Page 36 of Cowboy Stolen Kiss for Christmas

One of the trees at the North Pole Candy Depot had been set up as a tribute to all the citizens in Pinetop who’d served in the Armed Forces. Their photos had been glued to red ball ornaments. Tiny flags were fluttering from the branches, looking like striped blossoms. The pièce de résistance, however, was the collection of hand-dipped chocolate pretzel stars. They were roughly the size of Laura’s palm, wrapped in clear cellophane packaging, and available for purchase.

“I’ll take that one.” She pointed at one of the stars in the center of the tree. The prongs had been dipped in edible blue glitter.

“Would you like it in a gift box?” The grandmotherly cashier lifted the chocolate ornament from the tree and laid it on a square of red metallic bubble wrap.

“Yes, please. It’s for my boy…um, friend.” Warmth infused Laura’s face at the realization that she’d almost called Ames Carson her boyfriend. Not that he would’ve minded. He was certainly gunning for the position.

“I’ll have it wrapped up for you in no time, hon.” The woman made a work of art out of the packaging. She placed it in a blue and white striped box and tied it with a red velvet bow. When she was finished, she tastefully affixed the North Pole Candy Depot’s logo sticker to the top. It was half hidden by the bow, serving as a tasteful advertisement for their amazing products without overpowering the loveliness of the gift itself.

“Thank you so much!” Laura paid for the star and carried it outside. She was meeting Ames for lunch, something they were in the habit of doing once or twice per week now. During the weeks he was in town, that is.

He was having to spend more and more time in Dallas now that their foreman had accepted a job overseas. He and his brothers weren’t interviewing candidates to replace the man, either. She was both dreading and anticipating the day Ames would tell her they were returning to Dallas for good.

Away from Pinetop.

Away from me.

“Stop!” someone shouted, yanking her from her thoughts.

Laura whirled around in the nick of time to avoid being plowed into by a man in a navy sweatshirt with the hood pulled low over his face. Though his head was down, making it impossible to see his face, there was something eerily familiar about his height and build.

And then she knew.

“Oak?” She gasped out his name.

Right as he was speeding past her, he glanced up and gave her a dark glare.

It was him alright. He veered menacingly in her path, wordlessly threatening to mow her down.

As she jumped out of the way, the man chasing after him continued to shout warnings. “Stop him! He took my wallet!”

Laura’s head spun in dismay back in Oak’s direction, but he was gone. It was as if he’d vanished into thin air.

“He ran between the buildings!” A woman pushing a stroller pointed out the spot.

A sick feeling settled in Laura’s gut. What have you done, Oak? Why was he back in town? Despite having a surly father, he had a God-fearing mother who’d raised him to be a gentleman. Laura couldn’t imagine the sweet kid she’d grown up with turning to a life of crime. Then again, he’d tampered with Ames’ bronco a while back, so it was anyone’s guess what he was capable of doing these days.

She debated what to do next, knowing she was probably the only person on the sidewalk who could positively identify Oak as the thief. Alleged thief, she corrected inside her head, assuming the angry man who claimed his wallet was stolen had been telling the truth.

There was only one right way to handle this. With a sign of capitulation, Laura dug out her cell phone and dialed Ames. Raising the phone to her ear, she listened while it rang.

“Hey, darling!” The sound of his voice never failed to make her heart race. “You ready for lunch?”

“I am, but I’m going to be running a little late.” A howl of sirens sounded in the distance.

“Is everything okay?” he inquired quickly.

“I’m not sure. A man claimed his wallet had been stolen by a guy he was chasing. I saw who it was, so I need to give my statement to the police.”

“You mean you recognized the thief?”

Alleged thief. “It was Oak.” A wave of sadness swept over her. It was going to break her parents’ hearts to hear he was in trouble. They were friends with Oak’s mom.

“You’re kidding! No one has seen hide or hair of him since my bronc riding fiasco.”

“And now we know why,” she sighed. “It looks like he’s mixed up in something on the wrong side of the law.” The howl of sirens grew closer, and a police cruiser with flashing lights pulled up to the curb. “I’m sorry about being late for lunch. Hopefully, this won’t take too long.”

“Where are you?” Ames sounded worried.

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