“That’s a good point.” June put her apple in her purse before digging into her soup.
“You have much more important things to think about.” Doreen took another sip of water. “How’s Noah settling in at Columbia?”
“He’s keeping up with his coursework.” June felt a new burst of pride. The next half hour was spent talking about children, careers, and their town.
“I meant what I said about ignoring Simon, Ethel, and Nessa’s behavior.” Doreen refilled June’s water glass as she brought the conversation back to June’s antagonists. “You may have detractors. But you have admirers, too.”
“I appreciate the warm welcome you and your friends have given me.” June smiled her thanks. “The dinner party you hosted to welcome me to Trinity Falls was wonderful. And I can’t thank you and your friends enough for helping me move all of my belongings.”
After she and Darius had moved Noah into his residence hall at Columbia University, June hadn’t thought she would have the energy to relocate her home to Trinity Falls. But the next weekend, Darius and Doreen had shown up with Alonzo, Peyton, Ean, Megan, Quincy, Ramona, Jackson, and Audra. They’d helped her pack and clean her house for the new owners. Then they’d loaded their cars and her moving truck for the two-hour drive to Trinity Falls.
“Your friendship is thanks enough.” Doreen reached forward to squeeze June’s forearm. “But I wasn’t talking about us.”
“Then who?” June frowned her surprise
Doreen straightened from the counter. Her lips curved into a smile. “Ben Brooks.”
My boss? How could he be an admirer? There must be some mistake.
June sipped more water, already dismissing Doreen’s theory. “What makes you think Ben admires me?”
“He asked me a lot of questions about you.” Doreen leaned against the counter, nodding for emphasis.
June felt a thread of unease. She shook it off. “He’s probably trying to get to know his staff. You and Ron hired me a month before Ben became the center’s director. And Dita, Howard, and Krista have worked there for years.”
Ronald Kendal, the previous director, had worked for the center since its doors had opened. He must have been in his seventies when he’d finally retired in September.
Doreen shook her head. “He wasn’t asking about Dita, Krista, or Howard. He only wanted to know about you.”
June’s unease increased. “What did he ask you?”
“They were fairly personal questions. How long have I known you? How did I convince you to leave Sequoia? What were you like?”
June froze. Those were personal questions. “What did you say?”
“That I like and admire you, and that you’re an asset to this town. That’s all I said. I told him that if he wanted to know anything more about you, he needed to ask you himself.”
June breathed more easily. “Thank you.”
“He said Darius had told him the same thing.”
“He’s asked Darius about me, too?” June’s eyes stretched wide. “I can’t believe he’s fishing for gossip about me.” Especially since she’d told Dita not to fuel rumors and innuendos about their boss. She was sick with disappointment.
“He wasn’t looking for gossip, June. He never asked me about Simon. I think he wants to get to know you better.”
“Then all he has to do is ask me.” June drained her water. “In fact, I’ll tell him that now.”
“Your mother’s worried about you.” Benjamin sat at his office desk, using his cellular phone to check in with his son. He hadn’t been able to reach his daughter.
At nineteen, Terrence was his oldest child. His daughter, Zora, was a year younger. He and his children used to be so close, speaking several times a week about everything. The divorce had changed that. Now their conversations were stilted on the occasions Terrence and Zora returned his calls.
“Oh, yeah?” Terrence didn’t sound impressed. Although it was difficult to hear his son’s voice with Pit Bull’s latest hip-hop release blaring in the background.
“Would you turn down your stereo, please?”
“Yeah.” Despite Terrence’s agreement, the volume didn’t sound appreciably lower.
Benjamin’s gaze sought and found a recent photo of Terrence and Zora taken outside of their house in Chicago. It stood on the bookcase across from his desk beside a photo of him with his kids. Both pictures had been taken before he and Aliyah had told them about their pending divorce.
“What are you and Zora doing for Thanksgiving?” He was glad Terrence and Zora had both chosen The Ohio State University. They could look out for each other. And now that he was back in northeastern Ohio, he was less than four hours from them.
“What do you mean? Are we supposed to choose between you?” A door slammed in the background. The music had stopped. Had Terrence moved to another room in his residence hall suite? Benjamin could see the layout in his mind’s eye.
“Terry, I know this—”
“What are you doing for Thanksgiving, Dad?”
He knew where this was going, and he didn’t like it. “I’ll probably spend it with my brothers. Although you and Zora are welcome to spend it with me.”
Terrence snorted. “So it’s either Mom’s house or Dad’s house. Are we supposed to choose between the two of you again when Christmas comes around?”
“We’re still trying to figure out the holidays.” He’d never imagined he’d be saying that about his family—at least not until his kids were married with children of their own.
“This. Really. Sucks.” Terrence’s voice was muffled as though he’d rubbed his hand over his face as he spoke.
Tell me about it. “I know, Terry. I’m sorry.”
“If you’re sorry, why don’t you do something about it?”
The angry accusation caught him off guard. “What do you want me to do?”
“I don’t know. Something. But Zora and I agree that you and Mom have destroyed this family.”
That accusation hurt even more. “We’re still a family, Terry.”
“How?” Anger shook his young voice. “We’re not even celebrating the holidays together. How are we a family?”
Benjamin rubbed his forehead with the tips of his thumb and three fingers. “I never intended for this to happen. This isn’t something I wanted. I’m trying to figure it out as I go.”
His son was silent for several long, torturous moments. “Why didn’t you tell us why you and Mom were getting a divorce? Instead, when we asked you, you didn’t say anything.”
“It wasn’t my place to tell you.” Benjamin swallowed the bitterness. “Your mother had to tell you when she was ready.”
“You let us think that the two of you had drifted apart. But the truth is Mom had an affair. With your boss.”
“Your mother’s affair was a sign that we’d drifted apart.” It had just taken him two years to realize it.
“Even if that’s true, she should have realized her actions would hurt us, too.” Terrence’s tension traveled down the phone line, and straight into Benjamin.
“I know. And I’m sorry about that.” Sorrier than he could ever express.
They sat in silence for a while. Benjamin heard muffled voices and a television in the background.
“How are you doing, Dad?” Terrence sounded drained of energy.
Again, his son’s question took him by surprise. “I’m all right.”
“If you say so.” Terrence snorted his disbelief. “Can you forgive her?”
The questions were getting harder. “I don’t know, Terry.”
“I can’t.” Terrence’s tone was bitter.
Benjamin hesitated. He could use this opportunity to usurp his son’s loyalty. He could capitalize on Terrence’s resentment toward Aliyah and convince him and his sister to spend Thanksgiving in Trinity Falls with him. He was tempted. So tempted.
“Terry, I’d really appreciate it if you’d try to forgive her.” He forced the words.
“W
hy?” His son sounded sincerely confused. “You said you’re not going to forgive her.”
“I said I didn’t know if I could.” Benjamin was growing impatient. “But she’s your mother. And she’s been a great one. She loves you and Zora very much.”
“If she loved us, she wouldn’t have cheated on you and torn our family apart.”
His son had a point. Because of that, every time he pleaded for leniency for her, a part of him died. “That’s something for your mother and me to figure out.”
“How can you say that? What she did has affected all of us.” Terrence didn’t seem big on leniency. “I don’t know if Zora will ever be able to speak to her again. Or if I will.”
Benjamin drew his gaze from the photos of happier family times. The images were beginning to hurt.
“Terry, don’t let your sister go any longer without talking with her mother.” He couldn’t believe he was pleading with his children to give his ex-wife clemency when he didn’t think he could forgive her. “She’s your mother. She knows what she did was wrong, and she’s sorry she hurt you.”
Terrence’s sigh seemed to come from deep within him. “I’ll think about it, Dad.”
“Thanks, son.” That would have to be good enough for now. “What about Thanksgiving?”
“I’ll talk with Zora. We’ll think about it.”
“Okay.” Benjamin sat up, preparing to end the call. “Good luck with your classes. Call me if you need me.”
“Will do.” Terrence sounded like his son again.
They ended their call. Benjamin’s marriage was over. He’d accepted that. But he couldn’t lose his children. Perhaps all they needed was more time. The thought lifted the burden he’d been carrying in his heart since his divorce.
He set his cell phone on his desk and stood. His mood was lighter as he opened his office door. June’s appearance in his doorway startled him. Her hand was raised as though he’d caught her about to knock.
Benjamin stepped back, smiling. “This is a surprise.”
She didn’t look amused. “We need to talk.”
Chapter 5
Benjamin stood back to let June into his office Friday afternoon. “What can I do for you?” He closed his door. Benjamin had a feeling they would need some privacy to discuss whatever it was that had put that look of anger in June’s eyes.
June faced him. “You can ask me any questions you might have about my personal life. My professional life for that matter, too.”
Busted. Who’d told June he’d been asking about her, Darius, Doreen, or Ramona?
Benjamin released his doorknob and shoved his hands into the front pockets of his black pants. He could only hope the heat rising into his face wasn’t a blush. “I apologize if I gave the impression that I was gossiping about you. I promise that I wasn’t.”
She didn’t appear convinced. “Then what were you doing?”
I still don’t know. But he needed to come up with something.
Benjamin paced forward, careful to keep a certain amount of space between him and the petite powder keg in his office. “You don’t talk about yourself. But the people who are smearing your reputation around town won’t stop talking.”
“I can’t help that.” June crossed her arms.
Benjamin pulled his attention from her trim figure dressed in an emerald knit sweater and mid-calf length black skirt. An angel brooch was pinned to her sweater. “You’re well-liked by all of the people I respect. I wanted their perspective on the kind of person you are.”
“Shouldn’t you make your own decisions?” Her tawny eyes haunted him. She wasn’t showing him any mercy. But he wanted her to. He wanted her mercy and more.
Benjamin freed his hands from his pockets and stepped forward. “I need information to make those decisions. You weren’t giving me any.”
“Our relationship isn’t personal. It’s professional. You seem to have forgotten that.”
“I want to know who I’m working with.”
“Read my resume.”
He observed the stubborn tilt of her rounded chin, the irritated scowl knitting her slashed eyebrows, and he had to bite back a smile. “Your resume is one of the driest reports I’ve ever read.”
“I’m not here for your entertainment.” Somehow she’d found a way to look down her nose at him despite the fact he stood at least ten inches above her.
“I know that.” Benjamin turned away before she noticed the smile twitching around his lips. What was it about her that was dragging his body and mind out of the cold storage he’d packed them into when he’d discovered Aliyah’s betrayal? Part of him wanted to run from June. But another part—the more dominate part—wanted to feel again. Desperately.
“Then why are you snooping around my life? What do you want from me?” Her words sucker punched him.
What did he want from her? The answer struck him like an energy bolt. He wanted . . . her. The woman who challenged him, defied him, wouldn’t take no for an answer. The woman who was forcing him to feel again.
Benjamin turned to her. “I want to get to know you.”
“Why?” June took a step toward him—and Benjamin’s restraint collapsed.
He lowered his head to hers and trapped the gasp that puffed from her mouth. Her lips were soft and full. Benjamin watched her eyes drift shut. It was one of the most erotic sights he’d ever witnessed. His pulse stuttered, then rocketed forward. He inhaled and captured her scent: powder and wildflowers. Like the first day of spring after a brutal winter. He drew closer. Hips to hips. Chest to breasts. Her warmth soaked his muscles, stirring imaginings that had been dormant for months. Did she taste as good as she felt? His tongue slid over her lower lip. The muscles of his abdomen tightened. Good Lord, she was better than he’d imagined. More than he could have dreamed of. His arms remained at his sides. He didn’t trust himself to hold her. If he did, could he ever let her go?
But then June lifted her arms to his shoulders and twined them around his neck. Her soft palms cupped the back of his head, drawing him even nearer. Her mouth moved against his. Seeking, exploring, demanding greater access. When her lips parted for him, Benjamin eagerly accepted her welcome. His tongue swept inside her, hungry for a deeper taste. He teased hers with touches and licks. Then he drew it deeper into his mouth and suckled her. June moaned at the intimate caress. The sound startled them apart. Her eyes flew open.
Benjamin searched her wide, bright gaze. “I’m sorry.” Not for kissing her—for not asking permission first.
June blinked. “Why did we do that?”
We? Tension drained from Benjamin’s shoulders. He stepped back before he kissed her again. “I’ve wanted to do that for a while. Why did you kiss me back?”
“It felt good.” June brought her fingertips to her lips.
Heat rushed through him. “Yes, it did.”
“We can’t do that again.” June stepped back. “We work together. I have enough complications in my life without adding an office affair to the list.”
“I understand.” Or at least he was trying to.
“I’m sorry.” June backed toward his door.
“So am I.” He watched her disappear from his office and then returned to his desk.
Nessa, Ethel, Simon, and their associates’ efforts to force June out of Trinity Falls would be enough stress for anyone. But what if he could convince the town bullies to leave her alone? Would she share more kisses with him then?
“I asked Terry and Zora to forgive Aliyah. But I know I never will.” Benjamin shoved aside his now empty plate and looked across the honey wood café table at his two younger brothers.
They’d just finished brunch at Books & Bakery. The lunch crowd was moving in. Early Saturday afternoon sun spilled into the café from the window beside them. It looked deceptively warm for the first week of November.
“Did you tell them you couldn’t forgive Aliyah?” His youngest brother—Dr. Vaughn Brooks, the music professor at Trinity Falls University—ran h
is right hand over his clean-shaven head.
“I’d never tell my children that.” Benjamin sipped his water. “I’d only share that with both of you.”
“If I were you, I wouldn’t be able to forgive her, either.” Outrage roughened Zachariah Brooks’s voice. Benjamin’s middle brother had returned home to Trinity Falls recently as well. The confirmed bachelor was the new vice president of marketing and communications with Trinity Falls University. “She had an affair—with your boss.”
Almost a year had passed since he’d found out his ex-wife and his boss had been lying to him for two years. A rush of anger—sharp and hot—tightened his muscles. How could he not have known?
“Her lies changed my life.” Benjamin wiped the condensation from his glass of ice water. “For the past eighteen years, I’d celebrated Thanksgiving with a wife and two children. This year, I’m spending it with my two bachelor brothers and I won’t even see my kids.”
“She has a lot to answer for.” Zachariah’s ebony eyes, identical to his and Vaughn’s, glared into his empty coffee mug.
“I’m sorry this is happening, Ben.” Vaughn’s compassion eased some of Benjamin’s tension. “But it sounds as though Aliyah may not see Terry and Zora, either. They might decide to spend Thanksgiving at Ohio State.”
“That would be poetic justice.” Benjamin had considered that possibility. It would give him a level of satisfaction if his ex-wife didn’t see their children, either.
“I hope they don’t do that.” Vaughn sat back on his chair, smoothing his goatee in a pensive gesture.
“Why not?” Zachariah’s expression said he thought Vaughn had lost his mind.
“Thanksgiving should be spent at home with family.” Vaughn frowned at Zachariah, who was seated beside him. The brothers were almost identical with their dark eyes and chiseled features. “I don’t want my niece and nephew spending it on some deserted college campus.”
Zachariah grunted. “Aliyah should have thought of that before she betrayed your brother.”
Benjamin looked from Zachariah to Vaughn. “If they stayed in Ohio, I could bring them to Trinity Falls for Thanksgiving.”
A Christmas Kiss Page 14
