The Christmas Catch (7 page)

“Ellen!”

“I knew it! You finally went out, didn’t you?”

“Actually, we stayed in.”

“That sounds even better! So… out with it! Is he some kind
of dynamite kisser?”

“Ellen!”

“Hmm, I see. No time for that yet. Well, no matter,
sweetheart. Goodness knows I want you to have a love life way more than the
next gal. I won’t get in your way.”

John laid three elegant place settings on the sturdy handmade
table while Carlos heckled him from nearby. “I can’t believe you’d disinvite
your best friend on earth from his favorite holiday meal.”

John wryly twisted his lips. “But you’ve always criticized
my Indian pudding.”

“That’s because it’s a little lumpy.”

“Is not!”

“Is too. Although the Cornish hens always come out well,”
Carlos added thoughtfully.

“Thanks, Carlos. You’re a pal.” Mason followed him
excitedly, repeatedly knocking his legs with a huge rawhide bone that sported a
large red ribbon on at one end. “Mason, please. Will you just
sit
?” The dog sat immediately and John
nearly tumbled over him.

Carlos smirked and got back to business. “So? Does she have
any friends?”

“You mean, mature female friends?”

“No, I mean ones her age.”

“Keep dreaming.”

“What? Women find me attractive.”

“That, my friend, is one of life’s great mysteries.”

“You’re just jealous because you can’t grow one of these,”
Carlos said stroking his beard.

“Could too. If I wanted to look like an old billy goat.”

“Hey!”

John’s cell rang and he held up a hand.

“Christine,” he said cheerfully. “Well, hello. Uh huh… Uh
huh… I see.”

He stared at Carlos, who eyed him suspiciously.

“No, I don’t think that would be a problem,” John continued
into the receiver. “In fact, it will work out fine!”

He pressed End Call and Carlos implored, palms up, “What
gives?”

John shot him an enigmatic grin. “Let’s just say it’s your
lucky day.”

Chapter Eleven

A few hours later, John opened his front door to greet the
trio, with Carlos and Mason at his side. Dusk had settled outdoors and it was
snowing once more. Christine entered first, radiantly beautiful in a red
Christmas scarf. “Welcome! Welcome to all of you,” John said, greeting
Christine with a hug. He patted Tyler on the shoulder and turned toward
Christine’s slightly senior friend. The attractive redhead was slender and fit,
with a russet glow about her. “You must be Ellen,” John said, extending his
hand.

“Professor John Steadman!” she exclaimed, pulling him into a
bear hug. She winced, the moment they made contact, her skin seemingly bruising
in the embrace. “I feel like we’re old friends.” John raised his brow at Carlos,
who repressed a grin. “Let me introduce you to Carlos Dominguez,” he said,
pulling back.

Carlos took her hand, turning on his Old World charm.
“Encantado,”
he said, laying his accent
on thick.

Ellen preened like a peacock.
“Igualmente,”
she returned in nearly flawless Spanish.

Carlos addressed Christine next. “Great to see you again.
You’re looking well.”

“Thanks, Carlos. You too. Merry Christmas,” she said with a
smile.

“Well, come on in! Come on in, everybody. In—and out
of the cold.”

The happy group strode toward the living room, Tyler with a
bundle of packages in hand. “Can I put these under the tree?” he asked, Mason
tagging along beside him.

“Under the tree’s just fine,” John said.

Before long, they were enjoying a scrumptious dinner John
had cooked completely from scratch.
Is
there no end to his talents?
Christine wondered. The ranch-style house was
tastefully decorated for a bachelor pad, with upscale artwork hung on the walls.
It was nicely done up for the holidays. A tall balsam fir nestled by the bay
window, adorned with twinkling lights and a smattering of simple, yet elegant,
ornaments. Carlos was in the midst of regaling them with business school
stories.

“And that’s when I said to Santa, ‘That wasn’t a signature
line, it was an escape clause!’”

Ellen giggled with delight. Christine swore the evening had
taken a decade off of her already youthful complexion, or perhaps it was the
bright red hue on her cheeks inspired by an overexposure to the sun. “Carlos,
what a great story. Have you ever thought of becoming a writer?”

“Oh, I’d say the folks at the business school find me
verbose enough.”

“It’s true,” John deadpanned. “We don’t want to encourage
him.”

John stood to clear the dishes and Christine got to her feet
as well.

“Let me help,” she said with a soft smile.

Ellen and Carlos exchanged glances. “We’ll come too,”
Ellen
said, as they both made an effort to stand.

“No, please,”
John
replied. “You
two stay here and keep Tyler
company
. You all done
with your food?” he asked the boy.

“Yeah, thanks! I’ve never eaten a whole chicken before.”

Adults chuckled all around as John and Christine slipped
into the kitchen.

Christine deposited dishes in the sink, thinking how much
fun she was having. John wasn’t only good in the
kitchen,
he was a great host too. “It was a wonderful dinner. You’re some kind of cook.”

“I’ve a few years to practice,” he said, carrying a platter
over.

Suddenly, they were face-to-face in the small space.

Christine froze, trapped in his gaze. He was a marvelous
man. Gracious too. “It was really nice of you to include Ellen so last-minute.”

“She and Carlos seem to be hitting it off.”

“Boy, do they ever.”

“I think it’s cute.”

“And so unexpected.”

“You certainly weren’t expecting Ellen to show up.”

“No.”

Christine searched his eyes. “Sometimes life delivers things
we don’t plan.”

“I like to think of them as pleasant surprises.” John
stepped closer, taking her in his arms just as Carlos and Ellen entered the
kitchen.

“Oops!” Ellen said.

“We were just hoping to help serve dessert,” explained
Carlos. He massaged his beard as Tyler and Mason also entered the kitchen.

“What’s going on?” Tyler asked, contorting his lips. “More
kissing
?”

Ellen and Carlos stared at each other while Christine and
John flushed.

“Actually, Tyler,” Carlos said to the child. “We were all
just thinking it’d be a good idea for some of us to go and look at that
Christmas tree.”

“Yeah, right,” Ellen piped in. “I believe there’s a package
or two with your name on it.”

Tyler’s face lit up. “Really? Whoohoo!”

As they departed, Christine heaved a sigh. “Great friends.”

“World’s best.”

“What were we saying?”

“I don’t know,” he said, drawing closer. “Something about
life’s surprises?”

And boy, hadn’t life surprised her with John. She hadn’t
realized until last night how much she cared about him. Judging by the way he’d
kissed her under the mistletoe, he had feelings for her too.

“Sometimes what we least expect is the best, don’t you
think?” she said, looking up at him. “What I mean to say is…” Christine stood a
bit straighter, gathering her courage. “John, this holiday has been great, the
best ever. I could never have imagined it happening to me, but it has.”

“What has?”

Heat swept from her temples to her toes as she locked on his
gaze. “This… us, being here with you. Having you fit in so well with
me and Tyler
. And, you know what? I’m happy, really happy,
for the first time since I don’t know when.”

John swallowed hard and stared at her blankly. This was just
what he had worried might happen. She was growing attached, more attached than
he was ready for. John had seen the signs before and they’d always sent him
running for the hills. He liked Christine, cared about her of course, but this
was sounding really heavy. He’d made a hell of a mistake with that kiss when he
would have done better to control himself. Now, she thought… Hell, he didn’t
even know what she thought. He only knew he didn’t want to think about it. “Yes,
well,” he said after a pause. “It’s been pretty terrific getting to know you
all too.”

There was an awkward silence during which they heard Ellen’s
melodious laughter from the next room. John lifted a bottle of wine from the
counter. “I’m going to see if anyone needs a refill,” he said, sounding like he
might need one himself.

Christine quickly followed after him, thinking she could use
a drink, too.

While the rest of the group seemed oblivious, Christine felt
unsettled. She’d practically spilled her guts to John, and he’d basically said—nothing.
Even now, he sat apart from her as if something were amiss. Maybe she was
letting her insecurities get the best of her. She hadn’t felt close to a man in
forever, and hadn’t even kissed anyone since Dan. And now, here she’d gone
acting like some giddy teenager engaged in her first crush. She’d probably
frightened John a little with her admission, but why wouldn’t he feel good that
he’d helped make her happy? She studied him, hands clasped at his knees as he
leaned forward with a congenial smile, watching Tyler opening his gifts. Was he
avoiding meeting her eyes, or was she imagining it?

Tyler dug into another package, Mason snoozing contentedly
at his side. “Nintendo! Oh boy! Thanks, Auntie Ellen. Mommy said I couldn’t
have one.”

Ellen shot Christine a look. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Christine said, wishing everything really
was
okay.

Carlos wrapped his arm around Ellen’s shoulder. “That’s what
Aunties are for,” he whispered gruffly, but not quietly enough so the others
didn’t hear him.

Ellen grimaced at Christine, but Christine couldn’t tell if
it was in apology or because Carlos’s embrace hurt her.

Carlos studied Ellen with concern. “Are you all right?” he
asked, lifting his arm. “Is this bothering—?”

“Not much,” she said, snuggling against him in encouragement.
“Just a touch of sunburn.”

“Maybe I can help with some cold cream later?” he said
softly in her ear.

“Oh!” Ellen responded with delighted surprise. She locked on
Carlos’s gaze and blinked. “That would be nice, very nice indeed.”

John leaned forward, lifting a small box from an end table. “Wait,”
he told Tyler, who was organizing his gifts. “There’s one more.” He glanced at
Christine, his complexion ruddy. “This one’s for the two of you.”

“Thanks,” she said, accepting the package. She felt bad that
she hadn’t brought anything for him other than a bottle of wine. But, in light
of how skittish he was acting, maybe her omission was for the best. “Ty? You
want to do the honors?”

The child grinned and slid the silky ribbon from the gift, peeling
back the wrapping. He dug in the box and extracted a tiny toboggan tree
ornament. “Look Mommy,” Tyler proclaimed. “It’s a sled! Just like we went on!”

“Just a little something for you to remember Vermont by.”

“Oh how cute,” Ellen chimed in.

Emotion welled in Christine’s throat. Of all the moments
they’d shared with
John, that
was one she’d never
forget. “It’s wonderful,” she said softly. “Thank you.”

“John took me and Mommy sledding!” Tyler informed the
others.

“So I
heard,
”
Ellen said with a knowing look.

“Does this mean we’ll get a real Christmas tree next year?”
Tyler asked.

“Christine doesn’t believe in Christmas trees,” Ellen told
Carlos.

“Really?” Carlos asked with surprise.

“That’s not true,” Christine protested. “I just haven’t gone
to the trouble these past…” Now, it was her turn to avoid John’s gaze. “…
few
years.”

“Well…” John clapped his hands together and glanced around.
“Maybe next year things will be different.”

The room was silent as all eyes fell on him. John stared
first at Carlos and Ellen, then at Tyler and Mason by the tree. Finally, he
looked at Christine. “For you, Christine. I meant, for you,” he said, his voice
cracking. He stood suddenly, sweat beads dotting his brow. “I’m going to grab
some water. Anybody else want a glass?”

“I’ll come help,” Carlos said, getting to his feet.

John leaned into the counter and took a long drink.

“What is it, amigo,” Carlos asked. “What’s wrong?”

“Suddenly, I don’t feel so hot.”

“No joke. You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

John gradually met his gaze. “I have, Carlos. The Ghost of
Christmas Future, and it’s too much. It’s all too much.”

“What’s too much?”

“
This.
Old home week.
Christine… Tyler… I just can’t do it.”

“Nobody’s asked you to do anything, other than have them to
dinner. As I recall, it was your invitation.”

“Her best friend’s here. You know they’ve been talking about
me.”

“That’s what best girlfriends do!” Carlos reassured him.
“They even weigh the merits of the UPS man, from what I hear.”

John looked Carlos in the eye. “I heard from Mary Stewart.”

“On the personnel committee?”

John nodded. “If I want it, the position’s mine.”

“That’s awesome news. Congratulations.”

“You know what this means. Long hours… extra meetings…
Honestly, it’s a good thing Christine and Tyler are going home.”

Carlos cocked his chin. “Sometimes distance doesn’t matter.”

“And sometimes it’s an excellent deterrent,” John said
firmly. “Just the right thing, at just the right time, before anyone’s in too
deep.”

Carlos shook his head with a disapproving look. “And I
thought the only chickens in this house were the ones you served for dinner.”