“The train left her,” Danny announced bluntly, and looked at Jesse, hopeful for a solution.
“What?” Jesse gave Claire a stormy stare that suggested she was a complete and utter fool. “When they blow the whistle, they mean business.”
“Apparently,” Claire answered with a small smile, even though she wanted to march over and kick him in the shin. She refrained because it might scuff her heels, plus Jesse the lumberjack could quite possibly be her only hope for rescue, so she widened her smile and wished she were better at flirting. She did a little hair flip and realized she was channeling Miss Piggy again.
God . . .
Danny cleared his throat, drawing Claire’s attention. “Are you going to buy that?” he asked, and pointed to the Santa she still clutched in her hand.
“Oh . . . yes, I might as well, even though I don’t know how I’m getting it home for Christmas,” she said as she handed Danny the figurine. “Would you wrap it in tissue paper? My mother is going to love it. She collects Santas from all over the world, and this one is just exquisite, don’t you think?”
Danny nodded and shot Jesse a glance.
Claire knew she was rambling on again, but the gravity of her situation was sinking in and it was either babble, cry, or quite possibly crumble into a crazy combination of both, which would certainly not help her cause. With that in mind, she ground her teeth and refused to give in. “So, is there a taxi service here in Whisper?” Claire asked in a deceptively calm voice while she paid for her purchase.
Danny gave her the expected side-to-side shake of his head. “Sorry.”
Snow was coming down ever harder. Danny handed her a cute bag. “Thanks. Although this little Santa was the reason I missed the train. I must have been so caught up in browsing that I didn’t hear the whistle.” She shrugged. “When I shop, I can get into a zone, you know?”
Danny gave her a look that clearly stated that he
didn’t
know, and then looked past her. “Jesse, you need a box? There are only a few left.The angels went fast.”
“Oh, there were angels?” Claire asked in a forlorn voice. “That’s what I collect,” she added, but neither Jesse nor Danny seemed to care.
“Yeah, a box would be great,” Jesse responded in his deep rumble of a voice. When he walked up to the register, Claire noticed that he smelled like a manly combination of pinewood and spicy aftershave. “Thanks,” he said, and took the box. “I’ll just be a minute.”
“Good, I need to get going. My mom’s called, like, five times telling me the roads are getting slick.”
Claire stood there uncertainly, wondering what to do. Danny was leaving. Jesse the lumberjack was packing up the Santa carvings.
Wait. . . .
Her eyes widened and a lightbulb went off in her head.“You’re Jesse Marshall?” It was hard to believe that a man of his stature could create such delicate pieces of art.
“Yes,” he answered while packing up the few remaining carvings.
“Well, I am honored.” Claire felt hope blossom in her chest. “Truly,” she added a bit louder when he didn’t seem to be paying attention. The brochure had tossed around phrases like “award winning” and “world renowned.” The fact that he was well-known and respected made him seem safe....
He was her only hope.
Claire squared her shoulders and was about to ask for Jesse’s help when Danny opened the front door, letting in another blast of cold air. Claire’s teeth chattered and she tried but couldn’t suppress a violent shudder.
“We’re coming, Danny,” Jesse said a bit tersely. “Just hold on a minute.”
Danny obediently closed the door.
“We?” Claire asked hopefully.
He gave her another stormy look as he started unbuttoning his coat.After he shrugged out of it, he handed the vested parka to her.“Put this on,” he said, then bent to pick up his box.After he straightened, he added, “Stay here.”
“Okay.” Clutching the coat, Claire nodded, but then took a step forward and tugged on Jesse’s flannel sleeve. “Wait, does this mean you’re taking me with you?”
“Do you seriously think I was going to leave you stranded in the bitter cold?” Jesse asked, but before Claire could answer, he pivoted and walked out the door.
“I’ll take that as a yes,” she called out to him. After carefully putting her purse and package down, Claire pushed her arms into the big coat. It felt warm from Jesse’s body heat and smelled woodsy and masculine. Claire sighed with feminine appreciation, drawing a look from Danny that brought heat to her cheeks. “He’s not exactly Mr. Congeniality, is he?”
Danny shrugged. “Jesse works all year-round to stock up on his carvings, but this time of year he’s at it day and night. He hates to disappoint someone who wants one of his Santas, and this year his angels have been just as popular. But I’m sure he’s bummed because the airport is shut down. Jesse always leaves for someplace tropical right about now.”
“Wait.” Claire raised her eyebrows in wonder. “He brings Christmas joy to so many people but then leaves for the actual holiday?” For some reason that struck her as sad. “I wonder why.”
Danny shrugged again but looked away as if he knew more than he was willing to say. One of the aspects Claire enjoyed about being a hairstylist was hearing everyone’s story and so her curiosity was piqued. But before Claire could pry, Jesse returned.
Danny held the door open for them to exit.“See you, Jesse. Hope you have a nice holiday,” he said, and then turned to Claire. “And I hope you make it home to Atlanta,” he added, much more friendly now that she was no longer his problem.
“Thanks, Danny,” Claire said. “I’m sure I will.”
Danny nodded again, but the look he gave Jesse clearly said that it wasn’t likely to happen.
“No you don’t,” Jesse said when Claire stepped forward.
“What do you mean?” She shot him a confused frown.
“Not in those ridiculous shoes.”
“These red shoes aren’t ridiculous! They add a pop of color to my navy suit.”
“Do I seriously look like the fashion police?” Jesse gave her a slight grin. “I mean you won’t make it down the slick steps.”
“Oh.” She glanced at Jesse’s sturdy boots and felt heat in her cheeks. “Well, what choice do I have?” Claire asked, but wrinkled her nose at the snow-covered ground.
“As of now, none,” Jesse replied, and then without warning scooped her up into his arms.
Claire gasped in surprise. She was tall and built
solidly
, according to her mother, who was petite and reed thin. Next to her mom and sister, Claire had always felt big and clunky. “What are you doing?”
“I think that’s obvious,” he replied drily, giving Claire hope that beneath that dark beard lurked a hidden sense of humor. Claire had never been carried by a guy before and never thought she would be—well, at least not without a grunt or a stagger, but to her relief Jesse carried her with apparent ease.
Gusty wind whipped across the parking lot and Claire felt guilty about wearing Jesse’s coat, but he gave no indication of being cold even though he had to be. Snowflakes swirled and twirled, landing lightly on Claire’s upturned face, making her giggle in spite of the crazy situation she had somehow managed to get herself into. Or perhaps it was hysteria bubbling to the surface.
“What could you possibly be laughing about?”
“The snowflakes tickle.”
Chapter Two
“
T
ickle?” When Jesse looked down at the gorgeous red-head’s upturned face, he marveled that despite her predicament she managed to take delight in something as simple as snow. At first glance her statuesque beauty had screamed high-maintenance ice queen, but the soft vulnerability in her expressive green eyes suggested otherwise.
“Yes, light and feathery little tickles.” A fat flake landed on a cute nose sprinkled with nutmeg-colored freckles that she probably hated but he found surprisingly adorable, which was amazing given the fact that he was exhausted and in a horrible mood. Right about now he should be chilling on the beach with a cold beer in his hand, but last-minute orders coupled with the impending storm made his vacation plans go to hell in a handbasket.The very last thing he needed was to be saddled with a stranded stranger for God knew how long. And he sure as hell didn’t need to complicate matters by offering her anything more than shelter, which he realized was going to be damned difficult, since he already had the sudden insane urge to lean in and kiss that full mouth of hers.
Not good.
“Isn’t it pretty?”
“Whatever.” Jesse knew he played the role of the broody badass very well and decided that would be the easiest way to keep her at arm’s length. Given his disheveled appearance, he thought he could pull it off without a hitch.With that in mind, he put his best scowl in place and was trying to think of something surly to say when she opened her mouth and captured a snowflake on the tip of her tongue. Jesse watched, mesmerized, and with a groan melted right along with it.
“Oh, I knew it!” Her smile immediately faded and her green eyes widened. “Put me down!”
“What?” Jeez, could she read his mind? “Hey! Hold on!” When she tried to wiggle her way out of his grasp, Jesse staggered backward and luckily landed against his truck or he would have fallen, taking her right along with him. “What are you doing?” Maybe she was high maintenance after all. Or crazy. It wouldn’t be the first time he had been dead wrong about a woman.
“I should have known better!” she cried, and pushed against his chest.As she managed to dislodge one of her endless legs, she flipped one of her silly shoes up in the air. She yelped when her toes sank into the snow. Her package dangled from her other hand, and her purse slipped to the ground with a thump.
“Would you just stop it?”
Her answer was to wiggle harder. “No, I’m going to give you a . . . a hernia or something.”
“What?”
“I’m too heavy.”
“Why would you say that?”
“You grunted!”
“Grunted?”
“Yes!”
He looked at her in question.
Oh . . . the groan.
“No, I didn’t.” Jesse slipped his hand beneath her leg to lift her freezing foot out of the snow.
“You didn’t?”
When she squirmed to look at him more closely, Jesse shifted his feet and hit a slick spot. “Whoa!” They both almost went down, and he had to scoot his hand upward to balance her weight.
“See!”
Jesse shook his head slowly.“It’s because you’re squirming.” He had somehow managed to get his hand beneath her skirt fairly close to her ass, and even though she didn’t seem to notice, he sure as hell did. “For the record, I didn’t grunt.”
“But I heard you.”
Jesse sighed. “What’s your name?” he asked softly.
“Claire Collins.”
“Well, Claire Collins, I could carry you for miles without grunting even once.”
“You could?”
“Okay, now you’re hurting my ego.”
“I’m very sorry,” she said so sincerely that she nearly made him laugh.“It’s just that I’m a big girl,” she added, and lowered her lashes.
Big girl?
Jesse felt a flash of anger at the society that made curvy women feel unattractive. Claire was drop-dead gorgeous and didn’t seem to realize it. His feelings must have shown on his face because her eyes widened and she put one hand on his cheek. It was a sweet, simple gesture but touched him in places that hadn’t felt emotion in a long time. If the truck hadn’t been behind him he might have staggered again.
“Really, Jesse, I didn’t mean to insult you,” she insisted, mistaking his reason for scowling. “It’s just that most men would have struggled dealing with my weight.”
Jesse got the impression that she meant it in more ways than one. “I’m not most men.” He wanted to say more but didn’t.
“I get that.
Most
men wouldn’t open their home to a complete stranger.”
“And I need to get you there. It’s freezing.”
“Right . . . ,” she said with a smile, but then her eyes rounded. “Hey, your hand is on my . . .
butt
.” When the word “butt” came out a high-pitched whisper, Jesse had to suppress another grin. He wasn’t a grinning kind of guy. What was she doing to him?
“It wasn’t intentional. I swear.”
“That’s what they all say.”
“And you’re wearing a lacy little bit of nothing. Ah, my own little Christmas miracle,” Jesse surprised himself by saying, and smiled up at the sky.
By rights Claire could have been angry at his comment, but instead she tilted her chin up and laughed, causing the hood to slip from her head. A gust of wind blew her long hair forward, brushing against Jesse’s cheeks and bringing the light floral scent of perfume his way. The warmth of their breath mingled, then frosted as snowflakes danced all around them.
And their eyes met. Held.
Jesse didn’t think he had a romantic bone in his body, but time suddenly seemed suspended and in all of his thirty-five years he had never longed to kiss a woman more than at that particular moment. But a sudden blast of arctic air brought him back to the reality of her situation. “We need to get you inside out of the cold.” He meant for his voice to be all business, but what came out of his mouth sounded low with some swagger. “I warmed it up for you,” he added, and then nearly groaned. “You know, the truck.” Why was everything he said sounding like a cheap pickup line?
“Thanks,” she answered politely, as if one of his hands weren’t cupping her nearly bare bottom and they hadn’t just almost kissed. Luckily they were on the passenger side of his truck, so Jesse eased away from the fender, turned, and opened the door. Claire slid into the heated leather seat with a little moan.
“Better?” Jesse asked as he handed her purse to her.
“Much!”
“Good,” he said, but then spotted her bare foot, which was glowing pink from the exposure. It bothered him way more than it should have that she was uncomfortable, and after closing her door, he retrieved his gym bag from the back cab and located some clean socks. After turning around, he spotted her delicate red shoe lying in sharp contrast with the fluffy white snow. He cocked one eyebrow as he leaned over and scooped it up with one finger. “Women,” he mumbled with a shake of his head. He had to admit, though, that the shoe was pretty damned sexy.