The Christmas Wife

by Sherry Lewis

  “Divorced.”

  “How many little ones?”

  Molly shook her head. “None.”

  Joyce didn’t so much as blink, just motioned at a white brick house across the street where a tennis racket and a tube of bright yellow balls sat on the driveway beside a dark-colored Buick. “I just got back from a match, but I’d love to visit with you for a while. Would you like to come over? I was just going to make a pot of coffee. I even have some of that lemon poppy-seed cake you used to like so much.”

  Another wave of memory swamped Molly. “It’s been years since I’ve had that cake,” she said with regret, “and I’d love to take you up on your offer. But I made arrangements to spend some time with Louise this morning, so I’m going to have to say no. I’d love to come by another time, if that’s all right.”

  Joyce squinted toward Louise’s house. “Louise is expecting you?”

  “At eleven.” Molly glanced at her watch and realized that she was already a few minutes late. “I should hurry. I don’t want to keep her waiting. Are you in the book? Do you mind if I call you tomorrow?”

  “I don’t mind at all,” Joyce said. “But are you sure Louise is expecting you? I saw her getting ready to leave early this morning. She said she wouldn’t be back until Sunday tonight.”

  “Oh, but that can’t be,” Molly said. “I talked to her just yesterday.” But the words were a token protest and a sick feeling settled in her stomach. She knew that Joyce wasn’t lying, just as she knew that Louise had skipped town to avoid talking to her.

  “Well, then, I must be wrong.” Joyce’s eyes filled with sympathy, but that only made Molly feel worse. “Or maybe something came up at the last minute,” she said, trying to sound as if she actually believed it. “You know how that can happen.” She squeezed Molly’s arm and smiled encouragement. “Tell you what—you run over and check, but if Louise isn’t there for some reason, just come to my place and let yourself in. Tom’s out of town this week and I could use some company—and I’d love to hear what’s been happening in your life since I saw you last.”

  Molly nodded, almost too numb to think. She turned away and started up the sidewalk again, but the joy she’d felt earlier was crushed beneath a wall of doubt and fear. When she reached the front door, she lifted her hand to knock, but a piece of paper taped inside the screen door caught her eye. And when she realized that her name was scrawled across the note, the disbelief and anger she’d been fighting got the upper hand.

  She jerked open the door and tore the note from the glass, read Louise’s half-baked explanation for taking off without a word of warning and crumpled the paper in her fist. For a long time she stood there, trying to decide whether to cross the street and take a chance that Joyce might actually talk to her when she found out what Molly wanted.

  She couldn’t bear to set herself up for more disappointment, but what if Joyce was willing to talk?

  With one last glance at Louise’s empty house, she crossed the street to Joyce’s front door. But she refused to get her hopes up. Ruby hadn’t been as close to Joyce as she was to Louise. If Joyce had any ideas about why her neighbor left town, she’d have said so already. The idea of company was appealing, however, and it might be a good thing to spend some time talking about her mother’s life, instead of always worrying about her death.

  “OKAY, BUDDY, do you have them all?” Beau settled a jacket on top of the load he’d already piled on Nicky’s outstretched arms. “Are you sure you can carry all that?”

  Nicky scowled up at him from beneath a too-long sheaf of hair. “Of course I can. I’m not a baby.” He pivoted away, eager to help, but still a little young to handle much responsibility. A jacket sleeve dangled from the pile and nearly tripped him on his way out the door. Beau watched until he was certain Nicky wouldn’t fall down the stairs and called after him, “If your sister’s out there, tell her it’s time to leave.”

  He’d spent the day getting ready for the parade—roping off prime viewing areas, making sure the banners were draped on the cars of local dignitaries, shuffling the order of parade entrants to allow Melvin Greenspan more time to fix the brakes on the float entered by the high-school science department…. He’d been running on high for hours, and he was ready for the part that made all the work worthwhile.

  If any problems arose now, they were Ridge’s responsibility. For the rest of the evening, Beau was just another spectator, and he was determined to enjoy every minute.

  Whistling softly, he turned back to the list of last-minute details he’d made that morning and checked off another item. A shadow passed in front of him and he glanced up to find Molly standing in the open doorway.

  She wore a pair of jeans and a shape-hugging white sweater, but she seemed completely unaware of how incredible she looked. “Rope and jackets delivered safely, sir. Two blankets tucked into the back seat as ordered. What next?”

  He grinned, marked off the items on his checklist and patted his pockets, searching for his keys. “Next, we head out—unless there’s something else you need.” When she shook her head, he checked the stove one last time to make sure he’d turned off all the burners. “Did you happen to notice if Brianne is out there?”

  Molly nodded. “I saw her coming around from the front as I came back here. But are you sure she’s going to be okay with this? I mean, I don’t need to stay with you all evening. I’d be happy to meet up with Elaine or Jennifer if that would make things easier.”

  “Absolutely not!” He spied his keys near the phone and crossed the room to get them. “I invited you and I’ll be insulted if you don’t come. It’s time Brianne realized that she doesn’t get to call all the shots around here.”

  “O-kay,” Molly said hesitantly.

  Beau laughed at her obvious lack of enthusiasm. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll have a great time, I promise. Just relax. Brianne’s a great kid, and once she realizes that she can’t run you off with a tantrum or two, she’ll give up and you’ll get to see the good parts of her personality.”

  Molly still didn’t look entirely convinced, but Beau appreciated her willingness to give Brianne another chance. He followed her out and locked the door, then fell into step at her side as they strode across the lawn toward the Cherokee.

  “How did your meeting with Louise Duncan go?”

  “It didn’t.” She slanted a glance at him. “But let’s not talk about that, okay? I just want to have a good time tonight.”

  “Okay. Sure.” As they approached the car, Beau realized that Brianne had already buckled herself into the front seat. He scowled and swore under his breath. What was wrong with this kid of his, anyway? It wasn’t like her to be so rude.

  Not wanting to start the evening on the wrong foot, he pasted on a smile and opened the car door. “Hey, funny face, how about sitting in back with your brother so Molly can sit up here?”

  Brianne smirked at him. “Why should I?”

  “Because I asked you to.” He kept the smile but put a little heat into his voice so she wouldn’t misunderstand.

  Either she didn’t understand, or she just didn’t care. “I don’t want to sit back there. I want to sit up here. With you. There’s lots of room in the back seat—” she looked at Molly with all the haughty disdain Heather had shown toward the end of their marriage “—unless she’s too big to fit.”

  Beau’s smile vaporized. He shot a glance at Nicky and jerked his head, and his son jumped out of the back seat without hesitation. Brianne folded her arms and stared straight ahead through the windshield.

  Still determined to save the evening, Beau leaned into the car and lowered his voice so that the others couldn’t hear him. “This is completely uncalled-for, young lady. Molly is my friend and my guest. I want her here even if you don’t, and I won’t tolerate rudeness. Is that clear?”

  Brianne’s glare was hostile. “Well, I don’t want her here. Don’t I count for anything?”

  “Of course you do. And when you behave like the
young lady I raised you to be, you’ll get a voice in the way things are done around here. If you’re going to behave like a baby, you don’t get a vote. Now get in the back seat and sit with your brother, and if I hear one more rude comment or see one more dirty look directed at Molly, you and I are going to have some real trouble.”

  A muscle in Brianne’s jaw twitched, and for a minute Beau thought she was going to refuse again. Finally she sighed and released the lock on the seat belt. “I thought you didn’t like us to lie.”

  “I’m not asking you to lie. I’m telling you to be civil.”

  She climbed into the back through the space between the front seats. “What’s Mom going to say when she comes home and finds her here?”

  “Mom’s not coming home,” Beau snapped. He regretted it immediately and tried to soften his tone when he spoke again. “I know you want her to come back, but wanting it won’t make it happen. You’re going to have to accept that, because it’s how things are.”

  “Gram says—”

  “Well, Gram’s wrong,” Beau cut her off before she could spout more of Doris’s delusions. He leaned farther into the car and gripped the seat as if hanging on to it might help him keep a grip on his temper. “Gram wants your mom to come back because she’s unhappy with the choices your mom made and she feels guilty. It’s not Gram’s fault. It’s nobody’s fault. Your mom is who she is. But I think Gram blames herself for what your mom did. She thinks that if Mom will just come back to live with us again, it’ll prove that Gram was a good mother.”

  The anger in Brianne’s eyes seemed to break apart, and whatever had been holding her so stiff and unwieldy for weeks crumbled. In a flash, she was young and frightened and vulnerable again. “But what if Mom’s wrong? What if she isn’t really…like that?”

  Her inability to say the word lesbian aloud filled Beau with a mixture of sympathy for her and outrage at Heather. He understood only too well how hard it was to say the word aloud. The realization that Heather had never been sexually attracted to him had bruised his ego badly, but he would eventually learn to live with that. What he couldn’t understand—what he would never be able to forgive—was the hell she was putting their children through.

  “Your mom isn’t going to change her mind,” he said gently. “It isn’t easy for me to admit it, but she was never happy with me. The life we lived wasn’t right for her. She’s much happier in Santa Fe with Dawn, and I hope they have a great life together.”

  “Then you’re not angry with her anymore?”

  If she walked back into his life this second, swearing she’d been wrong and begging for his forgiveness, he wouldn’t have been able to grant it. But he shook his head and forgave himself the lie for his daughter’s peace of mind. “I’m not angry with her. In fact,” he said, switching to the truth, “I’m grateful to her. If she hadn’t married me, I wouldn’t have you and Nicky, would I?”

  “I guess not.” Brianne dragged her gaze away from his and settled it on Molly, who’d moved to stand on the lawn near Nicky. “Are you going to marry her?”

  “Who? Molly?” Beau laughed, but there was no humor in it. “No. We’re friends. I think she’s kind of pretty, and it makes me happy to have a pretty woman to spend time with, but she’s only going to stick around for another week, so I think you’re safe.”

  “But you’ll marry somebody, won’t you?”

  “I might someday. But not yet, Brie. I’m still trying to figure out which way is up, and I don’t plan to turn our lives upside down again until I know where my feet are.”

  Brianne smiled sadly and Beau reached through the seats to brush her cheek with his fingertips. He wasn’t naive enough to think they were out of the woods, but for the first time in weeks, he actually believed they might make it through this.

  And that was enough—for now.

  CHAPTER NINE

  BEAU TRIED HARD to maintain his equilibrium during the parade, but it wasn’t easy. Now that Brianne’s hostilities were on hold, he had plenty of time to think about Molly. And Molly was giving him plenty to think about.

  He watched in amazement as she slowly, patiently and carefully lured Brianne into a conversation about a group of boys who stood nearby. He felt his heart swell with gratitude when she listened to Nicky’s convoluted story about something that had happened at school. When the football team rode past in a convoy of pickup trucks, Molly cheered as if she was single-handedly responsible for the team’s morale, and even Brianne started getting into the spirit.

  By the time the parade ended, he’d begun to regret that Molly wasn’t going to stay around longer. Not for himself, but for his poor, confused daughter and for the son who held Molly’s hand as if he’d known her forever.

  Well…maybe a little bit for himself.

  Just after dark, the marching band rounded the corner and the last strains of the school’s fight song faded away. Beau picked up an empty French-fry holder and tossed it into the trash, followed it with two half-empty cups someone had left leaning against a lamppost and tried to figure out what had happened this afternoon.

  He turned back to the three people who waited for him near the curb. Brianne stood a little apart from Molly, but the high level of hostility was gone. Nicky walked the curb like a tightrope, carefully placing one foot in front of the other and using his arms for balance. Molly stood to one side, watching him with an expression he couldn’t read and looking nothing short of stunning.

  Overhead, the stars began to show in the gathering darkness, and a surprisingly warm breeze stirred the air. Laughter faded as people began to move off toward whatever they had planned next, but Beau was frozen in place by a longing for something he could never have.

  He shook off the feeling and forced a smile as he walked toward them. He’d been feeling a little strange since his conversation with Brianne, and it wasn’t surprising that the desire to be part of something real and right would be hovering around after that. He could pretend all he wanted, but Heather’s bombshell had done some damage. Yet even if Molly had been planning to stick around, he wouldn’t have rushed into a relationship with her. It wouldn’t have been fair to any of them.

  “Well,” he said as he stopped in front of Molly. “What did you think? Impressive, wasn’t it?”

  Her lips curved into a smile. “You think I’m going to say no, don’t you?”

  “Come on, admit it. It was a little small-town compared with what you’re used to.”

  She made a face at him. “I’m not admitting any such thing. I haven’t been to a parade since I left Serenity, Mr. Know-it-all, so this is exactly what I’m used to. And I think it was wonderful. A perfect size, too. Not so many entries that you get bored watching. Not so many people in the crowd that you can’t see. Just perfect.”

  Beau laughed softly and called for Nicky to follow, then turned toward the Burger Shack. Brianne fell into step beside him, and he decided to take a risk and actually touch Molly’s arm to help guide her through the crowd. “So we lived up to your expectations?”

  “As a matter of fact, you did. It really was fun, Beau. Thank you for inviting me to come along.”

  Brianne plucked at his shirtsleeve. “You need to walk faster, Dad, or we won’t get a table.”

  They were less than a block from the Burger Shack, and a lot of people appeared to be heading in the same direction, but Beau wasn’t quite ready to start battling crowds for a place in line or position at a table. “So we’ll wait a few minutes. It won’t be the end of the world.”

  “But I’m hungry.”

  “Okay, then, why don’t you and Nicky go on ahead and get your food? We’ll be along shortly.”

  Brianne needed a minute to think about that, but she finally held out her hand. “Okay. Fine.”

  Beau gave her a few bills from his pocket. “Off you go, then. Keep an eye on Nicky. And save us a place!”

  His daughter set off running with Nicky right behind. Now he was alone with Molly. As alone as they were going t
o get in Serenity on a night when the entire town and everyone in the outlying areas were crammed into the center of town.

  She smiled up at him, and the light in her eyes made the breath catch in his throat and desire flame deep in his belly. He shrugged and tried to toss off a casual response. “I’m glad you liked it, and I’m glad you came with us. I think there’s a law about watching a parade alone.”

  “And you were simply trying to save me from spending time in jail?”

  “What can I say? I’m just that kind of guy.” To keep from wanting to kiss her, he glanced away. But he caught their reflections in the window of a store they passed, and that brought up a whole new set of emotions. They looked good together, and his fingers tightened on her arm.

  Her gaze shifted toward him and their eyes met for only a second, but it was enough. He saw recognition dawn quickly, followed by a glimmer of shared yearning, and he knew she wasn’t completely immune to him, either.

  Well, well, well. That was going to be hard to forget. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to.

  His shoulder collided with something solid and jerked him back to reality. He looked up sharply and found himself face-to-face with Eve Donaldson. Eve had graduated the year before Beau had, and she’d been Heather’s closest friend for years. She was one of the few people in Serenity who knew the truth about his divorce. She’d never breathed a word, but the chip on her shoulder when she was around Beau was the size of a bull moose. He had no idea why she resented him. He wasn’t the one who’d lied about who he was. He hadn’t forced Heather into the life they’d created. But in Eve’s eyes he was still somehow to blame for Heather’s misery.

  Tall and willowy, with pale-brown hair and disconcerting gray eyes, she laughed and put out a hand to steady herself. “Goodness, Beau. You nearly broke my shoulder running into me like that.” Her curious eyes lingered a moment on Molly, then returned to Beau’s. If it hadn’t been for the glint in their depths, he might have believed her friendly smile was sincere. “I looked for you in our usual place, but I didn’t see you. Doris was looking for you everywhere. We didn’t think you’d come.”