Page 6 of Baby It's Cold Outside

“I have a driving license, but I’m used to a right-hand-drive car, so I haven’t borrowed my godmother’s car,” she explained. “I got a lift here with Sally—she does the deliveries for my godmother.”

“I’ll check the timetable for you. Which line do you need?” She told him and he checked his cell phone. “Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it seems the buses aren’t running. The snow’s brought everything to a stop.”

She shrugged. “Then it looks as if I’ll have to walk.” It was a pity she didn’t have her Wellingtons with her. She might get a bit cold and wet, and it’d take her a long time to walk back to Betty’s house, but her shoes were flat and had a decent grip, so she probably wouldn’t fall over and hurt herself.

“Where are you going?”

She told him the neighborhood.

He shook his head. “You can’t possibly walk all that way. Look, my car’s just over here. I’ll give you a lift.”

She could see how thickly the snow was lying in the roads, and there wasn’t a single car actually driving through the streets. He hadn’t been exaggerating about everything coming to a standstill. “Thanks, but I don’t think it’d be a good idea to drive in this.”

“I’ve driven in worse. You just need to take it sensibly and slowly. Come on, let’s get going before the snow gets any deeper.”

Ellie thought about it. She didn’t know him from Adam—and he wasn’t the man she’d expected to arrive as Santa. Then again, Santa had been expecting Betty, so she supposed that made them even.

She wanted to trust him.

But she was nearly four thousand miles away from home, and the only people she really knew in the city… Well, one of them was stuck in a hospital bed. The others, she’d have to check the employee records back at the bakery to find out where they actually lived.

As if he guessed her worries, he said softly, “I should’ve introduced myself properly earlier. My name’s Mitch Carter. I work at Holford PR with C.J. Holford—the guy who was supposed to be Santa. You can look me up on the Internet if you want to make sure I’m who I say I am before you get in my car.”

He sounded plausible enough. And she felt mean for actually checking. But the last time she’d taken someone on trust, it had ended in tears. Hers. So was it so bad to want to play it safe this time?

He didn’t seem to mind waiting the few seconds while she looked up the firm on her cell phone and checked its website.

And there was his name, right underneath his picture. Mitch Carter.

He’d told her the truth.

She bit her lip. “Sorry.”

He spread his hands. “Don’t be. It’s always sensible to take precautions. Especially in a city you don’t know.”

“I’m Ellie Brown. Betty’s goddaughter. Well, you knew that bit.”

They shook hands, and she felt as if she’d been galvanized when his skin touched hers. She hadn’t reacted to someone like that in years, not even to Jeff. It made her want to run, yet it also made her want to stay and find out more about him.

She couldn’t remember the last time anyone had made her feel that flustered. It ought to worry her, yet little flickers of excitement were running down her spine.

“What’s the address?” he asked.

She told him. “Look, if it’s out of your way…”

“It is, a bit,” he admitted. “But I think the real Santa would take a dim view of me leaving his Chief Elf to her own devices. So I’m driving you home. No arguments.”

She could see that Mitch was used to taking charge. That moment in the hospice when he’d seemed lost and vulnerable clearly wasn’t a common occurrence.

“Okay. Thank you.” She followed him over to his car. She’d been half-expecting some flashy sports car to go with his designer clothes, but it was a dark gray sedan. A little more serious than she’d expected, though the inside was incredibly comfortable, all plush leather seats and glossy wood paneling.

“Very posh,” she said with a smile. This was the kind of car she’d never be able to afford.

He shrugged. “It was a good deal. And it’s good to drive.”

And that was that line of conversation exhausted, she thought. “Thank you for the lift.”

“No problem.”

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