Welcome To Winterville by Carrie Elks

7

Holly walked along the hallway toward him, her dark waves bouncing against her shoulders as she came closer. Her brows were pinched together, and he had to bite down a smile.

The cat had claws.

“You’re angry,” he murmured as she came to a stop in front of him. She was close enough for him to smell her fragrance. Flowery and sweet. She tipped her head to the side, and he couldn’t help but follow the fine line of her jaw.

“I’m not angry. I’m disbelieving. And from somebody who’s seen a lot of divorces, don’t ever call a woman emotional. That’s a free tip. No need to thank me.” Holly’s expression was grim.

Josh’s lips twitched. She’d been pretty eight years ago, but now she’d grown into her beauty. She had this way of holding herself that made him want to touch her, to make her sigh, to see what it would be like to see the softer side of Holly Winter.

The side he knew for certain existed eight years ago.

He tipped his head to the side. “You have questions. Ask me them.”

“Why wouldn’t you answer them in front of the audience?” she asked him. “Don’t they deserve to know the truth, too?”

“The truth that I’m trying to save this town?”

She blinked. “No you’re not. You’re trying to push everybody out to make a profit. I’ve looked up your company. I know what you do.”

A weird thrill shot through him. “You Googled me.”

She stared defiantly up at him. “Yes.”

“That’s interesting. I Googled you, too.”

The thick lashes that shadowed her cheeks flew up. “What did you discover?”

“That you’re a caped crusader without a cape. That you like to fight for the underdog, even if the underdog just wants to go home and have a good sleep.” He gave her a half smile. “I also discovered something else.” He stepped closer, his eyes on hers. “We’re more alike than you think.”

“I’m nothing like you.” She spoke with a quiet firmness.

Josh’s eyes flickered to her pretty mouth. “We both make money from destruction. The only difference is, your destruction involves people.”

Her jaw tightened. “I’m paid for what I do because I’m good at it. I’m good at protecting women from men like you. Men who wield too much power. Who take without giving.”

Josh held himself still, even though it felt like he’d been slapped in the face. “Is that what you think of me?”

She pulled her lip between her teeth, as though embarrassed by her outburst. “I don’t think anything. I don’t know you.” The anger had melted from her voice.

“You seemed to know all about me a minute ago,” he pointed out.

“All I know is that you’re trying to destroy this town. For money.”

He nodded slowly. “That’s what you think. Okay.”

She tensed visibly. “It’s what I know.”

His lips curled, though he felt no humor at all. “You think you know all about this place?”

“Of course I do. I grew up here.”

He nodded. “And you’re an accountant. Good with money, right?”

She didn’t answer. Just looked at him with those deep chocolate eyes. A man could get lost in there if he wanted to.

“Maybe you’re not as great of an accountant as you think,” he said quietly. “Because if you were, you’d know this town is bankrupt. There’s no money here. Your grandma kept it going for as long as she could, but the money’s gone. The reason it’s being sold is because your family has nothing left. Maybe if you were half as good with numbers as you think you are, you would have known this.”

She shook her head. “That’s not true.”

He shrugged. “Go ask them. Your mom and uncles. Or go talk to the people running businesses here. Take a look at the houses people rent, hell, look at this theater.” He gestured behind him. “It’s falling apart. Sure, the cracks are covered with tinsel and flashing lights, but when they’re gone, there’s nothing left. Without my company and my money, this town will dwindle to nothing. So you might want to think about that before you start accusing me of selling out.”

She blinked, her bottom lip trembling.

“I should go.” For the first time she sounded uncertain.

He reached for her arm, feeling like a bastard. “Holly, I…”

She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I need to get out of here.”

She turned on her heel, and flew down the hallway as quick as she’d came. But instead of being all fire and ice, she looked defeated.

When he turned to walk back to the main theater, he saw Elizabeth standing there.

“Everything okay?”

She nodded. “Kevin’s answering the last question. Did you want to come on stage and make any closing remarks?”

He shook his head. “No, I don’t. I think we’re done here.”

* * *

“I don’t understand how we didn’t know,” Holly said. “Why didn’t Grandma tell us the money had run out? We could have helped. I’m an accountant, I could have looked at places to get efficiencies.” She looked up at North, who was leaning against his breakfast counter.

“She hid it from all of us.” North blew out a mouthful of air. “I’m the one who was here the whole time. If anyone should’ve noticed, it should’ve been me.”

“Why would you have noticed? On the surface nothing changed.” Everley cradled her mug of coffee between her hands. “She just kept pumping in money so the town continued going fine.”

“Until there was no more money left.” Holly sighed, looking out of North’s window to the valleys beyond. Slopes of Christmas trees stretched as far as the eye could see. North owned all the land and all the trees, along with his business partner, Amber Stone. Holly could see her in the distance, dealing with some customers. It was prime Christmas tree buying time – North should be out there working right now.

Instead he was in here, trying to work out with them how things went so wrong.

“Are you sure he was telling you the truth?” Everley asked Holly.

She nodded. “I talked to Dolores after the meeting was over. She’s hardly getting by, has been since visitor numbers went down a few years ago. Charlie Shaw’s making a loss, but he’s riding the wave until retirement. And the spa and bookshop have been looking at closure. They’re kind of relieved that there’s an end in sight.”

“Why didn’t they come to us?” North asked.

“They didn’t want to worry Grandma while she was so ill. And then they didn’t want to make a fuss after she died. And when they finally went to see our parents, they were assured that a plan was in operation to make everything better.” Holly glanced down at North’s beautifully tiled floor. “What they didn’t say was that it involved the businesses getting bulldozed for a ski resort.”

Gabe sighed loudly. He’d joined them after his conference call. “So what do we do next?”

“What can we do?” Everley asked. “It’s over. There’s no legal recourse, and even if there was, we couldn’t make it work financially.”

“We don’t know that for sure.” Gabe glanced at Holly. “You work with some lawyers. Can’t they help with the legal side?”

“They’re divorce lawyers. But I could ask them to look at the contract. Even if they can’t help, they probably have contacts that do.”

“Okay then.” Gabe nodded.

“It’s not even a long shot,” Holly added, because she didn’t want to give them false hope. “Even if we could get out of the contract, it would involve our parents paying Gerber Enterprises back the money. And we all know they won’t do that.”

“We could raise the money,” Everley suggested.

“Not that much money, honey.” North ruffled her hair.

“What if we paid in installments? Or got a loan of some kind?” Gabe asked.

“No bank’s going to give a loan to a failing town.” Holly gave him a soft smile, to take away the sting. “And I can’t see Gerber Enterprises letting us pay in installments.”

“They might if a certain CEO was persuadable,” Everley murmured.

North looked at her with interest. “What do you mean?”

“Didn’t you see the way Josh was looking at Holly? And that whole caveman thing of meeting her at the back of the auditorium? He’s got a thing for her. It’s obvious.” Everley folded her arms across her chest. “I bet Holly could persuade him to do anything.”

“Dear God, no.” North shook his head, a grimace pulling at his face. “That’s not happening.”

“Do I get consulted on this?” Holly asked.

“You should listen to him,” Gabe said. “He’s right. Don’t go messing around with this guy, Holly. He’s the enemy. And you’re way too nice, you’ll end up feeling sorry for him.”

“No I won’t.” The last person she felt sorry for was Josh Gerber. What was it he called her? A caped crusader without a cape. Hah. He really was a handsome asshole.

North’s phone started to buzz. He lifted it to his ear, his voice curt as he answered some questions. Ending the call quickly, he glanced over at Gabe. “Amber’s getting overrun at the store. Want to come with and help for a couple of hours?”

“Sure.” Gabe nodded. “Let me just get my boots.”

North turned to Everley and Holly, who were finishing the coffee he’d made them. “I’ll catch you two later. And I meant what I said, no messing around with this stuff. And no getting close to Josh Gerber. We’ll do this thing properly, okay?”

“Sure.” Holly nodded.

Everley waited for him to walk out of the door, and for Gabe to follow him, the two of them climbing onto snowmobiles and heading down toward the Christmas Tree Store.

“You’re going to at least try, aren’t you?” Everley asked, her brows lifting. “Get closer to Josh Gerber and help us find a way to stop him?”

“I can’t think of anything else to do.” Holly felt her skin warm at the thought of confronting Josh again.

Everley grinned. “That’s my girl. And what North doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

* * *

“We must stop meeting like this.” Josh’s voice was a warm caress. It was just after six the next morning, and Holly was standing outside the Cold Fingers Café. Her breath was turning to vapor in the frosty air.

Josh was wearing a gray woolen coat that skimmed his broad chest. Why was it that he looked like he’d just stepped off the cover of GQ, while she felt like something the cat had dragged in?

“Are you still in town?” Holly asked him, her voice light. “I thought you would have scurried back home already.”

“Why’s that?” He tipped his head to the side.

“I assumed you’d prefer to watch the destruction from afar.” Her eyes were sparkling. “Emotions and misery don’t seem like your thing. I’m guessing you prefer cool, hard dollars.”

She pushed the door open, and the bell rang as warm air rushed over her. The sound of Christmas music echoed from the speakers.

The windows of the café were covered with garland, with tiny fairy lights sparkled among the greenery. A tall Christmas tree was covered with decorations that customers had brought in and added to over the years, and on the far side the owner, Dolores, had lit the fire, so it would be ready for her early morning customers.

But the tables were all empty. She knew Frank would come in soon, but would there be more customers today?

Holly was all too aware that empty tables meant empty cash registers.

“Good morning. What can I get you?” Dolores beamed over the counter at them, not blinking an eyelid as Josh stood only a couple of inches away from Holly.

She could smell the deep notes of his cologne. What was it about the way he smelled? It made her muscles clench in a way that wasn’t right this early in the morning.

“An Americano to go, please?”

Josh interrupted her. “I’ll get this. And she’ll drink it in here.”

Okay, so he didn’t smell that good. She opened her mouth to berate him, then remembered she was supposed to be getting closer to him.

“It’s okay, I’ll pay for my own,” she said, passing a five dollar bill over to Dolores, before stalking to a table by the fire. She sat on a chair with her back to the counter, but that didn’t stop her from hearing Josh’s reply.

“Put the five in the tip jar. I’ve got this.”

She swallowed down her annoyance.

She had no idea why he brought the snark out in her. She wasn’t usually like this.

“I think you remember me.” Josh slid her coffee in front of her, pulling out the chair opposite hers. He sat down, stretching out his long legs so his calves were almost brushing hers.

“What?”

“You definitely remember me from all those years ago. But I’m trying to figure out why you keep pretending you don’t.”

He had something in his right hand. He was turning it over in his palm.

“What’s that?” she asked, pointing at it, grateful not to be talking about her sketchy memory any more.

He slid his hand into his pocket. “Nothing.”

Yep, he was definitely aggravating. “If it’s nothing, then show me,” Holly said.

He smiled. “No.”

“Then I don’t remember you. At all.”

He smiled as though he was enjoying himself. “Do you still like butterflies?”

She took a sip of her coffee. “What makes you ask?”

“I still think about your butterfly panties sometimes. I regret throwing them in the dumpster. I should have kept them.”

A flush stole over her body, and it had nothing to do with the fire. “Why would you have kept my panties? That’s a freaky thing to do.”

His eyes met hers. “Because they’d be a memento. Of the best night of your life.”

“Of my life?” Her brows lifted. “Are we talking about the night I don’t remember?”

“You remember.” He sounded so sure.

“Why would I remember? It had to be pretty banal since it’s completely wiped out of my memory.”

He leaned in, his voice sugary and low. “Because I made you come three times. And you begged for more.”

She opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again. After taking a sip of her coffee, Holly decided on, “Maybe I was faking.”

“Nope.”

“You think you can tell when a woman is faking?” she asked him.

He moved his legs, his calves pressing against hers. “Is this when you go all Harry and Sally on me and fake an orgasm in the café? Because I have to tell you, I’d be up for that.”

She eyed him carefully. “I don’t think you could even induce a fake one right now.”

“I’m wounded.” He touched his chest with his palms.

He was enjoying this. And in a weird way, so was she. It felt good to duel with somebody who knew exactly how to fight back. And if he was the target of all her frustration right now? Well, he deserved it.

And she had a feeling he could take it.

“Why are you so insistent on me remembering that night?” She ran her finger over the rim of her coffee cup. “Have you been jonesing after me for, what, seven or eight years now?”

“Eight. And yes, every night I cry into my pillow and send a plea up to the stars that you’ll finally come looking for me.” He focused his gaze on hers. “I’ve thought about nothing but you for every moment of every day for the past eight years.” The sarcasm in his voice was cutting. She bit down a laugh.

“And now you’re going to destroy my town because it’s the only way to get me out of your head?”

He grinned. “It’s like you’re reading my mind. I’m going to offer this place up as a sacrifice to the gods. Destroy it and along with my memories of you. It’s the only way I can survive. But you’re wrong about one thing. It’s not your town, it’s mine.”

“Tomayto-tomahto.” She tipped her head to the side, taking a sip of the steaming coffee. “You know I’m going to fight you, right?”

“I was pretty sure you would. But it’s futile. I always win.”

“Not always. You didn’t win me.”

“Who says?”

She swallowed hard. “I do.”

He folded his arms over his chest. “You remember me. You know you do.” His voice was soft. “I’m going to get you to admit it.”

“I’ll lie and say I do if you’ll give me my town back.” She lifted a brow.

“Not going to happen. I told you I always win.”

“You won’t win my memories.” She inhaled slowly. She could feel the warm pressure of his calves against hers.

For a moment, her mind was full of that night. His warm lips against hers, the hard weight of his body as they tangled together – underwear on, because somehow that made it better. The warmth of his skin as he touched her again and again, with a teasing pressure that took her to the edge.

“Are you thinking about it now? Because I am.”

“I’m thinking about how pissed you’ll be when you lose everything you have.” She flashed him a smile. “And how much I’m going to enjoy it. I might even take a photo of your face and have it framed.”

“I’d be happy to pose any time. I assume you’ll be putting it right next to your bed.”

“I have enough nightmares already.” She finished the last dregs of her coffee. “But thank you for the offer.”

His eyes dipped to her lips. “You have nightmares?”

She leaned forward, her voice dropping. “Yes, I do.” He leaned in too, as though he was trying to hear her. “I keep getting these images in my brain of some strange guy stealing my panties and climbing into my bed. It’s disconcerting.” She put her cup down and stood, pulling her coat on and sliding her hat over her tumbling curls. “Goodbye, Mr. Gerber. Have a safe trip home. Don’t crash your car or anything.”

He started to laugh. “You definitely remember.”

“It’s a shame you’ll never know. When are you leaving town anyway?”

“Later today.” He paused. “Probably.”

She slid her gloves on. “Well, it’s been a ball.” She turned on her heel, waving goodbye to Dolores before glancing over her shoulder at him one more time.

His eyes were trained on her, that stupid smirk still playing at his lips.

Pulling at the door, she inhaled sharply, glad for the blast of ice cold air that snaked against her skin.

He was leaving today. That was a good thing. She was all big talk and bravado when she told Everley she’d have no problem getting close to him, because this confrontation felt dangerous.

Not because of Josh. But because of herself. She enjoyed it more than she should have. And nobody knew better than she did that it would all end in tears.