“This is the one.”

The minute she put on the wedding gown, Natalie knew it. Delicate silver-stitched designs looked like snowflakes dancing across the fabric. It was the most beautiful dress she’d ever seen, and she’d seen hundreds of brides come through her chapel.

It was perfect. Everything she’d ever wanted.

Natalie swallowed hard. Everything she’d ever wanted for the bride, she corrected herself.

Quickly she turned to Colin. He said nothing as he walked toward her. Did he hate it?

She felt her chest tighten. He wasn’t looking at the gown. He was looking at her. The intensity of his gaze made her insides turn molten. Her knees started trembling.

Just when she thought she couldn’t bear his gaze any longer, she turned back around. But this time she caught his reflection in the mirror beside her. Maybe it was the confusion of playing the part of the bride … but for one moment he looked like a groom.

Her groom.

* * *

A White Wedding Christmas is part of the Brides and Belles series: Wedding planning is their business … and their pleasure

A White Wedding

Christmas

Andrea Laurence

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ANDREA LAURENCE is an award-winning author of contemporary romance for Mills & Boon Desire and paranormal romance for Mills & Boon Nocturne. She has been a lover of reading and writing stories since she learned to read at a young age. She always dreamed of seeing her work in print and is thrilled to share her special blend of sensuality and dry, sarcastic humor with the world.

A dedicated West Coast girl transplanted into the Deep South, Andrea is working on her own happily-ever-after with her boyfriend and their collection of animals, including a Siberian husky that sheds like nobody’s business. If you enjoy Colin and Natalie’s story, tell her by visiting her website, www.andrealaurence.com; like her fan page at facebook.com/authorandrealaurence; or follow her on Twitter, @andrea_laurence.

To Diet Coke & Jelly Belly—

A lot of people have supported me throughout my career and over the course of my multiple releases, I’ve done my best to thank them all. Now that I have, it would be remiss if I failed to thank the two crucial elements of my daily word count: caffeine and sugar. My preferred delivery methods are Diet Coke and Jelly Belly jelly beans (strawberry margarita, pear and coconut, to be precise). They have helped me overcome plot challenges and allowed me to keep up with my insane deadline schedule.

Contents

Cover

Introduction

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Prologue

One

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six

Seven

Eight

Nine

Ten

Eleven

Twelve

Epilogue

Extract

Copyright

Prologue

A lot had changed in the past fourteen years.

Fourteen years ago, Natalie and her best friend, Lily, were inseparable, and Lily’s older brother Colin was the tasty treat Natalie had craved since she was fifteen. Now, Lily was about to get married and their engagement party was being held at the large, sprawling estate of her brother.

He’d come a long way since she saw him last. She’d watched, smitten, as he’d evolved into the cool college guy, and when Lily and Colin’s parents died suddenly, Natalie had watched him turn into the responsible guardian of his younger sister and the head of his father’s company. He’d been more untouchable then than ever before.

Lily and Natalie hadn’t seen much of each other over the past few years. Natalie had gone to college at the University of Tennessee and Lily had drifted aimlessly. They exchanged the occasional emails and Facebook likes, but they hadn’t really talked in a long time. She’d been surprised when Lily called her at From This Moment, the wedding company Natalie co-owned, with a request.

A quickie wedding. Before Christmas, if possible. It had been early November at the time, and From This Moment usually had at least fourteen months of weddings scheduled in advance. But they closed at Christmas and for a friend, she and the other three ladies that owned and operated the wedding chapel agreed to squeeze one more wedding in before the holiday.

Natalie’s invitation for the engagement party arrived the next day and now, here she was, in a cocktail dress, milling around Colin’s huge house filled with people she didn’t know.

That wasn’t entirely true. She knew the bride. And when her gaze met the golden hazel eyes she’d fantasized about as a teenager, she remembered she knew a second person at the party, too.

“Natalie?” Colin said, crossing a room full of people to see her.

It took her a moment to even find the words to respond. This wasn’t the boy she remembered from her youth. He’d grown into a man with broad shoulders that filled out his expensive suit coat, a tanned complexion with eyes that crinkled as he smiled and a five-o’clock shadow that any teenager would’ve been proud to grow.

“It is you,” he said with a grin before he moved in for a hug.

Natalie steadied herself for the familiar embrace. Not everything had changed. Colin had always been a hugger. As a smitten teen, she’d both loved and hated those hugs. There was a thrill that ran down her spine from being so close; a tingle danced across her skin as it brushed his. Now, just as she did then, she closed her eyes and breathed in the scent of him. He smelled better than he did back when he wore cheap drugstore cologne, but even then, she’d loved it.

“How are you, Colin?” she asked as they parted. Natalie hoped her cheeks weren’t flushing red. They felt hot, but that could just be the wine she’d been drinking steadily since she got to the party.

“I’m great. Busy with the landscaping business, as always.”

“Right.” Natalie nodded. “You’re still running your dad’s company, aren’t you?”

He nodded, a hint of suppressed sadness lighting in his eyes for just a moment. Good going, Natalie, remind him of his dead parents straight off.

“I’m so glad you were able to fit Lily’s wedding in at your facility. She was adamant that the wedding happen there.”

“It’s the best,” Natalie said and it was true. There was no other place like their chapel in Nashville, Tennessee, or anywhere else she knew of. They were one of a kind, providing everything a couple needed for a wedding at one location.

“Good. I want the best for Lily’s big day. You look amazing, by the way. Natalie is all grown up,” Colin noted.

Natalie detected a hint of appreciation in his eyes as his gaze raked over the formfitting blue dress her business partner Amelia had forced her into wearing tonight. Now she was happy her fashion-conscious friend had dressed her up for the night. She glanced at Colin’s left hand—no ring. At one point, she’d heard he was married, but it must not have worked out. Shocker. That left the possibilities open for a more interesting evening than she’d first anticipated tonight.

“I’m nearly thirty now, you know. I’m not a teenager.”

Colin let out a ragged breath and forced his gaze back up to her face. “Thank goodness. I’d feel like a dirty old man right now if you were.”

Natalie’s eyebrow went up curiously. He was into her. The unobtainable fantasy might actually be within her grasp. Perhaps now was the time to make the leap she’d always been too chicken to make before. “You know, I have a confession to make.” She leaned into him, resting a hand on his shoulder. “I was totally infatuated with you when we were kids.”

Colin grinned wide. “Were you, now?”

“Oh yes.” And she wouldn’t mind letting those old fantasies run wild for a night. “You know, the party is starting to wind down. Would you be interested in getting out of here and finding someplace quiet where we could talk and catch up?”

Natalie said the words casually, but her body language read anything but. She watched as Colin swallowed hard, the muscles in his throat working up and down as he considered her offer. It was bold, and she knew it, but she might not have another chance to get a taste of Colin Russell.

“I’d love to catch up, Natalie, but unfortunately I can’t.”

Natalie took a big sip of her wine, finishing her glass, and nodded, trying to cover the painful flinch at his rejection. Suddenly she was sixteen again and felt just as unworthy of Colin’s attentions as ever. Whatever.

“Well, that’s a shame. I’ll see you around then,” she said, shrugging it off as though it was nothing but a casual offer. Turning on her heel with a sly smile, she made her way through the crowd and fled the party before she had to face any more embarrassment.

One

Putting together a decent wedding in a month was nearly impossible, even with someone as capable as Natalie handling things. Certain things took time, like printing invitations, ordering wedding dresses, coordinating with vendors... Fortunately at From This Moment wedding chapel, she and her co-owners and friends handled most of the work.

“Thank you for squeezing this last wedding in,” Natalie said as they sat around the conference room table at their Monday morning staff meeting. “I know you all would much rather be starting your holiday celebrations.”

“It’s fine,” Bree Harper, the photographer, insisted. “Ian and I aren’t leaving for Aspen until the following week.”

“It gives me something to do until Julian can fly back from Hollywood,” Gretchen McAlister added. “We’re driving up to Louisville to spend the holidays with his family, and working another wedding will keep me from worrying about the trip.”

“You’ve already met his family, Gretchen. Why are you nervous?”

“Because this time I’m his fiancée,” Gretchen said, looking down in amazement at the ring he’d just given to her last week.

Natalie tried not to notice that all of her formerly single friends were now paired off. Gretchen and Bree were engaged. Amelia was married and pregnant. At one time, they had all been able to commiserate about their singleness, but now, it was just Natalie who went home alone each night. And she was okay with that. She anticipated a lifetime of going home alone. It’s just that the status quo had changed so quickly for them all. The past year had been a whirlwind of romance for the ladies at From This Moment.

Despite the fact that she was a wedding planner, Natalie didn’t actually believe in any of that stuff. She got into the industry with her friends because they’d asked her to, for one thing. For the other, it was an amazingly lucrative business. Despite the dismal marriage statistics, people seemed happy to take the leap, shelling out thousands of dollars, only to shell out more to their divorce attorneys at some point down the road.

As far as Natalie was concerned, every couple who walked through the door was doomed. The least she could do was give them a wedding to remember. She’d do her best to orchestrate a perfect day they could look back on. It was all downhill from there, anyway.

“I’ll have the digital invitations ready by tomorrow. Do you have the list of email addresses for me to send them out?” Gretchen asked.

Natalie snapped out of her thoughts and looked down at her tablet. “Yes, I have the list here.” Normally, e-invites were out of the question for a formal wedding, but there just wasn’t time to get paper ones designed, printed, addressed, mailed and gather RSVPs in a month’s time.

“We’re doing a winter wonderland theme, you said?” Amelia asked.

“That’s what Lily mentioned. She was pretty vague about the whole thing. I’ve got an appointment with them on the calendar for this afternoon, so we’ll start firming everything up then. Bree, you’re doing engagement photos on Friday morning, right?”

“Yep,” Bree said. “They wanted to take their shots at the groom’s motorcycle shop downtown.”

Natalie had known Lily a long time, but her choice in a future husband was a surprise even to her. Frankie owned a custom motorcycle shop. He was a flannel-wearing, bushy-bearded, tattooed hipster who looked more like a biker raised by lumberjacks than a successful businessman. Definitely not who Natalie would have picked for her best friend, and she was pretty sure he was not who Colin would’ve picked for Lily, either.

He seemed like a nice guy, though, and even Natalie could see that under the tattoos and hair, the guy was completely hormone pair-bonded to Lily. She wouldn’t say they were in love because she didn’t believe in love. But they were definitely pair-bonded. Biology was a powerful thing in its drive to continue the species. They could hardly keep their hands off each other at the engagement party.

“Okay. If that’s all for this morning,” Bree said, “I’m going to head to the lab and finish processing Saturday’s wedding photos.”

Natalie looked over her checklist. “Yep, that’s it.”

Bree and Amelia got up, filing out of the conference room, but Gretchen loitered by the table. She watched Natalie for a moment with a curious expression on her face. “What’s going on with you? You seem distracted. Grumpier than usual.”

That was sweet of her to point out. She knew she wasn’t that pleasant this time of year, but she didn’t need her friends reminding her of it. “Nothing is going on with me.”

Gretchen crossed her arms over her chest and gave Natalie a look that told her she was going to stand there until she spilled.

“Christmas is coming.” That pretty much said it all.

“What is this, Game of Thrones? Of course Christmas is coming. It’s almost December, honey, and it’s one of the more predictable holidays.”

Natalie set down her tablet and frowned. Each year, the holidays were a challenge for her. Normally, she would try going on a trip to avoid all of it, but with the late wedding, she didn’t have time. Staying home meant she’d have to resort to being a shut-in. She certainly wasn’t interested in spending it with one of her parents and their latest spouses. The last time she did that, she’d called her mother’s third husband by her second husband’s name and that made for an awkward evening.

Natalie leaned back in the conference room chair and sighed. “It’s bothering me more than usual this year.” And it was. She didn’t know why, but it was. Maybe it was the combination of all her friends being blissfully in love colliding with the holidays that was making it doubly painful.

“Are you taking a trip or staying home?” Gretchen asked.

“I’m staying home. I was considering a trip to Buenos Aires, but I don’t have time. We squeezed Lily’s last-minute wedding in on the Saturday before Christmas, so I’ll be involved in that and not able to do the normal end-of-year paperwork until it’s over.”

“You’re not planning to work over the shutdown, are you?” Gretchen planted her hands on her hips. “You don’t have to celebrate, but by damn, you’ve got to take the time off, Natalie. You work seven days a week sometimes.”

Natalie dismissed her concerns. Working didn’t bother her as much as being idle. She didn’t have a family to go home to each night or piles of laundry or housework that a man or child generated faster than she could clean. She liked her job. “I don’t work the late hours you and Amelia do. I’m never here until midnight.”

“It doesn’t matter. You’re still putting in too much time. You need to get away from all of this. Maybe go to a tropical island and have a fling with a sexy stranger.”

At that, Natalie snorted. “I’m sorry, but a man is not the answer to my problems. That actually makes it worse.”

“I’m not saying fall in love and marry the guy. I’m just saying to keep him locked in your hotel suite until the last New Year’s firework explodes. What can a night or two of hot sex hurt?”

Natalie looked up at Gretchen and realized what was really bothering her. Colin’s rejection from the night of the engagement party still stung. She hadn’t told anyone about it, but if she didn’t give Gretchen a good reason now, she’d ride her about it until the New Year. “It can hurt plenty when the guy you throw yourself at is your best friend’s brother and he turns you down flat.”

Gretchen’s mouth dropped open and she sunk back down into her seat. “What? When did this happen?”

Natalie took a big sip of her soy chai latte before she answered. “I had too much chardonnay at Lily’s engagement party and thought I’d take a chance on the big brother I’d lusted over since I’d hit puberty. To put it nicely, he declined. End of story. So no, I’m not really in the mood for a fling, either.”

“Well that sucks,” Gretchen noted.

“That’s one way of putting it.”

“On the plus side, you won’t really have to see him again until the wedding day, right? Then you’ll be too busy to care.”

“Yep. I’ll make sure I look extra good that day so he’ll see what he missed.”

“That’s my girl. I’m going to go get these email invitations out.”

Natalie nodded and watched Gretchen leave the room. She picked up her tablet and her drink, following her out the door to her office. Settling in at her desk, she pulled out a new file folder and wrote Russell-Watson Wedding on the tab. She needed to get everything prepared for their preliminary meeting this afternoon.

Staying busy would keep Christmas, and Colin, off her mind.

* * *

Colin pulled into the parking lot at From This Moment, his gaze instantly scanning over the lackluster shrubs out front. He knew it was winter, but they could certainly use a little more pizzazz for curb appeal.

He parked and went inside the facility. Stepping through the front doors, he knew instantly why Lily had insisted on marrying here. Their box holly hedges might have left something to be desired, but their focus was clearly on the interior. The inside was stunning with high ceilings, crystal chandeliers, tall fresh flower arrangements on the entryway table and arched entryways leading to various wings of the building. Mom would’ve loved it.

He looked down at his watch. It was a minute to one, so he was right on time for the appointment. Colin felt a little silly coming here today. Weddings weren’t exactly his forte, but he was stepping up in his parents’ place. When he’d married a year and a half ago, it had been a quick courthouse affair. If they’d opted for something more glamorous, he would’ve let Pam take the lead. Pam wasn’t interested in that, though, and apparently, neither was his sister, Lily.

If she’d had her way, she and Frankie would’ve gone down to the courthouse, too. There was no reason to rush the nuptials, like Colin and Pam, but Lily just wanted to be done. She loved Frankie and she wanted to be Mrs. Watson as soon as possible. Colin had had to twist her arm into having an actual wedding, reminding her that their mother would be rolling over in her grave if she knew what Lily was planning.

She’d finally agreed under two circumstances: one, that the wedding be at Natalie’s facility. Two, that he handle all the details. He insisted on the wedding, he’d offered to pay for it; he could make all the decisions. Lily intended to show up in a white dress on the big day and that was about it.

Colin wasn’t certain how he’d managed to be around so many women who weren’t interested in big weddings. Pam hadn’t wanted to marry at all. Hell, if it hadn’t been for the baby and his insistence, she wouldn’t have accepted the proposal. In retrospect, he realized why she was so hesitant, but with Lily, it just seemed to be a general disinterest in tradition.

He didn’t understand it. Their parents had been very traditional people. Old-fashioned, you might even say. When they died in a car accident, Colin had tried to keep the traditions alive for Lily’s sake. He’d never imagined he would end up raising his younger sister when he was only nineteen, but he was determined to do a good job and not disappoint his parents’ memory.

Lily was just not that concerned. To her, the past was the past and she wasn’t going to get hung up on things like that. Formal weddings fell into the bucket of silly traditions that didn’t matter much to her. But it mattered to him, so she’d relented.

Colin heard a door open down one of the hallways and a moment later he found himself once again face-to-face with Natalie Sharpe. She stopped short in the archway of the foyer, clutching a tablet to her gray silk blouse. Even as a teenager, she’d had a classic beauty about her. Her creamy skin and high cheekbones had drawn his attention even when she was sporting braces. He’d suppressed any attraction he might have had for his little sister’s friend, but he’d always thought she would grow up into a beautiful woman. At the party, his suspicions had been confirmed. And better yet, she’d looked at him with a seductive smile and an openness he hadn’t expected. They weren’t kids anymore, but there were other complications that had made it impossible to take her up on her offer, as much as he regretted it.

Today, the look on her face was a far cry from that night. Her pink lips were parted in concern, a frown lining her brow. Then she took a breath and shook it off. She tried to hide her emotions under a mask of professionalism, but he could tell she wasn’t pleased to see him.

“Colin? I wasn’t expecting to see you today. Is something going on with Lily?”

“Lots of things are going on with Lily,” he replied, “but not what you’re implying. She’s fine. She’s just not interested in the details.”

Natalie swung her dark ponytail over her shoulder, her nose wrinkling. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, she told me this is my show and I’m to plan it however I see fit. So here I am,” he added, holding out his arms.

He watched Natalie try to process the news. Apparently Lily hadn’t given her a heads-up, but why would she? He doubted Lily knew about their encounter at the engagement party. She wasn’t the kind of girl to give much thought to how her choices would affect other people.

“I know this is an unusual arrangement, but Lily is an unusual woman, as you know.”

That seemed to snap Natalie out of her fog. She nodded curtly and extended her arm. “Of course. Come this way to my office and we can discuss the details.”

Colin followed behind her, appreciating the snug fit of her pants over the curve of her hips and rear. She was wearing a pair of low heels that gave just enough lift to flatter her figure. It was a shame she walked in such a stiff, robotic way. He wouldn’t mind seeing those hips sway a little bit, but he knew Natalie was too uptight for that. She’d always been a sharp contrast to his free-spirited sister—no-nonsense, practical, serious. She walked like she was marching into battle, even if it was a simple trip down the hallway.

After their encounter at the engagement party, he’d started to wonder if there was a more relaxed, sensual side to her that he hadn’t had the pleasure of knowing about. He could only imagine what she could be like if she took down that tight ponytail, had a glass of wine and relaxed for once.

He got the feeling he would know all about that if he’d accepted her offer at the party. Unfortunately, his rocky on-again, off-again relationship with Rachel had been on that night. As much as he might have wanted to spend private time with Natalie, he couldn’t. Colin was not the kind of man who cheated, even on a rocky relationship. Especially after what had happened with Pam.

After realizing how much more he was attracted to Natalie than the woman he was dating, he’d broken it off with Rachel for good. He was hopeful that now that he was a free man, he might get a second chance with Natalie. So far the reception was cold, but he hoped she’d thaw to his charms in time.

He followed her into her office and took a seat in the guest chair. Her office was pleasantly decorated, but extremely tidy and organized. He could tell every knickknack had its place, every file had a home.

“Can I get you something to drink? We have bottled water, some sparkling juices and ginger ale.”

That was an unexpected option. “Why do you have ginger ale?”

“Sometimes the bride’s father gets a little queasy when he sees the estimate.”

Colin laughed. “Water would be great. I’m not that worried about the bill.”

Natalie got up, pulling two bottles of water out of the small stainless steel refrigerator tucked into her built-in bookshelves. “On that topic, what number makes you comfortable in terms of budget for the wedding?” she asked as she handed him a bottle.

Colin’s fingers brushed over hers as he took the bottle from her hand. There was a spark as they touched, making his skin prickle with pins and needles as he pulled away. He clutched the icy cold water in his hand to dull the sensation and tried to focus on the conversation, instead of his reaction to a simple touch. “Like I said, I’m not that worried about it. My landscaping company has become extremely successful, and I want this to be an event that my parents would’ve thrown for Lily if they were alive. I don’t think we need ridiculous extras like ice bars with martini luges, but in terms of food and decor, I’m all in. A pretty room, pretty flowers, good food, cake, music. The basics.”

Natalie had hovered near her chair after handing him the water, making him wonder if she’d been affected by their touch, too. After listening to him, she nodded curtly and sat down. She reached for her tablet and started making careful notes. “How many guests are you anticipating? Lily provided me a list of emails, but we weren’t sure of the final total.”

“Probably about a hundred and fifty people. We’ve got a lot of family and friends of my parents that would attend, but Frankie doesn’t have many people nearby.”

He watched her tap rapidly at her screen. “When I spoke with Lily, I suggested a winter wonderland theme and she seemed to like that. Is that agreeable?”

“Whatever she wants.” Colin had no clue what a winter wonderland wedding would even entail. White, he supposed. Maybe some fake snow like the kind that surrounded Santa at the mall?

“Okay. Any other requests? Would you prefer a DJ or a band for the reception?”

That was one thing he had an answer for. “I’d like a string quartet, actually. Our mother played the violin and I think that would be a nice nod to her. At least for the ceremony. For the reception, we probably need something more upbeat so that Lily and her friends can dance and have a good time.”

“How about a swing band? There’s a great one locally that we’ve used a couple times.”

“That would work. I think she mentioned going swing dancing at some club a few weeks back.”

Natalie nodded and finally set down her tablet. “I’m going to have Amelia put together a suggested menu and some cake designs. Gretchen will do a display of the tablescape for your approval. I’ll speak with our floral vendor to see what she recommends for the winter wonderland theme. We’ll come up with a whole wedding motif with some options and we’ll bring you back to review and approve all the final choices. We should probably have something together by tomorrow afternoon.”

She certainly knew what she was doing and had this whole thing down to a science. That was good because Colin wasn’t entirely sure what a tablescape even was. He was frankly expecting this process to be a lot more painful, but perhaps that was the benefit of an all-in-one facility. “That all sounds great. Why don’t you firm up those details with the other ladies and maybe we can meet for dinner tomorrow night to discuss it?”

Natalie’s dark gaze snapped up from her tablet to meet his. “Dinner won’t be necessary. We can set up another appointment if your schedule allows.”

Colin tried not to look disappointed at her quick dismissal of dinner. He supposed he deserved that after he’d done the same to her last week. Perhaps she was just angry with him over it. If he could convince her to meet with him, maybe she could relax and he could explain to her what had happened that night. He got the distinct impression she wouldn’t discuss it here at work.

“If not dinner, how about I just stop by here tomorrow evening? Do you mind staying past your usual time?”

Natalie snorted delicately and eased up out of her chair. “There’s no usual time in this business. We work pretty much around the clock. What time should I expect you?”

“About six.”

“Great,” she said, offering her hand to him over the desk.

Colin was anxious to touch her again and see if he had the same reaction to her this time. He took her hand, enveloping it in his own and trying not to think about how soft her skin felt against his. There was another sizzle of awareness and this time, it traveled up his arm as he held her hand, making him all the more sorry she’d turned down his dinner invitation. He’d never had that instant of a reaction just by touching someone. He had this urge to lean into her and draw the scent of her perfume into his lungs even as the coil of desire in his gut tightened with every second they touched. What would it be like to actually kiss her?

He had been right before when he thought Natalie was caught off guard by their connection. He was certain he wasn’t the only one to feel it. Colin watched as Natalie avoided his gaze, swallowed hard and gently extracted her hand from his. “Six it is.”

Two

Discuss it over dinner? Dinner! Natalie was still steaming about her meeting with Colin the next afternoon. As she pulled together the portfolio for his review, she couldn’t help replaying the conversation in her mind.

That look in his eye. The way he’d held her hand. Dinner! He was hitting on her. What was that about? Natalie was sorry, but that ship had sailed. Who was he to reject her, then come back a week later and change his mind? He had his shot and he blew it.

As she added the suggested menu to the file, she felt her bravado deflate a little. Natalie would be lying if she said she didn’t want to take him up on the offer. She really, really did. But a girl had to draw the line somewhere. Her pride was at stake and if she came running just because he’d changed his mind, she’d look needy. She was anything but needy.

He had passed up on a one-night stand and what was done, was done. Now that she knew they were working together on the wedding plans, it was just as well. She didn’t like to mix business with pleasure.

Natalie looked at the clock on her computer. It was almost six. The rest of the facility was dark and quiet. It was Tuesday, so the others were all off today. Natalie was supposed to be off, too, but she usually came into the office anyway. When it was quiet, she could catch up on paperwork and filing, talk with their vendors and answer the phone in case a client called. Or stopped by, as the case was tonight.

She slid open the desk drawer where she kept all her toiletries. Pulling out a small hand mirror, she checked her teeth for lipstick, smoothed her hand over her hair and admired her overall look. She found her compact to apply powder to the shinier areas and reapplied her lipstick. She may have put a little extra effort into her appearance today. Not to impress Colin. Not really. She did it more to torture him. Her pride stung from his rebuffing and she wanted him to suffer just a little bit, too.

Satisfied, she slipped her things back into the drawer. A soft door chime sounded a moment later and she knew that he’d arrived. She stood, taking a deep breath and willing herself to ignore her attraction to him. This was about work. Work. And anytime she thought differently, she needed to remind herself how she’d felt when he rejected her.

Natalie walked quickly down the hallway to the lobby. She found Colin waiting for her there. At the party and at their meeting yesterday, he’d been wearing a suit, but tonight, he was wearing a tight T-shirt and khakis. She watched the muscles of his broad shoulders move beneath the fabric as he slipped out of his winter coat, hanging it on the rack by the door.

When he turned to face her, she was blindsided by his bright smile and defined forearms. When he wore his suit, it was easy to forget he wasn’t just a CEO, he was also a landscaper. She’d wager he rarely got dirt under his nails these days, but he still had the muscular arms and chest of a man who could move the earth with brute strength.

Colin looked down, seemingly following her gaze. “Do you like the shirt? We just had them made up for all the staff to wear when they’re out on job sites.”

Honestly, she hadn’t paid much attention to the shirt, but talking about that was certainly better than admitting she was lusting over his hard pecs. “It’s very nice,” she said with a polite smile. “I like the dark green color.” And she did. It had the Russell Landscaping logo in white on the front. It looked nice on him. Especially the fact that it looked painted on.

“Me, too. You didn’t call to say there was an issue, so I assume you have the wedding plans ready?”

“I do. Come on back to my office and I’ll show you what we’ve pulled together.”

They turned and walked down the hallway, side by side. She couldn’t help but notice that Colin had gently rested a guiding hand at the small of her back as she slipped into the office ahead of him. It was a faint touch, and yet she could still feel the heat of it through her clothes. Goose bumps raised up across her forearms when he pulled away, leaving her cold. It was an unexpected touch and yet she had to admit she was a little disappointed it was so quick. Despite their years apart, her reaction to Colin had only grown along with his biceps. Unfortunately, those little thrills were all she’d allow herself to have. She was first and foremost a professional.

They settled into her office and Natalie pulled out the trifold portfolio she used for these meetings. She unfolded it, showing all the images and options for their wedding. Focusing on work was her best strategy for dealing with her attraction to Colin.

“Let’s start with the menu,” she began. “Amelia, our caterer, would normally do up to three entrees for a wedding this size, but with such short notice, we really don’t have time for attendees to select their meals. Instead, she put together a surf and turf option that should make everyone happy. Option one pairs her very popular beef tenderloin with a crab cake. You also have the choice of doing a bourbon-glazed salmon, or a chicken option instead if you think fish might be a problem for your guests.”

She watched Colin look over the options thoughtfully. She liked the way his brow drew together as he thought. Staring down at the portfolio, she could see how long and thick his eyelashes were. Most women would kill for lashes like those.

“What would you choose?” he asked, unaware of her intense study of his face.

“The crab cake,” Natalie said without hesitation. “They’re almost all crab, with a crisp outside and a spicy remoulade. They’re amazing.”

“Okay, that sounds great. Let’s go with that.”

Natalie checked off his selection. “For the cake, she put together three concept designs.” She went into detail on each, explaining the decorations and how it fit with the theme.

When she was finally done, he asked again, “Which one of these cakes would you choose?”

Natalie wasn’t used to this. Most brides knew exactly what they wanted. Looking down at the three concept sketches for the cake, she pointed out the second option. “I’d choose this one. It will be all white with an iridescent shimmer to the fondant. Amelia will make silver gum paste snowflakes and when they wrap around the cake it will be really enchanting.”

“Let’s go with that one. What about cake flavors?”

“You won’t make that decision today. If you can come Thursday, Amelia will set up a tasting session. She’s doing a couple other appointments that day, so that would work best. Do you think Lily would be interested in coming to that?”

“I can work that out. I doubt Lily will join me, but I’ll ask. I’m sure cake is cake in her eyes.”

Natalie just didn’t understand her friend at all. Natalie had no interest in marriage, therefore no interest in a wedding. But Lily should at least have the party she wanted and enjoy it. It didn’t make sense to hand that over to someone else. Her inner control freak couldn’t imagine someone else planning her wedding. If by some twist of fate, she was lobotomized and agreed to marry someone, she would control every last detail.

“Okay.” Natalie noted the appointment in her tablet so Amelia could follow up with him on a time for Thursday. From there, they looked at some floral concepts and bouquet options. With each of them, he asked Natalie’s opinion and went with that. Sitting across from her was a sexy, intelligent, wealthy, thoughtful and agreeable man. If she was the kind to marry, she’d crawl into his lap right now. Whoever did land Colin would be very lucky. At least for a while.

Everything flowed easily from there. Without much debate, they’d settled on assorted tall and low arrangements with a mix of white flowers including rose, ranunculus, stephanotis and hydrangea. It was everything she would’ve chosen and probably as close as she’d get to having a wedding without having to get married.

“Now that we’ve handled all that, the last thing I want to do is to take you to the table setup Gretchen put together.”

They left her office and walked down to the storage room. She kept waiting for him to touch her again, but she was disappointed this time. Opening the doors, she let him inside ahead of her and followed him in. In their storage room, amongst the shelves of glassware, plates, silver vases and cake stands, they had one round dinner table set up. There, Gretchen put together mock-ups of the reception tables for brides to better visualize them and make changes.

“Gretchen has selected a soft white tablecloth with a delicate silver overlay of tiny beaded snowflakes. We’d carry the white and silver into the dishes with the silver chargers, silver-rimmed white china, and then use silver-and-glass centerpieces in a variety of heights. We’ll bring in tasteful touches of sparkle with some crystals on white manzanita branches and lots of candles.”

Colin ran the tip of his finger over a silver snowflake and nodded. “It all looks great to me. Very pretty. Gretchen has done a very nice job with it.”

Natalie made a note in her tablet and shook her head with amazement. “You’re the easiest client I’ve ever had. I refuse to believe it’s really that easy. What are you hiding from me?”

Colin looked at her with a confused expression. “I’m not hiding anything. I know it isn’t what you’re used to, but really, I’m putting this wedding in your capable hands.”

He placed his hand on her shoulder as he spoke. She could feel the heat radiating through the thin fabric of her cashmere sweater, making her want to pull at the collar as her internal temperature started to climb.

“You knew my parents. You know Lily. You’ve got the experience and the eye for this kind of thing. Aside from the discussion about flowers, I’ve had no clue what you were talking about most of the time. I just trust you to do a great job and I’ll write the check.”

Natalie tried not to frown. Her heated blood wasn’t enough for her to ignore his words. He was counting on her. That was a lot of pressure. She knew she could pull it off beautifully, but he had an awful lot of confidence in her for a girl he hadn’t seen since she wore a retainer to bed. “So would you rather just skip the cake tasting?”

“Oh no,” he said with a smile that made her knees soften beneath her. “I have a massive sweet tooth, so I’m doing that for sure.”

Natalie wasn’t sure how much her body could take of being in close proximity to Colin as friends. She wanted to run her hand up his tanned, muscular forearm and rub against him like a cat. While she enjoyed indulging her sexuality from time to time, she didn’t have a reaction like this to just any guy. It was unnerving and so inappropriate. This wedding couldn’t come fast enough.

* * *

“Thank you for all your help with this,” Colin said as Natalie closed up and they walked toward the door.

“That’s what I do,” she said with the same polite smile that was starting to make him crazy. He missed her real one. He remembered her carefree smile from her younger days and her seductive smile from the engagement party. This polite, blank smile meant nothing to him.

“No, really. You and your business partners are going out of your way to make this wedding happen. I don’t know how to thank you.”

Natalie pressed the alarm code and they stepped outside where she locked the door. “You and Lily are like family to me. Of course we’d do everything we could. Anyway, it’s not like we’re doing it for free. You’re paying us for our time, so no worries.”

Their cars were the only two in the parking lot, so he walked her over to the cherry-red two-seat Miata convertible. Had there been another car in the lot, he never would’ve guessed this belonged to Natalie. It had a hint of wild abandon that didn’t seem to align with the precise and businesslike Natalie he knew. It convinced him more than ever that there was another side to her that he desperately wanted to see.

“Let me take you to dinner tonight,” he said, nearly surprising himself with the suddenness of it.

Natalie’s dark brown eyes widened. “I really can’t, Colin, but I appreciate the offer.”

Two up at bats, two strikeouts. “Even just as friends?”

Her gaze flicked over his face and she shook her head. “You and I both know it wouldn’t be as friends.” Turning away, Natalie unlocked her car and opened the door to toss her bag inside.

“I think that’s unfair.”

“Not really. Listen, Colin, I’m sorry about the other night at the party. I’d been hit by a big dose of nostalgia and too much wine and thought that indulging those old teenage fantasies was a good idea. But by the light of day, I know it was silly of me. So thank you for having some sense and keeping me from doing something that would’ve made this whole planning process that much more awkward.”

“Don’t thank me,” Colin argued. “I’ve regretted that decision every night since it happened.”

Natalie’s mouth fell agape, her dark eyes searching his face for something. “Don’t,” she said at last. “It was the right choice.”

“It was at the time, but only because it had to be. Natalie, I—”

“Don’t,” Natalie insisted. “There’s no reason to explain yourself. You made the decision you needed to make and it was the right one. No big deal. I’d like to just put that whole exchange behind us. The truth is that I’m really not the right kind of woman for you.”

Colin wasn’t sure if she truly meant what she said or if she was just angry with him, but he was curious what she meant by that. He was bad enough at choosing women. Maybe she knew something he didn’t. “What kind of woman is that?”

“The kind that’s going to have any sort of future with you. At the party, I was just after a night of fun, nothing serious. You’re a serious kind of guy. Since you were a teenager, you were on the express train to marriage and kids. I’m on a completely different track.”

They hadn’t really been around each other long enough for Colin to think much past the ache of desire she seemed to constantly rouse in him. But if what she said was true, she was right. He wanted all those things. If she didn’t, there wasn’t much point in pursuing her. His groin felt otherwise, but it would get on board eventually.

“Well, I appreciate you laying that out for me. Not all women are as forthcoming.” Pam had been, but for some reason he’d refused to listen. This time he knew better than to try to twist a woman’s will. It didn’t work. “Just friends, then,” he said.

Natalie smiled with more warmth than before, and she seemed to relax for the first time since he’d arrived. “Friends is great.”

“All right,” he said. “Good night.” Colin leaned in to give Natalie a quick hug goodbye. At least that was the idea.

Once he had his arms wrapped around her and her cheek pressed to his, it was harder to let go than he expected. Finally, he forced himself back, dropping his hands at his sides and breaking the connection he’d quickly come to crave. And yet, he couldn’t get himself to say good-night and go back to his truck. “Listen, before you go can I ask you about something?”

“Sure,” she said, although there was a hesitation in her voice that made him think she’d much rather flee than continue talking to him in the cold. She must not think he’d taken the hint.

“I’m thinking about giving Lily and Frankie the old house as a wedding present.”

“The house you and Lily grew up in?” she asked with raised brows.

“Yes. It’s been sitting mostly empty the last few years. Lily has been living with Frankie in the little apartment over his motorcycle shop. They seem to think that’s great, but they’re going to need more space if they want to start a family.”

“That’s a pretty amazing wedding present. Not many people register for a house.”

Colin shrugged. “I don’t need it. I have my place. It’s paid for, so all they’d have to worry about are taxes and insurance. The only problem is that it needs to be cleaned out. I never had the heart to go through all of Mom’s and Dad’s things. I want to clear all that out and get it ready for the newlyweds to make a fresh start there.”

Natalie nodded as he explained. “That sounds like a good plan. What does it have to do with me?”

“Well,” Colin said with an uncharacteristically sheepish smile, “I was wondering if you would be interested in helping me.”

She flinched at first, covering her reaction by shuffling her feet in the cold. “I don’t know that I’ll be much help to you, Colin. For one thing, I’m a wedding planner, not an interior decorator. And for another thing, I work most of the weekends with weddings. I don’t have a lot of free time.”

“I know,” he said, “and I’m not expecting any heavy lifting on your part. I was thinking more of your organizational skills and keen aesthetic eye. It seems to me like you could spot a quality piece of furniture or artwork that’s worth keeping amongst the piles of eighties-style recliners.”

There was a light of amusement in her eyes as she listened to him speak. “You’re completely in over your head with this one, aren’t you?”

“You have no idea. My business is landscaping, and that’s the one thing at the house that doesn’t need any work. I overhauled it a few years ago and I’ve had it maintained, so the outside is fine. It’s just the inside. I also thought it would be nice to decorate the house for Christmas since they get back from their honeymoon on Christmas Eve. That way it will be ready to go for the holidays.”

The twinkle in her eye faded. “I’m no good with Christmas, Colin. I might be able to help you with some of the furniture and keepsakes, but you’re on your own when it comes to the holidays.”

That made Colin frown. Most people enjoyed decorating for Christmas. Why was she so opposed to it? In his eyes it wasn’t much different from decorating for a wedding. He wasn’t about to push that point, however. “Fair enough. I’m sure I can handle that part on my own. Do you have plans tonight?”

Natalie sighed and shook her head. “I’m not going out with you, Colin.”

He held up his hands in surrender. “I didn’t ask you out. I asked if you were busy. I thought if you weren’t busy, I’d take you by the old house tonight. I know you don’t have a lot of free time, so if you could just take a walk through with me this evening and give me some ideas, I could get started on it.”

“Oh,” she said, looking sheepish.

“I mean, I could just pay a crew to come and clean out the house and put everything in storage, but I hate to do that. Some things are more important than others, and I’ll want to keep some of it. Putting everything in storage just delays the inevitable. I could use your help, even if for just tonight.”

Natalie sighed and eventually nodded. “Sure. I have some time tonight.”

“Great. We’ll take my car and I’ll bring you back when we’re done,” Colin said.

He got the distinct impression that if he let Natalie get in her car, she’d end up driving somewhere other than their old neighborhood, or make some excuse for a quick getaway. He supposed that most men agreed to just being friends, but secretly hoped for more. Colin meant what he’d said and since she’d agreed, there was no need to slink away with his tail between his legs.

Holding out his arm, he ushered her reluctantly over to his Russell Landscaping truck. The Platinum series F-250 wasn’t a work truck, it was more for advertising, although he did get it dirty from time to time. It was dark green, like their shirts, with the company logo and information emblazoned on the side.

He held the passenger door open for her, a step automatically unfolding along the side of the truck. Colin held her hand as she climbed inside, then slammed the door shut.

“Do you mind if we listen to some music on the way?” she asked.

Colin figured that she wanted music to avoid idle conversation, but he didn’t mind. “Sure.” He turned on the radio, which started playing music from the holiday station he’d had on last.

“Can I change it to the country channel?”

“I don’t care, although you don’t strike me as a country girl,” he noted.

“I was born and raised in Nashville, you know. When I was a kid, my dad would take me to see performances at the Grand Ole Opry. It’s always stuck with me.” She changed the station and the new Blake Wright song came on. “Ooh. I love this song. He’s going to be doing a show at the Opry in two weeks. It’s sold out, though.”

Colin noted that information and put it in his back pocket. From there, it wasn’t a long drive to the old neighborhood, just a few miles on the highway. Blake had just finished singing when they arrived.

They had grown up in a nice area—big homes on big lots designed for middle-class families. His parents honestly couldn’t really afford their house when they had first bought it, but his father had insisted that they get the home they wanted to have forever. His parents had wanted a place to both raise their children and entertain potential clients, and appearances counted. If that meant a few lean years while the landscaping business built up, so be it.

The neighborhood was still nice and the homes had retained an excellent property value. It wasn’t as flashy or trendy with the Nashville wealthy like Colin’s current neighborhood, but it was a home most people would be happy to have.

As they pulled into the driveway, Natalie leaned forward and eyed the house through the windshield with a soft smile. “I’ve always loved this house,” she admitted. “I can’t believe how big the magnolia trees have gotten.”

Colin’s father had planted crepe myrtles lining the front walkway and magnolia trees flanking the yard. When he was a kid they were barely big enough to provide enough shade to play beneath them. Now the magnolias were as tall as the two-story roofline. “I’ve maintained the yard over the years,” he said proudly. “I knew how important that was for Dad.”

It was too dark to really get a good look at the outside, even with the lights on, so he opened the garage door and opted to take her in through there. His father’s tool bench and chest still sat along the rear wall. A shed in the back housed all the gardening supplies and equipment. He hadn’t had the heart to move any of that stuff before, but like the rest of it, he knew it was time.

They entered into the kitchen from the garage. Natalie instantly moved over to the breakfast bar, settling onto one of the barstools where she and Lily used to sit and do their homework together.

He could almost envision her with the braces and the braids again, but he much preferred Natalie as she was now. She smiled as she looked around the house, obviously as fond of his childhood home as he was. He wanted to walk up behind her to look at it the same way she was. Maybe rub the tension from her tight shoulders.

But he wouldn’t. It had taken convincing to get her here. He wasn’t about to run her off so quickly by pushing the boundaries of their newly established friendship. Eventually, it would be easier to ignore the swell of her breasts as they pressed against her sweater or the luminous curve of her cheek. Until then, he smoothed his hands over the granite countertop and let the cold stone cool his ardor.

“How long has it been since you’ve lived here, Colin? It seems pretty tidy.”

“It’s been about three years since I lived here full-time. Lily used it as a home base on and off for a while, but no one has really lived here for a year at least. I have a service come clean and I stop in periodically to check on the place.”

“So many memories.” She slipped off the stool and went into the living room. He followed her there, watching her look around at the vaulted ceilings. Natalie pointed at the loft that overlooked the living room. “I used to love hanging out up there, listening to CDs and playing on the computer.”

That made him smile. The girls had always been sprawled out on the rug or lying across the futon up there, messing around on the weekends. Natalie had spent a lot of time at the house when they were younger. Her own house was only the next block over, but things had been pretty volatile leading up to her parents’ divorce. While he hated that her parents split up, it had been nice to have her around, especially after his own parents died. Colin had been too busy trying to take care of everything and suddenly be a grown-up. Natalie had been there for Lily in a way he hadn’t.

“Lily is very lucky to have a brother like you,” she said, conflicting with his own thoughts. “I’m sure she’ll love the house. It’s perfect for starting a family. Just one thing, though.”

“What’s that?”

Natalie looked at him and smiled. “The house is exactly the same as it was the last time I was here ten years ago, and things were dated then. You’ve got some work ahead of you, mister.”

Three

After a few hours at the house, Colin insisted on ordering pizza and Natalie finally acquiesced. That wasn’t a dinner date, technically, and she was starving. She wasn’t sure that he had put the idea of them being more than friends to bed—honestly neither had she—but they’d get there. As with all attractions, the chemical reactions would fade, the hormones would quiet and things would be fine. With a wedding and the house to focus on, she was certain it would happen sooner rather than later.

While he dealt with ordering their food, she slipped out onto the back deck and sat down in one of the old patio chairs. The air was cold and still, but it felt good to breathe it in.

She was exhausted. They’d gone through every room, talking over pieces to keep, things to donate and what renovations were needed. It wasn’t just that, though. It was the memories and emotions tied to the place that were getting to her. Nearly every room in the house held some kind of significance to her. Even though Lily and Colin’s parents had been dead for nearly thirteen years now, Natalie understood why Colin had been so reluctant to change things. It was like messing with the past somehow.

Her parents’ marriage had dissolved when she was fourteen. The year or so leading up to it had been even more rough on her than what followed. Lily’s house had been her sanctuary from the yelling. After school, on the weekends, sleepovers...she was almost always here. Some of her happiest memories were in this place. Colin and Lily’s parents didn’t mind having her around. She suspected that they knew what was going on at her house and were happy to shelter her from the brunt of it.

Unfortunately, they couldn’t protect her from everything. There was nothing they could do to keep Natalie’s father from walking out on Christmas day. They weren’t there to hold Natalie’s hand as her parents fought it out in court for two years, then each remarried again and again, looking for something in another person they couldn’t seem to find.

Her friends joked that Natalie was jaded about relationships, but she had a right to be. She rarely saw them succeed. Why would she put herself through that just because there was this societal pressure to do it? She could see the icy water and jagged rocks below; why would she jump off the bridge with everyone else?

She heard the doorbell and a moment later, Colin called her from the kitchen. “Soup’s on!”

Reluctantly, Natalie got back up and went inside the house to face Colin and the memories there. She found a piping hot pizza sitting on the kitchen island beside a bottle of white wine. “Did they deliver the wine, too?” she asked drily. The addition of wine to the pizza made this meal feel more suspiciously like the date she’d declined earlier. “If they do, I need their number. Wine delivery is an underserved market.”

“No, it was in the wine chiller,” he said as though it was just the most convenient beverage available. “I lived here for a few weeks after I broke up with Pam. It was left over.”

Natalie had learned from Lily that Colin got a divorce earlier this year, but she didn’t know much about the details. Their wedding had been a quiet affair and their divorce had been even quieter. All she did hear was that they had a son together. “I’m sorry to hear about your divorce. Do you still get to see your son pretty often?”

The pleasant smile slipped from his face. He jerked the cork out of the wine bottle and sighed heavily. “I don’t have a son.”

Natalie knew immediately that she had treaded into some unpleasant territory. She wasn’t quite sure how to back out of it. “Oh. I guess I misheard.”

“No. You heard right. Shane was born about six months after we got married.” He poured them each a glass of chardonnay. “We divorced because I found out that Shane wasn’t my son.”

Sometimes Natalie hated being right about relationships. Bad things happened to really good people when the fantasy of love got in the way. She took a large sip of the wine to muffle her discomfort. “I’m sorry to hear that, Colin.”

A smile quickly returned to his face, although it seemed a little more forced than before. “Don’t be. I did it to myself. Pam had been adamant when we started dating that she didn’t want to get married. When she told me she was pregnant, I thought she would change her mind, but she didn’t. I think she finally gave in only because I wouldn’t let it go. I should’ve known then that I’d made a mistake by forcing her into it.”

Natalie stiffened with a piece of pizza dangling from her hand. She finally released it to the plate and cleared her throat. “Not everyone is meant for marriage,” she said. “Too many people do it just because they think that’s what they’re supposed to do.”

“If someone doesn’t want to get married, they shouldn’t. It’s not fair to their partner.”

She slid another slice of pizza onto his plate. Instead of opting for the perfectly good dining room table, Natalie returned to her perch at the breakfast bar. That’s where she’d always eaten at Lily’s house. “That’s why I’ve made it a policy to be honest up front.”

Colin followed suit, handing her a napkin and sliding onto the stool beside her. “And I appreciate that, especially after what happened with Pam. You’re right though. I’m the kind of guy that is meant for marriage. I’ve just got to learn to make better choices in women,” he said. Pam had been his most serious relationship, but he had a string of others that failed for different reasons. “My instincts always seem to be wrong.”

Natalie took a bite of her pizza and chewed thoughtfully. She had dodged a bullet when Colin turned her down at the engagement party. She’d only been looking for a night of nostalgic indulgence, but he was the kind of guy who wanted more. More wasn’t something she could give him. She was a bad choice, too. Not lie-about-the-paternity-of-your-child bad, but definitely not the traditional, marrying kind he needed.

“Your sister doesn’t seem to want to get married,” Natalie noted, sending the conversation in a different direction. She’d never seen a more reluctant bride. That kind of woman wouldn’t normally bother with a place like From This Moment.

“Actually, she’s very eager to marry. It’s the wedding and the hoopla she can do without.”

“That’s an interesting reversal. A lot of women are more obsessed with the wedding day than the actual marriage.”

“I think she’ll appreciate it later, despite how much she squirms now. Eloping at the courthouse was very underwhelming. We said the same words, ended up just as legally joined in marriage, but it was missing a certain something. I want better for my little sister’s big day.”

“She’ll get it,” Natalie said with confidence. “We’re the best.”

They ate quietly for a few moments before Colin finished his slice and spoke up. “See,” he said as he reached for another piece and grinned. “I told you that you’d have dinner with me eventually.”

Natalie snorted softly, relieved to see the happier Colin return. “Oh, no,” she argued with a smile. “This does not count, even if you add wine. Having dinner together implies a date. This is not a date.”

Colin leaned his elbows on the counter and narrowed his eyes at her. “Since we’re sharing tonight, do you mind telling me why you were so unhappy to see me yesterday at the chapel?”

“I wouldn’t say unhappy. I would say surprised. I expected Lily. And considering what happened the last time I saw you, I was feeling a little embarrassed.”

“Why?”

“Because I hit on you and failed miserably. It was stupid of me. It was a momentary weakness fueled by wine and abstinence. And since you passed up the chance, this is definitely not a date. We’re on a nondate eating pizza at your childhood home.”

A knowing grin spread across Colin’s face, making Natalie curious, nervous and making her flush at the same time. “So that’s what it’s really about,” he said with a finger pointed in her direction. “You were upset because I turned you down that night at the party.”

Natalie’s cheeks flamed at the accusation. “Not at all. I’m relieved, really.” She took a large sip of her wine and hoped that sounded convincing enough.

“You can say that, but I know it isn’t true. You couldn’t get out of the house fast enough that night.”

“I had an early day the next morning.”

Colin raised his brow in question. He didn’t believe a word she said. Neither did she.

“Okay, fine. So what?” she challenged. “So what if I’m holding it against you? I’m allowed to have feelings about your rejection.”

“Of course you’re allowed to have feelings. But I didn’t reject you, Natalie.”

“Oh really? What would you call it?”

Colin turned in his seat to face her, his palms resting on each knee. “I would call it being the good guy even when I didn’t want to be. You may not have noticed, but I had a date at the party. She was in a corner sulking most of the night. It wasn’t really serious and we broke it off the next day, but I couldn’t very well ditch her and disappear with you.”

Natalie’s irritation started to deflate. She slumped in her seat, fingering absentmindedly at her pizza crust. “Oh.”

“Oh,” he repeated with a chuckle. “Now if you were the kind of woman that would date me, you’d be feeling pretty silly right now.”

Natalie shook her head. “Even if I were that woman, this is still not a date. You can’t just decide to be on a date halfway through an evening together. There’s planning and preparation. You’d have to take me someplace nicer than this old kitchen, and I would wear a pretty dress instead of my clothes from work. A date is a whole experience.”

“Fair enough,” Colin agreed, taking another bite of his pizza. “This isn’t a date.”

Natalie turned to her food, ignoring the nervous butterflies that were fluttering in her stomach. It wasn’t a date, but it certainly felt like one.

* * *

They cleaned up the kitchen together and opted to climb in the attic to take a look at what was up there before they called it a night. Colin’s father had had the attic finished when they moved in, so the space was a little dusty, but it wasn’t the treacherous, cobweb-filled space most attics were.

“Wow,” Natalie said as she reached the top of the stairs. “There’s a lot of stuff up here.”

She was right. Colin looked around, feeling a little intimidated by the project he’d put on himself. He’d put all this off for too long, though. Giving the house to Lily and Frankie was the right thing to do and the motivation he needed to actually get it done.

He reached for a plastic tote and peeked inside. It was filled with old Christmas decorations. After further investigation, he realized that was what the majority of the items were. “My parents always went all out at Christmas,” he said. “I think we’ve found their stash.”

There were boxes of garland, lights, ornaments and lawn fixtures. A five-foot, light-up Santa stood in the corner beside a few white wooden reindeer that lit up and moved.

“This is what you were looking for, right?” Natalie asked. “You said you wanted to decorate the house for the holidays.”

He nodded and picked up a copy of A Visit From St. Nicholas from one of the boxes. His father had read that to them every year on Christmas Eve, even when he and his sister were far too old for that sort of thing. In the years since they’d passed, Colin would’ve given anything to sit and listen to his father read that to him again.

“This is perfect,” he said. “I have to go through all this to see what still works, but it’s a great start. I’ll just have to get a tree for the living room. What do you think?”

Natalie shrugged. “I told you before, I’m not much of an expert on Christmas.”

He’d forgotten. “So, what’s that about, Grinch?”

“Ha-ha,” she mocked, heading toward the stairs.

Colin snatched an old Santa’s hat out of a box and followed her down. He slipped it on. “Ho-ho-ho!” he shouted in his jolliest voice. “Little girl, tell Santa why you don’t like Christmas. Did I forget the pony you asked for?”

Natalie stopped on the landing and turned around to look at him. She tried to hide her smirk with her hand, but the light in her eyes gave away her amusement. “You look like an idiot.”

“Come on,” he insisted. “We’ve already talked about my matrimonial betrayal. It can’t be a bigger downer than that.”

“Pretty close,” Natalie said, crossing her arms defensively over her chest. “My dad left on Christmas day.”

The smile faded from his face. He pulled off the Santa hat. “I didn’t know about that.”

“Why would you? I’m sure you were spared the messy details.”

“What happened?”

“I’m not entirely sure. They’d been fighting a bunch leading up to Christmas, but I think they were trying to hold it together through the holidays. That morning, we opened presents and had breakfast, the same as usual. Then, as I sat in the living room playing with my new Nintendo, I heard some shouting and doors slamming. The next thing I know, my dad is standing in the living room with his suitcases. He just moved out right then. I haven’t celebrated Christmas since that day.”

“You haven’t celebrated at all? In fifteen years?”

“Nope. I silently protested for a few holidays, passed between parents, but once I went to college, it was done. No decorations, no presents, no Christmas carols.”

He was almost sorry he’d asked. So many of Colin’s favorite memories had revolved around the holidays with his parents. Even after they died, Christmas couldn’t be ruined. He just worked that much harder to make it special for Lily. He’d always dreamed of the day he’d celebrate the holidays with his own family. He’d gotten a taste of it when they celebrated Shane’s first Christmas, but not long after that, he learned the truth about his son’s real father.

“That’s the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.” And coming from a guy whose life had fallen apart in the past year, that was saying a lot.

“Divorce happens,” Natalie said. A distant, almost ambivalent look settled on her face. She continued down the stairs to the ground floor. “It happens to hundreds of couples every day. It happened to you. Heck, it’s happened to my mother three times. She’s on her fourth husband. My sad story isn’t that uncommon.”

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