Sofia’s face fell when Anna simply shrugged. What did she care about Christmas? Over the past few years it had just been an inconvenience, an interruption in her routine as the shops filled with crowds and emptied of goods, friends went home for the holidays and she stayed in lonely splendor in her apartment on the university grounds. Louis had never been big into Christmas and he’d been dismissive of Anna’s few attempts to celebrate the season.
And he’d always gone home alone. “The parents won’t understand about us,” he told her. “They think it’s sinful for people to live together before marriage.” So Anna had been left to celebrate Christmas in her own way, usually with a bottle of wine and a stack of new books. Each Christmas morning she’d listened alone, as the bells rang out across the city of Leeds, and tears of longing for something she couldn’t identify had raced down her cheeks.
It looked like she would soon be going back to the years of lonely Christmases; to the years of lying in a lonely bed and dreaming of Jed’s touch, his kisses….and so she might as well celebrate this Christmas, one last time with the Adams.
Sofia’s smile was radiant as Anna stood and began to take the decorations out of the box. At the same moment, Dan huffed his way into the room, dragging with him a freshly cut tree and filling the room with the heady scent of evergreens and country air.
Seeing the two of them setting out the decorations, Dan grinned widely and winked at Sofia. Anna was sure the older woman blushed as she coyly smiled back at her husband. How many years had these two been together, and yet Sofia’s cheeks could still color charmingly when her husband flirted with her?
“Do you think there’s any such thing as love at first sight?” The words were out before she could stop them, and it was Anna’s turn to blush. She quickly picked up a set of colored Christmas lights and bent her head to the task of untangling them.
When she looked up her foster parents were beaming at each other.
“I knew the moment I saw Sofia that I had to have her in my life,” Dan said. “She wasn’t the most beautiful girl I’d ever met, but there was something about her….something special.”
Sofia flicked her hand at him teasingly. “What, not the most beautiful, you say?” she tried to scowl at him but a smile broke through. “Did we ever tell you how we met, Anna?”
Anna shook her head. She couldn’t imagine, in years gone by that she would have been interested in her foster parents’ history. Now she found herself really wanting to know how they had come together and made a marriage that lasted all these years.
“I was only sixteen, and working in the kitchens of a café near the American embassy in Moscow. It was a good job – it didn’t pay very well, but they let the staff eat any leftover food. My family was very poor, so when I had food from the café, I could send more of the pittance I earned home to them. I hated the city – I was a country girl and at night I would weep for my family’s cottage.”
She fell silent, momentarily lost in thought and Dan took up the story. “I was in the armed forces, and was sent to Moscow as part of the security detail for our embassy there. I would go out for a sandwich to a little café nearby, and there I met the woman who changed my life.
“It took a lot of trying, but finally she agreed to go out with me. We went to see a movie, and I walked her home. On our third date, she let me kiss her – and I was dizzy with the joy of it.”
Sofia continued. “It was like something out of one of the folk stories my mother used to tell me when I was a child; it took me a while to believe it was really happening – that the handsome American really did care about me. And then I never cried for my parents’ cottage ever again.
“So, in answer to your question, little Anna - yes, there is such a thing as love at first sight. But you must be brave enough to grasp it with both hands and hold on tight, because sometimes it grabs you when you least expect it.”
* * *
Jed cursed softly as he rushed from the Walker Media building, or tried to. It seemed that every couple of yards someone stopped him to chat, to question the holiday arrangements, or simply wish him a merry Christmas.
Added to that, the programming meeting had gone on twice as long as usual – the few staff present were enjoying the extra relaxation of the holiday. Like most media companies, Walker operated a skeleton staff during holidays like Christmas, so the employees present at the meeting were mostly young and footloose; they enjoyed passing the time joshing around and it had taken a supreme effort on his part to get them to concentrate on business so that he could get the hell out of there.
And as if things weren’t bad enough, the weather seemed to be turning against him. From flurries of light snow over the past 24 hours, the heavens had opened and were determined to supply all those Christmas merrymakers with a traditional White Christmas. Lovely to look at, but hell to travel in.
Then his cell beeped and he pressed the listen buttons as he waited in traffic, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel.
“Jed – where are you? We’re getting ready for church and you know I expect you to join us,” his mother said, disapproval dripping in her tone.
He slapped his hand against his forehead. Family was important to him, and holiday traditions provided the opportunity for family get togethers so that he could catch up with the latest goings-on among his siblings and cousins.
But not tonight! With a shiver of guilt, he remembered this was the one night of the year when his mother insisted he be home and accompany her, his father and his grandmother to church.
And this was the one night of this year when he simply couldn’t do it. He hated the disappointment in her voice when he told her he was tied up in a meeting and now late for another appointment.
“Jed Walker, you work too hard. It’s not healthy – doing business on Christmas Eve, for heaven’s sake! You cancel your appointment, and get yourself home.”
So he was forced to say the magic words. “Mom, it’s not business. I need to see someone special – and I hope she’s waiting for me.”
“Someone special? A girl? Why didn’t you say so? She must be special indeed if you’re missing Christmas with us. When do we get to meet her?”
“Soon, if everything works out.”
“So why are you hanging around chatting on the telephone? Go and work things out with this special lady.” His mother hung up leaving Jed relieved that she wasn’t upset, and worried that he’d told her too much. If things didn’t work out….
But when he arrived in Knotting Grove, all the lights in the Adams house were out. He was shocked to see it was after midnight and, short of climbing down the chimney, he couldn’t see any way of getting to see Anna without causing offence to her foster parents.
* * *
She had spent the evening quietly with Sofia and Dan, admiring the decorated tree, eating sausage rolls and Christmas shortbread, and drinking some of Sofia’s homemade dandelion wine.
She didn’t have a cell number for Jed, and when she called the hotel they told her he’d checked out early that morning. “Seemed in an awful hurry, too,” the desk clerk told her.
With a heavy heart she tried telephoning the television station. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Mr. Walker isn’t here right now but I can take a message,” the receptionist chirped.
“Can you give me his number so I can call him directly?” Anna asked, hoping the desperation didn’t show in her voice.
“I’m sorry, it’s company policy. We’re not allowed to give out telephone numbers. I can pass a message on to Mr. Walker, though.”
“No, don’t bother. I’ll catch him later.”
Would she catch him? Anna doubted it very much. She downed another glass of dandelion wine and tried to ignore the meaningful glances which passed between Sofia and Dan.
She woke up the next morning heavy headed, heavy hearted and miserable. Dragging herself into the shower, she told herself she didn’t really care about Jed; that all that love at first sight stuff was nonsen
se, little more than eager hormones. And hadn’t he been really rude to her on more than one occasion? Obviously, he didn’t really have feelings for her.
Then she remembered falling asleep in his arms after he’d taken her to the hospital, and the fiery passion that had almost enveloped them as they’d stood on the Adams doorstep in the cold, crisp night, heated through by the physical desire that flamed within them.
The shower did little to improve her mood and when Sofia banged on her door at 6 am, she quailed at the thought that the woman might want her to go to the early church service with her and Dan. “Oh, dear God – kill me now,” she wailed inwardly as she opened her bedroom door.
“Come on, dear, get up. It’s Christmas morning and we have something special for you. Hurry up and get dressed.” Sofia was beaming, and Anna was left nervously wondering what her foster mother was up to.
She reluctantly pulled on tattered jeans that she’d had when she was fifteen, and an old Knotting Grove High School sweatshirt. She dragged a brush through the tangled strawberry blonde mane that was still wet from the shower, all the while feeling horrible that the Adams had obviously made an attempt to make Christmas enjoyable; they’d even bought her a present. And she hadn’t thought to bring anything for them.
The day just kept getting worse.
She entered the living room on dragging feet, hoping that the ‘something special’ was just a pair of the crocheted slippers Sofia made – but she came to a sudden stop just inside the door.
Jed Walker stood in the middle of the room. He was resplendent in a three piece suit, smooth shaven and perfectly turned out – except for that lock of hair that always fell across his forehead. Anna’s fingers itched to smooth it away from his brow, but she couldn’t move, frozen in place by the worried look on his face. Then she remembered the state she was in – ill-dressed, no make up, and her hair wet and frizzy from lacking a blow dry.
“What do you want?” she asked, not meaning to sound as snappish as the words came out. His face became even more serious.
“It’s Christmas, Anna.”
“I know that. You think I’m dumb or something?”
Dark color swept up from Jed’s neck and over his cheek bones. “I know it’s really early, but I just had to see you. I couldn’t wait another minute – and Mr. and Mrs. Adams said it was okay when I called them.”
“You called them?”
“Yes, on my way here – I got stuck in snow and had to get towed out, and by the time I got here it was coming dawn. I thought they were the sort who got up early, so I called…” Jeez, was he ever babbling. Jed Walker, multi-millionaire businessman and veteran of many corporate battles, was stammering like a boy on his first date. Anna was staring at him as if she thought he was crazy. As if she didn’t want to be there with him. There was only one thing to do.
Swift as a cat he moved forward and pulled her into his arms, kissing her thoroughly to push that lost and angry look from her eyes. She responded to his kiss, his touch, just as he’d known she would. He kissed her neck and felt the pulse there fluttering.
When they finally broke apart, Anna said: “I thought you weren’t coming back – you said you’d be here yesterday and then I couldn’t get through to you – your office said you weren’t there and you’d left the hotel…”
“Honey, I had things to do in the city. Important things.”
The words were unspoken but her eyes telegraphed her thoughts – more important than me?
Jed dropped down on one knee and pulled a small square package, wrapped in silver foil, from his pocket. “Anna, in a very short space of time you’ve become the most important person in the world to me.” He slipped the velvet covered box from its wrapper and flicked it open. Anna’s eyes widened as she saw the ring there. “Anna Findlay, I love you beyond words. Will you be my wife?”
Silence. He looked up at her and saw tears. His heart pounded – was she crying because the thought of marrying him was abhorrent, or because…
Anna knelt down on the floor beside him, putting her arms around his neck.
“Would it be a cliché to say that marrying you would make me the happiest woman in the world?”
“Well, thank goodness we’ve got that straightened out.” Sofia bustled in with a tray of coffee, Dan following behind her with a plate of muffins. “Let’s get some breakfast. We’ve got a lot to do – we can see the minister after church and….”
“Hold it, Sofia – give the two of them time to at least get the ring on her finger before you go rushing into wedding arrangements, “ Dan said, holding out his hand to Jed. “Welcome to the family, my boy.”
“I can’t believe how nervous you were,” Anna was fighting off a bout of giggles – part laughter, part relief, part overwhelming happiness.
“Wait until you get to meet my family. You’ll know how it feels,” Jed growled.
CHAPTER SIXTEENJed’s parents welcomed Anna into their home with a warmth that made her feel at home at once. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Jed as happy as he has been since he met you,” Jed’s mother, Mia, confided as she and Anna prepared dinner together in the Walkers’ spacious kitchen.
“Your son has made me very happy, too,” Anna replied.
“He’s grown into a fine young man,” Mia said. “But just remember, if he gives you any trouble, I’ll set him straight!”
“Set who straight?” Jed asked as he entered the room.
“Oh, nothing, dear – we were just talking about you.”
Jed raised his hands and backed out through the door. “I came to offer help, but I think perhaps its best I leave,” he said, and fled.
His mother had set Anna up in a prettily decorated room at the opposite end of the long corridor from Jed’s own childhood bedroom. In between were several other bedrooms, including his parents’ suite. Jed walked her upstairs but stopped at her door.
“I’d planned to creep to your room later but I’ll be darned if I can figure out a way to do it quietly enough that Mom or Dad won’t poke their heads out of their room as I pass. I’ll have to be content with this.” Jed lowered his head to capture her lips, and sparks as bright as the colored lights that decorated the trees in front of the house exploded all through Anna’s body and she moaned softly against his mouth.
At that moment his grandmother decided to pass down the corridor on her way to the bathroom. “She doesn’t have to do that, you know – she has a room with an ensuite bathroom. It’s like that damned No Sex Clause all over again.” Jed groaned and kissed her one last time before reluctantly heading down the hallway to his own room, giving her one last lingering look before disappearing inside.
* * *
They were to be married at the little country church that Anna had attended with her foster parents until, rebellious in her teens, she had refused to accompany them anymore. Sofia and the church women had done a beautiful job of the decorations, thriftily using evergreens and pink and white ribbons to turn the old-fashioned interior into a beautiful place for a wedding.
Jed felt like the epitome of the nervous bridegroom, standing at the altar unable to resist glancing down the aisle every few minutes. He felt also like the world’s luckiest man and, while he knew in his heart Anna wouldn’t let him down, there was always the possibility that his luck might run out. Again! What if she changed her mind?
His younger brother, Simon, stood at his side as best man. “It’s getting late – do you think she’s decided not to come?” he muttered in Jed’s ear. Seeing the stricken look on his brother’s face, he added: “Just kidding. That woman loves you, Big Bro.”
Looking over at the pew where his parents and other family members sat, he thought how lucky he was to have their love and support. He knew they’d taken a liking to Anna from the moment he’d introduced her, and his Mom and Dad and Sofia and Dan had got along like a house on fire. His mother caught his eye and smiled encouragingly.
The strains for the traditional ‘Here Comes The Brid
e’ struck up and Jed’s stomach muscles tightened. She was here. It was really happening.
A tiny girl appeared first, his cousin’s daughter, dressed in frothy pink and scattering pink and white rose petals from a basket she carried over her arm. She smiled at Jed shyly as her mother took her by the hand and pulled her into a pew. She was followed by a small boy holding a white lace bridal pillow upon which two golden rings glistened. Simon waved the boy over to stand beside him and Jed.
Jed’s heart was beating faster now. Hell, how I hate the tension of waiting! He took an impatient breath as another figure appeared - the maid of honor, Alex, the publicity agent who’d become Anna’s closest friend, dressed in sultry, wine colored satin.
Then she was there – his beautiful Anna, dressed in a simple white gown, trimmed with lace and pearls. An organza veil studded with pearls hid her face, and she held a bouquet of pink and white roses. Behind her, holding her train, were two tiny bridesmaids both dressed in the same frothy pink as the little flower girl..
Anna was clutching Dan’s arm tightly as they did the slow and traditional walk down the aisle, and all heads swiveled to watch. Finally standing alongside Jed, Anna handed her bouquet to Alex and Sofia stepped forward to help her fold back her veil. His heart leapt as his bride offered him a shy smile, filled with promise.
* * *
Anna couldn’t remember a time in her life when she’d been so nervous – and so very happy. But all her nerves vanished as she entered the small church and saw Jed standing at the altar waiting for her.
Waiting for her to begin their new life together as man and wife. “I must have done something really good in a past life to deserve this joy,” she whispered to Dan. She had finally found it in herself to recognize how much love the Adams had lavished on her in their own special way, and Dan’s obvious pride when she asked him to walk down the aisle with her and give her away had brought tears to her eyes.
Aware that all eyes in the crowded church were on her, Anna had eyes only for Jed as she walked towards the altar where the minister waited with her handsome groom. She’d been trembling as she dressed in the pretty gown that Sofia had made for her, and even the small glass of sherry her foster mother had offered to still both Anna’s nerves and her own had done nothing to calm her. But the look of love on Jed’s face cemented her belief that this was the most perfect thing in her life. I don’t think I can ever be afraid of anything ever again when he’s with me.
The No Sex Clause Page 13
