Diamond Lake Series: Complete Series (Bks 1-7) Boxset

by T. K. Chapin

  “You like kids?” the stranger asked as the family continued down the ramp of the parking garage.

  “How about names first?” I laughed. “I’m Angie.”

  “Angie, short for Angela?”

  “Yes, but no one calls me Angela.”

  “Angela, nice to formally meet you. I’m Connor.”

  “Nice to finally know your name. And of course I like kids. Do you?” We began walking. We were only a few paces behind the family. Usually, I minded when someone called me Angela, but I couldn’t bring myself to care with Connor. I actually liked how it sounded when he said it.

  “Yeah. Whenever I need a reminder of how life really should work, I stop in by the toddler’s class at church and hang out with the littles. Outside of eating their own boogers and the occasional poop in the pants, they get this thing called life better than most adults. It brings me back into focus and reminds me what really matters in life.”

  Laughing, I ran my fingers through my hair and pulled the hair caught under my pea coat out. “So you’re a philosopher?”

  He smiled and shrugged.

  The little boy in front of us turned as he held onto his mom and waved again. Connor waved back and smiled.

  Arriving to the door of the mall, Connor picked up his pace and held the door open for the family in front of us and then for me. Our eyes connected as I passed by him holding the door. We both smiled, and a warm sense of security wrapped itself around me. Being near Connor calmed me and made me happy all at once.

  Christmas music played throughout the mall as we strode down the walkway past stores, kiosks and even Santa’s North Pole, a place where kids could sit on Santa’s lap for a picture. Connor was taking me somewhere in the mall, but he hadn’t yet revealed where we were going. As we walked, we pointed out stores we liked and even stopped at a booth with freshly made fudge and got a sample.

  As we came around the corner towards the food court, smells of cinnamon shared the air with the Christmas melodies. The smell brought a smile to my heart as I recalled the bundle of cinnamon-scented pine cones my mother would buy every year right after Thanksgiving.

  Turning another corner, we came up to a green colored carpet that held a musical ensemble. Five musicians, all with instruments and red Santa hats, sat waiting in chairs. Spotting a violinist, I smiled.

  Connor pushed up his coat sleeve for the time. “Any moment now.”

  The violinist stood up and centered herself in front of the group. Her hair was long and pulled back in a tight ponytail. She looked poised and in complete control of her body. She held the violin up against her neck.

  The other musicians behind the violinist began playing ‘O Holy Night’. Joy filled me at the familiar sounds as they hummed against not only my eardrums, but my heart.

  Then the violin started in.

  Leaning into Connor’s ear, I said quietly, “I love this.”

  He turned his head and leaned in close enough to my ear that I could feel the warmth of his breath. His scent was sharp and welcoming as I leaned in to hear better. “I’m glad. I remembered your comment on the plane.”

  “You did this?” I asked, surprised.

  “Well, kind of. They were already playing. I just requested them to do a special violin number,” he replied with a smirk.

  Wow. What a sweet thing to do, I thought to myself as I smiled up at him. Listening to the musical ensemble, I stood beside Connor as passersby gathered around the musicians.

  CHAPTER 6

  Connor took me a few blocks down to a nice restaurant after the mall. He held the door open for me as we went inside and waited for me to sit down first before he sat. He was a gentleman. I liked that.

  After our meal, we began chatting about our lives. Instantly, we found common ground. We were both entrepreneurs. Connor owned a plastic ware company, and Ted and I—well, just me now—owned an organic soap factory.

  “This whole movement of minimum wage driving you nuts as much as it is me?” Connor asked and then took a sip of his water. His voice was warm against my ear drums. His words carried weight and conviction.

  “It drives me mad!” I threw my head back and laughed, recalling the email I received a few months back. There was a petition that went around the factory that a dozen or so employees signed. They were demanding a raise or they’d quit. I told Connor about it.

  “What’d you end up doing?” he asked, leaning across the table as his eyes begged for me to continue. The attention was nice. He was nice. Everything about him was making me warm up to the idea of being with someone again. Something closer than friends.

  A devilish smile crept into the corner of my lips. “I called their bluff. I told them I’d move the entire company overseas and pay children pennies to do their jobs if they didn’t want them. That was the end.”

  Connor’s mouth gaped open for a moment before he covered it with a hand and leaned into his palm as his elbow was pivoted on the table. A smile hid behind his hand. He liked that, I could tell. Dropping his hand away from his mouth a moment or two later, he shook his head. “You’ve got some . . . backbone.”

  I laughed, knowing what he meant. His phone rang, pulling his attention away from our conversation. He checked the screen and then slid out of the booth. “It’ll just be a moment.”

  He wandered to the hallway a few feet away and spoke for a few minutes before returning to our table. “Mr. Important,” I said with a smirk.

  He smiled forcefully and took a drink of his water. “Work never ends when you own your own business, does it?”

  I shook my head. “Not if we don’t allow it to end . . .”

  After our dinner at The Mustard Seed, we headed down to Riverfront Park. The water wasn’t entirely frozen over by the gripping coldness of winter, but there were plenty of spots you could see ice formed on top. The park was relatively quiet. Not a lot of people walked the paths and across the bridges. We passed by a few carolers, and Connor gave them a hundred-dollar bill.

  His desire to help warmed a part of me. He was a good man.

  We came to a bridge across a part of the river that had the Spokane Falls. The sounds of the roaring ice cold water made a part of me uncomfortable. I reached out and grabbed his arm. I wasn’t for certain if he’d pull away, but I was relieved when he didn’t. Snuggling in closer to his side at the falls, we looked out at the falls for a few moments without any words. Many people couldn’t enjoy the lack of conversation. I knew I could, but now I was finding out that Connor could too.

  “You think about that airplane ride a lot?” I asked, my head pressed against his arm.

  He took a moment before speaking. “It was terrifying, but yes. I think of it often. It was one of the most impactful moments of my life. I thought we were dead.”

  That word—dead. I hated it. It reminded me of Ted. Though I had moved on from my late husband and the wounds were mostly done away with, the word was still a trigger for me. I didn’t like it. Connor noticed I had become upset and gently backed me up at arm’s length to connect with my eyes.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  Shaking my head, I wiped my eyes. A blush blossomed on my cheeks. Feeling embarrassed, I tried to shrug it off, but he insisted I tell him what was wrong so I did. I told him about how I had lost Ted a couple of weeks before Christmas a few years ago. I was brief with him.

  “I had no idea.” Connor’s head hung and his shoulders slumped as he moved over to the railing on the bridge. He rested his hands on the railing and turned to look at me. “I know the comparison is probably zilch, but I just lost my best friend this last summer. We grew up together.”

  My heart broke for him in that moment as his softer side came out. Closing the gap of pavement between us, I rested a hand on Connor’s back as his eyes returned to the falls and he continued. “He had a wife and kids.” He stopped there even though there seemed to be more on his mind, on the tip of his tongue.

  Rubbing his back in a circular motion, I tried m
y best to comfort him. I knew it didn’t help a whole lot, but it did help when someone seemed to care. “Loss is hard. Perhaps one of the hardest parts of life, Connor. I understand that.”

  He wiped his eyes and let out a breath of air.

  “Want to get warmed up?” Connor asked as we passed by a giant red wagon playground, thankfully changing the subject. I could imagine children playing on the toys when the weather is warm.

  “Yes!” I replied.

  He tenderly took my hand and led me under a bridge and around a corner to a yellow glowing structure of some sort. My whole body became suddenly aware of how cold it truly was and how warm his hand was. Coming closer to the building, I saw it was an indoor carousel. My jaw began to jitter at how cold I was feeling. Connor wrapped an arm around me as we got closer and rubbed my arm to help bring warmth.

  Going inside, he held the door open for me, and the warmth immediately began to thaw the cold that had sunk so deep into my bones. Taking off his beanie cap, Connor’s eyes widened as he looked at the colorful painted horses that stood still in the circular room. Softened sounds of childhood rang in the background as a worker down the way opened a gate and let a few teenagers onto the ride.

  Snowflakes had melted in my hair, and now water began dripping down the sides of my face. Connor turned to me and gently wiped the water from the side of my face. He motioned with a nod toward the carousel gatekeeper behind him. “Want to go for a ride?”

  Taken aback, I laughed and shook my head. “It’s for kids.”

  Connor glanced over at the carousel and then back to me, a boyish grin on his face.

  “I don’t know . . .” I said.

  “Come on, kids can’t have all the fun,” he insisted, grabbing my hand. The touch of his hand might have been cold, but it sent shockwaves of warmth up my arm. His touch was tender. We hurried around the iron railing and down to the gate. The man was about to latch it when Connor stuck out his hand. “Stop, please. We want on.”

  After a funny look and a snide remark, the guy let us through the gate, and soon, we found our way to two majestic steeds that appeared to be frozen in mid-stride.

  “I can’t believe we’re doing this.” I laughed as I tightened the belt around my waist.

  “Gotta have a little fun once in a while. Or what’s the point of being an adult and being able to do what you want?” Connor climbed up on his horse with a smile on his face like that of a toddler who just snuck the last cookie from the cookie jar.

  Feelings were developing for this man—I could feel it. The way he smiled as the lights over our heads bounced off the mirrors in the middle of the carousel and the way we were looking at each other, we were deepening. First, the smiles to one another and the laughter as we spun in circles, reminding me of a far-off part of my past, somewhere in the recesses of my mind where childhood resided. Then, the laughter and smiles stopped while the ride continued. We looked at each other as the music continued and our horses rode up and down. Our souls brushed up against each other in that moment.

  I felt it.

  The ride stopped, and I thought for certain he was going to close the gap of space between us right on the platform of the ride and kiss me, but he didn’t. He put his arm around me and led me off the ride.

  As we came off the carousel, I was still in a daze, almost a little wobbly in my steps. His phone rang again, but even him taking another phone call for work couldn’t kill the moment entirely. It was too powerful.

  He released his arm from me and walked a few steps. He turned around to face me and flashed a smile. He wasn’t trying to distance himself, but it seemed to be natural for him.

  When the call ended, I pushed him playfully in the shoulder. “You really ought to delegate. Learn to have your people work for you.”

  “I love working.”

  Stopping, I turned to him and looked him in the eyes. A spark of that same feeling from the carousel coursed through my veins. I stretched my arms up and rested my hands on his neck as I continued looking at him. “You can love work, but you have to make time for things that are important too.”

  He smiled and returned a small nod.

  Arriving at our parked cars that night in the parking garage, he asked, “What are you up to Monday?”

  “I’m working at a tree lot out in Newport. It’s volunteer, but it’s for a good cause.”

  “Really?” Connor had a perplexed look on his face as he took his beanie off and ran his fingers through his hair. “Wait, so your cousin you said earlier was Serenah, as in Serenah Dillard? Charlie and Serenah?”

  “Yeah.” I tilted my head. “Do you know them?”

  “Yeah!” Connor smiled. “They’re my friends . . . well, kind of. They’re more my sister Katie’s friends than mine.”

  “Katie is your sister?” I asked, leaning forward with raised eyebrows. I could hardly believe it. “No way! I sat by her for Thanksgiving dinner.”

  Connor shot a hand out and nodded. “I was going to be there but got tied up with a business meeting. I can’t believe I would have seen you there. I wouldn’t have gotten out of it if I’d have known.”

  Shaking a finger at him as I grinned, I said, “That blasted work keeps you from living life, Connor.” I looked him in the eyes.

  “I know, I know . . .”

  Pulling my keys out from my purse, I smiled at him. He came closer and we hugged. “It was nice hanging out,” I said as we released.

  “It was lovely,” he replied. He began backing up toward his car. “Drive safe tonight.”

  “You too.”

  Smiling, I got inside my car and headed back to the inn.

  CHAPTER 7

  Flipping the sign to Open Monday morning, I headed back to the corner of the tree lot to help Kim unload the trees that she had to drop off that day. Travis was out with a cold. No big surprise there. As we unloaded the trees into the lot, Kim looked to have something weighing on her mind. The way she carried herself was different. She was the type of person who beamed with joy and happiness daily. It wasn’t that way today.

  “You okay, Kim?” I asked as we set a tree down and leaned it against the fence.

  Looking at me for a moment as if she debated telling me, she let out a sigh. “Our cat died last night. It’s been hard on Amy and Lexi.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  She shrugged a shoulder. “It happens.” Peering back toward the entrance where we had been hauling the trees, she continued. “I’m hoping this will be the last year with the trees. It’s hard getting deliveries out and the pay isn’t worth it.”

  “Why do you guys do it?” I asked.

  “The money.” She laughed and started walking back to the truck. Stepping up onto the back bumper, Kim reached up and pulled the latch downward, closing it. Hopping off backward, she turned around and looked me in the eyes. “Have a good day, and tell Don ‘hello’.”

  Nodding, I turned and headed back into the tree lot. Don would be there by eleven. Until then, it was just me. Hearing a car pull up, I took a deep breath and headed down a row of trees to go see who the first customer would be.

  To my surprise, it was Connor.

  He had a big smile on his face as he stretched out his arms. “I took the day off. Delegated.”

  “Wow . . .” I grabbed at his pockets. “No phone?”

  He shook his head. “No phone at all.”

  Connor looked good in his long overcoat and suit, but I knew it wouldn’t work. Turning my head toward the trailer in the lot, I pointed. “There’s a spare pair of overalls and a flannel jacket that belongs to Don. You can use those.”

  “This won’t work?” he asked, glancing over himself.

  I shook my head. He’s too cute. Giving me a nod, he headed into the trailer, and I couldn’t help but watch him. Scents of soap and aftershave flooded my senses as he walked by and went into the trailer. He smelled so good. Sounds of a car door startled me out of my daydreaming, and I peeked around the end of the row of trees. A fam
ily.

  “Hello,” I said as they walked inside.

  Showing them around, I gave them a set of options and then allowed them time to think it over. Going over to Connor as he came out of the trailer, I couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

  “Hey,” he said, turning red. “This feels weird.”

  “Looks kind of weird too.” I laughed, covering my face. “It’s cute too.”

  He shooed me away with a hand. “Oh, whatever.” He squirmed as he tried to adjust the flannel jacket. The arms were too short on the jacket, but the length of the mid-section was fine. It looked sort of hilarious and I loved it. Once the family picked out a tree, they paid, and we both carried the tree out to their van and started to fasten it to the top. Connor was having a little difficulty getting his side secured, so I came around to help once I finished with mine. My arm brushed against his and I moved closer in. Our sides touched. Scents of sap and sweat dampened the otherwise warm encounter between us.

  “You have to knot it up here like this.” I grunted and flipped the twine around the ski rack, tying it off. We both released and stepped back as we let out breaths of air.

  The family drove off and we waved. Once they were out of sight, Connor raised his hand in the air and turned to me. His breath was shallow and short. He was exhausted.

  “Are you trying to give me a high-five?” I asked.

  His hand fell from the air and to his side. His face went long, and he turned to go back into the lot. Catching up to his side, I laughed and pushed into him.

  “You were joking, right?” I laughed.

  He stopped and turned to me. Connor’s face was so straight and serious. I thought he was seriously upset. “I wanted to high-five you, Angela.”

  “Oh . . .” I replied, not sure where to go from there.

  He lurched forward and began laughing as hard as he could.

  I broke into a laugh and smacked him in the shoulder. “Jerk,” I said, smiling and obviously joking. Connor was sneaking his way right into my heart. Without even realizing it, the feelings were developing. He was cutting his way in, uninvited but welcomed. Part of me was scared what it meant. The other part was excited. I liked him.