Chapter 2
TWO
OLIVIA
“I beg your pardon.”
The words spilled out of me faster than I would’ve liked, faster than they would’ve if I’d given myself even just a moment to take in the sight of the man who’d approached.
Hearing my caustic tone, he held his hands up in surrender. “Hey, I don’t mean any harm. I just thought you might be cold.”
Now that he’d mentioned it, I had to admit this wasn’t exactly a wise idea. Wanting to start over, I offered a small smile. “Yeah, I guess it is chilly out here.”
The man lowered his hands, tipped his chin up slightly, and studied me with a gleam in his eyes. Gesturing toward my gown, he said, “Strange choice for a Christmas tree lighting, don’t you think?”
I arched a brow. “Even stranger that you’d be willing to approach me in such a state, wouldn’t you say?”
He chuckled, and my heart stopped.
From the moment I’d spoken those first words to him, I’d regretted my tone. He was handsome. But that chuckle? That sound and the smile that went along with it had me captivated.
“Is it?” he countered, taking a few steps in my direction. He shrugged. “Is there any reason your groom left you out here alone like this?”
Any warmth that might have been present in my expression was gone. My stomach clenched, and an unwelcome chill that had nothing to do with the weather ran down my spine.
The man allowed his gaze to drift away from me, and he scanned the area, presumably searching for my missing groom.
“You won’t find him,” I revealed.
The man’s eyes were back on me, something that looked a lot like genuine curiosity and concern lingering in them. “Is that… Is that a good thing? I can’t imagine leaving my beautiful bride out in the cold, staring at a Christmas tree.”
Was he just being nice, or did he really think I looked beautiful?
Granted, I knew I wasn’t normally hideous.
Heck, I made a living off being beautiful.
But I’d had a lot of hours of agonizing over the decision I’d made.
Even if I believed it had been the best decision for me, I’d shed a few tears on the way here.
Whether they were of joy or sorrow, I didn’t yet know.
“I don’t suppose it would be a good thing if that were the case. But in this instance, I left him,” I shared.
I had no clue what was compelling me to talk to this man. He was a complete stranger. But maybe that’s what made it so easy. I could have this conversation, get it off my chest, and never have to worry about seeing him again.
The man looked around the park once more, seemingly still interested in locating a man in a tux. His eyes narrowed on the hotel in the distance, the one I’d checked into immediately upon arriving here in this town. His confusion led me to reveal more.
“I didn’t leave him at the hotel. I left him at the altar,” I explained. A laugh dripping with a hint of disbelief escaped. “Technically, I never made it down the aisle. The wedding venue is four hours away, so I imagine he’s not likely still standing at the end of that aisle waiting for me.”
Curiosity turned to surprise as the man’s brows shot up.
Whatever he thought about my decision to walk out of my wedding, he never shared.
Instead, his eyes darted between the tree and me several times.
“Forgive me, but why would any of that lead you to be standing out here in nothing more than a wedding gown?”
I looked down at my gown, the one that entirely too much money had been spent on. “I’ll admit that it’s not conventional, or even practical, but at least I’m wearing something.”
“You didn’t think it’d be better to put something warmer on?”
I bit my lip. “I… I kind of left in a hurry, only bringing the bitter essentials with me. This is all I have to wear, though. And I love Christmas trees. They’re my absolute favorite thing in the world.
So, when they told me at the hotel that the Christmas tree lighting was happening tonight, I decided to stroll over. ”
Understanding dawned on his features, and he offered a slight nod in return. “I see. Well, you’ve got a good reason. And this is a pretty good tree, I’d say.”
I didn’t know how I’d expected him to respond, but that hadn’t been it. The fact that he hadn’t judged me or looked at me with disgust was enough of a surprise. That he was willing to take it a step further and talk about the tree made it so much better.
It was the happiest I’d felt all day, so as some of the tension left my body, I beamed at the stranger. “It’s a great tree.”
I returned my attention to the tree just as a gust of wind blew past. For the first time since I’d stepped outside the hotel, I regretted not having made the effort to pick up some warmer clothes somewhere.
Even just a sweatshirt would have done wonders to cover the skin exposed in my strapless gown.
Barely ten seconds later, the most masculine scent surrounded me, and a warm jacket was draped over my shoulders.
I looked to my side, tipping my chin up, to see that the man had closed the remaining distance between us and was looking at me with such compassion and warmth in his stare. “It wouldn’t be good if you wound up in the hospital from hypothermia tonight.”
One half of my mouth quirked with a smile. “Maybe not. But at least that would be a way to make this day something other than the day I left my fiancé standing at the altar.”
Judging by the way he seemed to stand a little taller, it appeared he’d taken that as a challenge. “Oh, well, we can definitely find a way to make this day something other than that without you needing medical treatment.”
“We? I don’t even know you.”
He took half a step back and extended his hand. “I’m Taj. Taj Blackman.”
I swallowed roughly, placed my hand in his, and said, “I’m O… Oaklee. Oaklee Turner.”
Taj’s brows knit together, and he tipped his head to one side.
He studied me in a way that made me think he knew that I’d lied to him.
It was possible he recognized me. Whatever thoughts had been going through his head, he didn’t share.
Instead, he smiled and said, “It’s nice to meet you, Oaklee. Can I buy you a cup of hot cocoa?”
There was no telling if anything that happened from this point forward would turn my day around, but what would be the harm in trying to make that happen? We were in a public place, and Taj had been more than kind by offering up his jacket to me.
So, I smiled and said, “I’d love a cup.”
Taj didn’t hesitate. He swept his arm out and indicated the direction he wanted me to walk. Then he fell into step beside me, leading us to the hot cocoa stand.
While we waited for our cups, I slipped my arms through the sleeves of his jacket and said, “Thank you for lending me your jacket. Are you sure you’re warm enough now?”
“You’re welcome. I grew up in this town, so I’m accustomed to the cold weather. Of course, I always come prepared and dress with lots of layers, so I’ve got this sweatshirt and a long-sleeved shirt underneath it.”
“Well, it was very kind of you to lend me the jacket. Until you mentioned it, I guess I really wasn’t paying attention to just how cold it was out here.”
Taj reached for our cups and held one out to me. “It’s understandable. You had other things on your mind.”
My insides warmed at the softness in his tone at the same time my fingers relished the warmth seeping through the cup.
“Would you like to walk with me?” Taj asked.
I lifted the cup to my lips, took a sip, and nodded.
For a few moments, we walked along, sipping our hot cocoa while eyeing up the little vendor stands lining the park. There were so many; I probably could have gone crazy with spending if I’d been in the mood to shop.
Wanting to fill the silence, I asked, “So, are you here by yourself, too? Do you love Christmas trees as much as I do?”
Taj let out another laugh. “I met up with a bunch of my friends and my sister here. I’m not opposed to Christmas trees.
I enjoy them at this time of year, but I’m not necessarily a fanatic about them.
I’m here because I’ve been coming to this Christmas tree lighting ceremony with all of them ever since it started seventeen years ago. ”
My eyes rounded as a wave of jealousy washed over me. “Wow. You’re lucky.”
“Lucky? Because of a tree?”
I shook my head. “It’s about so much more than a tree, Taj. Seventeen years tells me this has become a tradition for you. Probably since you were a kid, right? Unless… Unless you’re one of those guys who ages well and is much older than you look.”
Taj stopped walking, so I did, too. When I looked back at him, his lips twitched. “How old do I look, Oaklee?”
I pressed my lips together and squinted, like I was trying hard to determine just how old he might have been. Deciding he’d been far too nice and deserved to have me be the same in return, I guessed, “Twenty-five?”
“Really?”
Shaking my head, I confessed, “I was going to say twenty-seven, but I didn’t want to insult you.”
He beamed at me. “You would have impressed me. I turned twenty-seven just a few days ago.”
“Wow. Maybe I should trust my instincts more often.”
“You don’t normally?”
I chewed on my bottom lip as we fell back into step beside one another. “Not usually. I have a lot of thoughts about a lot of things, but I only occasionally follow through on stuff that I really want to do.”
“And how do things turn out when you listen to your gut?”
We strolled up to a vendor that had dozens upon dozens of snow globes.
I hadn’t held one in years, so I walked over to look at them.
There was one that had a Christmas tree inside with a couple standing in front of it.
I picked it up, tipped it over, and watched as it looked like snow falling on the tree and the couple.
My lips curved into a smile.