05 Take Me Home for Christmas

by Brenda Novak

  “I was planning to be an old-fashioned barmaid, like I was last year. Or maybe an elderly lady in a robe and curlers. I couldn’t bring myself to spend any money this year. Thanks to the owners of A Room with a View constantly undercutting my prices, I’m having trouble turning a profit at the inn.”

  “Even after the remodel and the grand reopening?”

  “It’s gotten better the past couple of years, but...it’s still a struggle.”

  “I’m sorry. I hope you didn’t invest with Skip.”

  Eve laughed again. “No. You’re safe there. I’m just being conservative.”

  “I’m glad you’re not an investor. And it’s a good thing you didn’t buy a costume because I have some really great ones, and you can borrow any of them. Would you like to come over and take a peek? You’re a few inches taller than I am, but we could find something that would fit. I could do your makeup, too.” She held her breath as she awaited Eve’s response. She’d made overtures toward Ted’s friends before—overtures that’d been politely but not warmly accepted. Eve pitied her, so she was trying to help; that didn’t mean she was willing to embrace a full-fledged friendship. Considering how most people felt right now, Eve would be justified in keeping her distance.

  “You mean the scavengers didn’t take those, too?” she asked.

  “Far as I know, they’re in the attic. They didn’t get into my holiday decorations. And I didn’t suggest it.”

  “Thank goodness! You were offering up everything else. I finally had to stop them when they got to your underwear drawer.”

  They hadn’t really gone that far, other than to dump them out and carry off the furniture, but Sophia was grateful she and Eve could joke about it. Laughter eased the heartache. “I owe you a big thanks for that.”

  “Yes, you do,” Eve teased. “So this can be it. I’ll come right over.”

  Sophia smiled as she hung up. That exchange had felt good—natural, real—at a time when not many things did.

  Alexa was coming down the street. She was later than usual, but Sophia wasn’t concerned. She was excited about spending the evening with her daughter. She’d just finished her first day of work ever and felt proud that she hadn’t been fired. But when Alexa drew closer, Sophia realized why she was late: there were marks on her face, and her shirt was torn.

  “Oh, no,” she whispered. “Not her.”

  14

  Ted was too distracted to have much fun. Maybe it was because he’d been coming to the same party—if he wasn’t hosting it—for too many years. He liked getting together with his friends. Gail and Simon couldn’t make it, and Baxter hadn’t yet arrived, but all the others were there: Callie, Levi, Adelaide, Noah, Brandon, Olivia, Kyle, Riley, Cheyenne, Dylan and Eve. There was just something...anticlimactic about this event. As he sat on Cheyenne and Dylan’s sofa, his mind kept wandering back to Sophia and what he’d learned today. How Skip had abandoned her on their wedding anniversary. How he’d made her ride on a float each Fourth of July, as if she was a Barbie doll he could dress up and pose at his whim. The fact that she’d wanted to file a complaint with the police and he’d intervened before she could.

  Had he been abusive?

  Most of the people at this party thought so. They’d debated it before, had seen the bruises. Ted had chosen to believe Sophia when she said her injuries were the result of bumping into a door or a cupboard, but—

  “You’re quiet tonight, Sir Dixon.”

  He glanced up to find Eve smiling down at him and moved the sword of his Knight Templar costume so she could sit beside him.

  “What’s going on in that head of yours?” she asked as she handed him a glass of wine.

  “Nothing much.”

  “There’s always something going on. You’re our resident intellectual. Are you busy plotting your current manuscript?”

  “Maybe.” He grinned and clinked his glass against hers. “Nice costume, by the way.” This year Cheyenne had asked everyone to contribute $5 so the person with the best costume could win a jackpot. Knowing there was a competition made it more interesting to dress up. He doubted he would have bothered otherwise. He wasn’t much for that sort of thing, despite participating in the past. For tonight he’d spent nearly $200 to make sure his costume looked authentic instead of cheesy, and he’d accomplished that. But even an authentic-looking Knight Templar couldn’t compete with Catwoman—not this version. He could hardly take his eyes off Eve in that tight-fitting black leather bodysuit.

  Since when did Halloween costumes get so damn sexy?

  “Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked.

  “Like what?”

  She pointed to her face. “My eyes are up here.”

  He’d never ogled Eve’s breasts before. It felt odd to be doing it now. They’d been friends for too long. But having Sophia back in his life made him restless and suddenly dissatisfied, as if he should’ve been doing more all along. Dating. Socializing. Making the most of his youth. All he could think about was how long it had been since he’d had sex....

  “You’re the one who wore that costume,” he grumbled. “I can’t be the only man who’s tempted to stare.”

  “I was a barmaid last year.”

  “So?”

  “So that costume showed a lot more cleavage, and you didn’t give me a second glance.” She fluffed her hair. “Maybe it’s the red wig.”

  He knew she was teasing, but he answered her seriously despite that. “It’s definitely not the wig.” He drained his glass. “It’s that I haven’t gotten out of the house enough this year.”

  She lowered her voice so the others couldn’t hear. “You mean it’s too long since you’ve gotten laid.”

  When she said that, he could tell she’d had too much to drink. Adelaide, being pregnant, was a designated driver. So was he, since he usually didn’t drink much more than a glass of wine. That meant even those who didn’t live within walking distance had a safe way to get home. “That, too,” he admitted. “How’d you guess?”

  Her expression suggested it had been all too easy. “We live in the same small town. We basically have the same problem.”

  He shifted in his seat. He guessed she normally reserved that kind of remark for Cheyenne or another female member of the group because she’d never been that candid with him before. But he had no chance to comment. The doorbell rang and Callie cried, “It’s Bax!”

  This was the moment they’d all been waiting for. After spending his whole life pretending to be straight, Baxter North had come out of the closet a year ago, and he’d done it by declaring his love for Noah, who wasn’t the least bit gay. That had disrupted their friendship, which had lasted since early childhood, and it had sent shock waves through the whole group—until everyone who was part of it could adjust. For a while, no one was sure Baxter would be able to come to grips with his true identity. But he seemed to be doing better since moving to San Francisco, where he’d already been working as a stockbroker for a number of years. Fortunately, he and Noah were friends again. Ted didn’t talk to Baxter as often as some of the others, like Callie, but he knew that much. Even Adelaide, whom Noah had married nine months ago, liked Bax.

  Everyone liked Bax and had been looking forward to seeing him. But they hadn’t expected him to bring a friend. He hadn’t mentioned it. So when he walked in holding hands with a man who strongly resembled Noah—a man who was even dressed in biking shorts and a biking tunic with Noah’s store logo—the room fell silent.

  Noah seemed determined to ease the awkwardness when he stepped forward to hug his best friend and shake hands with his doppelganger, whom Baxter introduced as Skye. “I like your shirt,” he said, grinning. “But I look better in Spandex.”

  They all laughed and followed his lead.

  “Nice to meet you,” Ted murmured when it was his turn
to be introduced.

  After that they all stood blinking at one another, trying to ignore the fact that Baxter’s boyfriend was almost a carbon copy of Noah—the man he’d loved his whole life.

  Probably feeling desperate to get the party back on track, Cheyenne cleared her throat. “You two have a seat. What can I get you to drink?”

  Baxter swung the hand that was clasping Skye’s as they cut through the crowd toward the living room. But then Baxter let go. “Gotcha!” he cried and announced that Skye was only a friend he’d met at work. He wasn’t even gay.

  “He was nice enough to dress up like Noah and help me pull off this gag. I knew it would freak you out,” he said, laughing. “It’s uncanny how much they look alike, right?”

  Callie was laughing, too. “But how’d you get one of Noah’s tunics?”

  Baxter gestured as if that was the easy part. “He gave that to me ages ago.”

  Once everyone realized he hadn’t fallen for a Noah stunt double, as he’d pretended, they could all enjoy the joke. The tension dissipated and everything grew comfortable again. As usual, they talked, watched a horror flick and played games.

  Thanks to Skye, Eve didn’t win the costume contest. No one could outdo a Noah look-alike who resembled him more than the fraternal twin who’d died on grad night. They just wished Noah had dressed up in biking clothes, too, so they could get a picture of both of them together.

  At the end of the evening, when the party was breaking up, Ted invited anyone who’d remembered to bring a swimsuit to get in his hot tub, and a handful of stragglers followed him home.

  It was nearly two o’clock by the time everyone left Ted’s place. Only Eve remained, and Ted wasn’t disappointed about that. Since he got home, he’d had more to drink. And she was in a bikini.

  He kept asking himself why he hadn’t noticed what a beautiful body she had until tonight....

  “That was a shocker,” she said as she leaned against the back of the Jacuzzi. The water bubbled and foamed about her breasts as she finished another glass of wine.

  “Skye?” He leaned over to pour her some more from the bottle sitting near his elbow.

  “Yeah. I thought that was really cool of Bax—to poke fun at himself like that. To laugh and let us laugh, so we can finally feel as if he’s come to terms with his crush.”

  “It’s always better to tackle that sort of thing head-on and get it out of the way. Skye made for a great icebreaker. But I bet Noah just about had a heart attack when they walked in.”

  Her laugh sounded relaxed and husky as she let her head rest on the edge of the hot tub. She was drunker than he was, but he was getting there fast. “Adelaide, too. Bax came out just after she returned to town and started seeing Noah. She must’ve felt some anxiety, if only for Noah’s sake, when Baxter showed up with Skye.”

  Ted took another sip of his wine. “Do you think Bax is over Noah?”

  “Probably not. But he’s reconciled to the fact that he’ll never be with him in that way. And he’s willing to remain friends, which is more than most people in his situation would be capable of. It’s hard to love someone who doesn’t love you back. I hope he finds the happiness he deserves.”

  “Finding that happiness would be easier if his parents would accept him for who he is,” Ted said. “But I don’t get the impression his relationship with them has improved, do you?”

  “Maybe it hasn’t improved a lot, but he told me they’re starting to come around. That’s hopeful.”

  They gazed up at the stars in silence. It was cold out, but the wind had died down. “Speaking of old love interests,” Eve eventually said. “Will you be okay with Sophia working here?”

  He didn’t want to talk about Sophia. He understood all about unrequited love and how long it could take to get over someone. He wasn’t about to fall back into that pit now that he was free of it, but whatever had drawn him to her in the first place was still lurking beneath the surface. He’d have to fight that magnetic pull, make sure he didn’t take so much as one step in her direction. Tonight, probably due to the wine, there’d been a brief few seconds when he’d wondered what it would be like to try again with her now that Skip was gone. She obviously needed help; he could provide it. And no matter how much he tried to deny the truth, he hadn’t lost his craving for the taste and feel of her.

  But he didn’t want to become her new sugar daddy. That wouldn’t make her love him any more deeply than she had before. Besides, dating Sophia would ruin his relationship with his mother, who would consider him the biggest fool on earth. And she’d be right. Because he’d have to be a fool to get involved with Sophia again.

  His gaze shifted from the stars to Eve. Why couldn’t he fall for a nice girl like her? He’d known her for so long, could absolutely count on the strength of her character. Maybe he’d missed what was right in front of him. Friends could become lovers; it happened all the time. For some, finding a mate had more to do with mutual respect than physical chemistry. Maybe those were actually the best relationships.

  That was what a lot of people said....

  He took a deep breath as he considered her question about Sophia, and decided to keep his answer short and sweet. The less he said on that subject, the better. “It’ll be fine. Because of her situation, I don’t have any choice except to keep her on until she can come up with something else. But...I’m hoping that won’t take too long.”

  “You’re over her? It doesn’t have any impact on you romantically to have her coming to your house every day?”

  He could guess why she was asking. They were both wondering why they couldn’t be that special someone in each other’s lives. Eve was sweet, attractive, loyal and capable of real commitment. She wanted to get married and have a family, and so did he. They were in their mid-thirties and hadn’t met anyone. They lived in a small town, so they didn’t come into contact with many strangers.

  Could they somehow transform their relationship?

  Should they even try?

  “It’s just a job.” On some level he knew that wasn’t entirely true. But he wanted reality to be as he’d represented it, so he promised himself that this time he’d choose the path less likely to end in heartbreak. He had the self-discipline. He just wished he wasn’t still tempted by her....

  Eve swished the bubbles over to one side. “She mentioned that she didn’t do too well on her typing test.”

  “No,” he said with a laugh.

  “What can I do to fill the gap?”

  “I think we can limp by. Don’t worry about it.”

  “I don’t mind helping out. Let me know if something comes up.”

  “I will.”

  “She seems to have changed a great deal,” she said. “For the better.”

  Eve—honest, as always. She was making an effort to be fair to Sophia. “Everyone seems changed when they’re down-and-out,” he said. “Being broke is a humbling experience. Makes you more tractable.”

  “She used to be hell on wheels, didn’t she? Charismatic and beautiful but...ruthless. I’ve always seen her as a Scarlett O’Hara.”

  He agreed with that comparison. But he wasn’t sure her ruthlessness stemmed from anything more than being spoiled. She’d been gorgeous from the moment she was born, had received far more attention than was healthy for any child. On top of that, he doubted her doting parents ever used the word no. Since they’d never placed any boundaries on her behavior, she hadn’t realized there were boundaries. She’d thought that only applied to others, that she was somehow exempt because her daddy was the mayor.

  “I wonder if she regrets any of it,” he said.

  “I think she does,” Eve responded. “That costume I wore tonight? She lent it to me. She had me come over and pick it out from a wide array of really nice costumes she had stored in her attic. Then she got me all f
ixed up with makeup and a wig.”

  “What was she doing tonight?” he asked, curious in spite of himself. If she’d still been meeting them for coffee every Friday, she would’ve been invited to Cheyenne’s party, but he purposely hadn’t extended the invitation himself. Bad enough that he had to see her during work hours. He wasn’t going to include her in his social life, too.

  “From what I could tell, she didn’t have any plans, but we didn’t talk about it. She was too upset when I was there.”

  “About losing her dearly beloved?” He’d been curious as to how much she missed Skip, if she was sad to have him gone from her life or more distressed about the loss of money and status.

  Again, the question of whether Skip had abused Sophia popped into his mind, but he didn’t ask Eve. It was better if he didn’t find out. Sympathy was what had landed him in his current position.

  “No, this was about Alexa. Some kid jumped her after school.”

  He sat up so fast, the water sloshed. “Which kid?”

  “Sophia doesn’t know. Lex wouldn’t say.”

  “Did Lex say why?”

  “Because of what Skip did, of course. Kids often imitate the attitudes and behavior of their parents.”

  He finished his wine. “So his daughter’s being picked on now, too? As well as his wife?”

  “I guess.”

  He flipped his wet hair off his face. “That’s too bad. It’s Halloween. She should’ve been looking forward to trick-or-treating—not getting beaten up.” And maybe Sophia should’ve been invited to Cheyenne’s....

  “It made me feel terrible. Poor Sophia has enough problems.”

  “No kidding.”

  They remained silent for a few seconds. Then she stood. “Well, it’s getting late. I’d better go.”

  He watched as a drop of water rolled between her breasts. “You can’t go.”

  She seemed surprised. “Why not?”

  She didn’t have her car, for one. She’d ridden over with him. “You’ve had too much to drink, and I can’t drive you because I’ve had too much to drink.”