Holidays are Hell(61)

She smiled at the claim and slid on the shoes as he parked, then leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you," she whispered and meant it. He was very thoughtful. Others might not have thought of stopping to get her clothes let alone shoes. But he had. His consideration was one of the things she liked about him, but there was so much more too.

Nick smiled and reached out to squeeze her hand affectionately, then opened his car door. "Let's go. Time to face the lions."



* * *





Chapter 5





"Good Lord! The two of you must be freezing! Come in!"

Jill smiled at Nick's sister as she opened the door to them, but then her eyes ran curiously over the large entry, taking in the gleaming hardwood floors and cream walls. The room was beautiful and made more so by the tasteful Christmas decorations.

"Where are your coats?" Maggie asked as she closed the door behind them.

"We lost them at the parade," Nick murmured.

"Oh. People nowadays," Maggie tutted with a scowl. "You can't leave anything alone for a minute anymore." She shook her head. "Well, never mind. I'll loan you both coats before you go."

"Thanks Mags," Nick said, giving her a hug. "You're a sweetie."

"Yes, I am, and don't you forget it," Maggie laughed as he released her. She then turned to beam at Jill. "Hi, I'm Maggie, Nick's sister, and you must be Jill, the smart, funny, lovely lady who owns the clothing store next door to Nick."

Jill flushed with embarrassment, her lips tipping wryly as she said, "I take it Nick has mentioned me then?"

"Mentioned you?" Maggie laughed. "It's been Jill this and Jill that for six months. I was beginning to think the divorce would never be over so we could meet you."

"You know," Nick said, scowling at his sister. "If I hadn't already told Jill what I thought of her, I'd be really embarrassed right now."

"I knew you'd tell her before you got here. You've been chomping at the bit for the last couple months. I'm surprised you managed to wait until the divorce was signed," Maggie said with an unrepentant grin and then added, "I plan to help the two of you along by telling Jill all sorts of things today."

Nick rolled his eyes, apparently not surprised at the threat. "Oh, well, if you're just going to embarrass me, I think I'll go find Jill and me a drink. Will you be all right for a minute?" he asked, running a hand down her arm.

She nodded and he pressed a kiss to her cheek, whispering, "She means well."

Jill smiled at the claim as he turned away.

"Don't hurry back," Maggie called after him and then turned to Jill with a wide smile. "Nicky's told me so much about you, I feel I know you already. Of course, that's how I knew he was serious about you."

"It is?" Jill asked, eyes wide. Nick had said as much earlier, but it was still startling to hear it from his sister. As Jay had said, it seemed everyone had known he liked her… except for her.

Maggie considered her expression solemnly, then murmured, "It must have driven you wild these last six months; eating lunch together every day, his seeming to like you but never making a move." She grimaced. "I know it would have driven me mad."

When Jill merely smiled crookedly, Maggie said, "I'm afraid he had to. If Michelle—his ex-wife—had caught wind that he was seriously interested in someone, she'd have dragged her feet on the divorce to get more money just to make him miserable."

"Ah." Jill felt her shoulders relax. While she'd believed what Nick had said, she'd wondered why, once he'd decided she was the one, he'd still held to his determination not to reveal his feelings until the year was up. Now she understood.

"She is a horrible woman, grasping, greedy, and spiteful." She shuddered and added, "Nicky would never tell you that, but I'm not as nice. She was horrid."

"She must have had some redeeming features," Jill murmured, though she was actually pleased to hear this poor opinion of the first wife. "Nick doesn't seem the sort to marry someone like that."

"He was younger and she was a model, always flying off to some shoot or other." She grimaced. "With her around so little, we were all fooled. Once they were married though, she dropped out of modeling, was around, and couldn't uphold the image of the sweetheart for long."

"Still out here?" Nick asked as he approached up the hall. Pausing at Jill's side he handed her a glass of eggnog and then glanced from one to the other. "So, has my sister scared you off yet?"

Jill smiled faintly and shook her head. "Afraid not. I guess you're stuck with me."