Christmas on 4th Street (Fool's Gold Romance)

by Susan Mallery

  “Hey,” the teen said as he bounded into the room. “What’s the score?”

  Gabriel glanced at the big-screen TV, muted but still tuned to the football game. “It’s tied.”

  “I should get back upstairs,” Noelle said. “See if I’m needed in the kitchen.”

  Gabriel nodded. “Thank you.”

  For the distraction? For the kiss? For making him realize she was exactly who he’d been looking for all his life? Okay, the latter was a little unlikely, but a girl could dream.

  * * *

  “It’s a family tradition,” Karen said, when the food had been put on the table. “I’ll go first. I’m thankful to be with my boys again.” She nodded at her husband.

  “I’m thankful we have the strongest fighting force in the world,” Norm said.

  Karen sighed. “It’s Thanksgiving.”

  “And I’m giving thanks.”

  Felicia cleared her throat. “I’m thankful for my wonderful family. Immediate and extended. And for my friends.” She smiled at Noelle.

  “I’m thankful for my family, too,” Carter said, squeezing Felicia’s hand. “And Webster.”

  Gideon agreed with Felicia and Carter, and Gabriel was thankful for those who made it. Noelle finished with thanks for finding where she belonged.

  As Norm began slicing the large turkey, Carter leaned toward his uncle. “You’re like my dad, right? Serving in the army.”

  “As a doctor. Your dad saw real action.”

  “But you carry a gun,” Carter said.

  “Sometimes,” Gabriel told him. “Not often.”

  “Did you always want to be a doctor?”

  Norm snorted. “Hell, no. If it was up to him, he’d have studied English literature at some fancy university and become a college professor.”

  Carter and Noelle both turned to Gabriel.

  “Is that true?” the teen asked.

  Gabriel shrugged. “It wasn’t an option.”

  “You’re right about that,” Norm said, putting slices of turkey onto the first plate and passing it to his wife. “In our family, we serve.”

  Karen looked desperately around the table. “This is all so lovely, Felicia. I don’t know why you were concerned. Everything turned out perfectly. Thank you so much for doing this.”

  “You helped,” Felicia said. “Although I am pleased with the turkey.”

  “Maybe talking to it made the difference,” Gideon teased.

  Conversation shifted to the threat of snow and the upcoming holiday festivals. Noelle wasn’t sure if Norm’s outburst was forgotten or simply politely swept under the rug. Either way, she reached under the table for Gabriel’s hand and took it in hers. He turned to her.

  “You okay?” she asked quietly.

  He nodded and squeezed her fingers before releasing her. She accepted the information because it was the polite thing to do and she didn’t know him well enough to push. But she couldn’t help wondering if this exchange was the exact reason he hadn’t seen his parents for so long. Under the circumstances, she couldn’t blame him. She was sure Norm was acting from some misplaced sense of doing right by his family. She just wished he could see that the price of that was losing the very thing he wanted to hang on to.

  * * *

  Gabriel walked toward Noelle’s store early on Friday. She’d warned him that they would be busy and open extra hours in support of Black Friday. He’d been out of the country so long, it had taken him a second to remember what Black Friday was. He had trouble believing that people made such a production of shopping for a holiday that was still a month away, but then he wasn’t the Black Friday target audience.

  Besides, he owed Noelle. She’d been there for him the previous day. From her enthusiasm for the parade, to distracting him from his fight with his father, she’d been by his side.

  He sipped the coffee he’d bought at Brew-haha and crossed the street. He had to give her credit. She was unconventional. He grinned at the memory of their kiss, remembering how the exploding need had nearly knocked him off his feet. For someone who danced with excitement when viewing an elephant in a Santa suit, she was one sexy woman.

  He was still grinning when he rounded the corner and saw a group of people waiting outside The Christmas Attic.

  No, he amended. Not people. Women. Lots of women. They formed a line and were all talking animatedly. When an old lady toward the front of the line spotted him, she called out.

  “When do we get this show on the road?”

  Gabriel stared at her. “We, ah, open at eight.”

  The old lady glanced at her watch. “You’ve got five minutes. If you think you’re going to be late, you’re wrong.”

  He nodded instead of answering, then hurried past her and opened the front door to step into the store.

  Noelle was already there. She’d put on her cheerful red apron with the store logo on the front and was counting out bills as she put them into the cash register.

  “There’s a line,” he said, pointing.

  “I saw.” She looked up, her gaze slightly unfocused. “I don’t think I’m ready.”

  “Not being ready isn’t an option. They seem determined and hostile.”

  She pushed the cash register shut, then drew in a breath. “Okay. It’s going to be a long day. We’ll pace ourselves and do the best we can. If you get tired, you can rest in back. Or leave early.”

  “I can make it through my shift.”

  “I don’t want you relapsing.”

  “Wouldn’t I have to lapse first?”

  Her lack of smile told him she was nervous. He crossed to her and put his hands on her shoulders.

  “You’ll do great. The store is charming and you have customers waiting. Let’s open a couple of minutes early and get this day started.”

  She stared into his eyes. For a second, he thought instead of opening early, he should take the minute or so they had and kiss her. Of course, kissing would lead to him wanting more and this wasn’t the time or place. But it sure would be nice.

  “Hey, you in there! It’s freezing out here.”

  The comment came from outside and was accompanied by an insistent knocking. Noelle squared her shoulders.

  “Okay,” she said as she marched to the front of the store. “I’m ready.”

  “Me, too.”

  Although it turned out he was wrong. He wasn’t ready. There was no way to be ready for the onslaught of customers. They arrived in groups of twos and threes, they lingered and they bought. Bears and trains, CDs and throws. No corner of the store went unexplored. If he wasn’t restocking, he was bagging. Every now and then he carried bags to a waiting car.

  “Excuse me, young man.”

  Gabriel turned and saw a pleasant-looking woman leaning heavily on a cane covered with painted purple flowers.

  “Yes, ma’am. How can I help you?”

  “I’m looking for a menorah for a friend of mine and I noticed the one in the side window. It’s so pretty. Having it made of glass is very unusual and I like that the candles are all different colors. Can you get it for me?”

  “Of course,” he said, already heading for the stockroom. “We have one in a box.”

  He passed Noelle, who smiled wearily. Five minutes later, the lady with the cane had her menorah and was heading out of the store. He was about to check on the bears when another woman stopped him.

  “You’re Gabriel,” she said, eyeing him. She had white curls and wore a bright purple track suit. “Gideon’s brother.”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m Eddie.” She smiled. “I need you to carry this to my car.”

  She handed him a box about the size of a soda can. He stared at it.

  “You want me to carry that?”

  “Uh-huh.” Eddie nodded. “I’m old so you have do what I say. Come on. The day’s a-wasting.”

  He had no idea what was going on, but wasn’t about to tell the seventy-something woman no. She led him out of the store and down the side
walk. They walked to the corner and she pointed to a late model sedan. When they reached it, he handed her the package.

  She smiled. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Still confused about what she’d wanted, he turned, only to feel her pat his butt. He spun back. Her expression was both innocent and satisfied.

  No, he told himself. He’d imagined the light touch. And if he hadn’t, there was nothing he could do about it.

  “Ah, have a nice day,” he mumbled before backing toward the store.

  The steady stream of customers continued until Noelle closed and locked the door at six-fifteen. They’d both been on their feet since seven that morning.

  “My feet hurt,” she said, untying her apron. “My back hurts and I’m starving.”

  “Me, too, and an old lady patted my butt.”

  Noelle looked at him and started laughing. “You’re making that up.”

  “I swear it happened.”

  “Eddie or Gladys.”

  “Eddie.”

  “Then I believe you. Did you get lunch?”

  “No.”

  “Me, either. Want to come by my place? I’ll order the biggest pizza you’ve ever seen. You’ll love it.”

  She had a smudge on her cheek and dust on her jeans. She looked as weary as he felt. But as she invited him over, all he could think was that what he really wanted for dinner was her. Because when he was around her, the world somehow righted itself. Even if he was being harassed by seniors.

  For a second he wondered what she would say if he told her the truth. He figured he was at even odds for her wanting the same and slapping him. Which meant the most sensible course was to say, “Pizza sounds great.”

  Chapter 6

  Noelle pushed open her front door and flipped on the lights. The place was small—a two-bedroom starter home with a single bathroom. A classic ranch style, built in the fifties.

  Gabriel walked in behind her. “Nice,” he said, glancing at the black leather sofa. “That looks comfortable.”

  “Throw yourself on it. Seriously, I plan to do the same as soon as I order the pizza.”

  She waited until he’d moved into the living room before sinking onto the bench by the door. She unzipped her boots and tugged them off, then stretched her aching feet. She hadn’t been kidding before—every part of her hurt. Even her hair. She couldn’t remember ever being this exhausted. And the thrill of it was she got to do the same thing tomorrow. At least she didn’t have to open until her regular time.

  She stood and limped into the small kitchen. Once there, she pulled the pizza menu free of the magnet on the refrigerator door.

  “All meat?” she asked.

  Gabriel stood in the doorway of the kitchen. “You like that?”

  “No, but I’ll get it on half.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “You can eat half a large pizza?”

  “Yes.”

  “That I want to see.”

  “You will.”

  She placed the order, adding a pint of Ben and Jerry’s, then put the phone back on the counter. She opened the refrigerator and pulled out two bottles of beer.

  Gabriel’s expression of surprise returned. “I would have said you drink red wine.”

  “I have mysterious depths.”

  “I can see that.”

  They headed back to the living room.

  Her sectional sofa took up most of the floor space, but she didn’t care. There was a chaise that was perfect for stretching out to watch movies and she had a great reading light. She’d bought a nice big television because she wanted to see all the period details in Downton Abbey. Maybe an apartment would have made more sense, but she liked having a yard. Her landlord, local retired cyclist Josh Golden, had told her she could plant whatever she wanted. This past summer she’d gone crazy with berries. Next year she was going to experiment with a few vegetables. If her cash flow improved, she would buy a place, but for now, the tiny house was plenty.

  Gabriel sat at one end of the sofa while she collapsed on the chaise. She wiggled her toes, wondering when her feet would go from seminumb and sore to seriously throbbing. She pointed to the coffee table.

  “Feel free to put your feet up. I bought that at a garage sale for twenty bucks. It’s indestructible.”

  He hesitated for a second, then bent down to unlace his boots. He pulled them off and then raised his stocking-clad feet on the battered wooden surface.

  “Thanks. I’m used to standing all day, but for some reason this was different. Harder.”

  “I know. I’m used to running around, too, but I’m completely exhausted. I think it’s the intensity.” She picked up her bottle of beer and took a sip. “You remember the gift bazaar is coming up, right?”

  He leaned back his head and closed his eyes. “Don’t remind me. What is it with this town?”

  “We love to celebrate.”

  “You need a twelve-step program. Hi, I’m Fool’s Gold and I’m addicted to festivals.”

  She smiled. “I’m actually really excited about the bazaar next weekend. I stocked it with some really interesting items. Now you remember you can simply direct people to the store, right?”

  “Yes, my goal is to sell as little as possible.”

  “I need something to throw at you,” she grumbled. “Of course you can sell things, but you don’t have to. If they want it in a different color or whatever, tell them to come to the store. But that’s for next weekend. Tomorrow we only have to get through the post–Black Friday what-if-I-didn’t-get-everything-I-want shopping frenzy.”

  She shook her head. “I should have taken part-time jobs in retail while I was in college.”

  “What did you do?”

  “Internships when I could get them. I was a nanny for a couple of summers and I temped in offices. I was a waitress. The usual. What about you?”

  “I didn’t have summers off. I got through college quickly. Once I was in the army and they were paying for medical school, there weren’t any breaks.”

  She angled toward him, taking in the strong profile and determined set of his jaw. “Did you really want to be an English professor?”

  He glanced at her. “I don’t know. I didn’t want to be a soldier.”

  “Yet you are one.”

  He shrugged. “Not really. Being a doctor was a way to honor the family legacy and still do something I wanted to do. Hard to do that while writing a thesis on great American writers of the twentieth century.”

  “Your dad pressured you.”

  “That’s one way of putting it.” He drank from his beer bottle. “My dad was determined. He talked about Gideon and me going into the army from the time we were born. Doing anything else wasn’t an option. Looking back, I tell myself I should have stood up to him.”

  “You were a kid. Did you even know there were other choices?”

  “Not really,” he admitted. “I just knew I couldn’t go do what Gideon did.”

  She’d been lucky with her family. They wanted her to do whatever made her happy. But not all parents were like that.

  There was a knock on the door. She stood and groaned as her feet and legs protested, then hobbled to the door. Gabriel beat her there and pulled out his wallet.

  “I’ve got this,” he said.

  She grinned at him. “You’re such a guy.”

  “Thank you.”

  Ten minutes later they were seated at her small table. She put out plates and napkins, and they were digging into the pizza.

  The crust was crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. The melted cheese was hot, the grilled vegetables the perfect texture.

  Gabriel stared at her half of the pizza. “Vegetables? Seriously? On pizza?”

  “I know. I can’t help it. But you have your manly all-meat.” She grinned. “Beer and pizza. Later you’ll probably feel the need to go challenge some teenaged boys to a drag race.”

  “Or I could just watch wrestling on TV and have m
y manhood affirmed that way.”

  “Really? Wrestling? Don’t they wear tights?”

  “It’s not tights. It’s—” He sighed heavily. “Why do I bother?”

  She laughed and took another bite of her pizza.

  When they’d polished off every slice, she leaned back in her chair. “That was great. And later, there’s ice cream.”

  “A gourmet meal?” he asked.

  “One of my favorites.”

  He started to say something, then stopped. She had a feeling it was going to be to ask her if she ate like that, how come she was so thin. And she didn’t want to talk about her weight or how she was still working her way back to what she had been.

  “Any pizza where you were stationed?” she asked.

  “Sure. The army provides. In Germany there were a few places around the base. In Afghanistan and Iraq, it was more of a challenge to find. The mess had it, but it wasn’t exactly the same.”

  She got up and walked to her refrigerator, where she grabbed a second beer for each of them. “You were close to the front line, weren’t you?”

  “Sometimes.”

  She remembered what Felicia had told her. “You were also the doctor on the plane, right? The one who flies with those being medevaced to Germany?”

  He nodded cautiously.

  She could tell he didn’t want to talk about it. She would guess he’d seen a lot of horrible injuries on those flights. From what she’d read and seen on news reports, the injured were in pretty bad shape when they were flown out. Gabriel and his team would have been doing their best to keep everyone alive while working in really cramped conditions.

  “It must have been intense,” she said.

  “My work mostly is. I see the soldiers when they’re first injured. Get them stabilized and ready for whatever surgery they’re going to need.” He relaxed a little. “The hours are long and when I was in a field hospital, the injuries just kept coming.”

  “How did you unwind?” she asked.

  She was waiting for him to say volleyball or video games, or maybe make a joke. Instead, he stiffened and seemed to be looking at everything except her.

  Her brain processed the change in him and tried to fill in the blanks. Then she felt herself starting to grin.