Colorado Christmas (11 page)

“Do you mind?” he asked.

“Of course not. I was getting tired of stepping on the toes of the best dancer in Spruce Lake.”

“He told you about that?”

“Uh-huh,” she said and watched as Will settled Miss Patterson in a chair and went to get her some refreshments. “Although I think he was bragging because, so far, you haven’t put a foot wrong.”

Matt laughed and admitted, “I hated going to dance lessons. But now that I’m older, I’ve realized Mom had some good ideas, after all.”

“Miss Patterson looked decades younger when she was dancing with you.”

He gave her one of his rare smiles. “We have a permanent arrangement for at least one dance at any gathering. Have you enjoyed yourself today?”

“Very much. Your brother turned out to be quite the organizer.” She scanned the room and saw Will dancing with his mother.

“He’s half in love with you. You know that, don’t you?”

That effectively brought her attention back to Matt. “I’m sure you’re wrong.” Attraction, maybe.
Love?
Impossible.

“Oh, I’m quite sure I’m right.” He moved her into a quick spin, unsettling her further.

When she’d regained her equilibrium, she said, “Then perhaps it wasn’t such a good idea hiring him to look after Nicolas.”

“Why not?”

“Because we’ll end up spending a lot of time together.”

“And the problem with that would be?”

“I need to maintain a semblance of decorum. If anyone were to think I was involved in a
relationship
with an employee of mine, I’d lose the respect of those I serve.”

When the song ended, Matt ordered two beers and handed her one. “Will would never seek to undermine your position. I only told you how he felt about you so you wouldn’t inadvertently break his heart.”

Becky nearly choked on her beer. “Break
his
heart? I’ll bet your brother’s left a trail of broken hearts in his wake.”

“Then you’d lose the bet. For all his faults, Will’s never been a player.” Matt downed the rest of his beer. “Would you excuse me? I can see that a certain niece of mine would like to dance with me again.”

“Of course,” she said and watched as Matt headed toward Sasha, hands outstretched, then twirled her onto the dance floor.

She was both touched and impressed by the gentlemanly manners of the O’Malley men.

“Can I buy you another?”

Startled out of her musings, she turned to find Will behind
her. The man moved as silently as a cat. She gave him her half-finished beer. “No, thank you. I seem to have drunk too much coffee and beer and eaten nothing all day.”

He gulped down her beer, then said, “Let’s go see what’s left of the barbecue.”

She glanced at Nicolas, wondering if she should leave him unsupervised.

Will guessed her thoughts. “He’ll be fine with his new best friends,” he said. “The girls will take him back to the house when they’re done here.”

Becky sent him a grimace of apology. “I need to loosen up, don’t I?” She allowed Will to help her into her coat as they walked out of the barn.

“Uh-huh.” With his hand on the small of her back, he directed Becky toward one of the barbecue stalls.

“I hope I’ll be able to rely on you to ease some of my stress regarding Nicolas’s care during the holidays.”

“Easy is my middle name,” he said with a grin. “I’m looking forward to getting to know the little guy. He can help me with some campaigning, too, if you don’t have any objection.”

“As long as he’s safe.” She paused, considering whether she should suggest something that was important to her. “And it wouldn’t hurt if you could offer him some intellectual stimulation. I don’t want him falling behind just because it’s the holidays.”

“You really don’t give up, do you?” he said, exchanging some tickets for a couple of brisket sandwiches. “The reason they have
holidays
is so their brains can recuperate from all that learning.” When Becky was about to object, he held up his hand. “Don’t worry, boss. In addition to being the best dancer in Spruce Lake, I also possess—thanks to all my world travel—a superior knowledge of geography. Would some
intellectual stimulation
along those lines suit you?”

Becky grinned up at him, choosing to ignore his good-natured boasting. “That would be quite acceptable.”

“Plus, I’ll teach him to ski.”

“I haven’t agreed to that.”

“And swim like a fish.”

Becky bit into the sandwich and sighed with pleasure. She chewed and swallowed.

“Nicolas has high expectations of himself. The girls mentioned school swim meets and other competitive things. If he fails at them, I’m concerned it’ll damage his self-esteem.”

“Point taken. However, I have no intention of pushing Nick to compete. This is about learning skills that will benefit him for the rest of his life. I think the fact that Nick’s so smart more than makes up for any physical limitations he has on the playing field.”

T
HAT NIGHT, LYING
in bed, Becky replayed the day’s events in her mind. It was long past midnight but, as usual, sleep eluded her.

What had she gotten herself into? She could only pray Will’s resolve was greater than hers, because all she wanted was to feel his arms around her again, his body pressed against hers. And more than anything, his heart-melting kisses.

“Will!” Nicolas exited the elementary school building with a shout of welcome that told Will how much the little guy was looking forward to seeing him.

“Hey, Nick! How’re you doin’, buddy?”

“I’m fine, now that you’re here!”

Will ruffled his red hair and wondered why he hadn’t figured Nick was Becky’s son earlier. He put it down to subtle differences—Becky’s hair was dark red and curly, while Nick’s was light red and straight. Becky’s eyes were green; Nick’s were blue. Becky had tiny freckles sprinkled across her nose, while Nick’s face was completely covered in great big happy orange splotches that pretty much matched his hair color.

Coupled with his leg braces, that could make him a target for bullies. Frank had told him about the incident on the school grounds the day Will had first met Nick. He hadn’t realized it was so bad.

A couple of the bigger boys came by. “Nicolas Ridiculous!” they sang, and Nick leaned into Will as if seeking protection. When they noticed Will, they fell silent.

“Hey. What did you call my buddy?” he asked their leader, a solid kid with a crew cut and no neck.

The kid avoided looking Will in the eye. He shuffled his feet. “Ah, nothin’. I was talkin’ to someone else.”

Will glanced around. “Someone else around here called Nicolas?”

The kid’s lips thinned. Obviously he didn’t care for being challenged by someone bigger than he was.

“You got some problem with my buddy here?” Will pressed.

“Nah.”

“Good. Because I wouldn’t like to hear he’s being bullied. Only cowards pick on little kids. Don’t they?”

The boy shrugged, looking for an escape. Another big kid came by and he slid behind him, raced down the front path and out the gate.

Will studied Nick’s pinched face, worried about the effect all the bullying was having on him. “Who’s that?” he asked.

“Johnny Cooper,” Nick murmured, not meeting his eyes.

Will put one hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “How often does he do that?”

“Nearly every day.”

“Maybe he won’t now he knows you’ve got a buddy bigger than him.”

“Really?” Nick’s face shone with relief, and Will felt the release of tension in his shoulders.

To take Nick’s mind off the other kid, he said, “Let’s hit the pool and then we’ll go over to Rusty’s Grill for a burger, okay? I’ll give Luke a call and see if the girls can join us.” He held up his hand for a high five and Nicolas slapped it with his.

“Yeah!” Nick cried, his boyish enthusiasm returning.

The kid was endearing. How could anyone pick on someone like him? It just wasn’t right.

Will took Nick’s small hand and squeezed it for reassurance as they headed across the road to the rec center. “Your mom’s asked me to take over morning duties with you, too, since she’s so busy with all the tourists on DUI charges.”

“Wow! That’s so cool!” Nicolas was almost jumping out of his skin with excitement.

Will couldn’t help smiling.

R
USTY’S WAS FESTOONED
with Christmas decorations, complete with a miniature mountain railway scene the children admired as they ate their burgers. As Will observed the three of them, he wondered again why Becky would isolate Nick by moving him up several grades. Surely it was more important to have friends your own age than to be
challenged
all the time? And bullied…

After dropping the girls back at the ranch, they went home to Becky’s.

“You two look as though you’re plotting something.”

Becky’s voice caught them by surprise. They were sitting on the sofa, engrossed in one of Will’s ski magazines, and hadn’t noticed her arriving home.

“Will said he can teach me to ski like these guys, Mom!”

Becky chewed on her lip. “Will he be safe?”

“We’ll stay on the children’s learner slopes where they’re protected from other skiers. And he’ll have a helmet.”

Knowing she had to learn to trust someone else with her son, she said, “All right. But
please
be careful.”

“Yay! I’m gonna learn to ski!” Nicolas cried and jumped off the sofa. Both Becky and Will automatically reached out to steady him in case he fell.

Will said, “I’d better be going. I’ll see you both at seven sharp.” From tomorrow on, he’d get there in time to prepare Nick’s breakfast and take him to school.

“Can you stay for dinner, Will? I want to show you my computer games and stuff,” Nick begged.

“He might have made other plans, honey.”

“I’d love to, champ,” Will said and turned to Becky. “What have you got in mind?”

She looked up from unpacking her briefcase. “What I had in mind was takeout. I’ve been so busy at work, I haven’t had a chance to shop for groceries.”

Will took a good long look at Becky and saw the dark smudges beneath her eyes. He experienced a twinge of conscience for not having considered how little time she must have to herself. The town was brimming with tourists and the court would be busy.

He’d been critical of her for not spending more time with Nick. But she was juggling a career and being a single mother, which couldn’t be easy, especially in a new town with no backup support. That was partly the judge’s fault because she tended to cut herself off from the community, but with his help, things would be easier on her and Nick from now on. Will sure intended to make his hours with Nicolas count for something. “Then come to the ranch with me,” he said. “Mom loves a crowd.”

“We couldn’t possibly.”

“Yes, we can, Mom,” Nicolas cried. “Please, please,
please
can we go? Grandma Sarah asked us to dinner when we were there today.” He looked from his mother to Will. “Will Matt be there, too?”

Will smiled. The little guy had really taken a shine to his big brother. “Uh-huh. And Jack.”

“Cool!” Nicolas headed for the stairs. “I’m gonna get changed.”

“He’s been to the ranch today?”

“The girls joined us at Rusty’s for burgers after his pool session. I dropped them at home,” he explained.

“If you’re sure it’s okay with your folks?”

Will called his mom, telling her he was bringing two more for dinner.

“She wants to speak to you,” he said, holding out the phone.

F
IVE MINUTES LATER,
Becky hung up. Dressed warmly, Nicolas was waiting impatiently at the front door.

“Your mother is an extremely persuasive woman,” she told him. “I said yes, but I’d like to bring her something.”

“We can stop by Mrs. C.’s and get some flowers if you want.”

Becky smiled. “That’s a lovely idea. But won’t she have closed by now?”

“Not for me. I live there.” He opened the door and Nicolas hobbled along the front path in his awkward gait, eager to get to the ranch.

She placed her hand on Will’s. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for Nicolas. He’s…a different child with you around.”

She noticed that he seemed lost for words—an uncharacteristic reaction, at least in her experience. “My pleasure,” he murmured.

As it turned out, they didn’t stop at the florist’s. Will spotted Frank’s Caddy parked in the lane beside the shop and suggested they come back another time.

On the way to Two Elk, he filled Becky in on Frank and Edna’s love story. She was enchanted by his genuine caring for the older couple and his hope that they’d rekindle their love for each other.

Dinner at the ranch was a noisy affair. Nicolas and the girls were excited about being together again and kept up an incessant chatter. The rest of the O’Malleys didn’t seem at all fazed by the noise as dishes were passed around the table and everyone carried on conversations. Sarah was obviously in her element, surrounded by grandchildren and by four of her five sons, eagerly wolfing down the food she’d prepared and complimenting her on it. The scene was the archetypal American family—the family she’d dreamed of having herself. The dream that hadn’t come to pass…

That night, even though she was bone tired with exhaustion, Becky couldn’t sleep. She punched the pillow again and rolled over to lie flat on her back, staring at the ceiling, but Will’s face smiled down at her in all its dimpled glory.

What was it with the guy? By all rights she should be more attracted to Matt. He was stable, responsible, clean-cut, perhaps a little stuffy…

That gave her pause. Did people see
her
as stuffy? Had she, by trying to appear so respectable, left behind the girl in her? For that matter, had there ever really been a “girl” in her? For as long as Becky could remember, she’d been serious and responsible. She’d had to be, since her parents certainly weren’t.

Maybe it was time to put all that behind her….

I
N HIS APARTMENT ABOVE
Mrs. C.’s shop, Will was also having trouble sleeping. After dinner, Matt had taken him aside and told him about Johnny Cooper.

Johnny’s dad beat his mom, and the police were regularly called to the Cooper house by the neighbors.

“Johnny’s a bully because his father is. The only way the kid feels he has any control over his life is by bullying others,” Matt had said.

The situation was pretty much as Will had guessed. Unfortunately, the one most affected by Johnny’s unsociable behavior was Nick.

He needed to build Nick’s self-confidence and put an end to Johnny’s bullying. But how?