A Christmas Gift for Kate

by Tess Brennan

  She terminated the call.

  Kate slipped the phone back into her pocket, drew in a shuddering breath and went back to join Lily.

  “There,” Lily said brightly, pointing at her work. “Doesn’t that look nice?”

  Kate looked at the peaceful Nativity scene and Lily’s conflicted expression and managed to summon up a smile. Clearly, the other woman knew that there was some sort of trouble brewing, but she was trying to pretend everything was fine.

  No doubt Lily had had lots of practice at that.

  “It’s lovely,” Kate said. She put out a finger and touched one of the wise men. “Peace on earth and goodwill to all.” Despite herself, her voice trembled.

  Lily’s bright smile faded and compassion entered her eyes. “You OK, Kate?”

  Kate gave her a hug. “I’m fine. Just… families. You know how it is.”

  Lily hugged her back. “Only too well.” She drew back, her fingers resting lightly on Kate’s forearm. “Anything I can do?”

  “Yes, actually,” Kate said. “Go climb that ladder, while I pass you up some tinsel.”

  Lily smiled and squeezed her arm. “Let’s get started.”

  6

  When Kate got home the next day after eight hours working in the gift store, Dan was waiting outside in his car. The Audi was new, so Kate didn’t realize who it was until he got out.

  She closed the door of her six-year-old Toyota and watched him coming up the drive. After many years of being married to him, she had no trouble interpreting his state of mind from his rapid strides.

  Dan was furious.

  Once, she would have quailed at the sight of lowered brow and set lips. Dan had never raised a hand to her, but he was inclined to shout, and he did hold a grudge. She would have rushed into damage control, trying to avoid an outburst of temper or a fit of the sulks.

  Not now.

  Now he was invading her peace of mind. This was her house. Her new life.

  A strange calm descended upon her. She turned her back on him and walked to her front door, a bag of groceries in one hand and her keys in the other.

  “Kate!” He came up behind her and closed impatient fingers around her arm. “Wait. We need to talk.”

  “Yes,” she said coolly. “We probably do. But it can wait until we’re inside. Unless you want the neighbors to be privy to your financial problems.”

  “I don’t have any financial problems,” he growled, hot on her heels as she unlocked the door. “Or I didn’t, until my family started making false claims against me.”

  Nessy barked and rushed up to Kate, tail wagging furiously.

  “Hey, Nessy!” Kate gave her a pat, threw her handbag on the counter and started unpacking groceries. Nessy turned her attention to Dan, going up to sniff at him, her tail still wagging.

  Dan backed away, flapping his hands at her. “Can you put the mutt outside?”

  “I don’t think so,” Kate said. “Don’t worry, she won’t bite.” She put the butter and milk in the fridge, the bread in the pantry, with Dan watching her impatiently all the while. He leaned against the cupboards, and then hooked a stool towards him with his foot and sat on that.

  He probably didn’t know how to handle someone who wasn’t hanging off his every word, eager to placate him. Why had she put up with it all those years? She probably hadn’t done the girls any favors, letting them see her give in for the sake of harmony.

  Don’t tell me to turn the other cheek, Amy had said. I’m tired of hearing that.

  With a stab of guilt, Kate realized that Amy had probably seen much more than her mother realized.

  She folded the empty grocery bag and put it on a shelf, ready to use as a bin liner, and then turned to Dan.

  “Are you quite finished?” he said petulantly. “Now, I—”

  She held up a hand to forestall him. “Dan. Before you start, listen to me.”

  “No. You listen to me. I’m not putting up with—”

  Kate turned and walked out of the kitchen, into the bathroom and locked the door behind her. She splashed water on her face, patted it dry and looked at her reflection.

  Amazingly, she still didn’t feel angry. Or intimidated. Just tired of him.

  That, she could handle.

  She went back to the kitchen. Dan was waiting, kicking his heels against the stool, his mouth set in a thin line.

  “Dan,” she said, before he could start again. “This is my house, my rules. I am no longer your wife, and I will not put up with being bullied. I am prepared to give you a fair hearing, however.” She took down a coffee mug, and lifted an eyebrow at him while her hand hovered over another one. “Coffee?”

  He looked nonplussed for a moment, and then she saw a flash of calculation in his eyes before he forced a smile. “Thank you. Yes.”

  She knew that look, too. Dan was planning how to best manipulate her, and evidently had decided that a more conciliatory approach might work.

  “Still black for you?”

  “No, actually. Martine has got me onto café latte. Can you handle that?”

  “That’s what I make for Amy.” Feeling his eyes on her, Kate made her usual cappuccino and a latte for Dan and then dragged the second stool around behind the counter to sit opposite him rather than beside him. She let the silence stretch out so Dan had to lead the conversation.

  “You’ve changed, Kate.”

  “I hope so.” She shot him a cool glance. “I feel much more centered now.”

  He forced a laugh. “Are you saying that divorce agrees with you?”

  “I’m saying that I’m happy. I’ve found a place that suits me, a community that suits me.”

  “But you want more money.” He said it with a smile, but his words held an edge.

  Kate studied him carefully before answering. Dan was handsome, in a hard-edged sort of way. When he set out to be charming, he had a certain magnetism that attracted both women and clients. But now she could see the lines of discontent around his mouth; the vertical crease between his eyebrows that betrayed his usual state of mind.

  Unbidden, her mind went to the laughter lines around Tolly’s eyes, and the way his mouth turned up at the corners.

  No, she couldn’t let herself think about Tolly Nelson right now. She focused on Dan, and spoke in a level voice. “I didn’t say I wanted more money.”

  “No, you didn’t have to. Your daughters said it for you.”

  “I speak for myself, Dan. And I’m still adjusting to the bombshell that Amy delivered last week.”

  “I can imagine what she said. Well, there’s no truth in it.” His voice rose a little. “Everyone in business makes enemies, and evidently some of them have chosen this way to get back at me. I was gutted when the business failed, Kate. Gutted.” Warming to his theme, he leaned forward, trying to impress her with his earnestness. “When we had to sell everything we owned, liquidate Sophie’s college fund… how do you think I must have felt, seeing you out on the street?”

  “It wasn’t quite that bad.” Kate sipped her coffee, both hands around the mug. “I wasn’t homeless. Nor were the girls.”

  He sat back again, but not before she saw the tiny hint of puzzlement in his eyes. “But you were angry.”

  “No, I was disappointed, grievously so. After all our years of hard work, it all fell apart. Both the business and our marriage.” She decided she could admit one thing. “I was devastated at the effect on the girls when the business failed and you asked for a divorce, and I especially felt for Sophie, because she so wanted to be a vet. Suddenly she had to move out of her house, away from her friends. So many changes… she had no dad and no way of following her dream.”

  He pointed a finger at her. “I’ve always made the girls welcome in my house! And so has Martine!”

  “I know that,” Kate conceded. “But Dan, it’s natural that the girls would find it hard to adjust.”

  “It’s Amy making things difficult. Always Amy. She stirs up her sisters, and now she’s maki
ng up these lies about me.” He glared at her, his brief effort at self-control gone. “She’s your daughter, all right.”

  Now she could feel anger growing. “I’m not sure what you mean by that. I don’t tell lies.”

  “No, but you clearly encourage her. She’s full of righteous anger about what I owe you and them. You’ll have to talk to her, Kate. Get these ridiculous ideas out of her head before she embarrasses herself. Because if she keeps going, I’m not caving in. She’ll be bankrupt before I will, I’m telling you that!” He slammed the mug down on the counter.

  Inside, she quailed, but she managed to keep her face calm. “I think,” Kate said, “you’d better go. This is getting us nowhere.”

  “I came to deliver a warning, and I have. Continue with this foolishness at your own risk. I’m only just getting on my feet again, and I’m not having you lot ruin everything.” He shoved the stool backwards and stood up. “You can pass that message on.”

  Kate shook her head. “You haven’t changed, Dan, have you? Still full of bluster, still blaming everyone else for your troubles.” She slipped off the stool and walked to the door, hearing his footsteps behind her. “You’ll have to take this up with the girls. It has nothing to do with me.” She opened the door and waited for him to go.

  He pushed past her and strode off, but turned halfway down the driveway. “I was wrong, Kate. You haven’t really changed all that much.” His voice rose aggressively. “Still spineless, still letting other people do your dirty work. Happy to set your daughters on me, gouging every penny you can out of me. Well this time, it won’t work. Be warned!”

  Behind her, Nessy growled, and then she launched herself out of the door and at Dan.

  “Nessy!” Kate flew after her, her heart pounding. “Heel! Bad dog!”

  Nessy skidded to a stop, whining. Her body vibrated with the urge to go after the perceived threat.

  “Good girl.” Kate seized her by the collar. “Dan, just go, will you?”

  “Oh, I’m going. And you will be hearing from my lawyers.” He cast a look of loathing at the dog, and stamped off to his car.

  “Oh, Nessy.” Watching him, Kate was seized with a hysterical desire to laugh. Fearsome Kate Foster, siccing her guard dog onto her ex-husband. She patted Nessy’s rough hair and whispered, “You did good, Ness. You get an extra treat for that.”

  Then she turned to go back inside, and stopped short. In the driveway of Grace’s house there was an unfamiliar car, and there were three people standing at the open trunk, lifting out luggage. When she looked at them, they all suddenly became very busy, but Tolly gave her a small wave.

  Kate wished the ground would open up and swallow her. They’d had an audience for that petty little scene. Tolly, and a young man and woman in their twenties. The young man looked a lot like Tolly, and the girl resembled Grace. So they were probably his kids.

  Standing there listening while her ex-husband screamed at her about lawyers.

  Inwardly, Kate groaned. She nodded at Tolly and hurried inside.

  7

  The next day was free, so she spent the morning working on Grace’s quilt and planning her Christmas Day menu. She also made sure to phone Lily to touch base. Their coffee date at Lily’s on Sunday afternoon had been fun, and she wanted to return the favor.

  Her encounter with Dan had made her think a lot more about Lily’s situation. She was beginning to realize just how much she had given in, over the years, for the sake of peace. Although Lily had yet to really open up to her, Kate knew that there was an unhappy marriage in her past, and she had an uneasy sense that it involved physical violence.

  Dan had yelled at her and subjected her to the silent treatment for days if he wasn’t happy with her, but he’d never resorted to his fists.

  If he had, she couldn’t have stayed. It was just too awful to contemplate.

  Softly, softly with Lily, she told herself. The girl had been pushed enough in her life. When she was ready, she’d talk.

  About mid-afternoon, Tolly phoned. “Hi. What are you up to?”

  She looked at the pile of bills in front of her on the table and made a face. “Trying to work out how to make ends meet” didn’t seem like an appropriate response.

  Kate pushed her laptop aside. “Nothing much. Just fooling around on the computer. Why?”

  “I’ve painted one wall of Mom’s room. Do you want to come over and take a look?”

  “Don’t you have visitors? I don’t want to interrupt.” Actually, she really didn’t want to meet the people who had witnessed the embarrassing scene in the driveway the night before.

  “Oh, it’s just the kids. I want you to meet them anyway.”

  Trapped, Kate nodded. “OK. Give me ten, and I’ll be there.”

  Dashing to the bathroom, she changed her top and ran a brush through her dark hair, grateful that she’d had a trim recently so it swung in a neat curtain to her shoulders. Then she rolled her eyes at herself. Was she freshening up for Tolly or for his offspring?

  Nervous brown eyes looked back at her. Both, probably, said her inner voice. On impulse, Kate reached into a drawer for her lip gloss and ran it over her lips. What did Tolly see, when he looked at her? She looked at her reflection critically. There were a few lines at the corners of her eyes, and grooves bracketing her wide mouth, but personally, she kinda liked those lines. They came from laughter, not discontent, despite what the last few years had thrown at her.

  Like Tolly’s, she thought, and warmed at the image of his good-humored face.

  This is silly. He either liked what he saw, or he didn’t. Kate suspected that he cared more about what a person was like inside.

  But it’d be nice if he liked the outside, too…

  Irritated with herself, Kate shook her head at the image in the mirror and went to her spare room to throw a few of the fabric offcuts from the quilt into a plastic bag. She had a few ideas about throws and cushions; she could check the fabric against the paint.

  When she pressed the door chimes, she heard quick, light footsteps on the other side. The door swung open to reveal the girl she’d seen in the driveway. She had the same amazing blue eyes as her father and grandmother and lustrous dark hair, caught back in a casual pony tail.

  Her eyes were wary. “Hello.”

  “Hi.” Kate smiled at her. “I’m Kate from next door. Tolly asked me to come over and see what I think of the paint in Grace’s room.”

  “OK.” She stepped back to let Kate in, and called over her shoulder, “Dad! Visitor!” She didn’t bother introducing herself.

  Grace’s voice came from the living room. “Is that Kate?”

  “Yes, it is.” Kate went through to see Grace reclining in her favorite chair with a book and the usual cup of coffee. “I don’t know why you’re not climbing the walls, the amount of coffee you drink.”

  Grace waved that off and her eyes went to the bag in Kate’s hand. “Did you bring cookies?”

  “No. What is this, cupboard love? You only want me for my cookies?” Kate laughed. “No, these are just fabric scraps. I’ve got some ideas for throws and cushions. I’m going to hold them up to the paint.”

  “Tolly won’t let me look. Says I have to wait and it’ll all be a big surprise.” Grace pretended to be disgusted, but it was obvious to anyone that she was reveling in it all. “Go on, up you go. Tell me what you think before you go.”

  “Kate?” Tolly’s voice called from upstairs. “Come on up.”

  Kate climbed the stairs, hearing his daughter’s steps behind her. Tolly was waiting on the landing. “No comments on the quality of the paint job,” he said with a grin. “I see you’ve met Jossy?”

  Not formally, thought Kate, but she just smiled and said “Your daughter? Yes, she let me in.”

  “Come on.” He led the way to Grace’s room. “We were about to start the second wall, but I thought we should see what you thought first.”

  “Dad, it’s fine. I told you.” Jossy, trailing along behind,
sounded a little testy.

  “Yes, and I think you’re right, but Kate was the one to choose the colors so I want to see what she thought before we finished it.” He turned to Kate. “Ready?”

  “Ready.” She smiled at him.

  He pushed open the door. “Ta-da!”

  Kate walked in, and nodded instantly. “Oh, yes.” The wall glowed softly in the palest shades of mauve. Dusk, she thought. She walked forward, pulling out several scraps of fabric, and held them up against the wall. “Yes, yes.” Turning to Jossy, she showed her. “See these? They’re in a quilt I’m making as a surprise for Grace, for Christmas. And this color here? I thought I’d pick that up in cushions and a throw. What do you think?”

  The girl looked surprised to be consulted. She shrugged. “Fine, I guess. Nan will like them.”

  Tolly laughed. “Unfortunately Jossy has inherited my lack of color sense. Anything looks good to her.”

  “Dad!” His daughter frowned at him.

  “Well, it’s true, punkin’.” He gave her an affectionate pat.

  Just down the hall, a toilet flushed and they heard water running in a basin before the door opened. Tolly’s son, in old clothes with paint splatters the same color as the wall, walked in.

  “My son, Logan. He’s helping out with the painting before he heads back.” Tolly nodded at Kate. “This is Kate from next door, the creative genius behind all this.”

  “Tolly! Hardly!” she protested before sending a smile his son’s way. “Nice to meet you, Logan.”

  “Likewise.” He smiled back, but it was little more than a brief movement of his lips before he turned back to his father. “So, what are we doing? Finishing it off now?”

  “We might take a break, have some afternoon tea with Kate. She’s a good friend of your Nan’s, so it would be nice for you to get to know her. Jossy, can you fix coffee?”

  She made a face. “It’s much nicer when you do it.”

  “I know.” Tolly looked smug. “Still, you need to learn. Kate makes a decent cup, she can help.” He nodded at Kate. “You go on down with the kids, talk to Grace. I’ll rinse out the roller and brushes and be down in a second.”