Chapter Twenty-One
“Thank you, Oliver.” Viola handed him cash. “There’s no way I could have set this up myself.”
“You’re welcome.” Oliver pocketed the money. “You got it from here?”
Viola admired the evergreen. “Absolutely. It just needs decorating now. Go on. Don’t keep your girlfriend waiting.”
“All right.” He waved. “I’ll see you. Have fun.”
Oliver headed toward his car, leaving Viola on the veranda of the Lakeside Chateau. She’d caught a lucky break when Nick had told her there was one tree left from his farm that was the size she needed. She’d lucked out again when Oliver had said he was free to help her stand it up in front of the building.
Viola removed the lid from the container she’d brought and dug out a shiny bauble. When the storm had destroyed the Christmas tree at the venue’s entrance, Viola had suggested Jonas replace it. He had, of course, replied that there was no need since Christmas was over anyway, brushing it off as unimportant. But Viola had insisted that New Year’s Eve wasn’t complete without a Christmas tree and that people coming to the venue would expect to see one. When he’d contended that it probably wasn’t possible to find a tree since Christmas was over, his pessimism sparked an obstinate determination in Viola to prove him wrong. Jonas hadn’t believed she could find one, but he’d underestimated her. As she crouched to grab the string of lights from the box, she grinned, imagining the look on Jonas’s face when he saw the New Year’s miracle she’d pulled off.
Too excited about her project to be bothered by the cold, Viola managed to string the lights and hang the garland before Jonas showed up.
“What are you doing?” Jonas sauntered up the exterior steps of the building.
She smirked. “You said I could set it up if I found a big enough tree.”
He scoffed and shook his head. “How did you find one after Christmas?”
“I have connections.” She raised her brows. “Well, don’t just stand there. Help me decorate it.”
“What? Me?” He came nearer, hands in his coat pockets. “No. I, uh, I don’t really enjoy the whole decorating thing.”
“Oh, right. You’re the not-so-into-Christmas guy.” Viola shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
Since he was still watching, she purposely clustered several baubles on one branch, weighing it down.
“That doesn’t, uh … that’s not how you do it.” He gestured at the branch, a subtle flicker of scrutiny passing across his features.
She played dumb. “What do you mean? It looks great.”
“No. You’re supposed to spread them out more.” He approached the tree and rearranged the ornaments. “This is just sloppy.”
Viola bit her cheek. “I see.”
She hung a few more baubles on the same branch.
Jonas clicked his tongue and moved them elsewhere. “No. Like this.”
She laughed.
He squinted. “Did you just manipulate me?”
“I knew you were too much of a control freak to let that go.”
“Control freak?” He sounded exasperated, but amusement danced in his eyes. “I’ll have you know I’m perfectly capable of letting things get out of control. When I feel like it.”
“You? Come on.”
He scoffed. In the next second, he scooped a handful of snow off the veranda railing, packed it up, and whipped it in her direction.
She ducked, but the snowball still pelted her in the shoulder.
“Now you’ve started it.” She retaliated quickly, not caring that the snow was freezing her gloveless hands.
Her snowball hit him in the chest, but he’d already hurled another her way.
She bobbed, making her way down the stairs. She needed more ammunition, and the ground was covered with it.
Dodging heavy snowballs, Jonas hurried down the stairs and dove to the ground. He rapidly got to his feet, but his cashmere coat was marked with white flakes.
She crouched to gather more snow, but before she could track him, Jonas charged, and frosty flakes splattered all over her face. As she blinked the white powder out of her eyes, he caught her by the waist with both arms and slammed into her, driving her backward. They landed in a blanket of thick snow with Jonas on top.
Viola mustered enough energy to grab a fresh handful and smash it into Jonas’s hair. He rolled off her, letting out a gasp. When he brushed the snow out of his mane, Viola laughed. Of course he would be worried about his hair in a moment like this.
He narrowed his eyes, but there was still a dazzling grin on his face. “What?”
She sat up. “I got you.”
As his eyes roamed over her features, she sobered, getting lost in his stare.
“Yeah,” he responded softly. “You did.”
He reached toward her, but she didn’t flinch. Something about the way he looked at her caused a flutter in her stomach. He pushed away a strand of hair that had clung to her cheek.
Was he leaning in closer?
“Mr. Brickman, I’m sorry to interrupt.”
Viola looked past him to see Susan standing near the barely decorated Christmas tree. Her red coat was open, which implied Susan wouldn’t stay outside one minute longer than she had to.
“It’s Billings on the line,” Susan said. “They said they couldn’t reach you on your cell.”
Jonas cleared his throat as he jumped up. “Thank you. I’ll be right there.”
Susan nodded and headed back into the building, rubbing her arms.
Jonas straightened his coat and held out a hand to Viola. For some reason, she felt a tightness in her chest. All at once, the cold was unbearable. Was she disappointed that the moment had passed? What had it even meant? It had just been a playful snowball fight. But if that were true, why did her stomach feel like it was tied up in knots at the thought of him leaving?
She took his hand and allowed him to pull her to her feet.
“I need to take this call.” He brushed the white powder off his coat. “Not sure how long it will be, but I’ll try to hurry back and help you finish the decorations.”
She moved her hair away from her cheeks. “Don’t even worry about it. Go take care of business.”
His smile was timid and gone in a flash as he turned and strolled into the chateau.
Viola watched him go, brushing stray snowflakes from her hair. A cool breeze rushed by, and she stretched her neck, taking in the enormous structure of the building and the massive sky above it. Twinkling stars stared back at her. She followed the panorama down to the snow-covered mountains in the distance. Moonlight reflected on the lake. She could just make out the glass-enclosed winter garden where Holly and Nick’s ceremony would take place. Their wedding arch already stood there, minus the fresh flowers.
Jonas certainly has a beautiful building.
She supposed he had to be tenacious with his business to keep everything running professionally. He was a busy man, and Viola wasn’t positive there was room in his life for her.
Her gaze went back to the tree. Somehow, she doubted he would be back anytime soon. With a sigh, she resolved to finish decorating alone.