Chapter 34

"Are those real, too?" Caden asked, inclining his head toward the presents.
Jocelyn nodded, smiling. "Yes, of course. I think even the visitors keep buying presents for the children and putting them under the tree until Christmas."
"It's a great way to spend Christmas, especially if you don't have family," Caden replied, taking in the ambiance.
Jocelyn shrugged. "Even families come here to spend Christmas together every year. But, yes, it's also great for people who might be alone on Christmas. This way, they aren't alone. And the ones who come here every year get to know one another, becoming a family of their own, of sorts. Some have standing reservations from year to year."
A mischievous smile appeared on Caden's lips. "How do you know all of this?"
"It's a small town," Jocelyn replied, and then added, "Plus, I worked here for a while when I was in high school."
"Really?" Caden asked in disbelief.
"Yes. Is that so hard to imagine?" Jocelyn raised an eyebrow.
Caden looked down at her and smiled. "No, it isn't."
Just then, a blonde hostess appeared at the hostess station. "Two for lunch?"
"Yes, please," Jocelyn replied.
"Well, you're in luck." A broad smile spread across the hostess's lips. "We just so happen to have a table right over here. No wait."
"Great," Caden replied, placing a hand on the small of Jocelyn's back, sending chills over her body. They followed the hostess through the restaurant and stopped in front of a picture window overlooking the ski slopes and the grounds. Caden pulled out her chair. "Please. Allow me."
"You've turned into quite the gentleman, haven't you?" Jocelyn teased, taking her seat.
Caden leaned close and whispered over her head, "I always was." He was so close that the timbre of his voice sent tingles over her body. Get a grip, Jocelyn, she silently chastised herself.
The hostess laid two menus on the table at their place settings. "Your waitress will be right with you."
Jocelyn looked across the table at Caden and smiled. "So, have the people of Christmas Cove convinced you to stay yet?"
He shook his head and her heart fell. "Not the town, but the people in it."
Jocelyn breathed a sigh of relief. "So, you think you might stay then?"
"I'm not sure, but it's looking good so far." He gave her a heartbreaking smile.
"Well, why don't you just enjoy yourself while you're here," Jocelyn replied.
For as long as that is. She resolved herself to enjoy her time with him, too, for as long as he was there. She would deal with the heartbreak after he left. She didn't want to sound selfish, but right now, all she wanted was some memories with Caden of her own to sustain her after he left. If he had ruined her for all men before, he had sealed the deal on this trip. In her heart, she knew that there was no other man for her but Caden. And if he was destined for Mallory or for someone else, then she would live the rest of her life alone. For no one could ever measure up to Caden Scott.
Caden closed his menu and narrowed his eyes at her. "What were you thinking about just then?"
"Oh, no!" Jocelyn closed her menu, too, and looked around. "I wonder where the waitress is."
Caden reached across the table and took her hand, claiming her attention. Then he looked at her through his lashes in a way that made her heart pound. "Tell me."
She shook her head but found that she had lost her voice.
He ran a finger lazily over the back of her hand and then looked up at her through his lashes again. "Please?"
She giggled. "Do you do this to all the girls?"
Caden gave her a heartbreaking smile. "Only the special ones."
Jocelyn pulled her hand away. "So, have you dated many girls while you were away?"
He shrugged, sitting back. "Not many, but no one serious."
She hated herself for asking, but it seemed that her mouth suddenly had a mind of its own. "So, do you think you ever will get serious about anyone?" She mentally kicked herself, remembering the ring he had bought for her sister.
One corner of his lips curled into a devilish smile as he raised an eyebrow. "Why? Are you offering?"
She shrugged, laughing it off on the outside. But on the inside, she was screaming Yes, yes! A thousand times yes!
"So sorry for the wait," a frazzled waitress stood at their table and reached into her pocket for an ink pen. "What can I get you to drink?"
Jocelyn looked over at Caden and they said together, "Hot chocolate." They both laughed.
The waitress quickly scribbled it down on a pad. "Okay. I'll be right back with that."
"I think we're ready to order, too." Caden raised an eyebrow, and she nodded. Then he looked over at Jocelyn. "What would you like?"
"I'll take the pot roast with potatoes and carrots," she said to the waitress, and then looked over at Caden. "It's really good."
Caden closed his menu. "Make it two, then."
The waitress smiled as she looked between them, obviously relieved that it had been so quick. "I'll get that in for you right away."
"Take your time," Caden called after her, but she was already gone.
"So, you didn't answer me." He looked at her through his eyelashes again.
"Stop that." Jocelyn looked away. She was trying to behave herself, but he was making it extremely difficult.
"What?"
She sighed. "Stop teasing me."
He raised an eyebrow. "Who says I'm teasing?"
Jocelyn hated herself for what she was about to say, but she owed it to her sister. "Didn't you buy a ring for Mallory?"
He let out a deep breath and leaned back against his seat again. "Yes, I did. But I'm having second thoughts."
Jocelyn lifted an eyebrow. "About marriage, or about Mallory?"
He looked out the window, obviously gathering his thoughts, and then looked back at her. "Let's just say that you've given me a lot to think about."
"Here you go!" the waitress chirped happily as she set two cups of hot chocolate on the table before them. "Your meal will be out in a minute."
Jocelyn took a sip of her hot chocolate and swallowed. "Caden, you can't say things like that to me and not mean it."
"Who says I don't mean it?" Caden held onto the coffee cup, warming his hands.
"Caden, you can't have it both ways."
He looked up at her, his eyebrows pulling together in concern. "What do you mean?"
Jocelyn shook her head in an effort to clear her head. "Never mind. Let's just enjoy the day." She nodded out the window. "It's beautiful out today."
Caden gave her a mischievous grin. "Are you sure you don't want to go skiing?"
She laughed, grateful that he had broken the spell of the moment. "Yeah, right. I think I'll stick to ice skating."
Caden looked at her and cocked his head to the side. "I'm surprised you never learned how to ski."
She shrugged. "No one taught me."
"If I had been here, I would have taught you a lot of things."
Jocelyn almost spit out her hot chocolate. "Oh, really?"
Caden laughed. "I didn't mean it like that-." She had a feeling that he was about to say more, but she was grateful that he had stopped himself.
Jocelyn looked up and the waitress was standing beside their table, holding two steaming hot plates of pot roast, carrots, and potatoes. Jocelyn and Caden both sat back, giving the waitress room to set the plates on the table.
"May I get anything else for you?" The waitress's nametag said Emily.
Caden looked over at Jocelyn and raised an eyebrow.
Besides giftwrapping this handsome man sitting across from me? Jocelyn forced the thought from her mind, remembering Mallory. It seemed that she had to remind herself more and more that he had come home for Mallory and not for her. "No, not right now, but thank you." Maybe later.
"Okay," Emily replied, a bit less frazzled now. "If you change your mind, just let me know."
Oh, I surely will. Just give me Caden and I'll never ask for anything else again. "Thank you," Jocelyn replied, knowing she was going to have to rein in her thoughts. At that moment, she was glad he couldn't read her mind. She had to stop spending so much time with Caden, before her thoughts betrayed her and she made a fool of herself.