Christmas on 4th Street by Susan Mallery

Author:Susan Mallery [Mallery, Susan]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2013-09-30T14:00:00+00:00

* * *

Gabriel walked through the cold night, grateful that the temperature would take care of any lingering desire. He’d done the gentlemanly thing—he’d walked Noelle home and left her on her doorstep without even hinting how much he wanted to go inside.

He’d read the indecision in her eyes and had known he could have easily convinced her. A few kisses and she would have started to melt. But as much as he wanted her, he needed her to be sure. To understand what the consequences would be.

A conscience was a giant pain in the ass, he thought as he turned the corner. Well, not his ass, exactly.

“Hello, Gabriel.”

An older woman appeared at his side. He would have sworn there was no one else out on this snowy night. Not this late. The bustling city tended to shut down right around nine.

The woman had white curly hair and deep blue eyes. She had to be in her sixties, but she stood straight and strong. He’d seen her before, but couldn’t remember where.

“Ma’am,” he said, no longer surprised people he’d never met knew who he was.

“I’m Mayor Marsha Tilson,” she said with a smile. “I’m glad I ran into you. I’ve been wanting to speak to you.”

She motioned to a business across the street. He peered through the snow and saw a sign that read Jo’s Bar.

“Let me buy you a coffee,” she said, already stepping off the curb. “Irish coffee,” she added with a laugh. “Nobody makes it better than Jo.”

Somehow he found himself following the woman. He told himself to stop, that he had no business going into a bar with a woman thirty years older than him. He remembered the butt pat from the other day and wondered if he was about to get into an even more awkward situation. But somehow he kept moving along at her side, answering polite questions about how he enjoyed the town.

When they stepped inside, he found he was in the strangest bar he’d ever seen. The walls were a pale purple-blue color and the big TVs had on what looked a lot like overweight people exercising on treadmills. Was this some sports show he’d missed while he’d been gone?

The mayor led him to a table in the corner. “Irish coffees, please, Jo,” she called as she pulled out a chair.

“You got it, Mayor Marsha.” The woman behind the bar chuckled. “Who are you torturing tonight?”

“Jo, I never torture anyone. You know that.”

“Sure you don’t.”

“This is Dr. Gabriel Boylan. Gideon’s brother.”

“Welcome,” Jo told him. “Don’t bother fighting her. It never works. It’s like quicksand. Relax and you’ll be fine. Struggle and you’ll end up sinking in deeper.”

The mayor draped her heavy coat over an empty chair and sat down. She wore a pale blue suit and pearls. “Jo has an imagination.”

Gabriel nodded even as he wondered if Jo was the one telling the truth. He shrugged out of his jacket, then sat across from the mayor.

She set her hands on the table and laced her fingers together.

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