“Clara!” Conner swung her off her feet. She giggled as he lifted her high. “Good golly, Miss Molly, but you’re getting big!”
When he put her down, she ran to hug Travis. Then it was Bucket’s turn. The dog wagged his tail like a maniac, whining with joy and licking her face.
Conner had seen Rush’s stepdaughter last summer, but she was five now, and growing like a little weed, all long legs.
“I hope you don’t mind my bringing her,” Rush said. “When she heard I was coming here, she wouldn’t be left behind.”
“And she’s got you wrapped and tied in a bowknot around her little finger,” Travis teased. “Sure, we don’t mind. But she’ll have to promise to stick around the house and not go wandering off. Okay, sugar?” He gave her a stern look.
“Okay.” She grinned, still hugging the dog. Delighted as he was to see her, Conner added the little girl to his mental list of concerns.
Megan parked her car next to the shed, leaving plenty of room for customers to park in the driveway. Conner watched her climb out of the car. She looked pretty this morning, her face flushed with cold, her hair mostly covered by a pink hat with a little white pom-pom at the crown.
As she walked around the car to help her brother, he tried to picture her as the singer who’d knocked him out with her glamour. The long black wig, the makeup, the boots . . . yes, she could pull it off. But the real Megan was so different from the figure he still thought of as his dream woman.
Last night, both versions had been in and out of his dreams. This morning, as she walked toward him with her brother, he could feel the attraction pulsing through his body like an electric current—but was it for bright, wholesome Megan or her sizzling-hot secret identity?
Daniel was wearing the sling over his blue parka. His grin widened as he spotted Conner. “I’m all yours,” he said. “Just tell me what to do.”
Conner forced his attention away from Megan to focus on her brother. “First let’s get you outfitted. Take off your cap.”
Daniel took off his knitted cap and handed it to Megan. Conner pulled out the Santa hat he’d stuffed into his pocket earlier and fitted it on Daniel’s head. “There. Now you’re one of Santa’s helpers. For the time being, you can stand over here by the corner of the house and wish people ‘Merry Christmas.’ Make sure they know that all the trees are the same price—thirty-five dollars—and that the cocoa and marshmallows are free. If they ask about a sleigh ride, have them talk to Travis or Rush, or to me, if I’m not out on the trail. Got it?”
“Got it,” Daniel said. “I talk to people in the store all the time. I’ll do you a good job.”
“If you get tired, you can take a break and rest by the fire,” Conner said. “The bathroom’s in the house. If you need it, just go in. You don’t have to ask.”
He felt a tug at his sleeve. Clara was looking up at him with that heart-melting gaze of hers. “I’m big enough to help,” she said. “I want a job, too.”
“Great.” Conner thought fast. Having something to do would help keep the curious little girl out of trouble. “How about you stand next to Daniel, here, and help him greet people?”
“Okay.” She smiled up at Daniel and offered a hand. “Hi. My name is Clara. I saw you in the store last summer. You were nice, I remember.”
“You did.” Daniel shook her hand. “I remember you, too. If you’re going to help, you’ll need a Santa hat like mine.”
“I just happen to have another one.” Conner pulled one more hat out of his deep pocket and placed it on Clara’s head, pulling the edges down over her ears. She and Daniel walked off together to take their places by the house. They were already talking and laughing like friends.
“My brother is great with kids,” Megan said. “Don’t worry, he’ll look out for her.”
“I wasn’t worried. I can tell they’ll be fine.” Conner realized he was alone with Megan for the moment—a moment he couldn’t afford to waste. “I was hoping you’d come so I could see you again. Thanks for bringing Daniel to help out.”
“Actually, you’re getting two for the price of one,” Megan said. “My mother was pretty upset about Daniel’s accident. She said the only way she’d let him come here this morning was if I stayed. So I hope you have a job for me, too.”
Conner restrained a whoop of elation. Maybe today was going to turn out all right after all. “I do have a job, if you wouldn’t mind,” he said. “One of the two kids who helps with the cocoa and marshmallow roasting called in sick. His friend’s here, doing the job alone. When folks start coming in, he’s going to have his hands full. He could use some help. We’d pay you, of course. We don’t ask anybody to work for nothing.”
She gave him a smile—familiar because he’d seen those dimples on the face of his so-called dream woman at last year’s Christmas Ball. That smile was one thing Megan couldn’t change. “Sure,” she said. “But don’t even think about paying me. I’m only here for fun, and to keep an eye on Daniel. I just have one question.”
“What’s that?” he asked.
She laughed. “Where’s my Santa hat?”
“Come on,” he said. “I’ll get you one.”
* * *
By early afternoon, business was booming. Families were coming to buy trees, enjoy hot cocoa, and toast marshmallows on sharpened green willow sticks. Some of them sat on the circle of low benches around the fire pit, keeping warm while they waited for their turn to ride in the sleigh.
Wearing the Santa hat Conner had found for her, Megan ladled hot cocoa into insulated cups, added a couple of miniature marshmallows to each one, and passed them around the circle. She was having a good time. The weather was perfect, the people happy and friendly. Warren, the high-school boy who was handling the fire and the marshmallow sticks, was an easygoing cowboy type who also helped with the ranch’s hay harvest in the summer.