Page 20 of Second Chance Christmas

“My dear, there’s romance and reason to everything. You’d do good to remember that. You just have to look hard enough to find it. Or don’t. Sometimes it finds you. Funny thing that, fate.” A suspicious smile played on her lips and the fact she wouldn’t make eye contact with her. Or what Ivy read as suspicious.

“Funny indeed,” she concurred. But she knew for a fact, fate was getting a helping hand whether it wanted it or not.

One corner of Ivy’s mouth turned up. “Thank you for sharing your lovely home with me, Ms. Lucille. Before I leave Dixen I’d love to come back and visit with you. Maybe take some pictures. If you agree I would love to feature you and Aspen on my website.”

Ms. Lucille gathered her hands in hers and patted them much like she did when Ivy was worried over an exam or feeling frustrated over schoolwork. Just like it had then, the gesture worked to ease her. “Of course! And we’ll see each other again, dear.”

Why did she feel that one sentence held some level of power?

Flurries of snow chased Aspen inside as he joined them. “Ms. Lucille, you did a good job with that fire. I’ll send out one of the guys a little later to check on you.”

A blur of movement caught Ivy’s eye and she ducked down a little to peer out the bus’s windshield for a better look.

“Was that—” she squatted lower, “a reindeer?”

“Yep. Who did you think the fire was for?”

Honestly, until that second she thought it was to get Aspen out here for some company. “You have a pet reindeer?”

“Technically the whole town does, but not by choice.” Aspen held out a hand to Ms. Lucille as they exited the bus.

Aspen approached the reindeer, who didn’t appear worried at all by the burly man nearing him.

Everything about this scene was bizarre down to the multiple strands of lights hanging from the reindeer’s antlers. Behind him trailed what had to be enough lights to decorate half the town.

Aspen shook his head as he reached out and petted the animal’s snout with a couple of pats. “I see you’ve been in town, boy. Can’t leave the decoration alone.”

“I take it he has a thing for Christmas lights?”

He held his hand out to her and she quickly shook her head. “Animals usually don’t like me. I think they can smell the city on me or something. They always try to bite.”

“Don’t be silly. They smell the vanilla-scented lotion you use and want a taste of your sweetness.” Aspen didn’t bother to turn around as he teased her, but she could hear the mirth in his tone. “I could be wrong, but I don’t think animals discriminated against city slickers,” he continued and pulled her closer when she placed her palm in his outstretched one.

“Here.” Aspen cupped her bare hand between his, rubbed them together and blew across her fingers. She turned her gaze up to his. “Trust me,” he whispered and pulled her to stand in front of him.

Had he meant that as a question? The thing was, she wasn’t supposed to trust even old friends, but she found herself easily stepping into his open arms. She didn’t want to, but she couldn’t deny standing next to Aspen felt completely right.

He slowly placed her ungloved hand on the reindeer’s snout, replacing his, which earned her a soft bellow. “Pet her like this,” he murmured in her ear.

Her hand threatened to shake but the weight of Aspen’s against hers calmed her nerves.

Aspen guided her hand down the length of the reindeer’s snout. The warmth of his hand a comfort against the cold. Yes. The cold and not that his hand felt good holding hers or that his heat felt like a favored blanket wrapped around her.

Heat flushed her cheeks as Aspen shifted closer, his pine and snow scent a tease to her senses. Her heart quivered but no way she would listen to its lies. It let her down once and it took a fool to fall for the same lie a second time.

“It’s a she?”

“Yep. Surprises a lot of people that the girls have the horns. See, she likes you.” His low-timbred voice tightened like a warm blanket around her and dared her to move from its protective cocoon.

“She is soft and warm.” Ivy shuffled her feet closer, careful to angle herself away from the sharp ends of the reindeer’s antlers.

She dragged her attention away from Aspen and focused on the animal.

“If you had a cookie or a piece of celery, she’d be your friend for life. Ms. Lucille has spoiled her rotten from day one.”

Aspen moved away to unwind several strands of lights from one side before setting to work on the other.

“She has a thing for sweets? I don’t think I’ve ever seen that.”

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