california christmas dreams (22 page)

“I need to apologize,” Merry said as she stepped up to the carousel.

Jake paused. He loved the carousel, and she remembered their ride on it and how the music had sounded. She stepped up onto the platform. The horses were gritty with dust and smoke, but seemed undamaged.

“For what? You have nothing to apologize for. Maybe for ditching me for Daryl, but nothing else.”

“That was not my best strategy.” She still felt guilty using Daryl the way she had. But at least he’d learned they would never be a couple and Daryl had gone off on his happy way, already planning his next conquest.

“I agree. It wasn’t,” Jake said. “How about we talk over dinner tonight? My treat. The steak house at the Mission Inn?”

She found herself smiling. “Dinner it is.” She walked away humming.

* * *

The steak house at the Mission Inn was elegant and comfortable. Jake drove, promising her he would take her back to the park to retrieve her car after their meal.

Merry twirled the stem of her wineglass while watching Jake. He looked completely at ease as he perused the menu. She would have preferred Andy’s Crab Shack in Venice Beach, but that was a tough enough drive on a weekend. On a Monday it would be horrible.

“Are we going to make the opening?” he asked, after the waiter had taken their order.

“Everything will be fine.” Merry buttered bread and took a bite. She almost closed her eyes in ecstasy. This was bread to die for. “The soot is coming off and only two displays need painting. I have volunteers coming out of the woodwork. Even your friend Bonnie showed up today to help clean. There are a lot of people in the community who love your father, and they want the park to reopen on time. You father gave me permission to give away free opening-day tickets. I think we’re going to have a packed house.” She smiled.

“I talked to The Brothers J today. They’ve agreed to play for free if we’ll share the merchandise receipts. They’ve agreed to ninety percent of the net.”

“Good. I designed a special T-shirt for them to commemorate the opening and their first appearance together in ten years.” Just talking about opening day made her excited. The fire had been a setback, but the damage was fixable.

“They’ll be excited about that.”

“I took a photograph of them and combined it with Benny the Bear in Photoshop. We’ll have hats, mugs and other merchandise to go along with it.” She thought the graphic had turned out pretty well. John had loved it.

“I’m sure we’ll sell a ton,” Jake replied.

“Are you excited?”

He studied her for a second. “I didn’t think I would be, but yeah, I am. My dad has worked really hard on this and maybe he is doing the right thing after all.”

“And you’re not worried about me stealing his money anymore?”

“You’re going to get a lot of job offers from this. You’ll be able to write your own ticket. What are you planning to do?”

She didn’t tell him about Mr. Chapman’s offer. She didn’t want to share it until she’d figured out what her reply would be.

“Honestly, I have no idea.” She’d talked to John earlier about cutting back on her time at the park, and he’d agreed she should explore other opportunities. Now that the designs were all set up, she wouldn’t have to be at the park every day. She could work from home and accept some freelance jobs. She could afford to pick and choose what she wanted to do.

“I talked with your father today about my future. But I want you to know the park will always be my first priority.” She’d come to love the park and John. And...Jake. Not seeing him every day and having to account for every penny would make her days less fun, but she’d survive. “Doing set design for music videos is quick, easy work that pretty much pays a crapload of money.” The extra money would afford her some luxuries she didn’t allow herself now.

Their dinner came and the conversation drifted off. Merry realized she was quite comfortable with Jake and relaxed even more knowing she didn’t have to fill the time with conversation.

After their meal, Jake drove her back to get her car. The parking lot was empty except for her car. The night air was crisp and cool. A full moon hung heavy in the dark sky. Though the smell of smoke continued to linger, it was a lot less offensive than it had been earlier.

Jake opened her door and stepped out. He took her hand and said, “Come on.”

“What?” she asked breathlessly.

He unlocked the gate in the chain-link fence and pulled her inside. He led her down the path toward the carousel.

“Stand here.” He jumped on the bed of the carousel and walked through.

Merry waited, entranced. Like Jake, she loved the carousel and was happy it had escaped any damage. A second later, the carousel lit up. Someone had wrapped the horses, poles and benches in Christmas lights.

Merry clapped her hands. “It’s beautiful.”

“Come on,” Jake called.

She jumped onto the carousel and in a second it started moving. The lights began to blink as the horses moved up and down on their poles. Christmas music blasted out.

Jake jumped on the carousel and came to stand next to her. “What do you think?”

What girl wouldn’t get swept up in the romance of this? Especially with this man. “ I love it.”

“Trial run,” he said.

He put an arm around Merry and pulled her close. She snuggled against him. He was warm and his breath fanned her cheek. She closed her eyes. He kissed her. His lips were soft against hers.

The magic of Christmas washed over her. Santa Claus had a large list to fill for her.

She slid her arms around his neck and let the kiss go on and on. The memory of their one night together made her body tingle and grow hot. The feel of his body against hers sent her into a passion so hot, she didn’t think she’d ever feel normal again.

His kiss became more ardent, his lips covering hers, his body pressed tightly against her. Merry slid back against a bench while relaxing in his embrace. This was exactly where she wanted to be. He bent his head, his lips brushing her forehead, down the side of her face to her cheek and then to her mouth again. The lights, the music, the magic made her legs rubber, and she slid down to sit on the bench. Jake followed her down, one hand brushing her neck, the other tangled in her hair.

She wanted this ride to go on and on. She wanted the feeling to never end, to discover the never-ending story.

“About Saturday,” Jake said when the kiss ended. “I wanted to explain...”

She held her hand up. “Do you smell something?”

He sniffed. “Yes, but I don’t know what.”

She took a moment to calm herself, closing her eyes and trying to identify the acrid smell of... “Gasoline.”

Chapter 13

J
ake took a deep sniff. Merry was right. “Gasoline.”

He looked around, trying to figure out which direction it was coming from. The wind had stilled and the smell surrounded him.

“Should we call the police?”

“Let’s investigate first.” Jake turned in a circle. “It might be something that we can handle.”

“I don’t know, Jake. I have a bad feeling.”

He powered down the carousel and turned off the lights. His eyes needed a moment to adjust to the darkness.

“This way.” He grabbed her hand.

They ran around the rides and the miniature golf courses. The smell was growing stronger. Jake skidded to a halt at the first of the retail stores. He heard a small explosion. Flames rose.

He fumbled with his phone and almost lost it. Quickly he dialed 911 and reported the fire. “Get a fire extinguisher.”

Merry ran to a fire station and grabbed the extinguisher off the bracket. Jake grabbed another one. He ran toward the fire, the smell of gasoline so overpowering he started to cough.

He activated the extinguisher and pointed it at the flames. Something hit him in the back and he sprawled forward. He felt another strike on his back and when he turned, he found Harry Constantine reaching to twist the extinguisher out of his hands.

“Let it burn,” Harry screamed at him. “Let it burn.” He punched Jake in the face.

Jake heard a scream and in the next moment, Merry had jumped on Harry’s back and was pummeling his head.

“Stop!” she screamed. “Stop.”

Jake dropped the fire extinguisher and helped Merry subdue Harry. While he held Harry, he directed Merry to the fire. In the distance, he heard sirens. Help was almost here.

“Let it burn,” Harry cried.

Jake grappled him. “Why, Constantine?”

Harry twisted to look at Jake. “You should’ve just sold me the damn property. My offer was more than fair. I had this deal completely sewn up and then your father...your father...”

“My father didn’t want to sell.” His father had made the right decision.

With his face highlighted by the flames, Jake could see anger tight on the other man’s face.

Merry sprayed the flames. Jake would have helped her, but he needed to keep Harry subdued. The sirens had grown louder. Harry struggled harder.

“I’m ruined.” Tears leaked from Harry’s eyes. “I’m ruined.”

Fire trucks poured into the parking lot, followed by several police units. Men poured out.

“I’m ruined,” Harry sobbed.

“You’re ruined no matter what now,” Jake said. He let his grip relax now that the police had arrived.

Harry took advantage of the moment, twisting free and running. Jake took off after him. Harry turned and swung a fist, hitting Jake in the shoulder. Jake grunted. For an out-of-shape man, Harry packed a powerful punch. Jake jumped him and they both fell to the ground. In the next second, two police officers stood over them, their guns drawn. Jake got to his feet. The smoke from the fire made his eyes gritty. He saw the fire department taking charge and moving Merry away from the flames.

Detective Mars pulled handcuffs out of his pocket.

“I think this man is your arsonist.” Jake stood aside as Mars pulled Harry to his feet.

“You may be right.”

Merry ran up to Jake. “Are you all right?”

“I may have a bruise or two tomorrow, but I’m okay.”

Merry grabbed him, her arms sliding around his neck. “I was so afraid he’d hurt you.”

“He didn’t,” Jake reassured her. He put his arms around her and held her close, watching the flames slowly being subdued by the fire department. They all had fire extinguishers and soon the fire was under control.

“Do you have somewhere we can talk?” Detective Pederson asked.

“My office is over here.” Jake led the detective toward his office while Detective Mars took charge of Merry, leading her to her office. Jake couldn’t help a small chuckle. Divide and conquer came to mind.

Merry talked to the detective, her arms swinging, her gaze meeting Jake’s. She smiled. The detective gently moved her toward her office. She waved at Jake and he waved back. He marveled at her courage, but then again, he expected nothing less from her.

In his office, Jake called his father, then told Detective Pederson everything that had happened. By the time his father arrived, the detectives had released Jake and Merry. The fire department had everything under control. His father called Evelyn to let her know the arsonist had been captured, and then took Jake home while Merry went to a nearby motel.

* * *

The next morning, Merry bought new clothes at the mall and felt refreshed despite the lateness of her night. She arrived at John’s office by midmorning, and when Detective Pederson arrived, she poured him a cup of coffee and sat down. Detective Pederson looked exhausted. She doubted he’d been to bed yet.

“To wrap things up,” Pederson said, “we found a gas can with Mr. Constantine’s fingerprints on it. We have evidence and a confession. He seemed to think that if he started a second fire, the insurance company wouldn’t pay out and you’d be forced to sell.”

“But why did he want this property so badly?” John asked.

“He told his investors that he’d already bought the property and they would be breaking ground for the next mall soon. He didn’t expect your father to change his mind. And he couldn’t go back to the investors with that information, so he thought he could force you to sell, Mr. Walters.” Detective Pederson ran a hand over his face. His clothes still smelled smoky and he needed a shave. “We also were able to tie him to the incendiary device. My partner found instructions on how to build one on Mr. Constantine’s computer. We have enough evidence to convict him.”

Merry frowned. “I sort of feel sorry for him.”

“I don’t,” Jake said. He looked angry. “He caused a major fire that took millions of dollars to fight and tried to put my father out of business.”

“Don’t waste your pity, Miss Alcott,” Detective Pederson said.

“I’m not saying what he did was right, nor am I condoning his behavior,” Merry said. “He was just so desperate last night.”

“I should have just stuck to my guns from the beginning,” John said. “Then this wouldn’t have happened.”

“I’m sorry, too,” Jake said. “I pushed for the sale and found the buyers. I should have just left well enough alone.” He looked at his father. “I should have trusted you to know what’s best for you.”

John nodded. “Thank you. Now, we have a park to get ready. We’re two weeks from opening and we have a lot of work left to do.”

John walked the detective to his car. Jake refilled his coffee cup. Merry watched him.

“Fortunately, the building he set on fire hadn’t been rented yet,” Merry said.

“Can the building be saved? It was built in 1872.”

“The contractor is looking at it now, but I think it’s a total loss. The store next to it didn’t catch fire, though it has a few scorch marks on the side. That’s easily fixed. We’re still on schedule.”

“Good,” Jake said. “You and I still have to work out our issues.”

Merry grinned. “I know, but not today. I’m cool. Put the conversation on hold because I’m going to be putting in twelve-and fourteen-hour days for the next two weeks to keep everything on schedule.”

“I can do that.”

She nodded. “Okay. Let’s get back to work.”

* * *

On opening day, Merry was exhausted. For the past week, she’d rented a hotel room because she’d been too tired to travel back and forth from her home in Pasadena. But finally the day arrived and Merry found herself standing by the ticket booths watching guests make their way up the walkway to the entrance. For Black Friday, it was a great crowd.