Christopher (Mail-Order Brides For Christmas)

Lincoln: When is the wedding?

I shrugged as if he could actually see me while I typed my response.

Me: Sometime this week. Whenever I get a break from work and the judge is available.

Lincoln: Whoa, there. Slow down, Don Juan. Sounds like you’re going to sweep her off her feet!

I rolled my eyes before glancing up to see the lights of the train in the distance.

Me: Fuck you.

Lincoln: Save it for the wife, buddy.

One corner of my mouth ticked up as I shook my head and stuffed my phone back into my pocket. My hands were nearly frozen solid, so I shoved them in the fleece-lined pockets of my heavy leather coat and clenched and unclenched my fingers to get the circulation going.

Finally, the locomotive rolled in, the brakes squealing and hissing as it came to a slow stop. I pushed off the wall and ambled closer, stepping onto the platform. The doors slid open, and a few people exited from a handful of cars.

Holly had said that Winter was short with blond hair. I looked at each person as they deboarded but didn’t see anyone fitting her description. There was a girl one car down who might have fit the bill if she wasn’t so young. She was bundled up so much that I could barely see her face and only knew she was blond from the wild strands poking out from beneath her cap.

My mouth curled down when the last person had exited the train, and I saw no sign of my bride. Maybe she’d changed her mind. Fuck.

“Christopher Mistletoe?”

I glanced to my left to see the girl speaking to me. Except now that she was close, I could see that it was a woman staring up at me with the brightest, clearest, most incredible blue eyes I’d ever seen in my entire life. The world tilted, and I wondered if this was what Lincoln was talking about when he said swoon because I felt completely off-balance. My dick did not have the same reaction; it was solid as a rock.

“I’m Winter,” she said with a beautiful smile on her plump, red lips, showing off straight, even white teeth. Her nose was pert and tipped up just the tiniest bit at the tip, and her round cheeks made her look almost angelic.

She pulled off her cap and mountains of white-blond curls fell all around her. My breath caught in my lungs, and when I was finally able to suck in some air, I wheezed. Her eyes became alarmed, and she put a concerned hand on my arm. I would have sworn I felt the heat of her palm searing my skin through my heavy coat and long-sleeved sweater.

“Are you alright?”

No. I was not fucking all right. My world had just been upended, and I wasn’t sure what to do. So, I went with nothing…

“Fine,” I rasped. “Bags?”

Winter looked confused and a bit of hurt swam in her blue eyes, making my chest ache. I hadn’t meant to make her sad. But before I could fix it, she smiled and pointed at the baggage cart a few feet away.

Taking hold of her hand, I held it tight as I headed toward her things. I didn’t want to give her a chance to get away.

She pointed at two small suitcases, and I frowned down at her. “That’s all you brought?”

“I put everything else in storage. I figured it would be easiest if I only brought enough for the time I’ll be staying here.”

I grunted and grabbed both bags in one hand. “We’ll send for the rest of your shit tomorrow.”

She sputtered, but I ignored her as I stalked toward my vehicle, pulling the keys out and hitting the button to unlock it. When I reached the passenger side door, I wrenched it open, and only then did I release her hand. I dropped her bags onto the ground and grasped her waist and lifted her into the seat. Damn, she was tiny and barely weighed anything. I’d need to get some meat on her bones. My brothers and I were all large babies, and I wanted to make sure Winter was strong enough to carry Mistletoe boys.

I grabbed the seat belt and brought it around her before clicking it into place. As I pulled back, I thought about taking her lips in a deep kiss but decided I wanted our first kiss to be when we were pronounced man and wife. The thought had me mentally shaking my head. Maybe I was the pussy and not Lincoln.

I slammed the door and picked up Winter’s suitcases. Walking around the SUV, I paused to throw them into the back before completing the trek to the driver’s side. I started up the car and turned the heat on full blast since Winter looked as though she was shivering underneath all her layers. I didn’t make a move to drive, though. I sat there for a moment, trying to breathe normally and calm my racing heart while I contemplated my next steps.