The Bad Boy’s Secret Santa (Christmas in Alpine Valley #9)

Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

ELI

“This is such a generous donation,” Linda, the director of the local animal shelter gushes. Her smile stretches her cheeks as she stares at the check in disbelief. I may have gone a little overboard, but animals have always held a special place in my heart. Every single one here deserves to find their forever home, and hopefully this donation will help that process along. “Are you sure about this?”

“If I could adopt them all, I would.” I catch Piper’s surprised expression. I never had a pet growing up because Roy wouldn’t allow animals in his house. And once I left Alpine Valley, I didn’t have an ounce of stability those first few years. It wasn’t a fair environment to bring a furry companion into. Maybe, once we’re settled in the city, we can adopt one together. “Will this be enough?”

“It’s more than enough,” Linda reassures. “Will you hang on a moment? I need to grab Jenny so she can take a picture.”

“A picture?”

“This will be front page news!” Linda’s gone before I can adamantly oppose the attention I do not want. I suppose I’ll be long gone before the story actually runs. Maybe I should just go with it.

“Just how much was that check, anyway?” Piper’s suspicion is warranted. Although Roy did stash several thousand dollars away over the years, it wasn’t as much as I’ve let Piper believe. We burned through my inheritance on day three of giving money away.

“Does it matter?”

“And since when are you an animal guy?” Piper teases, nudging me with her elbow. The scent of her peppermint shampoo momentarily overpowers the strong wet dog smell. When we arrived, the pups had just come in from a very snowy recess. My coat will likely need to be dry-cleaned, but I don’t mind.

“You have something against that?”

“What? No. I just…I don’t remember you ever mentioning that you wanted a pet. Like ever .”

“I kept a lot to myself back then,” I admit.

The somber expression on Piper’s face makes me immediately regret my word choice. I still owe her an explanation for why I left, but I promised Wilma I’d let her talk to Piper first. I put an arm around Piper, tugging her against me. My entire body pulses with electricity at the proximity.

“Eli,” she says, flickering her blue gaze up to mine.

“Yeah?”

She stares at my lips, wetting her own. I wonder if they still taste like peppermint and coffee. Her palm slides beneath the open flap of my coat, the heat of her touch searing right through my shirt. My cock has been half hard since I left her apartment yesterday morning, the taste of her on my tongue.

“I know about?—”

“Where should we stand?” Linda’s cheerful, booming voice shakes us from our moment. Moments we’ve been having a lot lately. Moments that remind me I’ve never stopped loving Piper Stanton. Moments that promise this is finally our time. Christmas morning, I’m asking her to run away with me again. But this time, I’m going to give her the life she deserves. This time, I’m going to get it right.

“Over there,” Jenny directs. “With the sign behind you.”

I hardly notice the whirlwind of action happening in the reception room or the dog cradled in my arms until it licks me on the cheek. The flash of a cell phone camera snapping dozens of pictures is little more than a minor distraction as I feel the heat of Piper’s hand on my bicep.

“We can’t thank you enough, Mr. Winchester.”

“Eli, please.”

“We normally hold an adoption event at the tree lighting ceremony each year. It’s one of our most successful events. Never had a pet returned. Not once. It’s like a special form of Christmas magic.” Her expression falls as she takes the pup from my cradled arms. Did I hold on a little tighter than I meant to? Maybe. “But it was cancelled this year, and we didn’t have the fund?—”

“Cancelled?” I repeat, feeling like someone stole the breath right out of my lungs. It can’t be cancelled. The annual tree lighting was the last happy memory I had with Piper. We went together—and admittedly missed the actual lighting of the tree because we were making out like our lives depended on it. That was the night I was supposed to come for her. The night Wilma stopped me from ruining her life. Anytime I’ve thought back on my time in Alpine Valley, the tree lighting ceremony is the fondest memory I have of this little town. If it’s really gone… it feels as though I’ve been robbed.

“You okay?” Piper whispers to me.

I thought it was odd that there’d been no official announcement of the event. That the tree in the town park was still bare of decorations. Typically flyers would be plastered all over town, even days after it happened. If I’d only known sooner…

“Guess there was a lack of funding this year,” Jenny says with a disappointed shrug.

“Who’s in charge of that?” My demand causes the women to jump, and I immediately soften my tone. “Of the funding?”

“The mayor, I guess,” Linda says.

I grab Piper by the hand and hurry for the door. “We have another stop to make.”