Page 39 of Wrapped in You

Derek swiped his hand through the air. His eyes glinted with tears.

"One minute, she was here, and the next, she was not. I canceled everything after that. I sat around in our mansion in Beverly Hills, bemoaning life, avoiding Christmas. I had the maid take down all the decorations that Georgia had lovingly put up. And I resolved never to celebrate Christmas again. Because what good is it?" Derek sounded breathless. "How can something like that continue without Georgia on the planet with us?"

Sophie had been so captivated by his story that she hadn't realized her father and the sound guys had gotten up to play darts in the corner. She was relieved they hadn't overheard.

Derek looked exhausted after that. He put his face in his hands. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have just told you all of that."

"No. It's okay," Sophie assured him.

"I don't know," he offered. "I haven't said it out loud to a stranger before. But you're also not a stranger. We work together. It's unprofessional."

Sophie wanted to run around the table and throw her arms around him. She wanted to tell him that Christmas could help with the healing process if you opened yourself up to its magic.

But instead, Mike was back at the table, begging the two of them to play darts. "We can't do it without you. Beck is miserable at it, and Joe has had one too many beers already to get any points."

Sophie and Derek met one another's gaze for a soft and beautiful moment. Could Mike sense what had just passed between them? Could he feel the shimmer in the air?

"I'd better get back home," Derek admitted after a long pause. "I want to prep for tomorrow."

"All right, boss," Mike said. "See you tomorrow."

Sophie remained seated. She and Mike watched as Derek got up, buttoned his coat, and walked into the swirling snow.

"He's so mysterious," Mike said with a laugh. "Did he tell you anything about himself just now?"

"Nothing," Sophie lied.

"It's weird that he came out," Mike said. "It's like he wants to pretend to be an ordinary person, but he forgot how."

Sophie tried to laugh and followed Mike back into the corner, where her father handed her a dart, and Isaac took her shoulder with his hand.

"Focus, Sophie," he said. "We need all the points we can get."

So distracted by Derek's story, Sophie hit the wall with every single dart.

Don't you dare fall in love with him, Sophie Masters.

But she realized too late that she already was.

Chapter Twelve

The next day was the annual meeting to plan the Christmas Festival. Like everything else in Willow Creek, the meeting itself was held at the convention center, and like everything else in Willow Creek (in the future, if all things went to plan), the meeting was catered by Culinary Tastings. Sophie, Randy, Fiona, and Tommy breezed through the crowd pre-meeting, passing out hot apple cider, hot cocoa, Christmas cookies, Christmas cakes, and little bowls of Christmas pudding. Sophie had known everyone in attendance since birth, including the owner of The Thirsty Bucket, Alan; the librarian, Mrs. Reynolds; the postman, Johnny; and so many others who built up the beautiful background of her life in Willow Creek.

"I hear things are going smoothly on set," Mrs. Reynolds said to Sophie, taking a Christmas cookie.

"Tell me," Johnny insisted. "How awful are those Hollywood types?"

"I heard the director has a heart of stone," Mrs. Reynolds said.

Sophie's smile fell slightly. "He isn't so bad when you get to know him. But he's a professional. He's not always so chatty and smiley."

"It wouldn't kill him to smile a little bit more!" Alan said, raising his eyebrows. But in his eyes, Sophie saw recognition of something. He'd seen Sophie and Derek chatting at the bar last night. He knew there was something between them.

Maybe he was the only one who knew.

But bartenders always had secrets. They watched stories unfold from behind the bar.

Just as he'd said he would, Randy put together a wonderful presentation for the Christmas Festival meeting, one that included a few necessary changes compared to last year. The rest of the Christmas Festival planning committee chimed in with their feedback, and the meeting finished with twenty minutes to spare.

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