Page 1 of Wishing for Christmas
CHAPTER ONE
CLARA
The urgent clack of high heels against a marble floor sent an echo throughout the corridor of the Darlington Hotel. Clara Jenkins glanced at her watch. It was already past five o’clock, and she now felt slightly ridiculous for having spent the entire day hiding in her office. She slowed her steps and drew in a breath. She couldn’t avoid this conversation any longer.
Clara rounded the corner into the lobby and let out a gasp. The Darlington was always warm, inviting, and full of elegance. Tonight, though, it was also perfectly decorated for Christmas. An eighteen-foot evergreen radiated with the bright glow of thousands of tiny white lights; the crystal chandeliers glimmered in the fading light of an early December evening; and fluffy garlands of wintery frost were draped across the length of the front desk.
Clara inhaled a deep breath of fresh pine and noticed the tension lift from her shoulders. The lobby felt both luxurious and delightfully cozy, like a beautiful fur coat. She hurried over to the tree, reaching out to touch one of the perfectly placed ornaments glittering with gold. Underneath it, packages wrapped in glossy red paper sat atop a plush ivory blanket of synthetic snow. A fire crackled, and the soft jingle of aholiday tune played overhead. Like a layer of freshly fallen snow glistening under the moonlight, tonight, the Darlington was sparkling.
Clara gave herself a mental pat on the back for hiring a professional decorator this year. It was exactly what she needed to impress Mr. Spencer at their meeting next week.
As the sales manager of the hotel, Clara brought in the accounts that kept the property thriving. Her top clients provided consistent guests and meetings, ensuring the Darlington remained the leading luxury hotel in the area. And keeping the place looking impressive, especially at Christmas, was a big part of that job.
Clara gazed at the glow of candlelight that sent a shimmer across the polished floors and let out a quiet sigh of delight.
With perfect timing, the opening notes of “Jingle Bells” sounded from her pocket.
As she checked her phone, she couldn’t help but smile at her background picture. A recent photo of Brent beamed back at her. With his soft brown eyes and deep dimples, just a picture of him gave her stomach a flutter of excitement, even after two months of dating. An Air Force flight suit adorned his tall, muscular frame as he posed in front of a military jet.
She noticed the incoming text was from him, and it felt like an early Christmas present.
Can’t wait for our date tomorrow night!
Clara immediately typed a response, her fingers flying with giddiness.
I’ll be there!
She added a heart emoji—then quickly deleted it. She didn’t want to get ahead of herself. Eight weeks of dating was certainlynot long enough to discussloveyet. Still, heart emojis were certainly flying around in her head as she thought about Brent.
She sent the message sans emoji and then typed another right afterward.
Have a good flight tonight!
Clara felt as if she was sparkling, just like the hotel, as she thought about Brent. What better time than Christmas to really get to know each other? It’s what she loved most about this time of year—the possibilities, especially for romance. AndthisChristmas was full of promise.
“Clara, do you have a minute to talk?” Her boss’s deep voice sliced through the moment.
She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to hide the obvious wince on her face. She forced herself to turn toward Matthew Edmunds, the general manager, with a smile. Here it was, the moment she’d been dreading all day.
“Sure.” The high-pitched discomfort in her voice was clear, and she hoped he didn’t notice. She walked toward him, her overwhelming desire to suddenly vanish hidden behind the professional square of her shoulders.
Matthew stood with his feet apart, chin raised, and arms folded across his chest. His striking good looks, combined with a hint of swagger, gave him a more distinguished look than most other thirty-five-year-old men.
“The decorator you hired sure did a great job.” He tossed a nod of approval at the tree. “I know I give you leeway over the lobby at Christmastime, but I’m curious to know why you didn’t decorate it this year like you normally do.”
Clara considered telling him the truth—that she had simply been too overwhelmed with her accounts this year to think about decorating. She’d been spending late hours in her office, poringover sales reports and budgets to uncover as much potential business for the hotel as possible, and she was on pace to finish out the year with record-breaking revenues. Still, with her sights set higher than the sales department, the last thing she needed was for Matthew to think she couldn’t manage her current responsibilities.
Besides, it wasn’t that shedidn’thave the time. She could have committed a couple of days to it like she always had in the past. Last year, she and the staff had done it themselves using the Darlington’s own decorations. The lounge sat in chaos for days, with the hotel’s expensive decor strewn all over the place, and Clara had to manage it all between her client visits. It was fun decorating with the staff, but it was complicated too. She supposed the honest answer was that she’d wanted it done quickly and easily this time. With this critical meeting looming, she wanted to get straight to the beautiful result—without all the hassle. Mission accomplished.
She shrugged. “It’s important it looks perfect this year. If I can impress Mr. Spencer during next week’s meeting and finally land that account in the new year, well . . .” She ran a finger down the newly decorated table and admired the shimmering garland. “Well, it couldn’t hurt.”
Matthew’s smile held a hint of intrigue. “It sounds like my sales manager has some big plans.”
Clara gave a nervous laugh in reply. “So, what was it you wanted to talk to me about?” She tried to sound casual as if she hadn’t given him a single thought all day when, really, it wasallshe had been able to think about. Ever since he had approached her that morning, wanting to discuss somethingrather important, she’d made painstaking efforts to avoid him. She braced herself now for what she knew was coming.
Clara liked him enough—as a boss. He was dependable and familiar after all the years they’d worked together. It was theirpersonal relationship that was messy. After nearly eight years of on-again, off-again dating, things between her and Matthew were never simple. The last time he’d wanted to discuss somethingrather important, it had been to break up with her. She’d been crushed, but had quietly agreed to a mature and professional working relationship. What choice did she have? She loved her job and couldn’t imagine working anywhere else.
She supposed that as another year had gone by, he was due foranotherchange of heart—an idea she had no intention of indulging this time. She smiled to herself as she thought again about Brent. No chance whatsoever.
