Page 8 of Bah Humbug Mate

I’ll meet you in the center hall.

Dash

The dress was a gorgeous plum silk, burned-out velvet. It was probably shorter with a more plunging neckline than she might have chosen for herself, but the long sleeves with the ruffle and the feel of the material made her brush such thoughts away. It was gorgeous, but more than that, it was a thoughtful thing to do.

Noel took a quick shower, applied makeup, and put up her hair. Slipping the exquisite dress on, she sighed happily. Never had she owned anything that was anywhere near this fine. Once she was ready, she joined Dash in the center hall where the four apartments converged.

“You look stunning,” he said as she left her place.

“Thank you—not only for the compliment, but for the dress itself. I’ve never owned anything even close to this beautiful,” she said, spinning before him.

He smiled indulgently. “We’ll have to see about fixing that,” he said, taking her hand, tucking it into his elbow, and leading her down the stairs.

What waited at the bottom was beyond anything she ever might imagine—a magnificent sleigh drawn by a matched four-in-hand team and a driver who tipped his top hat.

“Your chariot awaits. The party won’t really get into full swing for at least an hour. I thought we might take a sleigh ride and then arrive fashionably late.”

“I like the way you think,” she said, letting him help her into the sleigh and then covering her with a warm blanket.

They wove their way through the village of Mystic River as well as the surrounding countryside. One hour turned into two and as Dash had predicted, their fashionably and stylishly late arrival missed no one’s scrutiny. Dash merely nodded to Rudy before leading Noel out onto the dance floor where they danced several dances together.

Taking a glass of champagne from one of the circulating catering staff, Dash used a butter knife to clink on the rim of the glass, garnering everyone’s attention.

“May I have your attention?” People stopped talking and focused on Dash. “It is with great pride and a humble heart that I announce to all of you that after a whirlwind courtship in which I swept Noel off her feet, I have asked her to marry me, and she has said yes.”

At first there was a bit of a surprised silence and then everyone seemed to speak at once and congratulate them. Noel had never been one for crowds. Oh, she handled customers at the holiday shop well enough, but that was business. This was personal. This was people crowding all around her—pressing in—giving her little room to breathe, much less move. Dash must have sensed her discomfort as he wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close. Somehow close to Dash was different than close to anybody else. Close to Dash she felt safe, protected, cared about.

The band struck up one of those holiday songs they played in the shop. Years later Dash would tease her about not remembering the name of the song to which they’d first danced—the first time when he had held her close—the first time he ever kissed her. Noel could feel herself falling for this man, longing for a real relationship instead of something that was being done to financially benefit them both.

Dash led her around the dance floor smoothly, flowing like the river did in the summer—quietly, purposefully, gracefully. She felt a little like a young fawn trying to find its footing on ice, but he managed to make her feel beautiful. She was looking up at him when he lowered his head, his lips brushing across hers at first before settling on them. Her hands tightened—one in his hand, the other at his waist and she melted into him. She felt like chocolate when it got too close to a flame—melted, gooey, delicious.

Noel couldn’t hold back a moan when his tongue traced the seam of her lips, his hand disengaging from hers to tangle in her hair, tugging her head back to give him better access. Her mouth softened, parting as his tongue surged in, seeking the warmth of her mouth, his tongue tangling with hers. His hand at her waist drifted down to the curve of her ass, pulling her closer and holding her gentle curves against the hard planes of his body.

She would never be sure how long they danced or what went on around them. For now, it was enough to be with him, to wonder if the fantasy that was beginning to form might not be fate, allowing her to feel and see the destiny that lay before her.

Someone tapped Dash on the shoulder, drawing his attention away from her. Sanity and reality returned in a brutal rush. Feeling much like Cinderella must have at the stroke of midnight, Noel pulled away, freeing herself from him. And like the fabled princess of old, she turned and fled into the night.

CHAPTER 4

DASH

She’d been gone for a week. Seven whole days where no one had seen her. She hadn’t been to the shop; nor had she been to the apartment over the bar. Not wanting to give anyone a clue that she was missing, he’d said she’d come down with a nasty virus and that he had insisted she rest and do nothing, but that excuse was starting to wear thin. Dash brought in one of his servers and tasked her with running Noel’s shop. By all accounts, the server was doing a crackerjack job and having a ball. But that didn’t alter the fact that he had no idea what had happened to his fated mate and fiancée.

With Noel missing, Dash had wondered why he’d never really noticed Noel before now. How had he missed her loveliness? Her kindness? The way she quietly illuminated a room just by entering it? Perhaps the timing had to be right before the whole recognition of one’s fated mate kicked in. Could it be one-sided? Had she not felt it that night at the dance? Did she not know? Did she not want to?

He picked up his cell and tried hers again. Phone calls went straight through to voice mail and texts went unanswered and unseen. There were things he needed to know. Was she planning to come back? Was their arrangement still on? Had he done something so egregious that she couldn’t find it in her heart to at least talk to him about it? But more than any of that, was she all right? Where was she?

Laying his cell phone on the back of the bar, he went about his business, looking to the phone every few minutes to see if it had rung and somehow, he’d missed it. The phone rang when he was at the other end of the bar, and he damn near killed himself getting to it, slipping on a small wet spot on the floor.

He thanked whatever powers controlled these things that his brain registered the fact that the caller ID identified the caller as the attorney, Blitz. How the hell did anyone get Blitz as a nickname? Nothing about the name Clifford could be boiled down to Blitz.

“Hey, Blitz. What can I do for you?”

“You can tell me everything is still on track. Rudy just left here after spending an hour gloating that the marriage is never going to happen and that I should be preparing to file the paperwork invalidating you as the major beneficiary of the will. He says based on what he’s seen, he thinks it’s all a sham and that the court will recognize it as such and rule that you have not fulfilled the conditions of your grandmother’s will.”

“Can he do that? Would it hold up in court?”

“People can file pretty much whatever they want with the court system. Would it get thrown out on its face? Maybe, but then again, maybe not. There are a lot of judges who try to look at the intent of something versus just the strict letter of the law. Would he prevail? That’s more of a crap shoot.”

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