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should have had the flower shop deliver them, but he’d woken up this morning with an unreasonable craving to see her again. Last night’s encounter had given him the oddest combination of relief and anxiety.
    He’d wanted to kiss her. Knew she would have let him. Standing there with her hands in his, he barely resisted the urge to bend down and taste her lips. They would have been sweet, and not just from the wine.
    But for some reason, the little voice inside his head had said ‘no’ ‘Wait.’ So he did. He’d regretted his decision all night long and had woken up this morning with an overwhelming need to see her. Maybe he’d just wanted to confirm in person that she’d actually said yes to his dinner invitation. His debacle earlier in the evening had him second-guessing everything.
    He dialed her direct office line and got her voice mail. Pressing zero, he transferred to the front desk.
    “Welcome to La Bella Vita. This is Gina, how may I help you?”
    “Gina, this is Nick Chester. Is Beth in?”
    “Hi, Mr. Chester. I’m sorry. Beth did come back from lunch just a few minutes after you left, but she had several errands to run before the party this evening. She told me that if you called, to have you call her cell phone. Do you have the number?”
    “Yes. Did she like the flowers?”
    Nick could hear voices in the background and Gina didn’t answer right away. “See you next week, Mrs. Schaffer.” She paused. “Sorry, Mr. Chester. Oh, she loved the flowers.”
    “Good. Have fun at the party tonight.”
    Beth had just arrived at the craft store with Jenny when her cell phone rang.
    “I’ll be there in a minute. It’s Nick.” She frantically waved for Jenny to go inside.
    “Hello?” Beth tried to sound casual, as if she hadn’t looked up his number in the office computer and programmed it into her cell phone the moment she’d arrived at work this morning.
    “Hi, it’s Nick.”
    “Oh, hi.” The excitement she heard in her own voice shocked her. Her nerves had been on edge, waiting for his call all day–then totally frayed when she’d seen the flowers. But suddenly, the tension came to a halt and a thrill ran through her body in its place. “Thank you for the flowers. They’re beautiful.”
    “You’re welcome. I’m sorry I missed you when I dropped them off. Gina said you’d gone to lunch with Jenny.”
    “I did. We’re out doing some last-minute shopping before the office party tonight. And, you’re not going to believe this, but we’re on our way into a craft store to get materials for homemade ornaments.” Beth paced the sidewalk near the storefront and tightened her scarf more securely around her neck.
    “Really? What for?”
    Beth told him about Jenny’s volunteer work and the gifts and cookies they were taking to the children on Friday.
    “We made plans at lunch and I thought about the ornaments from your tree last night. We decided to make something like your Santa hat and let the kids write their names on the front with glitter pens.”
    “They’re going to love them.”
    She hoped so. They couldn’t make the children or parents forget their circumstances, but hopefully they could bring them some joy during the holidays.
    “Jenny does this every Friday?” he asked.
    “Yes. She usually spends the morning there, reading stories to the children and talking to the parents to make sure there isn’t anything they need.”
    “That’s sweet.”
    The conversation died off for a moment. Beth checked her phone to make sure she hadn’t dropped the call.
    “So, are you still free for dinner tomorrow night?” Nick asked.
    “I am.” Beth could just imagine what she looked like, standing in front of the craft store with a grin that wouldn’t stop. The temperature had dropped to thirty degrees and flurries had started to fall a few minutes before they’d arrived. She loved the winter. Loved the holidays. A ripple went through her stomach at the thought of possibly sharing