Page 22 of Maybe This Christmas
He groaned.“I would rather get a prostate exam in front of the whole town than continue this conversation.”
Brandon laughed, but Sabrina had a look he liked to refer to as the Lainey—after their mother.Like she was about to start on some self-serving monologue where she reminded him that it washeridea that he work here, so he headed toward the door.
“Not a mambo or cha-cha will be seen.It’s just dinner.”
* * * *
It was just dinner.
Emma stood in front of the mirror, looking at herself for what must’ve been the tenth time in the last two minutes.
Dinner with a man after you ended your engagement just yesterday!
She shook off the voice.To be fair, she’d dumped him.Sure, she should be sadder that he’d left her here all alone.He hadn’t gotten in touch since he’d left, either.Not that it would change anything.
But that was the least of the problems she’d face once this vacation was over.
All the more reason to have fun, before the new year and all those responsibilities settled on her.She thought about calling Aniyah for her thoughts.But she already knew them.
“Only way to get over one man is to get under another!”She did her best impression of her sister’s voice, then started laughing.
Not that that’s what this was.No.Caleb Ellis was a nice man who’d taken pity on her single self.
A tall, broad, curly-haired man with impressive shoulders, hands…
“Rein it back, Emma.He was being hospitable.After all, this is a hotel.”She blinked at herself in the mirror.
She reached for her coat—she’d packed three—a pale pink pea coat that complemented the dress she wore.Dark green, long-sleeved and dotted with teeny-tiny pink reindeer.
Whimsical enough to fly under the radar at dinner with Davis.He liked her whimsy locked up tight—like in her closet office back at his condo.
She finished buttoning her jacket then slipped on a cashmere beret.She shoved her hands into matching gloves and made her way out of her cabin.
The door locked automatically behind her.She took a moment to gaze around her.This place was beyond magical.Snowflakes fell lazily in front of Christmas lights and wind blew through the trees, making the lights dance.
She felt a flutter of something new in the bottom of her belly.Whether she liked it or not, her life was different now.
It was time to embrace it.
Chapter Eight
Brandon and Sabrina had somehow found time to decorate the private dining room before they’d left.Usually serving up to twenty guests, they’d pushed several tables out of the room, dimmed the lights, and lit the table up with flameless candles and a holiday floral display.Along the back wall was one of those built-in gas fireplaces.It wasn’t Caleb’s taste, usually, but they’d installed a faux stone wall around it.
A far cry from the main dining room, crowded with guests sharing a holiday meal.
To complete the romantic atmosphere, instrumental holiday music flowed through speakers hidden in the ceiling.It’d be a beautiful place to have dinner.
With a girlfriend or a wife.Not a woman he’d mettwo days ago.
He’d texted Sabrina a choice string of words but given that they were making their way down the mountain, they all bounced back with that red exclamation point, claiming they were undeliverable.
Just his luck.God, what had he been thinking, inviting Emma in the first place?She’d just ended her relationship.He’d just started his job here.It was an all-around idiotic idea.
He gazed around the room.Emma really was going to think this was a date.He thought about de-Christmas-ing the room, but it wasn’t like he had the time.He closed the door behind him and walked to the bathroom across the hall for what felt like the tenth time since he’d left his cabin.
The nicest clothes he had were his lodge uniform.In a size that fit, finally.
On his way out of the bathroom, he bumped into someone.He caught sight of the dining room uniform—dark blue trousers and a dark green and blue plaid flannel.It was one of the waiters.They’d hired on a lot of college kids home for the season as temporary workers.
