‘Pah, you know what I mean. When that boy looks at you, it brings me in mind of the day Mr Drewer asked my daddy for my hand in marriage. And back then my parents had a party line, he had to send them a telegram to arrange a time. He had seven days to stew about that conversation with my father.’
Kitty couldn’t help but smile at the sweetness of Annie’s story. There was a timelessness to the old housekeeper that made it hard to believe she was once a young girl filled with romantic hopes and dreams. Yet hope was timeless, just like love. Kitty needed them both. Craved them, even. Not that she was sure she’d ever find them.
‘OK, I’ll take the decorations down with me,’ she agreed. ‘But if he shouts at me, it was your idea.’
Annie laughed. ‘I can take that. Now shoo, it’s not long until Christmas. You and I have a lot to do.’
It felt so lovely to be included in a plan that it brought tears to Kitty’s eyes. The Kleins may not have been family – nor was Annie come to that – yet there was something about staying in this house that made her feel like she’d come home.
Right then, in an old mansion in the middle of the West Virginian mountains, covered with snow, icicles and a thousand twinkling lights, it felt as though she was starring in a holiday special all of her own.
Adam had been awake for most of the night. His inability to sleep reminded him of those times when he was filming in a foreign country, his mind full of questions, his body on high alert. Even in his downtime he hadn’t allowed himself to wind down. Now, cooped up in his cabin in the middle of a West Virginia winter, he felt as though he was getting ready for battle.
Except this time, it was with himself.
There was no way he should have flirted with Kitty last night. It was as though somebody else had taken hold of him, let his guard down, until all that was left was the boy he’d once been. Hopeful, honest, vulnerable even. Not the world-weary man he’d become.
More than most he knew where vulnerability got him.
He’d been sitting in his running gear for hours, ready to leave just as soon as she walked through the door. He couldn’t even spend ten minutes cooped up with her in here. Didn’t trust himself to behave the way he knew he should. If he could put some distance between them, maybe he could control the attraction that kept drawing him toward her.
The puppy came padding over to him, sniffing at his hand. Adam had already washed the floor once that morning, grumbling at the dog as he did so, and was rewarded with a wagging tail and a hopeful nuzzle for his efforts.
Growing up, he’d never had a pet. His parents had been too busy when he was small, and when he was a teenager he’d been a boarder at school, only visiting home during vacations. That itinerant lifestyle was no place for a beloved dog. Then, of course, as an adult he’d been even worse, leaving the country at a moment’s notice, his work taking him all over the world. These past few months had been the first time he’d settled down in one place for any amount of time, and only now was it dawning on him just how lonely a lifestyle he’d made for himself.
The puppy started panting, his tongue lolling as he came to a stop. Adam reached out to pet him, running a hand down his thick, curly fur, and the puppy breathed out a contented sigh. The next moment his back stiffened, his ears turning up as if on high alert. Running to the door, he barked loudly at the dark wood, his tail wagging.
It came as no surprise to Adam when there was a soft knock on the door. He tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair, pushed himself up to standing and then strode across the wooden floor. His heart was beating furiously by the time he reached the entranceway, and he had to take a deep breath before reaching out to open the latch.
Centre himself, that’s what he needed to do. She wasn’t anybody special, just a pretty British girl who’d taken his fancy. He’d faced bigger demons than her before and still come out alive.
His mouth went dry as soon as he opened the door. Kitty was standing on his porch, her blonde hair half-hidden beneath a red woollen cap, and a matching scarf wrapped warmly around her neck. She was carrying a box full of what looked like tinsel and ornaments, but the thing he really noticed was the huge grin on her face.
She looked so pleased to see him. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so disarmed. Half of him wanted to scoop her up in his arms and swing her around the room, while the other half wanted to run far, far away, where he wouldn’t have to be entranced by her.
The second half won. He grabbed his running shoes, pulling them on while successfully avoiding her stare. Ignoring the gentleman inside him who wanted to take the box out of her hands and relieve her of her burden, he cleared his throat.
‘You only just caught me. I’m off out for my run.’ Did he sound nonchalant enough? Adam wasn’t sure.
‘Oh.’
Only a single syllable, yet he could hear every emotion contained within it. Disappointment, surprise, sadness. It made him feel even more of an asshole than he already did, but it also strengthened his resolve to avoid her. She didn’t deserve his mood swings.
‘Annie gave me this,’ she said, still holding the box. ‘She wants us to decorate the cabin.’
He felt even worse. ‘You can do it while I’m out. You’ll probably be gone before I get back, just be sure to slip the door on the latch and make certain the dog is inside. I don’t want to have to search for him in the snow.’
He felt, rather than saw, her flinch.
‘You’re not staying? Annie sent down some hot chocolate, too.’ Kitty pulled a flask from the box, lifting it in front of her like it was a prize. ‘Knowing Annie it will taste fabulous.’
Could she make him feel any worse?
He could take off his shoes right now. He could lift the flask out of her hands, grab a couple of mugs and pour out the sweet liquid, giving her a smile as they clinked their cups together. They could pull out the decorations, sharing laughter as he recounted tales of his childhood holidays, telling her the provenance of the old baubles that were sticking out of the box.
If he was any kind of a man, that’s exactly what he would do. But he wasn’t that man, and as sure as ice would melt in springtime, he knew she deserved more than that.
‘I’m not a big one for the holidays.’ He