Mistletoe Not Required

Enthusiastic applause followed and then Brie was hugging her and looking over her shoulder. ‘Wow.’

‘Oh, my.’ Olivia stared at the six-figure amount for a long moment as a numb feeling of disbelief and excitement and gratitude crept up her body. ‘I don’t know how to thank you.’ She paused, suddenly knowing the very best way. ‘Yes, I do. We’ll name it the McPherson Retreat.’

* * *

Sweat poured down his back, into his eyes. Jett yanked off his T-shirt, tossed it across a stunted bush and jammed the spade into the hard-packed earth again. Again. He wanted the distraction of heat, the heavy load, the hard work.

‘Jett...’

He looked up, slightly dazed in the heat, realising he’d heard his name more than once. Olivia was watching him—had been for some time by the look in her eyes. Her apricot-cucumber fragrance rose to greet him as she held out a glass.

‘Here, drink.’

‘Thanks.’ He swallowed it down in a few greedy gulps. ‘How long have you been back?’ He picked up the spade again.

‘Long enough to see that you’re going to do serious damage if you don’t slow down.’ All calmness, she took the spade from his hands, tossed it down. ‘No more. You worked all yesterday, then last night. It’s hot out here and heatstroke’s not funny.’

‘Last night was worth it, right?’ With nothing in his hands, he struggled to channel his energy—he was a volcano about to erupt. ‘You were sensational.’

‘It was worth it, but it wasn’t only me. The menu was amazing. You and your staff were fantastic. And you haven’t heard the good news. The McPhersons donated enough money to build the extension. We’ll have it up in months.’

‘That is good news. But I let you down. I shouldn’t have left you to do breakfast on your own.’ He ran a grime-smeared hand through his hair, annoyed at her calm demeanour. He wanted her angry. He wanted fire; he wanted that edge, that connection, not this calm woman with no bite.

‘Not a problem. Everything was already there, we only had to—’

‘What were you thinking?’ he shouted, switching to what was really pissing him off. ‘Chasing Dawn’s not for sale.’

Her eyes widened in surprise and her voice rose. ‘Says who? You?’

Better. ‘Yeah. Me. Not to him.’

‘Jim? Why not?’

‘I didn’t like the cut of his jacket. Hell, I didn’t like the man’s name, the man’s aftershave, the man’s— He was coming on to you—didn’t you realise that?’

‘And what if he was?’ she demanded, white-lipped now, eyes spitting fire. ‘I wasn’t reciprocating—or didn’t you notice? But you and me—we’re temporary. We’ve always known that. Sooner or later you’re leaving.’

‘Hang on—’

She waved him away. ‘You said I could do it on my own.’

He frowned. ‘What? When?’

‘Last night. When you left me standing there with your parting gift around my neck. I said I couldn’t have done it without you and you said—’

Sure you could...

She’d misinterpreted his words. Frustration zigged up his spine and he scratched the back of his neck.

‘Olivia...sweetheart... That’s not what I meant.’ He saw confusion cloud her eyes and took a step forward, hands raised. ‘I meant you are the most capable woman I’ve ever met—not that I wanted you to go it alone. If I didn’t make it clear enough, I’m sorry.’

She shook her head once, and seemed to shrink in on herself, as if she didn’t want to hear.

‘And parting gift?’ Unease was crawling over his skin like ants. ‘It was a thank-you-I-think-you’re-pretty-damn-special gift. You didn’t pick up on that?’

‘I...don’t know... A man’s never given me anything so...intimate or expensive.’

‘And you’re the first woman I’ve ever bought jewellery for,’ he told her as he approached, partially reassured by her sudden stillness. ‘The only woman I’ll ever buy jewellery for.’

‘Jett. I think you should...’

When he reached her, he gripped her fine-boned shoulders and poured his heart and soul into the bottomless well of her gaze. ‘You made me look further than skin deep. I love how you make me laugh. I love how we argue and make up. How you turn good into bad. How you make me accountable for the words that come out of my mouth.’

His grip tightened because for the first time in his life he was laying everything he had on the line and she wasn’t responding—at least not the way he’d hoped. ‘I’ve been a drifter all my life. You’re the only woman who’s ever made me want to stick around. To take a risk on us. I want to stay here with you and be a part of your dream.