Christmas In Love: A Greenbank Holiday Romance (Greenbank Holiday Romances Book 1) Page 2

  His brow furrowed again in thought, and Natalie took a moment to scan his appearance. Appreciate it, really. Her eyes had missed him, if nothing else.

  His dark hair, dark eyes, and impressive shoulders hadn’t changed, but the lines on his face had. There were more deep grooves around his eyes, and a few lines around his mouth that indicated he did occasionally smile, just not now. He stood tensely, with one hand in his pocket and the other rubbing the side of his well-defined jaw. Natalie pulled her gaze and thoughts away from the rabbit hole they were circling not a moment too soon, as his eyes refocused on her.

  She thought she saw him quickly check her out as well, likely taking in her auburn hair pulled into a messy ponytail, slightly wrinkled blouse, and the extra eight pounds that wouldn’t leave her hips. Yes, it was exactly eight. Natalie fought the despairing feeling that surged in her stomach and crept up her throat. She’d never planned to see Cade Davis again, but she would have liked to be wearing a pretty little number with a full face of makeup when she did.

  “I don’t really know. At least a few days. Can I book three nights for now, then extend my stay if I need to?”

  Natalie blinked, forcing her mind back to business mode. Business, business, business. She was the epitome of professionalism and impressive-ness, which was now a word. She should have said something about not being able to guarantee the room after three days because she was so busy, but she didn’t think of that in time.

  “Yes, that’s fine.” She stooped down, unlocked a small box under the desk, and grabbed a key from the hook inside the box. “Would you rather pay cash or...” She trailed off as she saw him holding out a credit card. “Right, okay.”

  As quickly as she could, she took his payment, filed his paperwork, and gave him a key and directions to his room. Then she sent him on his way with a healthy dose of relief, and maybe one too many lingering glances as he made his way up the stairs.

  Okay, maybe five too many of those.

  Finally, she locked the front door, turned the sign to “closed,” and trudged back through the kitchen to her room.

  She was almost asleep when a buzz alerted her to a text on her phone. She grabbed it, her mind immediately leaping to the possibility Cade had texted before realizing how ridiculous that was. He didn’t even have her new number.

  Still, she was a little disappointed to see her best friend’s name on the message.

  April: Mrs. Foster asked me to make sure you are still organizing the Christmas parade.

  April: *gif of man rolling eyes*

  Natalie emitted a sound that was half-laugh, half-groan. She didn’t want to think about the commitment she’d made four months ago, back when she’d wanted to take this town by storm. She also didn’t want to think about how Mrs. Foster had been checking in on her progress every week since then.

  So, she rolled over and went to sleep.

  Or at least, if someone asked her, that’s what she would say she did. She might have actually laid awake thinking about dark eyes, nice shoulders, three years of dating, and the secret that broke them up. A secret she had no intention of sharing.

  Chapter 3

  Cade

  The mountains seemed to be closing in on Cade by the time he was dressed to leave his room at the bed and breakfast. When he’d chosen the mountain room, he’d thought there might be a couple of nice pictures of mountains.

  He’d been very, very wrong.

  There were pictures, yes, but also so much more. One wall had an entire mural of a mountain scene. The mural wasn’t bad, but when paired with the triangular headboard, fake trees reaching to the ceiling, and the looming bear statue in the corner, Cade was beginning to imagine mosquitos flying around his head. He could have sworn the room smelled like a pine forest.

  He shut the door firmly behind him and turned to lock it. Even the plaque with the room name was mountain-themed. It was fashioned to look like a trailhead marker. Cade grimaced. He liked the outdoors as much as anyone, but he didn’t like suffocating in them.

  It was worth it, though. Sometime during the night spent tossing and turning in the wilderness, he’d come to a decision. Fate was handing him a second chance at finding out what had happened with Natalie four years ago, and he was taking it.

  The smell of pine vacated his nose as delicious fumes of sugar and yeast wafted up the stairs. He followed the scent to a dining room off the entry.

  The second he stepped through the door, four sets of eyes landed on him, but one set was noticeably absent.

  “Good morning!” A jovial man stopped him from stepping back out in search of Natalie. Though why he was looking for her was beyond him.

  “Good morning,” Cade nodded to the man and his wife, then sat at the substantial table and grabbed a cinnamon roll from the platter in the center. The room was a decent size, larger than a standard dining room would be, but smaller than a hotel’s dining room. There were no mountains anywhere on the walls or in the decor though, so he immediately liked it.

  “Here for the holidays, then?” The older couple was talking to him again. They both had round, cheery faces, and white hair. Cade almost grinned—with the snow falling in the window behind them and the wife’s bright red sweater, they could easily be mistaken for Santa and Mrs. Claus.

  “Yes, and you?” Cade took a bite from the cinnamon roll and almost moaned. It was still warm, and just the perfect balance of sweet mixed with the slightly spicy cinnamon flavor.

  “Visiting the grandkids.” Mrs. Claus smiled at her husband then back at Cade. “We have three grandkids, but we always spend Christmas with sweet Darla and her family. They have the most kiddos, you see, and this town is just the cutest Christmas town, wouldn’t you say?”

  “Definitely.” Cade took another bite. He liked small talk. It was noncommittal and came easily to him since it was practically part of his job. The parents of his patients always wanted to share their kid’s latest escapade, or at least talk about how nice the weather had been lately. Cade only needed to offer one or two-word responses.

  “So, tell us about yourself.”

  Cade blinked. This wasn’t how small talk was supposed to go.

  “Um, well...”

  “I have eggs! And bacon!” Natalie stepped into the room, unintentionally saving him from the conversation.

  Cade swallowed at the sight of her. Even knowing he’d likely see her that day hadn’t prepared him for it. Her auburn hair was no longer pulled back, but curled softly around her shoulders. She had light makeup on, and her blue eyes drew him in like always.

  But they couldn’t draw him in anymore. Not after the way she’d left him last time.

  “Do you need any help, darlin’?” Mrs. Claus started to stand.

  “Oh no, Mrs. Clarke, I’m quite alright, but thanks for the offer.” Natalie offered the woman one of her broad smiles, and Cade swallowed again. He distracted himself by noticing the Claus’s actual last name was fairly similar to the nickname he’d fashioned for them.

  With skill far more advanced than her bumbling attempts at checking him in last night had displayed, Natalie placed several plates of steaming food onto the table. Then, she stepped back and looked up. Her eyes caught Cade’s and, for a second, he couldn’t look away. Old attraction flared in the air between them, unseen by their breakfast companions. But on the heels of that attraction were questions. So many questions.

  Natalie cleared her throat and stepped back. “Well, enjoy everyone!” She started to back out of the room.

  “Oh, darling, aren’t you going to eat with us?” Mrs. Claus—err, Clarke, asked.

  Natalie smiled again, though it seemed a little tighter this time, as her gaze jumped to Cade then back to the older lady. “I have a plate in the kitchen. You guys enjoy. If any of you need anything, I’ll be back at the desk in a quarter-hour.” Before she could be caught again, she stepped from the room.

  In seconds, Cade was on his feet. He couldn’t exactly demand she tell him why she broke u
p with him, but for some reason he still wanted to follow her. Maybe it was habit. Even after four years of not seeing Natalie, old habits seemed to die hard. Essentially, the last time he’d been with her, it had been entirely normal—even expected—for him to follow her from a room.

  It was also expected he would catch up to her, wrap an arm around her waist, and...

  Yeah, that line of thought didn’t need to be explored.

  “Hey,” he said, stepping into the kitchen after her.

  Natalie jumped backward, her hand flying to her chest and her eyes wide. “Cade. Oh... er... did you need something?” Her tone relaxed, but he didn’t miss the way she chewed the inside corner of her mouth—she’d always done that when she was uncomfortable.

  “Yes...” He hadn’t thought quite that far yet, and scrambled for an excuse. “I thought maybe you’d have recommendations for things to do around here?” Sure, that was a good one.

  “I have a pamphlet, one sec.” She skirted around him to the entry.

  Oh yay, another pamphlet.

  She was back moments later, holding out a folded paper with an arm so straight that Cade guessed if she could have thrown it at him instead, she would have.

  He took it, but didn’t look at it.

  “So, how long have you worked here?”

  Her eyebrows lifted. “I own the bed and breakfast.”

  “Oh, I didn’t realize. How long have you owned it?” He’d always planned that if he saw Natalie Taylor ever again, the only thing he’d want to do was flaunt his newfound success in the medical field in her face. Now he was here though, he just wanted to know how she was. And why she’d left him.

  And maybe flaunt his success, just a little. She deserved to know what she’d missed out on, didn’t she?

  “Less than a year.”

  “What did you do before then?”

  “I worked for a company in Denver.”

  So, she hadn’t left Denver? For years they’d probably only been a short drive from each other.

  “That’s cool.” He didn’t know what else to say, but he didn’t want to leave.

  “Yeah.” She looked around, her eyes landing on her plate of food. He really should leave.

  “Do you always cook in addition to running the bed and breakfast?”

  She inched back until she was on the other side of the worktable where her food lay. “No. I have a cook. But this is Jason’s weekend off, so I cook when he’s gone.”

  He? Suddenly, Cade felt a desire to know this man’s age, background, and any arrests. Plus, his potential interest in Natalie. Because any man with eyes had to be interested in her.

  “Well, I’d suggest the local museum. Or there’s a yummy ice cream shop just down the street. It might seem silly to have ice cream in the middle of winter, but they keep the shop nice and warm.” She was trying to hint to him that he should leave.

  “Awesome. Thanks for the recommendations.” He left, ignoring the sense of loss that burrowed into his chest as he ran up the stairs to grab his coat and keys.

  Chapter 4

  Natalie

  Two days.

  Natalie survived two days of Cade staying at the bed and breakfast and managed to avoid him for most of that time. Ever since the morning before, when he’d followed her to the kitchen where they’d had the most awkward, odd conversation, she’d only had brief glances of him as he’d come in and out of the inn. Now, Natalie was torn between hoping he checked out as planned in the morning, and praying he stayed.

  That was weird, right?

  She glanced out the window at the falling snow. It was hard to keep the man from her thoughts when he was always the last one to return to the inn at night. She felt like she had to stay up until he was back. April kept telling her to hire another person to work the evening shift, but until the bed and breakfast got a bit more popular, it just wasn’t worth it. Paying Jason to cook already stretched her thin.

  Plus, it was after ten, so the door was locked, which was another reason to stay up and make sure the guests all got in safely. She always waited up. Well, almost always. It wasn’t just Cade.

  Honestly, it wasn’t. There had been that one time...

  The bell above the front door jingled, and Natalie froze in the darkened kitchen. Her ears strained to hear the sound of Cade walking up the steps, but none came. A full minute passed, and still nothing. Natalie began to wonder if it’d been Cade at all. Maybe one of the guests had left for some reason? If so, she should double-check that the lock reset.

  She forced her feet into the doorway, eyes searching the dim light.

  Cade was standing just inside the front door, one hand in the middle of ruining his hair, and the other gripping his phone. He looked up at her, and Natalie saw the distress. The shadows under his eyes seemed more pronounced, the lines around his mouth stiffer.

  Words slipped out of her, forgetting they weren’t dating anymore. They weren’t even friends. “Is everything okay?” She wrapped her arms around herself to keep from walking to him.

  “No.” He shook his head. “Yes, actually. I’m fine. It’s just...” He looked back at his phone and sighed. “One of my kids isn’t doing well. Another doctor on the team called to consult. We’re worried he won’t last through Christmas.”

  Natalie’s stomach dropped. “How old is he?”

  “Six.”

  A strangled sort of sigh escaped her. “What’s wrong with him?”

  “Cancer.” Cade ran his hand through his hair again. “Poor kid hasn’t known life without it hanging over his head, but up until a couple of months ago, he was in remission.”

  Another piece of Natalie’s heart broke off. “That’s terrible. His poor family.”

  “Yeah.”

  For a long moment, they just stood there in mutual distress, with the wind from the storm beating against the windows. He continued to stare at his phone, his jaw tight and his eyes flicking back and forth across the latest message he’d received. He ran his hand through his hair again, the action both tense and weary. The years between them seemed to melt away, and Natalie wanted to go to him, wrap her arms around him and comfort him in some small way. She couldn’t. But she wanted to do something, so she offered the next best thing she could think of.

  “Can I make you some hot chocolate? I have some leftover cinnamon rolls from yesterday, too, if you want?”

  Her voice seemed to surprise him, as if he’d forgotten she was there. His stance was not stiff as it had been the night he’d checked in, but he still seemed to hold himself in a way that indicated he was uncomfortable. The floorboard beneath him creaked as he shifted his weight.

  She waited for him to say no, and was understandably shocked when he suddenly nodded, looking at his phone one more time before pocketing it.

  Natalie led the way into the kitchen, trying to ignore the pull she felt to Cade. In a couple days he would be gone. Maybe even tomorrow. And when he left, the past would still hang between them, causing distance she refused to cross.

  She put on a pot of milk—because it was a travesty to make hot chocolate with water—and pulled the cinnamon rolls from the fridge, taking off the plastic wrap covering and popping them in the microwave. For a few minutes, preparing everything kept her busy, but she felt Cade’s eyes on her the whole time.

  “I don’t remember you knowing your way around the kitchen so well,” Cade commented quietly, as she set two mugs and a plate of rolls between them.

  “You might be referring to that one dinner I burned.” Natalie sat on a barstool at the table, opposite of him.

  “There was only one?” Cade raised his brows as he took a cinnamon roll.

  Natalie laughed, the emotion pushing away some of the despair that still seemed to float around in her heart at the thought of that little boy fighting for his life. “Okay, so maybe two. Three at most.”

  Cade raised a brow again, but didn’t comment, except to say, “really, these are the best cinnamon rolls I think I’ve ever ha
d.”

  Natalie ducked her head. “Thanks. I still burn dinner, but I’m pretty fantastic at breakfast.”

  They ate in silence, sipping their hot chocolate. After a minute, Natalie turned the TV in the corner of the room on low, just so the silence wouldn’t be so loud.

  Cade’s left hand rested on the table, inches from hers, a leather watch strapped to his wrist, ticking away almost silently. How would it feel to hold his hand again?

  “How did you end up running the inn?”

  Natalie ripped her gaze from his hand.

  “Oh, my best friend moved here a few years ago, after she got tired of Denver. Wait—you remember April, right?”

  He nodded, taking a sip from his drink.

  “Well, she moved here, then her younger sister followed, and she’s been begging me to come for years. I guess she eventually wore me down, because I moved here about a year ago, then decided to buy and renovate the inn. I’m still trying to decide if that was a good idea.”

  “So, you’re using your business degree then?”

  “Yeah, fat lot of help it’s been. I pretty much know a lot about spreadsheets, and nothing about how to get guests to stay at a quirky little bed and breakfast.” Natalie didn’t really want to talk about her potentially failing venture. “So, you ended up choosing pediatrics?”

  “Yeah,” Cade’s face softened, and a smile seemed to tug at his lips. He looked like the man she used to know.

  Natalie was all too aware of their proximity across the skinny worktable, the stubble across his jawline, and the way his forearms flexed and moved as he reached for his mug.

  “I thought you wanted to become an ER doc?” Natalie felt silly bringing up four-year-old information.

  “Yeah, I switched last minute. I was lucky to get a residency. My Peds rotation left an impression, and it just felt right. The kids pulled me in and wouldn’t let me go.”

  “You’ve always loved kids.” The statement should have been happy, or, at the very least, emotionless. Instead, it came out sad. Natalie knew why, but she didn’t want Cade to know, so she changed the subject. Kind of. “How many nieces and nephews do you have now?”