Marry Me At Christmas. Susan Mallery

the bright side, that part of him wasn’t dead. Something to remember when the nights got long.

      Her office was small and utilitarian. No window—just a few file cabinets, a battered desk, her chair and two others for visitors. A plastic palm tree nestled close to pictures of an older couple, along with a man in his midforties. There was also a younger woman close to twenty. A younger sister, he would guess. And the man?

      So much for his brief moment of fantasy, he thought as he pointed to the photos.

      “Your husband?”

      She turned, then shook her head. “I’m not married. That’s my brother and his daughter, Jasmine. Those are my parents.”

      All good news, he thought. “Nice family.”

      “Thanks.”

      He settled in one of the visitor chairs. “How long have you owned the store?”

      “What? I don’t. I’m a partner. Isabel Hendrix owns most of it. She bought it from her parents a couple of years ago. It’s been in her family over fifty years. Paper Moon is kind of a Fool’s Gold tradition.” Her voice turned wistful. “Nearly every little girl grows up imagining buying her dress here.”

      She smiled. “Luckily most of them end up doing just that. The other half of the business is women’s clothing. A lot of regional designers who haven’t been discovered yet. Isabel offered me a small percentage of the business to be paid out over several years. While I appreciate that, I’m putting in part of my salary to increase my ownership.”

      She wrinkled her nose. “Which is way more than you wanted to know. Sorry.”

      “Don’t apologize. It’s interesting. You’re ambitious.”

      “In my tiny way, yes. I also want to earn my way in.”

      He liked that. Too many people wanted things given to them. He could appreciate that quirks of fate and just plain dumb luck could change everything. He was proof of that.

      “That’s why I’m excited about helping you with Ginger’s wedding,” she added. “It’s a chance to learn something new.”

      * * *

      Madeline couldn’t tell if she sounded reasonably intelligent or had been reduced to babbling. Being this close to Jonny Blaze was still difficult. From a distance, she was able to maintain a clear line of thought. But when he was just on the other side of her small desk, well, her brain had other things on its mind.

      It wasn’t just that he was good-looking. In reality Fool’s Gold had more than its share of handsome men wandering around. But he was different. She didn’t know if it was the movie-star thing or a personality flaw or what. Her friend Felicia had once talked about the sociological aspects of hierarchy in the village. Something about having the biggest head.

      No, that wasn’t right. The most important person. But there was also something about a big head. Anyway, she would need to go talk to Felicia and get it figured out. She was pretty sure the theory would help her act more normal around Jonny Blaze.

      Now she forced herself to remember why he was here—which wasn’t to fill her afternoon with eye-candy moments. There was a wedding to organize and she was responsible for that.

      “I spoke to Ginger,” she said.

      “She mentioned that. She liked you.”

      The unexpected comment momentarily flustered her. “I liked her, too. She’s really nice. And excited about the wedding.” Also dealing with school and the holidays and everything else. Just listening to all Ginger had going on had exhausted Madeline. “I made notes during our call. She confirmed what you said at our previous meeting. She wants a small, intimate, low-key wedding. The guest list is forty-four people and she swears it’s not going to get any bigger.”

      “However big she wants it is fine with me,” Jonny said. “This is about Ginger and Oliver. She’s my sister and what makes her happy, makes me happy.”

      A not uncommon sentiment from a big brother, yet nice to hear.

      “The wedding is going to be at your ranch?” Madeline asked, checking her notes. “There’s a barn?”

      The lazy smile returned. “It’s nicer than it sounds. The barn has been converted into a big, open space. We’ll be able to fit in tables and decorations.”

      “What do you use it for?”

      “I haven’t decided. I knew I didn’t need a place to house livestock.”

      “No desire to raise horses and cows?”

      “Not this week. You’ll probably want to come take a look at it.”

      Go to his house? Or his barn, but still. They were on the same property. She hoped she looked normal as she nodded and made a note. “That’s a good idea. We can discuss decorations and table linens. I’ve already reserved the tables and chairs. I was worried they would all be set aside for other events. I wasn’t sure if you had enough dishes and glasses, so I reserved those, as well.”

      “Good thinking.” Concern drew his brows together. “I hadn’t realized there was so much to organize. I’m glad we’re working on this together.”

      His words made her tingle all over. Star power, she told herself. Nothing more than star power.

      * * *

      Madeline wrapped up her meeting with Jonny, then collected her handbag and walked toward the other side of the store. While wedding gowns would always be a part of Paper Moon, the retail clothing addition was doing well. Madeline found Isabel sorting through a shipment of handbags.

      Her business partner, a tall, curvy blonde, smiled. “Is it time for lunch? Thank goodness. This has been one of those mornings. Only half of what I ordered got delivered and there was nearly a fistfight between two tourists who wanted the same jacket in the same size. I was afraid I was going to have to call for backup.”

      “You know where to find me,” Madeline told her. “Rosalind is here most days, too. Between the three of us, we should be able to wrestle any unruly shopper into submission.”

      Isabel laughed. “Thank you for that. I feel better.”

      The words were appropriate, but there was something about the way Isabel said them. “Are you okay?”

      “What? Of course. I’m fine. Why do you ask?”

      “I’m not sure.” There was something, Madeline thought, studying her friend. She just couldn’t figure out what.

      “You’re feeling okay?” she asked.

      Isabel had recently announced she was pregnant. As far as Madeline knew, everything was progressing normally.

      Isabel put a hand on her belly. “Everything is going along as it should,” she said firmly. “I’m healthy. Not to worry.” She started for the back. “Give me one second and we’ll head to Jo’s.”

      Two minutes later they were walking to Jo’s Bar, where they would meet their friends for lunch. The air was crisp. The first snow had already fallen and pretty much gone away. There were still a few piles left from clearing the sidewalks, but little else. Still, plenty more was on the way. While the first few snowfalls were always exciting, by month two of shoveling, Madeline knew she would be ready for spring. Still, it would be wonderful to have a white Christmas.

      They ducked into Jo’s Bar. The place catered to women and was decorated with flattering paint colors, good lighting. There were plenty of healthy choices on the menu. Today the TVs were tuned to either a shopping channel or a show on HGTV.

      Madeline saw that Shelby and Destiny had already claimed a table. She waved at her friends, then led the way over.

      “Hey, you,” Shelby said, coming to her feet and hugging Madeline. She greeted Isabel, then moved so Madeline could