Page 13 of Christmas Kisses

He grins, and the glint in his eyes tells me he indeed gets his brothers back when they pester him. That smile makes me warm all over and I start thinking of things I can ask him that will make him keep smiling.

"Here and there. When they involve my parents, I let it go."

I take a small bite of my sandwich to stall the conversation for a moment. Sharing personal stories with Ben Hoffer is unsettling in the best ways. I could listen to him for hours. We eat in silence, but he doesn't take his eyes off me. I guess I'll just walk around with a permanent blush on my face from now on. I'm so flustered.

"What else can you tell me about yourself?" Ben asks.

"Not much. I went away to college and then grad school. After that, I worked with several companies managing logistics and such until I got so homesick I decided to move back to Woodland Falls and get whatever job I could do that would help me save seed money to open up this place."

"You had a vision."

"Yes, not many people see that."

"We went through something similar, me and my brothers. We had an idea, but we wanted it immediately, didn't want to wait. When you do it like that, you make a ton of mistakes. Don't get me wrong, those mistakes taught us so much about our business, but those were tough times."

"I can imagine. But don't you think it's fun?"

"Owning a business? Heck, yeah. I'm very proud of what we have built. And I admire how you've made your business work for you."

Elbows on the table, I put my head down on my hands. I like the words he's saying, but I'm a bit ambitious at heart.

"I need to level up. Grow. I think I'm stuck."

"You going for the big leagues? Have a location in all the surrounding towns?" Ben smiles.

"Something like that."

I watch him with what I assume is a silly look on my face, and it slips out.

"Being with you is so easy. I love it."

That's the first time I've made the huge lumberjack across from me blush, and I kind of like it. He seems a little uncomfortable, though. He shifts in his seat but doesn't stop staring at me with those bright blue eyes.

"Did I say something wrong?" I ask.

"Actually, no. What you said is perfect. I think you are getting the hang of this."

"Thanks."

"I've got a surprise for you."

"You do?"

"I'm not sure you're going to appreciate it because it's from the competition, but I couldn't resist."

He goes and rummages through my fridge, the nerve, and brings out a box from Flora's Baked Delights. He's right to be worried about how I would take such a gift. Truth is, I have a full commercial kitchen, and if I hired a baker, I could upgrade my shop’s offerings. Flora let me shadow her for a few months when I came up with my coffee shop plan and fully supported me.

People like that are what make Woodland Falls such a good place to live in. We all support one another, mayor aside, without jealousy or pettiness. I try to peek at what he's bought, but he's being shady about it.

"Let me see already!"

"It's her famous Tiramisu."

"Oh wow, she only makes that for special occasions. How did you manage that?"

"I've got my ways."

"Should we split it?" I ask politely.

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