Page 6 of A Very Titan Christmas (Titan #14)

Rachel sighed. She should have ignored the security detail and avoided all discussions that strayed from their Silverberry Ridge schedule. “I told you. It fizzled.”

“And there’s no one else in the wings?”

“No, I don’t keep a stable of men to trot out when needed.”

Eloise offered a sly smile and a wriggle of her eyebrows. “It couldn’t hurt.” She suddenly plastered on her famous smile. “Gregory!” She waved to a man as he walked toward the coffee bar. “Over here.”

Rachel turned to see a man offering a handsome smile as he headed their way.

Eloise held out her hand, and they shook in a familiar greeting. “Gregory, this is my daughter I was telling you about.”

Telling him about? Eloise liked to overshare, but the lilt in her voice stood out.

Rachel stood and extended her hand. “Rachel Porter.”

“Gregory Neilson. I usually go by Greg.”

Mom repositioned her wheelchair and gestured for him to take the oversized accent chair adjacent to the couch. “Sit, sit. Cookie?”

Enough cookies to feed an army. Rachel returned to her spot on the couch, and Greg sat down as though he’d had a hundred sit-downs with Eloise. Maybe Rachel had read more into Eloise’s tone, but she couldn’t shake the uneasy prickle that her mother was up to something.

“Gregory owns the redesign firm we’ve been using to update some of the cabins,” Eloise explained.

Ah, they worked together. That made sense. Eloise would easily chat about her daughter while planning a large-scale remodel project. It would be rude of Greg to avoid her flagging him down for a cookie if Eloise were paying the bills.

“Which cabins are you working on?” Rachel asked.

He swallowed a bite. “Two on Sugar Maple Lane. Updating the kitchens and bathrooms.”

Eloise wrinkled her nose. “The last time they were touched was in the late nineties. But their views were enough that guests didn’t notice the blond hardwood and brass fixtures.” She selected a cookie. “But it’s time.”

Greg nodded. “They had classic designs, but your mom’s right. It’s time for a facelift.”

“She always is.” Though Rachel was partial to the blond hardwood.

She couldn’t recall the brass fixtures but vividly remembered the hunter-green drapes and cranberry wallpaper.

In her opinion, the decor dated the cabins more than the floors and fixtures, but disagreeing with her mother was a lot of work. Rachel sipped her cocoa instead.

“Rachel is a writer for a travel magazine.”

“That’s what you mentioned.” Greg offered an almost-shy half grin.

“She can work from anywhere,” Mom tacked on.

The needling discomfort returned. Rachel laughed awkwardly, semi hiding her face behind the cocoa. “That’s a weird tidbit about me.”

“But it’s true.” Eloise tilted her head so that her jingle bell earrings tinkled. “Gregory, I’ll get you a menu from the bar.” She waved him to sit back down when he stood and put her wheelchair in reverse. “Back in a moment.”

Panic flashed in his eyes even as Greg kept his amiable expression in place. “Actually, I think I’ll just go grab a coffee.”

“Don’t be silly, Greg. I’ll order it. Anything else? Danish? Muffin?”

He hesitated. “Just a small coffee. Black. Thanks.”

With a sugary smile, Eloise left.

Rachel waited until Eloise rounded the corner behind the oversized fireplace flanked by Christmas trees before she turned to Greg, wondering if he also felt like he was missing a key part of the conversation. “Sorry about that. I don’t know what’s going on with her.”

“It’s fine.”

“Not really.” She stared at the thick red ribbon that spiraled up the Christmas trees as though she had X-ray vision and could read Eloise’s mind. “She’s usually the queen of social situations. Not making them so uncomfortable.”

His half grin returned, but this time with a quick headshake and a deflating sigh. “She didn’t mention me before, did she?”

Rachel refocused on him with growing suspicion. “Mention you how?”

“Oh, Eloise Porter.” He chuckled and pinched the bridge of his nose. “As in she wanted you to meet me. To be honest, I couldn’t say no to her. She’s a force.”

Heat rushed into her cheeks faster than Rudolph’s nose could glow bright and red. “She’s trying to set us up?” She clapped a hand over her mouth. Embarrassment curdled in her stomach. “I’m so sorry. I’m—”

“Don’t be. That’s classic Eloise.”

“I know, but I could kill her.”

“Hey, look, let’s save us both the embarrassment. Before she returns, tell her I had an important call I had to take.”

“Or I could just tell her to stop meddling in people’s lives.”

“She meant well.” He offered his hand to her again. “Nice to meet you. I’m sure we’ll see each other around. Friends?”

They shook on it, and he disappeared into the main lodge, where a small family was shaking the snow off their parkas.

Eloise reappeared at top speed as if she’d known the moment Greg bailed. “Where’d he go?” She spun to look for Greg. “Where’s Gregory?”

“Mom.”

“What?”

The pink heat in her cheeks was morphing into aggravation. “You can’t do that.”

“I didn’t do anything.” Mom wheeled around. “He’s charming, isn’t he?”

She crossed her arms and wanted to curl into the couch cushion, willing to hide from discussions of cute single men. “He is, but that’s not the point.”

“He’s financially secure. Owns his own company. Never married. Wants kids. I bet he’d be a stud in bed.”

If only the couch cushions were a place she could hide. “Oh my God, Mom, please stop.”

Eloise rolled her eyes. “Don’t be a baby.”

Rachel stared into her cocoa. She didn’t want to ask but had to know the extent of the damage. “How much did you talk to him about me?”

Eloise waved her concern away as though she were batting away a gnat. “I’m trying to help you out, Rachel. You’re not getting any younger.”

The blood drained out of her face. Her inner feminist wanted to scream. Her mother hadn’t raised a woman who would pine to carry on their DNA. This was a shock that left her dumbstruck. “Mother.”

“I’m certainly not getting younger—”

“This is not about you.” She couldn’t find a better argument to shut Eloise down. Rachel couldn’t even piece together her mother’s logic.

“I disagree.” Eloise smoothed her hands over her slacks. “We should spend the next few weeks scoping the scene and seeing if anyone catches your eye.”

“Scoping the scene? There is no scene in Silverberry.”

“Not with that attitude, there’s not.” Eloise admired her candy-cane-red manicure. “Want to get our nails done this afternoon?”

Rachel pushed off the couch. “Not today. I need to get work done.”

“Don’t be short. I was trying to help.”

“Well, don’t.” She gathered her cocoa mug and mother-daughter holiday itinerary. “I’ll text you later.”

“Dinner tonight?”

She sidestepped the sitting area and beelined toward the coffee bar in a section of the lobby tucked away on the far side of the fireplace. “Only because I already told Dad I’d be there.”

“I could invite someone to join us—”

Rachel spun to face her mother but kept backing away. She might shake the woman if she didn’t put space between them. “No funny business.”

“I would never—Watch out!”

Rachel spun and slammed into someone. The hot chocolate sloshed between them. The mug clattered onto the stone floor. “Oh God.”

“Shit.”

Rachel dropped to the floor to gather the broken pieces of the mug.

“I’m so sorry.” She stacked the sharp pieces, but her half-drank hot chocolate looked like a small lake on the stone floor.

Worse, it had splattered over this man. Her gaze tracked up his boots, over the dark jeans, and stopped at his hot-chocolate-covered midsection.

Embarrassment rolled over her again. “I’m so sorry. ”

She balanced on her feet, still crouched, and reached for the mug handle next to his foot. “I wasn’t looking—”

“Are you okay?” he asked.

That voice froze her in place even as her stomach catapulted into her chest. She tipped her head back and hesitantly stole a glance. “Bryce?”

His gaze shifted from his hot-chocolate-soaked shirt to her face.

She couldn’t classify his tight-lipped, pinched-eye expression.

It wasn’t surprise—no, closer to regret?

That wasn’t it either. Whatever Bryce Richmond was feeling, it wasn’t positive.

That was all the confirmation she needed to know it was really him.

Past and present collided. The corners of his mouth quirked in a way that was definitely not a smile.

No, this man wasn’t surprised to see her, and he wasn’t thrilled to be coated in hot chocolate.

Sudden realization—and total humiliation—dawned.

Eloise had tracked Bryce down and invited him for coffee as well.

Bryce extended his hand to her. “Need a hand up?”

It was like she was sixteen years old again and staring at the cutest boy she’d ever met. Except he was now one hell of a man. Her cheeks flamed. She was peering at her first love from the floor and wanted to die. “I’m so sorry.”

He didn’t pull his hand back. She shifted the pieces of her mug into one hand and reached for the help offered to her with the other. Too late, she noticed her hand was sticky. He levered her off the floor.

“I’m so sorry,” Rachel repeated.

Saying it wouldn’t rewind time, but if she could impart how stupid she felt at this exact moment, maybe he wouldn’t hold it against her that Eloise had brought him back to Silverberry Ridge for a potential date.

If only the floor would swallow her whole, then she could escape.

Rachel waited, but the ground didn’t open into a gaping hole.

She’d have to deal with Bryce. “I wasn’t looking where I was going. ”

Mom rolled up next to Rachel. “Hello.”

His tight smile wasn’t genuine. “Mrs. Porter, I’d shake your hand, but…” He gestured to the obvious.

Rachel zoned out. Was it possible that Eloise didn’t recognize Bryce?

If that was the case, Eloise hadn’t invited him to Silverberry Ridge to suggest they get together and provide her with grandchildren.

Rachel’s ears pricked with the awkward silence, and she jumped back into the moment.

Her gaze landed squarely on his shirt plastered to his stomach.

“You need napkins, and I need to throw this away.”

“I’ve got it,” the barista said as she arrived with a mop.

“Thanks. I’ll get napkins.” Rachel stepped over the puddle but hesitated, unsure if leaving Eloise with Bryce was a good idea.

If Eloise recalled who he was, she’d either remember how he’d broken Rachel’s heart or suggest they date again.

If Eloise didn’t recognize him, she would see a stupidly attractive man and try to work her magic.

“Rachel?” her mother said.

She blinked, realized she was behaving like an idiot, and gave Eloise a warning look. If there were any discussion about Rachel’s lack of a love life before she returned with napkins, she would disappear into the mountain of poinsettias surrounding the couches. “Back in a second.”

Rachel darted to the counter, grabbed a fistful of napkins, and returned before Eloise could say anything she shouldn’t. The thin brown paper stuck to her hands as she tried to hand them to Bryce. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” He still didn’t sound like it was fine.

“What are you doing here, Bryce?”

His gaze flicked over her shoulder at Eloise. “I’m supposed to meet with your mother.”

Oh no. Eloise had lost her mind and arranged for them to meet.

Bryce had shown up, which was weird enough, but still, humiliation skyrocketed into her cheeks.

“I’m so sorry. I don’t know what has gotten into her.

She’s lost her mind.” Rachel flicked her hand as if to hurry him away. “You can leave. It will be fine.”

“I’m right here, listening to you,” Eloise snapped as though Rachel were a child who needed to be reminded of her manners.

A line furrowed across his brow. “I’m sorry. I’m not sure what’s going on.”

She could neither imagine how Eloise had contacted Bryce nor why he would have agreed to meet.

“He’s a part of Titan Group,” Eloise said as if that had been covered when Rachel had zoned out and would explain everything.

Titan Group. “That’s another renovation company?” Rachel thought that, with his chiseled jawline and shoulders as strong as a mountain range, Bryce did not look like an average handyman. He didn’t look like an average anything.

She wanted to back away from him but couldn’t stop staring.

Eloise rolled her eyes. “No, it’s not a renovation company.”

“Did my mom arrange for you to meet us here?”

Bryce skirted his gaze between her and Eloise and back. “Well, yeah. I was supposed to meet her here.”

Irritated, Rachel glared at Eloise. “What have you been thinking? Contacting Greg and now, Bryce?”

Trying to set her up was one thing, but contacting the ex who had broken her heart was an entirely different ball game. Almost two decades had slipped by since Bryce had broken up with her, but that teenage heartache had left Rachel inconsolable. Eloise had wiped Rachel’s tears for weeks.

Time had healed her feelings, and Rachel hadn’t thought of him in so long. But that didn’t mean Eloise could get away with a sneaky move like this one because she was suddenly in need of grandchildren.

Rachel squared her shoulders and tried to act like this entire debacle was a silly misunderstanding. “I don’t know what she said to you, but I don’t need a date.”

Confusion deepened on his face. His hazel eyes roamed over her, and his full lips rolled together like he struggled to understand what she’d said. “You don’t need a date?”

“No.” She squared her shoulders. “I mean, I’m flattered and all, but—”

“You think I’m here for a date?”

“I mean…” Heat ricocheted up to the tips of her ears. She pivoted to Eloise again. “Mom?”

“Don’t let me interrupt you. You’re on a roll.” Eloise buffed her red nails on her pants.

“I’m sorry,” she said for the hundredth time. “Why are you here again?”

“Titan Group,” he said flatly. “I work for a security company that—”

“Oh God.” Honestly, if she could have a single Christmas wish, it would be for St. Nick to abduct her to the North Pole, where she would live the rest of her life. “I, uh… That’s why you’re here. Oh.”

He nodded curtly. “Protective detail.”

Without meaning to, she eyed him again. Size? Check. Muscles? Check. Concealed carry tucked under his cocoa-stained shirt? Check. “I think I’m going to go die in a corner now. It was nice seeing you.”