Mistletoe and Montana (3 page)

“In the closet. Toward the back.”

“Thanks.” She hurried to the closet and
switched on the light. For a guy, Ben sure did have a lot of clothes. Most of
them were casual, the kinds of things a rancher would wear out on the range or
wherever it was he went, but there were two tuxedos and several sport coats.
She fingered the silvery gray wool of one of them. The color probably
complemented his sharp blue eyes to perfection. She wondered if Chrissy
Harrington had ever seen him in the coat, and had to push it aside before her
jealousy overwhelmed her.

“Oh, hi, Mrs. Gomez,” Ben said in the
bedroom. “Did my….I mean, did the kids’ mom come through her? Molly wants her
downstairs.”

Joely emerged from the closet with a
sweatshirt held in front of her to shield the fact she was only wearing a pair
of bikini panties and the shirt she’d worn beneath her sweater the day before.

“I was looking for a sweatshirt. Hope
you don’t mind.”

It only took a moment for his gaze to
scorch her body, but when he averted his eyes, she felt like she’d just walked
too close to a flame.

“That’s okay. Take whatever you want.”
He looked like he wanted to say something more, but then walked out of the
bedroom. “I’m going to make some hot chocolate for the kids,” he called. She
pulled on the sweatshirt and rushed back to her room to step into her jeans and
pull on her boots.

She found him in the kitchen, and this
time, knew better than to interfere. She perched on a stool while he brought
milk to a slow boil and added cocoa powder.

“Wow, you make it right,” she said.

“Thanks.” A slow smirk spread across his
face. “I know you’re waiting to say something.”

“No, I’m not.” She was all innocence and
smiles.

“Go on and ask me about her.”

Her heartbeat jumped, but she pretended
she was interested in the salt and pepper shakers instead. “Who? Mrs. Gomez?”

“Yeah, right.” He got four mugs out of a
cabinet and set them in front of her. “I saw your face last night when Molly
brought her up. It’s okay. You can ask. I ask you about Matt all the time.”

He’d asked once, and that was after the
first story of their dating broke on a cable entertainment show. Ben had shown
remarkable calm and restraint, considering their divorce had only finalized a
month before. It was only fair that he have a turn in being the one in the
spotlight.

“Okay. Who is Chrissy?”

“I met her when I went up to the
university two years ago to speak at graduation.”
            She wondered
if her face blanched. “Is she a student?” It wasn’t possible so much jealousy
could fill her until it threatened to explode. All the insecurities of dating
the most popular jock in the state, if not the southwest, came back as fresh as
when she was a senior in high school.

“God, no! What do you think I am, a
cradle robber?” He flushed a little. “She’s a professor. In the English
department. You’d probably like her.”

“I doubt it,” she said without thinking,
then laughed in surprise at the force of her own feelings. Fortunately, he
laughed, too. “Is it serious?”
            He shrugged,
and poured the hot chocolate into the mugs so deliberately she almost expected
to hear him make a wedding announcement.

“Not anymore. She took a job teaching in
London.”

Not anymore
. She sipped her
drink too quickly, scalding her throat in the process. “The kids met her,
apparently?”

“She came by over the summer. To say
goodbye.” He picked up two of the mugs and started walking out of the kitchen.
“Come outside. I’ll let you throw a snowball at me.”

“Aw, you don’t have to be so nice,” she
said drily, but picked up the other mugs and followed him outdoors.

Chapter 5

“So, what happened to the cover model?”

Joely continued spreading peanut butter
on several slices of wheat bread, and took a few seconds to gather her
thoughts. They had just ended their snowball fight and she’d been relieved to
come indoors and make lunch. Ben’s coming with her was a mild surprise, but she
didn’t mind.

“Didn’t you read the trash mags?”

“Must have missed them.” Ben leaned
against the opposite counter, crossing his arms over his broad chest. His biceps
strained against the flannel sleeves and she forced herself to drop her gaze to
her task. “I’m only asking because Ian seems a little upset.”

She put the top pieces of bread onto the
four sandwiches. “He really liked Matt.” Talking about him made her throat feel
funny, but she didn’t want Ben to see her discomfort. “I thought he was going
to stick around, you know?”

“Molly doesn’t seem that sad.”

All right. She’d give him something
nice. “She didn’t like him that much. She always talked about you.”

His mouth quirked into a grin, but he
stifled it. “She’s always been her daddy’s girl.”

“True.”

Were they actually having an adult
conversation that didn’t involve accusations and insults? Surprised but pleased
at this new change, she carried the platter of sandwiches to the breakfast
nook, where the wide vista of his ranch and the mountains beyond loomed like
something out of a TV cowboy movie. He carried a carton of milk and four cups
to the table, his broad fingers easily carrying them in one hand. She used to
marvel at those fingers, and had commissioned a set of portraits when the kids
were born, of Ben’s hands holding the babies, fresh, pink, and wrinkled. He’d
taken off his Superbowl ring and when she’d asked why, he’d told her that being
a father was the highlight of his life and everything else paled.

“I’m sure you’ll meet someone soon.”

He wasn’t looking at her while he spoke.
She took the opportunity of calling the kids inside for lunch to pretend she
hadn’t heard him. Call her old-fashioned, but she didn’t need encouragement
from her ex-husband.

Molly and Ian burst into the house,
laughing and panting, their cheeks and noses red. Joely helped them out of
their parkas and boots, and they washed their cold hands in the sink. “We made
a snowman, Mommy,” Molly said, pulling her chair closer to Ben’s. Ian’s
cheerful attitude seemed to have dropped, and he started eating his sandwich.

“Are you having fun in the snow, Ian?”
Joely asked, taking her seat. He shrugged. It was the only expression he seemed
to know lately.

“You don’t miss L.A., do you?”

“I don’t!” Molly exclaimed.

“It’s okay here,” he said.

She wanted to ask him about Matt, but
not with Ben sitting three feet away. “Do you want to go for a walk later? See
the horses?”

“I’ll go with Dad,” he said. Ben glanced
at her quickly, and then clapped his hand on Ian’s shoulder.

“Okay. We can ride later, if you’re up
to it.”

“Sure.” He picked at his sandwich. Joely
wanted to draw him out, but didn’t want a confrontation, especially not in
front of Ben. Maybe he was mad at her because she was staying on at the ranch
instead of going home. She was taking up valuable time he could be spending
with his dad.

The crust of bread stuck in her throat,
and she hastily drank a gulp of milk, but not before catching the quick flash
of sympathy in Ben’s eyes.

“Why don’t we all go on the snowmobiles
later?” Ben said suddenly.

Ian sputtered his milk. “Snowmobile?”
His voice squeaked.

Molly only stared at Ben. “What is it?”

“It’s like a jet ski, but on the snow.
Mommy can ride with Ian and you can ride with me.”

“I don’t know….” Joely began, but Ian
shot her a look. She sighed. “Okay, I give! But aren’t they dangerous?”

“Not if you’re coasting along at ten
miles an hour on a flat road.” His eyes sparkled. “You’re not chicken, are you,
Jellybean?”

“I can’t believe you called me that in
front of the kids.” She tried to hide her smile behind her napkin, but Molly
pointed at her and giggled.

“Jellybean Mommy!”

“Eat your sandwich.”

“Daddy, do you have a Christmas tree?”
Molly asked a few seconds later.

“We’re going to cut down our own tree,”
Ben replied. Ian’s eyebrows raised a few inches. “You both can help me.”

“Awesome,” Ian exclaimed, and Joely had
to stifle a twinge of jealousy. It was so easy for Ben. He had a natural way
about him that the kids loved. He wasn’t a big kid himself – far from it – but
seemed to know the coolest things to do and had all the cool gadgets. And
chopping down a tree – what kid didn’t want to hike through the forest like
Paul Bunyan?

“Will Santa find us here at Daddy’s
house?” Molly asked.

A finger of ice ran down Joely’s spine.
She’d forgotten all the presents! And now with the airport closed, she wasn’t
sure she could have Sarah ship them up to her.

“I’m sure he will. The reindeer have GPS
now,” Ben said.

“No, they don’t,” Ian broke in, but one
look from his dad sent him back to his lunch.

When lunch was eaten, the kids ran back
outside, but Joely lingered. “I don’t have any gifts for them,” she said
guiltily. Ben cleared off the table, his brow furrowed.

“You can share Santa duties with me,
then. I have some things for the kids.” His throat flushed, and she couldn’t
help but think how cute he looked with his blue flannel shirt and turtleneck
beneath it. His short dark hair glistened almost wetly in the reflection from
the lights, and she had to snap back and listen to what he was saying.

“That’s really nice of you. Thanks.”

He shrugged, but it wasn’t in the jerky,
noncommittal way Ian had. “No problem. We’ll go get the tree later.”

“Great.” She smiled at him, then quickly
grabbed her coat and headed outdoors before she could do or say anything else
that might imply she actually liked him.

Even though she did. And always had.

Joely ducked as a well-aimed snowball
came right at her head. Who knew that Ben Titus was such a sweet guy?

Chapter 6

“I want to show you something.” The snow
crunching beneath their boots was the only noise disturbing the serene night.
Ben had told her to dress warmly and had grabbed a handsaw as they passed the
garage.

“This isn’t going to be one of those
horrible things you see on TV where the ex chops up his wife, is it?” She was
joking, but he didn’t share her humor. Either that or he hadn’t heard her.

They climbed higher up the hill behind
the house until they were well within the woods bordering the ranch. Puffing
and out of breath, Joely leaned her hands on her knees when he stopped at last.

“What’s the matter?” Ben asked, his
voice gruff. “Don’t you go to that trainer anymore?”

She shook her head, and sucked in a cold
lungful of air, regretting it a moment later. “No, I gave him up. I haven’t
worked out in weeks.” It was really four months, but she didn’t want to tell
Ben that the reason she’d stopped working out, and going out, for that matter,
was because the income stream she’d depended on for so long was drying up. Her
show wasn’t being renewed, and she had a sinking feeling that her character
would finally be killed off.

“Well, you can’t tell. You look….” He
stopped, and she wondered if his ruddy cheeks were from the cold night air or
embarrassment. “You look just the same as when I saw you the first time.”

She snorted, and shook back her hair,
which had come out of his wool cap she’d grabbed on the way out of the house.
“I don’t look seventeen anymore, Ben, but I’ll buy you a drink for saying so.”

The corner of his mouth twitched in what
might have been a ghost of a smile. “I don’t drink anymore, but you can buy me
lunch.” He started walking again. “Come on, slowpoke. We’re almost there.”

“Where are you taking me?” Falling into
step beside him, she immediately sank into a deep pocket of snow and yelped. He
dropped the saw and grabbed both of her hands to pull her out. “So, this is
your wicked plan.”

“What plan?” He waited until she was
standing on firmer ground before releasing her gloved hands. For a moment,
she’d felt the hard pressure of his fingers around hers, and a shot of
electricity had nearly stunned her.

“You’ve lured me all the way out here so
you can….”

His blue eyes reflected moonlight off
the snow so that they were no longer blue, but silver, like the eyes of a wolf
glowing in the darkness. She forgot her joke, and it was just as well, because
he didn’t look as if he wanted to hear it.

“So I can what?”

He stepped closer, or maybe she had, she
wasn’t sure anymore. A drifting snowflake fluttered across his eyelashes and he
blinked. Before she could think, she reached up and brushed it off. His warm
breath turned to mist in the air, mingling with hers. She stared up into his
eyes, while a torrent of emotions sang through her. She remembered his joyous
shouts when his sports agent had called with the incredible news that he’d been
signed by his first big league team. Memories of happier times, when they were
first married and later, when the kids were born, rushed back.