Molly stared straight ahead. After last night, and again just now with Richard, she intended to keep her distance from this man.
“What kind of tree do you want us to buy?” Richard asked his mother.
“One that pleases Toby,” she said.
“Do you have any preferences, Molly?” Richard asked.
“Not in regard to trees,” she muttered, hoping that would be the end of any conversation.
“Do you always decorate a tree in Florida?” he persisted.
“A small one.” She didn’t want to talk to him about her life. It had nothing to do with him. He’d probably think her simple life was pitiful, but she’d created a happy life for herself. It hadn’t been easy.
“Why?”
That got her attention. She turned to stare at the handsome man. What was wrong with him? “Because I enjoy Christmas, of course. Don’t you?”
“Not particularly.”
“Is your middle name Scrooge?”
His lips twitched at the corners. “No, not exactly.”
“Well, I hope you’ll make an effort for Toby.”
“I won’t need to. My mother seems to have the bit in her teeth. She’ll probably hire someone to play Santa since she wants this Christmas to be special for him.”
“Good for her.”
“What do you want Santa to bring you for Christmas?”
The man was crazy. He didn’t enjoy Christmas and yet he asked about Santa? Molly shrugged. “Nothing.”
“Aha! So you’re not a fan of Christmas, either!”
Molly scowled at him. “I love Christmas! But that doesn’t mean I believe in Santa Claus,” she added in a lower voice.
“Then why do you love Christmas if you don’t expect to get something special?”
Molly shifted in her seat to look at him squarely. “Christmas isn’t about getting something. It’s about giving. That’s the true meaning of Christmas!”
Or couldn’t someone as handsome, rich and successful as Richard Anderson understand that?
Richard drove silently the rest of the way to the Christmas tree lot. The nurse had put him in his place.
Maybe he deserved it. He’d lost his enthusiasm for Christmas the last few years. Or maybe his enthusiasm for life. He wasn’t certain.
But he sure didn’t want to get into a spitting match with Molly. She seemed well-armed and he didn’t like to lose.
He pulled to a stop beside the tree lot. “We’re here. Mom, be sure you’re wrapped up warmly. We’re having a cold December this year. Toby, do you have your coat on?”
“Yeah,” he called over his shoulder as he grabbed Eliz-abeth’s hand and off they went toward the trees.
Left alone with Molly, he didn’t know what to say. “I guess we should go find a tree,” he ventured.
Molly nodded and set off after her charge.
“This one looks nice,” he heard her say as he walked toward the trio weaving among the evergreens.
“Oh, no, it’s much too short,” Elizabeth said. “We need a bigger tree because our ceilings are high.” She pointed to a tall one. “What about this one, Toby?”
“It’s kind of skinny, isn’t it, Grandma?”
“Absolutely right. Let’s go look at that one over there.” The two hurried eagerly in the direction Elizabeth had pointed. But Molly stayed behind, he noticed. He also noticed her shiver.
“Are you cold?” Richard asked, stepping closer to her.
She backed up. “No. I’m just adjusting to the change in the weather.”
Richard nodded. He said nothing for another few minutes, just standing there amongst the trees. Finally he turned again to Molly. “Don’t you want to go see the other trees?”
“Whatever they choose will be fine.”
More silence. Then, after another few minutes, when Elizabeth and Toby were still darting around the lot, where each tree was staked to the ground like a mini forest, Richard was getting irritated.
“Mom, you and Toby need to choose one. It’s too cold to remain out much longer.”
He shot a look at Molly, expecting to find disapproval on her face, but she didn’t look perturbed by his demand.
“Are you frozen, Molly?”
“N-no, I’m f-fine.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were cold?” he asked in irritation. Grabbing her arm, he headed back to the SUV.
“What are you doing?” she demanded, resisting.
“I’m going to warm you up.”
The look of horror on her face brought some interesting thoughts to Richard, but he hastily shut them out. “I’m going to start the engine and turn on the heater,” he explained with a grin.
“O-Oh.”
Once he got her in the front seat, he circled the vehicle and got in to start the engine. “Give me your hands,” he said.
Molly stared at him again. “Why?”
“I’m going to hold them in mine. You should’ve bought some good gloves today when you bought your coat.”
“I didn’t think I’d be outside this long,” she muttered. She finally extended her hands to him. He’d removed his gloves and the warmth of his skin began to penetrate hers.
He did nothing, just held her hands in his larger ones. Still, Molly could feel the heat all the way from her head to her toes. Under her coat she felt flushed. Being in this enclosed space, alone with Richard, was an amazingly intimate exchange with a man she didn’t even like two days ago.
Too intimate.
She pulled her hands free. “I think they’re warm enough now, thank you.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, staring at her.
She felt her cheeks heat and she knew she had to have some distance. “Yes, thank you.” She looked over her shoulder. “How—how is the tree search going?”
After telling her to stay inside so she’d be warm, he added, “I’ll be back in a minute.”
Then he located the two tree-hunters. “Molly is half-frozen. You’ve got to make a decision.”
“We have, Richard. We just decided on this one,” Elizabeth said, pointing to a nine-foot Douglas fir.
“Fine, go get in the car and I’ll buy it.”
“We need to stay here until you get the man’s attention. You might buy the wrong tree.”
Richard glared at his mother. What had happened to the gentle, indecisive lady he’d lived with for the past eighteen months? “Fine, Mom, I’ll be right back.”
He went back to the hut where the operators stood around a glowing fire in a half drum. Quickly indicating he was ready to buy his tree, he led one of the men to his mother’s side. “This is the tree we want to buy.”
“Well, now, you picked a fine one!” the man said with enthusiasm, which in Richard’s experience meant that they’d picked an expensive one.
“Mom, take Toby back to the car so he won’t catch cold,” Richard urged. He handed his credit card to the man to move the process along.