Page 24 of A Christmas Bargain

“—woman who’s not a gold-digger?—”

She gasped. “She’s not after your money!”

“—and doesn’t come on so hard that promiscuous is her middle name.”

Glowering at me, she growled. “She’s not promis?—”

“Stacy.” I shot her a hard look. “I told her no.Manytimes. And still, she persists.”

“It’s just that you’d look so good together,” she whined.

I shook my head. “That’s disregarding how much Naomi doesn’t like her. You want your niece to have a woman in her life whom she can’t stand?”

“Well, no.” She frowned.

“And it’s disregarding how little interest I have in speaking with Mackenzie at all.”

She sighed.

“Andit’s disrespecting me and my wishes not to be forced into dating anyone.”

Her brow creased as she scowled. “Yet you won’t hesitate to look up this real estate woman?”

I did hesitate, actually. But my curiosity won out.

“Why are you so against my wanting to get to know Claire?”

She raised her brows. “Do you?”

I shrugged. “I’m more interested in her than I’d ever been in the women you sic on me.”

“I don’tsicanyone on you.”

“Why don’t you like Claire?” I asked, determined to get an answer out of her.

“I’m just… skeptical.” She softened her scowl, frowning and appearing thoughtful. “She’s clearly a career woman. Dressed all fancy, even for a little holiday market. She’s got to be more comfortable in the city. And she won’t last here, in a small town like Preston.”

Technically, she was living with her dad in Macomb, according to what she’d shared.

“She’s probably only hanging around this part of Colorado to be home for the holidays. Then after that”—she snapped her fingers—“she’ll just go back to the city.”

I nodded, unable to argue with her logic. I’d thought the same thing, that Claire wouldn’t stay here long-term. Stacy was probably right, but I didn’t like that.

And I’d lied, shrugging when she asked if I wanted to get to know Claire. I did, and I’d already acted on that urge.

This morning, I replied to an email she’d sent to my account that I kept open for business transactions and important things like my property deeds. She’d contacted the listed ownerinformation to ask about a large amount of acreage I owned. It’d been in the family forever, and when I left the city to raise Naomi here, I bought out my neighbor’s land when they were moving into a retirement home.

She couldn’t know it was me who’d replied to her email. The layers I’d installed with shell corps info hid my identity like that. She wouldn’t be the first zealous realtor who saw all that prime riverfront land and wanted to solicit me with a deal. That was why I’d gone more incognito with the business email, so no one could cold call me anymore.

I wouldn’t sell a square inch of my land. Never. It was home for me and Naomi. That was why I bought my neighbor’s property, so I wouldn’t have to deal with developers nearby. I valued the serenity of the sloping land I called home.

But I’d given Claire a slight impression that I was open to talking about the land. I replied, offering to meet up for a discussion. That didn’t mean that I had to intend to sell.

It was simply a means for me to talk to her again. Stacy was right. Claire did seem like a career woman. She’d passed on hot cocoa, citing the need to work. If I wanted a guarantee of talking to her again, teasing her with a chat about properties would give me the opportunity to see her again and hear her melodic voice again.

“Why are you so interested in her?” Stacy asked as she lifted her credit card for our waitress to take it for the bill. “You push away Mackenzie. You resist talking toanywoman. And one look at this realtor and you’re suddenly interested?”

“I never said I was interested.” That felt like a lie. Claire had captured my attention. “But I won’t dismiss how she’s made a favorable impression on Naomi.” I shrugged. While I wouldn’t freely own up to being curious about Claire, I wouldn't miss a chance to put the “blame” on Naomi. “She’s made a favorableimpression on me, too. Standing up for her. Not being annoyed with her constant questions.”

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