Page 8 of Christmas In Love

From the lack of cars in the parking lot, Cade assumed he was the only guest around. If Natalie had been at the desk instead of a sign that had read ‘ring bell for service,’ he might have been able to start getting some of those answers right away. Instead, he opened his computer to check on a couple of charts, sent out some emails, and called in to consult on the treatment plan for one of his patients.

He had just gotten his coat on to head out for dinner when he heard the music. In all the time he’d been there—probably a few hours at that point—he hadn’t heard a thing besides the muffled sounds of Natalie taking a phone call somewhere in the house. But now there was music. Familiar music.

He pulled open the door and made his way down the carved, ornate staircase. The back of Natalie’s head came into view where she sat at her computer. The sight of her still sent an odd jolt through his nervous system. It felt like he was seeing a ghost. Someone he both knew incredibly well… and not at all.

Words were coming out of his mouth before he could check them. “You know, most people playChristmasmusic during the holiday.”

For the second time that day, Natalie jumped. A stapler flew from her hand—thankfully, in the opposite direction from him.

Cade grimaced. “Sorry about that.”

She glanced at him, then went for the stapler. “It’s fine. No problem. It’s—” she straightened up and cleared her throat. “What were you saying?”

He pointed at her computer from which the music was playing. “Are you watching the grumpy guy movie?”

“The—oh.” She shook her head. “No. Just listening to the playlist while I work. And Fitzwilliam Darcy is not grumpy.”

Cade cocked his head. “I remember him being pretty grumpy.” Natalie had forced him to watch that movie more times than he could count.

“He was… well, okay maybe a little. But only because he was uncomfortable. And he… it doesn’t matter. Is it too loud? I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize anyone was here.” She quickly swiped across her screen and clicked a couple of buttons. The music cut off.

“No, it’s fine. I was just heading out anyway.”

She smiled and nodded, relief etching itself in her brow. Relief that he was leaving? That she hadn’t bothered him? It was too late for that last one. “Have a great evening.”

He took half a step to the door, hesitating. Why not just ask her about the breakup? Sure, it would be a little weird, but at least then he’d know. In medicine, a direct approach was best. You didn’t want to be unkind, but you also had to be sure to deliver all the facts exactly. He could be direct here. He could walk out those doors in ten minutes, finally having an answer to the question he’d had hanging over his head for years.

“Could I—”

The bell jingled and the phone started ringing at the same time. Natalie waved at the Clarkes as they stepped into the entry, and, offering Cade an apologetic smile, she picked up the phone.

His own phone vibrated.

Brooke: Almost here? Mom won’t let anyone eat without you.

Cade stared at his screen, debating. He shot off a quick text about being a few minutes away. Then he tapped the phone against his leg, watching Natalie as she sat down and pulled something up on her computer, the phone still held to her ear. The Clarkes smiled at him from beside the wall of historical photos that had caught his eye the night before. They seemed to be waiting to speak to Natalie as well.

Accepting that he’d missed his chance, Cade waved at the group collectively, and stepped out into the cold.

Chapter 4

Natalie

Twodays.

Natalie had survived two days of Cade staying at the bed and breakfast and managed to avoid him for most of that time. Since the evening before, when he’d caught her listening to thePride and Prejudicesoundtrack, she’d only had brief glances of him as he’d come in and out of the inn. Now, Natalie was torn between counting down the hours until he checked out in the morning, and hoping he stayed a bit longer.

That was weird, right?

She glanced out the window at the falling snow. It was hard to keep the man from her thoughts when he was always the last one to return to the inn at night. She felt like she had to stay up until he was back. April kept telling her to hire another person to work the evening shift, but until the bed and breakfast got a bit more popular, it just wasn’t worth it. Paying Jason to cook already stretched her thin.

Plus, it was after ten, so the door was locked, which was another reason to wait and make sure the guests all got in safely. She always stayed up. Well, almost always. It wasn’t just Cade.

Honestly, it wasn’t. There’d been that one time…

The bell above the front door jingled, and Natalie froze in the darkened kitchen. Her ears strained to hear the sound of Cade walking up the steps, but none came. A full minute passed, and still nothing. Natalie began to wonder if it’d been Cade at all. Maybe one of the guests had left for some reason? If so, she should double-check that the lock had reset.

She forced her feet into the doorway, eyes adjusting to the light.

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