The Christmas Crusade Read online

  Mindful of the direction her thoughts begged to go, she tugged them back to the matter at hand.

  While musing over how good Levi appeared, she missed a question from Mr. Harchett and her grandfather’s response.

  Both men looked to her for a comment. She smiled and sat back in her chair, feigning an assurance she didn’t possess. Not when Levi’s presence left her completely unsettled. “This will be a wonderful project for all of us. We’ll make sure to give it the attention it deserves.”

  Mr. Harchett smiled with approval, but Lewis Kingsley frowned. “I’ll personally make sure things run smoothly.”

  Kat glared at her grandfather, wondering what the schemer had planned. Out of self-preservation, she’d never mentioned dating Levi to him, intent on missing the lecture he’d give her about keeping focused on her goals instead of a good-looking guy going nowhere with his career.

  Apparently, Levi had been heading places after all.

  Chapter Two

  The conference room emptied quickly once Mr. Harchett concluded the meeting. Kat gathered the paperwork in front of her and stuffed it into her bag then rose to her feet.

  Desperate to avoid a conversation with Levi, she turned to rush out of the room and bumped into a solid chest.

  A deep breath filled her nose with a unique scent that smelled of wood smoke and spice mingled with a generous helping of temptation. The scent was one she immediately recognized, knew well from the past.

  Levi reached out to steady her before she tipped over in her high heels. The warmth of his hands seared through the silk of her blouse and branded her skin upon contact. Although he immediately released her, the impact of that innocent touch made her even more disconcerted.

  She lifted her gaze to his, drawn to the hint of amusement and awareness shining in his eyes.

  “Hi, Levi,” Kat whispered, taking a step back from him, away from the enticement of his presence. “Or should I say Dr. Clarke?”

  His lopsided grin made her lips curl upward in response. “Levi works just fine. It’s been a long time, Kathleen.”

  Kat wanted to say it had been far too long. Her fingers itched to remove his glasses and run her hands through that thick brown hair that had taunted her from the first day she’d met him. Memories of every moment they’d spent together escaped from the mental box she’d shoved them into and padlocked shut. They flooded over her with such brutal force, she leaned against the credenza near the door for support.

  Slowly, she nodded her head. “It has been a while. Brenna didn’t mention your new position at the center. Congratulations.” It would kill her to admit she occasionally pumped her best friend for information about Levi. He and his brother, Mike, were both close friends of Brenna’s husband, Brock, and often spent time with the couple.

  “Thanks. Brenna mentioned your promotion last year. It’s great you’re doing so well within the company.” Levi shoved his hands into his pockets to keep from reaching out to Kat. Despite the apprehensive look in her eye, he felt as drawn to her as he’d been the first time he’d seen her.

  Kat forced her feet to carry her out the door and down the hall. Much to her dismay, Levi kept step with her. Silence loomed around them as they waited for the elevator. It was empty when they walked inside. Levi watched as she pushed a button for one of the upper floors. She glanced at him before pushing the lobby button.

  “Have you…”

  “Did you…”

  Both spoke at the same time and Kat grinned. “Look, Levi, we’re capable of maintaining a professional relationship throughout this sponsorship. Let’s keep that in mind as we work on plans. Okay?”

  “Sure.” Levi wanted to shout it wasn’t okay, that nothing had been okay since she’d walked out of his life. Instead, he nodded his head and forced his shoulders to relax. “This is only through the holidays. By then, I’m sure you can find someone else to be our corporate liaison.”

  Kat raised an eyebrow at him. “In case you missed the conversation we just sat through, Mr. Harchett wants me to oversee our involvement. No one else will step in, except perhaps my grandfather.”

  Reluctant to deal with the intimidating Mr. Kingsley, Levi nodded his head. “In that case, it might be good for you to visit the center, get a feel for what we offer, the direction we’re headed.”

  “I agree.” Kat fished in her bag for her phone then remembered it was dead. She pulled out her bulky backup planner and flipped through it until she found a date with several hours open. “I can meet you in two weeks. Would ten in the morning work for you?”

  Levi glanced at the date and compared it to the calendar on his phone. “I can’t that morning, but my afternoon is wide open.”

  “I’ll be there at four.” Kat jotted a note on her planner and stuffed it back inside the bag as the elevator door opened on her floor. “Is there anything you need from me in the meantime?”

  Any number of responses floated through Levi’s head, none of which Kat would appreciate hearing. He needed to taste her lips again, feel her melting against him as he held her in his arms.

  Rather than give voice to his longings, he shook his head. “Nope. I’ll see you then. If something comes up, all my contact info is in the paperwork.”

  “Great. I have some ideas I want to run past Mr. Harchett before we write that check, so perhaps we can discuss them when we meet.” Kat stepped off the elevator and made the mistake of looking back at Levi. Before the door closed, she reached out and squeezed his hand. “By the way, I’m really sorry about your shirt. Send it to the cleaners and I’ll pay for it, or buy you a new one.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Kat.” Without giving it a conscious thought, his thumb lightly grazed across her palm. She jerked her hand back and he grinned. “I’m a big boy now and own more than one dress shirt.”

  The elevator door closed and Kat stared at it for a long moment, her hand tingling where Levi had caressed it.

  To chase away the lingering desire to race down the stairs and ask him to do it again, she briskly rubbed her hand along the side of her skirt. As she turned toward her office, her receptionist stared at her.

  “Was that who I think it was?” Molly smiled widely as she followed Kat into her office and plopped down into a chair across the desk from her boss.

  “That was Dr. Clarke.” Kat sank into her chair and released the breath she didn’t even realize she’d held from the moment Levi touched her hand.

  “Oh, I know his title, but is that your Levi? The Levi you couldn’t stop talking about when Brenna left here and married Brock? That Levi?” Molly sat back in her chair and crossed her legs, settling in for a long explanation.

  Kat narrowed her gaze at the girl. “Let me be perfectly clear, Molly. He is not my Levi, or my anything. Mr. Harchett has decided I should personally handle our sponsorship obligations with Center for Hope. Apparently, Dr. Clarke is now the executive director of the center. That’s it.”

  Molly snapped her gum and raised a questioning eyebrow. “If you say so…”

  “I most emphatically do.” Kat sat forward and skimmed through the stack of messages on her desk. She gave Molly direction for the morning then asked her to hold her calls for the next hour.

  Molly stood and walked over to the door when they finished their morning meeting. “Are you sure you’re okay, Kat?”

  “I’m perfectly fine. Never better,” Kat fibbed, more discombobulated than she’d been in a long time.

  Of course, she’d run into the one man who’d captured both her interest and heart on a day when she looked like she’d ridden a twister into work.

  As soon as the door clicked shut behind Molly, Kat grabbed the phone. No matter what, there was one person in the world she could always count on to listen to her.

  The phone rang four times before Kat heard a breathless, “Morning, sunshine!”

  She sighed in relief at the sound of her friend’s voice. “Why do you sound out of breath, Brenna? What are you doing?”

&
nbsp; “I just put Alex down and didn’t want the phone to wake him so I ran out to the back porch.”

  “I’m sorry. I keep forgetting about Alex.” Kat slapped her hand against her forehead, embarrassed. “I didn’t mean I forget about Alex, I just… it’s that I…”

  Brenna laughed. “I know, Kat. It’s okay. We’re still adjusting to having a baby in the house. It’s only been six weeks since he arrived. Brock has finally stopped acting like both Alex and I will break. He’s even working on a construction project over in Woodburn this week, which means he can’t come home to hover around us every few hours.”

  Kat leaned back in her chair, kicked off her shoes and settled her feet on top of the desk. “He’s being a good, attentive father and husband, Brenna. Besides, I don’t know how he could have acted more like a mother hen than he did the month before Alex was born. I thought you might suffocate under all that devoted attention.”

  “I would have if Mike and Levi hadn’t kept him occupied part of the time.” Brenna cleared her throat. “I, um… I meant to tell you that we encouraged Levi to get in touch with Mr. Harchett about a sponsorship for Center for Hope. They are sorely in need of funding and it seemed like a perfect opportunity for some community goodwill for Harchett Industries.”

  “Your warning comes a little too late. I just got out of a meeting with Dr. Levi Clarke.” Kat dropped her feet to the floor and wiggled her sore toes. “Why in the world didn’t you tell me Levi had his doctorate? I didn’t even realize he’d finished a bachelor’s degree.”

  “You’d know these things if you’d allow me to bring up his name once in a while or bothered to come to our house when he’s here.” Brenna’s hurt carried through the phone line loud and clear. “We missed you at the party mom and dad hosted for us two weeks ago. Everyone was there, except you.”

  “Brenna,” Kat sighed, reluctant to delve into another discussion about how hard it was for her to be around Levi. “We’ve gone over this a million times and I’m not willing to make it a million and one. However, you should have given me fair warning about the sponsorship and a hint about Levi. Good gracious, girl! What’s he done to himself?”

  “Done to himself? What are you talking about?”

  Kat picked up a file and fanned her suddenly warm face. “Those glasses make him look like a sexy professor and he was wearing a tailored navy suit that made him… made me…”

  Brenna’s laughter didn’t help matters. “Made you what, Kat? Want to kiss him? Run your fingers through his hair? Take off those glasses and…”

  “Enough!” Kat grinned as Brenna continued to laugh. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you schemed the whole thing on purpose, Brenna McCrae. Shame on you! How could you torture your best friend like that?”

  “I’m not trying to torture you, Kat. Besides, I had no way of knowing you’d run into Levi, or be stuck serving as the company contact, or that he’d dress to impress. What did you expect him to do? Show up in cargo shorts and basketball shoes?”

  “Well, it would have seemed more like the Levi I remembered.”

  Kat could hear the amusement in Brenna’s voice when she spoke. “And what do you remember about Levi? The strength of his arms, his teasing kisses, the way he wrapped…”

  “Stop right there! Besides running into him, it’s been a perfectly awful day. You wouldn’t believe the morning I had before the meeting.” Kat relayed the disastrous events leading up to spilling her coffee all over Levi. Brenna laughed so hard, Kat worried she might rupture something.

  “Don’t you have a baby who needs your attention?” Kat smiled as she thought of Brock and Brenna’s newborn. He was adorable and Kat relished every opportunity to cuddle him since she never planned to have any children of her own. Husbands and babies didn’t fit into her plans for a corporate career, no matter how much her heart wished otherwise.

  “As a matter of fact, I do, but I’m here for you anytime, Kat. Why don’t you come visit us this weekend? We’d love to have you.”

  “I’ll think about it. Thanks, Brenna. I’ll talk to you soon.”

  Kat felt marginally better after speaking to Brenna. She buzzed Molly, asking her to come to her office.

  “Would you please pick up a new white dress shirt for Dr. Clarke?”

  Molly gave her a confused look.

  Kat sighed. “I kind of spilled coffee all over his.

  “What size should I get?” Molly smirked as she stood in the doorway of Kat’s office.

  Surprised she’d remembered, Kat jotted down Levi’s size on a piece of paper and held it out to Molly.

  A memory of going with him the day he and Mike tried on tuxedos for Brock and Brenna’s wedding resurfaced. At the time, she’d made note of the breadth of his shoulders, admiring how good he looked dressed up. Even if she never admitted it to anyone, she preferred to see him dressed down, ready to play ball with the kids at the center, than wearing a suit.

  “Do you want me to deliver it?” Molly took the paper from Kat’s fingers, eyes twinkling with humor. “Perhaps I should give him a message. Ask him if he’s interested in a clandestine meeting with you in the parking garage over lunch?”

  In spite of her irritation with her nosy receptionist, Kat laughed. “That won’t be necessary. Brenna claims I can find romance in a paper bag, but you’ve got me beat hands down, Molly. Please run over to Nordstrom’s and purchase a white shirt for Levi, to replace the one I ruined. Ask to have it delivered. That’s it. No special notes or covert meetings.”

  “Got it, boss lady.” Molly grinned as she stepped out the door. “But I’d be more than happy to…”

  “Molly!” Kat heard the girl’s laughter as the door shut. She shook her head and returned to the project on her desk. More than enough work would keep her putting in overtime without the additional responsibilities of what Mr. Harchett had planned for the holidays.

  Chapter Three

  “Not today, not today, not today,” Kat chanted as she glanced down at the hot chocolate seeping into her cream-colored blouse.

  That morning, she’d awakened to gloomy, drizzly clouds that chilled her to the bone.

  While she wished she could curl up at home on her couch with a soft blanket and a good book, she instead dressed in a charcoal gray suit and her favorite blouse. For a pop of color, she added red heels and a scarf then hurried to work.

  In need of a break and an opportunity to stretch her legs that afternoon, she walked down the block from the office and purchased a small hot chocolate. Only one sip of the sweet, warm liquid slid past her lips to delight her tongue before a jostle from behind dislodged the lid from the cup.

  The beverage spilled down the front of her. The scarf she didn’t care about but the silk blouse had been a Christmas gift from her grandmother right before she passed away. She always felt closer to the dearly loved woman when she wore it.

  “Sorry, lady. My bad.” A young man on a skateboard shrugged as he took his cup of chocolate and continued on his way.

  “Your bad, indeed,” Kat mumbled as she accepted the handful of napkins the vendor gave her and frantically wiped at the stain on her shirt.

  Yesterday, as she took part in a conference call during lunch with Mr. Harchett and her grandfather to discuss the Center of Hope sponsorship, she’d spilled salad dressing all over herself. The mere mention of Levi turned her into a nervous wreck. She’d changed into the spare blouse and suit she kept in her office and hadn’t brought back a replacement outfit.

  A glance at her watch confirmed she didn’t have time for a shopping excursion before she needed to leave for her meeting with Levi.

  Resigned to wearing her chocolate-stained blouse, Kat hurried back to her office. Molly’s eyes grew wide as she watched her step off the elevator.

  “What’s with you? That’s like the fourth blouse you’ve trashed in the last two weeks. I’ve never known you to be such a klutz.”

  “Thank you for pointing out the obvious, Miss Helpful.” Kat stormed in
to her office and tossed the scarf down on her desk. She dug through a drawer and unearthed a box of pre-treated wipes that promised to remove even the toughest stains. Ripping open a packet, she swabbed at her blouse, waiting for the huge brown spot to disappear.

  When it didn’t, she sank onto the edge of her desk and sighed. Molly stood with her arms akimbo, shaking her head. “You don’t have enough wipes in that whole box to get that stain out. Take it off and I’ll run it down to the cleaners before the stain permanently sets.” Molly held out her hand and wiggled her fingers in Kat’s direction.

  “I’d love to do that, but I’m out of extra blouses and I’ve got to leave in five minutes for a meeting across town.” Kat pulled the cold, sticky fabric of her shirt away from her skin and glared at it again.

  “Well, you’ll definitely leave an impression, not to mention freeze if you wear that. In case you haven’t noticed, the wind has picked up and it’s starting to rain.”

  “I noticed.” Kat grimaced as she turned to look out her office window at the droplets streaming down the glass. “Believe me, I noticed.”

  Molly looked at her for another moment then rushed out to her desk. She returned with a bag from one of the trendy teen stores Kat hadn’t frequented since she was seventeen. Quickly pulling out a T-shirt, she handed it to Kat with a big grin. “Put that on. At least it’s dry.”

  Hesitant, Kat accepted the shirt and held it out in front of her. “For Pete’s sake, Molly! I can’t wear that. Are you crazy?”

  “Maybe,” Molly grinned, “but you are out of both time and options, boss lady.”

  Kat marched into her bathroom, removing her suit jacket and stained blouse. She yanked on the T-shirt, wondering for which of Molly’s younger sisters the gift was intended.

  The T-shirt clung to her like a second skin, but that was the least of her worries. The flirty faces of the group One Direction tormented her in the mirror’s reflection.