All I Want For Christmas Read online

  “If that’s what the lady wants.”

  “I do,” Tina said.

  A dimple just like her father’s flashed on her cheek. “You’ve got cool hair.”

  Self-conscious, Tina touched her spiky hairdo. “Thanks. I like your pigtails, too, and those sparkly ties.”

  “Daddy bought ’em for me.” Maggie practically danced with excitement. “Guess what? Halloween was last week! I was gonna be a princess, but then I decided to be the number five ’cause that’s how old I am!”

  Tina laughed. “That sounds very…original.”

  “That’s what Daddy says, too. Guess what else? A long time ago, G. G. used to teach kindergarten.”

  “I know. I was one of her students. That’s how we met.”

  “You did? Did you hear that, Daddy?”

  “Yep.”

  For some reason Tina’s cheeks felt hot—maybe because Ryan was staring at her. She kept her gaze on Maggie. “I’ll bet you’re hungry.”

  “Uh-huh. Daddy is, too.”

  A big man like Ryan probably ate tons.

  “There’s plenty of food left,” Tina said.

  Duh. Anyone with eyes could see the platters on the dining room table.

  Ryan pulled his daughter’s pigtail. “Come on, Sunshine, let’s eat.”

  Though Tina was famished, she decided to wait until father and daughter had served themselves. Ryan made her nervous, but she couldn’t have said why.

  SURROUNDED BY talk and laughter, Ryan kept an eye on his daughter as he filled his plate a second time. Sprawled on an ottoman squeezed between G. G.’ s chair and the chair Tina had brought out from the kitchen, she stared at Tina with a rapt expression. No different from anyone else in the room.

  She was easy on the eyes, Ryan thought. G. G. had pictures of her on the mantel, so he’d known what she looked like. Short, spiky blond hair and big, blue eyes. But he hadn’t expected her to be so friendly. The warmth in her expression had surprised him and piqued his interest. But Ryan didn’t want to be interested.

  Suddenly, Maggie jumped up. Glass in hand, she darted toward her father, deftly slipping between the adults who filled up every available space.

  She lifted her empty glass. “Can I have more apple cider, Daddy?”

  “Sure thing.”

  From the jug on the table, he poured a few inches of the amber liquid into his daughter’s glass. Maggie gulped it down, then licked her lips.

  “Did you get enough to eat?” Ryan asked.

  “Uh-huh. Tina’s awesome.”

  Since starting kindergarten in September, his daughter had picked up the word and tended to use it constantly. She was growing up mighty fast—too fast for Ryan. “Awesome, huh?”

  He glanced at Tina, who was deep in conversation with Norma Featherstone. He’d heard Tina’s story. How she’d made good despite tragic circumstances. According to the neighbors, her mother had died during childbirth and her father had raised her alone.

  Just as Ryan was raising Maggie.

  Then Tina’s father had been killed in a truck accident. Rather than let her go into foster care, G. G. had taken her in and the whole neighborhood had helped to raise her. A beautiful story.

  Tina threw back her head and laughed, exposing her slender neck. She was a beautiful woman. Even if she was a little on the thin side, and had circles under her eyes. Most of the type A women he’d known, and he’d known more than his share, were too busy to eat right or sleep enough. It looked as if Tina was no different.

  Ryan wasn’t dating and he didn’t plan to until Maggie was grown up, but if he were, he wouldn’t date Tina. No matter how attractive she was. He’d heard that she was hell-bent on someday running the agency where she worked. He wished her well, but he’d had his fill of women who put their careers before everything else.

  He only hoped Maggie didn’t become too attached to her.

  “She’s only here a few weeks, Sunshine,” he cautioned.

  “I know that.”

  Suddenly her face was serious—way too serious for a five-year-old. She’d already lost so many of the females she loved.

  Ryan’s protective instincts surfaced. He would not allow his daughter to be hurt and disappointed ever again. He tweaked her nose. “Ready for a brownie?”

  The question did the trick. Brightening, Maggie nodded. “Tina can still be my friend, right?”

  “While she’s here, she can.”

  “Can I take her and G. G. some brownies?”

  Ryan placed three large fudgy squares on a plate. Walking as if she were carrying eggs, Maggie carefully made her way across the living room. Tina and G. G. graciously smiled and accepted their dessert, and his little daughter rewarded them with a grin that lit the entire room.

  While Ryan ate, his gaze wandered again to Tina. Despite the deaths of both her parents, she’d turned out well enough—thanks to the stability, love and concern of the people on Huckleberry Hill Road.

  He wanted the same things for Maggie—stability and love. Which was why he’d relocated to tiny Halo Island from bustling L. A. When he’d bought the old Booker house, mostly for the wide front porch and big backyard, he’d lucked out. His neighbors were as warm and friendly as family, and he thought there was no other neighborhood quite like this one anywhere.

  Her mouth full of brownie, Tina glanced straight at him. Her eyes widened a fraction, and he knew she’d caught him staring. He offered a stiff nod, grabbed Maggie’s empty glass, and headed for the kitchen to load their dishes into the dishwasher.

  Jefferson Jeffries, a grizzled man who smelled of diesel oil, followed him out with his own empty plate.

  “Tina’s a looker, ain’t she? Always has been.”

  Not about to deny it, Ryan grunted as he made room in the crowded appliance. Jefferson didn’t live in the neighborhood, but he’d once worked with Tina’s father and had been his closest friend. He showed up at every potluck dinner. Nice guy. Nice neighborhood traditions. Exactly what Maggie needed and deserved.

  “And she’s available.” Jefferson winked.

  The only flaw so far was that people kept trying to fix him up. Ryan rolled his eyes. “No thanks. I’m not in the market.”

  People wondered why—he saw it in their faces. In Jefferson’s. “Maggie needs me, and all my attention goes to her,” he said, repeating the words for the umpteenth time.

  If he needed physical relief, he would find it with women who wanted the same thing and nothing more. Though it had been a while, since before he’d moved here.

  “I understand.” Jefferson added his china and cutlery to the dishwasher. “Tina’s dad was the same way. Well, I’d best be leaving. Got to get up early for work. You coming to Thanksgiving dinner?”

  Maggie’s grandparents were gone, and Ryan’s only living relative was a cousin who lived in China and rarely came back to the U. S. He nodded. “We’ll be here.”

  “Good. It’s only two weeks away. See you then.” Jefferson exited the kitchen.

  Twenty minutes later, everyone had left except for Ryan and Maggie. His daughter had yawned several times, but she insisted on helping Tina tidy up the kitchen. Ryan wiped the dining room table with a damp rag. He chatted some with G. G., but her mouth was pulled tight and she looked extremely tired. So he wandered into the kitchen to get Maggie and take her home.

  Tina had started the dishwasher. Maggie stood beside her, hands on her hips and head angled a fraction—just like Tina.

  Already she was attaching herself to the woman. Ryan frowned. “We should go, Sunshine.”

  “Do we have to, Daddy?”

  “It’s a school night. And Tina and G. G. are tired.”

  “He’s right about that.” Tina headed for the living room with Maggie beside her.

  Ryan followed. He homed in on Tina’s backside, which was showcased by a snug sweater and designer jeans. Though she wasn’t more than five feet six, she had long legs, a small waist and a sweet behind. Which suited him perfectly. His body
stirred, and he jerked up his gaze—just in time.

  Tina turned toward him. “It’s been a rough day. Especially for G. G.”

  “I’m all right,” the older woman said somewhat faintly.

  Ryan glanced at Tina, who looked as worried as he felt. She caught her lower lip between her teeth, then released it, and he couldn’t help but notice that the bottom lip was plump and pink, even without lipstick. The upper lip dipped in what people called a cupid’s bow. A seductive mouth like that was made for kissing and other things….

  Tina blushed and looked away.

  Clearing his throat, Ryan jutted his chin toward the door. “Let’s get out of here, Maggie.”

  The gruffness in his voice surprised his daughter, and earned wide-eyed looks from Tina and G. G.

  “Uh, please,” he added, gentling his tone.

  “With brown sugar and raisins on it?” Maggie asked, the smile returning to her face.

  He winked and pulled her jacket from the closet. “And cinnamon, too.”

  “Did Tina talk to you about using your fax?” G. G. asked.

  “That’s okay,” Tina said, as she walked them to the door. “I’ll use the one at the mailboxes place.”

  “I haven’t faxed anything since I moved here. Why don’t I bring the thing over on my way to the bank tomorrow,” he offered, slipping into his jacket. “I’ll leave it on the front stoop.”

  “Thanks. I’ll return it before I head back to Seattle.” She opened the door, ushering in the damp night air, which smelled faintly of the sea.

  “’Bye, G. G. I love you.”

  Maggie dashed toward G. G. and threw her arms around the older woman, who flinched but managed a hug and a warm smile.

  “I love you, too, sweetie.” G. G. was the grandmother Maggie had never had. Ryan’s chest expanded, and he was doubly grateful he’d moved to Halo Island.

  The heartfelt look on Tina’s face as she watched the pair touched him. She’d probably heard about Maggie’s mother. She glanced at him, and her eyes filled with compassion and understanding.

  Only, she didn’t really understand. She didn’t know that Ryan and Heidi, a high-powered attorney, had been on the verge of divorce when Heidi had suffered a brain aneurysm—a congenital weakness, the doctors had said. Ryan’s wife had died at the age of thirty-one, leaving eighteen-month-old Maggie motherless and confused and Ryan grief-stricken.

  If that wasn’t enough suffering for one little girl, a year ago Ryan’s then-fiancée had walked out on them. And less than six months after that, the nanny who’d been around since Maggie’s birth had left them to take care of a grandson.

  That had been the turning point in Ryan’s life, and his reason for selling his bank, packing up and moving here.

  He was responsible for his daughter’s happiness and he would not fail her again.

  Tina’s eyes widened, and Ryan realized he was frowning. Turning away, he herded his daughter through the front door.

  Chapter Two

  Showered and dressed but still not fully awake, Tina yawned and stretched as she entered the cheerful kitchen. It was almost eight-thirty, but the dark morning made it seem earlier. After the rough night she’d had, it certainly felt earlier. Oh, for coffee…

  She shot a longing glance at the coffeemaker, but her doctor had warned her against drinking it on an empty stomach. She’d better eat, then.

  Unfortunately, she wasn’t hungry. The worries twisting her insides into knots had ruined her appetite.

  G. G. was her main concern. Having done way too much yesterday, the poor woman had passed a restless, pain-filled night, and had kept Tina awake and running downstairs at least half a dozen times. At last, sometime near morning, G. G. finally had fallen asleep. Tina hadn’t heard a peep in hours and she hoped G. G. managed to sleep late.

  That way Tina could work, which was another huge worry. Last night her assistant, June, had phoned to say that Kendra had invited their boss, Jim Sperling, and his wife out for drinks and dinner. The little sneak.

  “You should have seen her buttering him up,” June said. “I about gagged. Mr. Sperling seemed to enjoy it, though. I don’t like this at all, Tina. You need to do something or she’ll end up with your promotion.”

  Tina had popped two antacids. “I’m not the type to flirt with my boss, but even if I were, I can’t exactly invite the man to lunch. Getting there and back would take half the day. What I need is to impress him with my work.”

  “You already do that,” June had replied.

  Tina appreciated the praise. “Thank you. But I need more.”

  They’d talked a good hour, strategizing about Captain’s Catch, a restaurant chain that was currently using another ad agency. Drawing them into CE Marketing, Inc. would be a real coup.

  With that in mind, June had promised to overnight the restaurant’s brochures and menus. Armed with those and any additional information Tina gleaned via the Internet, she would work up something to knock the socks off Peter Woods, CEO of Captain’s Catch, and convince him to hire CE Marketing, and her in particular. That ought to tip the creative-director scales in her favor.

  By now her brain should have been humming with ideas. Unfortunately, she hadn’t come up with a single one.

  Maybe you don’t really want the promotion, whispered a voice in her head. Tina promptly pushed away the rebellious thought. “Of course I want it,” she said to the silent kitchen. The people who loved her expected her to move up, and she would not disappoint them.

  As she opened the refrigerator, the wind gusted, loud enough to be heard through the storm windows. Rain spattered against the window. Tina prayed that G. G. would sleep through the noise.

  She started the coffeemaker, then dropped a slice of bread into the toaster. The school bus screeched to a stop out front. No doubt to pick up Maggie.

  Drawn to catch a glimpse of the young girl—why, she couldn’t have said—Tina headed into the living room. Because she didn’t want to appear nosy, she peeked cautiously through a chink in the drapes. To her disappointment she didn’t see Maggie, who apparently had scrambled up the bus steps with the same enthusiasm she’d displayed the night before.

  Ryan was there, though, standing on the sidewalk directly across the street. His unbuttoned coat flapped in the wind. Gripping a large umbrella in one hand, he waved at the departing bus.

  Tina admired his broad shoulders and the way the wind whipped his hair across his forehead. A doting father and an attractive man to boot. With an adorable child you couldn’t help but like.

  No doubt some lucky woman would snap him up and they’d all live happily ever after. The thought sent a pang through her heart, and she returned to the kitchen wondering whether she’d ever have a happily-ever-after for herself. Not that she didn’t appreciate G. G. or any of the other people who cared so much for her. But a family of her own—a man to love, and a child or three, would be wonderful.

  The intensity of her longing surprised her. At the moment there was no time in her life for love or children or wishful thinking. The toast popped up. Tina spread it with peanut butter and then slathered on honey, a childhood favorite. Her job was to make the people who cared about her proud, by climbing all the way up the corporate ladder until one day she ran the company. She bit into her breakfast, which tasted delicious. She was hungry, she realized.

  After finishing the hasty meal, she filled a mug. Added a generous glug of milk, although she preferred her coffee black. Another doctor’s order. Standing by the coffeepot, she sipped her coffee and mused. After she was at the top, workwise, then she could think about love and children….

  A sharp knock sounded at the front door, startling her. As tense as she was, she jumped, spilling coffee on the linoleum and barely missing her shirt. Dammit.

  The knock was repeated. Now G. G. was sure to wake up. Muttering, Tina set the mug on the table and hurried forward.

  She opened the door. Ryan stood before her, holding the fax machine under his umbr
ella.

  “Good morning,” she said, keeping her voice low.

  “Morning. With all this rain, I figured I’d best not leave the fax on the stoop.”

  “A wise decision. Please come in.” Tina stepped back.

  Leaving the umbrella outside, Ryan wiped his feet on the mat and entered. She caught a whiff of man and damp, fresh air.

  Studying him from across the street, she hadn’t noticed the charcoal suit, dress shirt and striped tie. He looked professional, if windblown, and so handsome. If her heart could have heaved a dreamy sigh, it would have.

  Ryan cleared his throat. Blushing, she looked up into his eyes.

  The corner of his mouth twitched with amusement. “Like what you see?”

  “Um, no. I mean, yes. That is, I was just thinking you look nice. Very corporate.”

  Her bumbling reply wiped the humor from his eyes. “Thanks, but I’m not into ‘corporate’ anymore.”

  Before she could ask why, he shifted his attention to the fax. “Where do you want this?”

  Since the den was off-limits while G. G. slept there, there was only one option. “Upstairs, in my bedroom.”

  The moment she uttered the word, she wished she hadn’t.

  Ryan’s dark eyes met hers with the same interest she’d glimpsed last night—before wariness had taken its place.

  “Your bedroom, huh?”

  Women probably propositioned him all the time. Tina’s cheeks grew warm. “Why don’t you set it on the stairs, and I’ll take it up later. But do it quietly—G. G.’ s asleep in the den.”

  Ryan nodded. His footsteps solid but light, he moved to the stairs. While he was gone Tina grabbed a paper towel, bent down and wiped up the spilled coffee.

  When she straightened and turned toward the garbage can, Ryan was studying her bottom with an expression she couldn’t quite read.

  His gaze jumped to her face. Acutely self-conscious and wishing she’d spent more time on her makeup, she tugged her sweater over her hips. “I spilled my coffee. Would you like a cup?”

  Why had she offered? She didn’t want him to stay.

  “No, thanks.”