Chapter Twelve
Twelve
Julian
“Ow,” Julian muttered, rubbing his nose. This was the second time he’d prodded himself in the face with an artificial Christmas tree branch.
“How’s it going, Rudolph?” Harriet said, walking across the common room with the biggest ball of tangled Christmas lights Julian had ever seen.
Julian scowled and stopped rubbing his nose. “What the hell is that supposed to be?”
“The Christmas lights you asked for.”
“Why do they look like that?”
“Do I look like Santa’s elf to you? This is how they were handed to me by the admin team.”
“Sure you’re not just trying to sabotage their tree to make up for the gingerbread house situation?”
Harriet raised a long finger in his direction. “You said we were forbidden from discussing that further.”
“Only because you and Warren were stirring up a protest in the dining room.”
“You’ve managed to get away with it again this year, Guerrero.
Next year you won’t be so lucky. So enjoy whatever alliance you currently have with the admin staff.
We’re coming for you.” She gave him the universal I’m watching you signal before slinking away to the other side of the common room where she’d conned Doris into making inappropriately shaped decorations for their tree.
Every year Glendale decorated ten trees. One for every floor of the building. The residents from each floor usually decided how they would decorate their allotted tree.
Julian always ended up decorating the one destined for the lobby. He glanced around to see if he could find some of his own help, but Maggie was busy micromanaging tinsel and Frank was trying to program a set of lights to blink in time with music.
Julian returned to his tree, wondering if he should attempt something more creative than the usual glass balls.
Though if he was being honest, he was too exhausted to care.
He’d spent most of last night getting reacquainted with Charlie in the best possible way.
Leaving her asleep in bed this morning had been torture, but he also knew the residents needed some sort of supervision or else this tree situation was likely to run amuck.
With Harriet left unchecked, he’d be plucking phallic-shaped ornaments off every tree in the building.
“I think you missed a spot.”
Julian leaned around his tree, finding Charlie standing on the other side. The fact that she was still smiling at him must be a good sign.
He was tempted to lean over and kiss her.
To wrap his arms around her waist and feel the length of her body pressed against his.
For a long moment it was all he could think about.
A part of him knew he should be concerned about the speed of his deepening feelings, especially knowing that Charlie’s feelings about him were mixed up with Tom and her fears and the grief that still plagued her, but the rest of him shoved that concern aside.
And it was so easy to do when she was looking at him like that.
“Just there,” she said, pointing out a huge gap in his decorations.
“I was actually waiting for someone of the shorter persuasion to come along and help fill the hole.”
Charlie’s lips puckered. “I’m not going to react to being called short purely because your ornament distribution is embarrassingly uneven. The bottom of your tree is practically naked.”
Julian held her gaze, knowing she’d said that on purpose. “Good thing you’re here then. I’d hate for someone to see the tree in such a revealing state.”
Her lips curled into a smirk.
They hadn’t talked about what last night meant. But the fact she was standing here, teasing him, was all the reassurance he needed this morning.
Charlie held her hand out for an ornament. “Put me to work.”
“Actually,” Julian said, stroking the center of her palm in a slow circle. Her eyes widened. “With hands like that, I might have a better use for you.”
Charlie wiggled her fingers at him. “These old things? I wonder what better use you could have in mind.”
They both knew exactly what she could do with those hands. And that mouth. And that body. But right now Julian wasn’t thinking about that. Well, not only that. Instead, he picked up the giant tangle of lights Harriet had delivered him and dropped it into Charlie’s waiting hands.
The weight of the tangle made Charlie grunt. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I wish I was.”
“This should be illegal,” she complained, pouting at him.
Those lips should be illegal, Julian thought, tearing his gaze away.
Charlie dropped into one of the wingback chairs, making herself comfortable. Her delicate hands tugged at the knotted light strand, carefully brushing over the tiny bulbs.
Julian needed to turn his focus elsewhere. Watching her make quick work of the tangle with her slim fingers was making his skin prickle with desire.
“Personally, I’d just buy new lights,” Charlie said.
Julian cleared his throat. “So would I, but you know, trying to make the dollar stretch.” He glanced over. Charlie had worked part of the strand between her teeth. He grumbled. That wasn’t helping.
“I think you can find ten dollars in the budget for new lights,” she said.
“But it’s not only one set of new lights.
If I get new lights for this tree, then everyone wants new lights and fancy ornaments and better decorations, which is definitely not in the budget.
Plus I think it’s kind of fun seeing what the residents come up with every year when they have to sort of improvise their decorations. They get very creative.”
Charlie had grown distracted with something across the room. Julian spied over her chair. She was looking at the tree that Harriet and Doris were decorating.
“Not sure you want them getting that creative. Does that tin soldier have a—”
“I’m actively choosing to ignore it,” Julian said, averting his eyes. “As I do most years.”
Charlie burst into tinkling laughter. “Is that allowed?”
“I mean…we’re all adults here.”
“Except when someone’s poor, unsuspecting great-grandchildren come to visit.”
“I’ll put a PSA out to keep the kids off the fourth floor,” he teased. “And if that can’t be avoided, I’ll shove their tree into a storage closet.”
Charlie grinned wickedly. “I can’t wait to be old. Look at all the things you can get away with.”
Julian laughed, but Charlie’s grin faded quickly, a melancholy look replacing it. He knew immediately that her thoughts had strayed to Tom, and how much older she would get without him.
After talking to her last night, it was easier for him to read her. Julian knew his head was warning him for a reason, but his heart said that sometimes things worked out. They were called second chances for a reason.
Uncertainty coursed through him, catching in his chest. Was this their second chance or just an opportunity for him to be a fool?
“There!” Charlie exclaimed, getting the lights untangled. She held them up triumphantly. “I should be honored with a reward.”
“Your reward is getting to help me string the lights on the tree,” he said, taking one end of the strand and looping it around the very top branches. He continued winding the strand around the tree, until he reached the halfway point, then he passed it back to Charlie.
“I don’t want to hear another short comment,” she warned, walking around the tree with the lights looped over her arm.
“How about a little one?”
She glared at him as she rounded the tree.
“A petite one? A miniscule, teeny, wee little comment?”
“Wee?” she said. “Now you’ve gone too far.” Charlie looped the light strand around him, getting him caught against the branches.
“Charlie,” he muttered, trying to duck under the strand. But as he did he somehow got tangled in another.
“You’re making a mess of things.”
“I’m making a mess of things?” He stepped over a strand of lights, bumping into her. “Here, stop moving.” He took hold of her shoulders and switched their positions. The strand ended up at the back of his knees, with him pressing Charlie up against the tree.
“Oh yes. This is much better,” she said. “Sorta feels like you planned this.”
“You’re the one who came over to offer your help.”
“Out of the goodness of my heart.” Charlie tried to duck under his arm. “You’re in my way.”
“You’ve tied us together. Let me fix it.”
Charlie stilled, and Julian snaked his arms around her briefly, sorting out the lights.
Her brows arched playfully as he worked. “You didn’t have to arrange all this just to hold me again,” she whispered.
Julian flushed, probably the same red as the decorations judging by how hot his cheeks were. His eyes darted around the room to make sure they didn’t have an audience.
She patted his arm, chuckling a little, then stepped away once they were untangled.
Truth was, Julian wanted to be tangled up with her. He didn’t want another whirlwind fling. And he definitely didn’t want to give Charlie the chance to disappear from his life again.
Tread lightly. She was still figuring herself out. Don’t dive too deep too fast.
Charlie finished stringing the lights just as Doris carried over a box of icicle-shaped ornaments to hang on their tree.
“Harriet said these got mixed up with our decorations,” she said, handing them off to Julian.
“Yes,” Charlie said, regarding her grandmother with amusement. “You two seem to be getting quite adventurous with your decorations.”
“We’ve hardly scratched the surface,” Doris said. “Just wait until you see the tree topper.”
Charlie put her head in her hands. “Oh God. I don’t even want to imagine. Harriet is a terrible influence on you.”
“I’ll have you know the tree topper was my idea.” Doris winked and sauntered away.
“Well, on that terrifying note,” Charlie said, “I should get down to the music room and prepare for rehearsal. You know, on the off chance we get good news from the Arts Council.”
Julian was trying not to think about his inbox. He felt like the more he checked his email, the less likely he was to actually receive an answer.