Page 25 of Mistletoe and Malice
Laughing, she cut off a piece of the juicy beef. Who knew he’d be such a charming pseudo-date?
Following the dessert course, several couples took to the dance floor in the middle of the tent, including her parents and oldest brother, Alex, and his wife, Delia. Her other brother, Kevin, and his wife, Sadie, remained at their table, immersed in conversation.
She located her friends at another table—Frances with her fiancé, Barbara with her brother, and Avery with a friend they’d gone to high school with. She’d join them, but didn’t want Mr. Blankenship standing at her chair keeping watch. Much too distracting.
Besides, she had a better idea.
Grinning, she leaned toward the man next to her and put her hand on his arm. “Mr. Blankenship, if you’re going to be guarding this body, then you’ll have to join me on the dancefloor. And if you won’t dance with me, I’m sure I can find somebody who will.”
His eyes traveled from her smiling face to where her hand rested against his arm and back again. “When duty calls, as they say.”
Butterflies took flight in her stomach as he stood and held his hand out to her. He led her through the tables and stopped at the edge of the floor, where he watched the other couples with widened eyes.
“Uh, Miss Hudson. I’m not extremely well-versed in ballroom dancing.”
“No problem. I’ll follow you.”
“Then we probably won’t be moving around much.”
She giggled as they walked onto the floor, and she stepped into his arms. “Works for me. This dress isn’t exactly made for ballroom dancing.”
They swayed with the music. “Then why’d you want to get out here?”
“I love to dance. And, to be honest, I couldn’t resist testing you, Mr. Blankenship. To see how far you’ll go to do your job.”
His smile changed his entire demeanor. The man should do it more often. “Bring it on, Miss Hudson. I’ve faced worse things than ballroom dancing.”
She threw her head back and laughed, the first of several bouts of laughter they shared as they glided around the floor, dodging other couples with more expertise than they.
“You’re not bad, Mr. Blankenship. You underestimate your abilities.”
“That’s a first,” he said with a chuckle. “By the way, I couldn’t help noticing you address Paul and Trevor by their first names. Why so formal with me?”
“Oh. They asked me to, while you were on the phone earlier today.”
“Then call me Colton. Mr. Blankenship is a mouthful, and I keep looking around for my dad.”
“Colton, then. And, please. Call me Riley.”
“Riley. Your mother’s maiden name, correct?”
“Yes. Alex is named for my paternal grandfather, and Kevin for Mom’s dad. Grandpa Alex passed away three years ago, about two years after my grandmother Christine.” She pulled her hand from his shoulder and stared at her ring. “This was hers. My grandfather gave it to her for their twenty-fifth anniversary, then to me after she passed.”
“It’s beautiful.” His eyes met hers again. “Christine? So, you’re named for both sides of your family.”
“I am.” Her hand moved to the collar of his tuxedo jacket, where her fingers played with the lapel. “After Grandpa turned the reins of the company over to my dad nine years ago, he and my grandmother spent three years doing short-term mission work. Until Grandma got sick and passed soon after they returned. Grandpa died from heart failure in his sleep a few months later, but I think he was simply in a hurry to get home, to be with her.”
His arm around her waist tightened. “They sound remarkable.”
She smoothed his lapel and splayed her hand against his shoulder. “We were blessed with two sets of extraordinary grandparents. You met Grandpa Kevin yesterday at dinner.”
“He lives out in the guesthouse.”
“Right. And comes to the main house usually for meals. He was an orthopedic surgeon, retired about ten or so years now, I guess. My grandmother Eleanor was a strong woman of faith, like my mother. When she passed a couple of years ago, Mom insisted Grandpa move to the estate so she could be closer to him.”
“That’s nice.”
“Grandma Eleanor was wonderful. Loved doing the Thanksgiving dinner down at the shelter.” She tilted her head. “You guys will be off on Thanksgiving next week, won’t you?”
