn’t think so. From one week’s acquaintance watching her juggle the store, the customers and the employees, she could juggle a family. Look at the way Darcy and Roo got along. As far as his daughter was concerned, Darcy was better than rocky road ice cream. It was “Ms. Darcy this,” “Ms. Darcy that,” and “Ms. Darcy says” to the point it made his head spin.

  And that was another sore subject about his daughter and Darcy. If he did something that didn’t sit well with Darcy, he had the feeling his daughter would be on her side.

  How the hell had he gotten into such an odd situation? More important, how did he get himself out?

  He turned into the driveway of his home and as the gates closed behind him, he parked in the front.

  Roo opened the door. “Daddy, you’re home.”

  “Get in the house, Roo. You have no shoes on.”

  “I’m wearing my jammies. I don’t wear shoes with jammies.”

  “Then find your slippers.”

  “Good evening, Eli.” His mother took Roo by the hand and guided her back inside.

  Barbara Austin was a small, slightly plump woman with a harried expression on her face. The last few years had not been kind to her and every bit of the stress showed on her lined face.

  “Did you have a nice dinner with Ms. Darcy?” Roo asked as Eli took off his coat. A maid smoothly took it from him and disappeared.

  “Yes, I did.” He picked her up and kissed her. Holding her warm body against him filled him with a deep sense of love and commitment.

  A pleased expression filled her eyes. “I think you should marry her.”

  Eli almost dropped her. “Why do you think that?”

  “Because I like her, too.”

  He kissed her again and started up the stairs to her bedroom.

  “I’ve only known her a week.”

  “Don’t you like her?” Roo wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. “I think she likes you.”

  “Roo, this isn’t a topic for right now.”

  “You have to hurry up and fall in love, Daddy.”

  “Why is that?” He opened the door to her bedroom, which was decorated in girlish pink with more stuffed animals than any child needed.

  “Because Christmas is coming,” Roo said sleepily. Eli laid her down on her bed and drew the blankets over her.

  “What does Christmas have to do with anything?” Eli tucked the blankets around her and bent over to kiss her again.

  She rolled her eyes at him and gave him her “you’re dumb, Daddy” look. She might be only seven, but she acted more like thirty. “Because it does,” she said, looking mysterious. She hugged her panda tight to her as her eyes drifted shut. “Ms. Darcy says Christmas is magic.”

  As she drifted to sleep, Eli stared down at her. This little girl was so sweet and pure and filled with genuine love. Eli didn’t want anything to hurt her. Marrying Darcy Bennett was so out of the picture.

  He sighed and tiptoed to the door. He turned off the overhead light and went down the stairs to find his mother pouring a martini for him. A frown marred her face as she handed it to him and poured a glass of wine for herself.

  “I have to say, Eli, I think I’ve had enough of Ms. Darcy. Sophia talks about her constantly.”

  He had to admit, he hadn’t had enough yet. The kiss still haunted him. The touch of her lips on his replayed over and over in his mind.

  “And now she wants you to marry her!” Barbara took a long sip of her wine.”

  “Darcy has made a huge impact on Roo.”

  “Apparently,” Barbara said in a stern tone. “What about you? Has she made a huge impact on you?”

  Okay, he thought. She was planning one of those conversations. She was not one for beating around the bush. “I work with her.” Hell, he owned her prized possession.

  “I know why you bought Bennett’s.”

  “Enlighten me,” he said. “Bennett’s is a good investment and it was up for sale. I took advantage of the situation.”

  His mother’s eyes narrowed. “And your purchasing it had nothing to do with how your father felt?”

  He wanted to act innocent, but his mother knew him too well. “Do you think I would spend all that money just for revenge?”

  Barbara studied him. “I think you would.” She sighed and suddenly looked tired.

  “And I know that the Bennett family crushed my father’s dream. What I don’t know is why.”

  Barbara considered her son’s feelings. It was unfair to keep him in the dark. “Then it’s time I was honest with you. You assumed Whitman Bennett was an old man who didn’t want any competition. That’s not true, he always felt there was enough room for both Bennett’s and your father’s store. And when your daddy wanted a loan to expand, Whitman was willing to help. In fact, he was ready to sign the loan papers until he saw how poorly your daddy treated his employees. That didn’t sit well with Whitman.” She gave him an arch look. “And the appl
e hasn’t fallen far from the tree.”

  “What loan are you talking about?”

  “I loved your daddy and he was a good husband and a good father, but he wasn’t a good businessman. He felt he was entitled to be lord of everything he surveyed and he never let anyone forget it.”

  He remembered Darcy said the same about him. “That’s a little contradictory of your statement about him being a good husband and father,” Eli said, confused.

  “No,” she said, “that behavior never came through the front door. I would not have tolerated it.”

  He stared at her. When he looked at his mother he saw a tired woman growing old before her time. “Your daddy was insulted and angry, but he didn’t learn his lesson. He continued to treat his employees like shit.” His mother took a sip of her wine, her eyes narrowing as she stared at Eli.

  Eli settled back against the sofa. He knew Darcy paid her people pretty much the same he paid his people—a bit more than minimum wage and gave fairly decent bonuses at Christmas—and he didn’t give bonuses except to his managers. Still, his turnover was high and hers wasn’t.

  “The people at Dollar Bin have a job,” he said.

  “I’ve been buying my shoes from the same gentleman at Bennett’s for thirty years, Eli. You’re lucky if you can keep someone in our stores for twenty minutes. Nathan calls me every time something new comes in he thinks I might like. And 95 percent of the time, he’s right. And Cynthia, the Clinique manager, once put aside ten tubes of my favorite lipstick color when she found out the shade was being discontinued. Not that she didn’t find me another shade to love, the fact that she thought of me and most likely all her other regular customers, made me feel special. She makes anyone who stops at that counter feel special.”

  “You shop at Bennett’s?” Eli said in surprise.

  Barbara gave him a sharp look. “Do I look like I shop at Dollar Bin?”

  What did he say to that? But now he realized she was smartly dressed in an expensive Chanel suit. Darcy shopped at his store, but his own mother didn’t. That was harsh. “I guess not.”

  “It comes down to satisfaction, Eli. If your employees are happy they stay no matter what you pay them. If they’re not, they leave no matter what the economy looks like. Maybe you need to be taking lessons from Darcy Bennett on how to really run a store.”

  “That woman,” he said angrily, despite the lingering feel of her lips on his.

  “Yes, that woman,” Barbara said with a smile.

  “Times are hard. That store could be making a much better profit.”

  “Yes, for a while. Bennett’s is like comfort food. Even if I don’t buy something, from the minute I walk into Bennett’s until the moment I leave, I’m surrounded by luxury and ambience. I feel the people at Bennett’s care about their customers. Can you say the same for Dollar Bin?”

  Eli glared at his mother. He didn’t like the direction this conversation was going. “My people have 401Ks and medical insurance.”

  “I’ve seen your business plan. You offer insurance, but your employees have to work thirty hours to get it and I’ve seen your managers schedule people twenty-nine hours to keep them from getting their insurance. Yes, you offer medical insurance. Darcy offers the same, and makes certain her people get their thirty hours. She also offers deep discounts on clothes because she expects her employees to dress nicely. She also offers a college tuition fund not only to employees but their families.”

  “How do you know this?” Eli asked curiously.

  “We sit on a committee together for underprivileged girls,” his mother said. “I’ve gotten to know Darcy quite well the last few years. And I have to say, I admire her very much. And you would do well to emulate her, Eli.”

  Eli stood up. He’d had enough. First Darcy was digging at him about his business techniques. And now his mother! He couldn’t win for losing.

  “Good night, Mother,” he said and stalked out of the living room and up the stairs to his bedroom.

  * * *

  Usually manager meetings were fun. Darcy and the department managers, along with the general manager, Tom Williams, would joke and enjoy themselves with lunch catered from the cafeteria. But Eli had managed to suck the fun right out. And from the way the other managers were fidgeting, they must have felt the same way.

  She picked at her bagel while Eli stood in front of a white board making some sort of diagram. Who needed diagrams? They all had the figures right in front of them. Yeah, Darcy knew sales for the first week of the Christmas shopping season were down 2 percent from last year. She didn’t need a pie chart to tell something she already knew.

  Eli sat down. “And now on to—”

  All Darcy heard was a mumble of something, but she lost track of what he’d been saying a half hour ago. She watched his lips move and remembered the feel of them on hers.

  “I’d like to set up individual meetings with all of you, discuss your goals and talk about ways to trim your departments in the coming year,” Eli said.

  All the managers turned their heads to look at Darcy.

  “Ms. Bennett,” Eli said sharply, “is there something you want to add?”

  She jerked herself back to wakefulness. “Is it my turn?” Oh, goodie, she thought. How could she top his boredom? She rustled the stack of papers in front of her. “I know business is down a little bit, but sales in the toy department are up 7 percent. Kudos to Leon.” She clapped her hands.

  Leon grinned at her. “The toy this year is the new Transformers. I’ve had to reorder twice already.”

  “Instead of reordering Transformers, why not push the other toys that aren’t selling,” Eli put in.

  “They’ll sell, but they’ll have to be discounted. The Transformers are selling for full price,” Leon said.

  Eli simply frowned. Darcy could tell he wasn’t used to having his managers talk back to him.

  “Mr. Austin,” Darcy interrupted, “Leon has been manager of toys for twelve years and he really knows what kids want. Trust me, by February of next year he’ll have already found the hot toy for next Christmas and we’ll have plenty in stock.”

  Leon grinned.

  “Christmas shoe sales are doing well, too,” Darcy said. “Up two percent from last year.”

  A laugh erupted from down the table. “And someone who shall remain nameless, as in Darcy Bennett,” the manager of the shoe department said, a wide grin on her face, “is making sure shoe sales are up.”

  “It’s an addiction,” Darcy said with a chuckle. “And lingerie is up, too. I don’t know how you can push five-hundred-dollar bras, Sharon, but God bless you.”

  Sharon waved her hand. “I have a gift.”

  Darcy laughed. Eli looked like he was about to explode. “Can we get back to the matters at hand?”

  “These are the matters at hand,” Darcy said. “Okay, the bottom line is this. Yes, sales in total are down two percent, but our competition is off more than we are. And I’m not talking just about Macy’s, Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. We’re surviving and we’re doing a hell of a lot better than a lot of other people. Tell us, Eli, how is Dollar Bin doing?”

  “Dollar Bin sales are up 4 percent,” he said, a trace of pride in his voice.

  “That’s wonderful.” And when all the cheap toys break, she thought, the parents will head to Bennett’s for quality replacements. Thank goodness no one could read her thought bubble.

  The door at the end of the conference room opened and Ms. Jill from the day care center entered. All eyes turned to her.

  “Excuse me,” she said. “Ms. Darcy, may I have a word? Please.” The please held a frantic edge to it.

  Darcy pushed back from the table and walked out into the hall. “What is it?”

  “Ms. Darcy,” Jill said, “Sophia Austin is gone. Her driver brought
her from school and I logged her in. She went off to play with her friends. After Mrs. Derrick signed out her son, I checked on Sophia and she was gone.”

  “What do you mean gone?”

  Jill wrung her hands and started to cry. “I only looked away for a moment.”

  “Okay,” Darcy said firmly. “Calm down.”

  “I’ve already alerted security.”

  “Thank you. Go back to the center. I’ll take it from here.” Darcy dialed the head of security. “Call an Adam alert.”

  “Already done, ma’am,” the security chief said. “The police will be in here any minute.”

  “Good.” She disconnected and walked back into the conference room. “Excuse me, everyone. May I have your attention.”

  Eli looked up. “What’s the problem?”

  “Sophia Austin is missing from the day care,” Darcy said.

  Eli jumped to his feet, the chair tumbling backward, panic on his face.

  “Security has already been alerted. The store is already closed down,” Darcy said. “I want all of you to head back to your departments. You all know what Sophia looks like. Start searching.”

  The managers jumped to their feet and filed out of the room.

  “Where could she have gone?” Eli demanded. He ran his hands through his hair, his arrogance suddenly replaced by a wild, fearful look.

  “We’ll find her. I have a detail on the ground floor, the doors are locked. No one can get in or out without being checked.”

  “I’m going to look for her.”

  “First we’re going to security to view the security tapes,” Darcy said firmly.

  She ushered him to the elevator and down to the next floor and into the security office. Malek Winters stood in front of the bank of monitors, arms crossed over his chest watching them, eyes flitting back and forth. A uniformed guard sat in front of the monitors pointing at one of them.

  “All the doors have been covered. From the tapes I’ve already viewed, she hasn’t left the store.”

  That was almost a relief, Darcy thought.

  Malek glanced at Darcy. “I’ve already got guards searching the restrooms and the storage areas. We’ll find her.”