A Heartwarming Christmas: A Boxed Set of Twelve Sweet Holiday Romances

by Melinda Curtis

  “Do you mind if we go back to your house and talk there? I’m feeling rather precarious at the moment.” He glanced behind him at the steep staircase.

  “You mean you’re afraid I’m going to shove you down the stairs when you tell me you paid for the chapel’s new boiler.” She crossed her arms over her chest and planted her feet more firmly. She knew when he was stalling. His forehead got that solitary wrinkle right above his nose. “That’s what you did, didn’t you?”

  “Yes. Now up.” He planted his hands on her hips and spun her around.

  “Sam—” Gratitude warred with frustration. This was supposed to be her project, her ticket to the future. She was supposed to find a way to make everything work on her own. And yet she couldn’t be angry with him. What he’d done was so typical Sam.

  “You know what I’d love?” He asked as he pushed her out ahead of him. “I’d love it if you’d just say thank you and we can move on. I didn’t want you spending money on something your father should have taken care of years ago. I’ve been saving up for a rainy day emergency and the day finally arrived. Subject closed.”

  She spun toward him as he closed the basement door. “But—”

  He reached up and pressed his fingers to her lips. “I said subject closed.”

  Her heart beat double time. He was so close, so warm and inviting. So…

  Before she knew what she was doing, she reached up and grasped his face between her hands. She didn’t give him a chance to think, didn’t give herself the chance to, before she rose up on her toes and pressed her mouth to his.

  She watched, smiling against his lips as he blinked, a flash of shock flickering before his arms came around her and his hands settled lightly on her hips. She pulled back, slightly, just enough so she could speak and whispered, “Thank you.”

  “That’s a new way to express your gratitude,” he said with that laugh in his voice she loved so much.

  Loved? She caught her lower lip between her teeth and let the notion wash over her like she’d lowered herself into a warm, winter bath. But as much as she wanted to languish in these feelings, she couldn’t let herself dive that deep. “That wasn’t gratitude.”

  He angled his head. “Then what was it? I thought you didn’t want—”

  “A thank you.” A good-bye. She squeezed her eyes shut for a brief moment. An eternity. Until she felt him tap a finger against her lips. “Sam—” She knew, when she looked at him again, he was thinking the same thing and for an instant, she knew if he said something—asked anything—she’d agree.

  “I think we should celebrate,” he whispered, a glimmer of sadness shining in his brown eyes. “Let’s go out tonight. You and me. A date.”

  Standing this close, she could tell he was holding his breath. His entire body had gone rigid, as if a refusal would snap his spine in two.

  Saying yes would only complicate matters. Saying no would hurt him. Hurt her. She couldn’t refuse. Not the offer and not him. Not when she suspected the courage it took for him to ask. “Okay. Come back and pick me up in an hour?”

  He blinked, as if he couldn’t believe she’d spoken, let alone said yes. “Really? Are you sure? Marnie—”

  “Just one condition.” She dropped her gaze and linked her fingers with his. “Promise me you won’t ask me to stay.”

  She held her breath, hoping he would do just that even while knowing he would always do as she asked.

  A sad smile curved his lips as he leaned down and brushed his mouth against hers. “That’s the one promise I can’t make. I’ll see you in an hour.”

  Chapter 7

  The fog in Sam’s brain didn’t clear until he pulled into his driveway, staring out the windshield for a good few minutes before he shook himself clear.

  What had just happened?

  Marnie had kissed him, that’s what happened. If that’s what buying her a boiler did, maybe he should be looking at replacing her beat up clunker of car. It was a good sign, wasn’t it? His plan was working. Finally, for once in his life, taking a chance, going after what he wanted, even if he hadn’t quite come out and stated his feelings for her, was going to pay off. He flexed his hands as if he could still feel her soft curves, the way her jeans had molded around her hips. The feel of her mouth against his was proof positive he hadn’t dreamed it before. Reality had surpassed any dream he’d ever had.

  Except now he was sitting in his truck acting like a love-struck teenager panicking about his first date.

  A flash of black fur arched up and onto the hood of his truck as Crowley, the neighborhood stray who had taken a liking to Sam and his warm engine, circled and settled into an observant ball of fluff, eerie yellow eyes staring at him through the windshield.

  “Yeah, I know,” Sam muttered. “You’re hungry, aren’t you?” The cat’s mouth opened and he could feel, rather than hear the meow and ensuing purr. “Okay, come on.”

  A sucker for any stray, Sam got out of the car and headed inside, Crowley prancing behind him, his meows becoming more persistent the closer they got to the door.

  “We talked about this,” Sam told him, but when he pushed inside, Crowley dashed through his legs and streaked into the kitchen. “You’re supposed to be an outdoor cat!” Cripes. Was there anyone or anything he couldn’t say no to?

  Evidently not since he’d gone and bought a big bag of cat food and special bowl for the feline interloper. The temperature was going to drop tonight, so instead of leaving the food on the porch Sam acquiesced and added a bowl of water on the counter as Crowley gobbled up the kibble. “Chew your food,” Sam ordered and gave the cat a firm quick pat on the back, inadvertently starting Crowley’s overactive motor.

  Now for the hard part. He wasn’t one to worry about what to wear, not even on a date. And he had dated over the years; there just wasn’t anyone who ever made him feel the way he felt when he was around Marnie. Nick had been right. Even alluding to the fact he had feelings for her had opened doors he thought for sure were closed. She lit everything up, like a constant Christmas tree whose lights had been set to permanent glow. And now here he was, standing in the two-bedroom house that felt more like a pit-stop than any kind of home. It needed attention, brightening up. It needed…love.

  The Wrights’ house, now that was a home. Welcoming, warm, stocked with affection and food. Especially at this time of year with all the baking and canning and brewing going on. Put those three sisters together and who knew what kind of holiday magic they’d produce.

  And yet here Sam stood, trying to figure out exactly what had changed in the last day that had Marnie kissing him in the chapel.

  “Don’t over think it. You’ll ruin it.” Instead he headed to his bedroom, grabbed his nicest shirt and slacks and told himself to take it one minute at a time. “Let her take the lead,” he decided, determined to keep his promise. He shouldn’t have to. Soon…she’d realize just how much she wanted to, needed to, stay in Christmas Town. For the first time in his life, he was ready for what was to come and if this afternoon was any indication, he’d be more than happy with where it, and Marnie, took him.

  ~*~

  “Is there something I can help you with?” Chloe asked Marnie from the doorway of her old bedroom.

  “Nope, I’m good.” Marnie continued scouring Chloe’s closet leftovers for something to wear. “I needed something a little punched up for tonight.”

  “Did you?” Chloe stepped inside and flounced on her unmade bed. Marnie pressed her lips together and shook her head. There were few things that ended a day more perfectly than sliding into a neatly made bed, something she was certain her sister had never experienced. “Then it’s a good thing I still haven’t moved everything in to Noelle’s apartment. So. What ‘cha got going on?”

  “I’ve got a date.” Marnie sighed and for the tenth time since she’d kissed Sam at the chapel, tried to stop her hands from trembling. New York. Sam. Bells are Ringing. Design school. Sam. When the wheel stopped spinning, what would she land on?
“With Sam. What?” She asked when Chloe didn’t react.

  “Not a thing.” Chloe rolled onto her stomach and perched her chin in her hands. “Just thinking about that alarm we talked about the other day.”

  “What ala— oh.” Marnie grinned. “You mean it was time someone woke up and realized what he has to offer.”

  “Bingo. Or should I say brrrrrrring!”

  “Okay, I’ll admit it took me a while.” And she still wasn’t sure where things were going…or if they could go. She had her sights set firmly on New York and design school. Well, maybe not as firmly as she once had, but she wasn’t going to let anything veer her off course. Not even Sam Collins and his very perfect behind.

  “Twenty-something years by my count,” Chloe said. “Have you even been on a date?”

  “A few.” Who had the time what with their mom, then dad falling ill? Marnie shuffled through Chloe’s sweaters. Red? No. Blue? Nu-uh. Oooh, turquoise was pretty. She pulled it free and held it up to her chest. “What do you think?”

  “I think I haven’t worn that yet, but happy date. Take it. What do you mean a few?”

  “I mean I’ve been on a few dates here and there. Nothing serious. Not like you and Ted, that’s for sure.”

  “From where I’m sitting, there’s no one like me and Teddy. I wasn’t about to let him get away. Why else would I have married him in a matter of days?” Chloe grinned and linked her ankles together and wagged her newly-ringed finger. “But if what you feel for Sam is even half of what I do for Teddy—”

  “We’ll both be in serious trouble.”

  “Best kind of trouble to be in,” Chloe agreed, but the humor fell from her face as she frowned. “Sam does know you’re set on leaving, right?”

  “You sound like Noelle. And yes. He should.” Marnie frowned. “I’ve told him enough times. He wouldn't promise not to ask me to stay.”

  “It would be asking him to lie. Sam doesn't lie.”

  Marnie dropped the hanger to her side. “Don’t spoil this for me, Chloe.” She didn’t need her sister voicing her worst fear.

  “I’m not trying to. I’m just being realistic. If leaving is really what you want to do, that’s fine. Well, it’s not, but you know what I mean. I just don’t want Sam to get his hopes up.”

  “What about getting my hopes up?”

  “That’s on you.” Chloe twisted and jumped off the bed, heading over to her dresser and the tangled piles of jewelry scattered about. “You want to go? Go. But Sam will be the one who will be left behind. Something to think about. How about this?” She held up a long, thin gold chain with tiny accent pearls. “It’s dainty and soft. Just like—”

  “Don’t say me,” Marnie warned.

  “I was going to say just like that sweater.” Chloe looped the necklace over her head. “Don’t spill anything on that tonight or you’re footing the cleaning bill. Oh, and Marnie?” She called when Marnie headed toward her own bedroom. “Have a good time.”

  Marnie grinned. She intended to.

  ~*~

  “It’s a good thing we drove since you bought out half the town,” Sam said as he settled into the booth across from Marnie inside Posey's Diner. She grinned that eye-brightening grin at him as she pulled off her gloves and shoved out of her coat. The fading harmony of the town's carolers followed them inside, along with the aroma of fresh popped popcorn and roasting chestnuts over open flame.

  Christmas Town excelled at extolling the spirit of the season year round, but nothing compared to the week before Christmas when the town was in full-holiday bloom, from the thousands of poinsettias, to the garlands draping across Main Street, to the mistletoe laden gazebo where, town legend had it, a kiss on Christmas Eve meant wedding bells in the new year.

  “Those monogrammed tool kits are perfect for your shop students,” Marnie said and pulled Sam from his wandering reverie. “They earned it. I’ve got sister plans for those frames.”

  “You didn’t have to get the kids gifts,” Sam said and refused the offer of a menu from their waitress Susie, one of Posey’s long-time employees. “Fried chicken dinner, please. Extra gravy on the side.”

  “You got it, Sam,” Susie said, her blond ponytail bopping against the back of her head. “How about you, Marnie?”

  “Let’s go with the turkey pot pie and an order of green beans? And coffee, please.”

  “Pie for desert?” Susie grinned scribbling on her pad.

  “Peppermint.” Marnie didn’t hesitate. Posey’s Peppermint Pie was a Christmas Town staple. No holiday season was complete without at least a slice, but in a pinch, Lynn’s Pudding had her own version that ran a close second.

  “Same.” Sam busied himself settling his own jacket on the seat beside him only to find Marnie watching him when he glanced at her. “What?”

  “You’re nervous.” How many times had he teased her these last few days? Now she was turning the tables on him. “Why?”

  “And you’re not?” He argued and stared down at the hands she stretched out across the table, palms up. “This is…new.”

  “Is it?” She waggled her fingers until he put his hands in hers. She pinned him with a stare he hadn’t seen since she’d caught him sneaking extra cookies out of the ancient cat jar on the Wright kitchen counter. “You’ve been holding out on me for years. You didn’t even say anything the other day when I asked if there was more between us than friendship.”

  He hesitated, feeling that gaping chasm threaten to engulf him again. The scars on his neck itched and he tried to pull his hand free, but she squeezed her fingers hard around his.

  “Do I scare you that much?”

  “Losing you scares me.” There. He’d said it and focused on the way her hold stopped the circulation in his hands. A most welcome distraction. “Your friendship is important to me.”

  “And if this is more than friendship?”

  “Then I really don’t want you to go.”

  “You don’t think we’re worth taking a chance on? That we can survive me being gone a while?”

  His heart did a new kind of flip and never really righted itself inside his chest. “A year or two, or even three, is more than a while, Marnie.” He inclined his head. Every time he looked at her was like the first time and struck him like a bolt of lightning. He didn’t think he’d ever tire of the shock. “New York’s a long way away.”

  “It’s not on the other side of the world. I’m coming back, Sam.” But there was no ignoring the creases along the corners of her eyes he hadn’t seen before, as if she wasn’t quite sure she believed what she said. “I have to know if I have what it takes—”

  “You don’t need some school to tell you what I already know. No piece of paper is going to tell you where you belong.”

  “You’re biased.”

  “I am. I—” He stopped short of admitting out loud what he’d never said before. “I believe in you, Marnie. Whatever you set your mind to doing, you’ll do. But you’re fooling yourself if you think New York is going to give you any different answers than the ones you’ve found here. How are you going to leave the chapel behind after everything you’ve done to make it your own?”

  “Because I have to. Even if it’s only for one semester or even a year, I have to try. I have to know if I can do it.”

  His mouth went dry and he nodded. “Yeah, I know.” Maybe when the chapel was completely done, maybe when she saw what they were capable of accomplishing together, the possibilities for the weddings she’d hold there… “But that doesn’t change how I feel.”

  She leaned forward and the edges of her hair fell against the table. “I won’t be leaving for a while. We’ll have plenty of time to see where this...” She squeezed his hands again. “Goes. If anything, we’ll have a unique Christmas this year.”

  “You know what I want to do right now?” He moved as if to press his forehead against hers.

  “What?” She grinned and met his gaze so directly he was certain she could see straight into his soul.<
br />
  “I really want to find Elmer the Elf. That pesky little guy’s been hiding for over a month.”

  Marnie laughed. “Posey said whoever hid him this last time was pretty determined to keep him that way until the New Year.”

  The tradition of finding Elmer the Elf was enjoyed by residents young and old. The odd looking creature had even crept his illustrated way onto the menu and the new napkin holders on the tables.

  “Tell you what.” Sam sat back, but kept hold of her hands, unwilling to let her go any sooner than necessary. “Whoever finds him first owes the other one wish of their choice.” He scanned the shelves along the wall of the diner.

  “Works for me. Oh, and Sam?” She lifted off her seat and grabbed the back of his head, pressed a kiss on his lips that set his head to spinning. “I win. He’s right above you.” She lifted her chin and sure enough, caught up in a bundle of fake tinsel and mistletoe, Elmer the Elf looked down on them with an expression Sam could only define as approval.

  ~*~

  They heard the sirens before they saw the spinning lights.

  “Sam,” Marnie whispered. A quick glance between them had Sam dropping his foot heavy on the gas as Marnie grabbed hold of his arm.

  “Hang on.” The truck sped forward like an Indy car on its final lap and made a hard right onto Chapel Way. He screeched around the turnoff for the Wright property as her frantic gasp erupted in the cab.

  Smoke billowed out of the broken windows of the chapel.

  “No. No, no, no.” She was out of the truck before he’d fully stopped, but instead of him trying to stop her, he grabbed hold of her hand as they raced toward the fire engine, spinning lights, and mish mash of cars.

  “Chloe!” Marnie caught sight of her sister, soot covering her face, darting between firemen and dodging hoses and sprays of icy water as she hurried toward them. Sheriff Christopher Hayes' patrol car was parked at a haphazard angle as he kept onlookers at bay and directed cars. “Chloe, what happened?” Marnie yelled as she squeezed Sam’s hand.