Blush Duo - Marriage Under the Mistletoe & The Christmas Inn (3 page)

“You didn’t answer my question,” he said, taking the coffee she slid across the table. “About anything you need doing around the place while I’m living with you.”

Evie felt the familiarity of his words down to her feet. She should have insisted he stay at her parents’ house instead of volunteering to keep him at Dunn Inn
. Keep him?
She meant
have him.
No, that wasn’t right, either.
I’m not having him. I’m not having anyone.

“I’ve got it covered. Besides, you’re on vacation, aren’t you?” she asked as she placed the food on the table and shifted her thoughts from his fabulous abdominals to a more neutral topic.

“I guess,” he replied, and placed toast on a plate. When she remained silent he looked up. “I’d like to earn my keep, though.”

“You’re a guest,” she said quietly.

“And family,” he said, and bit into a piece of toast. “We’ll be in-laws soon enough.”

Evie met his blue eyes head-on.

“So, family does stuff for one another, right?”

Ever cautious, Evie narrowed her gaze. “What did you have in mind?”

“You tell me,” he said easily. “It’s a big house—I imagine there are always things that need doing.”

I need doing
came to mind and color immediately rose over her cheeks. She wanted Sensible Evie to come back. She needed her to come back before she made a complete fool of herself. But Sensible Evie had deserted her. In her place was I Haven’t Had Sex In Ten Years Evie, and she was suddenly a strong, undeniable force.

“I’ll let you know,” she said. “But like I said, I’ve got it covered.”

“You don’t like taking help from people?”

Evie sucked in a breath. “Sure I do,” she said, lying through her teeth. “But I’m well practiced at doing what needs to be done through both habit and necessity.”

“So I’m not stepping on anyone’s toes by being here?” he asked, watching her with such burning scrutiny she had to turn her eyes away.

Evie knew what the question meant, knew he’d probably wondered if she had a man in her life. “No. There’s just me and my son.”

“Hard to believe,” he said quietly.

She returned her gaze to his immediately. “What? That I’m single or that I choose to be that way?”

He smiled. “That you’re not beating them off with a stick.”

“Who says I’m not?”

Evie tried to look casual, tried to make out as though her heart wasn’t thumping stupidly behind her ribs. But it was. In fact, her entire body was thumping—like a runaway train, like a horse galloping out of control.

“I stand corrected.”

He was smiling and that incredible dimple showed itself. Okay, so she wasn’t exactly turning potential lovers away at the door. But she’d had a few offers over the years. None she’d pursued.

“Are you okay, Evie?”

No...but she wasn’t about to tell Mr. Great Body And Gorgeous Dimple that she was hot and bothered because of him. “Perfectly.”

But he wasn’t fooled. And neither was she. Something hung between them. Something unsaid. She picked at the fruit in front of her to avoid saying anything else. Once breakfast was over he offered to wash up. Evie was about to refuse when she heard the downstairs door open and a familiar voice called her name.

“That’s Callie,” Evie said, and pushed out her chair. Scott did the same and moments later the kitchen door opened and his sister entered the room.

Callie stood in the threshold and her gaze flicked over them. Evie felt the scrutiny through to her bones. The kitchen was small, cozy, intimate. Evie knew the other woman could feel the invisible current in the air as much as she could.

Callie quickly came into the room and flung herself at her brother in an affectionate hug. Noah wasn’t far behind and once Evie returned the keys to his truck the two men shook hands, quickly summed each other up as men seemed to be able to do without even speaking and started a quiet conversation. Then Callie headed Evie off by the sink.

“I can’t thank you enough,” Callie said on a rush of breath. “I mean, for picking up my little brother.”

Little brother? Sure.
Evie was struck by the remarkable resemblance between the siblings. Her soon-to-be sister-in-law was quite beautiful and Evie knew how deeply Noah loved the spirited and passionate brunette.

“No thanks necessary,” she said, and set the dishes on the draining board. “It’s—”

“Family,” Callie said. “Yeah, I know. But I still appreciate it. I can’t believe all the connecting flights from Brisbane to Bellandale were booked up.”

“There’s the big air show on this weekend,” Evie explained. “Every flying enthusiast from around the state travels here for it. Same thing happens each year.” She grabbed her rubber gloves. “Are the kids at my parents’?”

“Yes. We dropped them off before we came over here.” Callie leaned back against the melamine countertop. “Matthew’s enjoying the cast on his arm. Crazy to think we’re at the end of the school year already. But I’m so looking forward to Christmas.”

Evie smiled. “You
are
getting married Christmas Eve.”

“Self-indulgent, I know,” Callie said with such a blissfully happy grin Evie felt a tiny stab of envy. “Speaking of all things wedding—you and Fiona have an appointment with the dressmaker next Thursday at ten o’clock.”

“It’s on my list,” Evie replied. “Fiona called me a few days ago to confirm.” Fiona Walsh was the other bridesmaid in the wedding party and a friend of both Callie and Evie. “I’ll be there.”

“And thanks so much for your help with the caterers,” Callie said. “I can’t believe we’ve managed to organize all this in a little over a month. You’re a genius. And a good friend.”

“It’s a special day,” Evie said, and grinned. “And I like planning things.”

“Fortunately for me.”

“It will be a perfect evening,” she assured her, sensing a few bride-to-be nerves in the usually composed Callie. “My brother’s a lucky man.”

Callie smiled dreamily. “I’m the lucky one.”

The stab of envy returned and Evie squashed it down in a hurry. She wouldn’t begrudge Callie her happiness. “You’re both lucky. So are the kids.”

Her friend looked radiant.
Have I ever looked like that?

Yes, of course. Absolutely. Without a doubt.

She’d loved Gordon since she was seventeen years old. He’d been her first kiss, first lover...her only lover. They’d shared dreams, values and the joy of raising their young son. And something else, a bond between two people so in tune with each other’s thoughts, so completely at ease with each other it was as if they were halves of the same whole. And Evie didn’t expect to ever have that again. And she wasn’t about to throw herself out there looking for it.

Evie settled her gaze on Scott again, and her pulse quickened.
It’s just physical.
But despite the warning bells going off in her head, the attraction she felt for him suddenly poleaxed her.

Sex clouded judgments, right? Sex made people do crazy things. Inappropriate things. She had no illusions. Fantasies about a man nine years her junior were completely off the Richter scale in the good-sense department. Of course he wouldn’t be interested in her. He’d have his pick. And he certainly wouldn’t choose a thirty-six-year-old single mother well past her prime.

Besides, he was a firefighter. And men with dangerous occupations had no place in her life. She’d already lost one man to the elements. She wasn’t about to start fantasizing about a man who chose to run into burning buildings.

That settled, Evie announced she had a B and B to run and excused herself. She was quietly relieved when Scott arranged to leave with his sister and Noah. She told him she’d left a spare key on the armoire in the guest bedroom and said goodbye to her brother and Callie before returning downstairs.

She had a lot of work to do. And a gorgeous man she had to get out of her head. Somehow.

Chapter Three

S
cott spent most of the day with his sister. Callie’s property, Sandhills Farm, was a few minutes out of Crystal Point. The For Sale sign out front was new and Callie explained how she had plans to relocate her horse riding school to Noah’s larger property within the coming months.

“It’s a big move,” she said as they walked up through the stables. “But I’ve only ten acres here and I can easily take about twenty acres at Noah’s. Plus, I don’t want to be commuting every day and I want my horses close to me. I’m working on the house renovations now and will try to find a tenant if it doesn’t sell quickly.”

Scott didn’t think she’d have a problem finding a buyer. Sandhills Farm was an impressive setup for any equestrian enthusiast, with its stable complex, round yards and sand arena. “So, you’re happy?”

Callie’s eyes opened wide. “Blissfully,” she replied. “Noah’s just so...” She stopped, smiled a silly sort of smile Scott couldn’t remember ever seeing on his sister’s face before and let out a long sigh. “He’s
everything.
”

Everything?
That was a tall order. Scott couldn’t imagine being
everything
to any woman. Not even Belinda way back when he’d been convinced he was in love with her.

“I’m glad he makes you happy.”
He’d better,
were the words unsaid.

Callie looped her arm through his. “What about you?” she asked. “Anyone special in your life at the moment?”

“No,” he replied, thinking about Evie all of a sudden. He pushed the thought back quickly.

Callie smiled. “Are you looking?”

Scott raised both brows. “Not intentionally.”

His sister gave him an odd look. “I wish you were staying longer,” she said. “With Mom arriving in two weeks and the wedding just around the corner, I don’t think I’ll be much in the way of a tour guide while you’re here.”

Scott shrugged and looked around. “Don’t worry about it. You’ve got more important things to think about.”

Callie squeezed his forearm. “Well, I’m glad you’re here. And you’re in good hands with Evie.”

Scott’s stomach did a wild leap. Thinking about Evie Dunn’s hands made him remember how she’d looked in her small kitchen earlier that morning. She’d looked...
beddable.
Was there such a word? In jeans and a white loose-fitting shirt that exposed just enough of her collarbone to raise his temperature a degree or two, Scott had barely been able to drag his gaze away from her. She had lovely skin
.
And that hair—masses of dark curls reaching way past her shoulders. He’d wanted to twist it around his hands, tilt her head back and kiss the smooth skin along her throat.

“Scott, about Evie...”

He shifted on his feet. Had Callie read his thoughts? “What about her?”

She smiled fractionally. “She’s, you know, my friend. And Noah’s sister.”

“The point being?”

Callie expelled a breath. “The point being that she’s
my friend.
And there seemed to be a fair bit of heat between you in the kitchen this morning.”

“You’re imagining things.” His sister raised both brows again and gave him a
look.
Scott held up a hand. “I left chasing everything in a skirt behind in my teens.”

Callie gave a grim smile. “I know that. But since you and Belinda broke up and then Mike’s death, you’ve changed and I—”

“Belinda was a long time ago,” he said, cutting her off. “And I don’t see what Mike has to do with any of this.”

Callie shrugged. “He was your friend.”

“And?”

“And losing a friend like that must be hard. And Evie, well, she’s like a magnet. Everyone feels it about her. She’s warm and generous and so incredibly likable. Anyone who meets her gets drawn in. I would hate to see her get hurt.”

“By me?” Scott pushed back the irritation weaving up his back. Callie was way off base. Sure, he was attracted to Evie Dunn. But he had no intention of acting on that attraction. He already worked out that Evie wasn’t for him.

Okay...maybe I did flirt with her a bit this morning. But flirting is harmless. It won’t go anywhere. I’ll make sure of that.

“You’re jumping to conclusions,” he said to his sister. “We barely know each other.”

Callie made a face. “I know what I saw.”

“Just drop it, Callie.”

She did, but the thought stuck with Scott for the rest of the afternoon. By the time Callie dropped him off at Dunn Inn, it was past three o’clock. Evie’s car was parked in the driveway and Scott was just fishing in his pocket for his key when he spotted a teenage boy shooting hoops near the studio out back. And shooting them pretty badly.

The youth stopped playing when Scott approached and spoke. “Hi.”

Scott smiled and shook the teenager’s hand as he introduced himself. Evie Dunn’s son seemed like a nice kid. Of course, Evie’s kid wouldn’t be anything else.

“Wanna shoot?” Trevor asked, and tossed the ball to him. “It would be good to see the thing actually go in the hoop.”

Scott laughed and swiftly dropped the ball into the basket. “You just need to work on your angle.”

Trevor shrugged and smiled. “I’m not much of a sportsman. Take after my mother, I guess.”

Scott remembered how Evie had looked that morning in her running gear. She certainly seemed to keep herself in great shape. “She’s an artist,” Scott said, and then felt foolish.

Trevor looked at him oddly, but continued to smile. “I guess. My dad was the sporty one.”

“Mine, too,” Scott replied, and passed the ball on.

The teenager grabbed the basketball, aimed, concentrated and shot it at the hoop. It missed and rebounded directly into Scott’s hands. “My dad’s dead.”

Scott lobbed the ball back through the hoop once it bounced. “Mine, too.”

Trevor grabbed the ball and took another shot. The ball curved around the edges of the hoop before dropping to the side. “Yeah...it sucks.”

They continued to shoot hoops and talk for several minutes, until a taxi pulled up outside the house and two elderly women emerged. As they walked slowly up the driveway, Trevor groaned under his breath. The women approached on quickening feet and Scott watched their progress with a broad grin.

It took them precisely five seconds to persuade Scott to help them carry their bags from the footpath and into the house. Trevor smiled as if he’d been given a Get Out Of Jail Free card and went back to shooting hoops.

There were about a dozen shopping bags from various retail outlets, and Scott guessed the two women had spent the day scouting the stores in Bellandale. The perfectly groomed pair were obviously the Manning sisters who Evie had told him about on the long drive from the airport. They regarded him with such blatant curiosity it felt as if their two sets of eyes were burning a hole through his back as he walked up the half dozen steps and opened the front screen door while juggling the parcels.

Once they’d stepped over the threshold, Scott closed the door and followed them through the house.
Vanilla.
The scent hit him immediately.
Evie.

The living room was large and immaculately presented, but it was the huge, ornately decorated Christmas tree that held his attention. It was a real tree—the kind he remembered from when he was young and his father was still alive. Memories banged around in his head. They’d go out together and find the perfect tree, strap it to the roof of his father’s Volvo and make the trip home laughing, because they both knew his mother would insist on moving the tree around for hours before she finally settled on a spot to showcase her decorating efforts. And they laughed because, inevitably, the tree ended up in the same position every year.

Funny, he didn’t think about those days much anymore. He tried not to think about how much he still missed his father. He’d been a good man, and a good dad. But reckless. And that recklessness had contributed to his death. A desk jockey by day, his father would pursue one adventure after another on the weekend. Sailing, skiing, climbing. Ultimately, it was the climbing that killed him. His death had galvanized something inside Scott. At eighteen he had been determined to join the fire department and approached the job responsibly. He didn’t take risks. He followed the rules.

And those rules didn’t include fantasizing about Evie Dunn.

A widow. A single mom.

Two very good reasons to keep his head.

The Manning sisters thanked him for his help, and Scott was just about to make a quick exit when Evie walked into the room. She smiled at him and his chest tightened unexpectedly. He smiled back, saw her cheeks flush and then quickly she diverted her gaze. His thoughts lingered on how pretty she was.
And all that incredible, seriously sexy hair.
She started talking with the sisters, but he could feel the vibration of her awareness of him like a drum beating. Because she appeared to be trying
not
to look at him.

Scott had placed the bags near the foot of one of the sofas, and Evie and the elderly sisters began unloading the contraband. He stood back and watched, amused by the clear delight the three women displayed as bags were opened and items unwrapped. Evie’s animated expression was addictive and he couldn’t look away. He watched her unload parcels and sigh her appreciation for the treasures as she unwrapped close to a dozen shiny glass ornaments and garlands and laid them carefully on the sofa. Scott snatched a glance at the tree behind him and quickly realized something.
Evie loved Christmas.
He could easily imagine her trimming a turkey, wrapping gifts with matching paper and ribbon, singing carols on Christmas Eve and doing all the things that made the festive season special.

A magnet, Callie had called her. Someone who draws people in.

Was that what she was doing to him?
 
But Scott was convinced it was just physical attraction
.
He’d been attracted to women before. Some he’d dated. Some he’d slept with.

Evie looked across at him briefly and the smile curling her lips made his stomach roll over. Her cheeks flushed again, brighter this time. Scott’s fingers itched with the sudden urge to reach out and touch her face, to trace the line of her jaw and her delicious-looking mouth. Her lips parted, as if she knew he was thinking about them...wondering, imagining if they tasted as sweet as they looked. Her tongue came out and moistened her lower lip. The kick of it rushed to his feet, traveled up his legs and hit him square in the groin.

With his heart hammering behind his ribs, Scott looked at the two elderly women still fussing over their parcels and knew he had to get away from Evie...and fast. He cleared his throat and quickly excused himself.

By the time he’d returned to the private quarters and headed for his room, his breathing was back to normal. He sat on the edge of the big bed, took a deep breath and clenched his fists.
I’m not going to get involved here. I’m going home soon—back to my life—back to everything I know. Three weeks, Jones...I gotta keep it together.

* * *

Evie lingered in the largest downstairs bedroom later that afternoon. She had guests arriving soon—a newly married couple who were staying for a week. The bedroom was her favorite in the house—big and airy and decorated in the palest hues of purple, lavender and white. It had its own bathroom and small sitting area, and the enormous bed was scattered with half a dozen cushions in various shades of mauve. She fluffed a couple of pillows, straightened the white lace bedspread and fiddled with the vase of lilac-and-cream miniature roses that sat on the dresser.

She thought about Scott. Her blood pumped when she remembered how he’d looked at her. The air had smoldered with a kind of throbbing, consuming, slowly building heat.

This is so crazy...he’s twenty-seven years old, for heaven’s sake.

Evie took a deep breath, straightened the already straight bedspread and headed upstairs. Back in her own room she looked out the window and saw her son shooting his basketball into the hoop. Scott was with him. They were talking and throwing the ball. She heard a shout of laughter from her son and it tightened something in her chest.

Oh...no...I’m not going to like him.
But seeing him with her son made her like him. Not just lust, she thought, something else, an awareness of him on another level.

And Trevor’s laughter made Evie ache inside. She knew her son longed for regular male company, a man’s influence...a father’s influence.

Imagining Scott in that role was foolish. He’d be gone in three weeks.

Her guests arrived about ten minutes later. In their mid-fifties and obviously in love, Trent and Patti Keller were all smiles when Evie showed them to their room. A tiny stab of envy knotted tightly and she tamped it down.

Evie gave them a tour of the house, and introduced them to the Manning sisters, who were reading in the front living room. She told them dinner was at seven and left her guests together.

Upstairs, Evie showered, slipped into white cotton cargo pants and an emerald-green collared T-shirt and low-heeled sandals. She raked a comb through her hair, applied a little makeup and headed from her room. She stopped outside Scott’s bedroom.
Dinner’s at seven in the main dining room. Please join me and my guests.
Her knuckles hovered millimeters from the door.
Just ask him.

“Evie?”

He was behind her. Not in his room. She turned around, took a deep breath and told him about dinner. “So, will you join us?”

“Of course. Do I need to change?”

Evie couldn’t help licking her gaze over his tall, muscular body. Jeans and T-shirt were such a great look on him. “No. I’ll see you at seven.” She turned on her heel and headed downstairs.

Evie loved to cook and adored her big, well-appointed kitchen. She wrapped her favorite apron over her clothes, finished off the lemon meringue pie she’d whipped up earlier that afternoon and popped it into the refrigerator to chill. The mustard beef and assortment of roasted vegetables were done within the hour and she set everything ready in the kitchen before making her way to the dining room. She set the big table for six. There would be no Trevor tonight. He’d pleaded to go to Cody’s to study and promised to be home by nine o’clock. Once the buffet was set up with chilled wine and imported beer, Evie returned to the kitchen.