Only he hadn’t. He thought about her constantly. There were plenty of single women at the resort, and more than one of them had made it clear she was interested. He couldn’t have been less so. He didn’t want just some woman—he wanted Evie. He missed her. He missed talking to her at the end of the day and thinking about her when he should be working. He missed their dinners, their nights, their mornings. He missed everything about her.
Worse, he missed Fool’s Gold. He missed the stupid decorations and the idiotic people greeting him every other second when he walked down the street. He missed his friends, and he missed Evie more than he’d thought possible.
Right now she was getting ready for the Live Nativity, which this year would feature an elephant. Where else but Fool’s Gold? And was he there, secretly having the time of his life? No. He was stuck in some damn suite in Aspen.
He stalked across the room and told himself he had to get over this. Over her. He had to figure out a way to stop caring about her. Because if he didn’t, he would be in real danger. He would start imagining being with her for a long time. Months even. He would start to imagine that it was okay for him to have feelings and then he would… He would…
Dante stopped in the middle of the room. He turned in a slow circle, as if not sure where he was or what to do next. He needed to get home, he realized. Not just to Fool’s Gold, but to Evie. Because… Well, hell, he was just going to say it.
“I love her.”
That’s what his heart had been trying to tell him. He needed her and wanted to be with her. He wanted to give her everything he had and know that she felt the same. He wanted to hold her and protect her and maybe even, someday, have children with her.
He’d only risked his heart once before, and that had cost him everything. So he’d vowed never to take that chance again. But this time he couldn’t help himself. Sometime when he hadn’t been paying attention, Evie had stolen his heart. The killer was, he didn’t want it back. She could have it. If she wanted it.
He ran to the phone and punched in the number for the concierge.
“This is Dante Jefferson, in suite 587. I need to book a flight out of here today.”
There was a moment of silence. “Um, sir, you do realize it’s Christmas Eve? There aren’t going to be any flights. It’s going to take a miracle for you to find a seat.”
“I’m thinking that maybe miracles do happen, so let’s give it a try.” He grinned. “Actually don’t bother looking for a commercial flight. Find me a private plane. Money is no object.”
“All right. Where are you flying to?”
“Fool’s Gold, California.”
* * *
“MOMMY, WHY DOES Baby Jesus have an elephant?”
Evie smiled at the question. The little boy stared up at Priscilla, his expression one of awe.
“Baby Jesus loves all the animals,” the boy’s mom said.
“Can I have an elephant?”
“Not this year.”
“Can I have a puppy?”
“We’ll talk about it with your dad.”
May linked her arm with Evie’s and sighed. “I do love a good nativity.”
“This one is very special.”
It was midday on Christmas Eve, and the Live Nativity had drawn a huge crowd. Most of the animals had come from the Castle Ranch. The sheep, a couple of goats, Reno the pony and Wilbur the pig. Along with Priscilla, of course.
There were people playing the main roles, although a doll stood in for Baby Jesus. There had been talk of a live infant, but when the temperatures had dropped below freezing, the substitution had been made.
“Are you nervous?” May asked in a whisper.
Evie touched her stomach where butterflies had taken up residence.
“More than I would have thought possible,” she admitted. “I haven’t danced on a stage in a long time.”
“You’ll be wonderful. I can’t wait to see you. We’re getting there early so we can sit up front.”
“I’m not sure if that’s news that’s going to make me feel better,” Evie admitted.
Dominique had been thrilled with the idea of her taking over Grace’s solo. Evie had spent much of the previous evening practicing. Gideon had come by to cue the music and had stayed through her session.
He was a good guy. Unfortunately she couldn’t summon the least little tingle when he was around. And based on how he’d treated her pretty much as a sister, she would say the same was true for him. She was going to have to get over Dante the old-fashioned way. With time and ice cream.
But that was for after Christmas. She’d decided that for the holiday itself, she was going to simply go with her feelings. She was going to love him and not fight it. On the twenty-sixth, she would give herself a stern talking-to and load her freezer with Ben and Jerry’s.
“I need to get home,” Evie said, kissing her mother’s cheek. “I have a thousand details to worry about. Nothing to actually do, but plenty to sweat over.”
“We’ll see you tonight.” May smiled at her. “Should I say break a leg?”
“After what happened to Grace, probably not.”
Evie left. She walked back to her house. She saw Alexander sitting in the upstairs window seat. When he saw her, he stood and stretched, then jumped down. She knew he would be waiting on the stairs when she unlocked the door.
She cut across the lawn, then came to a stop as the first snowflakes of the season silently drifted down from the sky.
Evie glanced up at the gray sky, then back at the snow dotting the shoulders and sleeves of her jacket. Then she spun in a circle and started to laugh.
* * *
“IT’S STILL SNOWING,” Lillie said, plopping down next to Evie.
Evie glanced at the girl and smiled. “You look adorable.”
Lillie grinned. “I love my wings.”
“You look good in wings.”
“Maybe I should have asked Santa for wings instead of a dad.”
Evie blinked. “You asked for a dad?”
Lillie wrinkled her nose and leaned close. “I’m old enough to know there’s really no Santa, but it doesn’t hurt to ask, right? Only Mom says it doesn’t work that way.”
She leaned close as Evie finished sewing on her shoes’ ribbons.
“You have to do that with every pair of pointe shoes?” Lillie asked.
“Uh-huh.” Evie showed her where she’d already softened the toe box.
“You can’t just buy them finished?”
“It doesn’t work that way. Every dancer wants her shoes the way she likes them.”
Evie slipped on the shoes, then tied the ribbons and went up on pointe. She walked a couple of steps, came back down, then sank onto the stage floor.
“It’s a lot to do,” Lillie said.
“It is.” Evie flexed her foot and tied the ribbon in place. After cutting the ends, she used clear nail polish to seal them. “I need to put this stuff away.”
“Okay.”
They both stood. Evie dropped the nail polish and scissors into her bag. By then the ends were dry. She tucked them under the ribbon around her ankle so it was out of sight. A quick check of the large clock on the wall told her they had ten minutes.
“Okay, everyone,” she called. “Let’s get in place.”
Gideon walked by, his headphones and microphone in place. “We’re good,” he told her.
Morgan, their king for the evening, settled into his throne and gave her a thumbs-up. The dancers separated into their sections and waited for the musical cue. Dominique stepped onto the stage and began with an explanation of the dance. Seconds later, the music began and the curtain went up.
Evie stood with the other girls and watched the younger girls in wings twirl to the center of the stage. Gideon told the story of the winter king and his beautiful daughters, and the girls danced.
They had energy and enthusiasm. If there was a bent arm here and a misstep there, Evie didn’t notice. She waved girls in place and offered an encouraging whisper when she saw a case of nerves. The music flowed and shifted with each section, and at last it was her turn.
She rose on pointe and made her way across the stage. The dance came easily to her, allowing her to feel the music and get lost in the movements. For a second she allowed herself to miss Dante, to wish things could be different, but then she got out of her head and let her body take over.
Gideon’s velvety voice told how the king, so moved by his daughter’s beauty and joy, realized he must allow his children to go out into the world. They all returned to the stage and danced together, spinning until the girls became snowflakes that fell from the ceiling, and the stage went dark.
There was a moment of silence before the audience exploded into delighted applause. Evie stayed where she was, on the floor of the stage, her arms stretched forward. She rose slowly, the signal for the rest of the girls to do the same. As they’d practiced several times, they formed lines and walked forward, then bowed as one. The first group circled around to the back, and the process was repeated several times until all the girls had had a chance to bow and be applauded.
By the end, the audience was on its feet. The girls gathered around Evie for a group hug as they laughed and jumped up and down. Then a dozen or so young boys climbed the stairs and starting handing out small bouquets of flowers to each of the girls. Parents were clapping and trying to capture everything on their camcorders. Mayor Marsha walked out, a massive bouquet of dark red roses in her arms.
She crossed to Evie and handed her the flowers. “I wish I could say these are from the town,” she said, speaking into a handheld microphone. “Although we did buy you flowers, they aren’t nearly as lovely as these. Perhaps you would like to thank the person responsible personally.”
She motioned to the other side of the stage. Evie turned and nearly collapsed when she saw Dante walking toward her.
He looked tired, she thought, unable to grasp that he was here. Tired and worried, but, oh, so appealing in a cream-colored sweater and jeans. His blue gaze settled on her face as he moved across the stage.
Hope battled with pain and fear. She was thrilled to see him and terrified she would start crying. She wanted to believe his being here was a good thing, but what if there was some busty blonde waiting in the wings?
Dante walked up to her and took both her hands in his. “You were beautiful,” he murmured. “You’re so talented, and I can’t get over what you did with these kids.”
“Who’s he calling kids?” Evie heard Melissa grumble.
“You’re supposed to be in Aspen.”
“I was. By myself,” he added. “There’s no ex-girlfriend.”
Relief threatened her ability to stand a second time. “Then why did you say there was?”
“Because I’m an idiot. I thought…” He squeezed her hands. “Evie, I was scared. Scared of what you’d come to mean to me. Scared of my feelings. You know about my mom and what happened. I promised myself I would never let myself care again. I was doing a good job, too. Until I met you. And then I couldn’t help myself.”
She was aware of three thousand, two hundred people in the audience, watching. Based on the silence, she would guess that overhead microphones were picking up every word. Not that she was willing to ask Dante to hold that thought so they could go somewhere more private.
“I figured it out this morning. It was Christmas Eve and I wasn’t with the people I love. In the place I love. I wasn’t with you, Evie. So I chartered a plane to get here in time to see you dance. I knew how much this night meant to you and I wanted to share it with you. I also wanted to tell you that I love you.”
Her breath caught. The girls on the stage sighed, as did most of the women watching. Somebody in the audience said something about this “being just like when Shane proposed to Annabelle.”
“You do?” she asked.
“Very much. I never believed there could be ‘the one’ until I met you.” He smiled. “I love you and I hope you can forgive me for leaving like that. It will never happen again.”
“I believe you.”
“About which part?”
“About all of it.” The last pain faded away, and her heart began to heal. “I love you, too. I have for a while.”
She had more to say, but Dante was pulling her close and kissing her. She wrapped her arms around him and held on. She heard cheers and applause, but they weren’t as interesting as the man who held her as if he would never let her go.
* * *
SOMETIME LATER, WHEN EVIE had changed her clothes and everyone else had left, she and Dante walked back to their townhouses. It was still snowing, quieting the world and making her feel as if they were all alone…in the best way possible.
“I really am sorry about being such an idiot,” Dante told her. “I hurt you. There’s no excuse for that.”
“I’ll let you make it up to me.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
She glanced at him. “But I do have to tell you that there’s a new man in my life.”
Dante stared at her. “You went out with Gideon. I knew it.”
“No. I got a cat.”
He let out a relieved laugh. “Okay. I can handle a cat.”
“I don’t know. He’s pretty handsome and affectionate. And he’s a great cuddler.”
“You’re saying I have my work cut out for me.”
“I’m saying we’ll have to see who I like better.”
He leaned down and wrapped his arms around her waist, then spun them both in a circle. Evie laughed and held her arms out. Being in love really was like flying.