Page 25 of Love in the Details

Dustin grinned and glanced at her for a second before turning back to the road. They’d made it to the bottom of the hill, and he had to inch out enough to see past the small curve that blocked his sight to the right.

“I think it was you telling me off. I figured if you were tough enough to do that, you’d be tough enough to handle whatever was thrown at you. And believe me, returning these ornaments is just the beginning. I’m sure my grandmother will have plenty of ideas when she’s done with all of her errands.”

He could see Kassidy gulp out of the corner of his eye and tried to hide his smile this time.

“Are you sure she lives at the mansion?” Kassidy asked, her lips slightly turned up. “Because today was the first time I’ve seen her near the place, and she was leaving in an SUV.”

“The woman is eighty-five and has the energy to rival me sometimes. She still nags like I’m a little kid, though.” Dustin shook his head, thinking of all the times she’d dropped hints about wanting great-grandchildren and how he needed to find someone to settle down with. At least she hadn’t been around much to do that since he’d arrived.

The more he thought about that, he wondered why she’d even invited him home if she wasn’t going to be there much.

“When you drive like that, I can understand why,” Kassidy said, laughing.

“I pictured you as the carefree type, up for anything,” Dustin said before he could stop himself.

That frown line appeared just above her eyebrows again, and he knew he’d hit a sore spot.

“I know when to play around and when to get serious.” She paused, staring out the window like she would see something she needed. “I just feel like I should have things all figured out by now, you know? Like I had all these plans after high school, and I’ve accomplished some of them, but I just don’t know which direction to go.”

“Sometimes I wish I had that problem. It would be nice to have a few days here and there with no schedule and to be able to do what I want to do.”

“Why not? You’re the boss. Can’t you arrange your schedule how you want it?” Kassidy said it so simply, like it was just that easy. But from the evidence of his call with Stockton today, he knew it wasn’t going to be that easy. Maybe down the road a ways when he’d broken his employees and himself of the habit of taking over and fixing things on his own.

But right now? The thought of it gave him a headache.

When he didn’t respond, still lost in his thoughts of rearranging things, Kassidy asked, “What is it you want to do?”

“I want to ski and surf and be a bum for a little bit.” The words were something he’d never consciously thought about, but life right now consisted of spreadsheets and meetings. Doing anything outside would be more exciting than that. Even just the time he’d gone sledding with Kassidy’s family had rejuvenated him.

“If only you could do all those in Coldwater Creek,” she said thoughtfully. “The ski resort is about twenty minutes north and already open for the season.”

“Coldwater Creek has a ski resort?” he asked, surprised by that bit of news. It had always been too small to warrant spending the money, but then again, there had been a lot of new growth in the area since he’d been gone.

“Just go to the turnoff right before Alpine, and you’re on your way.”

He nodded, maneuvering into town. “Good to know. Where do you need to go?” He gestured to the boxes lying in his backseat.

People walked across the crosswalk, delaying his forward progress.

“To the Christmas shop, over on First East.” She leaned her elbow on the console and pointed across him to the shop decked out in all the festivities of the season. When she slid back into her seat, he could smell the vanilla scent he remembered from when he’d caught her on their tumble down the sledding hill.

Walking into the room, the smell of cinnamon pinecones hit him, just like how his mother loved to decorate things when he was younger. The memory made it hard to breathe, and he pretended to be checking out another aisle as Kassidy talked to the attendant behind the counter.No need to let her or anyone see him tear up when he could do nothing but let the memory wash over him.

A few minutes later, she came back and joined him. He’d found his way to the section with ornaments of varieties from gaudy to classic all along the aisle.

“This place is huge,” he said, glancing around the rest of the store. “I didn’t realize we basically had a Christmas emporium here.”

She laughed and picked up a small ornament. The chime of the bell at the end had a high, tinny sound.

“That’s cool,” he said, stepping next to her and lifting it from her hands.

The warmth in her fingers moved through him again, and he had to remind himself that touching her, even lightly, needed to be off-limits. He was out shopping with her already, which he never would have dreamed of doing. He didn’t need to get his hopes up that he could actually be in a successful relationship when all the others had bombed.

Kassidy nodded. “I love bells. I’ve always loved the group that carols around playing bells in the white snow. It’s like the perfect symbol of Christmas.”

“Why choose ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas,’ then? Why not do something like ‘Jingle Bells’?” He studied her face, seeing the emotions of irritation and surprise wash over her.

“Because ‘Jingle Bells’ isn’t all fancy-schmancy, and that’s what I need to do to impress your grandmother. And all the other important people you said were coming to the gala.” She turned to him, her eyes pleading for some kind of answer.

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