Free A Christmas Bride by Hope Ramsay

baby girl. Her momma was my best friend, and, well, I would go to the ends of the earth to make her happy.”
    Gracie paused while David waited for the punch line that was surely coming. When her silence became more than he could bear, he said, “Gracie, just spit it out. I don’t have all day. I have a brief to write this afternoon, and I just want to eat my lunch.”
    “Oh, well, I don’t want to keep you from your lunch.” She got up.
    “Gracie, wait. What the hell is it you want to say?”
    She folded her arms across her blue waitress uniform. “Melissa told me this morning that even though the Presbyterian church is available on the date they want, she and Jeff are still planning to run off to Vegas to get married because they can’t find an acceptable place for their reception. And I gather you’re the one who told them it would be best if they eloped.” Gracie’s voice turned watery, and unshed tears filled her eyes.
    “I didn’t put the idea in their heads, Gracie. They’re the ones who didn’t like the wedding Mother was planning for them in New York. Don’t make this out to be more than it is or blame me for what they decide is right for them.”
    Gracie’s spine snapped. “Really? Is that what you think? You could have helped them. You could have let them have their wedding party at the inn. And now, instead, they’re going to elope, and I won’t get to see my girl in a wedding dress. And it’s your fault, Mr. Lyndon.”
    “Now, Gracie, that’s not—”
    “It is your fault. You showed that you’re not a kind or caring man. And make no mistake, if Jeff and Melissa elope, I will have no compunction about telling folks exactly how that came to happen.” Gracie turned her back on him for the first time ever.
    Damn.
    This was a big problem. He didn’t want Gracie Teague supporting Bill Cummins in the primary election. But even more than that, he liked and admired Gracie. She was a decent person, and he hated the idea of disappointing her.
    Sort of like he hated the idea of disappointing Natalie.
    And Shelly.
    But what else was new? For days now, Willow’s angry words had been worming their way through him.
    But he couldn’t please everyone. If he helped Melissa and Jeff, his mother wouldn’t be happy. Mother was already annoyed at him for telling Jeff to elope.
    And Heather and Dad wanted that big wedding in New York because dozens of rich donors would be there.
    How on earth had a wedding gotten so tangled up in politics?
    He was screwed no matter what he did.
    *  *  *
    Willow picked up a copy of the Winchester Daily at the drugstore and headed down to Gracie’s Diner. So much for her plan to work for herself. Maybe she needed to lower her sights and check the want ads after all. Because if Jeff Talbert wasn’t going to invest in her plan, it was unlikely anyone else would.
    She needed some real food to bolster her flagging confidence. Two days of eating lentils and oatmeal had left her ravenous. The appetite-enhancing aroma of fried bacon and coffee made her stomach growl as she came through the diner’s front door.
    And saw David Lyndon at one of the window booths.
    Crap. He was the last person on the face of the planet that she wanted to see today. Especially after Jeff’s rejection.
    But Shenandoah Falls was a small town, so avoiding David would be impossible if she ended up staying here. Still, the sight of him froze her to the gray linoleum and made her heart turn in her chest. She owed him an apology for what she’d said on Wednesday. She ought to suck it up and go say something nice right now, something that would smooth over the controversy.
    He looked up from his lunch out of dark, brooding eyes, haunted by Shelly’s ghost. His gaze caught and paralyzed her as he got up from his spot and approached.
    He grabbed her by the upper arm before she could think about running. On Wednesday his touch had frightened her. Today it sparked a current of something surprising, and