Jared rifled around in a kitchen drawer and then handed her a single key on a keychain. “You’ll need this. Let’s go get you settled.” After locking up the house, he wrapped a towel over Whit to protect him from the rain and held an umbrella over her head as he walked her over to the rock cottage. The flagstone path was wet but it wasn’t slick. Even so, his arm around her waist made her feel safe. Moments later she was grateful for it when her shoe stuck in the mud along the path and slipped off.
“Oh, for crying out loud,” she said as she hopped on one foot.
“I’m gonna start calling you Cinderella.”
She quickly slipped back into the worn out shoe and dislodged it from the mud with a tug of her foot. “Huh?”
“You keep losing shoes. Hank told me that was how the incident at Rudy’s started.”
She thought about it and chuckled. She’d lost the same shoe at the fire station the night he’d rescued her on the side of the road, and earlier that same day when she’d walked out of it yet again. “With all the excitement, I’d completely forgotten about that. These shoes are just about worn out.”
Jared opened his mouth as if he was about to say something but then closed it and just smiled at her.
Having an idea what he’d intended to say, she replied, “I’ll be fine with them for a while longer. I just need to get a few slings and other baby items sold to Mrs. Finch and Violet and then I can invest in a pair of good shoes.”
“Do your feet hurt?”
She was surprised that he even knew about that. “They do. It’s worse in the morning, though. It got better while I was on maternity leave, but I spend a lot of time on my feet at Stigall’s. Anyway—”
“Have you ever seen a doctor about it?”
“Evelyn suggested it but…”
“It’s another one of those things that have to wait?”
“Yes. But don’t worry, I’ve been setting money aside for both.”
“Sorry, I don’t mean to keep reminding you of that fact. I know you enjoy your independence, it just goes against my grain not to provide a solution,” he said as they reached the porch and he closed the umbrella.
Presley Ann chuckled and said, “I know, and I do appreciate it. Not everything is an emergency. Besides, I’ll be off my feet for the rest of the evening. I have plenty of sewing that needs to get done,” she said, thinking of all the neat, folded stacks of fabric lined up on her work table.
“Yes, but first we have a surprise for you,” he said as he opened the front door.
Presley Ann gasped at the sight that greeted her. A small Christmas tree, festooned with colorful, twinkling lights, decorated with shiny red and green glass balls, and topped with a lace angel tree topper stood in a corner of the living room. The nearby mantel was draped with evergreen boughs and two tall pillar candles, which were lit and had filled the small house with the scent of baking cookies.
“What do you think?” Jared asked as he helped her slip out of her coat.
A snow globe sat on the coffee table in the midst of more evergreen boughs, and she gasped in surprise as she picked it up and shook it. It was a snow scene with a small rock cottage, much like the one she stood in, and Santa with his reindeer and a sleigh. “It’s wonderful. But how—”
“It was Charity’s idea.”
“But who paid for all of this? I know it was expensive.”
Jared shook his head and said, “Never mind that. Just…Merry Christmas.”
Glancing at the tiny stack of gifts under her tree, she bit her lip, and then said, “Thank you.” Money had gotten too tight as Christmas drew near, so she’d been limited to just a few gifts for family members and that was it.
Jared was suddenly right there in front of her, stealing her breath and her resolve to work all night. He stroked her forehead, between her brows, with a fingertip and said, “Whatever is worrying you, just let it go. We wanted to see you happy.”
“I am,” she admitted, her heart about ready to pound from her chest. “I’ll have lots of Christmas spirit while working in here.”
“I’d much rather distract you from work all evening.” He slid his hands into her long hair, using handfuls of it to anchor her as he pressed his lips to hers, a gentle onslaught that ignited the flame that had been warming her core all day, every time she’d laid eyes on them. She wanted to be as close to Jared as possible and groaned as he slid his hands down her back and around her waist, pulling her close to him. So close she could feel the growing thickness of his erection against her abdomen. Whit squirmed between them and sighed as he snuggled against Presley Ann, and she chuckled.