The Secret of Santa Read online

  With the door closed, he finally found the silence he loved about Shiloh Ridge Ranch. A sigh pulled through his whole body and exhaled out of his mouth. He looked at Holly Ann, who’d zipped up his hoodie and tucked her hands in the front of it.

  He put his arm around her shoulders, and she curled into his chest. “First,” he said. “Before we even go, I have to say something.”

  “Okay.” Her arms around his back felt so good. So much better than anything he’d experienced before, and they’d shared some pretty passionate kisses. This felt like her hanging onto him, claiming him, and he sure did enjoy the feeling of belonging and acceptance that came with her touch.

  “I love you, Holly Ann,” he said, the words filling him with joy as they left his mouth. “I’ve loved you for a long time, it feels like, and I apologize for breaking up with you prematurely.”

  She tipped her head up to meet his eyes, hers wide with surprise. He kissed her, this time without anyone watching and with the kind of passion and precision he wanted to. She kissed him back, those glorious hands sliding up his arms to his shoulders and then back to his face.

  “I love you,” he whispered, pulling away for a moment to get the words out. He kissed her again, his fingers working the rubber band out of her hair so he could rake his fingers through it.

  “I love you,” he said again as he broke that kiss and moved his lips across her jaw and down her neck. She sighed into his touch, and heat filled Ace’s head. With some difficulty, he gained control of himself and pulled away.

  He felt like his face steamed in the winter air, and he cleared his throat as he took the first steps toward the edge of the porch.

  “Where did you go?” she asked.

  “New Orleans,” he said. “Neither Preacher nor I had ever been, and we figured….” He shrugged. “It was pretty fun. We took a cemetery tour. We slept as late as we wanted. We ate all this delicious food.”

  Holly Ann remained silent, and Ace supposed she needed a little explanation. “After I found out about your—found out you—”

  “That I’m Santa Claus,” she said.

  Ace looked at her. “Yes. That.”

  “I’m going to explain about that.”

  He nodded and led them down the stairs to the sidewalk. “After I found out about that, I sort of went ballistic. I had all these secrets inside me, and I couldn’t handle one more. I couldn’t handle lying to anyone, because I knew how awful it was to be lied to.”

  “I’m so sorry,” she said.

  “I’ve already forgiven you,” he said gently, walking with her past his sister’s SUV. “I went back into the party and I told everyone’s secrets.”

  “Ace.”

  “I know,” he said miserably. Thankfully, it only lasted for a few moments, because he’d made his peace with what he’d done. He’d apologized, and he’d been forgiven by those he’d hurt. “I didn’t tell yours, by the way. I can practically feel you wanting to know.”

  She visibly and emotionally relaxed, and Ace looked out over the ranch. Clouds hung low in the sky today, and he liked a melancholy day at Shiloh Ridge as much as a blue-sky-sunny day.

  “Thank you, Ace.”

  “Tell me about it,” he said.

  “The Broadbents have been playing Santa here in Three Rivers for four generations,” she began, and Ace listened as she talked about her father wearing the suit for so long. She told him it was her turn, and the secrecy of it had been so ingrained in her that she hadn’t even told Bethany Rose.

  “I bet that didn’t go over well,” Ace said.

  “It was difficult,” Holly Ann admitted. “So we’re redoing how we keep the secret. Spouses and children can know.”

  “I don’t suppose that extends to cousins and siblings of in-laws.”

  “No,” she said with a wide smile. “I don’t suppose it does.” She paused next to the big, red hay barn. “I’ve never been on a tour of this ranch.”

  Her meaning clear, Ace grinned at her and pointed to the barn. “We keep hay in there. There’s a big old loft just filled with the stuff. When I was a boy, I’d sneak up there in the afternoons when I was supposed to be watering horses, and I’d sleep. Daddy made us all get up at four-thirty to get chores done before school, and by three o’clock in the afternoon, I was wiped out.”

  “I’ll bet,” she said, grinning at him. “I stayed up until twelve-thirty last night making buttermilk bars for my meeting today.”

  “Mm, buttermilk bars,” he said. “You’re always bragging about those, but I’ve yet to taste one.”

  “I think there will be time,” she said.

  “Can you make beignets?” he asked.

  She laughed, the sound filling his soul and the sky above. He wished he could collect it and listen to it later, after she’d left the ranch.

  As she quieted, he said, “So, sweetheart, where do we go from here?”

  “I don’t know,” she said slowly.

  “Bishop and Montana are getting married in April,” Ace said.

  Holly Ann whipped her attention to him, and Ace knew April was out of the question for her.

  “Okay,” he said chuckling at the surprise in her pretty eyes. “April is out for us.”

  They stepped beyond the barn, and Ace’s beloved fields spread before them. “Oh, wow,” Holly Ann said.

  “This is my playground,” he said. “When Bear doesn’t need me to look at a tractor or a combine, I’m out here.” He paused on the edge of a hay field and looked over their land. “Cactus lives out there about a thirty-minute walk.”

  “Where are all the cows?” she asked.

  Ace pointed north and south. “Both ends right now. We drive them up into the hills to the west in the summertime, and we keep them in the grass pastures on the ranch for a few months in the winter, for birthing season and to tag ‘em, round ‘em up for selling, all of that.”

  “Do you work with the cattle?”

  “Tons,” he said. “I manage all of the pastures, and work closely with Ward for the rotational ranching method we do here. If our beef are exclusively grass-fed, we can sell them for more.”

  “Fascinating.” She gazed out across the fields and land. “Where would we live, Ace?” she asked.

  “Once Arizona gets married,” he said. “And Aunt Lois moves into the homestead after Bishop does, the Top Cottage will be open. It’s a cozy little cottage—only three bedrooms. Two baths. It has a brand-new roof though, because it got ripped off in the tornadoes that came through town a couple of years ago.”

  He looked south, where the Top Cottage sat up the road past True Blue, which he couldn’t see. “So we could live there. Bishop’s also planning to build more houses for people who need them. He and Montana are working on theirs right now, so I’m not sure about the timeline.”

  Ace thought of Cactus, and he had a complete remodel and expansion happening too. Then Ace remembered how much money he had in this bank account, and he could hire a company to come build him a house. He just needed approval from the family on the location.

  “You wouldn’t want to live in town?”

  Ace looked at Holly Ann. “I…I have not actually considered that, honestly.”

  “I’m okay with living up here,” she said breezily. “It’s beautiful here.”

  He turned her south, and they walked along a footpath that would take them over to the chicken coops, calving stalls, and the long rows of stables.

  After several steps, Ace asked, “What about kids, love?” He glanced at her and continued with, “I saw you with those kids on your lap at the mall. I know you were behind the beard and the hat and the colored contacts, but I saw you.”

  She nodded, but she didn’t commit to anything.

  “This land has a way of pulling you in,” he said quietly. “Even though I enjoyed New Orleans, I couldn’t wait to get back here. There’s nowhere like Texas, and nowhere like the Panhandle, and absolutely nowhere like Shiloh Ridge Ranch.” He took a deep breath and
felt himself settle back into who he truly was. “It tugs you under gently, until your roots are long and deep, and you absolutely belong here.”

  “I can feel it already,” she murmured.

  “You’d be a wonderful mother,” he said. “It’s not a deal-breaker for me either way, Holly Ann. I’d love kids with your beautiful eyes, and my love of the land, and your skill in the kitchen.”

  She grinned at him. “You know kids are their own people too, right? They’re not just copies of their parents.”

  “Yeah,” he said with a sigh, still thinking of a little girl that looked like her. “I know.”

  “There’s just one more thing I need to know about,” Holly Ann said. “And that’s how much money you make working in your beloved fields.”

  “Oh.” Ace looked up at the clouds as a clap of thunder filled the sky. “The thing is…the ranch is really profitable. We do all these investments—and have for years—and have a family motto of reuse, repair, and recycle. We don’t spend money we don’t need to, and we save and invest. So.” He cleared his throat. “I’ve got money. The ranch has money.”

  “Sounds like a lot.”

  “Why do you think that?”

  “You won’t say how much.”

  Ace approached the corner of the first stable. He paused and took her into his arms. “Does it matter to you?”

  “Not particularly,” she said. “I’m just trying to get a picture of our life together.” She put her hands on the collar of his jacket and straightened it. “And to be perfectly transparent, I am in love with you, but I’d love some time for the two of us to date and get to know each other better without any secrets, any half-truths, and absolutely no trace of Christmas.”

  “That sounds like heaven,” he whispered.

  “What about an autumn wedding?” she asked.

  “Is that a proposal?” he teased.

  “Heavens, no.” She laughed and got them moving along the path again. “You’re doing that, Andrew. Don’t you think for a moment you can pass that off to me.”

  Ace laughed at the use of his real name and the way she’d squeezed his hand a little tighter at the end of the sentence. “I’ll think of something amazing,” he said, pulling her into his side. “Long engagement or short?”

  “I think you’ll know when it’s time,” she said. “I want it to be a surprise.”

  “You got it.” He had no idea how to propose to a woman like Holly Ann. He’d asked another woman to marry him in the past, but he’d literally asked her over dinner in a restaurant. He wanted this proposal to be something. To mean something.

  You have time, he told himself.

  “I know you’re busy with the light parade,” he said. “But how about we plan a fun date on New Year’s Day?”

  “Sure,” she said. “What did you have in mind?”

  “Honestly?”

  “Yes, cowboy. Honestly.” She bumped him with her hip. “We’re not keeping secrets or telling half-truths to each other. Not again.” She met his eye, hers filled with seriousness. “Right, Ace? Promise me we’re not.”

  “We’re not,” he promised. “I was thinking we should go try some beignets together. Then you’ll know exactly what I like, and you can start working on recreating them.”

  “You want to go to New Orleans on New Year’s Day?”

  “Sure,” he said. “I know Marcy Walker has an airstrip, and I happen to have enough money to find a charter plane.”

  Holly Ann stopped walking and stared at him, her mouth dropping open. “You do?”

  “I do,” he said, grinning at her. “A chartered flight to New Orleans is basically a drop in the bucket for a cowboy billionaire.”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Holly Ann stepped out of the fitting room, her dress stuck to her body like a second skin. At least Montana had chosen a good color for her bridesmaids’ dresses, and the periwinkle fabric brought out the highlights in her hair. She could just see the color palate for her makeup, and she’d talk to Montana about it as they lunched.

  She’d become close with Montana over the past couple of months, because Ace and Bishop were close as cousins. Everyone at Shiloh Ridge had been welcoming and kind—those she spoke with at least. There were some that Ace didn’t seem to interact with as much, which meant she didn’t either.

  She didn’t know Judge very well, and Arizona had practically disappeared as she planned her own wedding for the beginning of June. She’d be moving off the ranch, and her mother would be moving into the homestead in only three weeks, after Bishop and Montana tied the knot.

  “Holly Ann,” Sammy breathed. She wasn’t trying on dresses today, because she was a week from her due date and wouldn’t be wearing a periwinkle dress in the same size that she was now. She had a fitting in a month, and Shelley at Your Forever I-Do had promised she’d have Sammy’s dress ready for the wedding.

  “You look amazing.” Sammy got to her feet and slid her hand down Holly Ann’s side and hip. “How’d you get that on so fast?”

  No one else had come out yet, and Holly Ann twisted and turned to see herself in the four-way mirror. “I’m really good at changing,” she said, thinking of her ritual with the Santa suit. “This dress does amazing things for my chest.”

  “That’s the new bra,” her attendant said.

  “Yes,” Holly Ann said. “I need three of those.”

  “I’ll see if we have them.” Myra smiled at her and smoothed the wide strap into place on her back.

  “I’m serious,” Holly Ann said as Myra walked away. “If you have three in my size, I’ll take them.” She admired her curvy form in the mirror, and soon enough, Oakley joined her.

  “Oakley,” Sammy said, her voice full of air again. “How gorgeous are you?”

  “Not as gorgeous as you.” Oakley grinned at Sammy and reached one hand out. “Can I?”

  “Of course.”

  Oakley put her hand lightly on Sammy’s pregnant belly, and Holly Ann knew in that moment she wanted to be a mother. She wanted to carry a life inside her, and she wanted to experience the wonder of bringing a baby into the world.

  She concealed her small smile and turned toward Aurora as the teen emerged from the dressing room. All the women exclaimed over her, including Holly Ann, who said, “Look how grown up you look, Rory. Wow.”

  “Ollie’s not going to be able to contain himself.”

  “Oakley,” Montana chastised.

  “Sorry,” Oakley said.

  Sammy’s eyes filled with tears as she stroked her hand down Aurora’s hair. “You’re beautiful.”

  “How are we feeling about the fittings, ladies?” Shelley asked, her clipboard in hand.

  “Mine’s too long in the body,” Oakley said, lifting up a fistful of fabric. Shelley made a note while Oakley’s attendant pulled things up and measured for exact inches and half-inches.

  “Aurora needs a bit more up top,” her attendant said, literally grabbing a handful of fabric that bunched around the teen’s chest.

  “We can put in a tuck,” Shelley said, stepping over to the girl. “Or we can put in a breast enhancer, or we can put her in a molded cup bralette.”

  “Breast enhancer?” Montana and Aurora said at the same time, but their tones existed on opposite ends of the spectrum. Montana actually wore a horrified look on her face, while Aurora looked beyond hopeful.

  “What does that entail?” Montana asked.

  “We put in a couple of silicon inserts into the bralette.” She glanced at Kris, the attendant. “We could do both. The bralette, and the inserts.” She turned her attention back to Aurora and pulled the fabric out. “It would be maybe a single size. There’s not much extra room here.”

  She looked at Montana. “So we could tuck the fabric and alter the dress to the smaller size. Or we can leave the dress, and bring the extra size in the form of inserts and an undergarment.”

  “Mom,” Aurora said, a clear note of pleading in her voice.

  “Ho
w much is the bralette and the inserts?” she asked.

  “I’ll pay for them,” Holly Ann said, regretting it the moment the sentence left her mouth. “I mean…if it’s okay with your mom, Aurora. I’ll pay for them.” She met Montana’s eyes in one of the mirrors, a silent apology passing from Holly Ann to her.

  “Money’s not really an issue, Montana,” Oakley muttered. “If she wants them, let her have them.”

  “It’s your wedding,” Sammy said when Montana continued to hesitate.

  “Oh, all right,” Montana finally said. “Put her in the bralette and let’s see what it looks like.”

  Aurora moved back into the dressing room, and Shelley turned her attention to Holly Ann. She grinned at her and made a single mark on her clipboard. “You look amazing in that dress.” She scanned her from head to toe and back. “You should come model for us.”

  “Really?” Holly Ann asked. “You want plus-sized models?”

  “Always,” Shelley said. “This needs nothing, in my opinion. Where’s Myra?”

  “Right here,” the woman said as she bustled up. “We had three of those bras, Holly Ann.”

  “Perfect,” she said, smiling at her attendant.

  “Myra, adjustments?” Shelley asked, and Myra scanned Holly Ann too.

  “Nothing. This fits her like a glove. We should get her to come model for us. I know Henry’s coming next Friday.” She looked from Holly Ann to Shelley. “She could wear the new Alice Bunson, and it would look amazing with her coloring.” Myra fingered Holly Ann’s hair and looked at Shelley hopefully.

  “I agree. Do we have the AB in her size?”

  “Yes,” Myra said.

  Shelley turned her attention to Holly Ann. “Do you have an extra minute? We could put you in it now and make any alterations before next week. If you can come on Friday, that is.”

  Holly Ann would clear her schedule of anything to be there next Friday modeling some designer dress on her size-fourteen frame. “I can be here,” she said.

  “Great,” Shelley said, and Myra hurried off to get the Alice Bunson gown.

  Hours later, Holly Ann carried her new Alice Bunson wedding dress into her house and down the hall to her bedroom. She loved spending time with her friends, trying on dresses and going to lunch. They’d split up an hour ago, and she’d returned to Your Forever I-Do to purchase the dress she’d tried on earlier that day.