Chapter 5
Chapter Five
ASHLEY
Ican’t believe I just told Carter that my ego is still bruised from what happened between us. Now he’s giving me that look. The same one from that night. As if he’s resigned to talk about it. Something I didn’t want to do then, and something I still have no interest in doing now.
“I have to go grab some coolers to put the fridge stuff in.” I weave around him, but he holds my wrist and brings me to a stop. Tingles race up my arm, and I hate my body for betraying me. We can’t still want this man.
“We need to talk, Ashley.” I meet his gaze, and our eyes hold for an uncomfortable beat.
He’s as gorgeous as he was six months ago. Vibrant blue eyes set off by his dark-brown hair, broad shoulders, chiseled jaw, and just the right amount of five o’clock shadow to be sexy.
“I really need to go to the store, Carter. I have to prepare dinner for my guests.” I give him a pleading look, asking him to drop this topic at least for the time being.
He nods and steps back. As I walk past him, his hand wraps around my wrist again. “After dinner then. I don’t want our… issues to cause problems at Doug and Steph’s wedding.”
“Isn’t the problem what didn’t happen?” I grab my purse off the kitchen table, snag my coat off the rack, and head out the door.
Carter’s rejection should not sting after all these months, but it does, and I have no idea why.
That’s a lie. I know exactly why. I thought we had connected that night. I thought he was feeling what I was…
I shake my head and start the truck. My cheeks heat in embarrassment.
At the hardware store, I grab a few coolers to store the food from the fridge in until it’s fixed. Fifteen minutes later, I’m barely out of the truck before Carter waltzes out of the front door of the B&B.
“Figured I could give you a hand, so you can avoid a few extra trips in this cold.”
“Were you stalking me out the front window or something?” I say rather than thanking him.
He doesn’t say anything snarky back. He ignores my jab, takes two of the coolers, and walks toward the house. I follow with the third, silently reprimanding myself for making this so much worse. The immediate warmth of the house thaws my chilled bones. This winter has been brutal.
“This is a really great place,” Carter says, watching me slip off my boots.
I walk past him and mutter, “Thanks.”
Despite my saltiness toward Carter, I soak in the charm of what I’ve created as I walk through the hallway.
Twinkling lights wind through garlands on the banister, casting a warm glow over the polished wood.
Plaid ribbons, tiny ceramic villages, and bowls of ornaments are tucked into every corner.
A towering tree I cut down myself glows in the front room, dressed in vintage ornaments and red-and-green-beaded garland.
Faint Christmas music from my own specially made playlist drifts from the speakers, and the scent of cinnamon lingers through the air, thanks to bundles of sticks I’ve tucked into nooks and crannies.
It’s like walking through a living Christmas card.
And I’m glad Carter appreciates my hard work, although I hate myself for needing someone else’s praise.
Once we’re in the kitchen, he continues helping me, the two of us wordlessly emptying the contents of the fridge into the coolers like our own two-man assembly line.
I’m so busy trying to preserve the food that it takes me until I’m passing him the eggs before I realize this isn’t his job. “You don’t have to help me.”
He dramatically looks around the empty kitchen. “I don’t see anyone else.”
I stop handing him the egg carton and tug it closer to me. “I have it handled.”
His head tilts, and he sighs. “Seriously, Ashley?”
We stare at each other as if we’re in a standoff. I look into the cooler and realize I need to get this done so that I can prepare dinner. My to-do list is growing the longer I stand here, holding the carton as if we’re fighting over the “It” toy on Christmas Eve.
“Thanks.”
His smile is wide with victory, and I want to take it back. But Nick and the other Santas come to mind. This isn’t about Carter and me, it’s about my business.
“Just tell me what you need me to do.” He releases his grip on the carton first. One small win at least.
“I have a chest freezer in the laundry room where everything from the freezer can go.”
“Why don’t you show me where it is, and I’ll take care of that so you can get started making dinner for your guests?”
How does he expect me to stay irritated with him when he’s making it so difficult?
I show him where the freezer is, and he works on moving everything over while I try to figure out dinner now that stew is no longer an option.
The stew meat in the fridge might be okay, but I’m not taking my chances on anyone getting sick and the health department coming knocking.
I decide to go with chili instead. I had planned that for tomorrow night, so thankfully, the frozen beef is now thawing and only partially frozen. After I put the meat in a pot to start cooking, I grab the green peppers and onions to chop.
Usually, I don’t offer dinner for my guests, but during my first year hosting the Santas for Santa Fest, a bunch of them complained about how long it took to get into the restaurants in our small downtown.
There’s such an influx of people this time of year that our restaurants aren’t equipped to handle the increased demand.
So, I made it an option to add dinner, which makes me more money, and they don’t have to worry about where to eat every night. It’s a win-win.
Carter doesn’t return to the kitchen. Pretty soon we have to talk about that night six months ago, and he probably doesn’t want to do it while I’m holding a chef’s knife. Can’t say I blame him.
By the time the chili is almost ready, he still hasn’t reappeared, but since I figure I should at least offer him dinner for helping me, I go to find him.
I wasn’t lying when I said I didn’t have an extra room for him tonight, but I can’t exactly kick him out either, so I’m not sure what I’m going to do.
He won’t be staying in my room, though, that’s for sure.
Before I reach the great room to ask if anyone’s seen him, I slip my phone from my back pocket and check again to see if Steph has texted me.
Nothing.
I fire off another quick text, asking if everything is okay and telling her to call me right away.
As I’m about to turn the corner, a roar of laughter rings out over George Michael singing “Last Christmas.” I peek around the corner to find Carter standing in front of the fireplace, telling the Santas a story about an ice sculpting competition he participated in with his family last Christmas.
I clear my throat, and the laughter dies, everyone turning in my direction. “Dinner’s ready. Carter, you’re welcome to join us.”
The Santas head around me toward the dining room, Carter following.
“Appreciate it. Have you heard from Doug or Steph yet?” The concern in his voice makes me feel more anxious.
“Nothing yet. You?”
He shakes his head. “No.”
“I’m sure we’ll hear something soon.” I give him a reassuring smile, trying to hide the fact that I’m worried too.
We’ve just sat down at the dining room table when my phone rings. Relief loosens the tension in my shoulders when I see my sister’s name on the screen.
Standing from the table, I step out of the room to take the call. “Steph… hey. Where are you? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’m so sorry I didn’t call sooner.” I assume she’s at the airport from the sounds and voices in the background.
“That’s all right. Did your flight get delayed or something?”
“Is that your sister?” Carter says behind me. Very, very close to me. So close, I smell his crisp cologne.
“Is that Carter?” my sister asks, sounding surprised.
“Yeah.”
“Oh, good. That saves Doug a call. Doug?” she says into the phone without moving it away from her mouth. “Any chance you guys have time to FaceTime?”
Unease creeps into my stomach. Something is definitely wrong. “Sure… just give me a few minutes, then I’ll call you.”
“Great.” She hangs up without even a goodbye.
I meet Carter’s gaze. “They want to FaceTime with us.”
His head tilts as it always does when he doesn’t understand something. “Why?”
“I don’t know. C’mon, let’s go take the call in my office.”
When we reach my office, I grab the phone stand I use if I’m watching something, so I don’t have to hold it. I pat the seat next to me on the love seat and place the stand on the coffee table, facing us. I dial Steph’s number, and she answers on the first ring.
My small office is the only place in the house that is just mine—besides my bedroom—so I sometimes like to read in here.
The love seat always worked fine, since squeezing a full-sized couch in here would make it feel crowded, but now I’m wishing I could fit a sectional.
Carter’s thigh is basically pressed up against mine.
How am I supposed to concentrate on my sister?
My sister and Doug’s faces come on the screen, and they are not at an airport. Not unless Vancouver or Vermont planted a bunch of evergreens in the middle of their terminals.
“Steph, what’s going on?”
“I’m so sorry I didn’t call earlier. I was stuck on set, and I made Doug promise not to call either of you until I knew for sure what’s going on.”
“What is going on?” I ask at the same time as Carter says, “I take it you didn’t make your flight?”
Steph cringes, and Doug wraps his arm around her shoulders in what seems like support. “No, and there’s a bit of a problem.”
I inhale a deep breath, my patience gone after the day I’ve had. “Oh my god, Steph, what?”
My sister fiddles with the end of her hair, always a dead giveaway that she’s about to deliver bad news. “I’m stuck on set for another week.”
“What?” Carter and I say at the same time.
“We have to do reshoots. They want to change some of the scenes and the script has undergone an overhaul…”
“Do I need to remind you that you’re supposed to be getting married in ten days?” I toss up my hands.
Carter’s hand reaches toward my knee, but when I glance at him, his hand drops back to his thigh.
“There will still be a wedding,” Doug says, and I’m not sure if he’s trying to convince himself or us.
“But there’s so much still for you to do. How are you going to pull off a wedding in a few days?”
Steph and Doug look at one another, with smiles so suspicious that Carter and I glance at each other. “Well… that’s where we were hoping you two could help…” My sister bats her big hazel eyes.
“What do you need from us?” Carter asks.
“The chairs need to be picked up,” Doug says.
“And then have the bows put around them,” Steph finishes.
I raise my hand. “Wait. I thought the event planner was taking care of that?”
Steph waves off my question. “I fired her. She didn’t get my vision.”
My mouth falls open. “You fired her? When?”
“We just weren’t seeing eye to eye.” She’s so calm. Her wedding is in ten days, and she’s not going to be here to plan it, and she acts as if she just left a week-long spa retreat.
“Well, maybe you should hire her back, Steph, since you won’t get here until right before the wedding.”
“Ash, I know you can do it. Mistletoe is your town. And you’re the most organized, capable person I know. I should have asked you to be my wedding planner from the start, really. Plus, we’re twins. We practically share a brain. You know what I like.”
Once upon a time, that was true, but since the success of Shelter Bay, she’s changed.
Not in a bad way, just different. Now, she tends to look down her nose at things she used to think were great.
If I’m honest, I’m surprised she wanted to get married at my B&B.
An overpriced venue in Lake Como is more her style.
“Please. Please, will you help us?” Steph puts her hand in a prayer pose and gives me her helpless expression that I fall for every time.
I’m going to help her. She’s my twin sister, for heaven’s sake. But I am slightly annoyed with her over it. Any sibling would be. “Of course I’ll help.”
“We’ll help,” Carter corrects.
I roll my eyes. “Yes, we’ll help.”
“Thank you so much!” The way my sister’s face transforms with a big smile evaporates my annoyance.
“We appreciate it, you guys,” Doug says.
“I’ll email you everything unfinished on the list. And if you have any questions at all, call me. If I’m not on set, I’ll be able to pick up. Otherwise, leave a message.”
I sigh. I’m already busy enough through to this weekend because of Santa Fest. This is the last thing I needed added to my list. “Okay, as soon as you send it over, I’ll take a look and let you know if I have any questions.”
“You guys are the best! Thank you,” Steph says, then someone calls her name in the background. “I’m needed on set again. Talk to you both soon.”
She hangs up before Carter and I can say anything else.
“Unbelievable.” I shake my head and grab my phone off the holder, standing.
“On the bright side, you have an available room, right?” Carter smiles. “Steph and Doug’s room?”
Oh shit, he’s right. “Yeah, it’s right next to mine.”