What She Really Wants For Christmas

by Rawlins, Debbi

  * * *

  This was so stupid. She wasn’t about to dry her jeans this way, but she didn’t want to meet Evan’s eyes. Bet he was sorry that he’d asked her out. Served him right. What had he expected?

  “Excuse me,” she said finally. “I need to go to the restroom and take care of this.”

  She only briefly looked at him as she slid out of her seat. There was no pity in his eyes, not even curiosity. In fact, she didn’t know what to make of his bland expression.

  “Shall I order you another drink?” he asked calmly.

  “No, thanks,” she murmured, and gave him her back as she blindly searched for the ladies’ room.

  It had to be in one of the corners, and it was the second place she looked. She didn’t give a damn about her jeans and went straight to the sink. She turned on the faucet and splashed her face with cold water. At the last moment she remembered that she’d actually applied a little makeup before coming out. Too late now.

  Didn’t matter, though. Unlikely she’d see Evan again. He probably couldn’t wait to finish his drink and get rid of her. She wouldn’t be surprised if he’d already paid the bill. Ironically, she’d enjoyed being with him. He wasn’t as stuffy as she’d expected him to be. Still not her type, but he’d been pleasant company. Didn’t take her crap, either. Always a refreshing discovery.

  The problem was, she hadn’t found out anything about the lawsuit. She knew damn well people gossiped around there, especially in the coffee room. Evan wasn’t the type to participate, but he still might’ve heard something useful.

  Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she cringed at the dark circles under her eyes. A couple of years away from the big 3-0 and she already had pronounced crow’s-feet at the corners of her eyes. Her skin was too pale, and now that she’d washed off the tinted moisturizer, she really looked like hell.

  She pushed the hair away from her face and, as she’d seen her mother do a hundred times, a zillion years ago, Liza pinched her cheeks to give them some color. She didn’t do a very good job because the right side looked more like a bad mosquito bite. Great.

  She grabbed a couple of paper towels and blotted her jeans, and then washed the stickiness off her hands. If Evan hadn’t already bolted, she’d come right out and ask him what he’d heard about the lawsuit. All he could do was tell her to get lost. But she doubted he’d do that. He was too much of a gentleman. And damn it, she liked that.

  Chapter 3

  Liza’s heart did a funny little hop as she approached the table, and he smiled. His hair was too short for her taste, but he had great eyes, the perfect shade of whiskey-brown, and a square jaw with a dimple in the center of his chin that she found terribly appealing. That he had some stubble and wasn’t clean-shaven, as usual, was right up her alley.

  The table had been cleaned off and her empty glass had been replaced with another tequila sunrise. She reclaimed her seat and noticed that he was also on his second beer. Guess he wasn’t going to run screaming from the room.

  “Trust me with another drink, I see.” She decided not to point out that she’d said she didn’t want another.

  “I asked for a lid but they didn’t have one.”

  She smiled in spite of herself. Either she was really starved for male company or Evan was truly turning out to be less stodgy than she’d perceived him.

  “What kind of doctor are you?” she asked, genuinely interested.

  “An internist.”

  “How did you get the consulting gig for Heartbeat?”

  “The producer is an old frat brother of mine.”

  “From med school?”

  He chuckled. “Undergraduate. You don’t have time for a fraternity in med school. Between working and studying I was lucky to get four hours of sleep a night.”

  “Here I thought you were one of those rich kids who had a trust fund.”

  “Yeah, right.”

  “Seriously, I did. You seem the preppy type.”

  “Bad assumption. I just finally paid off my student loans, thanks to the consulting job.”

  “I still have ten thousand outstanding myself.” Liza had no idea why she’d offered the information. It galled her to know that part of her inheritance had been used to buy Rick’s bike instead of making her debt-free.

  “That’s not bad.”

  “I guess not. Though I don’t like to owe any money.”

  “Me, too. My parents scraped together every penny to pay down their mortgage. The day they made their last payment they had a huge barbecue in the backyard and invited all the relatives and neighbors.”

  Liza smiled at the fondness in his voice. “You have a big family?”

  “Two brothers. Lots of cousins, most of whom live here in Atlanta. How about you?”

  “No siblings. Except Eve and Jane. They’re like—” She cut herself off, horrified at what she’d revealed. It was Evan’s fault. He was just too damn easy to talk to.

  He looked clearly curious, but graciously filled the conversation gap. “My father is retiring in three months. He and Mom are thinking about buying a small condo in Florida but they’re not sure where. You’re from Jacksonville, aren’t you?”

  “I was a kid when I lived there, and then I left after college.” She quickly picked up her drink and took a cooling sip. She didn’t like this warm squishy feeling of gratitude. Evan didn’t need information on Florida. He could’ve asked her all kinds of awkward questions. Not that she’d have answered, but still.

  “Are your parents living there—in Jacksonville?”

  “My dad died last year. My mom is there.”

  She didn’t know where exactly, but that wasn’t something she’d share. Besides, with his background, he wouldn’t understand what it was like growing up with an alcoholic and a pill-popper.

  “I’m sorry about your father.”

  “Yeah. Guess it was his time.” She looked away so she wouldn’t see the revulsion on Evan’s face. She hadn’t meant to sound so callous, but a life of hard drinking never ended well. When she finally looked at Evan again, he smiled kindly. It annoyed her. Why was he so nice? What the hell did he want from her? She didn’t deserve his kindness. Or anyone else’s. Didn’t he understand that?

  “You getting hungry?”

  “Why?”

  “Well,” he said slowly, the corners of his mouth twitching, “it’s approaching the dinner hour and traditionally people eat a meal at that time.”

  “I’m not traditional.”

  “True.” He loosened the knot on his tie. “That’s what I like about you.”

  “Hmm.” She couldn’t come up with anything witty to say. She was too busy watching his long fingers work, and noticing the smattering of hair across the back of his hands. His skin was tan and more rugged-looking than she’d expect of a doctor. Probably belonged to a golf or tennis club.

  “Liza?”

  “What?”

  He frowned at her. “I asked if you’d like to go to dinner.”

  “Dinner?”

  “Uh-huh, you know, eating.”

  She glanced at her watch, shocked at how much time had passed. Yet she hadn’t gotten a word out of him about the scuttlebutt around the station. Rick had been sleeping when she left, and she wanted him to stay that way until she was safely in her apartment. “I can’t. I’m leaving after this drink.”

  “All right.” He looked disappointed as he leaned back in his chair. His shoulders really were quite broad. She wondered what he’d be like without the jacket. “Another time, maybe?”

  She nodded absently. He kind of looked like a jock. Not her favorite. But he definitely seemed as if he were in shape. The most exercise she got these days was climbing the stairs to her apartment.

  “Your enthusiasm is heartening.”

  “What?”

  He smiled sadly. “One of the other things I like about you is your directness. If you don’t want a repeat, go ahead and say so. You’re not going to hurt my feelings.”

&nbs
p; “That’s not it.” She cleared her throat. What a great opening he’d handed her. “It’s this whole lawsuit thing making me crazy. I’m not myself.”

  “Ah. I understand.”

  She fingered her straw, keeping her gaze lowered, hoping she sounded casual. “Have you heard anything?”

  “About what?”

  “The lawsuit. My attorney thinks they’re about to make another offer.”

  “Good.” He slowly set down his beer, clearly avoiding her gaze. “I’m sure everyone wants to put this behind them.”

  “But you haven’t heard anything?”

  This time he looked her straight in the eye. “Is that why you called? So you could pump me for information?”

  “Yes.”

  He didn’t even blink at her bluntness. “Sorry you wasted your time.” His expression grim, he reached into his pocket. “And mine.”

  “Wait. Initially I did want to meet with you so that I could find out what was going on.”

  He pulled out some bills from his silver-and-turquoise money clip and picked up the check the waitress had left.

  Liza plucked the slip of paper out of his hand. “I called you. I’m paying.”

  “Will that assuage your guilt?”

  “Had you been listening, you’d realize that I qualified my answer. This evening turned out to be a pleasant surprise.”

  His mouth curved in a patronizing smile.

  “Look, I’m glad I came, okay?” She dug through her purse, searching for her wallet. Mostly, she didn’t want to face Evan. Screw him. At least she’d told him the truth. She could’ve gone all dewy-eyed and saccharine-sweet to get what she wanted. But she hadn’t. Not that she’d ever use that tactic in a million years.

  “Liza?”

  Grudgingly, she looked up at him.

  His gentle smile disarmed her. “I’m glad you came, too.”

  “Yeah, well, now that the mutual admiration society has met, time to get out of here.” She found a twenty and looked at the bill. God. Even the beer was expensive in this place. She started fishing in her wallet again, but Evan reached over and touched her hand.

  “I’m getting this,” he said and before she knew it, he grabbed the check out of her fingers.

  “Give me that.”

  “Nope.” He already had the money ready and handed the bills to the waitress as she passed by on her way to another table.

  “This is the twenty-first century, in case you’ve just woken up.”

  “A gentleman supersedes any period in time.”

  “Oh, brother.”

  “You ready?”

  “You can stay.”

  He snorted. “Right.”

  “So now you’re insisting on walking me to my car?”

  “You bet.”

  She shook her head as they both got to their feet. “You’re something else.”

  Winking at her, he took her arm with a flourish, the way his grandfather might have escorted his wife.

  Liza laughed. “What am I going to do with you?”

  His smile was far from patronizing when he asked, “Open to suggestions?”

  * * *

  As they left the bar, Evan placed his hand at the small of her back. She was pretty thin, which revived his earlier suspicion regarding her health. Yet her coloring was good and her energy level didn’t seem to be lacking.

  “You’ve lost some weight,” he said once they got on the sidewalk and he’d positioned himself on the outside. Rush-hour traffic hadn’t subsided, and it wouldn’t for another couple of hours.

  She frowned slightly. “Have I?”

  “Must be the stress of the lawsuit.”

  She moved away, self-consciously wrapping her arms around herself. “I guess.”

  “You want my jacket?”

  “Huh? Oh, no. Thanks.”

  “By the way, I haven’t heard anything about the lawsuit.”

  She turned back to him, lowering her arms, suddenly interested again. “Nothing?”

  “Nada.” He shook his head. “But I’m not in the loop around the station. When I’m done for the day, I’m out of there.”

  She turned away again, clearly disappointed.

  “Sorry.”

  “It’s okay.”

  Was it? Now that she knew he couldn’t be of use to her, would she still go out with him again? “I wish you luck, though.”

  She slowed. “Do you? Why?”

  “Because you apparently believe you have a claim. I don’t know the particulars, but—”

  “Don’t give me that. The story’s been splashed across the damn newspaper.”

  “Do you believe everything you read?” he shot back and enjoyed the bewilderment on her face.

  She stared at him for a long moment and then picked up the pace again, her eyebrows pinched together in a fierce frown. “I don’t understand you,” she muttered.

  “I believe you’ve already pointed that out.” He tried not to smile and show just how much he enjoyed puzzling her. She was a bit of a wild one, and he absolutely wasn’t. But that didn’t mean he didn’t like a taste of the exotic once in a while.

  “Yes, well, things haven’t changed.”

  Evan finally smiled. “How about tomorrow night?”

  “What about it?”

  “Dinner, and a chance to figure me out.”

  Her lips started to turn up, and then she sighed and shook her head. “I can’t.”

  “Okay, how about Thursday night?”

  “I can’t.”

  “In other words, I should quit asking.” He watched her closely, hoping he was wrong. Hoping that she hadn’t merely been using him tonight.

  She looked down at her hands and pressed her lips together. “I surprisingly had fun tonight….”

  “Thanks,” he said dryly.

  “I’m awful. I know. But that’s the truth. I expected you to be different,” she said, reminding him how much he found her frankness refreshing.

  “Somehow I sense a ‘but’ coming.”

  “I can’t see you again.”

  “Okay,” he said slowly, realizing he deserved the mental slap. “Seeing someone else?”

  “No,” she said quickly.

  Annoyed with himself, he kept walking beside her, facing straight ahead. He shouldn’t have asked if there was another guy in the picture. The lady said no. That was enough. He was raised better than that.

  They continued in silence to the station’s parking lot. Along the street, Christmas decorations were everywhere. Lights were strung around telephone poles and animated Santas and reindeers blinked from merchants’ windows. It was enough to sour his sudden precarious mood.

  Damn, but he wished his parents would go to Florida for the holidays. But, no, they insisted on staying so the family could have a festive dinner together. They probably only maintained the tradition to keep Evan’s spirits up.

  Ironically, getting together or even acknowledging the holidays was the last thing he wanted to do. Better to hide out at home, play some tunes, read a good book. And try not to think about Angela. About how this Christmas Eve would’ve been their seventh anniversary.

  “Well, we’re here.”

  He snapped out of his reverie. They’d already gotten to his brand-new Camry, and Liza was staring at him with open wonder.

  “Thank you, Evan. I had a great time. Really.”

  He motioned for her to keep walking. She started to protest and then closed her lush, pink mouth when she must have realized that he was going to walk her to her car whether she liked it or not.

  Most of the lot was unusually empty for this time of day. Then he remembered hearing that one of the departments was having a Christmas party tonight. Otherwise, no one left until the director had his or her perfect shot. He saw Liza’s compact about a half dozen stalls away. The car was an older model and didn’t come with the convenience of a remote so he waited until she manually unlocked her door.

  She got it open and then stood back. “I
wish you would’ve let me pay the check.”

  He smiled. “You’re welcome.”

  She made a face. “I’m getting in now so you can leave knowing you’ve done your gentlemanly duty.”

  He held the door for her until she was sitting behind the wheel. It took a good deal of willpower not to lean over and kiss her. Just a brief touching of lips. Nothing threatening. But she probably wouldn’t welcome the overture and he wasn’t one to push. “Drive safely,” he said, and closed the door.

  Before he could walk away, she promptly rolled down the window. A floodlight from the building shined on her face, making her hazel eyes glitter. “I really did have a nice time, Evan.”

  “Who are you trying to convince?”

  She smiled. “Okay, I deserved that.”

  “For the record, me, too,” he said and headed for his car before he gave in to his impulse and did something foolish. The woman wasn’t interested. He was a mature adult. He could accept that he wasn’t her type. Didn’t have to like it, but he could certainly accept the fact.

  He got out his keys and used the remote to unlock the car doors. He was too busy to be dating, anyway. As it was, his receptionist constantly begged him to expand his office hours. She was tired of turning away patients. In about three years he figured he could quit consulting on the television show and start looking toward the future. Build a nice solid practice, work hard, retire early if he chose. Although he doubted it, because he really did like practicing medicine. The consulting job was a necessity for now.

  He took off his jacket and laid it across the backseat before slipping in behind the wheel. It was cool for a moment, but then he turned the key in the ignition and both the promise of warmth and soft rock filled the air. The radio was too loud, but the volume always was deafening when he first started the car. Funny how it never seemed loud when he parked. Maybe that’s why he never remembered to adjust it.

  The sun had recently set, leaving a pink tinge along the horizon, but it was dark enough that he glanced in his rearview mirror to make sure Liza had safely left the parking lot. Her car was still there. He squinted but he couldn’t see her behind the wheel. What the hell…