Page 25 of The Best Christmas Choir Ever

They parted ways, and Charlie worked her way down to the music room where she organized the chairs, moving them aside to give the residents more space for their auditions. Then she set up two chairs near the front of the room. One for her and one for Julian. With plenty of space in between.

“You’re here early,” Julian said, appearing in the doorway a few moments later. He had a folding table under his arm. He carried it into the room and set it up in front of the two chairs Charlie had just placed. He moved the chairs closer together.

“So are you.”

“Wanted to make sure we were set up before we got rushed by choir hopefuls.” Julian jostled the table to make sure it was steady, then pulled a small notebook and pen from his pocket and set it down. “So, how does this work?”

Charlie scoffed, already exasperated with him. “I should be asking you that, codirector. This was your big idea.”

“You’re right.” His green eyes were bright as he pressed his hands against the table, leaning toward her. “I was just giving you the opportunity to contribute.”

“Oh, is that what you were doing?” What did he think he was, charming? Charlie crossed her arms, regarding Julian and his cheeky grin. She watched as it softened into something more deliberate, and a fluttery weight landed in her gut.

“Of course. I’m happy to take your ideas on board. I want to make sure you feel like a valued member of this team.”

Charlie’s face flushed. “Valued? Without me, you’d have no idea what you’re doing.”

Julian’s eyes dropped briefly to her lips. “Guess we’ll never know.”

Charlie’s entire body flushed. “I shouldn’t even have come.”

“And yet you did,” he said, gaze flicking back up, forcing Charlie to tear her eyes away.

Truth was, she felt out of her depth. She’d attended Juilliard and taught piano, but she was a performer, not a choir director. She really should have just said no to him yesterday, ending this farce.

“When I asked Google how to start a choir last night,” Julian continued, “it said to start by defining its purpose and target audience.”

“You Googled?”

He winked. “I’m full of great ideas. So, purpose, win twenty grand. Target audience. The lovely residents of Elm Springs. I’m crushing these codirector responsibilities.”

“If you think that’s all you need to do to win this thing, you’re way out of your league.”

His smile wavered a bit as he slumped down in his chair, and she annoyingly felt a nagging pang in her chest. She remembered how disappointed he’d been that day in the elevator, when he’d revealed there wasn’t a budget for the music program. For years, music was all Charlie had lived and breathed. How could she not support that now?

“I suppose,” she began, some ridiculous part of her not wanting him to look so dejected, “that we should hear the auditions and separate the residents into voice types for a start.”

Julian picked up his notebook and pen. “Voice types. Got it. And then we go and win this competition.”

“Probably need to squeeze some rehearsal in there first,” Charlie said.

“Ah, yes, rehearsal.” Julian flipped his notebook around. “Here’s the game plan. Voice types. Rehearsal. Win. Three steps. I think we can manage that.”

Charlie sat down beside him. “That easy, huh?”

“I mean, there will probably be some obstacles along the way. But I think we can sort them out. Together.” He held her gaze, his eyes softly creased at the corners.

Warmth surged through her. No, not just warmth. Heat. Spiraling, tumbling, dizzying heat. She remembered falling into those eyes. Falling into him. Over and over again. Even now—

Nope! Now nothing.

Charlie looked away as the door opened, glad for a distraction from the torrent of feelings that spread through her. They were like a spark on kindling, and she was going to stomp them out, one stubborn flame at a time.

Another staff member poked her head into the room. “Hey, Julian! I brought Frank like you asked.”

“Perfect. Thanks, Sherri.” Julian hopped up to greet an older man in a wheelchair. After shaking his hand, Julian poked his head out into the hallway before closing the door behind him and Frank. “We’ve got quite the crowd gathering out here.”

Charlie sighed. She supposed there was no more avoiding it.