A Christmas Affair: A Seaside Cove Romance (Seaside Cove Romance Series Book 1) (5 page)

You can do this Molly. Just smile and nod. And do whatever Bridget tells you to do. You aren't talking to the entire town, just to Bridget. One on one.

"Molly, are you ready?" Bridget asked. A stage hand clipped a tiny microphone to Molly's white t-shirt as Bridget slowly surveyed her. "I'm surprised you aren't wearing the Mrs. Claus dress, or at least something a little more... festive."

Molly did a double take at Bridget's impressive black dress suit, then she adjusted the bottom of her jeans around her boots. She had not had time to get back to her apartment since the meeting, and she was wearing the same outfit she quickly threw on that morning. The Mrs. Claus costume had been handed over to her shortly after the afternoon meeting, and when she opened the box she smelled the strange odor coming off of the old clothes. Molly realized she had not been thinking clearly when she volunteered to be Mrs. Claus. "No, I think I want to get it dry cleaned first. It smells a little like storage."

And I want to burn it.
Not only was the smell atrocious, but Molly just swam in it when she tried it on earlier. She was already considering buying a whole new costume altogether. Sure she could stuff the clothes with padding and fill the dress out in the hips and, well-everywhere else- but why not start from scratch? New Mrs. Claus, new dress. She decided she would confide this in Bridget after the interview, maybe she could help her find a new costume.

Of course, only if the council would fund it. Molly did not want to put her own money into the dress if she was only going to volunteer this year.

She crossed her fingers that this news segment would find a Santa volunteer that she got along with. Her thoughts turned to Jack. There had been a fleeting moment in the hallway where she almost asked him if he would volunteer. She felt like she wanted to spend more time with him, get inside of his mind. Finally apologize. But then he grabbed her. With his body pressed against her, every chaste Christmas thought fell from her thoughts. All she could think was how much she wanted him.

"How's Jeremy?" Bridget asked. Molly could feel her checks redden. Of course Jeremy was brought up every time her mind strayed to Jack. She did not know what was wrong with her, she had not thought about Jack like this since high school. Though, if she was honest with herself, she had been thinking about Jack a lot more since he moved in across the street two years ago.

"Jeremy is great. He's really busy," Molly said, trying to mask the sound of sadness from her voice. She missed the way things used to be between Jeremy and herself.

"Does he get to come visit often?"

"No, but we talk every day, and video chat a few times a week."

"Oh? And what happens during these video chats?" Bridget asked winking as she straightened her pencil skirt. They were sitting around a small coffee table where Bridget did her On the Local interviews.

"I'd think you could imagine what a couple does over video chat when they haven't been together in a while." Molly surprised herself with her own brazenness. She took a sip of the coffee from the Channel 8 mug in front of her and attempted to change the subject. "Oh wow, they give you guys the good stuff."

"How long has it been since you guys were
together
?" Bridget drew the word together out much longer than she needed to and lowered her voice. Molly realized that Bridget was trying to pretend like what they said was just between them, but Molly did not forget they were both wearing microphones. Molly pretended to not hear her, and nervously straightened her jean cuffs again.

"When do we start?" Molly asked, and as if those were the magic words a man began to shout.

"Bridget! We're on in three," he did a visual countdown at the same time and mouthed two, one.

"Welcome back and thank you for joining us this evening. We'd like to welcome our guest, Molly Smith of Seaside Gifts from the Shore. Molly serves as secretary on the Dickens Council, where I, of course, hold the VP seat," Bridget spoke clearly towards the camera, and Molly wished for a fraction of her confidence. "Thank you so much for being here today Molly."

"Uh, yes," Molly stammered as the room started to spin.
Just me and Bridget.

"Please, tell the audience at home why you are here today."

"Right, um," Molly's mouth felt like sandpaper and she took a sip of the coffee.
Just get it over with.
"We need a new Santa Claus."

Bridget stared at Molly as though she was waiting for her to say more. Molly sat blankly across from her. "Yes, do you care to elaborate?" Bridget smiled and Molly returned the grin. Molly's palms were so sweaty she feared she would drop the coffee, so she slowly placed it back on the table.
Deep breath.

"Our old Santa and Mrs. Claus had to move suddenly. The Boughmans, and so I volunteered to be Mrs. Claus for Santa's Workshop at the Dickens Village. We still need a Santa. If someone could volunteer, that would be great," Molly spoke so fast her words blurred together into one long word. She got to the of her sentence and slammed her mouth shut, staring into the camera.

"Right," Bridget said after a moment's pause, but never dropped her smile. "Thank you Mol-"

"Oh!" Molly clapped her hands together. "I almost forgot, if you are a couple and want to do Santa and Mrs. Claus together, that's fine too." She smiled what she hoped was a dazzling expression like Bridget's. But when Molly played the news report back that evening, she would see that she looked more like a deranged woman and less like the glamorous newscaster. "What I mean is, if you really want to be Mrs. Claus, I'll let you."

"Thank you Molly." Bridget put her hand on Molly's knee and patted it. Molly slumped back in her chair. Her part was over. She let out a huge sigh of relief.

"You're still on the camera Molly," a voice said in her ear, and she flinched as she remembered the sound manager placed the ear piece in right before she sat down. "Molly, personal choice here, but you are still on camera and you are pretty much laying down in your chair."

Molly flung herself to a straight seated position, as her leg reached out and kicked the bottom of the coffee table. Coffee sloshed over the edges of both mugs, but ever the professional, Bridget did not even look at Molly but kept speaking into the camera. "Volunteer hours, location, and phone number to call if interested are on the bottom of your screen. Remember, whoever volunteers will get to spend many
many
hours over the next month with this beautiful woman right here."

Molly raised her hand in a little wave. The old fashioned corded phone in front of them began to ring, and Molly felt an edge of excitement. Who would volunteer? Would it be someone who loved Christmas as much as she did? She hoped it was someone she got along with already, that would be great.

"Yes caller, you are on the air with Bridget and Molly here on On the Local." Bridget lifted the phone and laid it down on the table. The caller's voice filtered in through the ear piece, and Molly assumed what she heard was what the people at home heard too.

"Molly? Molly dear, this is Annette Gunderson," an elderly woman said. She was one of Molly's regulars, always coming in to purchase gifts to send to her family.

"Yes Annette, this is Molly," Molly answered. She felt a little confused, why was this woman calling her while she was on the show?

"Molly, where are the Boughmans going?" Annette asked, and Molly's jaw went a little slack. It was not really her place to announce on television that Mrs. Boughman was sick. Maybe not everyone knew already. "Are they moving in with their son? You know, he lives in Florida, and he is a doctor. If only he had not moved away, Molly, he would be such a catch for you-"

"Thank you Mrs. Gunderson," Bridget interrupted to Molly's complete relief. Molly knew she loved drama and excitement, but Bridget also was of the opinion that she was a serious journalist. "Mrs. Gunderson, if I could just have you call the Boughmans. Do you have their number dear?"

"No I don't. I put everything in this cell phone, and then my terrier drug it out to the lake and dumped it in!"

"Okay, please hold Mrs. Gunderson, and I will transfer you to their house then," Bridget said in a patient voice. Molly felt her face reddening. If people had not been paying attention to the report before, they were bound to be paying attention now.

The phone was ringing again already, and Molly noticed two red lights this time. "Two calls?"

"Yep," Bridget smiled widely again and answered. But one was the post office clerk reminding people of their new hours of operation, and the other was a prank call. "Well, yes, we have retrieved the running refrigerator."

Molly had to hand it to Bridget. It must be difficult having huge dreams in a town this tiny.

The phone was silent for a moment, then lit up again. Molly cringed, hoping it would actually be a volunteer this time.

"Mols! I've been calling you for like a half hour, we are out of soap in the bathroom," Rachel's voice flooded into the ear piece. Bridget hung up immediately.

"Down below is the number to Molly's shop if you'd like to call and volunteer. Remember, all profits from Santa’s Workshop go to local charities." Bridget changed her expression to a somber one as she talked about a few of the charities, then pleaded one more time for a Santa volunteer. Molly sat with a smile plastered on her face, looking deadpan into the camera. 

"And we're at commercial!" The man at the back of the room yelled.

Jack turned the television off as the camera panned away from Molly and Bridget. He turned back to the permit paperwork, pen in hand. His friend on city council told him they would rush the paperwork as long as he had it in first thing Monday morning. Because of that, he was ignoring his customers. Luckily, his only customers at the moment were Brian, Rachel, and Eli.

"Well, if sympathy doesn't get her a Mr. Claus," Brian fidgeted with his collar. "I don't know what will."

"Be nice," Rachel said swatting Brian's arm.

"No, it's not that, it's just wow," Brian trailed. Jack did his best to pretend like he did not care about Molly's doomed news interview.

"I know what you mean," Eli piped in as he walked around the bar. Jack moved down a few feet as Eli helped himself to the tap. "I felt awkward like it was me up there."

"She didn’t do
that
bad, and besides," Rachel said tapping her finger on the form in front of Jack. "She's hot, and I think a lot of guys will be calling to work with her."

"Aren't you working right now?" Jack sensed Rachel was trying to get under his skin about Molly. Rachel shrugged.

"I can see the front door, no one's over there right now," she took a sip of hot cider. It was Black Friday, and the slowest day of the year for Main Street. Rachel tugged gently at a lock of Jack's hair. "So why don't you volunteer to be Santa Claus Jack? You'd be great at it."

Jack shook his head, refusing to answer the woman. He had never told Rachel he still carried a torch for Molly, but damn if that woman did not figure it out on her own and bring Molly up constantly. Jack was not even on Molly's radar.

"I don't like kids," Jack lied. He had nephews and nieces he was great with. "And besides, I don't think Molly and I could survive the holidays season together. She'd probably try and dye my hair red and green to match the decorations."

"Okay, sure," Rachel said as she grabbed her coat off the hook.
Go back to work, please.

"I'll walk you over," Brian said, and Eli rolled his eyes to Jack. They both wanted to step in and throttle Brian for what he was doing to these two women, but neither one of them wanted to get involved in other people's love affairs.

After they left, a few men came in for a pint.
Must be a reward for a long morning of Black Friday shopping with the family.
Jack slipped a paper clip over the top of the paperwork and placed it under the counter. As he filled orders of fried foods and drinks, he allowed his mind to drift to Molly and her interview this evening.

She had not acted like herself at all. The girl who commanded the attention in a Dickens Council meeting with the flick of her wrist. She had been on the student body council too, and he remembered she was so confident even addressing the entire school. The woman he had seen the past few days was changed from the girl he knew back then. She was so embarrassed on screen, so unsure of herself. What happened to his Molly?

It bothered Jack more than he realized something like this could affect him. The woman he had barely spoken to in ten years was all that he could keep on his mind. He wanted to know what had changed her.

When she was with Jack in the hallway, she had seemed confident. She had the answers, and she knew she did. And when he went to kiss her, she was not afraid to turn away. Why did she seem so unsure last night outside, and today on the news?

As much as he had told himself earlier in the hallway he needed to stay away from Molly, all he wanted to do right now was to see her. He looked out the window and across the street to Molly's shop. She should be back on shift by now.

Jack quickly walked around to his few customers and filled any orders. He returned to the counter and grabbed the key from the cash register. "Everyone got enough food and drink for ten minutes?" he asked the room. He got a few nods, a few "ayes" and decided that was good enough. Jack grabbed his thick black winter coat off the hook and walked across the street to Molly's shop.

A bell chimed as he opened the door, and immediately his senses were assaulted by the smells of Christmas and the sounds of a children's choir blasting through the ceiling speakers. He started to back track out the front door and away from the holiday overload, but then he caught a glimpse of her.

Molly wore tight dark yoga pants that sat low on her hips and a holly red t-shirt that hugged her frame. Jack forced his breathing under control, wondering where all the air in the room went as he watched Molly. She stood on her tiptoes on a small white stool, reaching towards the top of the huge Christmas tree.

"I'll be right with you if you need any help." She spoke without looking around. As she stretched to place a star on top of the tree, her shirt lifted and Jack could see her beautiful creamy skin just above her perky butt. Jack imagined how smooth that skin would feel under his calloused hands.

"I don't need help." As the words left his mouth Molly looked around in surprise and lost her balance. Jack closed the distance between them just as the stool tipped and Molly fell into his arms. She was facing away from him- he had caught her with one arm around her waist, and the other just below her breasts. He cleared his throat. "Like I was saying, I don't need help. But- it looks like you might."

Jack felt as the tension in Molly's body released, and she leaned back into him. She seemed to breathe in his scent, and finally relax her head back against his chest. Jack could not move, though he willed himself to let go of her. Jack bent his head slightly so his mouth was almost against her bare neck breathing out once, and closed his eyes to stop from nibbling on her skin. As he held her in this close of intimacy and began to fantasize about kissing her, he felt his pants tighten again as they had this afternoon. Only this time, Molly did not push away.

Leave her alone.
Jack released his hold on her and stepped back from her a foot, careful to make sure she was steady before he let go of her.

"I didn't need you to catch me." She turned around to face Jack, wrapping her arms around herself.

"You were going to hit the floor."

"If you hadn't surprised me, I wouldn't have tipped the damn stool over." He watched as any tension she had released before crept back into Molly's shoulders.

"Sure," he nodded. All the words that he had planned on saying during his short walk over were gone. She walked over to her desk at the center of the room and turned the music down.

"Thank you." Jack felt hot from the moment that had passed, and unzipped his coat to allow air in. "I don't know how much more of that sound I could have taken."

She squinted at him, and he realized he should have known better than to insult her precious Christmas music. "What are you even doing here?"

"I saw you on the news earlier."
That's right.
He remembered why he was there now. That was why he was there, because of how odd she was on the news. "It was quite... riveting stuff really."

She laid her head into her hands on her desk and moaned. "Everyone saw. Everyone keeps calling."

"Oh, you got your Santa? That's great." Jack felt a stab of jealously thinking about another man getting to spend so much time with her. But that was ridiculous, she already had a boyfriend who she spent time with. What right did Jack have to be jealous?

"No." She shook her head and stepped out from behind the desk. "I didn't say I got any volunteers. Everyone just kept calling because they thought it was so funny. My mom said she brought out her VCR so she could keep the memory forever."

Jack laughed. "Well, I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You seemed a little, I don't know, off."

"Oh, thanks," Molly said sarcastically.

"No, I don't mean anything by it," Jack raised his hands in surrender as Molly came out from behind the counter. "You just are different now, I guess, than you were in high school."

"High school was ten years ago," she said furrowing her brows. "A lot has changed since then."

"I know," Jack said feeling his heart quicken. Why did he even bring it up? He did not want to think about high school. "You're just... You used to talk in front of the entire school."

"What?"

Jack ran his hands through his hair. "At assemblies. You used to stand there and talk to the entire school, and today I saw you on the news, and you seemed so... shy. And unsure of yourself."

"That’s the news," Molly laughed. "Live television in front of all kinds of people! I think anyone would be nervous."

"There is just something different about you," Jack said narrowing his eyes to look at Molly. She broke eye contact with him. He hated when she looked away from him.

"People grow up, they change. They aren't the same anything goes teenagers they once were," Molly said walking away from him. "I am insecure just like every other woman in America. What if we don't get a Santa? The Dickens Village will be ruined."

"It won't be ruined." Jack had to bite back a laugh. Molly was being dramatic.

"Maybe not, but Santa's Workshop would be, and that is what gets the children so excited," Molly said with passion sneaking into her voice, and just as quickly leaving. "What if no one wants to volunteer just because they don't want to be stuck with me that much?"

"If no one volunteers, I guarantee it isn't because of you," Jack said grabbing Molly's hand. She looked down in surprise, but she did not pull away. "You are wonderful; anyone would be lucky to spend that much time with you."

"Then why didn't anyone volunteer yet?" she asked, her voice cracking.

"Maybe they just don't like Christmas." Jack shrugged. Molly pulled her hand away.

"You are the only person I know who doesn't like Christmas!" she insisted.

"Not true, loads of people don't like Christmas," Jack said.

"Why don't you like Christmas?" she asked.

"I never said I didn't like Christmas," Jack said smiling wryly.

"If you don't hate Christmas, why do you fight the Dickens council so much?" Molly placed her hands on her hips and began to tap her toe. She was beautiful when she tried to act like she was angry.

“Christmas is supposed to be this holiday about family, but instead things like Dickens Village turn it into a commercialized money making market." Jack splayed his hands. "It's not bad enough all your major stores try to scam families for all they're worth over the holidays, but now we've taken it to make money off of spending time together."

Molly's mouth dropped open. "Bullshit."

"What?" he asked.

"Bullshit! There are families connected directly to the small shops here on Main Street, and without Dickens Village, they'd go broke, starve, and god knows what else over the holidays. Do you not remember how hard it was for families here when tourist season closed before we started Dickens?"

"Molly, you've never had a hard day in your life. You went straight from your mom and dad's fancy house to owning your own business. You didn't have to work for it as much like most of the other business owners have." Jack wondered where the conversation went wrong. He had not come over here to fight with Molly.

"That’s where you are wrong Millings! We struggled my whole life until I was fourteen. Then my father’s Aunt died and left him the money she had squirreled away her entire life." Molly pulled her hair back into a ponytail, and Jack could practically see the steam coming off her skin from anger. "That is where my family money comes from, and my parents used it all up just in time for me to start college. I've worked for everything I have Jack."

"Are you serious?" Jack felt confused. Molly had never mentioned this to him when they were in school, and none of the other kids ever said anything either. “You never said anything.”

"As soon as I became one of the wealthy kids in town, I pushed that past life behind me, and worked hard to pretend like it had never existed. By the end of freshmen year, most of the other kids did too. It wasn't until you came along, boy from the other side of the tracks, from my old side of the tracks, that I remembered who I was." Molly was breathing hard, and took a step towards Jack. "I've been many people in my lifetime, and now I am Molly Smith, adult, Christmas lover, and small business owner. I'm sorry if I cannot stay confident and brilliant twenty-four seven for you."

Jack realized even though they were fighting, this was the first real conversation he had with Molly in ten years. Though he was still reeling from the truth she had just filled the room with like a flood, he could not help but feel a pull to her stronger than ever. He knew it was bad news for Molly if he fell for her again, but he could not help it. He was afraid he was already there. 

"I never knew." Jack reached out to grab a strand of hair that had not made it into Molly's ponytail and pushed it behind her ear. His hand dropped to the base of her neck, and Molly did not move to push it away.

A buzzer sounded from the back room and Jack was jolted back to reality as he dropped his hand to his side.

"It's one of my crafters with a delivery," Molly said, backing slowly away without taking her eyes off Jack. "A few of them are coming by this evening. Don't go anywhere, okay?"