Michelle Major - A Very Crimson Christmas

“Plus Ruth brags about you to anyone who will listen.”

“She does?”

“Ruth is very proud of you. Being your nanny, helping to raise you, was special to her. I’m sure she’s going to take full credit for convincing you to bring more jobs to Crimson.”

That got his attention and not in a good way. “I said I’m considering Crimson,” he clarified. “Nothing is decided yet.”

“I know.” She smiled. “She’ll take credit anyway.”

“You really care about her?”

She nodded. “Of course. She’s a wonderful person.” Her smile faded. “My relationship with my mother has never been great. It means a lot to me, and to Austin, to have someone like Ruth in our lives.”

She was right, of course. His nanny had been a huge bright spot in his life when he was a kid, even if he hadn’t appreciated it at the time. She’d helped raise his father then come back to work for his parents when Liam was six. Even as a young kid, his mom and dad hadn’t had time for him. Ruth always had. A little voice inside him said Natalie might fall into the same category, but he silenced it before he had no choice but to listen.

He took a step back and forced himself to focus on why he’d come to Crimson in the first place. “I’m here for Ruth, Natalie. I’ll give you time because she seems to trust you. But she’s my priority. I won’t let anyone take advantage of her and I’ll do whatever is necessary to make sure she’s okay. Remember that.”

Her gaze shuttered and Liam cursed himself for pushing her away so quickly, even when he knew it was the right thing to do.

“Got it.” She gave him a mock salute. “I’m expendable if it comes to that. Nothing much has changed on that front, so I won’t get confused.” She turned back to her worktable. “I work an afternoon shift at Evergreen tomorrow. If you want to be here while I’m gone, Ruth would appreciate the company. Otherwise, I can take her with me.”

All superficial business. That’s what he wanted from his relationship with Natalie, so why did it irritate him to have her speak so curtly? “I’ll be here,” he answered, unwilling to give away his feelings. If she could shut him out so easily, he could do the same.

“Good night, Liam.” Her hand reached out for the pliers once again. Liam wondered if he imagined the slight tremble in her fingers.

She was dismissing him, much like she’d done back in high school. Fine. He couldn’t care less. He turned, forcing himself not to look back at her, and walked out into the night.

Chapter Three

Liam was up for an early run Monday morning despite the layer of frost and temperature that made his lungs burn. The way he was huffing air as he got back to the house he’d rented reminded him that Crimson sat at an almost nine-thousand-foot altitude, tucked high into the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.

He’d acclimate within a few days, he told himself as he came into the large, modern kitchen overlooking the valley below. Sun bounced off the snow that blanketed the trees and mountainside, almost blinding in its brightness. It looked like a picture postcard for a winter wonderland. He wiped his forehead on the back of his jacket sleeve and reached for a bottle of water from the refrigerator.

“I made coffee,” a voice said from behind him.

“You still on central time, too?” He turned to his assistant, Tanner Black, who was frowning at the screen of a laptop he carried into the room.

Tanner was a few years older than Liam and had been his right-hand man for almost four years. Liam’s father had a habit of taking his bad moods out on the people who worked for him. The first time Liam had seen Tanner, the other man had intervened when Michael Donovan was in the midst of a tirade that had brought a young secretary to tears. Who knew what the woman had done—not gotten Michael’s coffee order exactly right, answered the phone on the third ring instead of the second. When Michael went off, nothing rational seemed to matter.

Liam had been about to step in when Tanner, a junior project manager at the company, had come forward and given Liam’s father a stern lecture in his no-nonsense way. Tanner had been fired on the spot, but Liam had rehired him just as quickly. He knew how valuable it would prove to have someone in his corner who wasn’t afraid of Michael Donovan.

Tanner had quickly become indispensable to Liam. He was a great project manager, a forward thinker and one of the few people in the company Liam trusted implicitly. He’d helped every step of the way with the new company and understood why Liam needed to break off from the “father ship,” as he referred to Donovan Enterprises.

“Sleep is overrated.” Tanner placed the computer on the counter and filled a mug with coffee. He wore a charcoal-gray suit with a tailored shirt and red tie. Even in the mountains, Tanner insisted on dressing for business. “All things are possible with enough coffee as fuel. Don’t forget the Skype meeting today with the investors. You need to lock these guys up so we can move forward with a development plan for the new app.”

Liam nodded. “No problem. They won’t want to miss this opportunity.”

“Because your father pushed them out before the last stock split at Donovan Enterprises?”

“That’s one of several reasons.”

Tanner lifted a blond brow. “Do you have a plan for breaking the news to dear old dad?”

“Not yet.” Liam grabbed a muffin from the box on the counter and bit into it, the texture moist and the flavor out of this world. He looked at the name imprinted on the box, Life is Sweet. He remembered the small downtown bakery from his time in Crimson but didn’t remember the shop offering anything like this.

“It’s good, right?” Tanner asked with a smile. “You should try one of her cookies. I half fell in love with the woman who runs the place because of the way she bakes.”

“And...” Liam prompted.

“And it doesn’t hurt that she’s gorgeous.”

If Liam had a quarter for all the women Tanner “half fell in love with,” he’d have the money to fund his new company all on his own.

“Why didn’t you tell me Crimson was such a great town? Whenever we were in Aspen, you went out of your way not to spend time here.” Tanner snagged a muffin. “I think it has a great vibe.”

“Good,” Liam answered, “because I want you to look into headquartering the new company here.”

Tanner’s mouth dropped open. “I meant a great vibe for a weekend away. You can’t be serious.”

“Why not? I bet the town will offer incentives, the location will attract the kind of people we want working on the GPS software and it keeps us far away from Donovan Enterprises.”

“And...” Tanner used the same tone Liam had a few minutes earlier.

“And I told my nanny part of why I was staying in town was because I might start the company here.”

“Bold move.” Tanner broke off a piece of muffin and popped it into his mouth. “Are you serious?”

“I’m serious about making her believe it could happen.” Liam took a long drink of coffee, not wanting to admit how much the idea of once again calling Crimson his home appealed to him.

“Got it. How was bingo?” Tanner asked with a smile.

“A rocking good time.” Liam spun the laptop around and logged into his email.

“Is there anything more you want me to check out regarding where your nanny is spending her money or who’s taking it?”

Natalie’s soft “please” came to Liam’s mind, along with her big melted-chocolate eyes. Eyes that were haunted and hiding something. “Not yet.” He let out a small laugh as he checked his in-box for new messages. “I’ll be damned, word does travel fast from the bingo hall.”