Dougie - One and a half years earlier
Afestive spirit encompassed the room as the music filled the air. Smiles flashed like rays of sunlight and laughter rang out more than once as groups of people found humor in shared stories. It was a perfect night. Chance had decided to celebrate Valentine’s Day a little differently this year, and while Dougie didn’t know how it would end up, it seemed to be a hit so far. He just hoped his name would end up paired with Holly’s, the woman across the room with dark hair and alabaster skin.
She was a vision, and he could not keep his eyes off her. Holly was Merribeth’s best friend, and though Dougie had met her a few years ago at Chance and Merribeth’s wedding, he didn’t remember her making much of an impression. Tonight, however, she stole the show, as far as he was concerned. The red dress she wore fit like a glove, and her hair, twisted up in an elegant style with just a few tendrils escaping, accentuated her long, slender neck and shoulders.
“You should go ask her to dance,” Chance said, nodding at Holly. Chance had always been good at discerning people’s thoughts. He wasn’t a mind reader by any means, but he was a master at reading moods. It was just one of the many things that made him an amazing manager.
Dougie rubbed his hands down his jacket in an effort to wipe the thin sheen of sweat away. “I don’t know. Do you think it’s a good idea? She barely knows me.”
Chance shook his head and clapped a hand on Dougie’s shoulder. “I wouldn’t have suggested it if I didn’t. Look at this way, it’ll give you a chance to get to know her before the drawing. That way if she gets paired up with someone else, at least you’ve made an impression. Make it memorable. In a good way.”
Dougie chuckled, but that was actually what he was afraid of. What if he put himself out there but she did get paired up with someone else? And what if she fell for that someone else? It wasn’t like he saw her all the time, but they shared the same friends. It would be hard to avoid her if he had to. Chance was right though. You never land the jump you don’t take. That’s what his Army instructor had drilled into him. He certainly wasn’t going to have a chance if he didn’t take a leap. “Okay, you’re right. Wish me luck.”
“You don’t need it,” Chance said. “Just go show her the big teddy bear you are.”
Dougie pulled back his shoulders and made his way over to Holly, trying to calm his racing heart on the way.
“Hey, Holly, you look beautiful.” He could hear the slight tremor in his normally deep, booming voice, but it was slight. Hopefully, she wouldn’t notice. He was used to presenting the epitome of cool, calm, and collected — it was a necessary part of his job as head of security — but he was not used to the way he was feeling inside right now, jittery and nervous like a teenager with his first crush. In fact, he didn’t think he’d been this nervous with his actual first crush. Holly was by no means the first woman he’d noticed, but it had been quite some time since one had grabbed his attention, and she held his attention like a siren guiding a ship in.
She smiled up at him. “Thanks, Dougie, you look pretty Gucci yourself.”
Gucci. The thought made him smile. It was a slang word for handsome that might sound off coming from Merribeth’s mouth, but Holly could pull it off. “Thank you.” He was glad he’d worn the full suit because he felt the jacket made him look slimmer, a feat since he was no small man. Most of it was compact muscle that made him look like a tank, and made buying shirts a hassle, but he’d put on a few pounds of fluff as well. The holidays always did that to him as a plethora of delectable treats that he couldn’t say no to would appear in the staff lounge beginning in late November and continuing all through December. Every year he told himself he wouldn’t eat as many and every year he failed, and while his New Year’s Resolution revolved around more exercise, by Valentine’s Day, it had been forgotten too.
“Would you care to dance?” He held out his hand and relished the tingle that ignited his fingers when she placed her much smaller palm in his.
“I’d love to.” Her smile was like a ray of sunshine.
This was where he knew he had an edge. His size did not keep him from moving with grace on the dance floor, and he saw the surprise on Holly’s face when he moved her effortlessly around the room. She fit in his arms perfectly as if she was made to be there. No one had done that for a long time.
She narrowed her eyes at him and tilted her head, studying him. “You’ve done this before.”
“Maybe a time or two.” He hoped she couldn’t feel his heart pounding in his chest, and he grappled for a conversation starter. He knew Holly owned a restaurant and catered for many of the events around town, but he didn’t know much else about her. Something he hoped to remedy. “So, are you excited for this Valentine’s Day?”
Her lips pursed into an adorable pout as she thought. “Well, the restaurant is generally packed on Valentine’s Day, so I don’t have a lot of time to even think about it. Which I guess is good since I haven’t had anyone to celebrate with for a while. Hence why I’m here.” She shrugged a slender shoulder. “Well, actually, I’m here because Merribeth dragged me here, but you know what I mean.” She looked up at him. “What about you?”
He chuckled at the similarity of their stories. “And here I thought I was the only one arm-twisted into coming here. Can’t really say no to your friend when he’s also your boss, but I used to love Valentine’s Day. Unfortunately, like you, I haven’t had a reason to celebrate it in a while. Maybe that will change tonight.” He held her gaze, hoping she understood he was talking about her.
“Maybe. Are you hoping to be paired with someone in particular?” Her question held a note of flirtation, and he thought it was mirrored in her gaze, so he decided to take a chance.
“I wouldn’t mind being paired with you.”
He waited for any sign that she didn’t feel the same, but she merely winked at him and said, “I guess we’ll soon see.”
The song ended, and the DJ took over the mic. “All right, ladies and gentlemen. It’s time for the highlight of the evening, but first a little history lesson. Tonight’s festivities were inspired by the original Valentine festival where men were paired up with a woman. However, in those days they were given whips to smack the women with because they believed it made them more fertile. There will be no whips and no smacking with this festival. One date is all that’s required. Should you choose to continue seeing each other after that, you are welcome to and we hope that many of you will, but if both parties don’t agree to another date, there can be no stalking. Right, Officer Brown?”
Dougie looked toward Micah Brown, one of the cops who had been in Courage for almost as long as he had. Micah smiled and hollered, “That’s right, no restraining orders for Valentine’s Day.”
The crowd chuckled and the DJ continued. “Now, this is not only a fun new tradition, but we are also raising money for a good cause. Please allow me to introduce Sylvia Mason, who is spearheading this.”
A curvy woman with long blonde hair joined the DJ and smiled out at the group. “Thank you, and I’m so excited that you signed up for this. All of the money raised from tonight will go to foster kids in the area and those caring for them. We are still looking for foster parents as well, so for you couples out there, let me know if that’s something you might be able to do.” She paused for a minute as she lifted two buckets up. “The blue bucket here holds our gentlemen and the pink one here holds our single ladies. I’ll be drawing one from each bucket.” Her hand disappeared into the blue bucket. “For our first pairing, we have Colton Cline and,” she paused dramatically as she drew from the other bucket, “Ashley Carmichael.”
Dougie watched as Colton, one of the other security guards, younger but solid with a head full of copper-colored hair and a smattering of freckles across his face met up with the woman he was paired up with. “They look like they might hit it off,” he whispered to Holly.
“As long as he doesn’t mind that she won’t have Valentine’s Day off. That’s my manager.”
Dougie hadn’t been in Holly’s restaurant that often, but now that she said something, the girl did look slightly familiar. “I can probably arrange for him to work that night too and we can give them a different day off. He’s one of my guys.” Though Chance was the owner of the resort, Dougie was the head of security, and he generally set the schedule for his team.
She cocked her head at him. “Are you playing matchmaker?”
He shrugged. “I’m a sucker for romance. What can I say?” At least he had been once. It had been a long time since he’d had any in his life, but he felt like he was finally ready to try again.
Sylvia called out a few more names and with each one, Dougie held his breath, hoping Holly wouldn’t be called. He could just ask her out, but being paired up felt safer. She couldn’t say no, and he could bring his “A” game.
“Next we have Frederick Dagwood and Holly Bingman.”
Dougie’s heart dropped a little as Holly stepped out to meet her date. It had been a long shot to begin with, but he’d felt sure they were going to get paired together. Who was this Frederick Dagwood anyway? He’d hoped he was just a tourist staying at the lodge, but when the man enveloped Holly in a hug and she didn’t pull away, Dougie knew he was more than that.
“Frederick Dagwood? I haven’t seen you since…”
“Cooking school,” he finished.
Dougie stepped back. “Guess I’m a little late. Again.” He’d missed his opportunity for now, but he would keep his eyes open for the next one.