The Heart of Christmas Read online

  * * *

  Eve was less like Laurel than Rex had thought. She talked differently, moved differently, responded differently to the things he did. At first he feared he’d built up the similarities between the two women so much that making love to Eve wouldn’t be as satisfying as he’d hoped. But the more he touched her, the more he forgot about Laurel and the more he enjoyed exploring this new woman.

  Physically, Eve was flawless, but he hadn’t taken her to bed because of that. He was looking for something else and, even though she wasn’t Laurel, she held a certain...promise. He liked that there was no history between them, none of the turbulence that had ended up tainting his relationship with Laurel. Despite the doubts he’d caused by being so secretive, Eve treated him as though he was what he seemed to be—a professional, successful thirtysomething businessman. That gave him a sense of freedom he’d never had with his best friend’s sister. When he was with Eve, it was as if he’d never been “Pretty Boy,” as The Crew called him. As if he’d never been the kid who’d screwed up and encouraged his little brother to jump off that ledge when they were cliff-diving or the angry teen who’d turned to drugs to numb the pain of being responsible for that brother’s loss. Here, in this town, he could almost believe the image he saw reflected in Eve’s eyes, felt almost as deserving of good things as everyone else.

  “I can’t imagine the devil kissing any better than you do,” she told him.

  “That’s because the devil taught me everything I know,” he said, and nearly chuckled at the thought that she had no idea how true that statement was.

  He ran his lips over her neck, reveling in the softness of her skin.

  “What is it about me that reminds you of this other woman?” she asked.

  “Don’t talk about anyone else. I was stupid to mention it. I’m happy to be here with you.”

  “I’m curious.”

  “You smell like her. You must wear the same perfume.” Maybe that was why he’d first made the connection. Last night, he’d been too drunk to realize it was merely a familiar scent.

  “So do you want me to...to say something this woman used to say? Or...do something she used to do?”

  He lifted his head. “No. Just be yourself.” Having already removed her bra, he cupped her breast. “I like what I’m getting so far.”

  She closed her eyes and gasped softly as he lowered his head. “Then I’ll...I’ll relax and enjoy this.”

  He slid his hand down the flat plane of her stomach, searching for even more sensitive territory. “That’s all you have to do,” he said.

  8

  Eve wasn’t sure why, but as their lovemaking progressed, she became determined to make Brent forget that other woman. She didn’t want to be a fill-in for some old flame. She wanted him to remember her long after this night was over. But that meant throwing all reservations and self-consciousness aside, which wasn’t something she considered herself particularly adept at. She figured most good girls had a problem with letting loose. She could only do it this time because he didn’t really know her, and this was a one-night deal. Whether it went well or it didn’t, they would never be together again. He’d move out of the B and B and go wherever he planned to go, and that would be the end of what had started at the bar.

  She suspected it was their utter abandon that made the sex so spectacular. She wasn’t drunk, but she wasn’t feeling quite sober. She got the impression that what Brent felt wasn’t a common occurrence for him, either. The more excited she got, the more excited he got, and when they finally reached that pinnacle of pleasure, it was by far the best intimate experience she’d ever had.

  “I guess you’re good at more than kissing,” she said as he fell back onto the pillows and tried to catch his breath.

  “That was amazing,” he agreed.

  He wasn’t the type to lavish undue praise, so she assumed she could take him at his word and smiled as he curled around her.

  He dozed off immediately, but she couldn’t sleep. All she could think about was that she could be pregnant with this man’s child.

  * * *

  Eve had expected Brent to be gone by morning. He’d certainly been in a hurry to get out of her bed yesterday. But last night he’d seemed to need something beyond sex. Or else he couldn’t get enough of it, because at various points during the night when they’d both awakened, they’d made love again—and again. Now, according to her digital alarm, which was the first thing she saw when she opened her eyes, it was after ten and someone was banging on the door.

  “Eve? Are you okay? There’s a white SUV we don’t recognize at the end of the drive. Do you know who it belongs to?”

  Her father! Panic shot through her as she bolted upright. But it was still dark. Why would her clock say ten?

  Then she realized. Brent had pulled down the blinds last night—something she rarely bothered to do. She didn’t live close to anyone except her parents, and her bedroom window faced nothing but several acres of raw land.

  “Damn it,” she muttered as another knock sounded.

  “What is it?” Brent didn’t open his eyes. He brought his hand up to her breast and urged her to lie down again.

  “Eve?” her mother called.

  “Who’s that?” he mumbled, but he didn’t act particularly concerned.

  She removed his arm so she could get up. “It’s Adele and Charlie!”

  “Who?”

  “My parents!”

  He raised his head, instantly alert. “Were you expecting them?”

  “No, but they...they live in the house in front of mine. They come by whenever.”

  “And you didn’t mention that?”

  “Why would I?” she said. “I never dreamed you’d stay over!”

  “I stayed over yesterday, didn’t I?”

  “Yes, but you woke up at the crack of dawn! That’s a couple of hours before they usually roll out of bed. Besides, I didn’t have to worry about them yesterday. They were gone, traveling in that RV you probably noticed when you parked.”

  “I wondered where that came from. Figured it belonged to your neighbors. It never occurred to me that those neighbors were your parents.” He pushed himself into a sitting position and shoved a hand through his hair. “So what now?”

  “I’m not sure.” She was digging through her drawers, looking for a sweat suit to put on. “It’s not like you can hide. They’ve seen your car.”

  “We could act like we’re just friends. Like I slept on your couch...”

  “My parents know all my friends. They’ll guess the minute they see you that you’re the guy I brought home last night.”

  “You said they were gone. How did they find out about last night?”

  “I had to tell them.”

  “Why?”

  “Because they were going to hear about it, anyway.”

  “Shit!” He kicked off the covers. “Maybe I should throw on my clothes and sneak out the back.”

  “No way! That’ll make me look even worse. Just...just act as if we have some genuine interest in each other. Once you leave town, I’ll tell them you dumped me.”

  He was up and putting on his clothes but he paused long enough to cast her a dubious frown. “And if you’re pregnant?”

  “They’ll be glad. They want grandkids.”

  “They’ll be pissed!” he corrected. “They’ll want me to marry you!”

  “And I’ll tell them you gave me a number that’s disconnected but you left me some money.”

  “Oh, fuck...”

  She almost laughed in spite of their predicament. “Why does it matter what they think of you?” she asked. “After today, you’ll never see them again.”

  “Eve, are you there?” her mother called.

  Her father quickly followed up with, “We’re coming in!”

  “No, wait!” she called back. “Give us a minute!”

  “Us?” Brent echoed, clearly unhappy.

  “It’s not my fault we slept in.”

/>   “It’s mine?”

  “You pulled down the blinds! You can suffer through a few minutes with them. All you have to do is be polite so they won’t think I’m an idiot for letting you in my bed. Maybe this is a good thing,” she added, considering it from a different angle. “Then they can tell my baby, if I have one, that they met you. I’d like that, and it might be good for the baby.”

  He looked as if he was about to curse again, but she ignored him. She glanced in the mirror to make sure her clothes were on straight and hurried out.

  “Whoa!” she heard him say. “I’m not dressed!”

  She was halfway down the hall when she looked back to see him hopping on one leg as he pulled on his jeans. “Shut the door and come out when you’re ready.”

  “Tell me your father doesn’t own a shotgun.”

  That hadn’t been an entirely serious statement, so she didn’t respond. She could see her parents’ faces through the glass oval in the door, and was too intent on what might happen in the next few minutes.

  With a smile, she poked her head out. “Hi!”

  Her parents stared at her. “You’re okay?”

  “Of course.”

  Her father, aka Charlie, gestured toward the end of the drive. “So...who owns that Land Rover?”

  “It belongs to Brent.” She lowered her voice for emphasis. “The man I met the other night.”

  Her mother’s eyes widened. “I thought that was a one-time thing,” she whispered, “but...he’s back? Did he go to San Francisco with you?”

  Eve could feel a blush rising up her neck. “No, he came by after.”

  A creak in the hall indicated that Brent was emerging from the bedroom, but Eve kept the conversation going. “We were about to have some breakfast.” She pushed open the door. “Would you like to join us?”

  She was hoping they’d say no. Surely they could tell this was a bit awkward. But she was their only daughter, and they were far too curious about the new man in her life to butt out quite so soon.

  “We’d love to,” her father said, and the next thing Eve knew she was making introductions.

  “It’s very nice to meet you.” Brent shook hands with both of them. Then they all filed into her small kitchen, so she could start breakfast.

  “How do you like your eggs?” she asked Brent.

  He raised his eyebrows. That small change in his expression gave away the fact that he wished he was anywhere else, but she pretended he was happy to be included.

  “Over easy?” she suggested as if she was saying, “Just a little while longer...”

  “Coffee’s enough for me,” he mumbled.

  “I’ll have scrambled,” her father said.

  She turned to her mother. “Mom?”

  “Whatever you prefer to make, honey.” Adele couldn’t take her eyes off Brent. Eve thought she could serve her mother a raw egg and Adele would have no complaints.

  Her father claimed the seat directly across from her guest. “So where are you from?”

  Brent cleared his throat. “Los Angeles originally.”

  “And what do you do?”

  “I own a business.”

  “What kind of business?” her mother asked.

  Eve shot her parents a look, warning them to back off, but she was pretty sure they hadn’t noticed. These were normal questions to ask a man your daughter was dating, so she could understand why they wouldn’t feel they were doing anything wrong.

  “Landscaping.”

  That caught Eve’s attention despite her anxiety and distress. Brent didn’t strike her as a landscaper. His hands weren’t nearly callused enough—and she would know. She supposed he could have work crews do the physical labor, though....

  “Do you have any siblings?” Adele asked.

  “A brother who’s a surgeon and one who’s a chemical engineer.”

  Her father’s chair scraped the floor as he adjusted his position. “What brings you to this area?”

  “I’m on vacation and thought I’d try my hand at gold-panning.”

  “Isn’t it a bit cold for that this time of year?”

  Eve cringed as her father continued to drill him—but at least the coffee was ready. She poured everyone except herself a cup. She was too filled with nervous energy as it was. And in case she was pregnant she planned to avoid caffeine.

  “Not really. The weather’s mild here compared to most other places.”

  “That’s true,” her mother conceded, weighing in on Brent’s side. But her mother was a romantic, just like Eve. She saw that Brent was a handsome man. Articulate, too. That made her willing to overlook certain gaps in the information he’d provided. After all, Adele wanted to see her daughter married. But those same gaps were things her father wouldn’t be so prone to overlook.

  “Have you found any color?” Charlie asked.

  “Not yet,” Brent replied, “but I haven’t been here long.”

  “Meeting someone like Eve is striking gold,” her mother insisted. “You won’t find a sweeter girl anywhere.”

  When his gaze shifted to her, Eve sent him a look, pleading with him to play along for a few more minutes.

  “She must take after her mother, then,” he said smoothly.

  Adele’s laugh sounded more like a giggle. “How nice!”

  Eve hoped that the situation would begin to feel more natural, but Charlie broke in almost immediately. “Where do you live now?”

  The hesitation was barely perceptible, but Eve picked up on it and was afraid her father had, too.

  “Bakersfield.”

  “Thought you’d come north for a while, huh?” That was her mother, offering more support. Eve felt bad for deceiving Adele, but she told herself she had no choice.

  “I heard it’s pretty here,” Brent told her.

  “And do you agree?”

  He didn’t reply. He didn’t get the chance, since Charlie was at him again. “How long will you be in town?”

  Determined to take charge of the conversation—and put an end to all the questions—Eve answered before Brent could. “He’s only here for a few days, Dad. He’s got a business to run and has to get home.”

  Steam rose from Brent’s cup as he lifted it in one hand. It looked as if he took his coffee black, and that somehow fit the minimalist he seemed to be. “Actually, my sister, Scarlet, is coming out to stay with me until after the holidays.”

  Eve felt her jaw drop. He hadn’t mentioned having a sister when her mother had asked him about siblings a few minutes before. Not only that, but he’d made his departure from town sound imminent. The fact that he’d been renting a room at her B and B and had asked to stay just one more night seemed to confirm it. “What do you mean?”

  “I’ve leased two rooms at Mrs. Higgins’s house. Do you know her?”

  “Of course!” her mother said. “She’s a wonderful woman. Sad about Buck, though. He passed away a year ago. I know she misses him.”

  “So you’re here until after Christmas?” As sorry as Eve was for Mrs. Higgins, she couldn’t quite assimilate this new information—not just the sudden addition of a sister but the fact that Brent would be in town for several more weeks. By the time Christmas was over, she’d know if she was pregnant, which definitely changed how she’d imagined this scenario. Maybe he’d decided to stay that long so he could reclaim his money if she wasn’t going to have a baby.

  He took a sip of his coffee. “Looks like it.”

  “I’m so glad,” her mother said. “Then we’ll have more of a chance to get to know you.”

  “What about work?” Her father’s eyes had narrowed as if he wasn’t buying that any man would leave his business for all these weeks without a better reason than panning for gold in the middle of winter. Or maybe it was the inconsistent sibling information....

  “I’ve been managing it remotely, and it seems to be running well.” Brent shrugged. “We’ll see how things go.”

  Eve stood with the spatula in one hand, her heart th
umping. Why hadn’t he told her he’d be staying for the whole month? And what did that mean for her?

  He didn’t think they’d continue to see each other, did he? If he was moving on, she’d rather not get any more involved with him. Even if he wasn’t, there were too many inconsistencies in what he said and did, not to mention downright evasions. “I’m surprised you didn’t say anything.”

  He grinned at her. “Got distracted, I guess.”

  She wanted to give him a dirty look. No doubt he found his allusion to what they’d done funny—his revenge for making him sit through this farcical little breakfast. But with Charlie and Adele in the room she knew calling him on his excuse would only create more embarrassment.

  After a quick sip of his coffee, he pointed at the frying pan. “You might want to turn those eggs. Smells like they’re burning.”

  9

  Eve had beguiled him. That wasn’t a word Rex had ever used before. He wasn’t even sure how it had become part of his vocabulary. But it seemed to fit this particular situation. What else could explain his behavior? He’d already made love to her a number of times, including twice without protection. He should never have gone back to her house last night, and he should not have had breakfast with her parents.

  As he drove away, with their invitation to join them later for a birthday dinner in Eve’s honor echoing in his brain, he couldn’t help cursing his own weakness. He knew better than to make a splash in this small community; he knew better than to make a splash anywhere. The same went for developing close personal ties. He’d been in hiding ever since he’d defected from The Crew. If anyone had learned how to survive, it was him.

  But...

  He sighed as he watched the set of mailboxes in front of her house grow smaller and smaller in his rearview mirror. So what if he knew how to survive? He no longer believed he could continue to do everything that avoiding The Crew required. He was coming to the conclusion that a life spent without any human attachment wasn’t worth living....