Wednesday night was a charity fund-raiser with an auction of ornaments painted by celebrities. Duncan bought a beautiful tree done by Dolly Parton. For Lawrence, he claimed, but Annie wondered if he might have a little crush on the singer himself. Tonight was a dinner at the Getty Museum in Malibu. Duncan was picking her up at five, which meant she had to be home no later than four so she could get ready. She was nearly on time, a positive sign. Then she felt the telltale uneven thudding that signaled another flat tire.

“No!” Annie yelled, slapping her steering wheel. “Not tonight. It’s not a good time.” Although she couldn’t think when a better time might be. She was always running somewhere.

She pulled into a mini-mart parking lot and got out of her car. The sun blazed down on her. It might be December everywhere else, but in L.A. it felt like August.

She walked around her car. Sure enough, the right front tire was flat. She had a spare and a jack. She even knew how to change the tire. Assuming she could get the lug nuts unfastened.

She glanced at her watch, groaned at the time, then reached for her cell phone. No way she was going to be ready by five.

Seconds later the call was picked up. “Mr. Patrick’s line.”

“Annie McCoy for Duncan.”

“Of course, Ms. McCoy. I’ll put you right through.”

“Another crisis?” Duncan asked when he took the call.

“Yes. I have a flat tire. I’ll be a little late. Do you want me to meet you there?”

“You need new tires.”

She stared at the worn treads and rolled her eyes. “Obviously. I’ll get them. I’ve been saving. In another two months I’ll have enough.”

“It’s nearly the rainy season. You need them before then.”

Probably, but no amount of needing brought in more money each month. She rubbed her temple, feeling the exhaustion creep into her bones. She’d been out late every night this week and still had to get up early for school. Fifteen five-year-olds kept her running all day. The last thing she needed was Duncan stating the obvious.

“I appreciate the heads-up,” she said, trying not to sound as annoyed as she felt. “Look, it’s hot, I’m tired. Just tell me what you want me to do.”

“Let me buy you the tires.”

“No.” She drew in a breath. “No, thank you.”

“You’re supposed to be where I say, when I say. If new tires are required to get you there, then you’ll get new tires.”

“That is not a part of our deal,” she told him, angry and sad at the same time. “You’re not buying me tires. You’re not buying me anything else. The freezer was too much, and I’ve already accepted that.”

“Why are you mad?”

“I just am.” She wanted to get out of the sun and heat. She wanted to curl up somewhere and sleep for two days. But mostly she didn’t want to be Duncan Patrick’s charity case.

“Annie? Talk to me.”

“I don’t have anything to say. I’ll meet you there. I know how to change a tire. It won’t take long.”

He was silent. Worry replaced annoyance.

“Duncan, I’m sorry I snapped. I know this is part of our deal. I’m not backing out of it.”

“Is that what you think? That after all this time, I would pull your brother out of rehab and toss him in jail?”

“No, but…”

“Which means yes.”

“It means I owe you. I’m just crabby. It’s hot, I’m tired. Let me get home and dressed and I’ll be better.”

“No,” he said. “Just go home. You’ve got the Christmas play at school tomorrow night. You have to be rested for that.”

“Winter festival,” she corrected.

“Right. Because everyone is fooled.”

“Exactly.” Her bad mood faded a little. “I want to come to the party.”

“No, you don’t. Go home. Rest. It’s okay.”

She could take a bath, she thought wistfully. Sip some wine from the box. “Really?”

“Yes. About the tires…”

She groaned. “Don’t make me have to hit you the next time I see you. I have a great jab.”

“You have a sad excuse for a jab. It would be like being attacked by a butterfly.”

Probably true, she thought. “You’re not buying me tires.”

“What if I set up an employee discount? I buy a lot of tires for my trucks. I have a service bay here. If it was available to everyone who worked here, would you use it?”

She would guess a lot of Patrick Industries employees would appreciate the discount as much as she would. For the greater good, she told herself. “After I see the announcement in writing.”

“You’re a tough negotiator.”

“I spend my day dealing with five-year-olds. I have skills.”

“I can see that. Are you okay changing the tire? I could send someone.”

“By the time he got here, I’d be finished. I’ve done this before.”

“Call me when you get home so I know you’re okay.”

The request stunned her. “Um, sure. I will.”

“Okay. Bye.”

“Bye.”

She pressed the end button to disconnect the call, then walked around to the trunk where the jack and spare waited.

Suddenly it wasn’t nearly as hot as it had been and she wasn’t tired anymore. Duncan wanted her to let him know she was all right. He worried about her. Maybe it wasn’t much, but as it was all she had, she was going to hang on to it with both hands.

Friday evening, Annie checked to make sure all her students were in their white men’s T-shirts, with the fabric wings sewn on the back. Glitter-covered cardboard halos bounced over the five-year-olds’ small heads. Once everyone was accounted for, she took a second to glance through the edge of the thick drapes to see if Duncan had arrived. Something she’d been doing every half minute or so since she’d arrived.

He still wasn’t there. Which was fine, she told herself. He’d said he would try to get there, which was probably a polite way of saying he wasn’t interested. It wasn’t as if they were really dating. What gorgeous single guy wanted to spend Friday night with a bunch of other people’s kids?

She held in a sigh as she backed away from the drapes. Only to bump into something warm and solid.

She turned and saw Duncan standing behind her.

“What are you doing here?” she blurted.

“You asked me to come.”

She laughed, hoping she wasn’t blushing. “No, I mean backstage.”

“I wanted to say hi before the program started. One of the moms is saving me a seat.”

Annie took in the broad shoulders, the strong features and the way he filled out his suit. “I’ll just bet she is.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Thanks for coming. You didn’t have to.”

“I wanted to see if you were still pissed.”

“I was never pissed.”

Humor brightened his gray eyes. “Now you’re lying about it.”

“I’m not. I was annoyed. There’s a difference.”

“You were pissed. You were practically screaming about the tires. Talk about shrill.”

He was teasing, which she liked a lot. Back when they’d first met, she would never have imagined it possible.

“I was calm and rational,” she told him.

“You were a girl. Admit it.”

“I could hit you right now.”

“You could and no one would notice. Especially not me.” He took her arm and led her into a shadowy alcove. “Here.” He handed her a piece of paper.

She looked at it. The sheet was a printout of a memo, detailing the new policy on discounted tires.

“Now will you get your damn car fixed?”

She stared at him, knowing that while he’d been helping her, he was also helping a lot of other people. “I will,” she said, raising herself onto tiptoes and lightly kissing him. “I promise.”

He put his arms around her and pulled her close. “Good. You’re a pain in the ass. You know that, right?”

She giggled. “Yes. You’re dictatorial. And annoying.”

They hung on to each other for several seconds. Annie loved the feel of him, the strength and heat of his body. As always, being close to him made her feel safe.

“I have to get back to my class,” she said reluctantly. “They’re wearing cardboard halos that won’t really survive very long.”

“Okay. I’ll see you after the Christmas thing.”

“Winter festival.”

“Whatever. I’ll see you.”

“Yes,” she said and watched him walk away.

She knew then that despite the fact that she’d only known him a few weeks, she was well on her way to being in love with him. He was unlike anyone she’d ever met. He was better in every way possible.

He’d promised not to ask her to be friends and she trusted him to keep his word. But he’d also promised when the holiday season was over, so was their relationship. And she knew he would keep his word on that, as well. Wishing for more wouldn’t change the outcome. Duncan had told her once that, in his life, somebody always won and somebody always lost. This time, she had a bad feeling the loser would be her.

Monday morning Duncan walked into his office to find a plate of cookies on his desk. They were covered in holiday plastic wrap and there was a handwritten note attached.

Dear Mr. Patrick,

Thank you so much for the new tire discount you announced on Friday. I’m a single mom with three kids and money is always tight. I’ve needed new tires for a while now and simply couldn’t afford them. The discount means safer driving for my family.

I’ve always enjoyed working for Patrick Industries. Thank you for giving me another reason to be proud of my place of employment.

Have a wonderful holiday season.

Sincerely,

Natalie Jones

Accounts Payable

Duncan had no idea who the woman was or how long she’d worked for the company. He unwrapped the cookies and bit into one. Chocolate chip. His favorite.

Still chewing, he crossed to the windows overlooking the six-story atrium in the center of the building. He could see people coming in to start their week. People he’d never bothered to get to know.