Wedding Bells in Christmas

by Debbie Mason

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Now if you’d let me go—”

  He moved her away from the entrance, putting his back to the wall, making sure he had a clear view of all entry and exit points. Mike was back behind the bar talking to the two muscle-bound guys from earlier. Chance looked down at Vivi, sifting his fingers through her hair to curve his hand around her neck.

  Leaning against him, she searched his face. “We broke up, remember?”

  “Yeah, I do.” He placed his hand on her hip to hold her close, lifting his gaze to the bar to make sure Mike was watching before looking down at Vivi. “But for your own good and my piece of mind, I’m going to make sure you’re persona non grata at the Garage.” He lowered his head to capture her mouth. And like always, as soon as his lips touched hers, any thought of keeping it to a simple kiss evaporated. He slanted his head, deepening the connection, exploring her warm mouth with his tongue. She bit it. He jerked back, touching his mouth. “What the hell was that?”

  With fire in her eyes, she jabbed a finger in his chest. “You do not get to kiss me anymore, McBride. We’re done.” She shook her head. “You are such a jerk.”

  The muscle-bound guys, their hair buzzed, approached. Bouncers, he assumed from their matching black T-shirts. The older of the two asked, “Is there a problem here?”

  They moved closer, too close to Vivi for Chance’s liking. He positioned himself in front of her. “There will be if you don’t back off.”

  She elbowed him aside. “No, there’s no problem. Thanks.”

  The older guy looked back at Mike, who gave a jerky nod. “It’s time for you to leave,” he said to Chance.

  Gage walked over with his dad, Ethan, and Trainer following behind. “What’s going on?”

  Chance opened his mouth to tell his brother it was fine, then bowed his head when the rest of their party joined them to loudly protest his being thrown out of the bar. Chance calmed them down and took Vivi by the hand. “Don’t worry about it. We were leaving anyway.”

  And he would have, but the women didn’t want to let it go. They got noisy and possibly a few elbows were thrown. But all hell didn’t break loose until Fred poked his finger in bouncer number two’s back and the guy put him in a headlock. Ted jumped on the bouncer’s back to rescue his best friend, which pulled in bouncer number one. Sophia jumped on his back, and then that was it. Chance had no choice but to get involved.

  Ten minutes later, Walker, the sheriff from Logan County, arrived. But no matter how hard Callahan pressed for charges to be brought, none were. There was no damage to the bar, and no one had been badly hurt—other than the bouncers and a couple of bikers who’d taken a hit to their egos.

  “I told you, you should’ve stayed in the truck,” Gage muttered, pressing his fingers to his fat lip.

  Chance ignored him and called out, “Slick, I’ll give you a ride.”

  She flipped him off and got in the car with his father, Nell, Liz, and… Trainer.

  Chapter Ten

  Since Vivi shut him down two nights ago, Chance had decided to make a slight detour on the way to see his brother this morning. Doing his best to remain inconspicuous, he stood under the purple-and-white-striped awning of the Sugar Plum Bakery, pretending to check out the wedding cake displayed in the window while trying to catch a glimpse of Vivi. The six-tier cake with a bride chasing a groom on top made it difficult to see much of anything… except the attractive blonde owner, Grace Flaherty, waving him inside.

  So much for being inconspicuous. But on a positive note, Vivi couldn’t accuse him of spying on her if she happened to be inside. A waft of warm, sugar-scented air greeted him when he walked into the bakery. He pushed his aviators on top of his head, sweeping the shop with a furtive glance.

  Fifteen customers sat at five of the ten black bistro tables, none of whom were Vivi or Trainer. Maybe the kiss Saturday night had taken care of more than Vivi’s ability to nose around the Garage. His mood lightened at the thought. After another night of haunted dreams, he’d woken up feeling like crap. His morning had gone from bad to worse. And it wasn’t because the mice had eaten through the cable—they had—it was because he’d remembered Vivi’s date with the doc today.

  “Hi, Chance,” Grace said from where she stood behind the glass display case with a knowing smile.

  No doubt she thought he was here to check up on Vivi. Which of course he was, but he didn’t want that getting around town, so he pulled a crumpled receipt from his jeans pocket and held it up. “Guys at the station are hungry this morning.”

  Her lips twitched. “They must be. Ray was here an hour ago to pick up their order.”

  Well, hell. “You got me. I ate half of it. I’ll take whatever they bought the first time around.”

  “You want to replace their entire order?”

  “Sure.” To play it safe, because he had no idea what they’d bought, he changed the subject. Plus, he wanted to know how Grace’s husband, Jack, was making out. He’d been a POW in Afghanistan for seventeen months before escaping his captors last year. Now he worked for SAR—search and rescue. “How’s Jack doing?”

  “Great. He would have been at your dad’s bachelor party, but they had training exercises. He was disappointed he didn’t get to see you.”

  “Probably disappointed he didn’t get to take part in the brawl. How’s your cheek?”

  “Yes, he was.” She touched her face and grinned. “Cheek’s fine. Don’t tell him I said so, but it was kind of exciting.”

  Chance laughed. “I won’t tell him. I’ll give him a call. I’m in town until Sunday.” He leaned on the counter, angling his body so he had a clear view of the door.

  “You’re leaving the day after the wedding?” Grace asked, filling a bakery box with chocolate cupcakes.

  “Yeah, I…” He trailed off when he spotted Vivi jogging across the road, the sun glinting off her long, dark hair. He glanced at the clock on the purple wall behind the coffee machines—10:50. The woman was never early. She must be anxious for her date. At least she hadn’t dressed up for the guy. He took that as a good sign. Then again, she’d never dressed up for him, either. Today she had on those same low-riding jeans with the rip in the knee and the long-sleeve purple thermal tee she’d worn when they’d gone for a walk in Central Park after their first night together.

  He turned around, casually resting his elbows on the counter. Taping the top of the cake box, Grace gave him an expectant look. Right. He picked up where he left off. “I’ve got a job next Monday or I’d stick around.”

  He doubt she bought it. No one else did. But his family seemed to be slowly coming to the realization that this is the way it would be. After the events of the last few days, he figured he was past the worst of it now and could see himself coming home for the holidays at least. Should be enough to keep them happy. Christmastime was as big a deal for his family as it was for the rest of the folks in town.

  The bells on the door chimed. He braced himself. “I’ll take four coffees, too, Grace. Thanks.”

  From behind him came a pissed-off raspy voice. “I don’t believe this. You’re stalking me now, McBride?” Vivi nudged him over with her elbow.

  He looked down at her, unable to hold back a smile at the irritated look on her gorgeous, makeup-free face. “Now, why would you think that? I’m here to pick up an order for Gage.”

  “Sure you are.” She hefted her black messenger bag up her shoulder. The woman never went anywhere without her trusty laptop. “Hey, Grace. I’ll take a latte grande when you have a minute.”

  “They don’t make your fancy-ass coffees here, Slick.”

  Grace smiled. “For Vivi I do. I’ll be finished with Chance’s order in a sec.”

  His eyes widened as Grace began filling a second box with cupcakes. He should have remembered Ray had a hollow leg. He was about to tell Grace one box was enough, but Vivi’s smug smile and vanilla perfume distracted him. “You got stuff to do for the wedding today?” he aske
d her.

  “No, I have a date. Remember?”

  So much for his hope that she’d canceled after the kiss they’d shared. “Looks like he stood you up.”

  “He’s running late,” she said and headed for a table.

  Chance paid for Vivi’s coffee and his order. “Thanks, Grace. Place looks great, by the way.” Balancing the two boxes and a coffee tray in his arms, he stopped at Vivi’s table. She was already on her computer. “What are you working on?”

  “Nothing.” She closed her screen and nodded at the coffees. “You better get going before they get cold.”

  “I’ll nuke them.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “I wasn’t joking the other night. Stay away from the Callahans.”

  “It has nothing to do with the Callahans.”

  “What do you mean it? What are you working on?”

  She shrugged. “Mrs. Tate saw a black Mustang tear down Main Street around the time of the break-in at the pharmacy. Thought I’d check if anyone reported seeing one at the earlier break-ins. Not a big deal, okay?”

  No, it wasn’t okay. He’d shut her down Saturday night because his gut told him Jake Callahan was somehow involved. After seeing the bar, that feeling had only increased. They’d invested some serious coin in the Garage. And Vivi’s piece of news was one more reason for his brother to take a hard look at Jake. His father, Darwin Callahan, used to drive a souped-up ’76 black Mustang, and Jake specialized in refurbishing the model. “How did you hear about Mrs. Tate’s witness statement?”

  “I’m staying with your brother. I hear lots of things.”

  “Yeah, things you have no business hearing.” Gage was doing his best to keep Chance out of the loop. He should be doing the same with Vivi. He planned to talk to his brother about watching what he said around her and to give him a heads-up. Gage would be as unhappy about her digging around in his case as Chance was. Hopefully his brother would have better luck shutting her down. But Chance had to give it another shot. “I’m sure you have better things to do than waste your time following a lead that’s going nowhere.”

  It was too bad she didn’t have a story back in New York to keep her occupied. No doubt she was bored to tears answering letters from the lovelorn. And a bored Vivi Westfield was a dangerous thing.

  “Really, so you don’t think there’s anything interesting about the fact a Mustang was used as the getaway car?”

  They’d done this before—puzzled out the leads on a story together. Only he’d been Superman then. He’d missed their e-mail exchanges these past few months. Missed working with her on a story and making sure she was safe. But this one hit too close to home. He caught the calculating glint in her eyes. She knew more than she was letting on. “You have no proof it was the getaway car. Probably a bunch of kids out for a joyride.”

  “Right. So—” She broke off when Grace approached with her coffee. “Thanks,” she said, offering Grace one of her infrequent smiles. “How much do I owe you?”

  “Chance took care of it for you.” Grace smiled and began to walk away, then pivoted. “I almost forgot.” Retrieving a set of keys from the pocket of her purple-and-white-striped apron, she handed them to Vivi. “Better give you these now. I’m heading out shortly.”

  “You’re sure you don’t mind, Grace?”

  “Not at all. We don’t have anyone renting the apartment until the end of June.”

  Apartment? He hoped he’d misunderstood and Vivi wasn’t thinking about staying in the Flahertys’ apartment above the bakery.

  Vivi held up her coffee. “Thanks, McBride.”

  “What do you think you’re doing?”

  A dark brow arched. “Thanking you for my coffee.” She took a sip. “Drinking my coffee.”

  “Don’t be cute. You know what I’m talking about. Why are you staying at Grace and Jack’s place?”

  “Because while I love Annie, Lily, and Connor, I’m used to having my own space. What’s the big deal?”

  The big deal was there’d be no one to keep an eye on her. He never should have asked her to leave his place. At least he’d know what she was up to. “You’ll hurt Madison and the kids’ feelings.”

  She laughed into her coffee. “I can’t believe you’re worried…” Something caught her attention and she straightened, setting down the cup to wipe the foam from her upper lip. “Okay, it’s time for you to leave,” she said from between clenched teeth while offering a smile in the direction of the door.

  “Hey, Vivi, sorry I’m late.” Trainer pulled out a chair and nodded at Chance. “McBride.” As he sat down, the other man glanced at the boxes in Chance’s arms. “Now, I’d be derelict in my duties if I didn’t advise you to go easy on the sweets, McBride. A man of your age has to start watching his cholesterol levels.”

  Chance gave him an intimidating stare. The jerk grinned. Vivi pressed her lips together. “We’re not done with this conversation, Slick,” he warned her and headed for the door.

  * * *

  Chance was on a mission. From the bakery, he dropped off the coffee and cupcakes at the station, then drove straight to the O’Connor ranch. His brother didn’t know where his wife was and she had yet to respond to the three messages Chance had left on her voice mail. So he had no choice but to talk Liz into helping him out. He needed her to keep Vivi busy with the wedding. It was the only thing he could come up with to keep her out of trouble.

  And if that included no time to hang out with Trainer, so much the better. Now that she had her own private space, no time to entertain the doc had just moved to the top of his list. It wasn’t as if Chance was jealous. He was doing her a favor. Long-distance relationships didn’t work. Besides that, the doc was a bit of wuss. Vivi’d roll right over him.

  By the time Chance drove through the wrought iron gates and up the long, circular drive, his mood from earlier that morning had returned. He didn’t need to be dealing with this shit. All he wanted was for the damn wedding to be over and Vivi on a plane back to New York, where the only trouble she’d get into was pissing off readers with her unromantic, straight-shooting advice. New York, where he wouldn’t have to worry about running into her on a date with a guy who looked at her like she hung the moon.

  As he pulled in front of the elegant ranch house, he spotted Liz working in the front flower bed. She looked up, wiped a gloved hand across her brow, and gave him a wide smile. He could see why his dad was attracted to her. She was a beautiful woman. And he also knew: a good woman.

  Liz had been his mother’s best friend. Her biggest cheerleader throughout her battle with cancer. Near the end, she’d been the only one who could get his mother to eat. If it wasn’t for Liz and her husband, Deacon, Chance didn’t know how his dad would have gotten through those first few months.

  He’d been a jerk the other night. Liz didn’t deserve that. Vivi was right. She made his dad happy, and that was all that mattered.

  “Hey, Liz,” he said as he got out of the truck.

  “Hi, honey. I’m so glad you dropped by.” She stood up, brushing the dirt from her jeans.

  “Can I give you a hand?” He gestured to the bags of topsoil.

  She peeled off her gardening gloves. “No, I’m good. Come and have a cup of coffee with me. I need a break.”

  She looked like she could use one. Her face was pale, a damp sheen on her forehead. “You go on ahead. I’ll take care of this for you first.” She opened her mouth. No doubt to argue with him. “It’ll take me a couple minutes, tops.”

  “Okay. But just those bags there. I’ll get to the rest later.”

  He followed her gaze to three mounds of topsoil and at least thirty trays of white and pink tulips. “What are you doing, starting your own nursery?”

  “You sound like your father.” She gave him a self-conscious smile. “I want the beds to look good for the wedding photos. We had a heavy frost a week ago, and I lost most of my flowers.”

  “You can’t do this on your own.”

  “I don’t have much choi
ce. The kids are busy, and Raul and Rosa went to visit relatives. They won’t be back until a couple days before the wedding. I can’t put it off any longer.”

  It would be easy enough for Chance to take care of it for her, but he had a better idea. He pulled out his phone. “I’ll call Vivi. She’ll give you a hand.”

  “I don’t know, Chance. She doesn’t seem like the gardening type.”

  “Are you kidding me? She has a green thumb.” He smiled as he put the phone to his ear. The woman could kill a cactus. “You go on inside. Make a list of everything you need done. Vivi was just telling me how bored she is. You’d be doing her a favor.”

  “All right, if you’re sure she won’t mind. I could use a hand. Thanks, honey.”

  “No problem.” His call went straight to voice mail. He tried again once he’d emptied a couple of bags into the bed. “Hey, Slick,” he said when she finally picked up.

  “What do you want, McBride?”

  “Testy, aren’t we?”

  “I’m kind of busy here.”

  “Yeah, well, you’ll have to tell Trainer to wrap it up. Liz needs your help out at the ranch. I’ll pick you up in twenty minutes.” Before she could object, he added, “You did tell me you were here to help with the wedding, didn’t you?”

  She sighed. “All right, give me half an hour.”

  That was more like it. He was feeling pretty pleased with himself when he walked into the house. Now he just had to make sure that Liz’s list was long enough to keep Vivi busy for the next five days.

  He walked through the slate foyer to the kitchen. “Hey, Liz. I’m going to pick up… Liz. Jesus. Liz!”

  * * *

  Vivi put down her phone. Honest to good God, the man was a pain in the butt. After his performance at the Garage, she should’ve known he wouldn’t let her enjoy her date in peace. She didn’t believe for a minute that Liz needed her help. Not with all the family and friends she had willing to lend a hand. For a man who didn’t want her, he gave a good impression of one who did. Which begged the question: Why was she letting him get away with it? Might be best if she pleaded the Fifth on that one. Because if she answered herself honestly, she’d feel like a bigger fool than she already did.