Marry Me at Christmas

She turned on a small lamp and saw that they were all snug in their beds. There were... She looked around the living room. Three beds. Not only was Raven missing, but her bed was, too.

Madeline checked to see if the dog had dragged it behind the sofa, but there was no hint of the dog or her bedding. She retraced her steps, not sure what to do next. She supposed she should search the house before waking Jonny. With the cold front coming through, the dog wouldn’t do well outside for any length of time. Not that she could have gotten out, but still.

She entered the bedroom. Something moved. She turned and saw Raven curled up on her dog bed. The plaid quilted bed had been placed on the floor next to Jonny’s side. The black lab raised her head and looked at Madeline, as if wondering if she was going to get into trouble.

Madeline crossed to her and knelt down, then gently stroked the dog’s head. It was only then that she realized there was a blanket draped across Raven. While it was possible the dog could have dragged her own bed to the master, there was no way she could cover herself. Which meant sometime in the night, Jonny had gotten up to check on Raven.

“Looks like you have an admirer,” she whispered.

Raven’s tail thumped against the thick fabric.

Madeline tucked the blanket more securely around the dog, then returned to bed. As she settled next to Jonny, he turned toward her and placed his arm around her.

“You okay?” he asked, his voice sleepy.

“Uh-huh. Shh. Close your eyes.”

He drew her against him and sighed. She felt him relax as he drifted back to sleep. She lay in the dark, more awake than before. Her mind raced. The more she got to know Jonny, the more she liked him. How was she supposed to resist small acts of kindness, like looking after an old, lonely dog? And if she didn’t resist, wasn’t she in danger of losing her heart?

* * *

Madeline stared at the trays of food. There were appetizer samples and soup samples and salad samples along with multiple entrées and eight different desserts. A few of the items were what Ginger had suggested, but the rest, while probably delicious, were a little over the top.

“Three kinds of oyster on the half shell?” she asked, pointing. “Ginger doesn’t like oysters.”

“Other people do,” Jonny said easily. “They go with the seafood bar. There will be shrimp and crab, along with different kinds of sushi.”

Before she could scream at him, Ana Raquel, their catering expert, returned to the small tasting room.

“This is the last of it,” the twentysomething chef said cheerfully. “I have to say, it was fun ordering with no regard for pricing. I swear, in my next life, I’m going to make sure I have that all the time.”

Ana Raquel was a petite blonde with big hazel eyes and a happy, upbeat attitude. Madeline knew her socially, but had never worked with her before. All the brides who hired her loved her. Madeline figured her ability to look on the bright side would help when Jonny doubled the order and added fifty items two days before the reception.

Ana Raquel sat down across from them and opened her tablet. “I’ll need to place the seafood order today. Some of it requires specialty items. Not for a sushi restaurant, but for me. My fish guy needs a few days to pull it all together. It’s the holidays and all.”

“Makes sense,” Madeline murmured, even as she began texting Ginger. The message was simple. Do you like sushi and do you want it at your reception? She pushed the send button and waited.

“The open bar is easy,” Ana Raquel continued. “We’ll have all the usual suspects on hand, along with champagne. Wine will be served with dinner. Should we do a different wine with each course?”

“Yes,” Jonny told her.

“No,” Madeline said at the same time. She turned to him. “People have to drive back down the mountain. At night. They’re going to be totally drunk. Unless you plan on putting up fifty people, you can’t have that much alcohol.”

“I’ve hired transportation.”

“Excuse me?”

“Tour buses from Mitchell Adventure Tours. This is a quieter time for them and they have a couple of good-size vans and a big bus. There’s also a service limo company in the area, although they’re for the wedding party.” He turned back to Ana Raquel. “Wine with every course.”

Madeline thought about pounding her head against the desk, but before she could start, Ginger answered her text. Yuck and no.

“Well, that’s certainly clear.” She showed her phone to Jonny, then smiled at their chef. “No sushi.”