Back to December (Ward Sisters Book 1) (2 page)

“Seriously?” Em asked, deflated. “This is your fault, you know. If you hadn't knocked me into the snowbank, I'd have made it to the car just fine.”

“I really am sorry. Look, I'll buy you a new one.”

“You
can't
buy me a new one. This was one of the last two in the area. It's why I'm here in the first place. And he just closed the store. I hope you weren't planning to shop.” She sighed. “This sucks. Now I don't even have time to get anything else.” Emily pushed the heel of her hand to her forehead.

“Can you shop tomorrow?”

“No! I was shopping now because I'll be too busy with work the next couple days and I won't have time!”

“Why don't you come into the store with me and we'll see if he's got another one.”

“Did you hear me? He's closed! And he told me that was it. He won't have any more of these before Christmas, anyway, so it would be pointless.”

“Look, the lights are still on because he was waiting for me to show up here at closing time. Just come inside with me. Let's see if he'll help us out, okay? What have you got to lose?”

She sighed. “Fine. I guess it can't hurt. Maybe he can order me a replacement and have it sent to my friend.”

“This is for your friend?” he asked as they walked back toward the store.

“Well, for her sons. I guess they really wanted these action figures and she couldn't find any for a price in her budget. I don't even know if I paid too much for them, but she's helping me out in a bind and I figured it was worth it if the kids got what they really wanted.”

“Let's see what we can do.” He knocked on the door and the owner unlocked it, letting them inside.

“Robbie! Great to see you. Oh! Hello, miss. Is there something wrong?”

“Mac, I just ran into her outside. Literally.” He reached for the broken toy and Emily handed it to him. “Do you think we can replace this one?”

“For you, Robbie, anything.” He winked. “I didn't wrap them, yet. Knew you'd want to look them over first.” The guy went out to a back room and when he returned, he had a box filled with several of the Wolverine toys. Emily didn't count them, but there had to be nearly a dozen. “Here you go. You can decide which one to give her and I'll go out back and get the other two boxes. Everything else is wrapped.”

The stranger – she gathered his name was Robbie – looked at her then. Her mouth must have dropped open at the sight of the toys. He laughed.

“Mac had already put them aside for me. I knew I could replace it for you if you'd just come inside with me.” He put the broken toy in the box and took out a pristine one, whose packaging was even immaculate. “Here you go. I really am sorry about that. I wasn't paying attention.”

“No. It's okay. I mean, it's not okay that you weren't paying attention, but I won't hold it against you for the rest of your life. Thank you for giving this to me. You're going to make two little boys very, very happy this Christmas. Not to mention their mom.”

“It's the least I could do. What was your name?”

Suave.
She hadn't given it. She smiled anyway. “Emily.”

He stuck out his hand and smiled in return. “Hi, Emily. I'm Rob.”

She shook his hand without taking off her glove. “It's nice to meet you, Rob. Sorry I was so grumpy. It took me ages to get here through traffic, and I really don't have a single moment to shop after this. I've got a lot on my plate at work this week and this was my one shot. You saved me. Thanks.”

“Any time.”

“Yeah, let's hope that doesn't ever happen again. To you or me. I better get back into town before I turn into a pumpkin.”

He laughed again. “Touche. Have a safe drive. And Merry Christmas.” He smiled.

“Merry Christmas to you, too.” She smiled back, then turned and walked out the door.

This time, she watched carefully as she headed to the car. When she was safely inside, she breathed a sigh of relief. At least she had something to give the boys. One less thing on her to-do list. Now it was time to eat dinner and make it an early night so she could hit the ground running tomorrow.

The traffic into the city wasn't as congested as it had been on the drive to the toy store. Figured. She parked the SUV at the hotel and toted her purchase to her room. After what it took to get those suckers, no way would she take a chance that some desperate mom might see them in her car and seize the opportunity to snag them.

Emily stopped at her room before dinner, where she dropped her briefcase, tamed a few stray hairs and touched up her makeup. She debated ordering room service, but that would have been a typical Josh thing to do. Granted, room service at The Debussy was surely spectacular, but still, she was restless.

So, she went downstairs to the bar to see if the bartender had any ideas. She could ask the concierge, but that was his job and he might have places he was supposed to push. The bartender was more likely to both know places she could afford and give her an honest answer.

Em sidled up to the bar to ask the woman behind it for a suggestion, when there was suddenly someone at her elbow.

“Emily?” a familiar voice asked. She turned and there was Rob, the stranger from earlier.

“Hi. From the toy store? Rob, was it?” He nodded and smiled. “What are you doing here?”

“I'm staying here. Are you a guest at the hotel?”

She nodded. “I'm here on business.”

“Must be a lucrative business,” he teased.

She laughed. “I wouldn't know much about that. I work at a magazine. I'm covering for a coworker who had a family emergency and this is where he was staying.”

“Were you planning to sit down? I'd like to buy you a drink, you know, to apologize for earlier.” She hesitated. “No pressure. You can tell me to take a hike.”

“No, I wasn't intending to stay. I needed to eat dinner. I was going to ask the bartender if she had a suggestion.”

“The food here is fantastic. Let me buy you dinner for your hassle earlier. I kept you out at Mac's later than you probably planned to be there.”

Em's stomach grumbled. “My tummy is speaking for me, apparently.”

“Well, then let's get your tummy something to eat.” He gestured to the hostess at the attached restaurant, who immediately seated them despite the fact that a line had formed while she and Rob spoke.

As they sat down, he helped her out of her coat and pulled out her chair. She thanked him and Rob smiled at her again as the waiter took their coats. She liked it when he smiled at her, for some reason.

Without his coat, she noticed his jeans were perfectly tailored and the soft, black cashmere sweater he wore hugged his body like a second skin. He looked good enough to eat and she had to take a deep breath. Em had been so wrapped up in the toy fiasco earlier, she didn't notice how gorgeous he was – great bone structure, broad shoulders, dark brown hair with just a little wave to it. She tried to avoid staring too long, so she didn't catch his eye color.

They made small talk – nothing terribly revealing at first. He let her talk, asking questions about her family, where she was from. When she asked where he was from, he told her near Minneapolis, but that he lived in L.A. a lot of the time, when he wasn't traveling. She jokingly asked if the limo outside of the toy store was his, and he said yes.

“Oh, sorry. I was teasing you. I wasn't trying to offend you.”

“No offense taken. I've found it's easier to get around with a driver when I'm here.”

“I guess it's better if someone has to do all the annoying work and you can sit back and do something more interesting.”

“Something like that.” He laughed. Whenever he laughed or smiled, his lips did this little quirky thing, where they made him look just a little bit mischievous. Em wondered what it might be like to kiss them. She had to blink a few times and shake her head slightly to clear it.

“You okay?” he asked with another little laugh. And there it was again, the kissable little quirk.

She took a deep breath. “Yeah. Fine.” She felt hot and damp between her thighs, but she tried to ignore it. “So, what's good on the menu?” she asked in an attempt to steer her mind away from his mouth. He made a few suggestions, and when the waiter came around again with their wine, they ordered.

They went back to making small talk. She asked why he was in town, and he explained that he was there both for the holiday and for a gala at the Walker Art Museum on New Year's Eve.

“I'll probably see you there,” she noted.

“Really? You're going, too?” She nodded. “How'd you wrangle an invite?” he teased.

She, of course, knew that the guest list was filled with high rollers and famous faces. Since he was going and he rode around in a limo, she thought he must be financially well set. Which meant he was
way
out of her league.

“I'll be working, actually,” she replied.

“Oh, that's too bad. I was hoping you'd save me a dance.” He smiled so sweetly, it melted her heart.

“Maybe I can arrange it. I do like to dance.”

Just then, their food arrived. They sat in silence for a couple of minutes, which could have felt awkward, but didn't. Em attempted to concentrate on her food so that she wouldn't look too intently at Rob's mouth while he ate. Even chewing, his lips looked kissable.

She tried to focus on something else, so she looked at his eyes, which were a stunning, brilliant blue that took her breath away. He looked at her for a moment, curious.

“Something on your mind?” she asked.

“Just wondered if you'd want to head to a club with me after we're done eating,” he said with a tilt to his head and a half smile.

“Are you trying to ask me out?” she flirted.

“As a matter of fact, I am. Did it work?” he asked with a fake look of concern.

Em laughed to herself. Never had she desired to spend so much time with a virtual stranger. “Okay.”

“Okay? As in, yes, it worked and you'll go with me?”

“I'll go with you. Do I get to dance with you?”

“If you want. I'm not the best dancer, but I do okay. I've been known to cut a rug or two.”

She laughed. “Who says that other than grandmas?”

He feigned being wounded. “Oh! You pain me.”

She laughed harder. “I'm sure. Let's see if your dancing skills are better than your acting.”

He looked at her funny, then, like it was an odd thing to say. He shook his head and then smiled again. If he didn't stop smiling and laughing, she'd have to kiss him at some point, whether he wanted that or not. He started to laugh.

“What?” Em asked, suddenly concerned.

“Nothing. You about ready to blow this pop stand?”

She laughed again. “You've got a lot of old school euphemisms up your sleeve, don't you?” He laughed and shook his head. “Ready when you are,” she said.

Rob stood. “Let's get out of here, then.” He took Emily's hand and pulled her to a stand. The waiter returned with their coats and a folio, which Rob glanced at and signed. No one had asked for either item and it struck Em as odd, but she shrugged it off. What did she know about having money or eating at high-end hotels?

Rob helped her into her coat, despite the fact that she could have easily done it. He pulled on his own coat and gloves and gestured for her to walk ahead of him out of the restaurant. They made their way to a side door she hadn't noticed before.

“It'll be quicker this way,” he said.

They walked down the street and, after a couple minutes, Rob looked behind him. She thought it was odd, but didn't mention it.

“So, where are we headed?” she asked.

“Not sure yet. It sort of depends on what's available.”

“So we're winging it?” That was
so
not Emily's usual thing, but she found that she liked the idea. How could this man she barely knew be such an influence on her?

“Yeah, I guess you could say that.” He looked behind him again. “Give me your hand,” he said. It was more a patient demand than a sweet request, which somehow seemed out of character. She could only assume he had grounds to ask, so she put her hand in his.

“Quick, this way,” he said as he tugged her down a side street, walking swiftly. It made absolutely no sense to her organized brain, but she did as he told her, trusted that he knew what he was doing. They zigged and zagged through the streets of Minneapolis. He seemed to know where he was going. This was the weirdest part of the whole day so far.

Until they jogged down what looked like an alley.