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Alaska Home: Falling for Him / Ending in Marriage / Midnight Sons and Daughters
Debbie Macomber
LONELY MEN IN HARD LUCK, ALASKA, LOOKING FOR WOMEN.OUR TOWN MIGHT BE COLD, BUT OUR HEARTS ARE WARM!Location: north of the Arctic Circle. Population: 150 (mostly men!)But the three O'Halloran brothers, who run a bush-plane charter service called Midnight Sons, are heading a campaign to bring women to town.Falling for HimChristian, the youngest O'Halloran brother, has a problem, and her name is Mariah Douglas. The Midnight Sons secretary is always losing his messages, misplacing his files and generally creating chaos. Despite that, he can't get her out of his mind…Ending in MarriageThe clashes between pilot Duke Porter and Seattle attorney Tracy Santiago are legendary. Duke's a tough, rugged individualist who delights in expressing outrageous opinions, particularly when Tracy's around. But she gives as good as she gets…and not just when they're arguing!Includes a special extra novella!Midnight Sons and DaughtersScott O'Halloran and Chrissie Harris are all grown up now. After years away from Alaska, Scott's back in town, and everybody's wondering if he's here to stay. Especially Chrissie, the girl he left behind…
Lonely men in Hard Luck, Alaska, looking for women. Our town might be cold, but our hearts are warm!
Location: north of the Arctic Circle. Population: 150 (mostly men!) But the three O’Halloran brothers, who run a bush-plane charter service called Midnight Sons, are heading a campaign to bring women to town.
Falling for Him
Christian, the youngest O’Halloran brother, has a problem, and her name is Mariah Douglas. The Midnight Sons secretary is always losing his messages, misplacing his files and generally creating chaos. Despite that, he can’t get her out of his mind...
Ending in Marriage
The clashes between pilot Duke Porter and Seattle attorney Tracy Santiago are legendary. Duke’s a tough, rugged individualist who delights in expressing outrageous opinions, particularly when Tracy’s around. But she gives as good as she gets...and not just when they’re arguing!
Includes a special extra novella!
Midnight Sons and Daughters
Scott O’Halloran and Chrissie Harris are all grown up now. After years away from Alaska, Scott’s back in town, and everybody’s wondering if he’s here to stay. Especially Chrissie, the girl he left behind...
Praise for the novels of #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber (#u453d56e5-c6c8-59f0-8853-357b477852cd)
“Ms. Macomber’s storytelling skills really shine as she creates appealing characters and a winning premise.”
—RT Book Reviews on Falling for Him
“Delightful characters and a sparkling conflict.”
—RT Book Reviews on Ending in Marriage
“Macomber is a skilled storyteller.”
—Publishers Weekly
“[Debbie Macomber] demonstrates her impressive skills with characterization and her flair for humor.”
—RT Book Reviews
“Whether [Debbie Macomber] is writing lighthearted romps or more serious relationship books, her novels are always engaging stories that accurately capture the foibles of real-life men and women with warmth and humor.”
—Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
“Debbie Macomber tells women’s stories in a way no one else does.”
—BookPage
“Popular romance writer Debbie Macomber has a gift for evoking the emotions that are at the heart of the genre’s popularity.”
—Publishers Weekly
Dear Friend (#u453d56e5-c6c8-59f0-8853-357b477852cd),
Welcome back to Hard Luck, Alaska, and the last volume in the Midnight Sons series. If you read volumes one and two, you’ve become familiar with the families living in this rugged tundra town.
My husband worked on the pipeline in Alaska back in 1982. In fact, Wayne was in Purdue Bay when I received word that my first book had sold. It was a phone call that changed our lives. Because Wayne had loved working in Alaska, we traveled north—many years later—in order to do the research for this series. If anyone from the IRS inquires, the entire trip was for research purposes! It was work, work, work!
I remember we were in Fairbanks for the summer solstice. When they say Alaska is the land of the midnight sun, that’s no exaggeration. We ended up propping a chair against the drapes to keep the light from shining into our hotel-room window. See? It’s all research.
Our trip was quite an adventurous one. Wayne and I were able to fly over the Arctic Circle on a “mail run” and visit a town called Bettles, which bears an astonishing resemblance to Hard Luck. In the name of research I interviewed bush pilots, panned for gold, dined on moose meat and talked with anyone and everyone willing to share their experiences. It ended up being a trip Wayne and I would long remember. Although it was strictly work (in case that IRS agent is lurking over your shoulder reading this).
I hope you enjoy Falling for Him and Ending in Marriage, plus the bonus novella Midnight Sons and Daughters. It’s a follow-up story many readers had asked me to write. This is a great opportunity to find out how some of the children you met in these books turned out.
Warmest regards,
PS: I love hearing from readers. You can reach me at www.debbiemacomber.com (http://www.debbiemacomber.com) or PO Box 1458, Port Orchard, Washington 98366.
Alaska Home
Falling for Him
Ending in Marriage
Midnight Sons and Daughters
Debbie Macomber
www.mirabooks.co.uk (http://www.mirabooks.co.uk)
The History of Hard Luck, Alaska (#u453d56e5-c6c8-59f0-8853-357b477852cd)
Hard Luck, situated fifty miles north of the Arctic Circle near the Brooks Range, was founded by Adam O’Halloran and his wife, Anna, in 1931. Adam came to Alaska to make his fortune, but never found the gold strike he sought. Nevertheless, the O’Hallorans and their two young sons, Charles and David, stayed on—in part because of a tragedy that befell the family a few years later.
Other prospectors and adventurers began to move to Hard Luck, some of them bringing wives and children. The town became a stopping-off place for mail, equipment and supplies. The Harmon family arrived in 1938 to open a dry-goods store, and the Fletchers came soon after that.
When World War II began, Hard Luck’s population was fifty or sixty people all told. Some of the young men, including the O’Halloran sons, joined the armed services; Charles left for Europe in 1942, David in 1944 at the age of eighteen. Charles died during the fighting. Only David came home—with a young English war bride, Ellen Sawyer, despite the fact that he’d become engaged to Catherine Harmon shortly before going overseas. Catherine married Willie Fletcher after David’s return.
After the war, David qualified as a bush pilot. He then built some small cabins to attract the sport fishermen and hunters who were starting to come to Alaska; he also worked as a guide. Eventually he built a lodge to replace the cabins—a lodge that was later damaged by fire.
David and Ellen had three sons, born fairly late in their marriage—Charles, named after David’s brother, was born in 1960, Sawyer in 1963 and Christian in 1965.
Hard Luck had been growing slowly all this time, and by 1970 it was home to just over a hundred people. These were the years of the oil boom, when the school and community center were built by the state. After Vietnam, ex-serviceman Ben Hamilton joined the community and opened the Hard Luck CafГ©, which became the social center of the town.
In the late 1980s, the three O’Halloran brothers formed a partnership, creating Midnight Sons, a bush-pilot operation. They were awarded the mail contract, and they also deliver fuel and other necessities to the interior. In addition, they serve as a small commuter airline, flying passengers to and from Fairbanks and within the northern Arctic.
In 1995, at the time these stories start, there are approximately one hundred and fifty people living in Hard Luck—the majority of them male.
Now, more than twenty years later, join the people here in looking back at their history—particularly the changes that occurred when Midnight Sons invited women to town. Women who transformed Hard Luck, Alaska, forever!
For Bailey and Carter Macomber, who both make their Grandma and Grandpa Macomber so very proud.
Table of Contents
Cover (#u03598a3d-9a86-5752-a2fd-5953dc0f605e)
Back Cover Text (#u667b3317-0f56-54d3-acf0-62a16197dab4)
Praise (#u8051b620-0e85-593f-94b4-8fba4fd92e77)
Dear Friend (#u48376166-a7a5-5835-8990-753534132973)
Title Page (#u775ea199-5cdb-561e-9bb5-0ac86d9661e5)
History of Hard Luck, Alaska (#u89ecfc75-0b1a-58a0-9ea6-106bd21e7354)
Dedication (#ue45a76f3-1347-5a71-9fac-97d53ac279f7)
Falling for Him (#uf6be31a2-eaa1-5c19-a97c-05b288970b72)
One (#u8e7506d8-07e3-5ab3-ae22-fe14b4771448)
Two (#u8fab42a2-a979-57a9-ba7c-a29e65696017)
Three (#ued77c25c-f02b-5add-9d46-c325ebe2091f)
Four (#u6d621320-0124-54d7-abb3-83c0330d739e)
Five (#u5d118c9d-af75-5cde-8679-4bab96ee8342)
Six (#ubc1f9b12-52ea-594d-a9df-36d3b1bee593)
Seven (#u753eb479-b071-5e20-847a-717f8b7b7bf1)
Eight (#u30e12d20-8d5d-5527-ac62-8aa159522e81)
Nine (#u282fab88-aadc-5b13-a83e-ffe3fe37ccba)
Ten (#uec4d400f-de2b-50b8-a3cb-8de63af205a4)
Ending in Marriage (#u9bf50e41-78e6-5a97-8f25-7ef9369e12ad)
One (#u0d49ab2b-b824-5fae-b5af-4ed55a8745cb)
Two (#ufba58201-4533-5303-bf05-6ed3aca51b5d)
Three (#u7d71696a-0943-5020-a929-c28c397b9933)
Four (#uf7474765-adc9-5609-8adf-a392a7245243)
Five (#uea7e7c44-e6bb-5f42-b12c-386df7aa2407)
Six (#u243708a4-144f-5d49-8b13-53d6a561e575)
Seven (#u1abfd44a-653a-5bec-955b-d3ba6043657f)
Eight (#u98d946ae-9864-5f80-a2d1-74db0287a0e9)
Nine (#ueff8f3e4-e462-5d5b-8288-842c2ac78e53)
Ten (#u6c12dd0a-1984-5c61-ab77-b1759715e9ee)
Epilogue (#ufc54e8c7-eb8f-5787-b0e6-ac930f1b7076)
Midnight Sons and Daughters (#u3861b622-76e2-5b13-81b7-315ea45f1716)
One (#ubd9861b6-db64-5768-b2e7-2365c599f54a)
Two (#ub654dc91-9958-568b-a731-c94ecaff229b)
Three (#u361649e8-5ce7-5bcd-ad5b-2a399802d8b6)
Four (#u9a08d61b-57f5-5038-895c-cbf52deb1c2e)
Five (#u4ee6ca1f-f426-5fb2-8aaf-fb4a60ef4a81)
Six (#ua0e68e87-0a5e-5462-99c3-5f5d38b499f2)
Seven (#u85fc348d-8796-51e2-8d92-3b662b9c17ff)
Eight (#u0b422da4-5464-5fb8-9912-450ca28831e3)
Extract (#u7ae8ab4e-4e57-5509-8f70-49ff8aae115e)
Copyright (#ud3831df9-e5f2-5024-8354-cdc56ae4c554)
Falling for Him (#u453d56e5-c6c8-59f0-8853-357b477852cd)
Debbie Macomber
One (#u453d56e5-c6c8-59f0-8853-357b477852cd)
Late July 1996
The woman drove him crazy. Christian O’Halloran had given a lot of thought to Mariah Douglas lately and had compiled a long list of reasons to fire her. Good reasons. Unfortunately he had to get his stubborn brother to agree. According to Sawyer, Mariah could do no wrong.
According to him, she could do no right.
It astonished Christian that his brother was so blind about this. As a rule, Christian valued Sawyer’s opinion. In fact, he considered both his older brothers—Charles, too—excellent judges of character. Christian couldn’t understand it, but they’d been hoodwinked by Mariah. Not only that, they’d accused him of being arbitrary, unfair, unkind.
Mariah gave the impression of being sweet and gentle. Unassuming. Efficient. But he knew otherwise. Mariah Douglas was not to be trusted. She was, to put it simply, a klutz. Whenever he was around, she lost messages, misfiled documents, dropped things. None of that ever seemed to happen when Sawyer was in the office, so Christian had to conclude that she had it in for him, and him alone. Now, he didn’t believe she’d ever intentionally do anything to undermine their business. If she managed to sabotage Midnight Sons, he was convinced it would be purely accidental. That, however, didn’t make her any less dangerous. There was definitely a negative chemistry between them. He nodded to himself, pleased with the term.
Sitting at his desk in the mobile office for Midnight Sons, the flight service the three O’Halloran brothers owned and operated in Hard Luck, Alaska, Christian wondered exactly what it was about Mariah he found so objectionable—aside from her clumsiness, of course. He’d never really figured that out.
It wasn’t her looks. The woman was attractive enough—medium height, medium build with medium-length red hair and brown eyes. Some might even think she was pretty, and Christian wouldn’t disagree. She was pretty. Sort of. Nothing that would stop traffic, mind you, but reasonably pleasing to the eye.
Duke Porter, one of his pilots, apparently thought so.
Christian’s mouth thinned at the memory of walking in on them recently and finding Mariah and Duke locked in each other’s arms. It irritated him no end that they hadn’t kept their romance out of the office. If they wanted to smooch and carry on, they could do it on their own time. Not his.
This sort of behavior wasn’t what he’d had in mind when he convinced Sawyer that they should bring women to Hard Luck. In his view, the plan had a practical business purpose. Midnight Sons had been losing pilots. And he’d hoped that persuading women to move to Alaska would solve their problems.
Instead, it had created more—Mariah Douglas being one of them.
Abbey Sutherland was the first woman to arrive. From the moment his levelheaded brother laid eyes on her, Sawyer hadn’t been the same. In less than a month, he and Abbey were engaged.
In Christian’s opinion, Sawyer lost more than his heart when he met Abbey; since then, his brain hadn’t functioned properly, either. Charles wasn’t much better once Lanni Caldwell showed up. The two of them were engaged by the end of the summer. They’d set up house this past April, and all the common sense Charles used to have had flown right out the proverbial window.
Christian appeared to be the last of the three in full possession of his wits.
Shortly after he’d found Mariah and Duke embracing, Christian had approached Charles. He’d hoped his oldest brother would help him convince Sawyer that the time had come to replace Mariah. She’d been their secretary for a full year now, and there was only so much a man should have to take. They’d signed a one-year agreement, and as far as he was concerned their responsibilities toward her had been met.
Charles had proved to be a major disappointment. It wasn’t that his brother had sided with Sawyer over the secretary issue; however, he hadn’t said what Christian had been hoping to hear. Charles seemed to feel that Sawyer and Christian should settle this matter between themselves.
That would never work, because Sawyer didn’t have the same problems with Mariah that Christian did. His brother was in favor of keeping her as long as she was willing to stay on.
Every time Christian brought up the subject, Sawyer reminded him that he’d been the one to hire her. What his brother failed to remember was that Christian had never wanted Mariah as their secretary in the first place. He’d wanted Allison Reynolds.
Even now, the image of the tall, beautiful blonde stirred his blood. He’d met her in Seattle and been immediately captivated. It had taken a lot of fancy footwork to get her to give Hard Luck a try.
Allison had come to Alaska, but after viewing the town and seeing the living quarters allotted her, she’d experienced a sudden change of heart. Unfortunately Christian hadn’t been in Hard Luck at the time, and once she’d decided to return to Seattle, he didn’t have the opportunity to talk her into giving the town another chance.
Disheartened after her departure, he’d pulled out the next job application in the pile.
Mariah Douglas.
Christian had rued that day ever since. He’d wanted Allison Reynolds. She’d affected him the way Abbey had affected Sawyer, the way Lanni affected Charles. If he hadn’t been so dismayed with Allison’s decision to go back home, he’d have done a better job of choosing her replacement.
“Christian, could I speak to you for a moment?” Mariah approached his desk in her usual timid manner, as though she expected him to leap up and bite her.
He raised his eyes. It had taken her six months to call him by his first name, instead of Mr. O’Halloran. Didn’t she realize he and Sawyer had the same surname? He sighed. And Sawyer wasn’t even in today to help with damage control; he’d gone to Fairbanks with Abbey and the kids.
“Yes,” he muttered, barely hiding his impatience.
“Before he left, Sawyer said I should talk to you....” She bit her lower lip. From her expression, you’d think he was some kind of ogre. Christian saw himself as considerate and intelligent and hoped he behaved that way. Obviously Mariah didn’t agree. He sighed again.
“Talk to me about what?” he asked, more kindly this time.
“I’ve been with Midnight Sons for a whole year now.”
No one was more aware of that than Christian. “Yes, I know.”
“I’d like to take a week of the vacation I’m allowed according to my employment contract.”
Christian straightened. A week without Mariah. A week of freedom. A week of peace.
“I’m meeting a friend in Anchorage,” she explained, not that he needed to know or particularly cared.
“When?” The sooner she left the better, in Christian’s opinion. This would be his chance to prove to Sawyer once and for all that they didn’t need a secretary. Or—and this was his own preference—that they should hire someone else. Someone more like Allison and a lot less like Mariah.
“If it’s possible, I’d like to take next week,” she said, her eyes hopeful. “Early August is the perfect time to see Alaska.”
“Next week’ll be fine.” Christian was so excited it was all he could do not to grab her by the shoulders and kiss her on both cheeks.
She hesitated, lingering at his desk.
“Is there something else?” he asked.
“Yes, there is.” Her eyes flashed briefly, but with what he couldn’t quite guess. Anxiety? Resentment? “I wanted to thank you for giving me this time off on such short notice. I realize it puts you in a bind, but I didn’t decide to go until last night after I got Tracy’s letter and—”
“Tracy Santiago?”
Mariah nodded.
Tracy was an attorney hired by the Douglas family soon after Mariah’s arrival. Tracy had flown up to inspect the living conditions and review Mariah’s contract with Midnight Sons. Through all of this, apparently, Mariah and Tracy had struck up a friendship.
With any luck Tracy would convince Mariah to forget about Alaska and return to Seattle where she belonged. One thing was certain: Christian wanted her gone.
“I’ll be leaving on Saturday,” she said, again providing him with more information than he wanted or required.
“Fine.”
“And I’ll be back the following Saturday.”
“Fine.”
She backed away from him. “I just thought you should know.”
“Will you be flying out of Fairbanks?”
“Yes.” She nodded enthusiastically. “Duke’s offered to take me into the city.”
Duke. Christian should’ve known he’d relish a chance to spend time alone with Mariah. Duke was welcome to her, although Christian would insist they keep their romance out of the office and out of his sight. The problems with having one of his pilots dating the secretary were obvious—weren’t they? Well, maybe he couldn’t articulate all of those problems this very minute, but he knew instinctively that it wasn’t a good idea. For reasons he couldn’t entirely explain, Christian did not want Duke flying Mariah into Fairbanks.
“Duke’s going to be busy next Saturday,” Christian announced suddenly. He wasn’t sure what he’d assign the pilot, but he’d come up with something.
“But I checked the schedule, and there wasn’t anything down for Duke. He’s already said he’d do it, and—”
“Then I suggest you check the schedule again,” he snapped, “and have one of the other pilots fly you in.”
“All right.” She agreed readily enough, but Christian could see she wasn’t pleased.
He’d no sooner resumed his paperwork than Mariah approached him a second time.
“Yes?” he said, realizing he sounded annoyed but unable to help it. Then he reminded himself—in a few days he’d be free of her for an entire week. The thought cheered him considerably.
“I’ve gone over the list, and there’s only one other pilot available this Saturday but—”
“Fine.” Christian didn’t care who flew her into Fairbanks, as long as it wasn’t Duke.
“But—”
He clenched his jaw, growing impatient. “Mariah, I have more important things to do than discuss your travel arrangements. Someone other than Duke will be available to fly you out in plenty of time to catch your flight to Anchorage, and that’s all that matters.”
“Yes, I know,” she returned, just as impatient. “That someone is you.”
* * *
The man was impossible, Mariah decided as she left the Midnight Sons office that afternoon. Nothing she did pleased him. What she should’ve done was look Christian O’Halloran right in the eye and tell him he could take this job and shove it.
She would’ve, too, if she wasn’t so much in love with him.
Mariah didn’t know when it had happened, possibly the first time they’d met. He’d been in Seattle interviewing applicants for a variety of positions in Hard Luck. She’d been excited about applying for the job, although as claims adjuster for a large insurance company, she had limited office experience.
Her meeting with Christian had been short and to the point. He’d asked her a list of questions, but his mind seemed to be elsewhere. She’d gone home discouraged, assuming he’d already made his decision and wouldn’t be giving her the job.
When she learned she had gotten the job and told her friends, no one seemed to understand her reasons for wanting to move to a remote town north of the Arctic Circle. If she was doing it to escape her family, they told her, there were any number of places that would’ve been more suitable.
Her friends’ doubts were nothing compared to her family’s reaction. When she’d informed her parents that she planned to move to Hard Luck, they’d feared the worst.
She couldn’t make them understand that Alaska appealed to her sense of adventure, her need to experience a different life. She’d suspected she would grow to love this land, and she’d been right.
Her friends had teased her unmercifully. She still grinned whenever she remembered a comment of her friend Rochelle’s: “I hear your odds of finding a man in Alaska are good—but the goods are odd.”
Mariah hadn’t come here looking for a husband. No one seemed to believe that. She’d come because she wanted a life of her own, a life away from her family. She wanted to make her own decisions and her own mistakes. For the first time, she didn’t have her mother or one of her aunts hovering over her constantly, ready to leap into the middle of her life and arrange everything.
Two important occurrences had shaped her year in Hard Luck. First and foremost, she’d fallen in love. Head over heels. Hook, line and sinker. The whole nine yards.
The problem was that the object of her affections was Christian O’Halloran and he didn’t even seem to like her. He thought she was a major klutz, and in the past year she’d done everything possible to prove him right. Not intentionally of course. The man flustered her. Whenever they were in close proximity, she said or did something stupid. She couldn’t help it. And now he seemed to think she was infatuated with Duke. The man had to be blind.
The second occurrence had been set in motion by her family. Mariah should’ve realized they’d have a difficult time accepting her decision to move away. The ink had barely dried on her contract with Midnight Sons when her parents had hired an attorney.
Tracy Santiago had turned out to be a blessing in disguise. At first Mariah was afraid the woman would jeopardize her position with Midnight Sons, but her fears had been groundless.
Shortly after Mariah’s arrival in Hard Luck, Tracy flew up to meet her, and while she was there she interviewed several of the other women. In the year since then, Mariah and Tracy had become good friends.
They’d kept in touch, with letters and phone calls and the occasional brief visit. In that time, there’d been a number of unexpected events. Marriages. A death. A new enterprise—the revived Hard Luck Lodge. And soon the community would see a spurt in population growth. Abbey O’Halloran was pregnant, as was Karen Caldwell. Both were due in midwinter.
Tracy had enjoyed receiving Mariah’s letters, updating her on life and love in Hard Luck. Romance abounded. The two older O’Halloran brothers had fallen for women in no time flat. They were both married now. Pete Livengood, who operated the general store, had married Dotty Harlow, the health clinic nurse. Then Mitch Harris, the public safety officer, and Bethany Ross, the new schoolteacher, had fallen in love. Some women had come to Hard Luck and stayed; others had quickly moved on. Those who did stay became so integrated in the community it was sometimes difficult to remember who was new to this rugged, beautiful place and who wasn’t.
Mariah liked writing long, detailed letters about the happenings in Hard Luck as much as Tracy liked reading them. She appreciated Tracy’s friendship and support more than ever.
Mariah’s family had been convinced she wouldn’t last six months. But her parents had underestimated her tenacity; Tracy hadn’t.
Mariah continued walking toward her small cabin. As she strolled past Hard Luck Lodge, Karen Caldwell stepped out onto the porch. Karen was four months pregnant, and radiantly happy.
“Mariah,” she called. “I hear you’re going on vacation. That’s great. Where are you headed?”
This was one thing about living in a small community that still astonished Mariah. There were few secrets, although people did seem to respect each other’s privacy. It wasn’t as though they were eager to spread gossip; it was more a matter of genuine interest and concern. News was passed along in a friendly sort of way, often at Ben Hamilton’s place. Almost everyone in town stopped in at the Hard Luck Café at least once during the week, and some more often.
Mariah joined her friend on the front porch of the renovated lodge, which had once belonged to the O’Hallorans and was now owned by Karen’s husband, Matt.
“Who told you about my vacation?” she asked, curious to learn how the news had made the rounds.
“Matt. He had coffee with Ben after John Henderson was in this morning.”
That explained it. John Henderson was Duke Porter’s best friend. Duke had obviously mentioned he was flying her into Fairbanks, then John had told Ben and Ben had told Matt.
“I’m meeting Tracy Santiago in Anchorage,” Mariah said. “I’ve been in Alaska over a year now, and I thought it was time I played tourist.”
“Have a great trip,” Karen said. “But don’t let the bright lights of the big city dazzle you.”
“Not to worry. This is my home.” And it was. Mariah had no desire to stay in Anchorage—or return to Seattle. Her commitment had been for one year, but she fully expected to settle in Hard Luck permanently. The cabin, for whatever it was worth, and the twenty acres of land promised her in the contract had been deeded to her. Mariah had achieved what she wanted. Nothing held her in Hard Luck now except her love of the community and those in it.
Especially Christian.
* * *
Christian walked into the Hard Luck CafГ© and slid onto a stool at the counter. Ben Hamilton was busy writing the dinner special on the blackboard. Moose pot roast in cranberry sauce with mashed potatoes and gravy. Christian studied the board intently.
“A little early to be eating, isn’t it?” Ben asked.
“Of course it is.” It was only four-thirty, and he generally didn’t have dinner until six or later.
“You just ate lunch three hours ago,” Ben reminded him.
Christian knew exactly when he’d had lunch. He hadn’t come into the café for food. He wanted to complain. Sawyer had barely left, and already Christian felt at the end of his rope. Between dealing with Mariah and the increased workload, he’d completely lost his composure. He sure hoped Sawyer didn’t stay in Fairbanks longer than a couple of days.
“You got something on your mind?” Ben asked, leaning against the counter.
“Yeah.”
“Well, I’ll tell you what I said to young Matt not so long ago. If you want advice, it doesn’t come free. Not anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“Did you come in here to eat or to talk?” Ben asked curtly.
Christian had noticed a difference in Ben’s temperament ever since he’d started his frequent-eater program. Apparently he’d decided that from now on, nothing was free. Not even speech. Christian was almost surprised Ben wasn’t charging him for sitting on the stool.
“How about some coffee?” Christian muttered.
Ben’s mouth formed a slow grin. “Coming up.”
Christian righted the mug and Ben promptly filled it. Staring at it reminded him that Mariah had made coffee for him nearly every morning for a year. He couldn’t count the number of times he’d told her he liked his coffee black. Some days she added sugar, some days cream, some days both. But he could count on one hand the days she’d gotten it right.
“So what’s bugging you?” Ben asked.
Christian shook his head. Now that he was here, he didn’t feel inclined to share his woes. More than likely, Ben would side with Mariah the way his brothers had.
“If you’ve got a problem, spit it out,” Ben said.
“You going to charge me?” Christian asked jokingly.
“Nah, I’m just trying to sell a little coffee.”
Ben probably sold more coffee than some of those all-night diners in Anchorage, but Christian didn’t say so.
“If you’ve got something on your mind,” Ben pressed, “best thing to do is get it out.”
“It’s nothing.”
Ben’s laugh was skeptical. “My guess is it involves Mariah.”
Christian glared at the older man. “What makes you say that?”
The cook lifted one shoulder in a casual shrug. “Whenever I see you frown, it usually has to do with her. After all, you’ve been complaining about Mariah for over a year.”
“Not that it does me any good,” Christian said with ill grace. “According to everyone else, the woman walks on water. Is there something wrong with me?” he asked, not really expecting an answer.
“She’s a sweetheart, Chris.”
“Not to me, she isn’t.” She might be as wonderful as everyone said, but Christian doubted it. “We can’t seem to get along,” he mumbled.
“Have you ever stopped to consider why?”
“I have, as a matter of fact,” Christian said. “I read an article in one of those airline magazines—oh, it must’ve been three or four years ago. It was about a man who walked from one end of the continental United States to the other. Took him months. People from all over asked him what he’d found the hardest.”
Ben frowned. “Are we still talking about Mariah?”
“Yes,” Christian insisted. “The writer who was doing the interview suggested the hardest part must’ve been the heat of the desert or the cold of the mountains.”
“Was it?” Ben asked, obviously curious now. He folded his arms and waited for Christian to respond.
“Nope.”
“You sure we’re still talking about Mariah?”
Christian ignored the question. “After deep thought, the man gave his answer. The most difficult thing about the long walk had been the sand in his shoes.”
“The sand in his shoes?”
“Yup. And that’s what’s wrong between Mariah and me.”
Ben’s face broke into a network of lines as he frowned again, and Christian could tell he assumed Mariah had been pouring sand in his shoes. “It’s the little things about her that drive me nuts,” he explained. “The fact that she ruins my coffee every morning. The way she loses things and just...irritates me.” Christian paused, then said grudgingly, “I’m sure she’s a perfectly capable secretary—or would be for someone else. But she hasn’t worked out for me.”
“Sawyer doesn’t seem to have a problem with her.” Christian had heard this argument from Ben before; he wasn’t surprised to be hearing it now.
The door of the café opened just then, and he glanced over his shoulder and saw Duke. The other man’s eyes narrowed as he caught sight of Christian.
“What’s this all about?” Duke demanded, waving the note Christian had slipped into his mailbox.
“I’ll be flying Mariah into Fairbanks on Saturday,” Christian told him calmly. He didn’t expect the other man to argue, since he was the boss.
“I offered to do it,” Duke said.
“I know, but there are other, uh, more important things I need you for.”
“You’re sending me out on a wild-goose chase and you know it. I could make the flight into Barrow any time next week, and all of a sudden you decide I have to do it Saturday.”
Christian wasn’t proud of his little subterfuge, but his justification was that he didn’t want Duke and Mariah furthering their romance on company time. What they did on their own time was entirely up to them, he told himself righteously. But when it came to Midnight Sons...that was another matter.
“You seem to think I’m interested in her,” Duke said angrily.
Christian’s hands tightened around the coffee mug. He didn’t want to get into this.
“Are you?” Ben wanted to know, his eyes eager.
“No,” Duke growled. “I’ve got a girlfriend in Fairbanks I was planning to see.”
“You’ve got a girlfriend in Fairbanks?” Ben repeated. “Since when?”
“Since now.”
Christian wasn’t sure he should believe him. “What about the other day when I saw you and Mariah kissing?”
Ben’s eyes widened. “You saw Duke and Mariah kissing?”
“Sure did.” Whenever Christian thought about walking into the office and finding them in each other’s arms, he felt a fresh wave of fury. “Right in the middle of the day, too.”
Duke knotted his hands into fists. “I wasn’t kissing Mariah.”
Christian wasn’t going to sit there and let one of his pilots lie to him. “I saw you with my own eyes!”
Duke shifted his weight from one booted foot to the other. “Since it’s so important to you, I’ll say it again. I wasn’t kissing Mariah.”
Christian glared at the man. This was a bold-faced lie; he knew what he’d seen.
Duke lowered his gaze and muttered, “She was kissing me.”
Two (#u453d56e5-c6c8-59f0-8853-357b477852cd)
August 1996
On Saturday Mariah was at the airfield well before the allotted time of departure, eager to see Tracy again and make their plans for the week. They’d already decided to take a glacier tour and visit some of the other sights in and around Anchorage.
Fierce, dark clouds puckered the sky, filling the morning with shadows and gloom. Not a promising start to her vacation.
“You ready?” Christian marched past her toward the two-seater Luscombe. It was the smallest plane in the Midnight Sons fleet and used the least often.
Mariah picked up her suitcase and hurried after him. “I want you to know how much I appreciate this,” she said, holding on to the case with both hands. She didn’t understand why Christian had insisted on doing this himself, especially when it was so obvious that he considered it an imposition.
Because of the heavy suitcase, she couldn’t keep pace with him. Eventually he seemed to realize this. He glanced at her over his shoulder, and then, without a word, turned back and took the suitcase from her hands.
“What did you pack in here, anyway? Rocks?”
She didn’t bother to answer.
When they reached the plane, Christian helped her inside. He stowed her bag, then joined her in the cockpit. She was surprised by how small and intimate the space was; their shoulders touched as Christian worked the switches and revved the engine.
Mariah snapped her seat belt in place and gazed anxiously at the threatening sky. She wondered if she should tell Christian she wasn’t all that keen on flying. She found small planes especially difficult. Give her a Boeing 767 any day of the week over a tiny, little Luscombe.
For the sake of peace, she gritted her teeth and said nothing. No need to hand him further ammunition.
The ever-darkening sky didn’t bode well. Mariah noted that Christian was watching it closely. He radioed Fairbanks and wrote down the necessary weather information.
“Is there any chance we’ll run into a storm?” she asked once they’d started to taxi down the gravel runway.
She expected him to make light of her concern, but he didn’t. “According to the flight controller, we should be able to fly above the worst of it. Don’t worry, I’ll get you to Fairbanks on time.”
Or die trying, Mariah mused darkly. She gritted her teeth again and held on for dear life as the single-engine furiously increased its speed. Soon they were roaring down the runway, and at what seemed the last possible second, the plane’s nose angled toward the sky and the wheels left the ground.
As soon as they were airborne, Mariah relaxed slightly. The flight would take the better part of an hour, possibly a bit longer, depending on the winds.
Within a few minutes, they were swallowed up by the unfriendly clouds. Mariah couldn’t see two feet in front of them, but that might have been just as well.
Trying to relieve her tension, she closed her eyes.
“If you feel yourself getting sick,” Christian said, “let me know.”
“I’m fine,” she assured him.
“Your eyes are closed.”
“I know.” Her fingers gripped the edge of the seat cushion as she concentrated on breathing evenly.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want to look!” she snapped.
Christian chuckled and seemed to enjoy her discomfort. “I haven’t crashed in more than a year,” he teased. “But now that you mention it, I’m probably due for a big one.”
Suddenly the plane began to pitch first to one side, then the other.
“Don’t, please,” Mariah begged.
“I’m not doing this on purpose,” Christian muttered.
Mariah opened her eyes and saw that he was actually struggling to maintain control. “I’m trying to get us above the clouds. Don’t worry, everything’s well in hand.”
The plane pitched sharply to the right and she swallowed a gasp. Although she’d flown in small planes a number of times since coming to work for Midnight Sons, she remained nervous about it—more than ever now, when they were flying directly into a storm.
“Are you all right?” Christian asked a minute later.
“Just fly the plane,” she said over the noise of the engine.
“You’re pale as a sheet,” he said.
“Stop worrying about me.”
“Listen,” he returned, “I’m not going to be able to fly the plane and revive you.”
“If I pass out—” she squeezed her eyes shut “—don’t worry about me.”
The plane heaved. She gasped aloud and covered her face with both hands.
“Mariah,” Christian said gently. “Everything will be fine in a few minutes. Trust me.” He patted her arm reassuringly.
Usually when he spoke to her, Christian was impatient or sharp. Half the time she wasn’t even sure what crime she was supposed to have committed. But for reasons she’d probably never understand, today, when she needed it most, he’d chosen to reveal this softer side.
Judging by the feel of the plane, Mariah knew they were increasing altitude. Within minutes they’d be above the squall and everything would be fine. Just as he’d promised.
“You can look now,” Christian told her.
She splayed her fingers and peeked through. Bright sunlight greeted her, and she sighed deeply, relaxing in her seat. The weather couldn’t be more perfect.
They traveled in silence for a while.
“Does your boyfriend know you don’t like to fly?” Christian’s question startled her.
“My boyfriend?” she asked, genuinely perplexed until she remembered that he’d seen her with Duke.
“In case you’re interested, lover boy made quite a stink when I told him he wouldn’t be flying you into Fairbanks.” The disapproval was back in Christian’s voice.
Mariah looked out the side window. “No matter what you think, Duke and I are not involved.”
“Yeah, that’s what he said, too.” The skepticism in his voice was plain.
“It’s the truth,” she insisted.
“Duke claims you kissed him.”
He appeared to be waiting for her to deny or confirm the statement. “I did—in a manner of speaking.”
Christian snorted a laugh. “I’ll say. You seem to forget I walked in on the two of you with your lips locked.”
“It wasn’t like that,” Mariah said heatedly. “I’d been on the phone with Tracy—”
“On company time?”
“Yes,” she admitted reluctantly. He could dock her pay if he wanted.
“Go on,” he encouraged.
“Tracy and Duke don’t get along.”
Christian laughed again. “That’s putting it mildly.”
“She, Tracy, thought it would be fun if I kissed Duke and said it was from her, and that’s what I did. It was all teasing—a joke.”
Christian didn’t comment.
“Do you believe me?” she asked. It was important that he do so. They had their differences, but trust was a vital factor in any relationship, whether it was work or personal.
“Yeah,” Christian admitted grudgingly, “I guess I do. But you should know something in case you have any, uh, romantic feelings for Duke. He’s got a girlfriend in Fairbanks. And he swore to me he’s a one-woman man—one at a time, anyway.”
“It doesn’t matter to me how many girlfriends Duke’s got.” Although Mariah was surprised. This was the first she’d heard of Duke being romantically involved with anyone. But then, he was a private person and not inclined to share such things with her.
Just when she’d finally relaxed enough to be comfortable, they approached Fairbanks. As soon as the plane descended into the clouds, Mariah stiffened.
“Hey, you aren’t going to tense up on me again, are you?”
“Yes, I am.” No point in denying it. She closed her eyes as her fingers reshaped the upholstery.
“Don’t worry, we’ll be down in no time.” He was busy after that, communicating with the tower and manipulating the controls.
True to his word, they touched down in a textbook-perfect landing a few minutes later and taxied to the hangar where Midnight Sons kept a truck.
Neither of them seemed ready to leave the plane. “That wasn’t so bad now, was it?” Christian asked, and his gaze settled on her. All at once the atmosphere was charged with excitement. Never had Mariah been so physically aware of him, and he seemed to be experiencing the same reaction to her.
“You’re right. The flight wasn’t bad at all,” she said, realizing how breathless she sounded. “Thank you,” she murmured.
She meant to open the door and climb out, but Mariah found that her body refused to function. Suddenly Christian leaned close, so close the distance between their mouths became too slight to measure.
She wasn’t sure what to think, what to do. She stopped breathing and was convinced Christian did, too. Gradually he eased forward until his mouth grazed hers. His touch was tender. Light. And all too brief.
The effect was, somehow, more devastating than if they’d engaged in a lengthy, passionate kiss.
Christian reared back as if she’d slapped him.
Mariah savored the exquisite sensation of that kiss. This was what she’d wanted from the first, what she’d been longing for.
Christian opened the door just then, and a rush of air instantly cooled the interior of the plane.
Mariah didn’t wait for him to come around and help her down. She did notice that he couldn’t seem to get her luggage out of the plane fast enough.
Once they were inside the truck and headed for the terminal, Christian cleared his throat. “I don’t want you to attach any...importance to what happened back there,” he said brusquely.
“I...won’t.”
“I didn’t mean to do that. It...well, it just happened.”
Regret. He had to go and ruin the most perfect moment of her life with regret.
* * *
Stupid, stupid, stupid. Christian didn’t know what in the world had possessed him to kiss Mariah. Four days later, and he couldn’t keep from dwelling on their last moments alone in the plane.
Although he’d analyzed the kiss over and over, he couldn’t make sense of it. Not once in the entire year Mariah had been employed by Midnight Sons had the thought of kissing her even entered his mind.
Yet in those awkward moments after they’d landed and taxied off the Fairbanks runway, Christian could think of nothing else. The temptation had become too much for him.
Nothing like complicating his life—and he had no one to blame but himself. True, he’d made an effort to put it behind them, but only a blind man would’ve missed the stars in Mariah’s eyes.
That was the trouble with women. You kissed them a time or two, and they seemed to think it meant something. Well, he wanted to make one thing clear right now. He was not—repeat, not—interested in Mariah Douglas. He didn’t even like the woman. If he could find a legal means of getting her completely out of his life, he’d leap at the opportunity.
“You aren’t looking too happy,” Sawyer announced as he walked past Christian’s desk to his own.
“I’m fine!” he snapped. The last thing he wanted was for Sawyer to learn about that stupid kiss.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you missed Mariah.”
Christian snickered loudly. “Have you noticed how well everything’s gone this week?” he asked. He hoped to convince Sawyer that the office had run like clockwork without her. Maybe, just maybe, Sawyer would see reason and agree to do away with the position.
“It’s been hectic,” Sawyer argued.
“Well, we’ve been busier than usual,” Christian conceded. “But have you stopped to notice how peaceful it is around here? And how we’ve had no major problems?”
Sawyer nodded.
Perhaps this wasn’t going to be as difficult as Christian had assumed. “We don’t need Mariah.”
His brother sent him a disgusted look. “Don’t need Mariah? Sure, we’ve managed without her, but I have to tell you, this place has been hopping. We’re getting more business all the time. If everything’s running smoothly, then it’s because Mariah oiled the gears before she left. I don’t know about you, little brother, but I’m counting the hours until she returns.”
Christian cursed under his breath. He was counting the hours himself, but not for the same reason.
“Don’t need Mariah?” Sawyer repeated in the same tone of disbelief he’d used a minute earlier. “Tell that to Abbey and the kids. I’ve been late for dinner every night this week. I don’t like working this hard. I’ve got a wife and family I’d like to see once in a while.”
The phone pealed, and Sawyer glared at Christian, who was concentrating on tallying a row of figures. “Since you’ve got so much free time on your hands, you can answer that.”
Christian scowled and reached for the telephone.
* * *
“Duke’s got a girlfriend?” Tracy Santiago asked Mariah as they sat outside the Kenai Lodge and enjoyed the sunshine. “You’ve got to be kidding.” Tracy didn’t bother to disguise her shock. “What woman would put up with that chauvinistic character for more than five minutes?”
“I don’t know. I’m just repeating what Christian told me. It’s funny, though,” she said, thinking out loud. “Duke’s never mentioned anyone.”
Tracy raised her face to the sun and grumbled something Mariah couldn’t make out.
“Duke’s not so bad.”
Tracy straightened and sipped her margarita. “The man’s a public nuisance. Let’s change the subject, okay? He has a bad effect on my blood pressure.”
Mariah lay back in the lawn chair. They’d spent four full days sightseeing. Every minute of every day had been full, and Mariah was exhausted; so was Tracy.
Now was the time to relax. Mariah didn’t want to think about Hard Luck—and particularly not about Christian. This was her vacation, and she was determined to make the most of it.
“Mmm, this is the life,” Tracy said, closing her eyes and smiling into the sun. “A woman could get used to this.”
Mariah smiled, too. Although most of their communication had been by phone and mail, she knew her friend all too well. Tracy would soon grow bored lazing around a swimming pool; before a week was past, she wouldn’t be able to stand the inactivity. She’d be eager to get back to her job.
“You surprise me,” Tracy said out of the blue.
“I do?” Mariah asked. “How?”
Tracy grinned sheepishly. “Well, when your parents first contacted me, they described you as this delicate hothouse flower who didn’t have a clue what she was letting herself in for.”
“That’s how they see me.” It saddened Mariah to admit that. Her family’s attitude was the very reason she’d left Seattle. They considered her helpless and inept, and if she’d stayed much longer she might have come to believe it herself.
“You really love it in Hard Luck, don’t you?”
“Oh, yes. This has been the most...” Mariah hesitated, unsure how to explain what her year in the Arctic community had been like. She felt proud of her own ability to survive in difficult surroundings, especially during the winter when the temperature dropped to forty below. True, there were times she’d been lonely and confused. Depressed. At other times she’d felt a new confidence, a newly developed sense of self that was unlike anything she’d ever experienced. After a year in the Arctic, she knew she was capable of handling any situation. She’d learned to trust her own judgment and to take pride in her achievements.
But her nonrelationship with Christian continued to baffle her, although her attraction to him grew more potent with each passing month. Unfortunately he didn’t seem to share her feelings. But then again, perhaps he did... The kiss gave her hope.
“When you told me you’d decided to stay in Hard Luck, I admired you,” Tracy said with a thoughtful look. “I admired you for taking charge of your life and for not being afraid to do something risky.”
Mariah squirmed under her praise. “It’s no more than the other women have done—Abbey and Karen and Lanni. Bethany Ross and Sally Henderson.”
“You’re good friends with them, aren’t you?”
“It’s like they’re part of my family,” Mariah said. But better. The women who’d come to Hard Luck were a close-knit group, out of necessity but also genuine liking. They relied on and supported each other in every possible way. In the dead of winter, when sunlight disappeared and spirits fell, it was the women who brought joy and laughter to the community. She’d known these women for only a year, but her friendships with them were closer now than the friendships she’d left behind.
“What do you miss most?” Tracy asked next.
That question took some consideration. She wouldn’t lie; there were certainly aspects of city life that she yearned for, services and stores and all kinds of things that weren’t available in Hard Luck.
Things like first-run movies, her favorite junk food, shopping malls... But how much did any of that really matter? “What do I miss most?” Mariah repeated slowly. “I’m thinking, Trace...”
“That, my friend, is answer enough,” the attorney said. She sounded almost wistful.
* * *
Christian set aside the murder mystery he was reading and forcefully expelled his breath. He couldn’t seem to concentrate, although the author was one of his favorites.
Tomorrow evening, Mariah would be back, and frankly he dreaded her return. Despite his warning, he was sure she’d be foolish enough to put some stock in that stupid kiss. He tried to put her out of his mind, something he’d been struggling to do all week.
Mariah wasn’t the only woman who’d been on his mind lately. Funny that he’d be thinking of Allison Reynolds now. But again and again he found himself comparing his current secretary to the one who got away.
Every time the statuesque blonde drifted into his thoughts, Christian felt his heart work like a blacksmith’s bellows.
In the year since she’d gone home to Seattle, he’d never called. More fool he. When they first met, they’d dated—nothing serious, just a couple of dinners while he’d been in Seattle conducting business and setting up job interviews. He remembered those evenings with Allison in a haze of pleasure.
He was due to go back to the Northwest, strictly for business purposes, anytime now. He’d been discussing the trip with Sawyer just that morning. Generally they took turns going to Seattle to arrange for supplies, but with Abbey pregnant and the kids getting ready to head back to school, Sawyer wasn’t eager to leave Hard Luck. Christian was.
For one thing, he’d have a chance to visit his mother, who lived in Vancouver, British Columbia. He had a special bond with Ellen. While Charles and Sawyer were more like their father in looks and temperament, Christian had always been closer to his mother.
As a boy, he’d spent eighteen months with her in England. The years before the separation had been difficult for his parents. Christian, only ten at the time, hadn’t understood what was happening to his family.
All he knew was that his mother was desperately unhappy. More than once he’d found her weeping, and in his own way had attempted to comfort her. When she told him she was leaving Alaska, Christian had known immediately that he should go with her. His mother would need him, he thought—and she had.
Saying goodbye to his father and brothers was hard, and he’d missed them far more than he’d dreamed possible. In the beginning, he’d enjoyed living in England, but that hadn’t lasted long. He missed Alaska. He missed his home, his brothers and the life he’d always known, and he suspected his mother did, as well.
After a year and a half, they’d flown back to Hard Luck, and for a time, a very brief time, they’d been a family again, and happy.
Christian had never fully understood what had shattered that fragile joy, but he realized Catherine Fletcher was somehow responsible. She was gone now and his father was, too. A few years ago Ellen had remarried; her second husband was a wonderful man who shared her passion for literature. She’d moved to his home in British Columbia.
Ellen had come to Hard Luck twice in the past year. Nevertheless, Christian intended to visit her and her husband, Robert, in Vancouver. He knew she was delighted with her new grandchildren, and if he could coordinate the flights, he might be able to bring Scott and Susan with him. A nice way to end their summer vacation. And Abbey and Sawyer could have a second honeymoon.
While he was in Seattle, Christian decided, he’d look up Allison Reynolds. The thought cheered him. Yes, that was what he’d do. He’d give Allison a call and they’d go out on the town.
Content, Christian picked up the novel and started reading again. Then it struck him. It seemed unfair—and a bit unrealistic—to arrive in Seattle unannounced and expect Allison to be free.
Maybe he should call her now. Besides, talking to a woman who was as close to perfect as any human had a right to be would lift his spirits.
In another moment, he’d dug out her phone number.
The phone rang three times. “Hello.”
It was Allison. She sounded...silky. Yes, that was the word for her voice—silky. Soft and a little breathless. A man could get light-headed just listening to her.
“Allison, this is Christian O’Halloran.”
“Christian!” Her elevated voice said she was pleased to hear from him. “Don’t tell me you’re in Seattle? Why, I was thinking about you the other day.”
Forget light-headed, he was almost ecstatic. “You were?” Life was good. Very good.
“Are you in town?” Her voice was definitely silky.
“No, but I will be.”
“When?”
He couldn’t believe how eager she sounded. “I’m not sure yet. I, uh, thought I’d arrange my schedule around yours. Are you going to be available this month?”
“I’m available any time you want.” Her voice dipped in a playful whisper. Christian’s chest tightened. This was one way to get Mariah out of his mind.
* * *
Early Saturday evening, Christian flew into Fairbanks to meet Mariah. He’d dreaded this moment all week, but now that it was upon him, he discovered that his earlier anxiety had vanished. He credited Allison with this. Knowing that a week from now he’d be spending time with the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen left him with a euphoric sense of well-being.
As he waited at the gate for Mariah’s flight, he realized, somewhat to his surprise, that he was looking forward to seeing her again.
Sawyer was right; the office had been hectic without her to run interference, take calls, organize schedules and perform the dozens of other tasks she’d taken on. He suspected he’d become accustomed to having her around—and truth be told, he’d actually found himself missing her once or twice.
The gate where she was due to land was directly across from a gift shop. Deciding this might be a good time to mend fences, Christian wandered inside. The instant he saw the small jade figurine he knew it was the perfect welcome-back gift. No larger than a child’s building block, the green jade had been skillfully sculpted into a bear, gripping a salmon between its teeth.
On impulse Christian bought it, then stuffed it in his pocket.
The flight landed on schedule, and Christian watched the passengers file out one by one. Mariah stepped out of the jetway and glanced around expectantly, her arms filled with packages. She looked tanned and rested. When her gaze happened on him, she hesitated, as if uncertain of her reception.
Christian moved forward. “Welcome home,” he said, grinning.
“Hi. I wasn’t sure you’d be here.”
He chose to ignore the statement. “How was your week?”
“Fantastic. Tracy and I had a fabulous time.” She shifted the packages in her arms. “I brought everyone a small gift,” she said, and lines of happiness crinkled at the edges of her eyes. “Even you.”
“That’s funny, because I got you a gift, too. Just to say we’re glad you’re back.” He took some of the packages out of her arms and together they walked toward the baggage carousel.
“You bought me something?” She sounded incredulous.
Perhaps he should give it to her now, seeing that he’d gone out of his way to make her life miserable for the past twelve months. He regretted his earlier behavior. Mariah wasn’t so bad—once he’d gotten used to working with her. Too bad that had taken a year. “Have you had dinner?”
“Dinner,” she repeated. She frowned and looked at him. “No. Are you feeling all right?”
Christian chuckled. “I’m feeling just fine.”
When they’d retrieved her suitcase, he loaded that, along with her carry-on packages, into the truck Midnight Sons kept at the airport.
He was turning over a new leaf as far as his relationship with Mariah was concerned. True, she was still an irritant, but he was tired of fighting a losing battle. Sawyer thought she was wonderful, and so did almost everyone else. This week without her—and the prospect of seeing Allison—had done wonders for his tolerance.
“You’re taking me to dinner?” she asked when he pulled into his favorite restaurant, the Sourdough Café. The ambience wasn’t great, but the food more than made up for it.
“Sure,” he said, and climbed out of the cab.
He led the way inside and selected a booth. Mariah sat across from him. Now that he’d set his prejudices aside, he realized she was a pleasant dinner companion. He laughed wholeheartedly at the tales of her escapades in Anchorage and carefully studied her photographs, which she’d had developed the day before. The most spectacular photos were of the boat tour she’d taken in Prince William Sound. Sometimes Christian forgot how impressive the glaciers were.
Mariah had captured the deep blue color of the ice with the sun glinting off the canyon’s high walls. The marine-life photos—a pod of whales, several species of seals and a wide variety of birds—were as good as any he’d seen.
“These are great pictures,” he said enthusiastically.
She blushed with pleasure. “I’m sort of an amateur photographer.”
He’d worked with her for more than a year and hadn’t known that.
Their meal arrived, and the conversation slowed while they feasted on thick roast-beef sandwiches served on sourdough rolls.
It wasn’t until they were back at the airport that Christian remembered the jade bear in his pocket.
He parked the truck and turned off the ignition.
“Thank you for dinner,” she said shyly.
“I’d like it if you and I could start over, Mariah,” he began. He didn’t want her to place any special significance on his words, but simply to take his offer at face value.
“I’d like that, too.”
“I don’t know how we got off on the wrong foot.”
“Me, neither.”
“This last week—with you gone...” He hesitated, not sure how to continue, not wanting to say too much.
“Yes?” she asked, her voice hushed.
“It didn’t seem...right.”
If she was going to gloat, the time was now. To her credit all she said was, “I’ve missed Hard Luck and my friends. I...missed you.”
He wouldn’t go so far as to admit he’d missed her, but she’d been on his mind. Removing the plastic sack from his flight jacket, he handed it to her. “I saw this at the gift shop in the airport and thought of you.”
She carefully peeled away the tissue paper and gasped softly when she uncovered the tiny statue.
“Christian,” she breathed in awe. “It’s lovely. Thank you so much. I got you a silk scarf—nothing much. I read that the early pilots needed them because oil used to spray into the open cockpit. The pilots cleaned their goggles with the scarves.” She stopped abruptly, as if she’d noticed that she was chattering, and stared down at the jade bear.
“I wanted to apologize for being kind of a jerk the past few months,” he said. “This last week, with you away, I could see what a difference you’ve made at the office. You’ve come a long way since you first moved to Hard Luck, Mariah.”
She looked up at him and to his astonishment, her eyes were bright with tears.
Tears.
“I’ll be the first to admit we’ve had our moments, but you’ve turned out to be an excellent secretary. You’re an important part of Midnight Sons.”
The tears spilled over, rolling down the sides of her face.
Christian wanted to tell her that the last thing he’d expected was emotion. He would have, too, if his mind hadn’t been dominated by a more compelling thought. All at once, completely against his will, he experienced the burning need to kiss Mariah Douglas again.
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