Her Christmas Prince (Love in the Keys) (2 page)

Brian
had seemed so cultured and worldly. Most of the men she knew were
all about water sports and fishing and the beach. All good things,
but Brian was different. He talked about art
and classical music
and world
affairs.

And
yet, she never got over that feeling that there was an imbalance in
their relationship, that she was the one who cared more. It seems
she'd been right. Who breaks up with someone ten days before
Christmas?! Someone who clearly deserved a lifetime of coal in their
stocking, that's who.

Callie
had reached the Happy Clam, a small family-owned restaurant and bar
right on the water beside the marina. Tom, the youngest son of the
Davis family, waved at her, and she went in and sat at the bar. She
and Tom were the same age and had been in school together since
kindergarten. They had dated briefly in high school but decided they
were better friends than anything else and had remained so ever
since.

“
Hey
girl, how goes it? We don't usually see you out here at this time of
day. Business slow?”

“
A
little bit. Erin is closing up. I just needed a break.”

“
I
hear you. Sometimes the holidays can be a bit much, huh? Are you
ready for it all, shopping done and all that?”

“
Oh
yeah. We keep it pretty simple in my family. We draw names and you
have to make your gift. Aside from buying for a few friends and for
the toy drive, I didn't actually have that much shopping to do.”

“
Wow,
you Meyers make your gifts? That's a pretty cool idea. I should
talk to my family about that. That could be fun. Scary, but fun.”
They both laughed.

“
It
started as more of a dare than anything, but we've kind of embraced
it now. It's actually really fun to come up with ideas and to see
what people can do.”

“
So
who did you draw this year?”

“
My
cousin
Rayna. She works
over with Dr. Mark Collins, the veterinarian. I'm making her some of
her favourite oatmeal cookies. I also knit her a cotton sweater ...
but I had a lot of help from Mrs. Anderson at the knitting store.
I'm really only a beginner and she saved my bacon. I think it's
wearable.”

“
Wanna
try some of our home made island nog? We kick it up a notch with a
little pineapple and coconut. Sort of a cross between egg nog and a
pina colada. You can have it with rum or without.”

“
With!”

Tom
gave her the hairy eyeball. She wasn't normally a big drinker so
early in the day. He poured her a liberal serving and handed her the
glass topped off with a straw that looked like a candy cane ... very
festive. She took a sip and it was as delicious as it sounded.
Tom looked pleased by her reaction and went over to the other side of
the bar to help another customer, someone Callie didn't recognize, a
tourist, she supposed.

Callie
settled into her front row seat of the sunset and sipped on her drink
while listening to the sound of calypso Christmas music on the
speaker. And starting thinking again.

How
on earth was she going to break the news to her mother that Brian and
she were no longer an item? And more importantly, how was she going
to get through Christmas without a vat of wine? She felt bad enough
on her own, without her mother's inevitable finger-pointing about
what she'd done wrong to drive off the only decent man who'd shown
interest in her lately. Why couldn't he have waited ‘til
after Christmas? He knew what her mother was like. He must
really and truly have felt nothing for her to land her in such a
pickle with her momzilla.

It
wouldn't be so painful if there weren't some shreds of truth
contained in her mother's crazy rantings. At heart, though she'd
never admit it to Milly, or anyone for that matter, Callie did want
to get married and have a family. She was a small town girl at
heart and embraced the values of her upbringing.

That
said, great guys did not seem to be growing on the trees with the
coconuts in the Keys. And not for want of looking. Callie was 35
and very much single. The dating pool was pretty shallow in
Sunnyside Key. Lots of retirees, but not a lot of young singles,
they all seemed to head to big cities when they finished school.
And those left all seemed to pair up in high school or college,
leaving slim pickings for the over 30 crowd.

“
Penny
for your thoughts.”

Callie
was jolted out of her thoughts by the other customer at the Happy
Clam, who had moved over to join her on the south side of the bar.

“
Sorry?”
Callie looked at the handsome guy who'd loped over and started
talking to her.

“
You
look about a million miles away, and you have the weight of the world
on your shoulders. Wanna talk about it?” Her gave her an
encouraging smile.

“
Um,
no. Thanks. But no.”

Callie
took a moment to take a look at the interloper and caught her breath
a little. He might just be the best looking man she'd ever seen in
Sunnyside Key. He had the tall good looks of movie star, and the
physique of an Olympian. Combined with boy-next-door charm and
killer dimples
killer. So
were his green eyes. Oy. This was a guy who was used to getting
what he wanted, that was pretty clear. And he so knew he was the
total package. But Callie had had just about enough of guys like
this this week.

“
Oh,
come on. What is it they say, a problem shared is a problem halved?
Give it a go.”

“
First
off, nobody says that here. I don't know where you're from, but we
don't say that here. And what makes you think I have a problem?”

“
Oh,
you have a problem. It may not be the one I first thought it was,
but you definitely have a problem.”

Callie
could see Tom smirking behind the bar but he quickly turned his back
to them when he caught her glare. Seriously, he was siding with
this guy? So much for kindergarten loyalty. Apparently her icy
stare was enough of a response back because the smooth talker kept
quiet for a bit.

She
continued sipping her island nog and was intently watching the sunset
when he started to speak again.

“
Shhhh.
Not ‘til the sun sets.”

“
Why?”

“
Because
I'm waiting for the green flash.”

“
The
green flash?”

“
You're
so not from around here. Never mind. Just hush.”

He
followed her gaze and watched along with her. As beautiful as the
sun setting was over the water, casting an orange glow on the boats
on the water before petering out, there was no green flash today.

“
So
can I talk now?”

“
Yes,
if you must.”

“
What
was all this green flash business?”

“
A
green flash is kind of a good luck omen for the locals here. It's
an optical occurrence that lasts for a couple of seconds. You can
only see it at the exact minute that the sun dips below the horizon
at sunset. It's a tricky business ... blink
and you miss it. But if you look too soon, the sun blinds you and
you can't see it. It's an amazing thing. It doesn't happen too
often.”

“
So
why do you keep looking?” He was curious about her answer.

“
Because
there's always a chance. You just never know when it's your lucky
day.”

He
seemed to consider her response and then smiled. He had a wicked
smile. Not wicked bad, but wicked awesome. But he definitely knew
it was a bit of a weapon.

“
Tom,
can we have two more over here when you have a sec?” As he was
speaking, he slid over the bar stools and narrowed the gap between
them, sitting on the stool directly beside Callie.

“
So
let's get back to that problem of yours.”

“
I
told you, I'm fine. And no offence, but I don't know you. And I
don't really want to talk to you about anything.” Callie had
never been much of a talker when it came to problems. She was more
of an internal seething bucket of nerves type, kept it all inside and
tortured herself with her own inner monologue ‘til she worked
things out.

Funny
enough, his easy manner did make him extraordinarily easy to talk to.
It was actually tempting. But how could she talk to anyone, even
this stranger who she'd never see again, about her Brian problem?
How do you explain something like that without admitting you're a
fool?

“
Oh
heavens, my manners. I'm sorry. I'm Henry. Pleased to meet
you. And you are .... ?” He extended his hand to her. She
looked at him but didn't immediately respond.

“
She's
Callie. She's one of my oldest friends, Hank. So be nice to her.”
Tom put the drinks down in front of them, looked at Henry
pointedly, and gave Callie a wink. Twice in one night, Tom had
betrayed her. She was going to have to have words with him.

Henry
took her hand and shook it, for just a second too long, and too
deliberately. Callie felt a chill go up her spine.

“
Hello,
Callie. Enchanted.”

Callie
was speechless. She was receiving the full onslaught of Henry's
charm. He was smiling at her, and the light from the candles on the
bar cast a warm glow
around
him. It also picked up the golden highlights in his green eyes and
made them dance. Callie felt a little shiver move up her spine.
She was definitely in dangerous territory.

“
Hi.”

“
So,
back to that problem.”

“
Nope.
No problem talk. Tell me about you, Henry. You're clearly not from
here. What's your deal?”

“
My
deal? How colloquial.” He took a sip of his ginger beer and
leaned casually against the bar as he shifted
his
weight on the stool to face her more directly.

“
Well,
if you're asking who I am and why I'm here, here's the digest
version. I work in the family business, and I'm taking an extended
holiday here in the Keys. I wanted a nice quiet place to relax and
disappear for a while. Tom's been very helpful, helping me rent a
boat and such. He's been my best friend since I've been here.”

“
And
how long is that?”

“
About
a month, give or take.”

“
So
you'll be leaving soon, then?”

“
Not
necessarily. My plans are undefined at the present moment. I'm
actually feeling quite inclined to linger.”

Callie
processed his comments. Who could afford to take a month of
vacation? His family must be very understanding and they must be
doing pretty well for themselves. S
he
surveyed his intentionally casual attire, which
was obviously expensive, right down to his designer flip flops.

“
So
you're enjoying our Keys, then?”

“
Oh
yes. It's my first visit, and they're heavenly. I love just about
everything about it here. And the locals are mostly friendly.”

“
We
Conchs usually are, unless provoked.” Callie gave him a wry
grin.

There
was something about this guy. It was quite maddening. She didn't
want to like him, but she couldn't seem to stop herself. He was
inherently nice, even when being a pain. It was an interesting and,
if she was honest with herself, intriguing combination.

“
Conchs?”

“
The
Keys are called The Conch Republic. And the local, born-and-bred
natives like Tom and I, we're called Conchs.”

“
Interesting.
Tell me more.”

“
Oh,
it's a history lesson. Hardly cocktail banter. Let's leave it. Tom
will tell you.”

“
Well,
what should we talk about, then?” As she contemplated the
question, an unmistakable voice broke the spell of the little banter
that she had going on with Henry.

“
Calista!
Hey, sugar. It's Momma.”

CHAPTER
THREE

Callie
turned around to face the entrance of the Happy Clam and saw her
mother and father coming through the entrance to the outer deck.
Crap. This was not good. Not good at all.