Fallin' in Love (5 page)

"You're lucky you're the boss," she teased. "Otherwise you'd get fired for leaving early all the time."

"I'm definitely lucky," he agreed, pulling her into his arms. "And how come there are so many presents under the tree?"

Hellboy lifted his head and gave a little ruff, as if in warning.

"Just as I thought. They're yours."

Mia laughed. "It
is
his first Christmas."

"Which reminds me. We should take his picture, with a Santa hat on, surrounded by all his gifts. Maybe even a tacky sweater, with bells jingling all over it. Whaddya say, buddy?"

Hellboy ducked his head into the surrounding blankets, his growl telling Luke exactly what he thought of his holiday suggestion.

F
ourth week of December

"Keep your eyes closed," Luke instructed. "It's just a little further."

Fortunately he continued to hold Mia's arm while he led her forward since she didn't have much of a clue as to where they were. All she knew was they had driven somewhere, and they weren't at home.

"I always thought we'd use a blindfold in the bedroom," she said, "not out in public."

His laugh was close to her ear. "It won't go to waste. I promise."

"Okay, I'll believe you this time."

"Have I ever not made good on my promises?" he whispered.

Mia shivered. Luke always made her respond that way, but he had managed to multiply that by a thousand this evening. He had asked her to dress up, and she'd picked a red dress that made him bite his lip and shake his head with slow appreciation when he saw her.

She had half expected him to try to persuade her to stay home, and she would not have resisted for an instant. But he'd surprised her. He'd dressed up too, something she rarely got to see, and he looked just as delicious in the charcoal grey suit as he did in his uniform, or in jeans and a t-shirt.

The man was sexy no matter what season it was.

Before she could answer his question—heck, Mia couldn't even remember what the question was—he helped her sit down, gently pushing the chair in behind her. She reached up to remove the blindfold, but Luke placed his hand on hers.

"Wait. Just a little longer."

"Okay."

Mia heard him moving around, and was certain she heard ice settling in a bucket. Before she could puzzle it out, Luke said, "You can take it off now."

She untied the scarf. The room was darkened, but with candles lit in several places, flickering in welcome. She was at a round table covered with a white linen cloth, a cluster of votives at the center reflecting off the silverware and crystal. There was also an ice bucket nearby, with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot, her favorite champagne, nestled inside.

Luke stood across the table from her, smiling as he watched her reaction to the romantic setting he'd created for them.

"It's beautiful," she said with a heartfelt sigh. "We have your whole restaurant to ourselves tonight?"

"Yes. It was hired out for a private party."

She laughed. "And we're the private party."

"Yes, we are. Which is a good thing, since I plan to do this a lot."

He gave her a kiss, one that started out tender and then ended up making her think about dousing herself in the nearby bucket of ice.

"With a kiss like that, there should definitely be mistletoe."

Luke pointed to the chandelier above their table. It was festooned with numerous bunches of mistletoe, all of them tied in red ribbons. She could only imagine how long it had taken to accomplish.

Mia grabbed his tie and pulled him toward her. "You are amazing. It's no wonder I love you."

"I love you too, Mia." He brushed his lips over hers. "But keep those kisses until after we finish dinner. I don't want the chef to get cranky, thinking we don't appreciate his efforts."

"Oh, believe me, he knows I appreciate everything he does. Including his cooking."

She loved the wink he gave her.

"Now if you'll excuse me for one moment—"

Luke returned minutes later with two salad plates. He set one down in front of her, and then brought the other to his side of the table. As with everything Luke made, it was filled with layers of flavor, making Mia wish she had even a tenth of his culinary talent.

When they had finished their salads, Luke went back into the kitchen. It gave Mia a chance to wonder what else he had created for this night. He had definitely made it festive, a holiday dinner she was not likely to forget.

She glanced once more at the champagne. It hadn't been opened yet. Maybe he was saving it for later. . .

All at once her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach.

Was he— Did he plan—

Mia was so nervous. How could she possibly eat another bite?

"Here you go. Steak prepared just the way you like it."

After Luke set her plate down, he turned it so the sirloin was facing her. Next he opened a bottle of red wine, and poured a very healthy portion into a goblet.

Mia picked it up, grateful for a chance to settle herself down, and then realization hit her.

"This is the wine I brought that night. The very first time you cooked for me. You made steak—"

Luke must have seen the tears welling up in her eyes. He brushed the hair off her forehead and kissed her temple, tenderly.

"I'd hoped that was a good memory."

Mia laughed and dabbed at her eyes with her napkin. "It is. A very good one. All of them with you are good memories."

He smiled before sitting down again. "I'm glad to hear it. I was starting to wonder if I should have made chicken instead."

The warm gleam in his eyes did all kinds of things to her nerves, including calming them. She also discovered she was starving, and her excitement did not curb her appetite. She couldn't remember what they chatted about. All she knew was she was madly in love with this man, and couldn't believe how wonderful it was to share this intimate space, these romantic moments, with him.

"Thank you for all of this," she said, finally moving her plate aside. "I can only imagine how much trouble you went to."

He waved it off. "This is nothing for an almost-world-class chef."

She laughed and came around the table to sit in his lap. His arms instantly wound around her waist.

"Well, you're definitely a world-class boyfriend. I can't wait to tell my brothers what they'll need to do for the women in their lives this Christmas."

Luke pretended to slump in his chair. "They're going to hate me now. Wait until next month to tell them."

"For you, I'll wait."

He looked at her very intensely for several moments. Then he smiled, and reached for the champagne. She thought he was going to open it, but instead he said, "Let's take this home."

Mia nodded. She also gave herself a little mental headshake. What had made her think he was going to propose? It was silly. She was wildly happy and didn't need to be married to Luke to be any happier.

"Sounds good." She reached for the blindfold she'd worn earlier. "This might come in handy too."

***

L
uke watched as Mia kicked off her heels and sat down on the couch, her legs tucked under her. She leaned her head back and smiled blissfully.

He loved her so much. Her playfulness, her kindness, the way she got flustered over his teasing remarks. He couldn't have imagined a more perfect woman for him. He was amazed at how they'd found each other last summer—and how they could have missed out on all of it, if it hadn't been for Hellboy.

"What's a girl gotta do to get some champagne around here?"

Luke laughed as he headed into the kitchen. "I'm popping it open right now."

He heard a little growl and rushed to grab Hellboy before the pup could spoil the surprise.

"Shh, buddy. Hold on for just a minute."

He could swear Hellboy was frowning, but he couldn't focus on that just now. He managed to fasten a folded piece of paper to Hellboy's collar and then set him down outside the living room.

"Okay, now go. Just like we practiced."

***

M
ia heard Hellboy's nails clicking along the hardwood floor. She sat up and clapped her hands on her thighs. He bounded over, his back end wagging fiercely, as usual.

"What are you doing here? Have you figured out how to unlock doors? I bet that means you know where we stash the good treats too."

The dog put his paws on her knees, and that's when she noticed the paper attached to his collar. She tugged until it came loose, and then unfolded it.

It was a note from Sondra, saying how she felt so bad about Hellboy bothering the two of them all the time, but then she felt worse knowing how much Hellboy wanted to be with them, not Sondra and her husband.

So, after a lot of thought, and several discussions with Luke, Sondra decided that Hellboy should live with Luke and Mia. She just hoped Mia wouldn't think she was heartless, because she truly was doing what she felt Hellboy wanted.

Mia sniffed and scooped the pup into her arms. She gave him a squeeze, and he returned the favor by licking her cheek. "You are such a spoiled monster, but I love you, and I'm glad you'll be living here with us."

Luke stood at the entrance of the living room, holding the champagne bottle. "You know he'll want to visit next door all the time now."

"Of course he will!" Mia turned the dog to face her. "Won't you?" She nuzzled him once more. "What a wonderful Christmas present this is. I can't wait to thank Sondra."

Luke filled a crystal flute with champagne and handed it to Mia. Hellboy immediately investigated, but Mia lifted the glass out of the way.

"Your tastes are too expensive as it is," she said with a chuckle.

"That's for sure. Hellboy, come here."

Luke added a whistle, but the dog had conveniently lost his hearing. When Luke pulled a treat out of his pocket, Hellboy jumped off Mia's lap and scampered over to Luke.

"You are too predictable, buddy."

"I bet he thinks you are."

Luke couldn't help but laugh. "You're probably right." He picked up the dog and headed back into the hallway. "Save some champagne for me."

"I can't make any promises."

Luke went into the other room, and quickly attached a second piece of paper to Hellboy's collar. His fingers shook a little, which was probably understandable under the circumstances.

"Okay, this is the last one." He set Hellboy down and guided him towards the living room once more. "After this you can have a box of treats
and
a whole room full of shoes."

***

M
ia heard Luke talking to Hellboy in the other room, but she couldn't make out any specific words. Well, except something about shoes. Hellboy came racing in, another piece of paper attached to his collar. He jumped at her knees again, placing his paws on them, his whole body wriggling with excitement.

"What's this? Your wish list for Santa?" Mia slipped the paper off. She looked up to see Luke leaning casually against the wall near the mantel, one hand loosening his tie.

"Making sure he didn't chew this up before he got here?"

"Yeah," he said with a grin.

She opened the paper and gasped when she saw the words, "Will you marry us?"

She couldn't stop the tears. "I'm sorry," she said, wiping at her eyes.

Luke pushed away from the wall, but didn't move toward her. Hellboy gazed up at Luke, and then at Mia, adding a little whine.

"No! I mean, I'm sorry about the tears. Oh, I haven't said—yes! Yes, I will marry you."

Luke blew out a huge breath, and crossed the room in two long strides. He pulled Mia up and hugged her, kissing her, rocking her back and forth. Hellboy jumped and danced around, wanting to be part of the celebration. Luke let go of Mia just long enough to pick Hellboy up, holding him securely between them.

"God, I love you so much, Mia. Although you made my heart stop for a minute there."

She laughed and continued to kiss him. "I didn't mean to. It just surprised me, since I thought it had something else to do with Hellboy."

At the mention of his name, the pup began to squirm, so Luke set him down. "I think he's had enough of the lovefest."

They watched Hellboy run to his doggie bed near the fireplace, making himself comfortable. Luke pulled a jeweler's box out of his pocket, opening it to display the ring inside.

"I couldn't take the chance of letting Hellboy deliver this."

Mia's eyes welled up with tears again, and she sniffed them back. "I'm so glad you didn't. We can't have him upgrading from shoes to diamonds. Not with him living here full-time now."

"
Officially
living here full-time," Luke said, chuckling.

He slid the solitaire diamond onto Mia's finger. She tilted her hand, gazing at the ring from every angle.

"Luke, it's so beautiful."

"As soon as I saw it, it made me think of you. And how much I love you."

Mia wrapped her arms around him, her throat choked with emotion. "I love you so much. I'm not even sure I know how to tell you how much."

"Then you can just tell me every day. And every night. Like I plan to do."

He kissed her until she was begging for breath, her heart nearly bursting with happiness.

"I still can't believe that breaking your car led to this. But I'm glad. Really
really
glad."

"Thank God for Hellboy chewing up your shoes. It ended up being the best thing to happen to me."

"Easy for you to say. They weren't your shoes!"

He laughed as he took her hand in his, leading her down the hallway, his eyes gleaming with a desire that matched hers.

"Let's go unwrap some presents."

The End

I
have worked as an attorney, winery tasting room manager, and retail business owner, but nothing beats the thrill of writing humorously-ever-after romances.

I reside in New England, although I fantasize about spending the rest of my days in a tropical locale, wear flip flops year-round, or in Regency London, scandalizing the
ton
.