Forever Santa (2 page)

“How were the crowds in the mall?” Trent asked.

“Not too bad. I found almost everything I wanted.” Gracie sighed when her husband lifted her legs onto his lap and started rubbing her feet. “Your mom found the perfect dress for Christmas day.”

“I can almost guarantee her dress needed a new pair of shoes and a bracelet to make it complete.”

“You forgot the earrings.” Gracie smiled at the resigned look on Trent’s face. His mom had a soft spot for anything bright and blingey. He didn’t understand her attraction for necklaces and ear-rings, but Gracie did. Between them they had shopped at every jewelry store in Bozeman.

“How are you feeling?”

Gracie put her drink on the table and leaned back in the sofa. “Tired. It’s so cold outside. I don’t think the snowplows stopped all day.”

“It’ll get worse before it gets better. If you ever feel uncomfortable driving, just give me a call and I’ll take you where you need to go.”

Gracie smiled and closed her eyes. Trent’s hands kept massaging her feet, rubbing all the sore spots away. On a good day, the Triple L Ranch was thirty minutes from downtown Bozeman. On days like today, it had taken over an hour of careful driving to get home.

“I’ll be okay. If I need to go anywhere I try and time it when someone else needs to go into town. Mrs. Davies gave me a ride today. It gave us both someone to talk to.” Gracie felt a smile work its way across Trent’s face. “I don’t need to have my eyes open to know you’re laughing at me.”

“Who me? I wouldn’t dream of thinking you enjoy talking to people.”

“It’s just as well you’re being polite, otherwise you might find the heel of my foot nudging something it shouldn’t.”

Trent’s hand rubbed a little higher up her leg. “Is that a promise or a threat?”

“It could be either depending on how long you rub my feet for.” Gracie opened her eyes and watched her husband. They might not have had the best start to married life, but they were living a wonderful marriage now. She loved Trent more than the day she’d felt the first stirrings of love. A thousand times more than the day she’d married him.

Gracie groaned as Trent pushed on an achy part in the arch of her foot. “I saw Jordan in town today.”

“Did he have stacks of shopping with him?”

“He was dressed as Santa.”

Trent’s hands stopped massaging her feet. “That’s a different way to buy your presents. Was Tracey dressed like Mrs. Claus?”

“Tracey wasn’t with him.”

“Must have been the Santa costume.”

Gracie didn’t know how to tell Trent his brother might have had his heart broken. Tracey and Jordan had been going out for so long that everyone assumed they’d get married, have a family, and live happily-ever-after.

But after today the chance of that happening was practically zilch. Unless Gracie and Jordan had both misread what they’d seen. But kissing was kissing. Especially when the lips involved spent more than a millisecond attached to someone else’s mouth. Someone that wasn’t your boyfriend.

“Jordan wasn’t shopping. He was in the mall pretending to be Santa.”

Trent frowned. “Are you sure it was Jordan?”

“Positive. And that’s not all.” Gracie took a deep breath and tried to figure out the best way forward. She didn’t want Jordan to think she was butting into his business. Didn’t want Trent thinking she was reading more into what she’d seen. But she’d watched Tracey kiss another man, seen Jordan’s reaction, and knew it had cut deep.

“Spit it out, Gracie.”

Trent’s hand felt warm against her leg. He’d understand what she’d seen, maybe have a different reason that could explain the Christmas kiss under the mistletoe. “Tracey was holding another man’s hand. I don’t think she knew Jordan was at the mall. At least she didn’t seem to notice him as she wandered past.” Gracie waited for Trent’s reaction. He sat perfectly still, listening to the words tumbling out of her mouth.

“She kissed him.”

“Who?”

“The man she was with,” Gracie said. “Tracey kissed the man she was holding hands with. It wasn’t a see-you-later kind of kiss either. It was a yummy kind of kiss that you want to repeat.”

Trent looked genuinely puzzled. “A yummy kiss?”

Gracie shook her head at her nincompoop husband. “You know…the kind that leaves you breathless and panting.”

Trent smiled. “I like the sound of those yummy kisses. Want to try one of those on me?”

Gracie nudged his leg with her foot. “This is serious. Jordan’s girlfriend was smooching someone else. You’re not supposed to kiss anyone when you’re practically engaged.”

“I hate to break the news to you, but Jordan hasn’t asked Tracey to marry him. I didn’t think it was that serious.”

“Trent McKenzie, I can’t believe you just said that. Jordan and Tracey have been dating for longer than I’ve been living in Bozeman. They’re a couple. When one of that twosome dillydallies with someone else, it’s not a twosome anymore.”

“Maybe Jordan and Tracey have already broken up, only Jordan hasn’t told us.”

That would have made perfect sense if she hadn’t seen Jordan’s reaction to the kiss. He’d been devastated. “I don’t think that’s the answer. You should go and talk to him.”

Trent shook his head. “It’s his business, Gracie. He can sort it out.”

“He’s your brother. You have to look out for him.”

“Jordan won’t thank me for saying something. If he’s as upset as you think he is, he’ll come and see me.”

Gracie growled low in her throat. “What is it with men? If that happened to a woman, we’d call our friends and they’d come around with tubs of ice cream and a huge cake. Jordan won’t tell you his heart has been broken, he’ll just get grumpy and irritable. It’s Christmas and he needs you.”

“You won’t leave me alone until I go and see him, will you?”

Gracie patted Trent’s arm. “Of course not. And because you’re the best brother in the world you’re going to really listen to him. Don’t let him fudge the truth.”

Trent thought about what Gracie said and smiled. “Can I have a yummy kiss now?”

“I think that could be arranged.” Gracie lifted her legs off Trent and twisted toward him on the sofa. “You can have two or three kisses if it makes you see Jordan faster.”

“Has anyone ever told you you’re bossy?”

“Only you.” Gracie plastered little kisses on the edge of Trent’s mouth. “But you like being told what to do.” Gracie held back a yawn.

“Only when it’s in my best interests.” Trent pushed a stray red curl off Gracie’s face and frowned. “You need an early night. I’ll see Jordan in the morning.”

Gracie couldn’t stop another yawn from breaking free. “Promise?”

“Promise. Now, Mrs. McKenzie, it’s time for bed.”

“But it’s only eight o’clock. It’s way too early to go to bed.”

Trent stood and held his hand out. “You must be getting old. Now move your butt before I throw you over my shoulder and carry you upstairs.”

Gracie held onto Trent’s hand as he pulled her upright. “I’ll go on my own two feet, but only because you’ll put your back out if you carry me. And just for the record, I’m usually able to do twice as much shopping before collapsing in a tired bundle.”

“Those long nights and early mornings are finally catching up with you.”

Gracie stopped under the mistletoe Trent had strung above the living room door. “I wouldn’t change our long nights and early mornings for anything. Have I told you how much I love you?”

“You might have mentioned it once or twice.” Trent looked up and smiled. “How about we practice our yummy kisses under the mistletoe?”

“Did I also mention what great ideas you have?”

“It’s nice to be reminded.” Trent wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against his body. “I love you, short stuff.”

And Gracie found out just how yummy her husband’s kisses could be.

***

Trent wasn’t sure what he was going to say to his brother. Gracie could be wrong. She might have misread Jordan’s reaction, added emotion where there wasn’t any. But knowing his wife, he didn’t think that would have been the case.

The mudroom door slammed and he heard someone unzipping their coat. “Is that you, Jordan?”

“You expecting someone else?” his brother yelled back.

Trent pushed out of his office chair and walked into the kitchen. Hot coffee and food would be a good start with Jordan. He’d never seen anyone eat as much as his brother. Mrs. Davies, their housekeeper, kept the fridge, freezer, and pantry stocked with enough food for two winters. Which was just as well with Jordan on the loose.

“You want coffee?” Trent asked.

Jordan frowned, his blue eyes as sharp as laser beams. He ducked behind the pantry doors and opened the lid on a cookie tin. A handful of cinnamon crunch cookies landed on the kitchen counter. “What’s with the coffee? You usually try and keep me out of the kitchen.”

Trent glanced out of the big picture window over the kitchen sink. If it had been a clear day, he would have seen the Bridger Range, sprawled across the landscape in front of him. But the only thing he saw today was snow, as thick and unwelcome as the conversation he was about to have.

The drip of the coffeepot filled the room. “Gracie said she saw you at the mall yesterday? Dressed as Santa.”

Jordan stuffed a cookie in his mouth. No amount of munching could hide the suspicion on his face. “Gus got the flu and they were down one Santa. Jake volunteered as Santa Security yesterday and saw me shopping. I did a couple of hours until another guy arrived.”

“Better you than me.” Trent slid a thick black mug of coffee across to his brother. “How was it?”

“Better than feeding the cattle this morning.” He opened the fridge and poured half an inch of milk into his mug.

Trent wasn’t so sure. If it had been him, he would have sooner been on the back of their flat deck, dishing out hay. He waited for his coffee, grabbing a cookie to fill in time.

“What else did Gracie say?”

Jordan sounded pissed off, defensive, and so damn unlikely to tell him the truth that Trent wondered why he was bothering with the question. But he knew why. He’d promised Gracie he would. Tasting a few of those yummy kisses she’d been talking about last night had addled his brain. Made him agree to do the one thing Jordan hated.

He took a slow sip of coffee, watching his brother over the rim of his mug. “She said she saw Tracey at the mall.”

Jordan’s face shut down faster than the howling nor’wester rattling the shingles on the roof. He stood up and walked across to their office. “You ready to go over the plans? I’ve got to phone through another list of supplies to Jake’s Hardware before we get snowed in again.”

Jordan had thrown a curve ball in Trent’s direction when he wanted to turn the Triple L into a vacation hot spot. An authentic ranch vacation business had never been in their long term plan and Trent wasn’t interested. Gracie had arrived in Montana about the same time Jordan started getting really pissed off with him. Between the two of them, they’d convinced him that it made good business sense to diversify their income.

Not long after Trent agreed to Jordan’s ideas, they’d set up a desk for him in the ranch office. Within a short space of time, Trent had readjusted his way of thinking about his brother.

Jordan had always drifted through life, happy to play follower to his older brother, happy to go along with whatever plans someone else made. But that changed well before the architect finished the concept design for converting an old barn into guest accommodation.

Come Spring, Jordan would be opening their ranch vacation business. Before then, they had the interior fit out to complete.

Trent pulled a set of plans closer and stared at the ground floor. The barn was three stories high, big enough for the entire ground floor to be used as the living quarters. The second floor had been devoted to guest accommodation, with Jordan taking over the top floor.

They’d tried to save what money they could, but the final price had been twice what they’d expected. High-end vacation experiences came with high-end price tags.

Jordan pointed to the kitchen area. The dark walnut cabinets were waiting to be installed. They’d worked out a deal with the contractor which meant Trent would spend the next three days helping to install the units.

“Gracie’s nearly finished painting the walls in the kitchen.” Jordan’s hand ran along another wall. “She wants the scaffolding moved across here by the end of the day. She’ll join Frank and Pete on the second floor when she’s finished, but they’ll need more paint.”

“When is the plumber arriving?”

Jordan pulled the project plan out of a folder. “In two day’s time if the weather doesn’t close the road.” He pulled a piece of paper out of his back pocket. “I made a list of what we need. Can you see anything I’ve missed?”

Trent compared the project plan with the list of supplies, then glanced back at the floor plan. “Looks good to me. Is the kitchen counter still on schedule for the end of the week?”

“The granite has already been cut. They’re doing the final polish now.”

Trent leaned his arms on the desk and scrutinized the plans one last time before pushing them back toward Jordan. “Tell me about Tracey.” The temperature inside the office dropped a few degrees. He glanced up at his brother. “You know Gracie’s worried about you? She’ll pester me until I tell her you’re okay.”