Sweet Christmas Kisses (83 page)

“How’d you know that was my wish?” she asked when their lips parted.

“Just a hunch.” He kissed her again, this time deeper.

Harper leaned into him, wrapping her arms around his neck, but a moment later the clicking of high heels against the hardwood floor interrupted them.

Sabrina stood there. Her cheeks were flushed, and as she shifted nervously from foot to foot on four-inch spiked heels, her red beaded gown reflected more light than the entire Christmas tree. “Sorry to interrupt, but have you seen Jeffrey?” Her gaze moved from him over to Harper, who was staring at Sabrina as if the woman had lost her mind.

“Can’t say that we have,” Cole answered quickly, knowing that if he didn’t, Harper would. And the last thing he wanted, especially on Christmas, was for these two women to get into an argument. “As you can see,” he went on, “we’ve been occupied.” He pulled Harper closer to him.

Tears welled in Sabrina’s eyes, and her bottom lip trembled. “I can’t imagine where he could be. He said he was going to the men’s room, but that was over thirty minutes ago, so when I saw you two, I thought he might have stopped to chat first. I just don’t know…” She shook her head and mumbled as she walked away, “You’re the only people he knows here… I don’t know where he could have gone.”

Harper clamped her hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh. “Once a snake, always a snake. But can you believe she’s lost him all ready? I’ll bet he’s off in some corner somewhere, trying to put the moves on another woman.”

Cole watched as Sabrina weaved through the people blocking the banquet hall door. “I feel sorry for her.”

“I do too. Despite what happened to me, I don’t blame her. Jeffrey’s a master at deceit. You can bet she had no idea the type of person she was getting involved with. That poor woman is headed for heartbreak.” Harper’s blue eyes locked with his. “And I’ll bet she doesn’t have someone like you in her life, who’ll be there to help her pick up the pieces after her relationship implodes.”

Cole cocked a brow at her. “I’m so glad I’ve been able to help you, Harper, but sometimes I wonder if I’m nothing more than a rebound for you.”

Her jaw dropped, and her eyes opened wide. “How can you say that? Or even think it? That’s just plain crazy. What’s happening between us is real. My feelings for you have nothing to do with Jeffrey.” She hugged him to her.

“I believe you. It’s just so soon after that, I needed to ask.” He kissed the top of her head, then took hold of her hand. “Let’s find a table before they’re all taken.”

They crossed the room and found one close to the dance floor. Only one other couple was seated at the large round table that had a place setting for ten.

“Do you mind if we sit here?” Cole asked the elderly gentleman with salt-and-pepper hair and thick horn-rimmed glasses.

“No, not at all. We’d love to have some company. Isn’t that right, Mary?” He turned to the woman beside him with the same salt-and-pepper hair, only hers fell to her shoulders, while his was cropped short.

She smiled. “That’s right, Charlie.” She waved her hand at the chairs to her left. “Please, sit.”

“Thanks.” Cole pulled out a chair for Harper, then sat next to her.

“You two married?” Charlie asked.

Cole was a little taken aback by the question, and he could tell that Harper had been too as her cheeks were the shade of a ripe tomato. “No, no. We’re not married.” He reached under the table and squeezed her leg.

“Mary and I have been married fifty-seven years. We were high school sweethearts. Got married right after we graduated. Best decision I ever made,” Charlie said cheerily. “And we’ve been coming here to Green Mountain Lodge every Christmas since. For many years, we’d bring the kids. They loved it here. But they’re grown now, and it’s back to just the two of us.” Charlie stared into his wife’s faded hazel eyes. It was apparent they were still very much in love.

Maybe marriage wasn’t such a bad thing, Cole thought. Although, he wasn’t sure he was ready to give up his bachelor ways any time soon…but with the right person? With Harper? Who knew? Anything was possible.

Two more couples sat down at the table. A minute later, dinner was served, and as they ate, they all conversed about how much they’d enjoyed spending the holiday at Green Mountain. Cole and Harper were the only ones who hadn’t spent a Christmas there before.

As they were finishing up dessert, the band began to play, and couples filled the dance floor.

“Let’s go for it,” Cole said, taking hold of Harper’s hand.

The corners of her mouth dipped down into a frown. “Oh, I don’t know. I haven’t danced in ages.”

“Come on. I haven’t either.” He pulled her up onto her feet. “We’ll look like fools together.”

She offered him a half smile. “Okay, if you insist.”

“I do.” He led her onto the dance floor, and although a little timid at first, Harper soon loosened up and seemed to really enjoy herself.

When the band played a slow song, she put her head on his shoulder, and he held her a little closer than necessary. Their steps matched perfectly, as if they’d danced together many times before.

After three more songs, they decided it was time to sit out a few, and they made their way back to the table. Cole spotted Jeffrey and Sabrina at the bar. So Sabrina had found him, and apparently they were still a couple, because she had her arm around his waist. However, instead of paying attention to her, his gaze was fixed on Harper, and that made Cole’s blood boil. What was wrong with that guy? Harper must have noticed Jeffrey too, because he felt her body stiffen.

“I’m a little chilly,” she said. “I’m going to run back to the room and grab my shawl. I’ll be right back.”

He doubted that was the reason, and wondered why, after last night, she was still letting Jeffrey get to her. But if she needed a few minutes alone, he would give her that. “I’ll grab us some drinks. What would you like?”

“A glass of Chablis would be great.”

Cole saw that Jeffrey was still staring at her as she walked away, and that was the last straw. He was going to let that creep know exactly what he thought of him. However, before he made it to the bar, Jeffrey and Sabrina had gotten up and were over at a table with nine other couples. This was the wrong time to confront him. Better to leave things alone for now. Another opportunity was sure to come up, and then he’d let the guy have it.

Cole took a seat at the bar and ordered their drinks. About five minutes later, as he waited for the bartender to make them, Christina, the redheaded girl he’d met the other night, sat next to him.

“Nice to see you again,” she said with a huge smile. “Sorry I had to run off yesterday. My family’s not real good about understanding that I might want some time away from them.” She laughed. “But I saw you sitting here alone, so I snuck away. What are you drinking?”

“Gin and tonic.”

“That sounds good. I think I’ll have one.”

When the bartender set down Cole’s and Harper’s drinks, she said, “I’ll have what he’s drinking.”

“Sure thing.” The bartender winked at her and returned a moment later with her cocktail. “Here you go, sweetheart.”

He was a good-looking young guy, and Cole wished she’d show some interest in the bartender rather than him. However, that wasn’t the case. She leaned against Cole’s shoulder while she sipped her drink through the stirrer and batted her eyelashes at him, awkwardly trying to flirt.

Cole took a sip of his drink and tried to think of a polite way to let her know she was wasting her time with him. And as luck would have it, she asked him a question that solved his problem.

“Is the woman you were dancing with your girlfriend?”

He turned on the barstool so that he looked directly into her eyes and offered up his most dazzling smile. “Not yet, but I’m doing everything in my power to make her my girlfriend.” Now that should let her know he was unavailable.

Harper pressed her back against the wall as she stood outside the ballroom door. Her heart raced wildly, and she could feel her pulse thrumming. She couldn’t believe Cole was at the bar with another woman. Boy, it sure didn’t take him long to hit on a pretty redhead. Harper couldn’t have been gone for more than ten minutes. The way he smiled at that woman, and the way she leaned up against him, certainly implied they’d gotten pretty cozy. How was that possible in such a short amount of time? But then again, anything was possible with Cole. He was one smooth operator. And another guy who didn’t really want her.

Tears burned her eyes. There was no way she could go back in there and pretend to be happy. She was done with him. Done with men.

She ran back to the suite and quickly unlocked the door, not bothering to close it behind her. All she cared about was getting out of there as fast as she could. She’d take a taxi home.

She grabbed handfuls of clothes from the closet and stuffed them into her suitcase. It wasn’t until she heard footsteps behind her that she stopped what she was doing. Without turning around, she said, “Don’t say a word. I don’t want to hear any of your lies.”

“I just want to say that I’m sorry about last night.”

But that wasn’t Cole’s voice. It was Jeffrey’s. She turned to face him. “What are you doing here? You have no right to be in my room.”

“I just want to apologize. I had too much—”

“I don’t want to hear it,” she spat, cutting him off. “I just want you out of here. Out of my life. And if you don’t leave right now, I’m going to call security.”

“What’s going on?” Cole burst into the room and grabbed Jeffrey by the arm, spinning him around. “What did you do to Harper?” He pulled back his arm, but before his fist connected with Jeffrey’s jaw, Harper stepped between them.

“Stop it,” she yelled at Cole. “He didn’t do anything worse than what you’ve done. I want you both out of here.”

Cole stared at her, his brown eyes questioning. “What are you talking about? Why are you angry with me? What did I do?”

“Just go. Get out.” She collapsed onto the bed, her shoulders sagging with defeat.

“Buddy,
you
better go, before I really do hit you this time,” Cole warned Jeffrey. “Go back to Sabrina. Do I need to remind you that’s the woman you came here with?”

Jeffrey silently walked to the door, and it wasn’t until after his footsteps disappeared down the hall that Cole went over to the bed and sat next to Harper.

“I have no idea what I’ve done to get you so upset, but whatever it is, I’m really sorry.” He placed his hand over hers.

If he thought he was going to get her to forgive him by sweet-talking her, he was wrong. She pulled her hand away and moved farther down the bed so that he couldn’t touch her. “Really? You have no idea. You think coming on to another woman behind my back is nothing?” She shook her head sadly. “Well, I guess you would.”

“What are you talking about? What woman?”

“The one at the bar. You were having a drink with her.”

“The little redhead?”

“Yep, that's the one. Why, is there more than one?”

“Come on, Harper. Give me a break. I wasn’t having a drink with another woman. I know you're still upset with Jeffrey, but please don’t take it out on me.”

“This isn't about Jeffrey. This is about you and the fact that you haven't changed at all. You’re still the same old Cole. Selfish and uncaring.”

“Wow. That’s really how you see me?”

She shrugged. “Yeah. Sorry if it hurts. But I’m being honest. Maybe you should try it sometime.”

“That's not fair. I've made mistakes. Plenty of them, but I've always been honest with you.”

She watched him warily and had to remind herself not to be taken in by him again. “I don't want to talk about this any longer, Cole. There's no sense to it. I just want to go home.”

The way he looked at her with such disbelief made her waver. Could she have rushed to judgment? Could what she thought was a pick-up have been nothing more than an innocent conversation? But just as quickly as that thought occurred to her, it disappeared. No, Cole was Cole. He’d never change.

She went over to her suitcase and continued to pack to her things.

“Fine. If that’s what you want, I’ll take you home.” He grabbed his clothes from the closet and the few things he had in the bathroom, then stuffed them all into his duffel bag. “I’ll be waiting in the bar.” There was no mistaking the anger in his tone. “Text me when you’re ready to go.”

After he left, the tears of hurt and disappointment that she’d been holding back streamed down her cheeks. She’d wanted so much for him to be as wonderful as he’d seemed. How stupid of her. It was all an act. Just like pretending to be her boyfriend. One night of romance didn’t change that. It was her fault to have thought it would.

She should have spent Christmas at home, with Riley.

****

When Cole got to the bar, he ordered a shot of whiskey. Harper’s words had cut pretty deep. So she still thought he was a player. How could she after their time together? He thought he’d made his feelings for her clear. And this all stemmed from his sitting next to Christina? Talk about jumping to conclusions.

When the bartender brought him the shot, he quickly downed it and ordered another. How could Harper throw away what had begun between them? Couldn’t she see they were meant to be together? He understood her wounds from Jeffrey were still raw, and that might have had something to do with the way she jumped down Cole’s throat. But if she still thought of him as a jerk, what was the use in trying to build a relationship with her?

The bartender brought him the second shot, and he quickly downed that one too. He was about to order another when he realized he was doing the same thing he’d done ten years ago. He was letting Harper slip away. He should have gone to her after the accident and let her know what she meant to him. But he didn’t out of fear of rejection. And he wound up losing her. Was he going to do the same thing twice? Or had he learned from his past mistake?

“Ready for a refill?” The bartender held the whiskey bottle and was ready to pour the alcohol into the shot glass, but Cole put his hand over the top of it, stopping him.