Bailey smiled at her friend. “Are you saying you’re going to take a class?”
The tall blonde shook her head. “No. I’m going to think about taking a class. There’s a difference.”
“A big one,” Bailey told her. “Chloe and I already talked about taking a beginner’s knitting class together.”
Isabel tried not to look horrified. “I’m sure it will be fun.”
Noelle Boylan, owner of The Christmas Attic, joined them. She, too, was a pretty blonde. Her usually slim physique had a little more curve to it these days, along with a definite baby bump.
“Great store,” she said, then sipped her hot chocolate. “I miss coffee. And wine.”
“How are you feeling?” Bailey asked.
“Better. Almost four months to the day, like you said.”
Noelle had spent the first three months of her pregnancy feeling nauseous. Bailey had gone through the same thing. By the fourth month, everything calmed down.
Noelle grinned. “Gabriel is going crazy, though. I think it’s harder for him because he’s a doctor. He has just enough training to make him totally freak out every single day.”
“But it’s nice, right?” Isabel said, eyeing Noelle’s stomach. “Having him hover.”
“Most of the time. Except when I want to smother him with a pillow.”
They laughed. Bailey joined in, even though her feelings were bittersweet. She’d spent much of her pregnancy alone. Will had been deployed. He’d arrived back in time for the birth, but hadn’t been with her through her pregnancy. He hadn’t seen her as she’d gotten bigger or felt the baby move for the first time.
Thinking about the past made her wonder if things would have been different if he’d been home more. Or would they still have grown apart?
It was a question she could never answer, she reminded herself. Will was gone and she and Chloe were making a life without him.
“The decorating is starting,” Noelle said. “For the town’s window display contest.”
“You’ve had your plan figured out for weeks,” Isabel teased. “What’s the big deal about winning this year?”
Noelle’s gaze intensified. “Seriously? You have to ask? If I’m entering, I’m entering to win.”
“There’s the spirit of Christmas,” Isabel teased.
Noelle ignored her and turned to Bailey. “One of the windows is going to be a fantasy winter wonderland, but with a twist. All the decorations are funny and quirky. Like a pickle dressed up as Santa.”“Chloe and I can’t wait to see it.”
“Good.” She glanced around the store. “I want to go introduce myself to the owner. Her name is Lora, right?”
Bailey nodded. “Yes. I’ve met her a couple of times and she’s really nice. I’m so glad she and her family moved to Fool’s Gold.”
Isabel sighed. “You’re an annoyingly pleasant person, Bailey Voss.”
Bailey grinned. “Why, thank you.”
* * *
KENNY DROPPED OFF the toys and carefully secured the lock on the trailer. Each of the collection bins he’d visited had been overflowing. He had a feeling the trailer would be full long before their deadline. From what he could see, the people in Fool’s Gold had a way of coming through for a cause.
He drove to Bailey’s apartment and walked upstairs to her unit. Anticipation burned hot inside, but he ignored the sensation. He’d deliberately made his position clear with her. As much out of self-defense as because it was the right thing to do. Even though he found Bailey funny, sweet and sexy, he couldn’t take the chance. Not now, not ever.
She opened her door, her coat in her hand.
“You’re right on time,” she said with a smile. “It must be all that sports training. Having to be at practice or games when they said.”
He nodded because the punch to his gut made it impossible to speak.
There should have been nothing amazing about her. She wore jeans and a green sweater that matched her eyes. She had on some makeup and her hair tumbled past her shoulders in loose curls. Nice but not mind-shattering.
Except she was. The curves alone would drive a stronger man to his knees and Kenny was willing to admit that when it came to Bailey he was as weak as a kitten. Then there was the smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. A mouth he wanted to cover with his own, explore, tease, nibble and lick. He wanted to taste her, hold her, strip her naked and—
He sucked in a breath and steered his wayward mind back to reality. Naked wasn’t going to happen. Bailey was his friend. He should think of her as someone like a grandmother. A lovely woman and nothing more.
“The bins were full,” he said as they went down the stairs. “At this rate, it’s not going to take long to fill up the trailer.”
“I’m glad. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to activate the phone tree and make an appeal.”
He held open the passenger side door for her. “There’s a phone tree?”
She grinned. “Really? You have to ask?”
She was standing close enough that he could breathe in a sweet scent. A little floral with a hint of vanilla. He would bet her skin was soft and warm and for a second he allowed himself to wonder if she was quiet when she made love or if she moaned. Because he liked it best when a woman moaned.
“By the way, Chloe doesn’t know,” she told him.