He might avoid anything Christmassy, but maybe it was time he got a dose of holiday spirit sprinkled with a dash of childhood nostalgia.
* * *
Jason stared at the stack of mail on his desk with zero interest. His thoughts kept straying to the occasional sounds that came from other parts of the house. A loud thunk followed by a thump emanated from the living room. He paused in his attempt to locate where he’d placed his checkbook. Damn. What was that woman up to?
Not hearing anything else, he pulled open the left-hand desk drawer. She’d call if she needed him. He refused to accept that he was hiding from her because of the crazy things she did to his body with a mere look or a casual touch. He had responsibilities. He was a busy man with things he had to get done. He simply didn’t have spare time—
Bang! He jumped to his feet. The desk chair rolled back, crashing into the credenza. With long strides, he hurried to the great room, where he blinked, unable to believe his eyes.
“Are you just going to stand there? Or are you going to help me?” Kara glowered at him as she yanked on the trunk of a pine tree that was now wedged in the doorway.
“What are you doing?”
“You told me to find something to do. I’m doing it.” She gave another tug and the tree suddenly came loose, sending her stumbling back into his arms.
His heart leaped into his throat. She was soft. But her body was chilled from being outside. A longing to pull her closer and warm her up swamped his senses. This was not good. But it wasn’t as if he’d done anything wrong. She couldn’t hold it against him because he enjoyed the way her soft curves felt.
All too soon, she was steady on her feet. He jerked his hands away and stuffed them in his back pockets. “I meant for you to find a book to read. Not destroy my house.”
She held on to the pine with one hand and turned to him. Her cheeks were rosy from the cold and begged to be warmed with a kiss.... No! Don’t go there. He’d just extended her a job offer. He had to start thinking of her as an employee, no matter how much she reminded him of a sexy, tempting snow bunny.
“Since we’re stuck here tonight,” she said, distracting him from his errant thoughts, “I have nothing else to do....”
“We’ve discussed this. I don’t do Christmas.”
“Come on. You’ll have fun stringing lights and arranging the ornaments.”
His lips pressed into a firm line. “I can’t think of anything I’d like less.”
“Okay, Scrooge. I’ll decorate the tree by myself. If you hate it, you can toss it tomorrow, after I’m gone. Okay?”
He frowned. It would keep her busy and out of his way. Ah, what could it hurt? As she said, after she left he could get rid of it. No harm, no foul.
“Just don’t break anything with that bushy shrub.” He started for the study.
“It’s a tree—a Christmas tree,” she called after him. “And where are you going?”
What could she possibly want now? He clenched his hands, his temples pounding. If she hounded him again about decorating that blasted tree, he swore he’d cut it into kindling. “I have work to do.”
“Not before you help me move the table. I think the tree would look best in front of the picture window, don’t you?”
He groaned. Kara smiled as though she took the utmost pleasure in his misery. With a twinkle in her eyes and a shake of her head, she turned her back on him and set to work. Once they’d moved the table, she needed a little more help. This time he had to hold the six-foot tree upright while she screwed on the base. Then the tree had to be adjusted, to make certain it was straight in the holder.
Jason clenched his jaw until it ached, holding back a string of gripes. He moved the tree this way and that way until she deemed it was in the perfect location. He knew where it would be perfect—in the burn pile. But not wanting to go another round with Kara, he choked down his sarcasm. No wonder he didn’t bother with the holidays. They were a big waste of time.
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay and help?” she asked, as if it was some great honor. “There’s plenty to do.”
He shook his head, but the enthusiastic glow on her smiling face made him wonder what he was missing. How could hanging doodads on a dumb tree make Kara glow with happiness? Although even if he didn’t understand what the fuss was about, he enjoyed seeing Kara happy, he reluctantly admitted. She should definitely smile more often.
“I’ll be in the study if you need me.” He inwardly cringed at his choice of words. Kara could do quite well, fending for herself.
He took a few steps, then paused and turned. She’d already started digging through the cardboard boxes, lifting out smaller containers. For some reason, he was having a hard time walking away. But why? This was what he wanted: Kara occupied, so he could go off on his own. Then why did he feel he was about to miss something special?
Back in his study, Jason paused by the window and noticed how the storm had intensified. The fallen snow was being scooped off the ground by howling gusts of wind, causing a virtual whiteout. With a disgusted sigh, he turned away.
He sank down in his desk chair and forced himself to read over the latest credit card statement. Not much later, the desk lamp flickered. At first he thought there was an electrical short, but when the light flickered again, he noticed that it affected the whole house. If they got the predicted ice on top of those winds, they’d be plunged into darkness. He raked his fingers through his hair and leaned back in the chair. Being alone in the dark with Kara, with nothing to do but snuggle in front of the fire, would be his undoing.
&nbs