Chapter Sixteen
Supper at the campfire had gone exactly as Michael had anticipated, with everybody skewering hot dogs and marshmallows over the flames. Then the big, noisy group turned to the traditional sing-along. Only, naturally, Snowflake Valley’s entertainment leaned heavily toward Christmas carols.
He liked listening to Amber’s sweet voice as she carried the tunes and hit the high notes. And he appreciated that she seemed herself even after he’d been honest with her. At least they’d gotten that out in the open. Out of their way.
The days were moving along faster than he’d skated in the competition. Their pretend dating would end soon. But he’d enjoy that, too, while it lasted. And he had to keep up appearances for Amber.
As the crowd broke up and people began to straggle in different directions, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “I’m impressed, same as the night we went caroling. I didn’t tell you then, but I should have. You sing like a Christmas angel.”
The thought had hit his brain and escaped through his mouth before he could stop it. Ruefully, he shook his head. Even he was being infected by the Christmas spirit around here. But he’d meant what he said. She blushed at the compliment, something he’d never get tired of seeing.
Nick and Lyssa walked up to them, their arms around each other.
Michael eased a step away from Amber. Better to be safe. When he was around her, he had less control over his hands than he did over his mouth.
“Guess you’ve one-upped me in the medal department,” Nick said.
He forced a laugh. “Buddy, I’ve left you so far behind, you’ll never catch up.”
“Who needs medals?” Lyssa asked, waving her hand as if brushing the idea away. Waving her hand again, as if he hadn’t seen it the first time. Waving her hand a third time—and then Amber let out a squeal to rival one of her daughter’s.
“You’ve got your ring!” Her face lit with pleasure and joy.
A feeling he couldn’t name thumped inside his chest.
Lyssa held her hand up, ring facing out. “Nick was planning to give it to me at the ball tomorrow night, but I couldn’t wait. I love my temporary engagement ring, but I love this one better.”
“I know you do,” Amber said. She touched the medallion hanging from its ribbon.
Why she’d done that, he couldn’t tell. Maybe he didn’t want to know. But the action reminded him of his promise. And gave him something to do besides worry about keeping his hands to himself. “What do you say? Everybody ready for dessert?”
“Sounds good to me,” Nick agreed. “Those marshmallows over the campfire only whet my appetite for something sweet.”
The way Amber whets mine.
She was his something sweet.
Too sweet. Too hurt. Too surrounded by family.
“Let’s go, then,” Lyssa said. “There will be a waiting line at the Candy Cane.”
Amber had told him the businesses on Icicle Lane stayed open later than usual this time of year, taking advantage of the additional tourists here for the festival. Night had fallen a long while ago, but the area was as bright as day. Strings of colored lights arced across the street between the posts. Wavy rectangles of light shining through store windows and doorways made the sidewalks look like rivers of gold.
He shook his head.
Amber glanced up. “What’s wrong?” she asked quietly under the noise of the conversations around them.
“Nothing. I was just thinking everything seems…” He laughed sheepishly, then finished, “…magical, I guess. Must be why you like it so much.”
He heard her sharp intake of breath. As if to cover the reaction, she opened her eyes and mouth wide in exaggerated surprise. “Oh, my. Is that really you talking, Scrooge? Can it be you’re beginning to mellow?”
“I didn’t say I liked the place,” he protested, laughing again.
“Ah…but that’s the thing about Snowflake Valley. It’s not just a place, it’s a feeling. You’re beginning to see why the town’s special, and that’s how the feeling starts.” Her voice rang with confidence. “Before you know it, you’ll be volunteering to play Santa.”
“I doubt that.”
“Well, later, don’t say I didn’t tell you so.” Smiling, she linked her arm with his.
…
Dessert at the Candy Cane was all Amber could have wished for—though she couldn’t care less whether or not she ate any of Anatole’s sweet creations. She already rode on a sweet, wonderful, emotional high. She held onto hope. She revived her dying dreams.
Wow. Lyssa might be right about her occasional dramatics. And maybe she was overreacting. But she couldn’t let the realities of life drag her down twenty-four seven. She had to trust in her belief in Snowflake Valley.
After all, Michael had admitted he found her beloved town magical.
And now, he sat beside her with his arm across the back of her chair. Unlike their previous visit to the Candy Cane, his hand most definitely touched her shoulder.
“Hey, Raymond,” he said, raising his voice slightly above the noisy crowd, “I know you like coconut. You’ll have to try the Toasted Reindeer Treats.”
Raymond fumbled his unopened menu. “You want me to eat reindeer food?”
“It’s just the name they call it. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to that.” Michael looked down at his menu, then at Amber.
She smiled up at him. “Have you gotten used to it?”
“I think so. In fact, I’m looking forward to my Alpine Angel Cake.”
You sing like a Christmas angel.
She didn’t, of course, but the memory of his compliment gave her the same shiver of pleasure now that it had brought on then.
She relayed her order to their overworked waitress, who nodded and smiled. All the employees here were used to being busy during festival week.
As the others gave their orders, Amber glanced around the room. Again, they had taken the largest table, although they’d added a few more chairs tonight. All three of Michael’s brothers had joined them. And on their way to the Candy Cane, Lyssa had phoned Mom and Dad, who had arrived with Penny.
This made the seating even tighter than last time. She didn’t mind, not when she could catch a faint scent of Michael’s aftershave and feel the heat of his body so close to hers.
She flushed, then swallowed a laugh at her reaction to her own thought. It wasn’t as if anyone could read her mind. Still, knowing her cheeks had to be flaming, she leaned over to check on Penny, who lay in her carrier on the chair beside hers. The baby slept quietly.
Amber looked down the length of the table.
Derek had caught up with their group as they reached the Candy Cane. He sat at the foot of the table, his focus wandering around the room. The other four boys all seemed to get along well. Michael’s two youngest brother weren’t shy about talking to the twins, either.
She hoped the girls would never join the ranks of the “bad-luck Barnett sisters,” the way she and Callie and Lyssa had. Now, Lyssa had given up the title. Amber hoped she wouldn’t have to carry it forever, either. She touched the medallion resting against her sweater.
Michael must have noticed. “That’s not as good as the real thing.”
“It could be. It’s all in how you look at it.”
“Well, that’s true. Most of them don’t come with a free dessert attached.”
That hadn’t been what she’d meant. Receiving the medal as a gift from Michael made it special to her. In the same way, Lyssa’s temporary ring would always hold a place in her heart—and in the Barnett family’s memories and photo albums…
The albums that held the kind of group pictures Michael had mocked.
A small twinge of doubt ran through her. But if he had changed his mind about the magic of Snowflake Valley, he could change his mind about family photos…and about a family of his own.
Couldn’t he?
Forget doubts. She needed positive thinking here. With the effort that took, she barely tasted her dessert. She missed most of the conversation. She only noticed Derek standing to leave because he shoved his chair back so abruptly. The sound of the legs screeching against the wooden floor drowned out the chatter in the room.
Penny let out a startled cry. Amber patted her daughter’s arm.
Everyone looked at Derek.
“I’ll meet you guys at the truck.” He gestured at the mugs and plates on the table. “You got this, right, Mike?”
“Sure,” Michael said.
He spoke easily. Though she listened for it, she didn’t hear a false note in his tone. But a second later she saw, half-hidden by the tablecloth, his fingers curl into a fist on his thigh.
…
Home at the lodge, Michael went alone to his office. It took a while, but finally, he felt much better than he had with Derek at the Candy Cane. He powered down his computer and sat back in the desk chair, reviewing the situation.
It was bad enough the man had never picked up a check in his life. He didn’t need to call attention to his freeloading habit in front of all the Barnetts.
When he had walked off, Mr. Barnett and Nick tossed some bills onto the table. Michael appreciated that. Not because he wouldn’t willingly have paid the entire tab again, but because the other men had stepped up to ease the awkward moment. It said a lot that he had friends who had done what family—what Derek—had refused to do.
On the slow walk through town to where he’d parked the SUV, the frigid air had cooled some of his anger. The good-natured teasing he’d gotten from all four of the younger boys had taken care of the rest. They’d threatened to challenge him to a skating rematch.
Let them try and beat his record. He didn’t care. They’d just better not plan to get their hands on his medal. Amber’s medal now.
He smiled. She’d sure seemed attached to it. Well, that made sense. She loved shiny objects like those glittery handmade snowflakes.
Like Lyssa’s bright and shiny engagement ring.
Again, that feeling he’d had at seeing Amber’s joy kicked inside his chest. He thought he had figured out what the feeling meant. But he wasn’t about to give a name to it.
“Hey, Mike.” Derek. Didn’t even need to recognize the voice to know. Nobody else called him that.
He looked up, taking in his stepbrother’s swagger, his expression, the look in the eyes. All familiar, and all spelling trouble. “What can I do for you?” he asked shortly, anticipating the confidence he would hear in that voice, too.
“Nothing much.” Derek grinned. He needed a good shave and some dental work on a tooth he’d had broken in a fistfight. “I could use a loan—just a small one to tide me over.” He had made a good call with that last addition. Probably knew small would be his only option. He wasn’t dumb by any means. He just didn’t have a very good memory.
“What happened to the thousand dollars I gave you? On Christmas Eve, remember? That wasn’t even a week ago.”
It was the night he’d walked into the lodge and almost gotten brained by a ceramic elf. Less than a week since he’d first kissed Amber. Only a few days since he’d…
Stop right there. Luckily, Derek’s whine distracted him.
“I spent that money. I needed it, man. And now I need more. I’ve got a deal working.”
“Here in Snowflake Valley?”
“Maybe.” Derek grinned again.
“You haven’t been here long enough to make any connections.” Then where had he gone off to this afternoon? His stomach knotted. That would be all he’d need, to find out Derek was up to no good in this town. Indirectly or not, he was the one who had brought his stepbrother here. The one who might unintentionally have opened the door to something that would affect Amber. “Stay away from the folks in the valley.”
Derek scowled. “You can’t tell me who I can and can’t be friends with. What do you know, anyhow? And what about that loan?”
“Forget the loan. I’m not carrying extra cash with me.”
“What the— Come on, Mike, don’t try to play me. They got ATMs in this hick town, don’t they?”
“Probably. I’m not going near one tonight. Or tomorrow.”
“You’re a big help, man.”
“Wrong. I was a big help. Now it’s time for you to help yourself.”
Muttering a curse, Derek swung away from the desk. He stomped across to the doorway and disappeared through it.
Michael sat back in his chair. He stared at the tall window off to one side of the room, but all he saw was his reflection bounced back at him from the glass.
That, and a small ceramic Santa sitting on the windowsill, looking at him. Funny, he hadn’t seen the ornament before tonight. But he knew exactly how the thing had gotten there. And it didn’t involve magic or even Santa Claus himself.
A moment later, he heard footsteps. He turned to find Amber standing just inside the office doorway. “Is everything okay?” she asked. “The boys and I were in the kitchen, and we…we heard some shouting.”
“Oh, everything’s fine,” he said with forced breeziness. “Just another action-packed episode in the life of my happy family.”
She crossed to the desk and said in a low voice, “I saw Derek headed upstairs. He didn’t look happy. Neither do you.”
“I was being sarcastic.”
She smiled sadly. “I figured that out.” She ran her finger along the edge of the desk. “Michael, I know you didn’t have the best time growing up. And I can see why you might feel some…some disappointment in Derek.”
“Disappointment?”
“Well…frustration. Anger. Whatever.”
“Yeah. All of the above. Especially the whatever.”
“I’m sorry.” She met his gaze, her blue eyes steady and bright, her chin set stubbornly. “Raymond and Lee seem like good kids. They’re fun and friendly, willing to cooperate and help out. Maybe you could spend more time with them. I’m sure they’d like that…” He shrugged. When he said nothing, she added, “You must have some good memories of growing up with them.”
Any positive thoughts her earlier words might have triggered disappeared in a flash.
“These are my memories,” he said flatly. “Taking care of a bunch of kids on my own. Having my dad work so much he never came home. And listening to my stepmother make excuses for bailing her sons out of jail.”
Now, what positive spin would she try to put on that news?
He might never know. Lee called to her from the living room and, after another glance at him, she left the office.