All of a sudden, the other woman on the floor appeared at Juniper’s side. She wore a mischievous expression, like she had been waiting for just this moment.

  She gave Juniper a sly look, then directed her attention to Alex. “You know, this really is amazing timing. It’s just about time for our Juniper here to take her lunch break. If there’s enough food to share, then maybe you could stay a little while and take it with her?”

  “Margot!” Juniper squeaked, turning so red it was almost alarming. “I’m sure Alex has plenty to do back at the ranch.”

  Alex gave himself a split second to consider, then chuckled. “You’re right, I do, but if I’m being honest? The first thing I planned to do after getting back was make lunch.”

  It was probably a mistake, staying to eat with her. In that moment, though, he couldn’t make himself care.

  Juniper’s heart pounded wildly as she led Alex into the shop’s break room. She could feel Alex close behind her, but even so, she was having a difficult time believing he was truly there. Even harder to wrap her head around was the idea that he had taken time out of his surely busy day to bring her lunch.

  She honestly couldn’t remember the last time a person had gone out of his way to do something for her like this. While she prided herself on being an independent person, she was surprised to find how much it meant to her that someone would look after her like this.

  It didn’t hurt that the gesture was coming from Alex Harvey, either. Sliding into one of the brightly painted chairs flanking the break room’s tiny table, it was impossible not to notice how extremely handsome he was. Alex sported the kind of chiseled, handsome features that made women do doubletakes on the street.

  And now, he was here, sitting across from her, choosing to spend time with her, to take care of her. Even more difficult to believe was the fact that he actually looked nervous.

  She smiled shyly and tucked her hair behind her ear. “I can’t wait to dig in,” she said.

  “I hope you like it,” he said hesitantly. “But I’m going to tell you right now, it’s nothing gourmet.”

  She laughed, reaching across the table to touch his hand lightly. Just that brief touch sent a jolt of electricity coursing through her whole body that took her breath away. She folded her hands on the table in front of her, momentarily unable to make eye contact with Alex. She wasn’t sure she wanted to see whether or not he had felt the same zing as she had.

  “I don’t need gourmet,” she said lightly, reassuringly, as she set out the food. “I’m just thrilled to have lunch at all. Really, thank you so much for this. It’s very sweet.”

  She risked a glance at him now and saw that he was grinning. “Don’t mention it. It’s nice to get off of the ranch for a little while.”

  For the next minute, they sorted through the food and divided it up. Once they were settled, Alex started the conversation again. “You said you have a crafts fair coming up, right? I know less than nothing about that sort of thing.”

  “I don’t think many people do,” she said with a laugh before starting on her sandwich. It was a simple affair, but it was cut into neat triangles, and he had cut the crusts off for good measure.

  “Tell me about it?” He smiled appealingly before taking a healthy bite of his own lunch.

  “Well, there are several fairs throughout the year, but January’s is by far the biggest. It brings out all kinds of buyers, ranging from those looking for something personal for their homes to people looking to put in larger orders for their shops.”

  “Wow! That sounds pretty intense.” Juniper couldn’t pretend she didn’t enjoy seeing how impressed he was by her.

  “It’s so much fun,” she went on, sipping from the slim plastic straw of the juice box Alex had given her. “And I always do really well there. The problem is, I always run out of stock. I really want to make sure I have enough this year.”

  Alex nodded, his eyes bright. “I don’t want you to worry about that. I’ll make sure you have all of the wood you need.”

  “Thank you, Alex, seriously,” Juniper said quietly. “That means a lot to me. But I want to hear more about you! I feel like we haven’t spoken much these past years. Tell me how it’s been for you, running the ranch.”

  He sat up straighter in his chair, and Juniper could almost see him putting on his work cap. “I love it. Of course, I always knew I was going to be a ranching man.”

  “It seems to suit you,” Juniper said warmly.

  His cheeks colored slightly, but he went on talking. “I won’t pretend it wasn’t a struggle at first. I had to take things on earlier than I expected after my parents’ accident. But that’s just what you do for family, right?”

  Juniper nodded thoughtfully. She couldn’t relate directly, but she knew how important family was to the Harveys. It was one of the things that had made their home feel so warm and welcoming to her when she was a quiet, lonely child. Of course, it had also driven home that she wasn’t a part of it—that close, loving families were things other people had, but not her.

  “Now,” he continued, his expression turning slightly bashful. “Let’s talk about tea sets.”

  She let out a surprised burst of laughter. “Tea sets? I’m not going to lie, that was not what I was expecting you to say. What about them?”

  His cheeks were blazing now, but he forged ahead. “My girls saw a flyer for some kind of workshop you’re holding, and it got me thinking that maybe I’d sign up for it—paint the tea set as a surprise for them. Any chance you have some openings left?”

  “That’s very sweet of you. Unfortunately, that workshop is a really popular one, and it has already filled up.” She twisted the straw of her juice box as she spoke. It was surprising, how much she hated disappointing him.

  His face fell and he ran a distracted hand through his hair. “Damn. I’ll have to figure something else out.”

  “Wait,” she said quickly, wanting badly to replace his disappointment with another smile. “I think I might have a solution.”

  He raised his eyebrows, interested. “Oh yeah? I’m all ears.”

  She swallowed nervously and tried to keep from playing with her hair. “Well, I could give you a private session. My apartment is right above the shop, and I’m not working tonight. If you wanted to stop by – “

  “I’m in,” he said quickly, before she could get the rest of her offer out. “Absolutely. It’s a date.”

  Juniper nodded happily and took another bite of her sandwich. She knew that “it’s a date” was just an expression, but she couldn’t help the flutter of excitement she felt hearing it come out of Alex’s mouth.

  6

  Alex sat in his truck outside Juniper’s shop, clutching the steering wheel tightly enough to turn his knuckles white.

  “Hey, get a grip, will you? You’re acting like a fool.”

  Alex had no trouble admonishing himself, but that didn’t ease his nerves. It didn’t matter that this wasn’t a date. It had been a long time since he had spent time alone with a woman, especially one he was as attracted to as he was to Juniper.

  He was on a tea set mission, though, and so he sucked it up and climbed out of his truck.

  Before he even reached the curb, Margot bounded out of the front door, then stood in front of it with her hands on her hips. Alex groaned inwardly when he saw the mischievous look on her face.

  “Well, well,” she crooned. “Will you look what the cat dragged in? Here to see the lovely Juniper, are we?”

  Alex tipped his hat and tried not to grimace. “Evening, Margot. I’m supposed to meet Juniper at her place. She’s going to help me make something for my girls.”

  “A tea set,” Margot said matter-of-factly. “I know. Her place is on top of the shop. You’ll find the stairs around the side.”

  Alex gave her a little smile. “Thank you, Margot. You’ve been very helpful.”

  “Don’t mention it,” she said brightly. “And you two have fun now, you hear?”

  Alex could hear her laughing as he walked quickly around the side of the shop, but he shrugged it off. He wasn’t going to let that ribbing get under his skin. Not after the work it took to get his dad to agree to watch the girls. Also, he was touched by Juniper offering her free time to him in the first place. He wouldn’t repay that kindness by no-showing.

  Still, he hesitated for a moment before knocking on her front door. There was something that struck him as oddly intimate about coming into her home. In a weird way, it felt like a betrayal to his late wife’s memory. He knew what she would say to that, though. She would tell him he was being silly, and with her voice ringing in his ears, he took the plunge.

  Almost as soon as his knuckles hit the wood of her door, Alex heard Juniper’s footsteps rushing down the steps. He smiled in spite of himself to think that she might be excited to see him.

  The door practically flew open, and there she was, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. “Hi! You’re here! Would you like to come on up?”

  Alex nodded and allowed himself to be led. As he followed close behind her, the only thing he could think about was how beautiful Juniper looked tonight.

  Not her clothes—she was wearing baggy overalls splattered with God only knew how many layers of paint and a plain white tank. But somehow, she still looked radiant. Her hair was up in a messy bun, and the light from the collection of lamps in her little living room made it look like a halo on top of her head. She was entirely in her element, and so lovely it felt like his heart was going to stop.

  While he lingered in the front entryway, taking in a small apartment, Juniper headed for the coffee table and settled down on one of two cushions positioned beside it. When she looked up and saw that he hadn’t followed, she patted the seat beside her.

  “I’ve got everything all laid out and ready to go,” she explained. “I thought it would be nice to do a group teapot, then an individual teacup and saucer for each of the girls. That way they know you were thinking about each one of them specifically. What do you think?”

  “I think that’s a great idea.” It was absurd how touched he was by the amount of thought she had put into giving his girls some Christmas joy.

  She nodded with satisfaction. “Don’t think I’m going to just do it all for you, though. This is going to be your gift to those sweet girls. I’m just here to help.”

  True to her word, she began by talking to him about Sophia, Thora, and Lizzie. She asked gentle, probing questions, building a comprehensive understanding of who his children were as individual people, rather than a unit.

  Next, they set to work, tackling first the teapot itself and then moving to each girl’s cup. The paintbrush felt clumsy in his hand, and he found himself looking to Juniper again and again for reassurance.

  Her patience and desire to teach seemed endless, and when he had trouble mastering a technique, she placed her hand over his and guided the motion. The contact was electric every time, and he found himself wanting to mess things up just so he could feel it again. It had been a long time since he had felt the touch of a woman, however benign, and his growing attraction to this woman in particular was undeniable.

  When they were finally done, Juniper stretched her legs out and sat on her heels, breathing a contented sigh. “There! These are really great, Alex.”

  “I don’t know about that,” he said with a chuckle, although he was more than a little pleased by her praise. “But I think they’ll get a kick out of ‘em.”

  She touched his shoulder reassuringly. “They’re more than alright, and the girls are going to love them. All that’s left to do is fire them in the kiln, so everything is nice and shiny, and they’ll be good to go!”

  Alex surveyed their work and realized that Juniper was right. This was exactly the kind of extra Christmas joy his daughters needed, and it wouldn’t have been possible without Juniper’s help. The only thing he regretted about the evening was that it was already time for it to come to an end.

  Juniper must have read his mind, though, because when he looked at her again, there was a twinkle of a question in her eyes.

  “What?” he asked with a laugh. “What’s that look for?”

  “Hot chocolate,” she answered matter-of-factly, as if it were the most common response in the world. “From Dixie’s Diner, to be precise. Are you game?”

  “I still can’t believe you’ve never been here!” Juniper exclaimed, bouncing from foot to foot as the line at Dixie’s counter moved forward. “This is seriously the best hot chocolate there is.”

  Truthfully, what she couldn’t believe was that she was spending her evening with Alex Harvey in the first place. Her thirteen-year-old self would be over the moon, if she could go back in time and tell her about it. It had always seemed so impossible to imagine herself as someone Alex would want to spend time with. Yet here they were.

  And now that they were finally spending time together, she found that there was a whole lot more to him than the handsome boy of long ago, a little girl’s crush. She genuinely liked him. She wanted to get to know him better, as much of himself as he was willing to share.

  He ran a hand through his hair and shrugged, almost like he was embarrassed. “I know it. I’m starting to realize how much I’ve missed of what’s new in town these past few years. Maybe Travis had a point when he said I needed to get out there a little more.”

  “He very well might,” she agreed. “And Dixie’s is a great place to start. Do you know what you’re going to get?”

  He shook his head, frowning up at the chalkboard sign announcing the plethora of coffee and hot chocolate choices. “Honestly? That all looks like Greek to me. I’ll just have whatever you get.”

  “Alright, sounds good to me.” She turned her attention back to the counter, where it was finally her turn. She did her best to hide her mischievous smile from him.

  The perky teen behind the register shot her a smile full of braces. “What can I get for the two of you tonight?”

  “We’ll just take two of the Santa’s Specials,” Juniper decided.

  The girl looked at Alex and raised an eyebrow, but to her credit she didn’t ask him if he was sure about that. “Are those going to be for here or to-go?”

  “What do you say about to-go?” Alex asked, stepping even closer. “Maybe you can show me a little bit more of what I’ve been missing from this town of ours?”

  Juniper nodded happily, and the two of them stepped aside to make way for the next customers. Juniper listened intently for the sound of her name, her anticipation at Alex’s reaction to her selection growing with each second that ticked by. When their drinks were ready, Juniper finally risked a look at Alex’s face. The expression she saw there was the last straw. She collapsed into a fit of giggles, and some of the people still in line even joined in.

  She took both cups, holding one out for Alex to take. He took a moment to survey the mountain of whipped cream, drizzle of chocolate syrup, and forest of miniature candy canes hanging along the side of the cup. For a second, she thought he wasn’t going to take it, but he did, manfully taking the first sip.

  “Alright,” he said after a moment, a tiny dollop of cream perched on the tip of his nose. “It looks ridiculous. You know that, right?”

  “I do,” she agreed, still giggling. “But what do you think about the taste?”

  He shut his eyes, making a show of considering the question. When he opened them again, they were bright. “You’re right. It’s the most delicious hot chocolate I’ve ever tasted.”

  With that little victory tucked safely in her back pocket, Juniper led Alex back out onto the sidewalk of Main Street. The temperature was dropping, but Juniper didn’t mind it a bit. The combination of the steaming cup in her hands and Alex’s attention gave her all of the warmth she needed.

  “Where to, fearless leader?” He asked, his head cocked to one side.

  She pointed down the street toward the town square. “Let’s go and see the Christmas tree.”

  “Right,” he said decisively. “Shall we?”

  As they walked, their playful banter continued. She told him about her desire to someday take a Christmas sleigh ride, and he teased her gently, telling her he had always thought they were cheesy. There were plenty of other people out and about, many of whom Juniper knew. After she had stopped to make small talk with the fifth person, Alex stopped and laughed.

  “What?” she asked, a little self-conscious.

  He shook his head slowly, as if in disbelief. “Nothing. I’m just over here wondering if there’s anyone in this town you don’t know.”

  “A lot of them are customers,” she said with a smile, “or other shop owners. And you might know more people if you ventured into town more often, you know.”

  He nodded, and then incredibly, put an arm around her shoulder as they started walking again. “I’ll take that under consideration.”

  Finally, they arrived at the Christmas tree, set dead center of the town square. Off to one side, Santa sat in his big velvet chair, listening to the deepest Christmas desires of the town’s children. There were what looked like thousands of twinkle lights strung on strands looping from one light post to the next, and the air was spicy with the scent of various food carts selling cinnamon-sugar roasted nuts.

  All around them, little groups of people were looking up at the tree and chattering excitedly, full of Christmas cheer. Juniper was sure she couldn’t have imagined a more perfect holiday evening.

  She barely even glanced at the tree though, instead looking for Alex’s reaction. He stood beside her with his neck craned back, gazing up at the thousands of lights and ornaments in unabashed wonder.

  “What do you think?” she asked.

  He finally tore his eyes away from the tree and put his focus on her. “It’s perfect.”

  She clapped her hands, delighted. “Oh, I’m so glad! I was thinking maybe, if you find the time, the girls would like to see it, too. I hope that’s not me overstepping –“