A Cadence Creek Christmas. DONNA ALWARD

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СКАЧАТЬ like that. Just stop into the shop. I’m there most days. It’s busy leading up to the holidays.”

      The last of the guests arrived and things got underway. Taylor was glad the shower stayed on the sweeter rather than raunchier side. There was no paté in the shape of the male anatomy, no gag gifts or handcuffs or anything of the sort. They played a “Celebrity Husband” game where each guest put a name of a celebrity they had a crush on into a bowl and then they had to guess which star belonged to whom. The resulting laughter from names ranging from Kevin Costner who got Molly’s vote to Channing Tatum—Amy’s pick—broke the ice beautifully.

      The laughter really picked up during Bridal Pictionary, which pitted Taylor against Angela as they attempted to draw “wedding night” without getting graphic. After they took a break to stuff themselves with snacks, they all returned to the living room for gifts.

      Taylor sat back into the soft sofa cushions and examined the woman who was about to become her sister-in-law. Avery was so lovely—kind and gentle but with a backbone of steel. She was a fantastic mother to her niece, Nell, who was Callum’s biological daughter. Taylor couldn’t have handpicked a nicer woman to marry her brother. It gave her a warm feeling, but also an ache in her heart, too. That ache unsettled her a bit, until she reminded herself that she was simply very happy that Callum had found someone after all his troubles. A love like that didn’t come along every day.

      Her thoughts strayed to Rhys for a moment. The man was a contradiction for sure. On one hand he was full of confidence and really quite bossy. And yet he was satisfied with taking orders from someone else and moving back to this small town with very few options. It didn’t make sense.

      It also didn’t make sense that for a brief moment earlier in the week, she’d had the craziest urge to kiss him. The snow had been falling on his dark cap of hair and dusting the shoulders of his jacket. And he’d been watchful of her, too. There’d been something there, a spark, a tension of some sort. Until he’d turned to go and she’d gone up the walk and into the house.

      She hadn’t seen him since. Not at the diner, not around town.

      Avery opened a red box and a collective gasp went up from the group. “Oh, Molly. Oh, gosh.” Avery reached into the tissue paper and withdrew a gorgeous white satin-and-lace nightgown. “It’s stunning.”

      “Every woman should have something beautiful for their wedding night,” Molly said. “I saw it and couldn’t resist.”

      Taylor watched as Avery stood and held the long gown up to herself. The bodice was cut in a daring “V” and consisted of sheer lace while the satin skirt fell straight to the floor, a deep slit cut to the hip. It blended innocence with sexy brilliantly.

      She took another sip of cocoa and let her mind carry her away for a few blissful seconds. What would it be like to wear that nightgown? She would feel the lace cups on her breasts, the slide of the satin on her thighs. She’d wear slippers with it, the kind of ridiculous frippery that consisted of heels and a puff of feathers at the toe. And Rhys’s dark eyes would light up as she came into the room, their depths filled with fire and hunger...

      “Helloooo, earth to Taylor!”

      She blinked and focused on the circle of women who were now staring at her. “Oh. Sorry.”

      “I was just going to say thank you for the bath basket, but you were in another world.” Avery was smiling at her.

      “You’re welcome! Goodness, sorry about that. Occupational hazard. Sometimes it’s hard to shut the old brain off.” She hoped her flippant words were believable. What would they say if they knew she’d been daydreaming about the only groomsman who wasn’t married or a relative?

      “Right,” Amy said with a wide grin. “I know that look. You were thinking about a dude.”

      Damn her for being astute. Who had said she wasn’t smart, anyway?

      Melissa burst out laughing. “Were you? Come on, do tell. Do you have some guy hiding away in Vancouver?”

      “No!” The word was out before she realized it would have been the most convenient way out of the situation.

      Avery came to her rescue, though. “We’re just teasing. Seriously, thank you. It’s a lovely gift.”

      She reached for the last present on the pile and removed the card. “Oh,” she said with delight. “It’s from Martha. I wonder if she’s going to part with her coconut cream pie recipe.” Everyone laughed. Martha Bullock never shared her pie recipes with anyone. Even Rhys had mentioned that at dinner the other night.

      Avery ripped the paper off the box and withdrew a plain black binder. Opening the cover, she gasped. “It is recipes! Look!” She read off the table of contents. “Supper Dishes, Breads and Muffins, Cookies, Cakes, Salads, Preserves.” She lifted her head and laughed. “No pies.”

      Excited, she began flipping through the pages when Amy interrupted again. “That’s it!” she called out, causing Avery’s fingers to pause and the rest of the group to stare at her in surprise.

      “That’s where I saw you last,” Amy continued, undaunted. “It was at the diner. You had dinner with Rhys!”

      Six more sets of eyes swiveled Taylor’s way until she felt like a bug under a microscope.

      “It wasn’t a date. We both ended up needing to eat at the same time. We just met outside on the sidewalk and, uh, sat together.”

      “It sure didn’t look that way,” Amy answered, a little too gleeful for Taylor’s liking. “Now that is news. Rhys hasn’t shown up anywhere with a date since...”

      She suddenly blushed and turned her gaze to something over Jean’s shoulder. “Well, it doesn’t matter how long since.”

      It was uncomfortably quiet for a few moments until a small giggle broke the silence. Clara was trying not to laugh and failing miserably. Angela and Molly joined in, followed by Jean and Melissa. Even Avery’s mouth was twitching. Taylor frowned a little, wondering what the joke could be.

      Amy had the grace to look chagrined. “Okay, I know. My track record sucks.”

      Angela spoke up. “Honey, Rhys Bullock is one tough nut to crack. Someday the right guy’s gonna come along.”

      Amy’s eyes glistened. “Just my luck I won’t recognize him when I see him.”

      Everyone laughed again.

      Then Avery spoke up. “That’s what I thought, too, Amy. Don’t give up hope. You just never know.” She looked at Taylor. “And I know for a fact that Rhys is smart and stubborn. Sounds like someone else I know. Keep us posted, Taylor.”

      “Yeah,” Clara added, her hand on her rounded stomach. “The old married women need some excitement now and again.”

      “I swear I bumped into him outside. Literally. Ran smack into him and nearly broke my phone.” She brought her hands together in demonstration of the collision. “It was dark, it was dinnertime and we had pot roast. End of story.”

      But as the subject changed and they cleaned up the paper and ribbons, Taylor’s thoughts kept drifting back to that night and how she’d almost reached out to take СКАЧАТЬ