Island Christmas (17 page)

“In a way it’s because of Jason that we met and that I found my faith in Jesus. It worked out great in the end, but the road here was rocky.”

“That’s how life is, Rachel. We all have a past, and that past is not always pleasant, but it’s what makes us who we are today. I like who you are
today
very much.”

Her face tinged pink. “I like who you are too, Chris—angina or not. But don’t die anytime soon.”

He chuckled. “That’s the plan.”

“Good, because I like having you around.” She drew close and placed a soft kiss on his lips. “I need to get to the kitchen. Enjoy your stay in the lap of luxury.”

On Christmas Eve, Rachel and her
son sat at the B&B dining room table surrounded by her friends. The room was scented by roasting turkey and all the trimmings, exactly like on Thanksgiving, only this meal was more special because it was served in the B&B rather than the little downstairs apartment and there were a lot more people.

Two tall red candles at each end of the long table flickered, and a display of holly and greenery ran down the center. Instrumental Christmas music played softly in the background, and to top off the perfect evening, snow cascaded from the sky. She’d heard someone at work say this year had a record snowfall.

Chris sat beside her. “Are you enjoying yourself?” he whispered.

“Very much. How about you?” How could she not enjoy herself with such exceptional food and good company? Zoe and Nick had outdone themselves.

“Same.”

She looked at the faces of the guests at the table—Piper and her husband Chase shared a smile, and Jill and her niece and brother laughed at some joke Nick had told. Rachel missed the punch line and only grinned.

Jason tugged at her arm. “Mommy, I’m finished.”

“Okay. Can you sit quietly and wait for the adults to finish?”

“No.” He looked at her with big eyes and shook his head. “I need to wiggle.”

She held back a laugh, but it didn’t stop the rest of the table from erupting into laughter. Her face heated, but Jason soaked up the attention. He sat taller and grinned.

“I think we’re all finished,” Nick said. “How about we move into the sitting room? I had a piano brought in. It was supposed to be temporary, but I think we’re going to keep it.” He pushed back from the table and stood.

Relief washed through Rachel. She didn’t want a power struggle with her son, and this was the perfect diversion.

Zoe stood. “Leave your plates. We’ll clean later.”

“Works for me.” Chase patted his stomach. “Who’s playing the piano, Nick?”

“Me,” Jill said. “I’ve been practicing on the piano at church for weeks, but I’m no virtuoso. So sing loud, everyone.”

Rachel chuckled along with the rest of the small group at Jill’s explanation. She hadn’t gotten to know the B&B manager well, but in what little time they’d spent together, she’d come to like the woman. Rachel especially appreciated how she’d helped out taking care of Jason. Jill was definitely a good addition to Wildflower Bed-and-Breakfast.

Chris rested a hand on her back. “I’m stuffed. I’m not sure I can sing,” he said softly for her ears only. “Maybe you and I could go for a stroll down to the water instead.”

“What about Jason?”

“He can come, or we can ask Zoe to keep an eye on him.”

“Let’s do one song first, then we’ll sneak out.”

He nodded.

She slipped over to Zoe and explained her plan.

A twinkle lit her friend’s eyes. “Why not go now? You don’t have to sing carols.”

“Because I
want
to sing at least one carol.”

Jill sat at the lovely baby grand squeezed into a corner of the room and began a rousing rendition of
Jingle Bells.
All their voices blended—well sort of blended, but it was festive nonetheless. Without stopping, Jill transitioned into
Joy to the World.

Chris laced his fingers with hers and drew her away from the group. “You ready?”

She nodded and looked for Jason. He sat in Nick’s arms with a huge smile on his face—he would be fine while they took a walk. She motioned to Zoe that she was leaving and turned from the group.

As much as she was enjoying herself, she treasured any time she could be alone with Chris. She slipped into her coat, gloves, and hat and followed him out the door. A brisk breeze whipped through her hair.

Chris clicked on a strong flashlight and lit the way around to the back of the house to the trail that led down to the pebbled beach. “That was fun.”

“Yes. I can’t believe Nick got a piano for the sing-along. Especially a baby grand.”

“I’ve discovered that he doesn’t do things halfway.” Chris moved the flashlight over the snow-covered trail.

“I can’t believe tomorrow is Christmas. This holiday season has gone by faster than any I can remember.”

“Same here, but I suspect it had to do with your move, new job, passing out your first day on the job, Jason spraining his arm when your incompetent sitter left him alone for two minutes, and then his surgery.”

“When you put it like that, this has been a
crazy
holiday season! They say things come in threes, so I think it’s safe to say there’ll be no more visits to the hospital for Jason and me.”

“Good! I’m really getting sick of that place.”

Having Chris by her side through it all had helped her face those rough days. Having him with her made her heart kick into double time. She enjoyed his company more than she dreamed possible.

They exited the pathway and stepped onto the beach. A hush came over them as water lapped at the pebbles.

“Look, a shooting star.” Chris pointed.

Her gaze darted to the star-filled sky. She caught her breath. “Cool.” She closed her eyes and wished for many more times like this with Chris.

“Thanks for coming down here with me.” He rested an arm across her shoulders as they faced the water. “It’s been such a crazy week with my move that I feel like it’s been forever since we had any time together. I’ve missed you. How have you been?”

“Not too bad. Jason has bounced back from his surgery. He’s still sore, but it’s kept him calm and made it easier for me to get baking and shopping done. I hadn’t gone Christmas shopping at all. Thankfully my new sitter didn’t mind a few extra hours the week of Christmas. I went to the mainland and picked up some gifts. Remind me to never wait until the week of Christmas to do my shopping again. It was a madhouse at the toy store.”

“Makes you appreciate the slower pace of this island all the more.”

“That’s for sure.” As much as she enjoyed their small talk, she couldn’t help and wonder why he’d asked her out here. She turned to face him. “What’s going on with you? Are you still planning to come over tomorrow?” She held her breath, anxious for his reply. She’d planned the day with him in mind. If it’d been only her son, she’d have scaled back, but she wanted to make Christmas a special day for the three of them.

“I am.”

She let out the breath she’d been holding in a soft whoosh. “Good.” A smile stretched across her face.

“Speaking of Christmas, I have a little something for you.”

“You do?” She had a gift for him under her tree but hadn’t thought to bring it with her. The resort photographer, who she hadn’t even noticed, approached her later in the day with the photo he’d snapped of them in the sleigh. She’d had it framed. It wasn’t anything big, but to her it was special. She had one framed for herself too.

“I found this at the resort gift shop.” He pulled a purple scarf from his pocket and draped it around her neck. “I noticed you didn’t have one.”

She ran her cheek along the soft yarn. “I love it. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He grasped the ends of the scarf and tugged her close. His warm breath tickled her face. “In spite of everything that’s gone wrong this Christmas season, it’s been the best ever because I met you.” He rested a gloved hand against her cheek. “I think I love you Rachel, and I hope we can spend a lot of time together in the future.”

“I’d like that very much.” Her heart raced. “And I think I might love you too.”

“Maybe we should explore this a bit further.” His lips found hers and warmed her from head to toe.

After a few minutes of enjoying his sweet kisses she pulled back. “I could kiss you all night, but we should probably head back. I’m sure Jason is wondering where I went.”

He drew her close and held her for several seconds. “If you insist, but I’m going to miss having you in my arms.”

She chuckled. “Stop being dramatic. You can hold me any time you’d like.” She slid from his arms and moved toward the trail. “Come on, I can’t feel my toes anymore.”

He clicked on the flashlight. “We can’t have that. Let’s get you inside.” They rushed up the trail and back into the B&B to the final strains of
Silent Night
. Rachel could think of no better way to spend her first Island Christmas than with these people who had all shown her the true meaning of friendship and love.

Two years later

On Christmas morning, Rachel sat on
the couch with her newborn daughter tucked safely in her arms while Jason tipped his stocking onto the floor in front of the Christmas tree. She looked at her husband and grinned. “Merry Christmas.”

Chris answered her with a kiss. “Would you like me to hold Sophie?”

“Sure.” She handed their six-week-old baby to her daddy and marveled at her huge, blue eyes.

“Mommy, Daddy, look!” Jason held up a box set of little cars.

“Cool.” Rachel stood and walked behind the tree. “There’s something else back here for you, Jason.”

Her son hopped up and bolted around to the back of the eight-foot-tall Grand fir. “A bike! I always wanted one.”

“How about you take it for a spin after breakfast,” Chris said.

“Can we have breakfast now?” Jason wheeled the bike to the entryway of their home. Although she hadn’t known it at the time Chris bought the house, he later told her he’d purchased it with her in mind. That was why her opinion of the house had been so important to him.

“I’ll have breakfast ready in a jiffy. How do chocolate chip pancakes sound?”

“Yummy!” Jason patted his tummy and jumped up and down. “Can I help?”

“Sure. Go wash your hands.”

Chris stood. “I’ll put Sophie in her bassinet and be right back to join the fun.”

Rachel nodded and slipped an apron over her head. This was their third Christmas together and every year seemed better than the last. They were married in the gazebo at the park adjacent to the hospital the summer after they met. It had been a beautiful July afternoon that she would never forget.

Her parents had come as well as Zoe, Nick, and her friends from the restaurant. Jason’s mom and sister had come as well. Everyone had exclaimed over the setting and the beautiful flowers.

She’d worn a strapless, long, white dress she hoped to one day pass on to her daughter. Chris loved kids and wanted more, but she was happy with two for now.

Chris wrapped an arm around her waist startling her from her thoughts. “You looked a million miles away. Is everything okay?”

She rose on tiptoes and placed a soft kiss on his lips. “Better than. I was remembering our wedding.”

“Hmm.” He tugged her close. “A good day to remember.”

Jason squeezed between them. “I want a hug too.”

They laughed as Chris hoisted him into his arms. “Better, little dude?”

Jason frowned. “I’m not little anymore, Dad. I have a bike.”

“That’s right. You’re a big boy now. How about we make breakfast so you can show us what you can do?” He set Jason down, and they all got to work. Thirty minutes later, they stood on their driveway in the sunshine. The baby monitor sat on the front porch loud enough to hear Sophie’s soft breaths. It hadn’t snowed on the island since the Christmas they met, and it’d been a warmer than normal year this year, with no snow in the forecast. She held out hope for January snow, but not much.

Jason straddled his bike with training wheels and took off around the driveway. “I’m doing it,” he shouted.

“Way to go.” Chris slid his arm around her waist and together they watched Jason. “That’s one great kid we have, Mrs. Campbell.”

She turned to face him and wrapped her arms around his neck. “We have two great kids. And they have a great dad.”

Chris lowered his head and delivered a heart-stopping kiss, taking her breath away.

“Wow!”

He grinned. “There’s more where that came from,” he said before capturing her lips again.

Now—A sneak peek into book four coming spring of 2016—
Island Hope

By Kimberly Rose Johnson

Derrick Trainor sat in Piper Grayson’s
office. The window view wasn’t great considering she owned the place, but who could complain about sunshine and blue sky, even if she could only see the parking lot? His attention shifted to his boss who sat behind her sleek, glass-topped desk wearing a worried look. Unease settled on his shoulders.

“I appreciate all you’ve done here at the resort, Derrick, but I need to make some changes.”

His stomach churned. Was he about to get fired? “I’ve enjoyed working here. What’s changing?”

“As you know, I’m six months pregnant, but what you don’t know is that I’ve been put on bed rest. Effective immediately you will be the acting manager of Wildflower Resort and Spa. I know we talked about you taking over while I am on maternity leave and that you were concerned about the long hours during that time. I hope you can make this work because I’d hate to bring in someone new.”

His pulse thrummed in his ear. “No. It’s fine. Are you and the baby okay?” He’d begun to make changes at home to accommodate the longer hours he would be working in a few months, but he wasn’t there yet. How would his fifteen-year-old daughter Alyssa handle him working sixty-hour weeks?

“My baby and I are okay, but my blood pressure is too high—has been for a while now, actually. I know you will do an exemplary job in my absence.”

He nodded. Talk about a switch. A minute ago she looked like she was about to fire him.

“Knock. Knock.”

He turned at the sound and spotted a raven-haired woman with pale skin and classical facial features—stunning. She wore a hoodie, ripped jeans, and work boots—not so attractive, but she’d turn heads if she made an effort. Maybe she worked with Chase, Piper’s husband, in the gardens.

“Hope.” Piper smiled and stood, though a little slower than usual. “I’d like you to meet Derrick Trainor. He’ll be acting as manager until I return. You will need to run your schedule by him before you start any work, and he will check over everything done each day.”

Hope frowned. “I hope you’re kidding.”

Derrick shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I’m not following.”

Piper waved her fingers in the air. “Close the door and have a seat, Hope.”

The woman sat beside him. “Hope Michaels.” She offered her hand. Deep purple nail polish covered her neatly trimmed nails.

“It’s nice to meet you.” He shook her hand then turned to Piper. That unsettled feeling resurfaced.

“Hope is the owner of the electrical company I hired to re-wire the section of the building that caught fire last month. Her company will also be doing all the electrical work for the cabins.”

No wonder Piper’s health was at risk. She had too much on her plate. Between dealing with the fire that damaged three suites at the north end of the building, to the construction of the cabins for phase two of the resort, anyone would have high blood pressure.

Hope removed her hoodie revealing arms with several tattoos. He didn’t care for body art, but to each his own, or this case her own.

“Derrick, because of your background in electrical work, I thought it would be fitting for you to oversee this aspect of the project.” Her attention shifted to Hope. “Having a second set of eyes is no reflection on your quality of work, Hope. But after the fire I’d feel more comfortable if Derrick double-checked everything. Chase will be dealing with the rest of the subcontractors.”

Hope’s face reddened. Clearly she wasn’t happy with Piper’s arrangement. He was an electrician by trade but hadn’t enjoyed it. After doing odd jobs he fell into his position here as assistant manager. He looked from his boss to Hope. The tension in the room was so thick it’d take a chainsaw to cut through.

“We can talk more later, Hope,” Piper said. “Thanks for stopping in.”

The woman stood, but to her credit she didn’t argue with Piper, though he suspected she had a few choice words for his boss. “Take care of yourself, Piper.” She grabbed her hoodie and strode from the room, leaving the door open behind her.

He turned to Piper. “That was awkward.”

She wore a mischievous grin. “You’ve heard the phrase don’t judge a book by its cover?”

He nodded.

“It applies to Hope. I consider her a friend, and in spite of what I said, I don’t expect there to be any issues.”

“Then why am I inspecting her work? You realize an actual inspector will do that?”

She gave him a look that clearly said he was trying her patience. Time to keep his thoughts to himself. But what exactly was Piper hinting at when she said not to judge a book—or perhaps, Hope—by her cover? Sure she looked a little rough around the edges, but if his boss had confidence in her abilities, so did he.

Although he hadn’t been in the field for several years, he kept up to date on everything. He didn’t want to close the door on what he’d spent so much money learning to do.

“Hunt Enterprises, my father’s development company, has used Hope on multiple projects. She does excellent work. I only wish she’d been available to do the job here when we were building. We probably wouldn’t have had that electrical fire last month.”

This was high praise coming from his boss—but even given her paranoia something didn’t add up. Piper was fair and called things how she saw them, whether good or bad, so what was he missing?

Piper continued to talk, and he focused on her words again. “I’ve arranged for her to stay at Wildflower B&B since we are booked for the summer.”

His sister managed the B&B. He almost laughed. Jill was as straight-laced as a person could get. Her eyes had probably bugged out when she saw the art on Hope’s arms.

He tabled the thought for now. He had enough to worry about with the new responsibilities given to him today. “Sounds good. I assume you want me to update you on what’s going on in the day-to-day operations.”

She shook her head. “As much as I want that, my doctor suggested I allow Chase to filter what information I receive.”

Whoa. This sounded serious.
“Okay.” Piper was hands-on. It must be killing her to release control. Besides that, Chase not only took care of the grounds at the resort, he had a flourishing landscape and design business that often took him away from the island.

“Any questions?”

“Not right now. If I come up with any, may I call you?”

She shook her head. “Talk to Chase. He’ll stop in every morning and then again in the evenings.”

Derrick nodded. Things were about to get very interesting.

Hope stormed through the
lobby and out the automatic sliding glass doors. The nerve! She was highly respected in her industry. Why would Piper want a dude who clearly couldn’t cut it as an electrician looking over her shoulder? Piper knew how good she was.

Her phone rang, and she pulled it from her back pocket. “Hope speaking.”

“It’s Piper. I think I owe you an explanation.”

“You don’t owe me anything, but if you don’t trust me to do the job then why’d you hire me?”

“You and I have been friends since college, and I’ve known Derrick for three years. He’s a good man, but he’s lonely. I think the two of you would hit it off.”

Hope stopped moving. A car beeped its horn. She waved and moved out of the way. “Come again? Are you seriously trying to set me up?”

“Well…”

“I quit.”

“No! Please, Hope. I need you.”

“You should have thought of that before you tried to play matchmaker. Does he know what you’re up to?”

“No, and don’t you tell him either. I can’t afford to lose him, not with me going on bed rest. I can’t lose you, either.”

This was so unlike Piper. It must be all those hormones from being pregnant causing her to behave like a moron. “Fine. But only because you’ve been a good friend—at least until today. I will do the job and only the job. I will not go out with Derrick, no matter how cute he is.”

“You think he’s cute?” Piper’s voice rose in pitch.

Hope waved a finger in the air. “Don’t. It was only an observation.”

“Okay. I’m sorry.” Disappointment clouded her voice. “Thank you for sticking with the job. But don’t overlook Derrick just because I messed up.”

“Whatever.” She liked Piper, but the girl was tripping. “I have work to do. Don’t worry about anything here. You’ve assembled a great team, and your resort is in good hands.”

“I agree. Don’t be a stranger. I’m sure to get sick of myself, and I’ll appreciate the company.”

Hope grinned and shook her head. She couldn’t stay mad at Piper. “I will stop in sometime soon. Catch you later.” She pocketed the phone. When she’d arrived on the island yesterday, she sensed it would be a different kind of place to work when the manager of Wildflower B&B looked scandalized by her tattoos; however, she never imagined what Piper had in store.

She headed to her SUV. There was work to be done, and she would not spend the afternoon daydreaming. She grabbed her tools then headed inside to the north section of the resort. The sprinkler system did its job, but the damage was considerable in the affected suites.

On her way through the lobby she spotted Derrick standing behind the counter. He had a Ryan Reynolds thing going on with his dark hair and five o’clock shadow. She’d watched “The Proposal” many times over the years and had always found him attractive. Derrick’s broad shoulders filled out his navy sports jacket and looked very nice, but his clean-cut, boy-next-door look wasn’t her thing.

Why would Piper think they’d hit it off? They were too different. She was a jeans and T-shirt girl, and he was GQ. Okay, she knew how to dress up and had to in her other life but much preferred her work clothes.

He looked her way and caught her staring. She whirled around and two-timed it toward the wing that needed repairs. Her cheeks burned. That would
not
happen again.

At six o’clock she called it a day, packed up, and headed to the restaurant kitchen. Looking around for the tall blonde woman Piper had described, Hope immediately spotted Zoe, the head chef, and waved.

Zoe grabbed a large brown bag. “You must be Hope. Piper called and gave me your order.”

“Yes, thanks.” She reached for her wallet.

“Your meals are complimentary for as long as you work here.”

“Really? Piper didn’t tell me. Well that’s a nice way to end a rough day. Thanks!”

“Sure. I heard you’re staying at the Wildflower B&B.”

“I am. Have you been there?”

Zoe chuckled. “My husband and I own the place. We live in the basement apartment. I’m sure our paths will cross there sooner or later.”

“Small island.”

“Yep. Have a nice evening. I need to get back to work.”

“Okay.” With her dinner bag in one hand and her toolbox in the other, she made her way to the parking lot. She spotted Derrick wearing a black leather jacket and chaps, and holding a motorcycle helmet. Well, that added another dimension to Mr. GQ. She walked over to him. “You didn’t stop by to check my work.”

“Didn’t think that was a good idea today.” He winked and slipped on the helmet.

“That yours?” She looked skeptically at the Indian Chief Classic.

He straddled the seat. “Yes.”

“Nice.” She nodded, her curiosity piqued, but she’d never admit it to Piper. “Well, have a good night.”

“Maybe I’ll see you at the B&B.”

“Why’s that?”

“My sister’s the manager, and my daughter is sort of the in-house sitter for guests. She sent me a text a little bit ago about needing to watch a kid this evening.”

“Oh. Okay. Maybe I’ll see you.” She strode to her SUV struggling to come to terms with this new information. His sister was the uptight manager, and his daughter was old enough to babysit. How could either of those be possible? He didn’t look old enough to have a teen, and he rode a motorcycle. She chuckled. His sister for sure didn’t approve of that.

Wildflower Island was an interesting place. She was beginning to think she owed Piper a thank you for offering her the job. The people didn’t appear as colorful on the surface as her normal crowd, but one didn’t have to dig deep to see there was more to the people than met the eye.