Wyatt smiled and nodded. “Christie, then.” He reached forward and shook Cal’s free hand. “Good to see you, Cal. Where’s that brother of yours?”
Cal snorted. “New Hampshire. Married to a Yankee vegetarian organic farmer.”
Wyatt laughed at Cal’s description of his sister-in-law and his obvious scorn at the idea of Troy living in the north. “And who is this?”
“This is Peter,” Cal told him. “He’s fifteen months.”
The baby smiled, showing several teeth, and struggled to get down. “He’s a handful,” Christie said.
“I suppose so.” Wyatt knew nothing about babies, except that they eventually grew into children who needed computers and software and digital television. They wanted games, text messaging and media uploads. He was all for that, but as for the little ones still in diapers…he’d leave them to their parents. “So, you’re a dad,” he said unnecessarily to Cal.
Cal smiled—something Wyatt didn’t remember him doing much when they were younger. “Married and everything, with another one on the way.”
“Congratulations. Still on the Rocking C?”
“Of course. We’re building a new house, so it’s kind of torn up right now.”
Wyatt nodded. He stayed away from construction whenever possible. Why be uncomfortable and inconvenienced like that? He’d bought his house empty, but completely finished after the former owner had gone belly-up in the import business.
“I’ll let you get unpacked,” Christie said. “Is there anything else you need? We have a conference room next to the office, and we keep coffee, drinks and snacks by the front desk.”
“I’m just fine, thanks. I can run by Casale’s Grocery if we need anything.” And possibly see Mrs. Casale, who probably didn’t want to see him. If only she knew what he and Toni had been doing all those nights when they’d told her they were studying. Exploring human anatomy was more like it.
“Just let me know if you need anything,” Cal’s wife said, and Wyatt promised he would as he shut the door after the happy couple.
What he needed was for this week to be over with, so he could put Brody’s Crossing behind him…again. Louisa would get her PR photos, the magazines would have their stories and he’d get back to his real life. The one without a certain blonde who could play havoc with his peace of mind.
He’d return to his house, where his housekeeper, Mrs. Nakimoto, had no doubt contracted with a decorator or two to produce stunning Christmas trees for several rooms in his white-on-white house.
Not one of them would have vintage or handmade ornaments, like this motel fifty miles from anywhere. But they’d look good, at least to some decorator’s critical eye.
He unclipped his cell phone from his waistband and fell back on the bed. Were there any decent channels on the TV? He wouldn’t be too surprised to see old reruns of I Love Lucy or Lassie in this family-oriented community, although since he was in the honeymoon suite, perhaps they had something racier.
With Toni nearby he didn’t need sexy movies to heat his blood. She’d starred in quite a few of his dreams over the years, even though he’d tried to get her out of his head. Now that he was back, he decided, reclining on a satin comforter, he’d have to work extra hard to stay angry at his former girlfriend.
The other option—that he give in to the attraction that hadn’t ever gone away—wasn’t a good alternative. Not if he wanted to be on his best behavior for the next week.
Chapter Two
Toni carefully pulled apart the blinds on her front window and looked at the wooded lot surrounding the community center across the street. Wyatt stood in the midst of white wire reindeer pieces, the kind wrapped in tiny clear lights. He appeared frustrated and a bit lost, hands on his hips, shaking his head. He probably hadn’t assembled Christmas decorations in years, if ever.
The McCalls had always been the type to have tasteful pre-assembled decorations. They did not have a herd of white reindeer who bobbed their heads or tossed their antlers side to side. They had one evergreen wreath on their front door, which was surrounded by red lights twined in a garland with silver-and-gold balls. Very subtle and tasteful.
Wyatt wasn’t subtle, although whenever she’d seen him in person or in a photo, he’d been dressed appropriately. Today he wore a weathered brown leather jacket and leg-hugging faded jeans with heavy work boots that she was surprised he owned. A brisk wind blew through his sun-streaked hair and gave ruddy color to his perpetual tan. He looked good. Too good for her peace of mind. She didn’t want to think of Wyatt as her former boyfriend. That era was long past. He was here to do a job. She already had two jobs to do, as mayor and business owner. No, she was better off thinking of Wyatt only in terms of now.
Toni sipped her hot tea and wondered what type of holiday lawn decorations graced Wyatt’s Carmel, California home. Something modern and stylish, if he had any decorations at all. He was, after all, a bachelor. From what she’d read, he traveled a lot. He still did daredevil stunts at times. He lived a fast, full life.
Her life wasn’t fast, but it was certainly full. Busy. With the new projects going on in town—which she had certainly hoped and worked for—her remodeling company kept her on a demanding schedule. She’d come to the point where she had to make a decision about running for office again. There had been some talk, she’d been told, that a few people thought her two jobs overlapped too much.
She dropped the blinds and shook her head. She wouldn’t think about that right now. Today was Tuesday and she had a city council meeting tonight. During the day she and her crew would be on the site of her first joint venture. She was converting the old hotel across from the train station into six condo units, with retail and public areas as well. The project was ambitious and exciting, funded by Christie Crawford with a little help from Toni’s brother, Leo, who owned the local hardware store.
Toni looked out the window again just in time to see Wyatt throw a deer head to the ground. Oops. He was getting frustrated, and an unhappy Wyatt would not be good for Brody’s Crossing or for himself personally—just in case anyone was watching or listening. She set her mug on the windowsill, grabbed her fleece jacket and ran out the door.
WYATT STARED AT THE REINDEER parts in disgust. A simple task had turned into a morning of frustration because someone hadn’t kept the directions or the original boxes. The five reindeer had been disassembled and stored in a big discarded refrigerator box. He’d already spent an hour untangling their wire antlers from their spiky legs. If he hadn’t promised the community center director that he’d use these specific reindeer, of which she was so proud, he’d chuck the whole lot in the Dumpster and buy some new ones at the Wal-Mart in Graham.
“Need help?”
He whipped around to see another object of his frustration—albeit from a very different source—stop on the other side of the reindeer pile. “Spying on me, Miss Mayor?”
He thought he saw some guilty color in her cheeks, but it might have just been the cool, damp wind whipping through the bare limbs of the cedar elms.
“No, but I did notice you working on the Christmas decorations,” she replied, folding her arms across her chest.
Yep, she’d been spying on him.
“I’d be better off buying new reindeer and hiring a professional to put them together.”
“That wouldn’t be in the spirit of your return to Brody’s Crossing, would it?”
“Maybe not technically, but it would be the fastest way to get the decorations up and running.”
“Fast isn’t always best.”
“You’ve got that right, babe,” he said with a big grin. Sure enough, he’d irritated her.