“A white Christmas,” her aunt said. “How romantic. Maybe you should invite Rick over.”
“Invite him over?” Had her aunt heard a word of what she had said? “Rick is probably off in some exotic locale drinking a pina colada and dancing with a beautiful woman. I’m sure he’s forgotten all about me by now.”
“I’m not so certain. From what you’ve told me, I think he was as surprised as you by the whole turn of events.”
Lessa closed her eyes as the wave of pain washed over her. She wanted to believe that; she really did. She would like nothing better than to think that Rick was by himself, mourning her loss. But she knew better. And she could not allow herself to feel sad. It did no good. She had made her decision.
“It doesn’t have to be like this, Lessa.”
“There’s no choice, Gran. When people love each other, they treat each other decently. You don’t have deceit and lies. Real love doesn’t hurt like this.”
“You’ve been reading too many storybooks. Real life doesn’t always work that way. I never told you about your uncle and me. We dated for two years, and I was madly in love. I thought we were going to get married. And then he went off to the war.”
“And then he came home and married you.”
“That’s the story we’ve always told. I didn’t mention what really happened because it bothered him too much.”
“What are you talking about? He loved you. He thought about you every day he was away.”
“When he came home, I found out that he was engaged to someone else.”
Lessa couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her uncle? The kindly bespectacled man who had worshipped her aunt?
“Apparently he never got any of my letters, but I didn’t know that then. He assumed I didn’t care about him, and naturally, when I found out about his engagement, I assumed the same thing about him. It broke my heart. Well, he went off and married that other woman. And you know what? It was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“Uncle Stan was married before? Did Dad know this?”
“Of course. But what difference did it make? The point of the story is that he eventually came back. And you know what? I had changed-for the better. I was so much stronger than I had been. I knew I could make it on my own. And he knew what he wanted all along. Me. If he hadn’t married that other woman, he might’ve always wondered if he made the right decision. Instead, I was appreciated. Very appreciated. Until the day he died, he would’ve done anything to make me happy.”
“So what are you saying? Do you think Rick will go off and marry someone else? Or do you think I will?”
“I think that Rick learned a valuable lesson here. And I believe him when he said he cared about you.” She smiled. “I think I know a thing or two about men.”
“I can’t think about Rick, Gran. I have to move on with my life. I’m going to look for a little property to buy. I’m going start over, build my own company from scratch. And I’m thinking about going back to tennis. Not as a player, but a teacher. I could combine my knowledge of resorts with my love for tennis. Maybe I could start a camp somewhere.”
There was a knock on the door.
“Why, who in the world could that be?” her aunt said, feigning surprise.
“Maybe it’s Santa,” Lessa said, glancing at her aunt suspiciously. What was she up to?
Lessa got up and opened the door-to Rick Parker. He stood before her, covered in snow.
“Rick,” her aunt said, brushing past Lessa to get to him.
“Wh-What are you doing here?” Lessa asked, so surprised she could barely speak.
“Your aunt said she needed eggnog.”
“Oh, you found some.” Gran said. “You’re a dear, Rick. Thank you.”
“This isn’t funny.” Lessa gave her aunt the evil eye.
“Who’s joking?” Rick asked. “I had to go to three different stores to find this.”
“Come in,” her aunt said warmly, taking his coat and the container of eggnog. “I think this’ll need some brandy, don’t you?” She stopped and turned back toward the doorway. “Would you look at that,” she said, motioning above Rick and Lessa where a small piece of greenery had been tied to the light fixture. “Mistletoe.” She looked at Lessa and winked.
When she was gone, Rick stared into Lessa’s eyes. “I told you once, Lessa. I don’t give up.”
“Look, Rick, I don’t want to be a part of Lawrence Enterprises anymore.”
“I’m not asking you to.” He reached inside his jacket. “I just stopped by to give you something.” He pulled out a manila envelope. “Open it,” he said, handing it to her.
She ripped open the envelope. It was the deed to Mara del Ray. “I don’t understand…”
“I’m giving it to you. A chance to build your own hotel.”
He came over on Christmas Eve to sell her a property? “How much do you want for it?”
“I don’t want money,” he said, looking at her hungrily.
“What do you want?”
“A partnership.”
“What about Lawrence Enterprises?”
“I’m resigning. I want to build a corporation step by step, just like your parents did. I was thinking that a tennis camp might be a good place to start.” He put his hands on her waist. “You spoke once about expectations…well, I didn’t expect this either. I can’t seem to stay away from you. I don’t
They were words she had waited a lifetime to hear, but it was the heartrending tenderness of his gaze that melted her remaining defenses.
“I know what it’s like to be frightened of love, Lessa,” he said. “I know what it’s like to close off your heart. I’ve spent years like that. But I also know that true love is damned hard to find. It took me a long time to find you, Lessa. And now that I have, I’m not about to lose you.”
As she looked into his eyes, she was filled with the same sense of desire that had haunted her from the first moment she’d seen him. She moved toward him slowly, and then, standing underneath the mistletoe, she tentatively pressed her lips to his.
He kissed her back, gently and tenderly, a lover’s kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him toward her, knotting her fingers through his thick, wavy hair. “Thank you for my Christmas present,” she said.
“That wasn’t your Christmas present.” He reached inside his coat pocket and pulled out a small box. “
Her heart jumped into her throat as she took it and opened it. Inside, nestled on satin, was an emerald-cut diamond ring.
“I love you, Lessa, and I want to be with you. You make the world a better place.”
She was too excited to speak. She just stood there, staring at the ring, not believing her ears.
“Say you’ll marry me, Lessa,” he whispered. “Give me a reason to like Christmas again.”
“Yes, Rick, I’ll marry you.” She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him with all her might. When she was finished, she said the three words she had wanted to say for a long, long time. “I love you.”
The wedding was held exactly three months later, on the grounds of their first joint venture, a Florida resort that specialized in tennis. It was intended to be a low-key affair, with only close friends and relatives. For Rick, Lessa discovered, that meant two hundred people, who filled Mara del Ray to capacity. And Lessa loved every moment of it. The entire Parker clan had accepted her and her aunt as welcome additions.
Lessa and Rick were married on a clear, sunny day in the hotel garden. Lessa wore a sleeveless white chiffon gown and walked down a stone path toward the most handsome man she had ever seen.
As Rick watched her walk toward him, he had no doubt that Lessa was the woman he had been waiting for all those years. With her by his side, he knew that anything was possible. She, and she alone, was the treasure for which he had combed the world.
Afterward they celebrated on the beach, complete with blazing tiki lights and a steel drum band. The guests feasted on fresh fish that had been caught that day. It was a fitting celebration for a former pirate. Rick took her hand and kissed it, giving her a smile that made her tingle all the way to her toes.
