The Christmas Sneak: Hope’s Turn Holidays

by Marie Harte

  * * *

  Nora left him sitting on the couch, staring after her like an idiot. He still didn’t know what had just happened. His dream of playing house with his sexy sister-in-law—not technically, but she and Becca were as much sisters as he and Mitch were brothers—had become real.

  When she’d pulled back, he’d realized the truth of the matter. And wanted her even more.

  The passion she roused just by being mad was insane. And he did dream of her, too often. Imagining her touch paled next to the reality of Nora Nielson’s incredible mouth. Firm, silky soft lips. A whisper of tongue stroking his. He’d been ready to move to the next step, sans clothes, in a heartbeat.

  Especially because she gave as good as she got, teething his lips and practically devouring him on the couch. He wanted her right now, all over again, and wished he’d made his move those many months ago. Skipping out on her had been a huge mistake. And not just because she turned him on—way on—but because being around her made him like her all the more. Every time. Her kindness, her jeers, her sarcastic lens through which she viewed the world, all of it made him smile and feel good inside.

  Good inside all over when they kissed.

  “Oh man. Oreo, you are such a bad dog.” He slowly stood, his body aching once more thanks to Nora’s fine form, and took his time joining the others, taking care to think about anything but sexy Nora and her fine mouth.

  Dinner passed with laughter and teasing. The teenagers watched him and Nora with a little too much interest, and he had a feeling they’d seen more of that kiss than he’d initially suspected. Time to stop that train of trouble before it got started.

  Oreo managed to sneak a huge turkey leg from the kitchen, and they all laughed as Brenda tried unsuccessfully to run the dog down.

  “Great training you’re doing there with that pup,” their father said to Mitch with a lot of sarcasm.

  Nora snorted. “Right? Nice discipline. No wonder Simon gets away with everything.”

  Becca blinked. “I know you are not comparing the dog to my son.”

  “I sure am.”

  Jenna snickered, and Simon laughed.

  Mitch’s laughter turned to coughing when Becca arched a brow at him and said, “I know you’re not laughing.”

  “No, dear.” His fake submission encouraged more amusement. “I totally am,” he murmured loudly enough for everyone else to hear.

  Nora smirked, caught Deacon looking at her, and quickly looked away, her cheeks pink.

  Out of the corner of his eye, Deacon caught Simon and Jenna nodding at each other.

  Considering all the matchmaking attempts he, Nora, and Simon had made to get Mitch and Becca together, he figured he was due some teen meddling. But actually, the more he thought about the idea, the more it didn’t bother him. Especially if it granted him the chance to change things with Nora, to let her see the real him and maybe get to know the real her.

  “Hey, Bro, pass the potatoes for the fourth time.” Mitch smacked him in the arm.

  “Oh, sorry. Here.” He glanced away from Nora and saw Becca looking at him with concern. “Sorry. I’m still a little fuzzy from my nap.”

  “Ha. Now you know what it’s like to get old,” his father barked. “Naps are a luxury.”

  “Amen to that,” Nora’s father said and winked at Deacon.

  “I was dreaming about this demon trying to steal my soul. She was really pretty and really evil.”

  “Hmm. Sounds like someone we all know,” Mitch teased, looking at Nora.

  “Suck it, Flashman.”

  “Nora,” her mother scolded.

  Mitch and his dad laughed it up while Luke, her dad, tried not to encourage his daughter but couldn’t keep from grinning.

  “Oh yeah, Simon. That’s where you get your mouth from,” Mitch said.

  Becca nodded. “Told you.”

  “Anyway,” Deacon interrupted, enthralled with how beautiful Nora was as she blushed and laughed while trying to maintain that death glare she kept aiming his way. “The demon was right there, hovering over me, demanding my soul… Then I looked up and saw Nora, and damn if I didn’t think I was still dreaming.”

  “Nice, Deacon.” Nora scowled.

  “I only meant because the demon in my dream was beautiful, and then I saw you and thought you had to be the same person because you’re so pretty, Nora.”

  The entire table went silent. Everyone looked from Nora to Deacon and back.

  “Quit teasing.” Nora stabbed her turkey and pointed her knife his way. “You are such an ass.”

  Mitch chuckled. “Yeah, he’s a Flashman all right. Charming, right Mom?”

  Brenda sighed. “Sorry, Nora. I blame Lee for my sons’ shortcomings.”

  Lee looked puzzled. “He called her beautiful. I think that’s nice.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  Nora’s mom, Sue, did her best to try to hide laughter. “Um, Lee, I think it’s Deacon’s comparison of Nora to a demon that’s not so nice.”

  Lee frowned. “Well, I guess. But he did say she’s beautiful, and she certainly is.”

  Nora stared at her plate, chewing with concentration.

  Sue smiled. “That’s so sweet, Lee.”

  Brenda guffawed. “Now who’s blushing?”

  “Hush, woman.”

  Deacon met Mitch’s amused gaze and shrugged. Becca left the table and returned with Ava, and talk turned to babies and the coming Christmas holiday. But he caught Nora’s eye and saw her drag a finger across her throat and point at him, which had him laughing so hard he nearly choked on his stuffing.

  Chapter 6

  Hours later, the family had feasted, cleaned up, and played their requisite board game. After being trounced by Nora and her allies several times, Deacon took a break and helped Mitch select a movie for them all to watch before turning in for the night.

  Their dad and Simon had run Jenna home, and Nora entered the media room holding Ava. She looked so pretty, smiling with a baby in her arms, so natural.

  So right.

  She glanced up and caught him looking at her, but for once, she didn’t growl, snarl, or dart him threatening looks. She continued to smile. Joyful, kind, and so damn beautiful his heart threatened to burst from his chest. He hastily looked back at Mitch and stumbled through an answer to whatever Mitch had asked him.

  When he next glanced up, Nora had left, and Mitch was groaning.

  “What’s your problem?”

  “I swear, you screw this up again, you are out of the family.”

  Deacon frowned. “What?”

  “You and Nora. Quit messing around and ask her out on a date. A real date, not to swing through Mickey D’s for a gourmet meal followed by a quickie at chez Flashman.”

  “You’re not funny. At all.”

  “And you’re not fooling anyone about how you feel about Nora. Make a move or get out of the race, son.”

  “I’m not your son, asswipe. And I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “God save me from stupid people.”

  Becca entered with Ava in her arms. “I thought that was my line. And it’s stupid men, not stupid people, honey.”

  Deacon sank into a plush recliner and sighed. “Becca, he’s bullying me again. Let me hold the baby while you yell at him.” He took Ava in his arms and marveled at her baby smell and tiny fingers and toes. He rested her against his chest and felt her squirm, and his heart seemed to expand inside him. His perfect niece was wonderful.

  He cuddled her and felt warm all over. “Someday, Ava, you’ll throw a football, and your entire world will be right. I’ll teach you how to pass and run plays. You’ll love it. It takes a lot more brains to organize plays than to catch a ball and run down a football field.”

  “Hey.” Mitch glared.

  “Then you’ll learn how to craft a decent IPA, and you’ll really be rocking.”

  Nora entered and grinned. “Stop polluting that poor girl with nonsense. Baby Ava will write books a
nd become a bestseller when not making amazing new recipes for her cooking show, right Becca?”

  “That’s right.” Becca snuggled up with Mitch in a seat.

  Nora sat on the arm of Deacon’s chair, her hand over the baby’s small head, and Deacon felt weird, as if he was seeing a future that might one day be his, if only he had the courage to reach for an impossible dream.

  He looked up and saw Nora staring down at him, a challenge in her chocolate-brown eyes.

  “Got a problem with that, Flashman?”

  “No,” he murmured. “You know, I don’t think I do.”

  “Huh?”

  “And like that, our little bird is ready to fly and be on his own,” Mitch said in a mock whisper.

  Nora turned to him. “What’s that?”

  “Nothing.” Becca punched her husband in the chest.

  “Ow.”

  “Stop baiting your brother and Nora,” Becca warned him. “Uncle Luke and Aunt Sue are hot tubbing it, and they said to go ahead and watch the movie without them.”

  Mitch protested, “We should wait.”

  Nora sat next to Deacon, taking the chair between him and Mitch. “Let them have a date night. I can’t remember the last time my parents were near a hot tub in a romantic setting.”

  “Oh, are you angling for a little brother or sister for yourself, Nora?” Deacon teased, in no hurry to give Ava back. She really wasn’t any bigger than a football.

  Nora grimaced. “No. And I wish you’d stop putting weird images in my head.”

  He chuckled.

  She continued, “Because your parents seem pretty lovey-dovey. I bet they’d be happy to make you and Mitch another—”

  “Press play, Mitch,” Deacon interrupted.

  “You don’t have to tell me twice.” Mitch pressed a few buttons. The lights went down, and a movie appeared on the screen.

  Deacon turned to Nora. “Little Bro once caught an eyeful of the parents on a ‘date night.’ Hasn’t been the same since.”

  Mitch groaned.

  Nora sighed. “Poor guy. Been there, done that. Got the trauma to prove it.”

  Simon walked in.

  “And speaking of trauma…”

  “Hey, are you guys watching a movie without me?”

  “It’s a romantic comedy,” Becca warned.

  Simon sighed. “I’ll stay, but only because Grandpa Lee is going to bed and everyone else is in the hot tub.”

  “Everyone, huh?” Deacon muttered, hoping to get a rise out of Nora. “Hadn’t realized Mom was into threesomes.”

  “What did you say?” Simon asked, but Nora had been taking a drink and choked on it.

  “You okay?”

  She drank to calm herself, then couldn’t help shaking her head. “You’re evil.”

  He smiled. “Takes one to know one.”

  “Ass.”

  Mitch sighed. “We really do need to change your name to the one most people use for you.”

  Simon grinned. “Uncle Ass. It has a nice ring to it.”

  “Simon Bragg, you watch your mouth.”

  “Yes, Mom.”

  Deacon and Nora exchanged a knowing look. “Ah, the power of the mom.”

  Becca grinned at her cousin. “You ought to try it, Nora. I have a feeling you’d be pretty darn good at it.”

  Nora glanced from the baby to Deacon and flushed. “Someday, maybe. Now let’s all hush up and watch the movie.” Before Deacon could say something funny, she put a hand over his mouth. “And not one more word out of you.”

  He winked, and when she took her hand away, nodded with mirth. “I hear, and I obey.”

  “If only.”

  Five days after their Thanksgiving feast, the snow decided to fall and keep falling. Nora stood in Bragg’s Tea, helping out during the winter hours while Becca bonded with her new addition to the family. When Nora could finally catch a break after a grueling three hours of nonstop traffic, she leaned down to set her elbows on the counter, her chin in her hands, and watched fat, white flakes of snow continue to fall.

  “It’s so pretty, isn’t it?” Jenna sighed. The girl worked part-time now that the soccer season had ended. And if Nora was honest, she did a better job than Simon at interacting with customers. Jenna had a sweet though direct vibe Nora enjoyed, while Simon was naturally nice to everyone, taking his mother’s “the customer is always right” to heart. Whatever. Nora tried to be pleasant, but she had no time for asshats.

  “Nora?” Jenna said. “You okay?”

  “Yeah, the snow is great.” Nora glumly watched the customers enjoy their drinks and treats while Jenna stocked more loose leaf tea on the shelves. In the back, Ruth was baking scones and cookies, and the sweet smells mixed with the holiday music and falling snow outside. It should have felt like a winter wonderland. The slew of customers continued to prove that though it might be early in December, many had decided to load up on caffeine and sweets for the holiday season. They’d need to restock the specialty teapots and mugs at the front of the store as well.

  She mentioned as much to Jenna, who took the task with pleasure. Jenna loved keeping busy.

  Nora normally did as well, but she’d been feeling so strange since Thanksgiving with the family. So…lost.

  That kiss with Deacon continued to replay in her mind, and she knew she’d made a huge mistake. Then she’d remember how lovely it had felt to hold Ava, how she’d watched Becca and Mitch, so in love, Simon thrilled with his family.

  Nora didn’t have that. And to be honest, she’d never have that if Deacon kept taking so much space in her thoughts. She needed a break. Something had to shift in her humdrum of a life.

  Jenna returned to the counter just as the bell over the door jingled, signaling more customers. “Hey, Nora. What are you doing for your birthday this year?”

  “I’m aging. That’s what I’m doing.” Turing thirty-five, no baby, no husband or boyfriend, no new prospects with her career. She’d become the personification of boring, somehow. Where had Nora’s dreams gone? Of writing that great novel? Of finding love and starting her own family?

  She loved being the fun aunt. But for God’s sake, when would she finally have special people to call her own? Two years ago she’d been secretly engaged for all of a few weeks, until she and her intended had realized they’d wanted different things. They’d impulsively gotten engaged, tired of being the lone single person among friends and family.

  She didn’t miss Flynn at all, though he’d been a nice and funny guy. Now a nice, funny, and married guy traveling the world, or so his social media posts would have her believe.

  Depressed and trying to hide it, she straightened, pretending she didn’t see Jenna’s concern. “Sorry for being a downer. I’m tired, and my feet hurt. But I do plan to splurge on Christmas Eve. I’m talking eggnog, sugar cookies, and Christmas movies until I puke.”

  “Um, er, that sounds like fun.” Jenna would have said more, but a familiar voice had them both turning to the new customer.

  “Whoa. Smells amazing in here.” Deacon and some pretty blond stood side by side. “Hi Jenna. How’s it going?”

  Jenna answered him, making small talk with the couple.

  Typical Deacon. Nora didn’t know why she should feel hurt that he had a new lady in his life. Heck, new? For all Nora knew, Deacon had been dating the woman while canoodling with Nora during Thanksgiving.

  She forced herself to act as if it didn’t matter. Because it didn’t. “Hi there.” Jackass. “What can we get you?” She wanted to punch him for looking at her with warmth and a flare of attraction he apparently felt he didn’t have to hide. What a jerk. Feeling sorry for his girlfriend, she gave the woman a smile. “We have gingerbread cookies a few minutes from coming out of the oven, and everything behind the glass is fresh as well. We’ve been selling like crazy today.”

  The woman grinned. “Oh wow. I have to have a gingerbread man. No, make it two. Three.”

  Deacon snorted. “Woman, you need a sugar
intervention.”

  “As if you should talk. I saw all the food you put away at breakfast, and yeah, I saw the sweet roll you pretended you ordered for me. It’s not fair that you have an abnormal metabolism.”

  They’d shared breakfast. God. And he’d brought the woman here? Why? To flaunt her in Nora’s face? Or maybe to show Nora she shouldn’t make anything out of their one and only time kissing? Well, no problem, bucko.

  She gave him a subtle glare he couldn’t miss.

  But instead of taking him aback, he smiled wider. “We’ll take six gingerbread men and two peppermint cocoas.” He looked behind him then turned back around. “No, three peppermint cocoas. And add a warm milk, would you?”

  “I’m grabbing a table,” said a man from behind them.

  Nora saw a good-looking man Deacon’s age. He had medium brown skin and an engaging smile, his eyes as bright as the eyes of the little boy he held.

  Deacon said over his shoulder, “The kid seats are in the corner.” He turned his attention back to Nora and Jenna. “Ladies, meet Jess. Her husband and I co-own River Rip Brewery. Roy, Jess’s ball and chain, is carrying the cute tyke, who happens to be my godson, Chris.”

  Jess held out a hand. “Hi, Nora. I’ve heard so much about you.”

  Nora shook her hand, her suspicion clear. “None of it good, I’m sure.”

  Jess laughed. “All good, I promise. Deacon was telling us how much you’ve been helping your cousin and Mitch since they just had a baby. I had Chris in Houston with my parents close-by. I don’t know what we would have done without them.” She leaned closer. “Roy’s parents are not kid friendly.”

  “I heard that,” Roy called from a table a few feet from the counter.

  “Has ears like a bat,” Deacon muttered. “Well, get us our food, woman.”

  “I know you’re not talking to me.” Nora scowled.

  “I thought the customer was always right?”

  Jenna snickered. “Only when Simon or Zoe are working the counter. Nora and I like to think we’re always right. Obnoxious customers get the boot.”