Christmas Wishes

  “Shall I open it now?”

  “Please.” She led him into the kitchen.

  He cocked an eyebrow. “It looks like you’ve been busy.”

  For good measure, Susannah had stacked a few pots and pans in the sink and set out an array of spices on the counter. In addition, she’d laid out several books. None of them had anything to do with cooking—she didn’t own any cookbooks—but they looked impressive.

  “I hope you like stroganoff,” she said cheerfully.

  “It’s one of my favorites.”

  Susannah swallowed and nodded. She’d never been very good at deception, but then she’d rarely put her pride on the line the way she had this evening.

  While she dished up the stroganoff, Nate expertly opened the wine and poured them each a glass. When everything was ready, they sat across the table from each other.

  After one taste of the buttered noodles and the rich sauce, Nate said, “This is delicious.”

  Susannah kept her eyes lowered. “Thanks. My mother has a recipe that’s been handed down for years.” It was a half-truth that was stretched about as far it could go without snapping back and hitting her in the face. Yes, her mother did have a favorite family recipe, but it was for Christmas candies.

  “The salad’s excellent, too. What’s in the dressing?”

  This was the moment Susannah had dreaded. “Ah…” Her mind faltered before she could remember exactly what usually went into salad dressings. “Oil!” she cried, as if black gold had just been discovered in her living room.

  “Vinegar?”

  “Yes,” she agreed eagerly. “Lots of that.”

  Planting his elbows on the table, he smiled at her. “Spices?”

  “Oh, yes, those, too.”

  His mouth was quivering when he took a sip of wine.

  Subterfuge had never been Susannah’s strong suit. If Nate hadn’t started asking her these difficult questions, she might’ve been able to pull off the ruse. But he obviously knew, and there wasn’t any reason to continue it.

  “Nate,” she said, after fortifying herself with a sip of wine, “I…I didn’t exactly cook this meal myself.”

  “The Western Avenue Deli?”

  She nodded, feeling wretched.

  “An excellent choice.”

  “H-how’d you know?” Something inside her demanded further abuse. Anyone else would have dropped the matter right then.

  “You mean other than the fact that you’ve got enough pots and pans in your sink to have fed a small army? By the way, what could you possibly have used the broiler pan for?”

  “I…was hoping you’d think I’d warmed the dinner rolls on it.”

  “I see.” He was doing an admirable job of not laughing outright, and Susannah supposed she should be grateful for that much.

  After taking a bite of his—unwarmed—roll, he asked, “Where’d you get all the spices?”

  “They were a Christmas gift from Emily one year. She continues to hold out hope that a miracle will happen and I’ll suddenly discover I’ve missed my calling in life and decide to chain myself to the stove.”

  Nate grinned. “For future reference, I can’t see how you’d need poultry seasoning or curry powder for stroganoff.”

  “Oh.” She should’ve quit when she was ahead. “So…you knew right from the first?”

  Nate nodded. “I’m afraid so, but I’m flattered by all the trouble you went to.”

  “I suppose it won’t do any more harm to admit that I’m a total loss in the kitchen. I’d rather analyze a profit-and-loss statement any day than attempt to bake a batch of cookies.”

  Nate reached for a second dinner roll. “If you ever do, my favorite are chocolate chip.”

  Perhaps he was the one who’d named his sister’s cat, she mused. Or maybe chocolate chip cookies were popular with his whole family. “I’ll remember that.” An outlet for Rainy Day Cookies had recently opened on the waterfront and they were the best money could buy.

  Nate helped her clear the table once they’d finished. While she rinsed the plates and put them in the dishwasher, Nate built a fire. He was seated on the floor in front of the fireplace waiting for her when she entered the room.

  “More wine?” he asked, holding up the bottle.

  “Please.” Inching her straight skirt slightly higher, Susannah carefully lowered herself to the carpet beside him. Nate grinned and reached for the nearby lamp, turning it to the lowest setting. Shadows from the fire flickered across the opposite wall. The atmosphere was warm and cozy.

  “All right,” he said softly, close to her ear. “Ask away.”

  Susannah frowned, not sure what he meant.

  “You’ve been dying of curiosity about me from the moment we met. I’m simply giving you the opportunity to ask me anything you want.”

  Susannah gulped her wine. If he could read her so easily, then she had no place in the business world. Yes, she was full of questions about him and had been trying to find a subtle way to bring some of them into the conversation.

  “First, however,” he said, “let me do this.”

  Before she knew what was happening, Nate had pressed her down onto the carpet and was kissing her. Kissing her deeply, drugging her senses with a mastery that was just short of arrogant. He’d caught her unprepared, and before she could raise any defenses, she was captured in a dizzying wave of sensation.

  When he lifted his head, Susannah stared up at him, breathless and amazed at her own ready response. Before she could react, Nate slid one hand behind her. He unpinned her hair, then ran his fingers through it.

  “I’ve been wanting to do that all night,” he murmured.

  Still she couldn’t speak. He’d kissed and held her, but it didn’t seem to affect his power of speech, while she felt completely flustered and perplexed.

  “Yes, well,” she managed to mutter, scrambling to a sitting position. “I…forget what we were talking about.”

  Nate moved behind her and pulled her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her and nibbling on the side of her neck. “I believe you were about to ask me something.”

  “Yes…you’re right, I was…Nate, do you work?”

  “No.”

  Delicious shivers were racing up and down her spine. His teeth found her earlobe and he sucked on it gently, causing her insides to quake in seismic proportions.

  “Why not?” she asked, her voice trembling.

  “I quit.”

  “But why?”

  “I was working too hard. I wasn’t enjoying myself anymore.”

  “Oh.”

  His mouth had progressed down the gentle slope of her neck to her shoulder, and she closed her eyes to the warring emotions churning inside her. Part of her longed to surrender to the thrill of his touch, yet she hungered to learn all she could about this unconventional man.

  Nate altered his position so he was in front of her again. His mouth began exploring her face with soft kisses that fell like gentle raindrops over her eyes, nose, cheeks and lips.

  “Anything else you want to know?” he asked, pausing.

  Unable to do more than shake her head, Susannah sighed and reluctantly unwound her arms from around his neck.

  “Do you want more wine?” he asked.

  “No…thank you.” It demanded all the fortitude she possessed not to ask him to keep kissing her.

  “Okay,” he said, making himself comfortable. He raised his knees and wrapped his arms around them. “My turn.”

  “Your turn?”

  “Yes,” he said with a lazy grin that did wicked things to her equilibrium. “I have a few questions for you.”

  Susannah found it difficult to center her attention on anything other than the fact that Nate was sitting a few inches away from her and could lean over and kiss her again at any moment.

  “You don’t object?”

  “No,” she said, gesturing with her hand.

  “Okay, tell me about yourself.”

  Susann
ah shrugged. For the life of her, she couldn’t think of a single thing that would impress him. She’d worked hard, climbing the corporate ladder, inching her way toward her long-range goals.

  “I’m up for promotion,” she began. “I started working for H&J Lima five years ago. I chose this company, although the pay was less than I’d been offered by two others.”

  “Why?”

  “There’s opportunity with them. I looked at the chain of command and saw room for steady advancement. Being a woman is both an asset and a detriment, if you know what I mean. I had to prove myself, but I was also aware of being the token woman on the staff.”

  “You mean you were hired because you were female?”

  “Exactly. But I swallowed my pride and set about proving I could handle anything asked of me, and I have.”

  Nate looked proud of her.

  “Five years ago, I decided I wanted to be the vice president in charge of marketing,” she said, her voice gaining strength and conviction. “It was a significant goal, because I’d be the first woman to hold a position that high within the company.”

  “And?”

  “And I’ll find out in the next few weeks if I’m going to get it. I’ll derive a great deal of satisfaction from knowing I earned it. I won’t be their token female in upper management anymore.”

  “What’s the competition like?”

  Susannah slowly expelled her breath. “Stiff. Damn stiff. There are two men in the running, and both have been with the company as long as me, in one case longer. Both are older, bright and dedicated.”

  “You’re bright and dedicated, too.”

  “That may not be enough,” she murmured. Now that her dream was within reach, she yearned for it even more. She could feel Nate’s eyes studying her.

  “This promotion means a lot to you, doesn’t it?”

  “Yes. It’s everything. From the moment I was hired, I’ve striven toward this very thing. And it’s happening faster than I dared hope.”

  Nate was silent for a moment. He put another log on the fire, and although she hadn’t asked for it, he replenished her wine.

  “Have you ever stopped to think what would happen if you achieved your dreams and then discovered you weren’t happy?”

  “How could I not be happy?” she asked. She honestly didn’t understand. For years she’d worked toward obtaining this vice presidency. Of course she was going to be happy! She’d be thrilled, elated, jubilant.

  Nate’s eyes narrowed. “Aren’t you worried about there being a void in your life?”

  Oh, no, he was beginning to sound like Emily. “No,” she said flatly. “How could there be? Now before you start, I know what you’re going to say, so please don’t. Save your breath. Emily has argued with me about this from the time I graduated from college.”

  Nate looked genuinely puzzled. “Argued with you about what?”

  “Getting married and having a family. But the roles of wife and mother just aren’t for me. They never have been and they never will be.”

  “I see.”

  Susannah was convinced he didn’t. “If I were a man, would everyone be pushing me to marry?”

  Nate chuckled and his eyes rested on her for a tantalizing moment. “Trust me, Susannah, no one’s going to mistake you for a man.”

  She grinned and lowered her gaze. “It’s the nose, isn’t it?”

  “The nose?”

  “Yes.” She turned sideways and held her chin at a lofty angle so he could view her classic profile. “I think it’s my best feature.” The wine had obviously gone to her head. But that was all right because she felt warm and comfortable and Nate was sitting beside her. Rarely had she been more content.

  “Actually I wasn’t thinking about your nose at all. I was remembering that first night with Michelle.”

  “You mean when we both fell asleep in the living room?”

  Nate nodded and reached for her shoulder, his eyes trapping hers. “It was the only time in my life I can remember having one woman in my arms and wanting another.”

  Chapter

  5

  “I’ve decided not to see him again,” Susannah announced.

  “I beg your pardon?” Ms. Brooks stopped in her tracks and looked at her boss.

  Unnerved, Susannah made busywork at her desk. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I’d spoken out loud.”

  Her assistant brought a cup of coffee to her desk and hesitated. “How late did you end up staying last night?”

  “Not long,” Susannah lied. It had, in fact, been past ten when she left the building.

  “And the night before?” Ms. Brooks pressed.

  “Not so late,” Susannah fibbed again.

  Eleanor Brooks walked quietly out of the room, but not before she gave Susannah a stern look that said she didn’t believe her for one moment.

  As soon as the door closed, Susannah pressed the tips of her fingers to her forehead and exhaled a slow steady breath. Dear heaven, Nate Townsend had her so twisted up inside she was talking to the walls.

  Nate hadn’t left her condo until almost eleven the night he’d come for dinner, and by that time he’d kissed her nearly senseless. Three days had passed and Susannah could still taste and feel his mouth on hers. The scent of his aftershave lingered in her living room to the point that she looked for him whenever she entered the room.

  The man didn’t even hold down a job. Oh, he’d had one, but he’d quit and it was obvious, to her at least, that he wasn’t in any hurry to get another. He’d held her and kissed her and patiently listened to her dreams. But he hadn’t shared any of his own. He had no ambition, and no urge to better himself.

  And Susannah was falling head over heels for him.

  Through the years, she had assumed she was immune to falling in love. She was too sensible for that, too practical, too career-oriented. Not once did she suspect she’d fall so hard for someone like Nate. Nate, with his no-need-to-rush attitude and tomorrow-will-take-care-of-itself lifestyle.

  Aware of what was happening to her, Susannah had done the only thing she could—gone into hiding. For three days she’d managed to avoid Nate. He’d left a couple of messages on her answering machine, which she’d ignored. If he confronted her, she had a perfect excuse. She was working. And it was true: she spent much of her time holed up in the office. She headed out early in the morning and arrived home late at night. The extra hours she was putting in served two distinct purposes: they showed her employer that she was dedicated, and they kept her from having to deal with Nate.

  Her intercom buzzed, pulling Susannah from her thoughts. She reached over and hit the speaker button. “Yes?”

  “Mr. Townsend is on the phone.”

  Susannah squeezed her eyes shut and her throat muscles tightened. “Take a message, please,” she said, her voice little more than a husky whisper.

  “He insists on speaking to you.”

  “Tell him I’m in a meeting and…unavailable.”

  It wasn’t like Susannah to lie, and Eleanor Brooks knew it. She finally asked, “Is this the man you plan never to see again?”

  The abruptness of her question caught Susannah off guard. “Yes…”

  “I assumed as much. I’ll tell him you’re not available.”

  “Thank you.” Susannah’s hand was trembling as she released the intercom button. She hadn’t dreamed Nate would call her at the office.

  By eleven, a feeling of normalcy had returned. Susannah was gathering her notes for an executive meeting with the finance committee when her assistant came in. “Mr. Franklin phoned and canceled his afternoon appointment.”

  Susannah glanced up. “Did he want to reschedule?”

  “Friday at ten.”

  She nodded. “That’ll be fine.” It was on the tip of her tongue to ask how Nate had responded earlier when told she was unavailable, but she resisted the temptation.

  “Mr. Townsend left a message. I wrote it out for you.”

  Her assistant knew her
too well, it seemed. “Leave it on my desk.”

  “You might want to read it,” the older woman urged.

  “I will. Later.”

  Halfway through the meeting, Susannah wished she’d followed her assistant’s advice. Impatience filled her. She wanted this finance meeting over so she could hurry back to her desk and read the message from Nate. Figures flew overhead—important ones with a bearing on the outcome of the marketing strategy she and her department had planned. Yet, again and again, Susannah found her thoughts drifting to Nate.

  That wasn’t typical for her. When the meeting ended, she was furious with herself. She walked briskly back to her office, her low heels making staccato taps against the polished hardwood floor.

  “Ms. Brooks,” she said, as she went into the outer office. “Could you—”

  Susannah stopped dead in her tracks. The last person she’d expected to see was Nate. He was sitting on the corner of her assistant’s desk, wearing a Mariners T-shirt, faded jeans and a baseball cap. He tossed a baseball in the air and deftly caught it in his mitt.

  Eleanor Brooks looked both unsettled and inordinately pleased. No doubt Nate had used some of his considerable male charm on the gray-haired grandmother.

  “It’s about time,” Nate said, grinning devilishly. He leaped off the desk. “I was afraid we were going to be late for the game.”

  “Game?” Susannah repeated. “What game?”

  Nate held out his right hand to show her his baseball mitt and ball—just in case she hadn’t noticed them. “The Mariners are playing, and I’ve got two of the best seats in the place reserved for you and me.”

  Susannah’s heart sank to the pit of her stomach. It was just like Nate to assume she could take off in the middle of the day on some lark. He obviously had no understanding of what being a responsible employee meant. It was bad enough that he’d dominated her thoughts during an important meeting, but suggesting they escape for an afternoon was too much.

  “You don’t honestly expect me to leave, do you?”

  “Yes.”

  “I can’t. I won’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “I’m working,” she said, deciding that was sufficient explanation.