Marry Me at Christmas (Fool's Gold) (3 page)

Two minutes later they were walking to Jo’s Bar, where they would meet their friends for lunch. The air was crisp. The first snow had already fallen and pretty much gone away. There were still a few piles left from clearing the sidewalks, but little else. Still, plenty more was on the way. While the first few snowfalls were always exciting, by month two of shoveling, Madeline knew she would be ready for spring. Still, it would be wonderful to have a white Christmas.

They ducked into Jo’s Bar. The place catered to women and was decorated with flattering paint colors, good lighting. There were plenty of healthy choices on the menu. Today the TVs were tuned to either a shopping channel or a show on HGTV.

Madeline saw that Shelby and Destiny had already claimed a table. She waved at her friends, then led the way over.

“Hey, you,” Shelby said, coming to her feet and hugging Madeline. She greeted Isabel, then moved so Madeline could say hi to a more-pregnant-by-the-day Destiny.

“You’re growing,” Madeline said with a laugh. “And glowing. Isabel, this is in your future.”

“If only,” Isabel said with a sigh. “I’ll never look that good when I’m six months along.”

“Don’t be too nice to me,” Destiny told them. “I’m very hormonal these days. I’ll start crying.”

“We don’t want that,” Shelby, a petite blonde, told her teasingly.

The two women smiled at each other. While Shelby and Madeline were close, Shelby and Destiny were sisters-in-law. Destiny had married Shelby’s brother—former Olympic skier Kipling Gilmore—the previous summer. No one had known they were even seeing each other until the surprise wedding. Talk about keeping a secret.

Something Madeline was finally experiencing herself, she thought happily. Not that working for Jonny Blaze was as exciting as an illicit romance, but still. She knew that she was going to have to tell Isabel—what with her having to be gone from the shop from time to time. But that was for later. Right now she was keeping the information to herself. Mostly because she and Jonny hadn’t discussed if it was public or not. Until she confirmed that he was okay with her mentioning it to her business partner, she wasn’t saying a word.

The door opened and Patience, Taryn and Consuelo walked in. Or rather Taryn and Consuelo walked. Patience waddled, with her second child due the first week of January. The three women headed to their table.

Madeline loved her lunches out with her friends. The number and faces were always changing, but they had friendship in common. Today’s group was eclectic, as always. Patience owned Brew-haha, the local coffee shop in town, Phoebe was a recent transplant from LA who was now a rancher’s wife, Taryn ran a PR firm and Consuelo was an instructor at the bodyguard school.

Isabel looked at Taryn and shook her head. “I see you’re back to your skinny self. Didn’t you just have a baby last Tuesday?”

“I had Bryce in July,” the violet-eyed brunette said with a grimace. “And I’ve been sweating in the gym every day for the past four months. I’ve had to lift weights. It’s awful. So you don’t get to be mad at me. I’ve earned my way back into my clothes.”

Isabel stuck out her tongue and the rest of the women laughed.

“It feels good to be back to where I was,” Taryn said.

Destiny rested her hand on her growing belly. “I look forward to it.”

“Sing it, sister,” Patience said.

Madeline was sure most women would agree with them, but she had to admit to a little disappointment. It seemed to her that having a baby should be transformative. That you shouldn’t just slip back into your old life. Although she doubted carrying around an extra five or ten pounds was the right way to mark the occasion. She just knew that if she was lucky enough to fall in love and get married and have kids, she wanted the experience to change her.

Jo came by and took their orders. Conversation flowed easily. Phoebe mentioned hearing from Maya and Del, who were in China. That was followed by everyone admitting they had no idea how the Chinese celebrated the holidays, or if they did at all.

As people talked, Madeline became aware of Isabel fidgeting in her seat. She leaned close to her business partner.

“I know I keep asking this, but are you okay?”

Isabel surprised her by hugging her. “You’re a good person, you know that, right?”

Madeline studied her. “Are you crying?”

“What Destiny has is contagious.” Isabel cleared her throat, then sighed. “I have an announcement.”

The table quieted. Isabel looked at them all. “I’m pregnant.”

Consuelo frowned. “Did you hit your head? Do you have a concussion? We all know you’re pregnant. If you hadn’t told me, I’d still know. Ford tells me every single day. If I didn’t like you so much, I would kill him because he’s annoying.”

A statement that from anyone else might be cause for alarm, but was exactly how Consuelo thought and talked.

Isabel seemed to brace herself. “I didn’t hit my head. It’s just... I had my ultrasound and...” She held up her hand. “I’m fine. I’m doing well. Too well. Because... I’m having triplets.”

There was a moment of silence followed by loud cheers and calls of congratulations.

Madeline took in the news. She knew Isabel’s husband, Ford, had triplet sisters, so it wasn’t a complete surprise that she would be having multiples. It was just, well, Madeline had thought they were friends. That working together had brought them closer. Even though she’d asked, Isabel hadn’t told her the news privately.

Madeline reminded herself that the information was Isabel’s to share and she shouldn’t take the slight personally. It was just—

“Don’t be mad,” Isabel whispered. “I couldn’t tell you.”

“Okay,” Madeline said slowly, still not sure why.

“It’s just... I was scared. I’m going to need you so much and it’s not fair, but without you, I can’t keep the business going.”

Madeline hugged her. “You’re an idiot.”

“I know.”

“Of course I’ll help.”

“You swear?”

“Try to get me to stop. I love you.”

“I love you, too. You’re the best business partner ever.”

Madeline laughed. “You say that like it’s news.”

* * *

While the rest of the country seemed to jump from Halloween to Christmas, in Fool’s Gold the tradition of giving thanks was embraced. Jonny saw gourds and straw baskets, every form of turkey from paper to ceramic. There were harvest garlands and fall-colored bunting and plenty of pilgrims. Hokey but nice.

He wasn’t sure how the transition to Christmas was going to happen, but it would have to be nearly an overnight thing. There was a town Christmas tree lighting scheduled this coming Saturday, only two days after Thanksgiving.

He crossed the street and headed into Paper Moon. He could see Madeline up on the dais, with a bride. The young woman was maybe twenty, with brown hair and glasses. She reminded him a little of Ginger, with her earnest expression.

The dress had a big skirt, like something a Disney princess would wear. It suited her youth, he thought, then held in a grin. Next thing he knew he would be discussing makeup and shoes. Talk about a way to frighten off guy friends. His buddy Shep would sure have something to say about any discussion that girlie. For now, Jonny was safe. Shep was on loan to the search and rescue program in Yosemite and wouldn’t be back until after the holidays.

A tall, blonde woman walked up to him. She studied him for a second, as if trying to place him. He saw the exact moment she realized who he was. To her credit, she barely blinked.

“Good afternoon,” she said. “I’m Isabel Hendrix. May I help you?”

Now it was his turn to be startled. If the woman knew who he was, why didn’t she know why he was here? He glanced from her to Madeline, who was hugging the young bride. The girl stepped off the dais and headed for the dressing room. Madeline followed her down the stairs, then walked over to join them.

“Hi,” she said. “Did we have an appointment?”

A polite way of pointing out he was interrupting her workday. She stood up for herself. He liked that.

“I had a couple of ideas I wanted to talk to you about. When you have a free moment.”

“Sure. I’ll be about ten minutes, if you want to wait.”

“Your office?”

Isabel glanced between them. “You two obviously know what you’re doing. I’ll head back to my side of the store.”

She gave Madeline a look that clearly stated they would be talking later.

The promised ten minutes later, Madeline joined him. “How can I help you?” she asked as she settled behind her desk.

“You didn’t tell her.”

“What?”

“Your business partner. You didn’t say you were working with me.”

She shifted in her seat, then waved a hand. “I didn’t know if I should, so I erred on the side of discretion. This is your private business. I don’t talk about my brides with anyone. Not in any detail. I might ask for opinions on a dress or get suggestions, but what happens here is personal. Planning a wedding falls under the same category.”

He could appreciate someone who respected privacy. “You can tell your business partner and anyone you’d like that you’re helping me.”

“Good, because I’ll have to say something what with you showing up here and all.”

“Should I have worn a disguise?”

“Maybe a fedora.”

He chuckled. “Not sure I own one of those.”

Madeline was dressed in her usual black, with her hair pulled back. She had on red lipstick. It was kind of sexy and, when combined with the prim cut of her blouse, gave her that naughty librarian look. He’d always been a sucker for librarians.

“You wanted to talk about the wedding?” she asked.

“Ice sculptures.”

“Excuse me?”

“I was thinking ice sculptures to line the main driveway to the house and the walkway to the barn. Flowers in vases, maybe a few snowflakes for the holiday season. Just to make it more festive.”

Madeline considered his words. “I never would have thought of them, but sure. I can run the idea past Ginger. They’d add a nice touch. Also give some visual interest when people looked outside. Would you light them?”

“Of course.”

“That could be really pretty.” She pulled out a folder and made some notes. “I’m putting together information to email her tonight. I’ll include this. And while I have you here, if you have the time, I have a couple of things I’d like you to look at.”

“Sure thing.”

It was nearly noon. He thought about asking if she wanted to have lunch with him. Because he enjoyed Madeline’s company. Plus, the whole red-lip, buttoned-collar thing was working for him.

But then what? Getting involved with him was a nightmare. Someone always leaked the information to a tabloid and then it went to hell. In a town like Fool’s Gold, there weren’t going to be any secrets. Someone was bound to know someone who knew a guy who made his living taking pictures.

Jonny had been down that road before and it never ended well. He knew he was lucky. He made a lot of money at a job he really liked. It had allowed him to take care of his sister. But there was a price for fame, and sometimes it was one he didn’t want to have to pay.

She handed over several sheets of paper. “Catering ideas. I’ve been talking to Ana Raquel and I’ve marked her suggestions for what is the most popular. One of the challenges is the time of year—we can’t always get all the seasonal options.”

“We can fly in any fresh produce.”

Madeline’s blue eyes danced with amusement. “I’m sure we can,” she said gently. “Ana Raquel is more concerned about not having a holiday-based meal. People will have been eating turkey and prime rib already. It’s all heavy food. Her idea was to go for something lighter. Maybe even tropical. In contrast with the weather. Grilled fish and lots of finger foods.”

Something he’d never considered. He knew that Oliver’s family did a traditional turkey dinner on Christmas Eve and then had prime rib on Christmas Day. Exactly what the chef had said.

“They both like Mexican food,” he said slowly as he scanned the suggestions. “What about combining that with tropical?” He pointed to the Coconut Popcorn Shrimp with Mango Lime Salsa. “Like this. They’d enjoy that a lot. Ginger wants casual and easy. Food like that would mean giving her what she’s looking for.”

“You’re a good brother,” Madeline said unexpectedly.

“I want Ginger to be happy.”

“But you know stuff about her. That’s nice. I have an older brother. While I adore him and I know he’d be here in a heartbeat if I needed him, he has no idea if I like Mexican food or not.”

“You’re forgetting I took care of Ginger for a few years. I cooked and everything. I know exactly what she’ll eat.”

She studied him. “I’m trying to picture you in an apron.”

He chuckled. “Never wore one of those.”

“I’ll talk to Ana Raquel and have her put together a menu combining tropical and Mexican foods. She makes a Black Bean Soup with Lime Cream that is to die for.”

“Then we need that for sure.”

Madeline made some notes. “It’s Thanksgiving tomorrow, so let’s say by Tuesday of next week? Are you going to be around?”

He nodded. “I’m driving to San Francisco this afternoon to have dinner with Ginger, then I’m heading back.”

“Which means the timing is perfect.” She pulled out another folder, then handed him several wedding invitations. “These are all the samples I could pull together on such short notice. If you don’t like any of them, I’ll get some more.”

He laid out the invitations. They were all on thick card stock. Several had a picture of the couple and he immediately dismissed those. While they were nice enough, there wasn’t time to get a photo taken.

“Which do you like?” he asked.

* * *

Madeline knew that she was helping with his sister’s wedding, but it was still strange to be asked her opinion on something like wedding invitations. Now if it had been a veil, she would have been more comfortable with her choice. Still, she stood and leaned over the desk. She’d looked at the samples as they’d come in and already had a few favorites.

“These are nice,” she said, pointing. “This one is a layered package, with different cards tucked into one envelope. You can do the invitation on one card, provide information on where to stay on another, have a map to your place.”