A Christmas Collection: Four Sweet Holiday Romances

by Victorine E. Lieske

  “Okay. I just didn’t want you to think—”

  “I don’t think anything, Daniel. I just make desserts.” She finished loading the cupcakes, closed the box, and reached for the sugar cookies. The faster she got him all settled up, the faster she could go in the back and scream out her frustrations. Or eat a pound of chocolate. Whichever.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, almost purring. “I shouldn’t have come in. Amy just said get gluten-free, and the bakery on Fifty-First didn’t have any. I know all you make are gluten-free, and—”

  “Daniel,” she said, maybe a tad bit too loud. He stopped and stared at her. She smiled again, even though her cheeks hurt. “It’s okay. Just take them.” She handed him the two boxes and rang up the order.

  “Thanks, Candy.”

  Candice winced. Not only did he have to come in and rub it in her face that he was already happily in love with someone else, he insisted on demeaning her with that stupid nickname. She took his check and slid it into the cash drawer. “Happy Holidays,” she forced herself to say. Maybe he would leave now.

  But before her wish came true, he reached out and grabbed her hand, then placed his other one on top. She was trapped, standing there, feeling like she was going to be sick. He leaned in closer. “I appreciate this.”

  She yanked her hand back, shaking from the contact. “No problem,” she muttered as she backed toward the kitchen.

  “See you around,” he said.

  “I hope not,” she said under her breath. She turned and shoved her way back into the kitchen, blinking so the tears wouldn’t come. How had she ever seen anything in him? And how could she have thought maybe he was coming to apologize? He was nothing but an inconsiderate louse.

  She grabbed a cupcake and started slathering it with frosting. Of all the mean things Daniel had ever done, this one topped them all. He was a selfish jerk. It was obvious he was just there to flaunt Amy in her face. Why did she care so much, anyway? Stupid emotions.

  Candice slowed as she realized her cupcakes were looking less like Santa Hats and more like Blood Pools. Gah. She couldn’t mess up this order for Mr. Russell. She needed the money. And who cared about Daniel, anyway? He was long gone, out of her life. She wouldn’t even waste another second thinking about him.

  At least, that’s what she told herself. Over and over.

  Chapter 2

  After another hour of work, Mr. Russell’s large order was done, in boxes, and on her cart. All thoughts of Daniel had gone. At least, that’s what she wanted. In truth, her fingers still shook from anger. From what he did to her. But she tried to ignore it.

  Debbie had shown up and was out front running the shop so Candice could deliver the order. She pulled on her coat and wheeled the cart to the back door. Unfortunately, the snow had blown over the path she’d scooped to her van just ten minutes before. She couldn’t push the cart to her van.

  She cringed and ran each box out through the biting wind while trying not to slip on the ice. At least she’d taken out the back seats of her van last week so she could go antiquing. It made it easier to load.

  After she climbed in the driver’s side and started the car, she glanced at the clock. Three minutes to five? How did it get to be so late? Mr. Russell had said he wanted the cupcakes delivered before five. Nerves clenched her stomach. If she didn’t please him, her business could be toast. He was a very influential man. She’d never met him, but he and his family were well known around Chicago.

  There was no way she’d make it on time. She still had to get downtown, then up to the sixty-eighth floor where the Christmas party would be held. She just hoped that Mr. Russell would be busy enough with his business party that he wouldn’t notice her coming in late.

  Candice did her best to drive fast on the slippery streets while not getting stuck in the snowdrifts. When she arrived at the horrendously high building, she parked and ran to the back of her van. She rushed to get the cupcake boxes out without smooshing them. It seemed to take forever to get them into the building and on her cart.

  Once she was done, she rushed to the elevator. The building seemed unusually still. No one was around. Not that she knew much to compare it to. She never came in this building. She avoided it on principle. It was built on the dollars taken from their family. Desperation made a person do all kinds of things they never thought they’d do, huh?

  The elevator took forever, and she danced from one foot to the other, trying to get the blood flowing again. Her toes were frozen. She didn’t want to look at the clock, but her gaze landed there, anyway. Five twenty. She took a cleansing breath as the elevator finally opened its doors. Maybe Liam Russell would be forgiving because of the snowstorm.

  She wheeled her cart onto the elevator and then pressed the button marked sixty-eight. The doors started to slide shut when she heard a man yell out, “Hold the elevator!”

  She pressed the door open button, but the doors kept sliding shut. She frantically pressed it over and over. Then she realized she was pressing the wrong one. Oops. Oh, well. She was in a hurry, anyway. He could catch the next one.

  Just as the doors were about to close all the way, the man stuck his foot in, and they opened back up again. He stepped onto the elevator, a frown stretching across his face. “Thanks for holding the elevator,” he grumbled.

  “Sorry, I pressed the wrong button,” she said, feeling lame.

  He shrugged, then smoothed out his features. “It’s okay.” He took the normal ‘elevator stance’ as they started to rise. Feet apart. Hands clasped in front of him. He wore a nice suit with a few flakes of snow on his shoulders. He was handsome, probably in his early thirties. And tall.

  She tried not to stare at him. It was awkward enough with the whole door-almost-closing thing. Then her mind woke up and she pointed to the buttons. “Which floor do you need?”

  He pointed with his chin. “That’s my floor. Sixty-eight.”

  Duh. She should have known. The whole building looked like it was empty. It was the Friday before Christmas. Everyone probably went home early. Except for those staying for the party.

  It looked like this guy needed to relax. His jaw was set, his hands clenched tight. “It’s a good thing Christmas is almost here,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. “We all get a break.”

  He nodded, not saying anything.

  The lights flickered, and the elevator lurched, but resumed its course as the lights came back full force. Candice gripped her cart. “Geez, what was that?”

  “The snow, I’m sure.”

  She swallowed. Sure. The snow. “Well, I hope it doesn’t shut the power down. I hate blackouts.” Or at least, she hoped it waited until she was out of this building. She didn’t want to get trapped on the sixty-eighth floor.

  The man pointed to her cart. “You’re from the bakery.”

  It wasn’t a question, but she nodded, anyway. “Yes.”

  He frowned. “You’re late.”

  Wow. How rude. She held back a rude comment of her own. “The snowstorm made it impossible to get here.”

  “Impossible?” He raised one eyebrow.

  Yeah, okay, so impossible was an exaggeration. But his arrogance was off-putting. She pinched her lips together and looked him over. “You’re late, too. Unless Mr. Boss Man sent you out for something. Wait, let me guess. Mr. Russell sent you out in this weather for some mistletoe? Sounds like something he’d do.” She chuckled to herself.

  The man took a step back from her, staring, his lips twitching like he was holding back a smile. “Oh, really?”

  “Yeah. I’ve heard he was a real piece of work. Old men with tons of money usually are.”

  His eyes widened. “Old?”

  The lights flickered again, then went out completely and the elevator slammed to a halt.

  She lost her balance and screamed.

  Chapter 3

  Strong arms wrapped around Candice and steadied her in the dark. Her heart pounded as she clung to the stranger. Embarrassed, sh
e let him go and stepped back. “Uh, thanks,” she said, her voice shaky.

  He didn’t acknowledge her gratitude. “I’m sure the power will come back on in a second.”

  She held her breath, waiting for that exact thing. One red light in the upper corner kept them from being in complete darkness, and her eyes adjusted to the odd lighting. The man glanced at the doors, like he wasn’t sure why they didn’t open.

  Dang, why did the power have to go out right now, of all times? She had stuff to do. With Christmas Eve tomorrow, she knew she’d have some last-minute shoppers coming in for treats for their parties. She had to get back to the shop.

  “The power isn’t coming back on,” she said after a minute. Then she winced. “That was a stupid thing to say. Hello, Captain Obvious.”

  He chuckled. “It’s okay. Don’t stress.”

  “Sure. Don’t stress.” She rubbed her arms, even though she still had her coat on. It suddenly felt colder in the elevator. “We’re fine. It’s not like we’re trapped in here, hours before one of the busiest shopping days of the year.”

  “Power outages don’t usually last long. I’m sure we’ll be up and running in no time.”

  She held her breath as the seconds ticked by. He was right. She’d been in a few power outages in Chicago, but sometimes they had it fixed in just minutes. Sometimes, hours. But she’d never been in one that lasted days. They’d be fine. The power would come back on soon and her day would continue as normal. “Yeah, I’m sure you’re right.”

  He took a couple of steps and, for the first time, she noticed he favored one leg. He leaned against the side of the elevator. “So, you own a bakery?”

  She nodded. “Yeah. I’m just starting out. Opened six months ago.”

  “What’s your best seller?”

  She grinned at him. “My cupcakes. And I love making them. There’s just something about baking a batch of cupcakes, then decorating them so they turn out cute, that makes me get all excited.” Her cheeks heated. “And now I’m rambling about stuff you probably don’t care at all about.”

  His lips curled up a little. “No, you’re fine. You’re obviously passionate about what you do.”

  “And what is it you do?”

  He shifted. “I own a company myself. But I want to hear more about your business. What made you want to open a bakery?”

  “I just love putting together ingredients to make something delicious. I’ve been creating since I was a teen. And there’s something so satisfying about tasting what you’ve made and enjoying every bite.”

  He nodded. “I agree.”

  She suddenly felt stupid. “I’m sorry. We’re stuck in an elevator together and I don’t even know your name.” She stuck out her hand to him. “I’m Candice.”

  He hesitated, then shook her hand and smiled. “Nice to meet you, Candice. I’m Liam.”

  “Liam? You work for Liam Russell, and you have the same name as him? That’s got to be confusing.” Even as the words came out of her mouth, she knew she was wrong. A numb feeling spread through her chest as she stared at the man. Oh, no. This couldn’t be. He couldn’t be…

  He cleared his throat, looking somewhat uncomfortable. “I have the same name as him, because I am him.”

  “Oh.” That was all she could say. All that would come out of her stupidly slack mouth. What had she done? She’d made snide comments, right to his face. What must he think of her? She’d just killed her whole business. He was going to tell everyone what a numbskull she was, and her business would be toast. She’d lose her investment.

  He stepped toward the elevator buttons. “Maybe we should use the phone to call someone. Let them know we’re trapped.”

  “Yes.” Her voice came out a strangled whisper. “Go ahead.”

  He opened the tiny door and picked up the handset. After a moment, he spoke. “This is Liam Russell. I was in one of the west elevators when the power went out.”

  As he talked, she wondered if she could turn invisible just by sheer will.

  “Uh, huh.” He listened some more to the person on the other end of the line. “All right. Thank you.” He hung up and turned to Candice. “She will put in the call, but there was a huge accident on the freeway and most responders are dealing with that right now. She said to hold tight, and they’d come help soon if the power doesn’t come back on first.”

  “Oh.” Candice didn’t know what else to say. She felt like a fool. Maybe she could fake a heart attack and then the rescue crew would come faster. She wondered what a fake heart attack would look like.

  He walked back to the railing on the wall where he’d been leaning, and once again she noticed his limp. He smiled at her. “Listen, I don’t want things to be awkward between us. I know you didn’t know who I was when you said those things.”

  Heat pricked at her cheeks. “Yeah.”

  “It’s fine. People say all kinds of things about me. I don’t care.” He waved away the imaginary comments people make, like they were pesky flies. “But I do have one question, if you don’t mind.”

  Oh, no. Would this humiliation never end? She swallowed and avoided eye contact. “Okay.”

  “What made you think I was old?”

  What was she supposed to say to that? She shrugged. “I honestly don’t know.”

  He shifted. “How old did you think I was?”

  Candice cringed. “I guess, in your seventies. Maybe?”

  He rubbed his chin. “Maybe my ex was right. Maybe I need to use more moisturizer.”

  She wasn’t sure he was kidding until she saw the hint of a smile on his face, and then she laughed, feeling foolish. “I’m sorry. I really don’t know what I was thinking. All I’ve ever known of you was from—”

  She stopped abruptly. Crap. She didn’t want to tell him about her father. About the accident and the judgment. She didn’t want to bring up any of that. But now he was looking at her expectantly.

  “From?” he prodded.

  “Uh, from what people say about your company. And I guess I just assumed.” She finished with a lame shoulder shrug.

  A light came on in his eyes. “Ah, my company. You mean my father’s company. You must have me confused with him.”

  “Oh.” Well, that totally made sense.

  “People confuse me with my father all the time. At least, they did when he was still alive.”

  Candice swallowed, and awkwardness settled between them. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay. It was hard when he first passed, but I’ve made peace with it.” He shifted his weight. “Do you mind if I sit down? My leg is bothering me.”

  Did she mind? Of course not. She motioned. “Go ahead. In fact, I’ll join you.” She sat down as well, leaning her back up against the side of the elevator. It felt good to get off her feet. How long had they been in there, anyway? She pulled out her phone and checked the time. Fifteen minutes. Is that all? It had seemed like longer.

  “Do you need to call anyone? Let them know where you are?” Liam asked.

  Debbie was manning the store until six. She’d lock up and not think anything about Candice not coming back, probably assuming she’d gone home for the day. She had no boyfriend. No parents. A strange loneliness settled around Candice as she shook her head. “No.”

  He didn’t say anything, and she realized she hadn’t seen him take out a phone. She held hers to him. “What about you? You can use my phone.”

  He took it from her. “Thank you. I left my phone in my office. I should let my mother know where I am.” He punched in a number and held the phone to his ear. “Hi. Yes, I know. I’m in the elevator.”

  Candice could hear the excited tone of his mother’s voice carrying through the air. Liam grimaced. “I’m fine, Mother. I called. They will come soon.”

  He nodded. “Yes. I love you, too. Goodbye.” He hung up and handed her phone back to her. “Thanks.”

  As she took the phone, his fingers brushed over hers and a jolt of electricity sparked over her skin. Man
, she needed to get out more, if this man’s touch could do that to her.

  How pathetic.

  Chapter 4

  Time seemed to crawl as they sat in the elevator. At six o’clock Candice started to get worried. How long would it take for the power to come back on? It was cold. Plus, she was getting hungry.

  Liam must have been thinking the same thing because he pointed to the cart full of boxes. “They smell good.”

  She gave him a devilish smile. “Do you want one?”

  “Well, we are stuck. I don’t see why we shouldn’t eat one.”

  Candice was happy to oblige. She grabbed one of the boxes and slid it onto the floor between them. She opened the lid.

  Liam picked up one of the Santa cupcakes and peeled the paper off. Candice didn’t mean to stare at him, but she always felt a bit self-conscious when someone tried one of her creations, and she sat still while he took a bite.

  He raised his eyebrows. “This is delicious.” Then he motioned to her. “Aren’t you going to have one?”

  Relief flooded over her, and she picked one up. “Yes.”

  The elevator fell into a silence as they ate. Liam crumpled his liner and slid it into his suit pocket. “I thought I ordered gluten-free cupcakes. Maybe the order got messed up.”

  She shook her head. “No, these are gluten-free.”

  His eyebrows shot up. “Really? They don’t taste like it.”

  Satisfaction pooled warm in her stomach. “Good. Everything I make is gluten-free. I try hard to create wonderful-tasting treats.”

  “What’s your secret? I’ve had a lot of gluten-free desserts, and they usually are dry and crumbly. But yours is perfect.”

  Candice swallowed her last bite, so thrilled he would notice. “The secret is adding in moisture. I used applesauce in this recipe.”

  He slowly nodded. “That makes sense.”

  “Do you bake?”

  “Actually, I do. It relaxes me. I’ve made some gluten-free cupcakes, but none of them came out this nice.”