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‘Welcome back, Ebenezer,’ she said with a smile. This was too, too easy. But begging? There was something about the idea of this man begging her that she definitely liked. Deep down in her stomach where warmth was developing pretty rapidly into a heat she couldn’t ignore.
‘If this is your house,’ she asked, trying to change the subject, ‘and you look like a scared kid at their first nativity at the mention of Christmas, how did it get so pretty?’
Another grunt, another shrug. ‘It’s what you people want. For your feeds.’ Oh, so he did think she was Lara. She’d wondered. But she liked having this little piece of knowledge that he didn’t, and she squirrelled away her secret until it wasn’t useful to her any more.
‘And you like to give people what they want?’ she asked, and then shook her head at herself. Why did everything she said suddenly sound so dirty all of a sudden? ‘I mean, you’re clearly Mr Customer Service here... And what do you mean by people like me?’
He gave a disdainful roll of his eyes. ‘Influencers. Southerners. City types. You want boughs of holly and pretty candles. Picture-perfect. Substance optional.’
‘Right...’ she replied, taking in the look of disdain and deciding not to correct his mistake, not when it was so much fun to bait him instead.
‘And of course you let these city-type southern influencers stay in your home out of the goodness of your heart. Because you’re such a giver.’
A cloud crossed his face and, although pleased that her cutting remark had hit its mark, she couldn’t ignore the accompanying twinge of regret that she was responsible for it.
‘Need the exposure,’ he said simply. ‘Estate’s in trouble and I’m trying to launch a business. Can’t do it without social media.’
She nodded, taking in his dour expression, and decided not to prod further.
‘I don’t know if you care, but you totally nailed it,’ she said, keeping her voice casual. ‘It’s beautiful in here.’
He looked around, his gaze resting on the tree in the window, the holly on the mantel and wrapped around the balcony of the gallery. The candles burning on the hearth and the fire blazing in the grate.
‘Can’t take credit really. Just copied what my mam used to do.’
‘Used to...’ Jess panicked and it must have shown in her eyes.
‘It’s okay. She’s not dead,’ he said with a bark that might have been a laugh. ‘I just meant when we used to live here. Done it at the new place this year. Proper Mrs Claus.’
‘Something tells me you’re not exactly a grateful recipient of all her Christmas cheer.’
‘What gave me away?’ he asked with a long blink, his eyes sliding shut.
She aimed her foot at the centre of his ribcage and shoved.
‘Eyes open. Sleep’s for the weak, remember.’
He groaned. ‘Was working till two this morning. Just need a quick—’
‘No.’ Though maybe—maybe—his admission of why he was so tired had her looking at him in just a slightly different light.
‘How long do I have to stay awake?’ he asked, pulling himself a little more upright against the sofa.
‘Yeah,’ she said, realising that no one had actually given her the answer to that one, ‘the operator wasn’t exactly clear.’
‘You didn’t ask?’ Rufus shot her a look of pure condescension that in other circumstances she would have given him hell for. But, given his currently defrosting state, she was going to cut him a little slack. A very little.
‘I was quite busy not letting you die. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so diligent. I guess you need to stay awake until you don’t feel too sleepy any more.’
He groaned again. ‘Oh, good. Sane and rational.’
‘Well, it’s the best I’ve got,’ she told him, finally losing her temper. ‘So if you want to call 999 and ask them, feel free. But I’m not tying up their phone lines because you want a nap.’
‘We should sort out the lights,’ he said after they had sat in silence for a few long minutes.
‘Well, you can’t blame me for the electricity being out. Pretty sure that’s your department. But leave it for now. At least until you’ve had a chance to warm up properly. It might not even be something that can be fixed at this end. I’m guessing the snow is causing some problems out there.’
She poked at the fire for a minute while he struggled with the blankets, but then took pity on him and pulled them up to his chin. Despite the murderous look on his face, his arms were pinned by the blankets, so there wasn’t much he could do about it.
