Chapter 4
FOUR
6 days til Christmas
Waking at the crack of dawn with my face smashed into a buffalo-checked throw pillow wasn’t exactly how I imagined I’d start the day. I had a perfectly plush king-sized bed upstairs with my name on it.
Ugh.
Having such massive windows didn’t suck, however.
I pushed myself up and licked my lips against the desperate need for water. Far too much wine with too little food last night made for some serious dry mouth. I glanced over my shoulder and the sleep dissipated instantly. The view was even more spectacular than last night.
I grabbed a throw blanket and wrapped it around me as I padded my way to the back door.
The water was calm this morning, but the clouds that had seemed so far away last night had rolled in. The sky was a streaky pink and yellow as the sun did its best to break through.
“Coffee first,” I mumbled, even if I couldn’t keep my eyes off the view.
I shuffled into the kitchen to find an array of coffees from what looked like a local shop called Brewed Awakening. Since I needed to bust ass this morning, I opted for a full pot of the fragrant mocha spice blend.
While the coffeemaker did its thing, I rummaged for something to nibble on. The cabinets boasted a few granola bars and breakfast bars, but my dusty mouth vetoed that in favor of more foraging. I opened the fridge and found a container with a little note on it with ingredients and heating instructions.
“These Hamilton people are no joke.” I popped the top to find homemade egg bites. My stomach growled so loud that I was glad I was alone. I put two on a plate and warmed them in the microwave, made a huge mug of coffee, then I took myself off to the back porch.
The air was crisp, but it was surprisingly mild for it being so late in December.
I curled up on the wide couch and allowed myself a quiet moment. The distant sounds of ducks made me smile. Then a massive crane soared low and skimmed across the water before dipping in to find its own breakfast.
The mist was pretty heavy on the water, but I could make out some interesting homes on the lake. Colonial mansions were a stone’s throw from impossibly ornate Victorians, as well as sleek modern homes with more angles than softness.
A black Victorian glinted in the mist and pulled at me more than I expected. Victorians weren’t usually my particular catnip, but then again, neither did luxury cabins normally.
Yet here I was.
However, I appreciated the eclectic feel of the homes as much as the charm of the storefronts in the town of Crescent Cove. It was slower and sweeter than the chaos of living on the road. Technically, I’d been in nearly every state of the US and most of the provinces of Canada, but I couldn’t say I’d had the time to see any of them.
Q’s schedule was jammed at all times. And I did my best to make sure he only had to deal with a fraction of the details. He needed to save his voice so I only bugged him for the most important interviews that would push the needle on sales.
Which meant I was about as active a goalie as my little brother, Rio. Who was a kickass goalie for the Kings as of this month.
He sent me a jersey every time he ended up on a new team. The Chicago Kings were a bit of an underdog team with a crap standing, but my little brother was already making a name for himself. I’d already become a fan of the team.
Rio was always so proud to be part of whichever team he landed on.
I couldn’t wait to see him and the rest of my siblings.
I cupped my fingers around the rapidly cooling mug and drank down the last of the magnificent brew. But that was enough resting, since I had a house to decorate before my tree delivery.
I took my dishes back inside, and I made an iced version of the coffee in one of the festive to-go cups in the cabinet. 32 ounces of coffee sounded about right to get me through most of the decorating.
After a quick trip upstairs to change, I got to work.
Even with all the things I’d bought, this place was a hell of a lot bigger than I’d planned on. I wanted everything to look perfect when my siblings arrived.
A mix of modern and standard classic Christmas songs blasted through the speakers as I decorated banisters, the mantel, and even the windows, thanks to the non-destructive sticky hooks that had been on the end of every aisle of Target.
I made note of what else I’d need to pick up to finish off the room since I was running out of damn near everything. Target was going to give me a VIP sticker, no doubt.
George Michael was blaring as the doorbell chimed.
I rushed to the door to find a statuesque redhead on the other side. Her hair was pulled up in a high ponytail with gold garland wrapped around the base and a sprig of holly tucked in a clip. She wore all black with a red winter vest with a gold jingle bell on the zipper pull.
“Tree delivery!” she said brightly.
“Hi. Sorry the music is loud. Let me go turn it down.”
The woman waved me off. “No worries. We love music don’t we, babe?” she called over her shoulder.
Kane was climbing into the back of a massive black truck. He waved. “Hi, Moana .”
I laughed. “He does that a lot, huh?”
“Distills everything into a Hawaiian nickname? Yeah, but only if he likes you.”
“Then I’m honored. I’m Ocean, by the way.”
“I’m Bells.” She wiggled a little and her zipper tinkled. “I heard you tried to buy out the Christmas Tree Farm last night.”
“I guess you could say that. He was very helpful.” We both watched as he unhooked the massive tree from the back of the truck. Kane was wearing another thermal shirt—this one, in a deep forest green over another pair of matching striped pants. It should have looked ridiculous, and yet he was intensely attractive in a wild way that was very unique. “You’re a lucky woman.”
She grinned. “Yeah. I did the vows and everything to say I’d keep him.”
I snickered.
“I guess I should go help him. We already put the base on for you after we did a fresh cut, so we just need to set you up, give her a drink, and we’ll be out of your hair.”
“Lifesaver. I totally forgot to look for a tree base.”
She grinned. “Kane figured. And we have special ones for these beasts.”
“Great. Thanks.” I pushed the door open as wide as it would go and rushed down the steps to see if I could help them.
The massive tree looked even bigger now that he was hauling it off the truck bed.
Bells pulled a bright pair of red gloves out of her pockets and jumped in to help. They squabbled a bit over which end she was picking up, and I couldn’t stop the smile from widening on my face.
He muttered something in his lyrical blend of Hawaiian and what I could only imagine was slang as he fought to get the ropes untangled from the bungee cords from the drive over.
Finally, they came at me with a massive green base coming my way. There was no way a Target run could have covered that size. Holy jeez. I backed up as Kane grinned down at me, a dusting of pine needles in his luscious curls.
Before I needed to roll my tongue into my stupid mouth, I jogged ahead to make sure nothing was blocking the front door.
“Where do you want it, keike ?”
“Does that thing end?” I asked as foot after foot came through the door.
He laughed. “Eleven-feet-six inches.” He glanced around. “You have plenty of room, thank God.”
“I do.”
“Where?”
“Sorry.” I pushed my fingers through my hair. “Window is probably best. The corner there behind the couches.”
“No stairs, yes!” Bells muffled voice came from the front of the tree she was pushing through the doorway.
I was going to have to rearrange the whole room.
What had I been thinking?
I scrambled forward and pushed the couch out of the way for them and they managed to get her upright.
Bells backed up and put her hands on her hips. “Crooked as a Grinch cartoon tree.”
Kane sighed and started cutting the branches free from the ropes binding the branches. “Give it a minute.”
“Trust me.” She folded her arms.
I shoved the other couch beside the first one then stood next to Bells. “Wow.” I tipped my head. “Definitely crooked.”
“See?”
Kane gave her a bland look then lowered to the floor, rolling under the sweeping boughs.
More squabbling ensued as she shouted directions and there was an increasing level of growls from under the tree.
It seemed perfectly straight to me. Gorgeous shape now that it was actually in the cabin and was worth every single penny I'd invested in it.
I glanced at Bells, who wore a little smirk.
"That good?" Kane grunted.
"A little more to the left." She glanced at me and waggled her eyebrows.
"If I go any more left, it's going out the window, kaimoni ." He peeked out from under the tree and grumbled. "You think you're funny."
"I do." She crouched and scrunched her nose at him. "It's good."
"And we have five more deliveries today," he grumbled.
"Yup!" She wiggled a little and her bell jingled. "Can't wait." She straightened. "Now we'll help you move the furniture."
"Oh, you don't need to do that."
Kane brushed off his gloves and looked down at the pile of needles he'd shaken free. "Sorry about that."
"No problem. I'm sure there's a vacuum around here somewhere."
"Oh, this isn't your place?" Bells looked around at all the decorations.
"My family is coming in. We kinda live all over these days. I wanted to make it special."
Bells gave me a soft smile. "That's really nice." She glanced at Kane. "We have to help her."
He crushed her against the side of him and kissed her forehead. "Of course." Over her head, he met my gaze. "Whatever you need."
"I'm fine, really." My gaze drifted to the couches I'd pushed around like toys in a Barbie Dream Home. "Well, maybe if you don't mind."
"Thought so."
As he flexed his bicep, Bells pushed him away."Stop showing off."
I didn't want to keep them forever, but Bells had ideas about where the couches should be in relation to the fireplace, anyway. I had a feeling Bells had opinions on a lot of things, based on Kane's indulgent shake of his head every time she changed her mind.
And for once, it was very nice not to have to make yet another decision.
In the end, I managed to find a vacuum in the slim cupboard under the stairs, and I chased after Kane as he moved everything. Bells even helped me with some of the remaining lights before they finally had to be on their way.
"I'd stay and play, but this guy has us overbooked for the whole day." Bells looped her arm around his waist, and Kane draped his arm along her shoulders.
"You volunteered me, kaimoni ."
"No, Laverne volunteered you."
"Oh, I met Laverne. I can totally see that," I said with a laugh.
"She has him wrapped around her finger." Bells went up on her tiptoes and brushed a kiss over his cheek. "And I kinda love it."
The quick kick of envy surprised me. I'd been so busy for so long, that the idea of a relationship was almost laughable. After my first year on tour—and an unfortunate relationship with a co-worker—I tended to fall into my bed in exhaustion at insane hours of the morning very much alone.
The mere idea of hooking up was too exhausting to even consider.
But I'd never had a man look at me like Kane looked at his wife—even in my other life. Hell, I don't think I'd ever had a man inspire anything other than a quick hit of attraction in far too many years to count.
I walked them to the door. "I hope the rest of your deliveries are less intensive. I really appreciate the help."
"We had fun." She bumped Kane's hip with hers. "Gives me some ideas for our new house—if we can ever get it finished."
Kane snorted. "I'm not the one who keeps making changes."
She elbowed him. "I can't help it that you're an architect that can make all my dreams come true in and outside the primary bedroom."
My eyebrows shot up as I laughed. "Now I'm actually jealous."
"I am pretty lucky." She grabbed his hand and dragged him down the stairs. "And don't get a swelled head about it, your hair is big enough."
The sky had bloomed with more clouds since we’d been playing with the furniture. A light dusting of snow now coated the walkway and grass.
Sighing, I waved at them and closed the door. Then I glanced around.
Man, did I still have a lot of work to do.