Christmas With Carlie. Julianna Morris

understand, but tomorrow should reassure the girls. Our guests call it Christmas kickoff day,” she told him. “Members of the historical society will be in Victorian costumes and go around caroling in small groups. In addition, we’ll have snack kiosks throughout the facility serving coffee, hot spiced cider, cocoa and a selection of cookies and other treats. It’s purely voluntary, but guests are invited to help decorate trees, make wreaths, put up decorations and this ye—”

      “You have guests do staff work?” Luke’s tone was neutral, with only the faintest emphasis on the words guests and staff, but Carlie spotted a hint of derision in his eyes. Her temper rose, but she managed to squash it down again.

      “Not staff work, just fun. Kickoff day is extremely popular. Most of our guests come for Thanksgiving weekend just to participate,” she replied evenly.

      The event was expensive for Poppy Gold since they needed an army of employees to keep an eye on things, do the heavy work, watch the treat kiosks and do the primary decorating. Getting everything done in one day would be impossible without the massive amounts of planning and prep work she and the other Poppy Gold employees did for weeks beforehand.

      “I’m sure it’s entertaining if you enjoy that sort of thing.” Luke’s expression suggested only a moron would enjoy “that sort of thing.”

      Her smile became even more strained. She loved Christmas...the colors, music, the warmth, the decorating and the way many people seemed to behave nicer in the holiday season. Though in Luke Forrester’s case, she’d hate to think this was his “nice.”

      “As I mentioned, Mr. Forrester, participation is voluntary. If you aren’t interested in decorating, my staff has planned a number of activities, as well. As for your suite, it will be dec—”

      “Not by nosy guests, I presume,” he said, cutting her off a second time. “I expect privacy. As a matter of fact, I expected to have the entire house, not just a section of it.”

      Muscles tightening, Carlie reminded herself again that Luke Forrester had lost his wife and no matter how wealthy and demanding, he was dealing with something traumatic.

      She drew a deep breath. “Employees decorate inside the suites. As for having the entire house, I’m sorry for the misunderstanding,” she apologized as cordially as possible. “But there are eleven bedrooms in the John Muir Cottage and dividing the space means it’s available to multiple individuals or families.”

      “I see.”

      “Before I forget, I wanted to tell you that since we’re supposed to have a hard freeze tonight, we’re starting the snowmakers on the sledding hill as soon as the temperature drops low enough. Probably around eight. Spiced cider and other goodies will be served. I thought Annie and Beth might enjoy it.”

      “I don’t think so. We’ve had a long day.”

      “Please, Papa, can we go?” asked a voice from the open door behind them.

      Luke jerked around. “Beth, I thought you were asleep.”

      “I woke up. Carlie, can you take us to see the snow if Papa is too tired?”

      Carlie made an effort to keep her face straight. “That’s up to your papa.” She’d hoped to be sliding into a warm bath by then, but couldn’t resist the entreaty in Beth’s eyes.

      “I wanna go with Carlie,” Annie declared, peeking around her sister.

      Luke seemed thoroughly harassed. “Very well. That is, we’ll all go. Now go back to bed. You’ll need extra rest if you’re going to be out late.”

      The twins instantly hurried away and Carlie tried to look innocent as he turned to her. “Shall I come by around seven thirty this evening?”

      “No, we’ll meet you there.”

      “Fine. Is there anything else?”

      “Yes. I need a tutor for the girls. The one I hired in Austin quit at the last minute.”

      I wonder why, Carlie thought wryly.

      “I also need a business center installed,” he continued. “Desk, a computer with dual monitors, a minimum of two additional phone lines, printer-fax machine and satellite communications. The downstairs bedroom can be used since it won’t be needed for a live-in tutor. I’ll be managing my business concerns remotely for the next six weeks, and contrary to what your website claims, there aren’t any business services in the suite.”

      She stared. Had he honestly believed those kinds of facilities were installed in every building at Poppy Gold?

      “There’s a courtesy business center available at Old City Hall,” Carlie told him firmly. “That’s what the website states. At this time of year we don’t book any business conferences, so except for a few guests checking their email, it’s empty most of the time.”

      “I need one here in the suite.”

      Carlie suspected her patience was going to be tested to the absolute limit by this guy.

      “Mr. Forrester, the John Muir Cottage isn’t wired for that kind of technology. However, Poppy Gold has Wi-Fi and we can provide a multifunction printer for your visit, along with a computer since you apparently didn’t bring your own laptop. The existing phone line can be used to send and receive faxes.”

      His features tightened. “I do have a laptop with me, but I keep it off-line when I’m outside my company’s firewall. I take it there isn’t a business supply store in Glimmer Creek where a new computer could be purchased.”

      “No.”

      “In that case, I’ll take the loaner until my assistant can arrange for the proper equipment to be sent.”

      She nodded. “All right. As for a tutor, the school district has a list of people who do that sort of work. I’ll send a copy over and you can call them for interviews.”

      “I—”

      “Have a good rest of the day,” Carlie interrupted brightly. “I’m going back to my office now to get things started. If you get hungry, there are several restaurants that deliver. Just consult the information folder in the kitchen. We put a facility map in there, so you shouldn’t have a problem finding the sledding hill later. See you then.”

      Carlie hurried away before she lost her cool and gave him a piece of her mind. Honestly, he wanted a full office in his suite? According to what Tessa had said, Luke Forrester was at Poppy Gold to help his daughters through Christmas, but how was he going to do that if it was business as usual for him?

      * * *

      LUKE CLOSED THE door and groaned. The coffee he’d drunk had carried him for an extra hour, but that was all.

      At home he’d be working, no matter how little sleep he’d gotten the night before. Except for the rare times Erika had been on leave, he used the day after Thanksgiving to read reports and make calls to overseas associates who didn’t celebrate the US holiday.

      As for Beth and Annie, they would have gone to the Austin zoo or aquarium with his parents. Curiously, becoming grandparents had changed Craig and Heather Forrester. A little at least. They were still irresponsible in many ways, but they tried to spend time with their granddaughters every couple of months.

      He appreciated it. When he was growing up, they’d acted more like reckless playmates than dependable adults. Money was no longer a problem for them, either, since he’d quietly tripled the size of their trust funds and arranged for the trustees to disburse the payments monthly, rather than annually.

      Inexplicably, his thoughts drifted to Carlie Benton. Perhaps if he hadn’t been so tired and distracted he might have handled their contacts with more grace. He certainly should have realized they wouldn’t have a business center in every suite at Poppy Gold Inns, but he’d grown accustomed to the kind of services provided by Caribbean villas and French châteaus.

      Tilly