Holding Holly (Love and Football Series) (3 page)

L
ATER THAT DAY
, the temperature was dropping in Noel. The town was expected to get three inches of new snow overnight. Three inches of snow would paralyze hilly Seattle, but those who lived in Noel spent all winter dealing with it. More snow meant more tourism, and more money in the pockets of local merchants.

Holly unlocked the front door of the house and called out, “Grandma, I’m home,” as she stepped inside. Her grandma kept the house a toasty seventy-two degrees. Holly pulled off her down jacket and scarf as quickly as possible. She also unlaced her snow boots and stepped out of them. Her grandma didn’t like anyone to wear shoes in the house.

“I’m in here,” Grandma said. “How was your day?”

“It was slow until twenty minutes before I was supposed to leave.” Holly kissed Grandma’s cheek and sat down in the shabby, overstuffed chair next to the worn couch her grandma was sitting on. “That’s why I’m late.”

“The tourists are back?”

“I don’t think they ever left, Grandma.” She’d managed to put one very special tourist out of her mind while she finished her shift, but he was back with a vengeance the minute she got in her car to drive away. She still couldn’t believe she finally had a date with Derrick Collins. She’d wanted him to ask for months.

Her grandma let out a laugh. “Did you get something to eat already?”

“I had oatmeal this morning.”

“That’s not enough,” Grandma scolded. “Would you like me to make you a sandwich?”

“You can’t use your hand yet. I’ll do it. Would you like me to fix something for you, too? How about a toasted cheese sandwich?” Her grandma waved one hand in the air in a
no, thank you
gesture. “How are you feeling today?”

“Bored,” Grandma said.

Her surgeon was taking the most conservative route: rest for two weeks post-surgery, and at least two months in which Grandma couldn’t engage in her favorite activity, knitting. Grandma’s employees were running her store, Yarn with Heart, while she spent time recuperating. She’d been home for three days, and she was already climbing the walls. Well, she’d be climbing the walls if she could use her hands to do it.

Holly sat forward in her chair a bit. “A couple of interesting things happened today.”

Grandma grinned at her. “Is that so? Tell me about it.”

“I have a date.”

“That’s wonderful, sweetie. Who are you going out with?”

Holly wanted to jump out of the chair with excitement. She fidgeted a bit.

“I met this guy named Derrick at the Sharks’ training camp. He’s kind of shy and sweet. I’ve liked him for a long time, but I didn’t think he really noticed me. He was at the quilt shop earlier with his mom and grandma, and he came in to get a beer while they were shopping.” She looked into her grandma’s amused face. “We were alone in the coffee shop for almost an hour, and he asked me out for dinner tomorrow night.”

“Derrick. Do I know him?” Grandma asked. She watched football; she could identify the team’s quarterback and maybe a couple of other guys, but she probably didn’t know who Derrick was at all.

“He’s the big guy with the dreadlocks who does the belly roll dances every time he tackles the other team’s quarterback.”

“Of course I know who he is,” Grandma said. “
He’s
‘sweet and shy’?”

“Wait until you meet him. You’ll see,” Holly said. She was so excited about the date, but she let out a breath. Grandma wasn’t going to be happy about the rest of her news.

“There’s one more thing. He caught me crying over one of the Santa letters.”

“What? How did this happen?” Grandma said. “Why were you upset?”

Holly got up from the chair, found her backpack, extracted Michael’s letter, and brought it back to her grandma to read.

“The first couple of letters were so sweet, and this one is heartbreaking. I don’t know what to say to him.”

Holly sat down in the chair again and waited for her grandma to finish reading. When Grandma glanced up, there were tears in her eyes too.

“Do you still have the envelope the letter came in?”

“There’s no address, Grandma. There’s nothing written on the outside of the envelope except ‘Santa Claus, North Pole.’ ” Holly let out a sigh. “How will we find him?”

Grandma glanced back down at the letter. “We’ll find him, honey. Don’t worry about that.”

Chapter Three

T
HE NEXT DAY
, Holly rifled through her closet one more time. Unfortunately, the perfect casual-but-dressy outfit for her date with Derrick didn’t jump out at her. The ice and snow outside weren’t compatible with the little black dress she’d brought to her grandma’s for the hell of it. Noel’s Mexican restaurant also wasn’t a place anyone typically wore a dress to.

The women Derrick usually dated probably had a closetful of designer clothes and some really expensive shoes to wear with them. She wanted to dazzle him, but she didn’t have the wardrobe to pull it off. She was still dressing in thrift shop chic and other people’s hand-me-downs, and would be until she got the last of her college loans paid off.

The worn jeans and sweater that Holly pulled out of her closet would almost look presentable for a date if she put on some makeup and did a little something extra with her hair. She glanced longingly at the little black dress that hung in her closet, a gift from her friend Whitney Anderson. Whitney was the youngest sister of another of the Seattle Sharks, and was dating another of her brother’s teammates. She’d told Holly that she’d cut the tags off of the brand-new dress and found out too late it didn’t fit her. There was a brand-new pair of black pumps in the bag that Whitney claimed her sister Courtney didn’t want, either, and just happened to be Holly’s size. Whitney was a terrible liar, but Holly knew her heart was in the right place.

“You’re definitely invited to my brother and sister-in-law’s holiday party. The dress will be
perfect
,” Whitney said. “We’re going to have so much fun.”

If Holly could get the night off from her other job, she’d wear the beautiful dress and shoes, but she’d be hiding out in the corner. Everyone else always seemed to have so much fun at parties. She enjoyed people-watching and eating delicious food, but she felt shy and ill-at-ease until she found some one-on-one conversation.

Holly heard her grandmother’s tap at the bedroom door. “Come in,” she called out.

Grandma poked her head inside Holly’s room. “Honey, maybe you should put the Santa letters away before Derrick gets here,” she said. “If he takes a wrong turn on the way to the men’s room or something, our secret is out.”

“I’ll do that,” Holly said.

Her grandma closed the door again as she hurried away. Holly gave the jeans and fluffy sweater on her bed a pat while she got ready to take a shower. Hopefully Derrick knew how to drive in snow, or there might not be a date tonight at all.

D
ERRICK PULLED A
pair of custom-made designer jeans and a medium-blue cashmere sweater out of his closet and tossed them on his bed. He’d spent the afternoon getting a tutorial on how to put chains on his Escalade from a couple of guys at the local tire shop. Snow in Alabama was an infrequent occurrence. He’d been assured repeatedly that the roads to and from the mountain passes were plowed and sanded, and he’d get where he was going safely if he took it slow and easy.

Holly must be used to the snow. He liked looking at it, and he’d enjoyed playing in it when Seattle had one of its infrequent snowstorms last year, but he talked Drew McCoy into chauffeuring him back and forth to practice until it melted. It wasn’t like he could call McCoy and ask him to drive tonight; he would be at home with his wife and their baby daughter.

He heard tapping at the doorframe. “C’mon in,” he called out as he grabbed a big terrycloth robe off the foot of his bed. He would walk around naked all the time if his mama and grandma weren’t visiting right now.

“I’m guessing you’re not going to be home for dinner,” his mama said, taking a seat on the side of his bed.

“I have a date,” he said.

His mama’s smile was as radiant as the sun. “A date? That’s wonderful. Have I met her?”

“Not yet, Mama. You will, though.”

He grabbed a T-shirt and a pair of socks out of his dresser and added it to the pile on his bed. He wanted to wear the new Louis Vuitton kicks he’d bought himself the other day, but after listening to the guys at the tire shop, he’d bought a pair of sturdy snow boots this afternoon. They weren’t stylish, but if he found his ass stuck somewhere, he could walk in the snow in them.

“Where did you meet her?” his mother said.

“I’ve talked to you about Holly before. She’s the woman who works in the cafeteria at the Sharks’ training camp, remember? She’s little, dark-haired, freckles on her nose, and really sweet. I ran into her in the coffee shop the other day in Noel.”

“The girl you liked.”

“Yes, Mama.” He was already getting nervous. It wasn’t like he’d never invited a girl out before, but this one was special. He sat down next to his mother and turned to face her. “She’s in Noel, so I’ll be late getting home.”

“It’s snowing up there, honey.”

“I’ll be fine,” he said. “If you and Grandma don’t want to cook, order dinner and put it on my tab at Purple or Lot No. 3.” One of the great benefits of living in a high-rise in moneyed downtown Bellevue was food delivery and a credit card on file at the restaurants downstairs.

“Thank you, but there’s plenty of food in the refrigerator. We’ll have a snack and do a little more sewing,” his mother said. “Was Holly the young woman in the elf costume in the coffee shop? I saw her when we walked into the building.”

He smiled at his mother. “Yes, that’s her. She has to wear a costume every day to work there.”

His mom reached out for his hand. Her brows knit, and she swallowed hard. “I’m a little worried about the weather, honey. Please be careful driving.”

“Always, Mama,” he said. He reached over to kiss her cheek. “The guys at the tire place told me it’ll be just fine. I’ll be back before you know it.”

D
ERRICK SWUNG DOWN
from the driver’s seat of his SUV a few hours later in front of Holly’s grandma’s house and thanked God again that he’d had the presence of mind to order the GPS package and antiskid brake control when he’d bought his Escalade. The trip to Holly’s was much longer and more treacherous than those assholes at the tire shop had led him to believe it would be. He could now say, though, he’d driven in ice and snow and lived to tell the tale.

It was snowing again. The flakes landed on his hair and his clothing. They were so soft. It was weird that something that seemed so harmless could be so dangerous.

He reached back inside the vehicle to grab the two bouquets of flowers he’d bought before leaving Bellevue and strolled up the walk to the front door. He knocked at the door and heard a woman’s voice call out, “Come on in.”

He stepped through the door and said, “Hello. Is Holly here?”

“Oh, yes.” An older woman in brightly colored flannel pajamas, a thick terrycloth robe, and slippers got up from the couch. Her smile was warm and welcoming.

“I’m Ruth, Holly’s grandma. She’ll be out in a minute.”

“I’m Derrick Collins,” he said. He looked at the braces and bandages on Holly’s grandmother’s hands. “I hope you don’t think I’m rude if I don’t offer to shake your hand.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m not shaking hands much at the moment.” Ruth frowned a little as she took a good look at his earrings, but gave him a nod. “Would you like to sit down?” She indicated an overstuffed rocking chair next to the couch, and sat down once more.

Derrick extended one of the bouquets to her. “These are for you,” he said.

“They’re beautiful.” Ruth’s eyes lit up as she sniffed the bouquet. “Thank you, Derrick. It’s very kind of you to bring them. I’ll put them in some water, but first, let’s have a little chat.”

“I’d enjoy that,” he said.

“Holly’s living with me for the next couple of months while I recover from surgery.” She held up her hands, and he nodded. “Her parents live in Arizona. I know they’d want me to impress on you how important their daughter is to them, and that they would expect you to act like a gentleman during your date.”

“Of course, ma’am,” he said.

“I’ve seen your on-field antics, Mr. Collins, and I’ve read a few things on the sports page that leave me a bit concerned.”

She was probably referring to his sack dance, which had been called “the baby-making dance” by more than one sports commentator. She might have also read a few things about his previous relationships, but he wasn’t bringing those up. No need to borrow trouble.

“I’m not like that when I’m not playing—”

She interrupted him before he could finish his sentence. “You also realize that Holly has to be at work at five
AM
tomorrow morning.”

“Then I will bring her home by nine o’clock,” Derrick said.

He was a little shocked at Holly’s grandma’s comments, but he did his best not to show it. Maybe Holly had a change of heart in the past twenty-four hours and really didn’t want to go out with him after all. Did she put her grandma up to this? Maybe she didn’t like men who wore earrings. Two-carat diamond studs in each earlobe might be a bit over the top.

He heard light footsteps behind him, and Holly walked into the room. She looked amazing in a pair of jeans and a light-blue fluffy sweater that brought out her blue eyes. A few tendrils of dark hair curled around her face. He got to his feet.

“I’m sorry it took me a few minutes,” she said. “I . . . I had to take care of something.” He saw a flush spread over her cheekbones. In other words, she’d probably changed her clothes a few times. She reached out to give him a hug. “It’s nice to see you.”

Her warm greeting put him at ease. She wanted to spend some time with him too. She probably hadn’t been counting the minutes like he had, but he’d take what he could get from this girl.

“It’s great to see you too.”

He presented Holly with the second bouquet, and she beamed. He’d bring her flowers every day if he could see that radiant smile. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say he’d been kicked in the ass by love or some pretty intense infatuation. She was just so
cute
standing there, and he couldn’t stop staring at her. He noted she was also wearing a pair of snow boots; at least those guys at the tire shop hadn’t steered him wrong on
that
one.