Naughty and Nice Page 4

  “Only because I can’t think of a good excuse to get out of it at the moment.” He made me laugh.

  They seemed to know him inside as we were immediately led to a booth in the back corner and a waitress brought a tray with two glasses of wine without being asked.

  I stole a good look at him as she laid menus before us. This was the first I’d seen the man behind the costume up close. My heart was beating harder which goes to tell you what I thought of him. He was unbelievably handsome; the kind of man a girl pictures when she’s reading a romance novel. His hair was slightly wavy and sandy blonde in color. The brown eyes were in full evidence now and I realized while his Santa belly had been padded, his broad shoulders had not. He was lightly tanned which suggested he didn’t spend all his time in the Windy City. He smiled at the waitress and greeted her by name, allowing me a quick flash of perfect white teeth. I sort of went into shock at that point, although I seem to remember him ordering for us.

  “I hope you don’t mind. They’ve got the best rib-eyes in the city.”

  I smiled and quickly shook my head, trying to avoid speaking until my saliva was no longer in danger of choking me. My knees had already melted five minutes earlier. I was positively smitten, but he was so out of my league. Sure, there were a lot of boys who’d made passes at me, and a few I’d even dated through school. But I was a tiny little redhead and certainly someone who looked like this guy belonged with a tall, leggy blonde in a slinky little black dress with spiked heels.

  “So, what do you think?”

  I was about to tell him that he looked like a Greek God, but stopped myself in time to realize that probably wasn’t what he was after. “About?” I covered my tracks quickly and waited.

  “The community center—did you have a good time?”

  “Seriously? You have no idea how great that felt. It was just what the doctor ordered.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Sorry?”

  “Well, if you don’t mind me being a little forward, I can’t help but notice that you don’t belong in a temp agency and a couple of things you’ve said, lead me to believe that you fallen on some bad luck.”

  Bad luck? How did you know? Was it that obvious? “Yes, I’ll admit that recently something happened that turned my life upside down. We don’t need to get into it, since there’s nothing that can be done about it.”

  “But you are looking for a job?”

  I nodded. “Fair enough. I finished college not long ago and was supposed to work in the family business. That sort of went up in flames, literally.”

  The waitress brought more wine and a basket of bread, giving me enough time to gather my thoughts. I tended to be a very positive-minded gal, and felt that negativity just attracted more negativity.

  “You were saying?” he continued after the waitress left. “I take it your family business is no longer a good option?”

  “I… well… my family owned a little bakery, not far from here. They were getting ready to retire and we all figured I would take over for them. I got my degree in business and had started back working there, like I have most of my life. One night very recently, the building caught fire and burned to the ground.” Was it my imagination or did his mouth almost twitch when I told him that? Did he think it was funny? Surely not.

  “Shit! I’m sorry to hear that.”

  I shrugged. Things happen sometimes, it’s just up to me to decide whether I’m going to sit around and whine or move on to whatever the fates have intended for me.”

  “That’s a pretty optimistic way of looking at things.”

  “That’s me, Miss Optimistic. Anyway, my parents, unfortunately, hadn’t kept up the insurance policy so now they’ve left for Florida and retirement and I’m packing up the house and looking for a job. That’s what led me to be at the temp agency.”

  “I see.” There was something unusual in the way he said that. The look in his eyes had gone deep; inward was the best way to describe it. It almost felt as if he knew something about me that I hadn’t told him yet. I shook off the weird feeling and changed the subject.

  “How about you? You don’t look like the sort of guy who volunteers to play Santa in community centers. What do you do during your grown-up time?”

  He smiled. “You noticed, did you? Okay, fair is fair. I have one brother, Corey is his name. When we were kids, my parents were having a lot of trouble and we took the brunt of it. I don’t mean to sound like a sob story but there were Christmases when the folks were fighting, or my dad had gotten drunk and knocked Mom around. Needless to say, it wasn’t very Christmassy around the house. There was a church down the street on the corner. Rev. Clay was the minister.” Chris shook his head in kind disbelief. “He was from another era, that guy. He wore this huge, wool topcoat that flapped everywhere, as though he’d once been maybe a hundred pounds heavier. He ran a youth group in the basement of the church on the weekends. It kept you off the streets, if you know what I mean.

  “For Corey and me, it was someplace to go when things got rough at home. That’s where we went during those lousy Christmases. He’d never married, and was taking care of his mother. She lived with him until she died. So, he didn’t have any family himself. When Corey and I would show up at his door, he never asked why. He just let us in and I remember the smell of cinnamon rolls baking in his kitchen. They were his mom’s secret recipe, he told us. We’d sit in his kitchen, drinking milk and eating cinnamon rolls until we were ready to bust. When he figured enough time had passed, he’d put on that flappy old coat and walk us home, making sure to speak to at least one of my parents before he left us with them. Generally, by that point, Dad had gotten soused and was passed out in his chair while Mom was crying quietly, huddled in her robe, trying to keep from waking him. Corey and I would go in and go to bed and the next day it wouldn’t be Christmas anymore and things were back to normal. So, to answer your question, I volunteer because somebody got me through the same things those kids have in their own homes. That’s why I don’t ever want to marry,” he concluded surprisingly. “It’s not fair to do that to children.”

  I was speechless. I could barely breathe. I think I fell in love with Christopher Tollier somewhere in the middle of that confession. I couldn’t keep myself from it, but I reached my hand across the table and patted the back of his. I didn’t say anything. I didn’t have to.

  The waitress timed it perfectly and I was faced with a platter filled with steak, a baked potato with all the trimmings and a mound of fresh, steamy vegetables. It was simple, it was elegant, and it was delicious. But it didn’t come close to the overwhelming satisfaction I felt sitting across the table from Chris. My next emotion was fear; fear because after we finished our steaks, I knew I’d never see him again. It felt as though I was losing everything all over again. Only this time, it wasn’t mine to lose.

  Chapter 6

  Christopher

  I listened to the words tumble from my mouth, unable to believe I was being so open with someone who was practically a stranger. Lillie. Somehow, it fit her perfectly, almost as if the definition of the word was sitting across the table from me. She was petite but completely all woman. Her hair was that unusual shade of umber, not carrot red and not brown, but somewhere in between. I imagined that women all over the world pleaded with their hairdressers to find that color. It reflected the light from the sconce on the wall. It framed her face with mystery and made her so desirable, I had to keep my napkin in my lap.

  Her eyes were like looking into a tropical forest. Calling them green was too simplistic. They changed from moment to moment, prisms of light reflecting back at me as I spoke. I almost found myself becoming poetic, just to see how her eyes would adapt. Enchanting was the only word I could think of.

  The businessman I was, my thoughts turned immediately to two things. The first was how could I keep that creature in my life, and the second was, once she learned who I was, how could I get her to stay? I knew I’d reacted as I put two and two to
gether; her name and bakery fire. I knew without a doubt there was no way I could hide it from her. She would find out, unless I dropped my pursuit of her parents’ property. It was too late to call off the dog that was Steve. He was on a scent that even if I didn’t buy the property, he would. I had inadvertently set the trap for my own dilemma.

  The more we talked, the more I opened up. Our dinner had long been cleared. The waitress continued to bring the wine and the air between us had become a precious thing—not to be wasted on the restaurant as a whole. Now I understood the reference to time in a bottle.

  She was that perfect blend of wit and wiles. I didn’t feel as though she were playing with me, exactly, but the sparkle in her eyes gave her away. She teased me into telling her things I wouldn’t have admitted to anyone, maybe not even to Corey. Then we touched on things that weren’t so wonderful to remember and her eyes became that deep green like bottle glass that had been tossed by the ocean for a hundred years.

  She told me things, too. I steered away from the family business, not because I wasn’t interested, but because I didn’t want to know. Not yet. I had to wait for the right time to tell her. I wanted to honestly tell her straight out, not to coach it in terms that may make it easier for her to hear. It wasn’t that I felt I’d had something to do with her family suffering, but that I had brought Steve into the picture. Steve was like trying to call off a contract once the Godfather had given an order. He had a network that included hundreds, if not more, people from every walk of life. He owned them. They owed him favors and he collected like a witch who carefully assembles her ingredients for a noxious brew.

  I looked at Lillie, imagining her tucked beneath me as I would isolate her from anything that made her sad and took the sparkle from her eyes. I wanted her to belong to me. Perhaps the fates had conspired to make her be exactly what I needed, at exactly that moment. Why am I being so selfish? She had needs, she had problems, but whether she realized it or not, now she had me.

  There was no question that I would not let her simply walk out that door and never see her again. She was smart, though. I couldn’t just offer her a job with my company. I knew intuitively she’d see that as charity, or maybe a romantic overture and that would be insulting. No there had to be a better way. As luck would have it, it was waiting for us right outside the door.

  I helped Lillie on with her coat, inhaling the scent of her shampoo as she fluffed her long curls out from under the collar. It was at once familiar and yet unique — as though it had been brewed particularly for me. We headed toward the door and when I pushed it open and allowed her to go out first, a maelstrom awaited us. I realized with a shock that it was late. I’d been enjoying myself so much that the hours had flown by and in that interim, a storm had come in over the lake. Chicago had the majesty of Lake Michigan at her doorstep, but also felt her fury. Tonight, it had come in the guise of a lake effect snow storm, something for which we were fabled.

  “Where did this come from?” she asked as though I was God and had ordered it. I sort of liked that feeling.

  “I hadn’t heard anything on the weather. I’m sorry for keeping you so late,” I lied. I wasn’t one bit sorry. “Let me walk you to your car.”

  Her shoes were hardly suitable for the snow that was approaching midcalf. The plows were already running, having scooped the depth of snow from the center of the streets and piled it against the curb. The wind that carried in the storm was presiding over the night, lifting her coat tail furiously. I began to become concerned that she might float away from me. How ridiculous.

  “Why don’t you wait inside? Give me your key and I’ll start your car and warm it up for you.”

  “You don’t have to do that. I’m probably more warmly dressed than you are.”

  “Really, but this is a guy’s job, so don’t argue,” I grinned. She nodded and handed over her keys, turning to trudge back inside.

  I went to my car first, grabbing my gloves and windshield brush from the trunk. Then, I put my collar up around my ears, leaneing into the furious wind as I tried to insert her key into the door. It must’ve sleeted before snowing because the lock was completely frozen over. I tapped at it with the scraper end of the brush, but it would take more than that. The scraper broke off at its corner and I looked at the keys in my hand, wondering if the car had an auto start. I knew it was a slim hope as the car was probably twenty-years-old. I walked around to the other side and tried the key again, but it only resulted in bending the it. Frustrated, I pulled my own key fob out and started my car’s engine. I went back inside the restaurant and found Lillie, sitting in the entryway, her boots slid off and her feet held over the top of a heating register.

  “This feels so good,” she said, grinning at me and if I could have, I would’ve picked her up right then and there and kissed her.

  “Got some bad news,” I told her, although to me it was wonderful news.

  “Oh?”

  “I’m afraid your car is out of commission. It must have sleeted before the snow started. Your car is frozen shut. I couldn’t get in to even start it, but even then, I don’t want you out driving in this.”

  She looked at me, an expression of half fear, half joy. I knew exactly what she was thinking, because I was feeling the same way. The hours we had just shared were magical and neither one of the neither one of us wanted them to end just yet.

  “Tell you what,” I told her. “My car is warming up now. I’m going out and pull it up to the door, so just come on out in a minute, will you?”

  “You think it will be okay to leave my car here until I can get someone to come over and de-ice it?”

  “You’re not to worry about that. I’ll take care of it.”

  Her mouth dropped open as though that were an option she’d never thought of. She nodded, and then began to pull her boots back on. I went outside and folded myself into the car, pulling it around so that the passenger door was at the bottom of the steps. I tapped the horn and then climbed out, just as the door opened and she came out. I offered my hand and she took it, although both of us knew it wasn’t entirely necessary. I helped her into the car and then went around to the other side and climbed in.

  “Fasten your seatbelt. I guess you’re going to find out what it feels like to drive in a car that fits you,” I teased her, referring to her earlier comment about our mismatch-sized cars.

  “You probably did this on purpose, didn’t you?”

  I chuckled and turned on the wipers. We pulled out onto the street and the roads were in horrible shape. I knew there was a layer of ice; I could feel it as I turned the corners.

  “Can you pull into a service station somewhere here?” she asked.

  “What for?”

  “Well, obviously I need to find a tow truck to go back and get my car out.”

  “I’ll take care of it, I told you.”

  “Then where are we going?” Her voice was tentative, and I wondered if she would be afraid.

  “To my place,” I said quietly and looked at her sidelong. Her eyes were enlarged, but she said nothing. “Is that okay?” I asked, hopeful.

  She nodded. That’s all it took.

  I kept an apartment in the city for occasions just like this when the weather was too bad to drive home. I had a place on the shore, north of the city. I bought it one day on an impulse, having just closed my twenty-fifth store. It was a celebration, a testimony to my own ego. The minute I moved in I knew I’d made a mistake. It was far too big for one person and made me feel all the lonelier. So, I kept an apartment down on the Mile, overlooking the lake. It was only four bedrooms, but was plenty large for just me. Sometimes Corey and his family would stay over, maybe after an evening of dinner and family time. Yes, there had been a time or two when I’d taken a lady friend home with me. But this was nothing like those nights. This was different; entirely different.

  The storm had drained the streets of traffic. It made us feel as though the entire city was constructed just for the two of us. Th
e lights seem to change just as we approached, the snow hushed the normal city sounds and people had drawn their drapes against the cold wind. We pulled into the parking garage of my building, wending our way to the upper level where an elevator took us directly to my floor. It was key coded to open only for me and when it did, I had to admit the view of the skyline was spectacular. Under its covering of snow, the Christmas lights looked like jewels against the virginal landscape. Lillie was visibly impressed, walking toward the bank of floor to ceiling windows with her mouth slightly open, like a child who has just discovered Wonderland.

  “It’s magical,” she said, confirming my inner thoughts.

  “Here, let me take your coat. You must be freezing.”

  “No, actually I warmed up nicely in your car.” She handed me her coat, regardless and I wished that I’d been on cue and gentlemanly enough to have pulled it from her shoulders. Despite the money and the connections I’d made over my life, I was still a backstreet kid at heart.

  “Let me get us a brandy,” I commented as I headed for the closet to put her things away. When I came back into the room, she was standing, her back to me, staring out the window. I came up behind her, swinging my arm around to present her with the snifter I brought for her.

  “Thank you,” she murmured and put the glass to her lips. I looked downward into the coppery swirls of her shining hair and couldn’t help myself a moment longer. I quickly set my own snifter down, took hers to join it, and turned her by the shoulders until she was facing me. I had to bend low to kiss her, but solved that by picking her up. Her eyes widened with surprise but after the first kiss, they burned with the same desire I was feeling.

  The need for words had abandoned us. I could tell she felt the same as I did so I kept her in my arms as I covered the distance to my bedroom. The door had been left only slightly ajar by the cleaning staff, so I pushed it open with my foot and laid her on the black satin comforter.

  She lay there, looking up at me with a question in her eyes. “It’s okay,” I whispered. “I’ll take care of you.”