Page 5 of Welcome Home for Christmas
Chapter 2
Troy was running late for the auction. He’d planned on wearing something nice, like pants and a polo shirt; he wanted to rake up as much cash for the kids as he could. But, as had happened the whole week, all hell had exploded on Camp Leon this afternoon. He’d given out more speeding tickets in the last few hours than he had all month. Then, to top things off, there’d been a tip about drugs in the barracks and he and his police K-9, Bear, had gone to check things out, which had somehow turned into one man ratting out another, which resulted in an old-fashioned fistfight. Sometimes Troy had to remind himself that he was a police officer on a military base and not a custodian for a bunch of rowdy high schoolers.
So instead of looking nice for this auction he’d agreed to, he was wearing a spare pair of Levi’s and a black T-shirt that he had in his truck. Oh, well. If the wives here were looking for someone to do yard work, he fit the bill. He ran a comb through his dark hair and checked his reflection in the rearview mirror before stepping out into the Veterans’ Center parking lot. The place was packed tonight. As he walked toward the building, he could hear Christmas tunes blasting inside.
His feet froze at the sound of “Merry Christmas, Baby.”
Fuck. No wonder Griffin had enjoyed getting him to agree to this so much. This was a Christmas party—something Troy had been dead set on avoiding this year. Why the hell couldn’t people just let him be?
He cast a longing look back at his truck. He could leave, but that would make him the jerk of the century.
“Troy!” Griffin’s voice carried across the parking lot. He was wearing jeans and a T-shirt, too, which put Troy at ease about his attire.
“It’s a Christmas party,” Troy ground out.
Griffin shrugged. “It’s for the orphans, man,” he reminded him, clapping a hand on his back and pushing him forward. “And it’ll be over before you know it.”
Troy continued walking, following Griffin inside. He blinked at the colorful lights and decorations. “Wow.” Even if he was avoiding this stuff, the room was quite impressive if not overly festive.
“Yeah, the girls really went all out for this event.” Griffin pointed to his girlfriend Val in a corner behind a table of treats. “I’ve got to go nibble on something sweet. I’ll see you in a few. Don’t bail. We need you.”
Troy watched his friend go. Then he scanned the room for other people he might know, his gaze snagging on a beautiful redhead with endless legs. As if feeling his eyes on her, she turned and met his gaze.
Sparks. And not from the excessive lighting in the room.
He straightened as she headed in his direction. She was wearing a knee-length blue dress that flattered her curves, and her hair spilled over ivory shoulders.
He swallowed, and tried to keep his eyes from running over her.
—
What was this guy doing here?
Allison’s calm, cool demeanor that she’d worked so hard to maintain tonight started to fray. She’d just seen him at Wine from the Vine yesterday, where he’d been charming, helpful, andoh, so sexy.So sexy, in fact, that she’d spent the rest of the afternoon and most of today distracted by the memory of how well he’d filled his uniform. Yeah. She’d been without a man far too long.
“Hi,” he said, beating her to the punch.
She lifted her chin, pulling her guard up with it. “Are you following me?” Of course, she realized how absurd that sounded as soon as she’d said it. He was a military police officer, not a stalker. Her gaze jumped to Melanie Harris in the crowd, aka Stalker Mel. Allison felt bad for the poor guy who got purchased by her tonight.
The sexy man in front of her took his time responding. “No. I’m here volunteering, actually.”
She usually knew every volunteer, but with the short notice of the add-on event, she hadn’t had time to meet everyone on the list. “You’re in the auction?” she asked.
“That’s right.” He shrugged. “I have no plans for Christmas, so I’ve got plenty of time to offer up here.”
Her posture softened. “You’re not going home for Christmas?” Marines who stayed in town during the holidays always tugged at her heart. The Veterans’ Center usually catered a meal for them, to give them a sense of belonging somewhere.
“Nope.” His dark eyes met hers. Honey tones shimmered in the light.
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“What about you?” he asked. “Are you spending Christmas alone, or with a special someone?”
Her guard rose again. That was information he didn’t need. “I’m here because I organized this event. I’m the director.” She stuck out her hand. After meeting twice this week, she guessed it was time to formally introduce herself. “Allison Carmichael.”
He nodded slowly. “The heart behind the charity.”
The heart in question, hers, skipped a little as she met those twinkling brown eyes of his and slipped her hand into his warm one. “Thank you for volunteering your time.” Her insides sizzled as his gaze stayed on her.
