Wedding Bells in Christmas

by Debbie Mason

  As soon as he reached the flower-lined walkway at his brother’s place, Chance heard Princess’s excited bark. She knew it was him. She’d always been able to tell if it was friend or stranger the moment they pulled up to the cabin. She’d traumatized any number of deliverymen. They’d always walked away red-faced when they discovered they’d been terrified by an eight-pound dog with a pink bow in its hair.

  He let himself in. Princess mauled his leg, trying to leap into his arms. She had on one of those pink ballerina thingies and two topknots instead of one on her head. No wonder she wanted to get out of there.

  He picked her up, inspecting her nails for polish as he called out to Madison.

  “In here,” she responded, sounding like she had a cold.

  But he knew as soon as he saw her leaning against the island in the kitchen that it wasn’t a cold. She’d been crying. As he went to deposit Princess on the floor, the dog let loose a pathetic howl. Chance sighed and tucked her under his arm. Lily gave him a weak smile from where she sat beside her sister. Annie didn’t look up, too busy pushing around the macaroni and cheese on her plate with a fork.

  It didn’t take much for Chance to figure out what was going on. It wasn’t easy being a sheriff’s wife. After what had happened to Ray, the worries Madison was able to keep at bay would now be front and center in her mind. The kids’, too.

  He rubbed his sister-in-law’s shoulder. “How are you guys doing?”

  Madison leaned into him. “Been better.” She lifted her gaze to his. “How’s Ray?”

  “No change, but he’s in good hands. He’ll pull through.”

  “Did they find the men who hurt him?” Lily asked, chewing on her bottom lip.

  “Not yet, but we will.”

  “We? Does that mean you’re staying?” Madison asked.

  “Yeah, I’m sticking around. Figure my little brother could use a hand.”

  “I’m glad. But you might not want to call him ‘little brother.’ He hates it, you know.”

  He grinned. “I know.”

  Annie’s pale green eyes took his measure. “It’s your job, right, to protect people from really bad guys with guns and stuff? ’Cause we don’t have people like that here. My dad hasn’t shot anyone before, have you?”

  “Yeah, I have. And none of the people I protected have ever been hurt, Annie. I’m not going to let anything happen to your dad.” It was the truth. The only ones he’d failed to protect were his wife and child. And the weight of the promise he’d just made to Annie fell heavily on his shoulders. He couldn’t fail again.

  “Sweetie, your daddy may not have to use his gun very often, but he knows what he’s doing. He’s smart and well trained. You don’t have to worry about him.”

  He couldn’t help but note the defensive tone in his sister-in-law’s voice. “Madison’s right. Your dad’s good at his job.”

  Annie bent her head over her plate, hair as dark as her father’s falling across her cheek. “But she was worried about him, too.”

  Madison closed her eyes and pressed her fingers to her mouth, then moved away from Chance to stand behind the girls and draw them in for a hug, kissing the tops of their heads. “I’m sorry if I upset you guys. I was worried about your auntie Vivi, and then when we heard about Ray…”

  Chance stiffened, tightening his hold on Princess, whose low growl rumbled through her small body. “What’s wrong with Vivi?”

  “She quit her job and—”

  “Princess bit her,” Lily interrupted Madison, adding in a whisper, “She doesn’t like Auntie Vivi. I think she knows she’s scared of her.”

  There was no reason for Lily to whisper unless… “Vivi’s here? I thought she was leaving town.” Now more than ever, he hoped to God he was wrong and she was on a plane back to New York. Because Vivi quitting her job wasn’t a positive development. There’d be nothing to stop her from sticking around.

  “As upset as she was, we weren’t about to let her leave town, Chance.” Madison’s tight expression made it clear she held him responsible for Vivi’s unhappy state of mind. “She’s on the deck.”

  Okay, other than Princess, there was only one reason Vivi wouldn’t be in here comforting Madison and the kids. “She doesn’t know about Ray, does she?”

  When Madison shook her head, he released a relieved breath. Things were looking up. “Good. And you three aren’t going to tell her.”

  “Chance, there’s no way we can—”

  “You know what went down with Jimmy. Do you really want her out there trying to figure out who did this?”

  “That was different. She wouldn’t…” She sighed when he raised a brow. “Okay, you’re right, you’re right. But I hate the thought of her alone in New York with no one looking out for her.”

  “You can look after her, Uncle Chance. I know you can. She’s sad. Please don’t make her go away,” Lily pleaded.

  “I’m not your aunt Vivi’s favorite person at the moment, honey. So she wouldn’t make it easy for me to look out for her. And I’ll be busy. When this is over, she can come back and stay as long as she likes.” It wasn’t a bad idea. Once this was taken care of, she’d be safer here than in New York. And he’d be long gone.

  When Lily went to object, her sister intervened. On his behalf, which was a surprise. She didn’t like him much, but she loved Vivi and obviously was smart enough to realize the consequences of her aunt staying in town. “Uncle Chance is right. He needs to help Dad, and Aunt Vivi will distract him.”

  Understatement if he ever heard one. Before his sister-in-law or niece came up with another reason to stop him, he handed Princess across the island to Lily and headed out of the kitchen.

  “Chance, she’s had a tough day. Don’t upset her,” Madison called after him.

  He didn’t care if he upset her or not. In fact, it’d be better if he did. Because one way or another, he was getting her out of town. Given how she felt about him, all he’d probably have to tell her was that he was sticking around. But any thought to what he’d say abandoned him when he stepped onto the deck and caught sight of her lying on a lounge chair in an itsy, bitsy red-and-white-striped bikini.

  * * *

  “Please tell me you got hold of Superjerk and that Demon Dog has had her rabies shot,” Vivi said upon hearing the glass doors slide open.

  She frowned when Maddie didn’t respond. That couldn’t be good. Preparing for the worst, she slowly turned her head. Chance stood there looking as ruggedly impressive as the mountains behind him. She growled inwardly when the thought popped into her head, reminding herself he’d made a fool of her. She didn’t want to deal with him on top of everything else. And she certainly didn’t need to see her scantily clad body reflected in his mirrored shades.

  She turned back to her iPad, wondering what the hell she’d been thinking donning the barely there bikini.

  “Superjerk? Thought I was your one-and-only.”

  An amused cockiness tinged his deep voice—the bastard. How dare he make fun of her feelings. Her fingers tightened around her iPad; she was tempted to throw it at him when he moved closer. “Come on, Slick. You know I was just trying to protect you. You need a keeper.”

  “I do not need a keeper. Especially if that keeper’s you. You can leave now.” Of course he didn’t listen and kept walking toward her. His ego was as overinflated as his muscles. Maybe if she ignored him, he’d go away.

  I should have known better, she thought, when a shadow fell over her. She kept her eyes firmly on the screen. “Do you mind? You’re blocking the sun.”

  He leaned over and hooked his finger under the narrow strap of the bikini top, sliding the red-and-white tie off her shoulder. “Looks like you’ve had more than enough. You’re burnt.”

  “I’m not…” She sucked in a breath when he continued to lower the strap, unable to contain a shiver as her body reacted to the deep rumble of his voice, the way his knuckles caressed her heated flesh. She had to get rid of him before he noticed her nip
ples’ reaction through the thin fabric. “Stop it.” She pushed his hand away.

  A warm breeze rustled the trees that stood sentry by the deck, filling the air with the smell of Chance’s clean, sandalwood scent. She stifled a groan when he crouched beside the lounge chair and took her hand. He gently rubbed his thumb over her knuckles as he examined her fingers. “Where did she bite you?”

  “On my toe,” she said, because there was no way she’d tell him Cujo bit her on the butt. She’d been on her hands and knees, searching under the couch for Connor’s binkie when the demon dog escaped from Lily’s bedroom.

  Vivi’s sigh of relief morphed into an exasperated huff when Chance lowered his large frame onto the end of the lounge chair, draping her legs over his thighs. She nudged him with her foot. “Off.”

  “Not until I check you out.” He smoothed his palm over one foot, then the other, inspecting them closely.

  “She’s had her rabies shot, right?” she asked nervously. Cujo had drawn blood, and Vivi could still feel the imprint of those dagger-sharp teeth.

  He was too busy playing with her toes to respond. “No, don’t,” she gasped through an unintentional laugh.

  “Still ticklish,” he murmured, his mouth quirking at the corner. His smile widened with a flash of strong white teeth. “She didn’t bite your toe, did she?” Wrapping his hands around her ankles, he tugged her closer and went to flip her over.

  “Don’t you dare, McBride.” She kicked her feet to loosen his grip, but he firmed his hold.

  Her iPad hit the deck. They both reached for it at the same time. He got there first. The amusement left his face as he scanned the articles about her successful photojournalist half brother and broadcast journalist half sister. In their midtwenties, they were leaps and bounds ahead of Vivi career-wise.

  He raised his mirrored gaze to hers. She waited for the lecture, waited for him to tell her to stop comparing herself to them. She’d heard it from him before. He knew her dirty little secret. He’d tell her to stop using them as a measure of her success. He’d tell her it didn’t matter. They’d had a billionaire father who opened doors for them, whereas she’d opened hers for herself.

  Only she’d done a good job slamming the last one shut. She fought down the wedge of panic in her throat and returned her gaze to Chance, to his overlong hair shielding his face from her as he studied the screen, the sun’s rays turning his silky, copper streaks a fiery red.

  “You shouldn’t have quit your job.” He switched off the iPad, tossing it on the chair by her hip.

  Tell her something she didn’t know—her job search so far had turned up empty. But still, his lack of support and encouragement surprised her. She covered her reaction with a snippy “Maddie’s got a big mouth.”

  He lifted his head. Despite being unable to see his eyes, she could feel his gaze travel the length of her body. She pulled her knees to her chest to conceal her nipples’ traitorous reaction to his attention. “What are you doing here, anyway? I heard you’d left town.”

  He looked out over the valley before responding. “Caved to family pressure. Nell guilted me in to sticking around.” He turned back to her. “Too bad you’re not staying in town, Slick. We could hang out.”

  He was so full of it. The light teasing voice was an act. She saw the way his beard-stubbled jaw tightened, the deepening of the lines bracketing his mouth. He wasn’t happy to be staying in town. And hanging out with her? Yeah right. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt. And it sucked. Before she could call bullshit, he added, “I’ve got some time. I can drop you off at the airport if you need a lift.”

  “Sorry to disappoint you, McBride, but Maddie and Skye got me to cancel my ticket.”

  “Take mine. I’ll transfer it to you, and you’re good to go. I was booked on the red-eye with a connection in New York.”

  Wow, could he be any more obvious that he wanted to get rid of her? She ignored the dull ache in her chest. “Thanks for the offer, but I promised Maddie and Skye I’d stick around for a couple of days.” She kept her tone light. She didn’t want him to know he still had the power to hurt her. To that end, she probably shouldn’t have added, “And I don’t break my promises,” but she couldn’t help herself.

  “Way I see it, Slick, you don’t have much of a choice. You gotta get a job, and you’re not going to get one sitting on your ass soaking up the Colorado sunshine. ’Bout time you put your needs before everyone else’s. Lay it out there for your girls. They’ll understand.”

  Vivi curled her fingers into her palms before she gave in to the urge to slug his chiseled, arrogant jaw. Instead she was about to tell him where he could shove his advice when Maddie opened the sliding glass doors and Chance’s cell rang. Vivi frowned when she caught the anxious glance Maddie shared with her brother-in-law. Her frown deepened when she got a better look at her best friend. She’d been crying.

  “Hey, what’s wrong, sweetie?” Vivi said, getting up from the lounge chair to go to her.

  Maddie didn’t respond right away. She looked beyond Vivi. “She’s going to find out, Chance. I can’t keep it from her.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Vivi pulled Maddie in for a hug when she finished telling her what happened to Ray. “You should have come and gotten me as soon as Gage called you.”

  “I know. I wasn’t thinking straight, and then the girls…” She closed her eyes, giving her head a slight shake before saying, “I didn’t handle it well, Vivi. I didn’t hide my reaction. I should have—”

  “Stop it. They’re smart kids. They would have known you were keeping something from them. Tell me what I can do.”

  “You can head back to New York so she doesn’t have to worry about you, too,” Chance said from behind her.

  She glanced over her shoulder, meeting his mirrored gaze as he shoved his cell phone in his back pocket.

  Before Vivi could respond, Maddie said, “It’s too dangerous to transport Ray to Denver, isn’t it? They’re going to have to do the surgery here.”

  His shoulders rose and fell on a heavy breath, then he nodded. “Yeah. Gage says they’ve got a neurosurgeon on the way.” He lifted his chin at Vivi. “Get your stuff. I’ll take you to the airport.”

  Ignoring him, she took Maddie’s hand. “I can stay with the kids if you want to go to the hospital. We’ll do something fun. Take their minds off everything.”

  “I’m not fooling around here, Slick. You’re not staying in town.”

  Maddie’s gaze shifted from Vivi to Chance. “Why don’t I leave you two alone to work this out?”

  “There’s nothing to work out. He doesn’t… You can’t be serious. Maddie!” she called after her best friend, who ducked into the house. She whirled on Chance. “Dammit, McBride. I’m not going anywhere. She needs me right now. That’s what friends do, you know. They—” She broke off, realizing that as hard as this was for Maddie, it was just as hard on Chance. Ray used to work for him. He was the reason Chance hadn’t left Christmas.

  “Look, I get that you’re worried about your friend. But I’m not leaving town. And McBride, you don’t get a say in my life. Not anymore.” She walked to the lounge chair to pick up her iPad and towel.

  “What if I told you I want one. That I need one.” His voice was low and rough as he moved in behind her.

  “Don’t use my feelings for you against me.” She grimaced when she realized what she’d revealed—as much to herself as to him. If it weren’t for Maddie, she’d be on the first flight out of there.

  “I’m not.” He put his hands on her shoulders, lowering his mouth to her ear. “I care about you, Vivi. I need to know you’re safe. If anything happened to you…”

  She believed he cared about her. But it wasn’t enough. “Give me some credit. I’ve been looking out for myself since I was seventeen. And I’ve done a good job of it.” She moved her head and bent to pick up her iPad. Which was incredibly stupid because it put her bottom in direct contact with… She raised her eyebrows and gl
anced over her shoulder. “Really?”

  “What can I say?” He gave a seemingly embarrassed shrug. Taking a step back, his gaze once again slid down her body. His brow furrowed and he reached out, the pads of his fingers grazing the cheek Cujo had latched on to.

  “Hey, back off.” She went to move away from him, but his hands clamped onto her waist, holding her in place. “McBride.”

  He crouched. “Jesus, she took a chunk out of your ass.”

  “Which is why I needed to know if she had her rabies shot.” She bit the inside of her lip, holding back a moan when he gently traced the bruise. “Has she?” Her voice came out a breathy whisper. She inwardly rolled her eyes. Could she be more obvious?

  A slow smile curved his lips. “Not sure. But knowing Nat, you’re probably in the clear.” His warm breath heated her skin as his mouth…

  “McBride,” she yelped when he planted a kiss on her butt cheek.

  “There, all better now.” He lightly patted her bottom as he stood up. “I’ve gotta take off. You need a ride to get your things from the apartment?”

  “What are you talking about?” Again with the breathy voice. In her defense, she was still recovering from the erotic feel of his lips pressed to her naked flesh. She nudged him out of the way and headed for the patio doors.

  “You’re moving back in with Maddie and Gage. You’ll have to clear out your stuff from Grace and Jack’s—”

  “Ah, no I’m not. I—”

  He stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Don’t test me, Slick. I’m not in the mood. You’re staying here, and that’s the end of it.”

  She jerked her arm free. “Bite me.”

  * * *

  Chance didn’t bite her. Though, if his wolfish grin had been any indication, he would have been more than happy to. But Gage had called, and Chance had taken off for the hospital. Without his damn dog.

  That had been more than two hours ago. Maddie had finally gotten tired of Vivi complaining and called Natalee. She was due to arrive any minute now to pick up Demon Dog. “Lily, Natalee’s here,” Vivi yelled when she heard the front door open.