I nodded. “This is where I grew up.”
“It’s fantastic,” he said. “And so picturesque. The only thing it’s missing is a snowman on the front lawn.”
“You get on that,” I said. “I’ll do the tree.”
He came around the side and helped me pull the tree from the bed of the truck, carrying it up the steps and into the house by himself. I couldn’t help but watch the muscles bunch on his shoulders as I followed behind him.
I had the boxes of ornaments ready and the tree stand set up near the window. He slid the tree into the stand, holding it still while I tightened the screws on the base.
“Don’t we need some Christmas music?” he asked. “Or are you still avoiding it?”
I paused, holding a strand of lights up to the tree. “I kind of had a realization that avoiding Christmas wasn’t helping me to cope with my grief. So, I’m trying it Dad’s way instead.”
“Which is?”
I smiled, imagining my dad in the room with us watching the interaction. Of course, he wasn’t really here, that was crazy, but it was a nice thought just the same. “Going all in, of course.”
Jake sifted through the ornaments in the boxes, examining the various shapes and characters while I turned on the sound system and connected the Bluetooth to my phone. I opened my music app and selected a station of classic Christmas songs and let it play.
It was fitting that the first song to come on was We Wish You a Merry Christmas. If I was going to go all in with Christmas, then I was definitely starting out strong.
Jake shot me an amused look and I chuckled, pulling a string of white twinkle lights from the box and unraveling them. We passed the hour wrapping lights around the tree branches and choosing ornament placement while dancing, periodically, to upbeat holiday music. The afternoon had been a direct replica of the many Christmas tree decorating sessions I’d had with my dad over the years, and something about the easy companionship I felt with Jake made today easy and enjoyable—not the melancholy experience I’d expected. I sat on the arm of my yellow armchair and watched Jake try to find a place in the over-decorated tree for a Santa ornament I’d made out of popsicle sticks in Kindergarten.
“Maybe up to the left?” I offered.
Jake turned left, circling the tree until he was back where he began. He shot me a confused look over his shoulder and I said, “How about down on the right, then?”
I couldn’t help but grin. He didn’t realize that I was just teasing him. There really was no room. After circling the tree once more, he faced me, a wry smile on his lips. “I think this particular Santa has to sacrifice for the cause.”
“Which cause is that?”
He began toward me slowly, holding up the ornament. “Of snowflake ornaments everywhere. There are an abundance of Santas, but not nearly as many snowflakes. We’ll leave this guy off to avoid removing one of the lesser guys.”
I arched an eyebrow, crossing my arms over my chest. “I guess that’ll have to do. You do know this was my dad’s favorite, though, right?”
Jake’s face fell slack, his cheeks taking on a pale hue. I burst out in laughter, clutching my side at the distraught look in his eyes.
“I’m sorry. I really shouldn’t joke about that.”
He watched me warily. “Was it your dad’s favorite?”
Nodding, I wiped a tear from my eye. I hadn’t laughed that hard in a while. “But in his defense, he said that about all of the ornaments I made.”
Jake glanced back at the tree. At least two-thirds of the ornaments were results of my crafts in one way or another.
“Yeah,” I said, assuming I understood his thoughts, “most of them were made by me.”
Jake chuckled, moving back to put the Santa away in the box. He lifted a shiny, gold filigree star. “Are we ready for this?”
Nodding, I rose and approached him, taking the star from his hands. The whole process had been therapeutic in the way I’d hoped it would be. I pulled a chair closer to the tree and placed the star at the very top, standing there a moment thinking of my dad, wherever he was. I miss you, Dad.
I turned to step down and Jake offered me his hand, closing it around my smaller one. “You know I’ve never decorated a tree before.”
“What?” I said, shocked. “How?”
He shrugged. “We always had ours done professionally. And never had the same theme twice.” His face screwed up in thought. “You know, maybe I did decorate one with my grandma when I was little, but I don’t remember.”
“I wish I would have known so I could provide you with the full experience. We’re missing gingerbread decorating and a roaring fire, Mr. Tyler.”
He reached forward and wrapped his hands around my back. “Who says we can’t still have those things?”
“Me,” I answered, laughing. “I have to get back to the diner.”
“Not yet, though,” he murmured, pulling me in. He bent his head, kissing me slow and smooth. I ran my hands up his chest, pulling him closer by his neck.
Jake’s arms held me cocooned in a state of bliss. I had kissed my share of men in the last few years, but none of them compared to the comfort and protection I felt with Jake Tyler. There was something about him which all the other guys had lacked. If I was crazy, I’d assume he cared for me on a deeper level. But that was crazy, right?
I leaned back enough to look in his eyes and found a safe, comfortable place there. Maybe I didn’t have my dad around, but Jake was right. I had a large, supportive family in Holly Springs. My town was everything to me. And this guy right here was the final, missing piece I hadn’t known I was searching for.
Patrick had taken care of me and cared for me, but he hadn’t loved me. Not in this way.
“If you have nothing else planned, how would you like to come spend Christmas with me and Grandma Hart?” Jake asked, his voice low and husky.
“I’d love it,” I responded immediately.
His grin flipped my heart over in my chest. “Good. Because I would have gotten you there one way or another, whether you wanted to or not.”
Laughing, I swatted his chest. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here.”
His face turned serious at once. “I’ve been telling myself the same thing. But I’ve come to a decision and I hope you won’t take it the wrong way.”
My stomach fell at once. Possibilities of what he was about to say raced through my mind and I found a sudden desire to step away and place a distance between us that could protect me from his words. I clenched my jaw, holding strong, and clutched his arms while he still held me around the waist.
“I’ve decided to move to Holly Springs.”
Well, I hadn’t expected that. “What?”
“Yeah,” he smiled. “I’ve fallen in love with this town. And I’ve missed too much time with my grandma. I don’t want to waste any more. Plus, there’s this cute girl in town who’s caught my eye and I don’t want to leave her yet.”
I smiled, a slow-spreading grin forming on my face. “I can think of a few ways to help you pass the time.”
“Yeah?” he had a gleam in his eye as he leaned toward me again.
“Wait,” I said suddenly, startling him. “Does this mean you’ll stay in the apartment above the diner?”
“Probably not,” he answered. “I was thinking something more permanent. But we can figure that out later.”
Nodding, I said, “This is the best Christmas gift, ever.”
* * *
Jake
Madison’s smile made the announcement completely worth it. I’d been thinking about it for a few days, actually, but I hadn’t wanted to say anything until I was sure. And standing in her living room, decorating the tree and listening to holiday music, I was completely taken with this woman.
“What about work?” she asked, turning away to clean up the decorating supplies.
“I can do it from anywhere. I have to travel periodically, but I really don’t need to all that often. I’ve go
t an amazing team.”
“Apparently. And speaking of teams, I really need to get back and let Joey off.”
We drove back to town with smiles on both of our faces. Madison’s long, dark hair blew from the heated air and her cheeks and the tip of her nose were rosy from the chill. I felt fortunate to be the guy in her passenger seat. And I wasn’t going to mess this up.
The only hiccup was the diner. But that was easily solvable. I could write up the paperwork for a business transfer and have Mark’s name on the documents. Madison could keep the building for her dessert shop and never know I’d been sent to kick her out of the diner.
It wasn’t dishonest, entirely. I would just tell her everything, but I didn’t know how she’d take it. Besides, how was I supposed to convey that my heart had been in the right place all along? There was no sure way to do it. So, I wouldn’t.
I watched her pull into the parking spot behind the diner and reached for her hand. I was falling in love with this woman, and I couldn’t let anything get in the way of that.
“Time to flip some burgers,” she said.
“Or bake some pies. You’ll probably start getting customers any day now.”
She shot me a skeptical glance over her shoulder before stepping through the back door of the diner.
A low buzz met our ears and the hair on my neck stood on end. I followed Madison through the back kitchen and into the dining room, a strange sense of foreboding overcoming me.
The diner was nearly full, the tables bustling with an array of guests. Joey stood at the stove flipping burgers and tossed us a grin before turning back to the half-cooked food. A lady at the bar gasped when we stepped inside, saying, “Maddie bakes! It’s her, it’s MaddieBakes!”
A few people nearby made similar noises of excitement and Madison stopped in her tracks. I had to catch myself before I bowled her over.
Resting my hand on her shoulder, I caught her shock register as she scanned the occupants.
“This cupcake tastes just as good as they look in your photos,” the woman continued, gushing. Her round, pink cheeks glowed. “I couldn’t believe my luck when you posted your diner and I realized we were only thirty-five minutes away. And I’ve never been to Colorado before. This is just a fluke!”
“How fortunate for me,” Madison said, pulling an apron from the rack around the door and tying it around her waist. “Are you enjoying your vacation?”
“Oh, immensely. I don’t ski, you know” —she nodded her head, and Madison nodded along with her as if she did know— “but I love a good snowy backdrop to my holidays. And the lodge we rented has the most amazing view. It’s perfect for me to read in.”
“That sounds like a perfect holiday to me,” Madison agreed. “Where are you from?”
“San Antonio. But we are here for another week and a half.”
“Then I hope you’ll find time to come and visit again.”
The woman’s eyes grew wide in her seriousness. “You better believe I will.”
Madison smiled at the woman before excusing herself, turning to offer me a wide-mouthed expression of surprise and excitement. Her face was absolutely glowing—though in a less red way than her new friend and patron—and I had to restrain myself from hugging her right there. The diner had a couple tables of Holly Springs residents that I recognized, but at least half of the customers had to be new, judging by the look on Madison’s face.
I let out a sigh of relief and contentment. I had always believed it would work, it was bound to, but it was extremely comforting to see it occurring. Satisfaction washed over me in a warm glow. I was fairly positive that nothing could ruin this moment for me.
The bell rang above the door and I turned in unison with Madison to see who the next customer was going to be—resident or MaddieBakes follower—and the blood rushed from my face in one fell swoop.
A tall, dark-haired man with an Oxford shirt buttoned to the neck and a pair of black shoes so shiny I could almost see my reflection in them from across the diner stepped inside. He scanned the dining room before resting his gaze on me and I wanted to scream.
“Welcome,” Madison called. I could see the train wreck about to occur and wished to stop it, but I wasn’t Superman. “We’re pretty full but I’ve got an available seat at the bar.”
“That won’t be necessary,” my brother said, crossing the room. “I’m just here to see Jake.”
“Oh?” She turned confused eyes on me. The crease between her eyebrows was usually so cute, but now it worried me. “How do you know him?”
“He’s my brother,” Mark said, eyeing her. “And you are the owner of the diner, I presume.”
“Yes,” she said, her eyebrows shooting up. “Welcome to Holly Springs.”
“Thanks. I don’t plan to stay. I just have to take care of some business here first. Actually, it’s with you. So whenever you have a moment, I’d love to have a meeting.”
“Why?”
I opened my mouth to stop Mark, but the words wouldn’t formulate quick enough. “Wait, Mark. Just let me—”
“About the diner, of course. We need to process the paperwork about the closure.”
Her face was screwed up even more and I dreaded the moment the pieces would connect.
“Mark,” I said. “This isn’t really the time or the place.” I tried to indicate the full diner, but he didn’t seem to notice or care. Apparently, we’d procrastinated too long. And Mark was the king of stubborn.
“Why would you…” Madison stopped, her mind working through the equation. “Are you connected to Tyler Jameson?”
I shut my eyes, wishing I could shove all of the problems away with them. This was it. Madison was going to hate me.
Mark nodded. “We are Tyler Jameson.” He reached out his hand to shake hers and I registered Joey gasp from behind me where he still stood at the stove. “Mark Tyler, glad to meet you.”
She stared at his hand, then turned slowly to face me. “You’re the Tyler of Tyler Jameson? I didn’t realize it was a last name. I never even considered…” She stopped, her mouth closing in a snap. The Texan she’d been talking with earlier was leaning forward, catching every word with wide, worried eyes. Another table behind her was talking to each other about the closure of the diner, one woman exclaiming in a poorly disguised whisper, “But what will MaddieBakes do?”
“You’ve known all along,” Madison accused, her eyes growing fierce. “Ever since the hot sauce you knew, didn’t you?”
What could I say? I searched my mind for the right words to explain my side of the story. “Yes, I knew, but I never meant to—”
“This was all just a job for you!” Madison yelled. “I can’t believe I fell for it! You aren’t going to move here. You don’t actually care about Holly Springs, or me.”
“Hey, that’s not true!” I defended.
The Texas woman gasped and Madison turned, stomping from the diner. I shot Mark a glare before following Madison outside to the back road. She fled to her truck and I jogged to catch up. “Madison, wait. Let’s talk about this.”
She spun around, her hand clutching the truck’s door handle. “I don’t know what you expect from me, Jake, but I’m done. This is done. We are obviously done. There is absolutely nothing you could say that would make me ever trust you again, and I don’t know if you realize this, but trust is a vital part of any relationship.”
The fire in her eyes solidified her words. She was furious, as she had every right to be. “I’m sorry,” I said lamely.
She scoffed, and I didn’t blame her. She got into her truck and I stepped closer, opening the driver’s door as she fired up the engine. “Please, just listen for a minute? I am sorry. I should have told you who I was right away, but I just wanted to see if there was any way I could help you first. I should have been honest, and for that I’m really sorry, but my intentions were good.”
“I don’t care about your intentions,” she spat. Emotion brimmed in her eyes and I didn’t know if she
was about to cry or breathe fire on me, so I backed up.
“Just don’t give up on me. Take time to yourself, but don’t give up on me.”
She accelerated and I jumped back, watching her reach out and slam the door closed after she’d driven down the street. Snow started to fall and I let out a breath, watching it cloud before me as Madison’s truck disappeared down the road.
I turned back for the diner with determination. I was an idiot. There was no other way around it. But Mark? Mark was an imbecile. And if he just cost me a relationship with Madison, he was definitely going to pay.
16
Madison
I was not going to cry. I was furious and I felt stupid for trusting him, but I was definitely not going to cry.
Jake did not deserve my tears.
Holding onto the steering wheel with both hands, I pulled onto the side of the abandoned country road and rested my forehead on the wheel. I couldn’t avoid the diner any longer. I’d been gone for an hour now and I’d already told Joey I would relieve him for the day as soon as I could.
Letting out one last frustrated groan, I turned back onto the road and headed back for the diner. It was still busy when I returned, and I searched the room for Jake and his brother but came up short, my gaze resting on the door to the apartment upstairs.
“Sorry,” I said to Joey, coming up beside him. “I shouldn’t have run away like that.”
“No worries, boss.” He turned toward me, pity and understanding shadowing his face. “They left right after you did.”
I nodded. “Thanks, Joey.”
He stepped closer, lowering his voice. “Is it true? Is this place done?” His deep brown eyes implored me.
“I should have told you sooner, but I was trying to find a way to save it.”
He nodded slowly. “So how long do we have?”
“Probably very little.”
“I’m here as long as you need me. But…” I waited for him to continue and he looked as though he wrestled with the right words to say.
Snowflake Wishes (Holly Springs Romance Book 1) Page 13