Her Christmas Prince (Love in the Keys) (4 page)

Callie
couldn't remember the last time a date had opened a car door for her.
It was refreshing. It also made her realize maybe she hadn't been
dating the nicest guys. It felt good. It wasn't even a real date,
and Henry was already treating her with more consideration than Brian
had. That said something. Interesting.

However,
Callie realized that she had traded one problem for another. At
least the Brian thing was out in the open now. But what to do about
Henry?

“
Are
you OK? You're very quiet all of a sudden.”

“
I
guess I'm just taking it all in, what just happened. What on earth
were you thinking?!”

Henry
laughed. “Is that your way of saying thanks for getting you
out of a jam?”

Callie
flushed. She had sounded awfully ungrateful there. And a bit mean.
“You're right, that came out wrong. I sincerely appreciate
that you jumped to my defence, but all we've done is exchange one
problem for another.”

“
How
do you see that?”

“
Well,
you're not really going to come with me for Christmas.”

“
Of
course I am. I just gave my word to your parents. A man's word is
his bond.” Henry looked surprised she'd thought any different.

“
But
why would you want to ruin your own Christmas by spending it with my
family?” As much as her own family drove her nuts sometimes,
Callie couldn't imagine being anywhere but home at Christmas.

“
How
could I not rescue a damsel in distress? And honestly, I didn't
really have any concrete plans so there wasn't anything precise to
change. So it isn't ruining anything for me. I've never spent
Christmas in America ... it could be fun, seeing it through the
eyes of the locals.” Henry turned and smiled at her. He
seemed so genuine. Would it be so terrible to spend Christmas with
him? The little voice in her head was saying no, not so really.

“
But
what about after Christmas? What then?”

“
Patience,
Grasshopper. Let's get through Christmas first and worry about the
after part after. One step at a time. If we're going to pull this
off, we need to get cracking.”

“
What
do you mean?”

“
Well,
I can't show up empty handed. Let's go Christmas shopping. While we
buy gifts for your family, you can fill me in on who's who. And we
can get to know each other better. Maybe grab some dinner. How's
that sound?”

Crazy.
Insane. Destined for disaster. “Good, I guess. Good. Sure.
Let's try.”

“
OK
then, so where are we going?”

“
Well,
maybe we should just have dinner. Because shopping might be tricky.”

“
Why
is that? Are they hard to buy for?”

“
The
buying part is the problem.” Henry gave her a puzzled look.
“We don't buy gifts in my family. We started making them a
couple of years ago. And we draw names. So technically Brian had my
dad's name. I was going to bake him something since Brian wasn't
coming but I guess we can figure out something for you to do.”

“
Hmmm.
Interesting. I've never actually made anything. This could require
some thought. So you really don't buy anything?”

“
We
still buy toys for the little kids. But for the adults, nope. We
decided people were getting too caught up in the gifts. And
forgetting about the real meaning of Christmas. So we dialled it
back. And with the money we save we try to do something charitable.”
At first, the family had not been that enthusiastic about the idea
when it had come up. But now, it was fun, and they all felt good
about doing positive things in their community.

“
So
what is your charitable thing?”

“
I
help at a local food bank to make up Christmas hampers. And I'm
baking meat cookies for the dogs and cats at the local shelter.”

Henry
smiled. “That's fantastic. Really. I like it. OK, so let's
just make it dinner. Where shall we go?”

“
How
about a burger? I feel like a good burger. We could just stop over
to The Grill House. Would that work?” He gave her a grin
that said yes.

Callie
navigated for Henry and they soon reached The Grill House, which was
at the far edge of Sunnyside Key. It, too, was a family business and
now run by the third generation of Hamiltons, who Callie knew from
Sunnyside Community Church. Well known in the Keys for their great
burgers, steaks and ribs, it was a popular spot pretty much any time
of day, with locals and visitors alike. Liz Hamilton, the middle
daughter of the family, gave them a warm greeting and escorted them
to a comfy booth, where they ordered burgers, milkshakes, fries and
onion rings.

At
first, there was a lot of silence. It was like the odd and somewhat
funny situation they'd found themselves in had finally hit home to
both of them. And they were a bit tongue tied.

Callie
finally broke the silence. “So, since we're madly in love and
all, I guess I should find out a little bit more about you.”

Henry
laughed. “Sure. What do you want to know?”

Callie
smiled back. The tension was broken. “Well, you said you work
in your family's business. What kind of business is it? And tell me
about your family. Where are you from, anyway?” It had been
bothering Callie since she first heard Henry speak. There was
definitely an accent but she couldn't quite place it.

“
I
guess you'd call it public relations. Lots of events and things like
that. It's all right, just sometimes tiring. It's nice to have a
bit of a break from it. And from my family.” Callie raised
her eyebrow in curiosity. “Don't mistake me, I love my family,
they're wonderful and we get along really well. But you know what
it's like. Sometimes you're in each others’ pockets. And you
just need a bit of a breather to remember why you love them so
much.” Callie nodded in agreement.

Most
of her family was right here in the Keys within an hour's drive.
Sometimes it was a good thing, but sometimes not. Especially where
her mother was concerned. Milly meant well, and Callie knew at heart
she loved her. She just didn't seem to want Callie to make her own
decisions in life.

“
I
totally get that. You met my mom. It isn't that I don't love her,
just sometimes she's smothering. And she doesn't get that I have to
make my own choices, and sometimes that leads to mistakes. And
heartbreak.”

“
Ah,
heartbreak. Brian, I presume? I guess you should fill me in on
that whole thing so I am prepared. I think your mother has the idea
I broke you two up. Callie, I don't mean to pry into your business,
but your family will assume I know the details.” Henry leaned
forward and gave Callie's hand a little squeeze of encouragement. “It
doesn't have to be right now, but it should be sometime. If all this
is going to work.”

Callie
nodded her head yes, and took a big sip of her chocolate milkshake.
She might as well get it over with. She owed him that much, an
explanation, after all he was doing. And she was never going to see
Henry again after Christmas, she might as well tell him everything.
Maybe finally opening up about it would make her feel better and help
her get over it all.

“
Brian.
I don't know where to start. He's from Miami. Came down here
because of his work, he has a big job in project management for real
estate development. He wandered into my cafe and we got talking and
he just never left. Things seemed to be going OK, or so I thought.
Show
s how much I know.”
Callie let out a sigh.

“
Then
what happened?”

“
I
don't really know. It would be easier if I did. Brian was starting
to talk about futures and stuff. He even spent Thanksgiving with my
family.”

“
And
how did that go?”

“
Not
so well. The meal itself was OK. It was after that didn't go so
hot.” Henry gave her a quizzical look. “Let's just say
that Brian isn't exactly a guy's guy. He's educated and kind of ...”

“
Kind
of?”

“
Prissy!
There, I said it. It you didn't know better, you might think he
batted for the other team. He just dresses too well and likes plays
and things and hates sports. Some of the men in my family had some
fun at his expense. And he didn't like it.”

“
I
see. So then what happened?”

Well,
right after Thanksgiving, he went to Miami and then to Key West on
business . And when he came back, things were just off kilter. It
wasn't anything specific, just not the same as before. He was really
attentive, calling a few times a day, stuff like that, and then, not
so much.”

“
And
how did it all end eventually?”

“
Badly.
He ended it. And he was mean about it, too.”

“
Mean,
how?”

“
Oh,
he said I wasn't very interesting and he didn't know if I ever was.
And he said he couldn't imagine spending his whole life with my
family or in the Keys. More stuff like that. It was pretty harsh.”

Henry
looked angry. Admittedly, he didn't know Callie well yet, but how
could anyone be mean to her? It would be like kicking a puppy. She
had a gentle kindness about her, and it was clear that everyone liked
her. Even during dinner, every member of the Hamilton family came by
the table to say hello and have a chat. At some point, he'd love to
meet this Brian and see what kind of a man he was. He suspected not
much of one.

“
And
then what?”

“
Nothing.
He left town, no idea where he is. It was just over a week ago.
And I've been trying to muster the courage to tell my mother ever
since. And failing. That's basically where you came in. After
almost a week of avoiding her, she finally clapped eyes on me.”
Callie smiled at him half-heartedly. It was clear the whole
experience had left her emotionally bruised.

“
Do
you really think your mother wouldn't understand?”

“
It
was her fault I got my hopes up in the first place. Maybe if I
hadn't, I would have seen the break up coming. She kept telling me
that because he spent the holiday with me and the family, he was
serious. And that she was sure an engagement wouldn't be far behind.
And I went along with it, more the fool me,”
Callie admitted wistfully.

Henry
let the information she told him sink in. No one disputed
relationships didn't work out, but only a real louse of a guy made a
lady feel badly about it, like it was solely her fault. He wouldn't
say it to Callie, for fear of making her feel worse, but he suspected
there was something else afoot, and it probably involved another
woman. Something wasn't sitting right. But it was of no consequence
now, and if this Brian had any sense, he'd steer well clear of
Callie. Or Henry would have something to say about it.

“
I
appreciate you telling me. I know it wasn't easy for you. For what
it's worth, I think he's crazy, and I hope he realizes what a big
mistake he made. You're an exceptional lady, Callie, and I can't
image what he was thinking.” Henry paused for a moment and
thought before he finished. “Something about us men, sometimes
it takes us a while, but we always realize it when we've made a
mistake. And in his case, it will be too late. That's payback
enough.”

Callie
smiled at Henry, a bit embarrassed by his words. She couldn't
believe how sensitive and kind Henry was. She wasn't used to it and
it felt so natural to talk to him about these things. She realized
that she did actually feel better. “You're so easy to talk to,
Henry. I haven't told anyone all of this, not even my friend Erin.
And I tell her everything. It feels good to let it out.”

Callie
looked at her watch and gasped at the time. It was after
9
p.m. Not late for a normal person, but late for someone who had to
get up at 4am to bake for the cafe's opening at 6:30 a.m.

“
Got
a hot date?,” joked Henry.

“
I
know it doesn't seem late, but I should actually probably get home.
I open the cafe at 6:30 and I have to be there earlier than that to
bake.”

“
Mmmmmm.
Baking. Where is this cafe? I'll come by and sample your wares.”

“
Well,
you could drop me there and I can pick up my car. Then you'll know.”