After Ruth bared her soul about her insecurities, Mason had not only been surprised but gutted that he hadn’t made it clear how he felt about her before. He spent most of each day thinking about her, admiring her beauty, and distracted by every curve of her body. One of these days, very soon, he intended to make sure she knew precisely how he felt about the way she looked.
But more than that, so much more importantly, he was blown away by her offer to help him get ready for the event. Her face had drained of color when he’d told her he’d gotten the bid, and in that moment, he would have given anything for the job to be hers. So, he knew precisely what it meant that she’d come to him, ready to help him be successful.
A wave of love had swept through him like a tsunami, and in its wake, it had left nothing but a certainty that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with this woman at his side.
He longed to tell her, but no doubt he needed to take things slowly—to tread carefully—as she figured out her own feelings.
So, for the rest of the week, he focused on the work ahead of him, creating enough chocolate for three hundred guests. Every once in a while, he’d raise his head from his work long enough to check on the business in his store, which was almost completely left up to Brianna to take care of. When he was lucky, he managed to steal a few minutes with Ruth.
It felt as if something big was building between them with so many things still to say and discover. By the time Saturday evening came, he was more excited to finally spend some time with Ruth than about the reactions to their dessert table.
“Ready?” Ruth asked him as they pulled up at the Bellmark Hotel on Old Main Street, just five blocks down from the square.
“You have no idea.”
The Candy Cane ball would begin in less than an hour. They’d decided to set up at the last minute so that the temperature of the room would have less time to affect the chocolate. Ruth had warned him that it was usually warm and became warmer as the night went on with so many people in the space. Sharon had given them a long table in a secluded corner where their work would be hidden behind a screen until time for people to enjoy it. This meant they could keep working on it even after the ball had begun.
He watched as Ruth set up her painted cookies. Her others had been given away as promised, so she’d had to hurry and make more.
“Hey, did you ever get a chance to read that newspaper article I sent you?” he asked her.
She grinned over her shoulder. “Yeah. We should have known that people would start speculating when both of our names were announced on the Candy Cane Ball advertisements. It’s like people can’t decide if they want us to be enemies or lovers.”
Her words sent his pulse racing. Stepping forward, he wrapped his arms around her from behind and pressed a kiss to the delicate warmth of her neck. “I know which one I want.”
Ruth jabbed him softly with her elbow, but when she spoke, her voice was unsteady with laughter. “Mason, we have work to do.”
He sighed and nodded. “I know. I can’t wait for this to be over. The only thing I want to do is curl up on a couch with you and watch Christmas movies until all this tension in my shoulders goes away.
“Sounds heavenly. It’s a date.”
She turned back to set up her next display, one he hadn’t seen yet. He turned as Brianna and Crystal came in carrying boxes of his chocolates. They got to work opening them and placing them carefully in the display. In order to cater to the elegance of the event, he’d made decadent truffles, all swirled with bright colors and gilded with shimmering, edible metalics. They were beautiful and, thanks to a week of careful taste-testing, Ruth had declared them to be both divine and sinful.
“What do you think?” Ruth asked, stepping back a few feet from the table to better view her display.
Mason stepped back with her, amazed at the nativity scene she’d created from cookies and icing. The stable stood over a foot tall, and all of the figures around it were about eight inches tall. She’d glued them all to stands with royal icing so that they stood up straight and secure. Just the technical points of what she’d accomplished were impressive. But he wanted to see the detail. As he stepped closer, he was blown away by the artistry. Each figure was tenderly painted in soft, delicate colors. From the facial features to the draping of their robes, the individual pieces were works of art. Together, they were nothing short of a masterpiece.
He turned back to her, sure she could see the stunned expression on his face. “Do you even realize how incredible you are?”
“You like it?”
He shook his head. “Clearly you don’t. Well, buckle up. I wouldn’t be surprised if orders started pouring in from all over after people see this. And I don’t just mean at the ball tonight. This is going to go viral once it hits the internet.”
Ruth held her hands to her cheeks as she fought off a smile. “Oh, that would be incredible. I’ve been so afraid that I’d have to close my doors on Sugar Lips since this Christmas didn’t go the way I needed it to.”
“Never in a million years. You’re on the edge of success like you’ve never dreamed of. Now, what do you say we finish getting this set up so we can start showing off?”
“Let’s do it.”
An hour later, they were done with the display. There were trays of Ruth’s cookies with raised platters of his chocolates on two long tables. It was an incredible sight to see all of their hard work come together in such an impressive spread.
“And to think, it’s all going to be demolished in no time,” Ruth said.
“That is the sad fate of all our work, but we make people so happy in the process.”
They helped Brianna and Crystal gather up all the trash so that the dessert area looked perfect. When they were done, he and Ruth headed over for one final look at the table to make sure everything was perfect.
“Thanks,” Ruth said, stepping up and holding his hand. “This is amazing and it’s all due to your generosity.”
“You’ll have to tell Lori how brilliant my idea was,” he said, a gleam of devilry in his eyes.
Behind them, Sharon’s voice sounded through the sound system, welcoming people to the ball and the buzz of conversation on the other side of the screens hiding the dessert table died away. A moment later, the song “A Marshmallow World” by Dean Martin played. Mason turned to Ruth. “Want to dance?”
She gestured to her jeans and sweater. “I’m hardly dressed for a ball.”
He smiled and raised her hand in the air to spin her around and into his arms. “Neither am I. I just want an excuse to hold you.”
So there behind the screen, he held her close and stared down into her eyes. He searched them for some clue as to whether or not he should tell her the biggest three words he’d ever wanted to say to anyone.
“What is it, Mason? You’re staring at me like you’re trying to figure out if I’m human or not.”
He laughed. “No, not that. Just trying to decide when to tell you how much I love you. Is now a good time, or should I wait a little longer?”
Ruth made a sound that was half choke, half giggle. “It’s just like you to be ridiculous at such a moment. Are you being at all serious?”
“About loving you?” He stopped dancing and pulled her tightly against him, reveling in the way she fit so perfectly against him. Angling his head slightly, he bent and pressed his lips to hers, leading her in another kind of dance.
What began as an attempt to convince her of his feelings became a heady, rushing whirlpool that pulled him into a vortex of sensation. His breath grew short and frantic as he felt her hands move around his neck, her fingers sliding into his hair.
A female voice interrupted them. “I’d say this is the perfect way to respond to all the speculation. What do you think, Brianna?”
Mason pulled away to see Crystal and Brianna nearby looking at Crystal’s phone. “Hey, we’re trying to have a moment here.”
“It’s about time,” Crystal said. “Ruth’s been in love with you for weeks.”
He looked down at Ruth and found her blushing. “Really?”
She smiled and bit her lip, then nodded.
“Want to get out of here?”
“You don’t want to stay and see peoples’ reaction?”
“Crystal and Brianna can tell us later. Right now, I just want to be alone with you. Besides, I have a Christmas present in my car for you.”
Her eyes lit up. “Let’s go.”
A few minutes later, they stepped outside into a cold dark night and found that it had started snowing. Big, fluffy flakes drifted down from the sky, landing on their faces like frozen whispers.
“It’s so beautiful,” Ruth said. “I love the smell of falling snow.”
Mason could only think about how much he loved her. “Come on,” he said, tugging gently on her hand.
When they got to his car, he reached into the car and pulled out one of his signature brown chocolate boxes. He handed it to her, saying, “I made something for you.”
She looked at him curiously, one of her eyebrows rising slightly as she opened the box. She looked at the square, flat chocolates inside and picked one up. “I know you say chocolate doesn’t taste as good when it’s cold.”
“Yeah, I meant to bring it inside but forgot. Just chew it slowly and let it melt.”
He watched tensely as she took a bite, anxious to see what her reaction would be. When her eyebrows twitched together in surprised confusion, he chuckled.
“Is that a cookie?” she asked. “One of my cookies?”
“Yes. It’s good, huh?”
“Oh yeah.” She took another bite. “Addictive.”
“It just proves we belong together, don’t you think?”
For an answer, she rose up on her tip toes and kissed his chin. “Absolutely. So, we’re going to spend Christmas together?”
He laughed. “Christmas? Yes. And if I have any say in it, next Christmas and every Christmas after that. And every day in between.”
“Sounds perfect. I’m so glad you opened your store next to mine.”
“And you don’t even know yet how perfect it really is.”
“Why?” She narrowed her eyes. “What are you plotting, Mason Baker?”
“Besides giving you the most fitting last name anyone has ever had?”
Ruth slapped her hand over her mouth. “Oh my gosh. I didn’t even think about that. That is epic. But what else?”
He grinned. “Let’s just say that you’re holding our future in your hands.”
She looked down at the chocolate box. “Chocolate and cookies? Under one roof?”
“Definitely under one roof, sugar lips. And as soon as possible.”