Undeniable Demands

by Andrea Laurence

  It was beautiful. Welcoming. The kind of house you wanted to go caroling to because you knew the owners would give you hot cocoa and cookies.

  But there was no walking up the steps. Instead, she stood there freezing, clutching the potted poinsettia she’d brought as a hostess gift.

  This was a mistake. She just knew it. Tori had spent the past few hours pacing in her Airstream, trying to think of a way to get out of coming tonight. And when she wasn’t pacing, she was looking around at her empty trailer, considering whether she really preferred to watch sentimental old black-and-white Christmas movies and feast alone on peanut butter and chicken soup.

  It was Christmas Eve, a day of family and celebration and community. Unfortunately, she wasn’t quick to make friends, and small towns were notoriously hard to crack. The only people she knew in Cornwall were her real-estate lawyer, who was apparently best buddies with her enemy; Rose, the waitress at Daisy’s diner; and Wade and Molly. That made for a fairly unmerry Christmas this year if she turned down this invitation.

  She just couldn’t have two miserable Christmases in a row. Last year she’d hoped to spend it with her boyfriend, Ryan. They both traveled so much with their work, but it had seemed that meeting for the holidays in Colorado would be possible. Instead, he’d canceled at the last second, leaving her with a whopping bill for a winter bungalow for one.

  Later she discovered he’d never had any intention of coming. He was married with three kids. Ryan was going to be home with his family no matter what he told her. Dating Tori had been perfect for him because she was always moving around and never pressuring him for more. Their relationship was sustained by phone calls, emails and long weekends together. When she’d mentioned moving permanently to Connecticut, only a few hours from his home near Boston, he panicked and broke it off. Finding out about his whole other life had been just the icing on that miserable cake.

  He hadn’t been the first womanizer to steal her heart and probably wouldn’t be the last. She just had a soft spot for smooth, seductive liars. She confused their calculated moves for cultivated charm, but whatever the label, the relationships didn’t end well. Slick and likable, they seduced you with words to get what they wanted, then they walked away, uncaring of the shambles they left behind.

  Unfortunately, Wade was one of those men, and despite her better judgment, she could feel the attraction building inside her. She wanted him, even as she plotted and planned to make him suffer for the way he’d treated her. She simply couldn’t get her brain and her body on the same page. Would having dinner with his family at Christmas make the situation better or worse?

  She supposed that all depended on how he reacted to her being there. Perhaps the best way to make him suffer would be to have a good time tonight. Not let him get to her, by rousing either her anger or her desire for him. Having an excellent meal with the enemy was far better than a subpar meal feeling virtuous and lonely.

  “I will have a good time,” she said out loud, her breath creating a soft cloud of fog in the cold.

  “Of course you will. But if you keep standing out here, you’re going to get frostbite.”

  Tori whipped her head around and saw a man standing in the snow a few feet away from her with an armful of firewood. He looked as if he was in his late twenties, tall and strongly built, with short, light brown hair and a wide disarming smile. Her heart was still racing with surprise when she shook her head and laughed. “You scared the daylights out of me.”

  “Sorry,” he said, although his mischievous expression did not lead her to believe it. “You must be Miss Sullivan.”

  “Tori, yes,” she said, shifting the plant in her arms so she could reach out to shake his hand. “Which one are you?”

  “Heath. I’m the baby, if that helps.”

  The tall muscular man in front of her hardly qualified as a baby. He held the heavy logs in one arm to shake her hand as though they were made of Styrofoam.

  Then a thought struck her. Heath knew who she was and was expecting her. Did Wade know she was coming? “Did your mother tell you I was coming to dinner?”

  “She told me when I was peeling potatoes on KP.”

  “Does Wade know?”

  “Nope,” Heath said with a wicked gleam of pleasure in his eyes. “What’s the fun in that?”

  Tori’s lips twisted in concern. She wanted to see the expression of surprise and irritation on Wade’s face when she walked in, unannounced, to his family Christmas party. Apparently so did Heath. But it still felt like a bit of a trap. “Am I walking into the lion’s den here?”

  Heath shrugged. “Eh, they’re fun lions. They’ll play with you before they eat you. Come on, let’s go in. I’m freezing out here, and the sooner we get in there, the sooner I get pie.”

  There was no avoiding it now, despite Heath’s assurance that she would be eaten. Hopefully she could get some of this famous pie first. Tori let the youngest Eden boy usher her up the stairs, and he held the door open.

  “Look what I found outside!” he announced.

  Tori had barely recovered from the sudden rush of warmth and light when she was struck with five sets of eyes. She clutched the plant tightly in her hands and tried to gather some holiday cheer in her expression. It probably ended up coming out a little pained.

  Molly and a younger woman who looked very much like her looked up from their napkin folding at the large dining room table. Standing in the living room talking were Ken and another of the boys. This one looked vaguely familiar and a bit like Heath, actually. Another, younger man watched her from his crouch in front of the fireplace. Their expressions varied. Curiosity, cheer, surprise and even a touch of anxiety from the one tending to the fire.

  But Wade was nowhere in sight.

  “Oh, Tori, you came,” Molly said, rounding the dining room table to greet her.

  “She was just standing in the snow. What did you tell her about us, Ma?” Heath broke away from Tori’s side to carry the wood over to the brother by the fireplace.

  “You hush,” Molly chided and accepted the poinsettia Tori offered. “This is beautiful. Thank you. I told you that you didn’t need to bring anything, dear.”

  “You told me I didn’t need to bring any food,” Tori corrected with a smile for her warm welcome.

  “You’re very sweet. Merry Christmas to you.” Molly leaned in to give her a big hug. “Ken,” she said as she pulled away, “could you introduce her to everyone while I find a place for this and check on the turkey?”

  “Sure thing.” The tall, lean frame of Ken Eden ambled toward her, a friendly smile on his face. “Hey there, Miss Sullivan. Merry Christmas.”

  “Merry Christmas to you, too. And call me Tori, please.”

  Ken nodded. “Now, you met Heath. He’s the youngest and most troublesome of the group.”

  “I heard that!” a voice shouted from the general direction of the fireplace.

  “He also has excellent hearing. This is Xander.”

  “Xander Langston,” Tori said, reaching out to shake the man’s hand. Molly had mentioned one of her sons was a politician, but Tori didn’t connect the pieces until she saw the man she recognized from television news and advertisements. She’d had no idea Xander Langston was also one of the “Eden boys” until she saw him standing by the couch.

  Xander smiled, greeting her with a polished finesse that practicing politics must have perfected. “Welcome, Tori. Sounds like you’ve heard my name before. Are you a registered voter?” he asked with a touch of humor in his light hazel eyes that let her know he was trying to be funny.

  “Not here. My previous residence was a PO box in Philadelphia, but I’ll be changing that.”

  “Excellent. I hope spending time with my family doesn’t negatively influence your vote.”

  “Stop campaigning, Xander.” The young woman from the dining room came over, shoving the congressman aside with her shoulder. “Sorry, he has trouble turning it off. I’m Julianne.”

  “This
is my baby girl,” Ken said, his blue eyes brightening at the sight of his daughter. “She’s the most talented artist you’ll ever meet.”

  “Daddy,” she chided in a tone very much like her mother’s. “I’m glad you could join us tonight, Tori. We need some more estrogen in this house.”

  Tori shook her hand. The Edens’ only daughter was quite beautiful and looked very much like she imagined Molly had appeared when she was younger. She had long golden-blond hair, light green eyes and a smile that lit up the room. A person’s eyes just naturally went to her.

  “Brody, quit playing with the fireplace and come meet our guest.”

  The last of the brothers put down the fireplace poker and made his way over. There was a reluctance in his movements that made Tori wonder if this brother was a part of Wade’s plot. He’d made a point of mentioning that all of the children wanted the land back. The others didn’t seem to look at her or treat her differently than any other dinner guest.

  Then she saw it. As he stepped into the shimmering light of the Christmas tree, the previously darkened side of his face was illuminated. Tori sucked in a surprised breath and stiffened her whole body to keep from reacting inappropriately. Almost the entire left side of Brody’s face was horribly scarred; the skin puckered and twisted into a horrible mask. She couldn’t even imagine what kind of injury would leave a mark like that.

  She noticed that Brody had deliberately hesitated at the edge of the group, almost giving her time to react and process everything before he greeted her. He’d apparently lived with this, and people’s reactions, for quite some time. She felt the sudden urge to put him at ease. As quickly as she could, Tori made eye contact and smiled. “It’s nice to meet you, Brody.”

  He reached out and shook her hand, nodding gently to himself. “Nice of you to come,” he said, the corners of his mouth curving up in subdued welcome. The unmarred side of his face was quite handsome. She could tell that if he really, truly smiled, it would be very charming. He had beautiful dark blue eyes with thick coal-black lashes that his injury hadn’t touched. His gaze was initially wary, perhaps anxious at meeting someone new, but the smile eventually made its way into his sapphire depths.

  Julianne frowned, looking around the living room. “Where’s Wade?”

  “Bringing in the last of the Christmas presents from Brody’s car. How exactly did I get saddled with this job on my own? What are all of you doin—”

  Wade stopped in front of the Christmas tree, his arms overflowing with brightly wrapped packages. His gaze zeroed in on Tori in the crowd of his family members. Her hair must have made her stand out. For a moment, a confused mix of emotions played across his eyes. There was a flash of anger, irritation, concern, surprise… Then his gaze flicked over to his father, and Wade’s jaw tightened to hold in whatever words Tori’s sudden appearance brought to his mind.

  “Wade, have you met our new neighbor?” Ken seemed oblivious to his son’s consternation.

  “Yes, I have.” Wade lowered the presents to the floor, leaving them beside the small mountain of gifts that was already arranged there. He dusted his hands off on his jeans and pushed the sleeves of his hunter-green sweater up the strong bulge of his muscled forearms. He took a deep breath, cast a few meaningful glances to his siblings and walked over to the group. “Mama introduced us in the shop a couple days ago. I didn’t realize you were coming to dinner tonight.” Wade speared her with a sharp, accusing gaze.

  Tori straightened and put on a polite smile. He was unhappy about her being here. Good. He shouldn’t be the only one who got to run around town with a smug grin on his face. “Yes, Molly insisted I come tonight so I wouldn’t spend Christmas alone. She’s very sweet.”

  “And stubborn,” Heath added with a grin.

  “Glad you could join us tonight,” Ken said, with a reassuring hand to her shoulder. “Dinner should be ready soon.”

  From there, the group seemed to disperse. Julianne and Ken disappeared into the kitchen to help Molly. Brody and Heath went back to building the world’s greatest fire. Xander made noises about presents in his car and slipped out the back door where Wade had just come in. It left Tori and Wade alone in the entryway, surrounded by twinkling lights and Bing Crosby crooning in the background.

  Wade watched her intensely for a moment, letting the pressure of his anger out while no one was watching. His face had grown a bit red from the strain of holding it in for so long. He quickly threw a glance over his shoulder for witnesses before he spoke. “May I take your coat?” The words were stilted. Formal. As they’d been Saturday in the gift shop.

  Nodding, Tori stuffed her gloves into her pockets and slipped out of her jacket. Wade took it from her and walked a few feet to the closet. She watched him slip the coat onto a hanger, meticulously straightening it as he spoke. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” His voice was extremely low, almost a hiss.

  “Having Christmas dinner,” Tori retorted. “Your mother invited me, and there was no telling the woman no.”

  Wade turned toward her, his brow furrowed. He was still irritated, but some of the red blotches were fading from his neck. He had to know there was no arguing with Molly Eden. She was a force of nature. “You could’ve had the decency to fake the swine flu and cancel.”

  Tori crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s Christmas Eve. So sue me if I’d rather spend it with other people than sit alone in my trailer. It was a nice invitation, and I accepted it. You can stand there and believe it’s part of my supersecret plan to undermine your dastardly plot. And maybe it is. But there’s nothing you can do about it except smile and eat some turkey, unless you want to make a scene and ruin your mother’s holiday.”

  Wade thrust her coat into the closet and shut the door as forcefully as he could without audibly slamming it. He turned to her with venom in his dark eyes. “I told you my family is the most important thing in the world to me. It’s the reason I’m willing to pay you more than anyone in their right mind would pay for that land. To preserve my family. You can come here and have dinner. But you’d damn well better know that I won’t sit back and let you toy with any of them.”

  “I’m not out to manipulate people like you are, Wade. I have no intention of doing anything to your family.”

  “You’d better hope you’re right.”

  “Or what?” Tori challenged.

  Wade opened his mouth to answer, but his gaze moved over her shoulder to someone behind her. His defensive posture melted away, his expression softening.

  Then Tori heard Heath’s amusement-laced voice behind her. “Hey, you guys are standing under the mistletoe.”

  * * *

  “Mistletoe?” Molly came running from the kitchen, a gleam of excitement in her eyes.

  Wade and Tori both looked above their heads and back at each other with a touch of dismay. Dangling from the ceiling was a small sprig of green leaves tied with a festive red ribbon. What the hell was mistletoe doing in the house? Everyone here was related. If not by blood, by circumstance. His mother never hung mistletoe.…

  Then it hit him. She’d invited Tori to dinner. She’d hung mistletoe. Molly was plotting. The woman had five children in their late twenties or early thirties and not the slightest forecast of weddings and grandbabies in her future. She must have gotten it in her head that Tori would be perfect for one of her boys. Maybe even him. What was she thinking?

  By now, the entire family had piled back into the living room to watch.

  “Mama,” Wade complained. “Why did you hang this stuff? It’s silly.”

  “It’s tradition,” Molly countered. “This is the first year I’ve been able to hang it, so you bet your sweet bippy you’re going to play along and make me happy.”

  Wade swallowed the lump in his throat and turned from his family to look at Tori. She looked even more anxious than he felt. She was stiff, her light blue eyes wide with shock from the unexpected declaration. Her cheeks were slightly flushed. He didn’t know if it was fro
m their argument or the embarrassment of kissing him like this.

  Two seconds earlier they’d been fighting, and now he had to kiss her in front of his entire family. Several times over the past few days he’d fantasized about doing just that. Running his hands through the silken fire of her hair. Halting the flow of poisonous words from her mouth by kissing her into silence.

  But not now. Not like this. Not in front of everyone.

  “If you don’t do it, I will,” Heath offered from the back. Julianne threw an irritated elbow into his ribs, doubling him over. “Ow, Jules!”

  That made Wade frown. He sure as hell wouldn’t let Heath anywhere near Tori or the mistletoe. He’d punch his brother in the jaw for even thinking about kissing Tori.

  He’d worry about what that meant later.

  “Just hurry up and get it over with.”

  Tori’s voice distracted him from his brother’s taunt. He frowned at the redhead. Even though the sensible thing to do would be to give her a quick peck and move on, he didn’t like her attitude. Never in his life had a woman asked him to “hurry up and get it over with.” It made him want to pull her into his arms and kiss her breathless. He wanted her to eat her words.

  But doing that in front of his family was dangerous. Brody would worry that he’d let sex distract him from their goal. Molly would start knitting booties. He needed to just kiss her so they could have dinner and send Tori on her way.

  “Kiss her!” someone shouted. He wasn’t sure who.

  Wade took a step forward, Tori’s whole body tensing as he did. Leaning in to her, he didn’t hesitate to bring his lips to hers. He had every intention of giving her the kind of kiss appropriate for a stranger caught in this awkward ritual. But the moment his skin touched hers, it was just like before. The handshake in the gift shop had nearly thrown him for a loop. Touching her so innocently had sent his blood boiling, and he hadn’t been able to make himself pull away.

  Just like now.

  Tori’s mouth was soft and more welcoming than he’d expected. There was no tight-lipped resignation. Instead, she leaned in to him just slightly, tasting like the honey she’d put in his tea a few days earlier. The gesture was enough to coax him into closing his eyes and deepening the kiss. His right hand slipped up to caress her cheek.