Page 33 of Evergreen Christmas

“But I . . .” He floundered for the right words. “You . . . you were joking, right? Just kidding around?” He forced a laugh. “Trying to knock me off my game before the contest?”

He had hoped, on some level, that she’d agree with him. That she’d play off her advance, admit she was trying to rattle him, then wave off his concern.

But she didn’t.

“No. I was just trying to be honest and open with you.” She laughed nonchalantly but the blazing flush on her face spread down her neck, and she avoided his eyes. “But I understand, and it’s okay. Thank you for being honest with me, too.”

Her fingertips left the sleeves of his shirt, her hands retreated across the table, and she stood as though to leave.

“Jordyn, wait.” He stood, too, but when she looked at him, his throat closed with remorse at having hurt her and he couldn’t think of a single thing to say.

She met his gaze then and smiled, sincerely this time, a teasing light entering her eyes. “Don’t sweat it, Nate. It really is okay. I’m a risk-taker, took my shot and struck out. That’s all. And now, I know where I stand.” She left then, pausing a few feet away to turn back and smile. “Good luck fishing, Neighbor Nate. I’ll see you around sometime.”

Nate watched her walk away, then sat down again.

Eventually, Jordyn chose another table among the many arranged in the town square, sat in a chair and conversed briefly with the man sitting in front of her. Mason Walker, a dashing local cop who was two years closer in age to Jordyn, took advantage of Jordyn’s proximity, engaging her in a deep discussion, leaning across the table and saying something that made her laugh.

Nate frowned and refocused on the bucket of candy canes in front of him.

“Get them Stones, man,” Tucker drawled from the sidelines, chewing another mouthful of candy apple.

“Yeah,” Roxie shouted. “Win this one, Daddy!”

Nate smiled back at them and went through the motions, greeting the next person who sat in the empty chair Jordyn had vacated, listening intently as Noel’s Nanas walked onto the stage still positioned in the center of the town square and announced the countdown for the contest. And when the contest began, he clenched his candy cane tightly between his teeth and dove into the task at hand wholeheartedly, using the strange surge of jealous anger within him as extra energy to snatch up candy canes from the bucket in front of him and sling them into a high pile by his side.

But when it was over, even though he won second place and moved a bit higher on the Tree Scoreboard, he had trouble smiling.

Instead, his gaze kept returning to Jordyn where she still sat across from Mason, laughing at his jokes and engaging in conversation. He told himself that he was happy Jordyn was settling in and forming new acquaintances, getting to know everyone. But he couldn’t shake the immensely unpleasant thought that even though he’d told Jordyn he wasn’t available, it wouldn’t be very long before she discovered that other men in Noel were.

Chapter Seven

“We got people for that, you know.”

Nate, standing in one of the stables at Frosted Firs Ranch, dragged his forearm over his sweaty forehead and glanced over his shoulder where Tucker stood in the doorway, his fists propped on his hips and one eyebrow lifted, a look of derision in his eyes.

“I’m aware of that,” Nate said. Returning to the task at hand, he dug his shovel into the soiled shavings on the stall floor, lifted it and dumped the contents into a wheelbarrow that sat nearby. “But I preferred to get a little exercise today. Anything wrong with that?”

“Not a thing.” Tucker sauntered farther inside the stable and leaned on one of the stalls nearby, watching Nate through narrowed eyes as he resumed mucking the stall. “Thing is, I wouldn’t question what you’re doing except for the fact that it’s freezing out here and you haven’t taken it upon yourself to muck out a stall in at least six months.”

Nate dug his shovel into the soiled shavings again, shook off the clean bits, then dumped the manure that remained into the wheelbarrow with more force than necessary. Metal clanged on metal as the shovel dinged the side of the wheelbarrow, the raucous noise echoing throughout the empty stable.

“So . . .” Tucker sighed. “It’s clear something’s eating at you. You might as well just come on out with it and tell me what’s up.”

“I never said anything was bothering me.”

Tucker laughed. “And that right there is the problem. For three days now, you’ve been making yourself scarce and working yourself to the bone. Even Roxie has asked if there’s something wrong with you.”

Nate lowered his shovel to the floor, propped the handle against the door of the stall, then leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. “There’s nothing wrong with me. There’s just a lot of work to do around here and I don’t mind pitching in even when I don’t have to.”

Tucker made a face and rolled his eyes, then glanced away briefly, looking out the open entrance of the stable. “Whatever. I’m just telling you that you’ll feel better if you just get whatever it is that’s bugging you off your chest.” His attention returned to Nate, his eyes seeming to peer right through him and pick apart his thoughts. “I mean, it’s not like I don’t already know what’s on your mind.”

Nate scoffed. “And what exactly do you think that is?”

“Our feisty little neighbor, Jordyn Banks.” Tucker grinned, his smile growing even wider as Nate fumed.

“There’s nothing going on between me and Jordyn.”

Tucker winked. “See, now I never said there was anything going on between you two. I just said she was on your mind, which must be true, seeing as how you jumped to such a conclusion.”

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