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“It’s real. The witch’s curse is real. I’m doomed to live for eternity if I don’t find love!”
“Yoo-hoo! Rick? Are you here?”
The chirpy voice of his neighbor shook him from the memories that haunted him every day of his life. He still hadn’t found a woman who checked all the boxes for him, let alone one who would believe a tale of witches and gingerbread man cookies.
At this point in his life, he was slowly accepting that she didn’t exist. That he was doomed to life forever as a gingerbread man.
“Yes, I’m in the kitchen,” he responded as he finished the prep for the evening’s main course. Over the centuries, and since he had to find a skill that stood the test of time, he had honed his skill as a chef. He had become a successful restaurateur who evolved with time.
Now, he owned numerous franchises of King Ricardo’s Decadence Restaurants all across the U.S., but once he opened the latest one here in Colorado, he decided to stay. He loved the quiet little town. It was an added bonus that the community couldn’t get enough of his gingerbread cookies. Where he once hated the taste and smell of them, he now supplied major retailers, and it had become the most sought-after brand. King Ricardo III’s Gingerbread Cookies made him more famous than when he had held the crown back in the day.
“Ah, there you are. Hmm, what smells so wonderful? I must insist that Samuel bring me to dinner tonight. I heard you’re going to the city in the morning. Is that true?”
“Yes, I need to stock up on inventory.” Rick smiled indulgently. “Need anything?”
“My sister is coming into town. You know how busy it is this year with your gingerbread cookie competition and charity drive coming up. I was wondering if you would have time to pick her up from the airport. She lands just after one in the afternoon.”
“Of course. I’ll be finished by that time.”
“Wonderful. I’ll let her know to look out for your van.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder as she walked ahead of him. At the door, she threw him a kiss. “Mwah. See you tomorrow.” She smiled widely. “And don’t worry. Clarissa doesn’t talk as much as I do.”
“Thank the lord for small favors,” Rick teased with a wide smile as he waved her off.
Chapter Two
Grand County Airport, Cranbry, Colorado…
“What do you mean there’s no shuttle to Grand Lake? I always use the airport shuttle to get there.” Clarrisa Stone did her best to suppress the irritation in her voice. It wasn’t the poor man’s fault that she was out of sorts or that the expectation she had of getting to the hotel to soak in a hot bubble bath wasn’t going to happen any time soon.
“I’m sorry, Miss. This year, since there are so many visitors to the towns in the Rocky Mountains, the service just can’t keep up. The last one just left.”
“What time will the next one leave?”
“It could take anywhere from an hour to three hours, I’m afraid. They’re dropping visitors in all neighboring towns since Grand Lake is bursting out of its seams.” He pointed to the car rental kiosks. “You might be lucky and find a rental available, but even they can’t keep up with the demand this year.” His smile flashed brightly in his weather-washed complexion. “Unbelievable that gingerbread cookies are causing such a ruckus this Christmas, don’t you agree?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” With a wave of her hand to interrupt a further verbose explanation from the helpful man, she headed toward the nearest car rental kiosk. “Thanks for your help,” she said over her shoulder. The heels of her boots clipped on the marble floor as they ticked in tune with the irritation she was struggling to contain.
“I knew I should’ve stayed in L.A. At least there, I wouldn’t be freezing my nipples off,” she muttered as she joined the queue of people already waiting to be served.
Better yet, why don’t you just phone Cathy to come and pick you up?
Clarissa snorted at the voice in her head. She had declined her sister’s offer because she was highly pregnant, and she didn’t want her driving this far alone. Since her husband was the local sheriff and had to deal with the surprising influx of visitors, she couldn’t expect him to take time off to make the trip to the airport, either.
Nope, I’ll just have to suffer the inconvenience.
Her cell phone vibrating in her jeans pocket interrupted her spell of self-pity.
“Hi, sis.” It was with difficulty that she kept her voice neutral, especially when she noticed the person at the counter, once again changing his mind and had to start the entire booking process over… for the third time!
Damn asshole is wasting everyone’s time!
“You already landed I assume? Good, that means Rick won’t have to wait too long. Are you off the plane already? Did you claim your luggage?”
“Yes, who is Rick, and yes, I am, and yes, I did,” Clarissa answered the rapidly fired questions from her sister. She had a habit of rambling one sentence after the other without offering you the opportunity to respond.
“Oh, didn’t I tell you? Rick is the new owner-chef of King Ricardo’s Decadence Restaurant. Actually, he’s quite a well-known restaurateur all over the States. You might even have eaten at one of his restaurants. Did you know he’s the one who is behind King Ricardo III’s gingerbread cookies? Oh, I forgot. You hate gingerbread cookies. What a shame. Anyway, since he had to collect inventory from the city, he offered to pick you up from the airport. Wasn’t that nice of him?”
Clarissa shook her head as she struggled to keep up with everything she said. Good lord, she’s on a roll today!
