“I might get pine needles in my hoo hoo.”
“I’ll pick them out.”
“Lord Jesus. I cannot believe my eyes.” Dovie yelled, “Benjamin Rowe, get off of that girl right this moment!”
“Busted,” he sighed, but gave her a long, slow kiss before he lifted his body off hers.
She was surprised that he did so in front of Dovie. They weren’t hiding things from her, but they weren’t flaunting their relationship either.
He got to his feet and went to Dovie, looping his arm around her shoulder. “It’s her fault, Dovie. It’s that shampoo she uses. It makes me crazy.”
“It makes you fresh.” She swatted his arm.
He grinned widely at her. “Despite you ruining my plans I’m glad you’re here. Would you mind watching Dash for a few hours? Dina and I and are going to go grocery shopping for Christmas dinner and then I’m going to take her out to eat.”
“Grocery shopping? You two?”
“Yeah. We’re going to cook this year. It’s going to be fun.”
“Fun?” Dovie looked at him curiously. “Of course I’ll watch the boy.”
“Thanks” He kissed her cheek. “Thanks. I’ll grab our coats.”
“I’ve never seen him so happy,” Dovie said when they were alone.
“Not even with Karen?” Dina hated herself for asking, but his relationship with his former wife fascinated her.
“They married right out of college. He was still a boy. He had blinders on. I liked Miss Karen, don’t get me wrong, but she was too cold for my Ben. Ben will love and love and love until he has nothing left to give. Karen left him all loved out. And then there was Virgil. You don’t want to know how much Ben did for him. You don’t want to know how much life got sucked out of him in the process. But you, my dear, are different. You and your son are bringing him life instead of taking it away. You two are making him happy.”
“But he barely knows me.”
“He knows enough.”
“What if I can’t keep him happy?”
“You can try. And he will try. That’s what a relationship is. A lifetime spent trying to make each other happy.”
Chapter 12
Christmastime Is Here …
It was Christmas Eve. Finally. And it had been the fastest slowest two weeks of Ben’s life. But he wouldn’t change a moment of it. He was living life again and nothing could make him go back to the way things were before.
Dina stood beside him in the kitchen leaning her soft body against him as they stared at the turkey defrosting in the sink. “I can’t believe we got so much food. Actually I can’t believe you got so much food. There’s enough here to feed twenty people.”
“I don’t go grocery shopping normally. I guess I went a little overboard. I didn’t see you trying to stop me.”
“How could I have stopped you? You looked so damn happy with your shopping cart and your little store circular. Who knew two-for-one deals would make you giddy?” She turned into him and lifted her mouth for a kiss. “Who knew I would fall so hard in love with a man who wants to cook?”
He looked at her, not sure he had heard the words correctly. But he felt them. Right in his chest. And it solidified everything for him.
“I didn’t mean to let that slip, but it’s true. I love you.” She looked back at Dash, who was watching them from his high chair. “He loves you too.”
“Mr. Rowe,” Dovie called. “Your guests are here.”
“Guests?” Dina blinked at him. “You didn’t tell me about any guests.”
He shrugged, not wanting to leave this conversation, not wanting to stop talking about her love. “They’re a surprise for you.”
She left the kitchen without another word. He pulled Dash from his high chair and followed her to the front of the house.
Dina stood frozen for a moment. Her mother, Phillipa Gregory; her stepfather, Walter Garrett; her sister, Ellis; and her husband, Mike, were all standing in the foyer. For her. One phone call from Ben and they all came to see her.
Looking back at him, she seemed shell-shocked, seeming not to know what to do.
“Your family is here, honey. Go.”
“Yes,” her mother spoke, her voice cracking a bit. “You haven’t seen me for two years and you stand there like a statue. Get yourself over here.”
“Mom.” She slammed herself into her mother. “I’m so sorry.”
“Shh,” her mother soothed. “No more apologizing. It’s over. We start over now.” She let Dina go and wiped her eyes. “Now let me meet my gorgeous grandson.”
“I want you to meet Ben too.” She left her mother’s side and linked her fingers with Ben’s. “He’s really good to me.”
“I know. He’s brought us all back together.”
*
Being around her family was different this time around. There was no tension, no animosity, no reliving the past. They were just happy and together. And she had Ben to thank for it. Her family was in the kitchen, somewhat taking over the prep for tomorrow’s meal. Mike and Ellis were baking pies. Dina’s stepfather, Walter, was brining the turkey. Her mother was mixing the drinks. Dina felt so stupid for thinking they had turned their backs on her. She could have had them all along. But maybe, she thought, they needed this time apart. She needed this time away from them to grow. It took a lot of time and some help from Ben to make her realize that she wasn’t a bad person, that she had something to offer somebody else. She wanted to thank him for that, but when she looked up from her conversation with Ellis she realized he wasn’t there.
He had snuck away from them all. She knew how hard this must be for him. He had no family of his own to celebrate with. None besides her and Dash. She needed to remind Ben that they were there for him. That he wasn’t going to be alone anymore. That they would be the family they both needed. She could picture future Christmases and family get-togethers and him and her and Dash as a family.
She found Ben in his office, a place she hadn’t seen him go in days. It was such a different picture from the first time she saw him there. Long gone were his three-piece suit and supertidy hair. Long gone was that stern expression, and the little bit of unhappiness that floated around him. He was a different man from the one she had met. It didn’t seem like she had walked into his life only twelve days ago; it seemed like she’d known him for a lifetime.
“Hey,” she called to him, and he looked up and smiled softly at her. “I was missing you.”
He placed the small piece of paper he had been staring on his desk and opened his arms to her. “I was just taking care of a little business so I can enjoy the rest of the holidays.”
She sat in his lap and immediately his arms came around her, his lips resting on her forehead. “How are you, sweet girl?”
“I’ve got a bone to pick with you.”
“What is it?” He kissed the bridge of her nose.
“You invited my family without asking me. What if I didn’t want to see them? What if I wasn’t ready? This could have been a huge disaster. You shouldn’t do things without consulting me.”
He kissed the tip of her nose, then each of her eyelids, before his kiss settled on her mouth. “In the future I won’t, but Dash could use all the love he can get. We could use all the family we can get. I quite like having loud holidays.”
“Me too.” It was extremely hard to be miffed at him when he said things like that. “Everybody seems so happy, but my stepfather isn’t fond of Dash’s name at all. He said it’s a grammar symbol and not a name. He says we should have named him Walter and been done with it.”
“I like the name now. Maybe he’ll become some kind of track star. Dash Rowe, world’s fastest man.”
“What a proud papa you would be. I think we need to talk about getting his last name officially changed and all the stuff that comes with it.”
Ben kissed her brow. “As soon as the New Year comes. I promise. Maybe we should head back downstairs. Your family is going to notice we’re mis
sing. They might get the wrong idea.”
“We’re not doing anything.”
“I know, but if I feel this beautiful bottom in my lap any longer I might get the wrong idea.”
“Perv.” She stood up, glancing at his desk as she did. There was a picture of his wife there. Just sitting there for Dina to see. That must have been what he was looking at when she walked in. He didn’t even bother to hide it from her. That told her a lot. Even after everything, even after all the plans they were making, he still wasn’t ready to let Karen go. Her heart sank. As much as she loved him she was never going to more than second or third place in his heart. She had too much pride to live her life like that.
Her decision was made. She couldn’t marry him.
Chapter 13
And So This Is Christmas …
Ben didn’t fail to notice that Dina had been somewhat subdued when they returned to her family last night. He knew why. He knew she had seen the picture of Karen on his desk, but in that moment he couldn’t explain to her why it was there.
He loved his first wife, a big part of him always would, but she was no longer going to be the person who ruled over his life. It was now time for him to live. To be with the living. He went to explain it to Dina last night, but when he went to her he found her sleeping, or at least pretending to be. He knew that day had been long for her and he didn’t have the heart to wake her up to talk about it. But maybe he should have. Today was the day they had agreed on. Today was the day she was going to decide if she was going to be his wife.
She was missing when he woke up that morning, but he knew where to find her. It was the first place he liked to go in the mornings too. She was sitting by Dash’s crib, her knees pulled to her chest, just staring at the surroundings. She and Ben had decorated this room too, with a tiny tree and antique train set that traveled around the base. Dash’s first ornament hung prominently in the front, along with the one Ben had made when he was just a child.
“When I was a kid,” she said without looking up at him, “I used to wake up at six just to see what Santa had brought. I’m well over thirty. I don’t believe in Santa anymore and I still can’t seem to sleep very long on Christmas day.”
“Me either.”
She looked up at him. “I can’t marry you, Ben. I’ll never take Dash away from you, but I’m going to stay with my parents for a little while.”
No. He wasn’t accepting that. He wasn’t going to let her go. He lifted her from her spot on the floor and sat with her on the plush rocker that was nestled by the window.
“I’ve been very happy since you came into my life.”
“Ben…”
“I was saying goodbye, Dina. To Karen. That’s why her picture was there. I loved her very much, but she’s gone now. And I had been so busy mourning the loss of everything we could have had that I stopped living. But then you come along and in less than twenty-four hours made me want to live again. You gave me hope for the future and at first I didn’t want to talk about her because it seemed so wrong to think about her when I was falling in love with you, but if you want to know about her I’ll tell you everything.”
“What?” Her eyes snapped up to his.
“We can talk about Karen if you want.”
“No, go back to the part about falling in love with me.”
“I love you.” He smiled. “It’s very foolish and impetuous of me to fall in love so quickly, but I think it’s about time I started acting a little foolishly.”
“Ben…”
“And that’s why I don’t want to marry you either. At least not yet. I don’t want you going in with doubts.” He slipped a ring out of his pocket and placed it on her finger. “I want a fresh start for both of us. That means we leave the past and all our old demons and start over together. I know you love me, but I would like you to take a year and really think about if you would like to spend the rest of your life with me. Dina, the only thing I need is for you to be happy.”
“A year?” She sat up straight, shaking her head. “I changed my mind. Hell, I’m getting old. I want to pop out some more kids before I dry up. And you expect me to twiddle my thumbs for a year. Screw that. I want the old deal.”
He wasn’t expecting to hear that, but it was exactly what he needed to hear from her. “Okay, Dina.” He gave her a very long, deep kiss. “Whatever you want.”
“Okay?”
“Okay.”
“But don’t expect me to just sit around here and be your wife. I was serious about wanting to open my dance studio. I want to work for something. I don’t want you to think I’m marrying you for any other reason than love.”
“I know, sweet girl. I couldn’t have fallen for you if you didn’t.”
“Da?” Dash sat up, rubbing his eyes with his fist.
“Good morning, son. Did we wake you?”
“Did you hear that?” Dina looked at him wide-eyed and then rose to collect Dash from his crib. “He called you Da.”
“I did.” He collected them in his lap, holding them close. “It’s official now. We have to be a family.”
“We already were,” she said. “From the moment we walked through the door.”
“Merry Christmas!” Phillipa burst into the room, her family following close behind her. “How is everybody this morning?”
“Great. Do you guys have to rush off tomorrow?” Dina asked.
“No, we’re all off this week.”
“Good. Because we have a wedding to plan.”
“A wedding!” Ellis screamed. “How soon? I need at least two weeks, Dee.”
“For what?”
“I have to make your dress. I have one already started down at the shop that we can make over in a few days, but if you want one from scratch it’s going to take me two weeks.”
“I could buy one, Ellie.”
“Over my dead body.” She turned towards the door. “Mikey, take me to the shop. I have to get my things.”
Her husband sighed as he followed her out. “But, baby, it’s Christmas day.”
Ellis just blinked at her husband before she walked out the door.
“Don’t you think you should eat breakfast first?” he called after her as he followed her out.
“We have to go too, Walter,” Phillipa said to her husband. “I need to get my address book. I have to invite Cynthia Silverman. That woman said my Dina would never catch a man as good as her precious Becky’s, but I’ll show her. My girl has snagged a billionaire.”
Suddenly they were alone again. He had his family in his arms and contentment in his soul. And he thought for the first time that this was what it must feel like to truly have it all. “Are you ready to start your life over with me, Miss Gregory?”
“I am.” She smiled at him. “And I couldn’t be happier about it.”
Read on for an excerpt from Sugar Jamison’s next book
THROWN FOR A CURVE
Coming soon from St. Martin’s Paperbacks
Chapter 1
I feel pretty…
“Almost finished.” A heavy blast of breath-stealing hairspray hit Charlotte Rudy just above her crown.
That’s thirty-two times. She had counted every last spray as she sat cross-legged on the floor between her grandmother’s substantial thighs.
Thirty-two sprays and fifty-five minutes.
She didn’t have to look in the mirror to know that long gone was her mass of unruly waves. Armed with a comb and a can of chemicals, her grandmother had turned her once-soft hair into a golden steel helmet.
Tornado-proof hair, she thought wryly as she patted the hard sticky mass. It felt a little like crystallized cotton candy. She wanted to eat cotton candy, not look like it.
“Move your hand, Cherri!” her grandmother scolded in her still-thick Ukrainian accent as she smacked it. “I’m not done yet.”
Cherri moved her stinging hand just before another cool blast of hair-freezing chemicals hit her square in the face. “Good grief, Baba!” she choke
d, the air in her lungs now replaced with spray. “Are you sure that stuff is legal?”
“Legal?” Her grandmother frowned at the can of industrial sized of Hold Her Forever. “Of course it’s legal.” She sprayed Cherri once more. “I’m not sure why they stopped making it in 1986.”
“Baba! It probably causes cancer.” She confiscated the can and made a mental note to throw it out as soon as her grandmother wasn’t looking.
“Oh, stop freaking up. I’ve used this ever since I came to America in 1957 and I’m still healthy as an ox.”
Cherri shook her head. Fifty plus years and her grandmother’s grasp of the English language was still lacking. “The saying is freaking out, Baba. Not freaking up.”
Baba shrugged. “Freaking out, freaking up. Whatever. You young people think everything causes cancer. In my country nobody has cancer. We die from hard work and old age. This hair spray does nothing but make one look beautiful.”
Cherri touched the sticky mass atop her head once more; positive that beautiful was the wrong word to describe how she looked. But she nodded at her grandmother’s statement. She knew that there was no use arguing with Baba. She couldn’t win. Besides, her time left with the old woman was limited and she wanted to make the best of it.
That’s why she’d agreed to let her aging, half blind, slightly unstable grandmother give her a makeover tonight.
“And don’t think about throwing it out either,” Baba warned. “Because I bought two cases when I found out they were going to stop making it.”
Wily old broad. Baba was three steps away from being featured on an episode of Hoarders. “I would never think to throw out your things,” she lied sweetly. Cherri was going to have to start making trips to the dump again.
“Good girl.” Baba patted her cheek. “Now go look at yourself. You’ll be the most stunning girl at your birthday party.”
Cherri stood, hearing the rustle of the taffeta as she walked towards the full-length mirror. She didn’t want to look at herself. When her grandmother presented her with the homemade dress earlier that day, she’d gritted her teeth and plastered a smile on her face.
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