by Emmy Eugene
“All right,” she drawled in her high-pitched Texas twang.
Janelle giggled and echoed her. “We’ve already made three items this week, but were cinnamon rolls on the list?”
“I’ll check,” Kadence said, reaching for Janelle’s phone. The fact that her seven-year-old knew how to navigate the intricacies of social media wasn’t lost on Janelle, but she supposed that was the world she—and they—lived in.
“Yep,” Kadence said. “Cinnamon rolls right here.”
“Great,” Janelle said. “Kel, you need to check the ingredients and make sure we have them all. Text me if we don’t, and I’ll stop somewhere tonight.”
“Okay, Momma.”
They went down the hall together, and Janelle took her phone back from Kadence. “Is that what time it is?” Her pulse leapt, and she hurried to step into her ankle boots. “I’m late. Audrey should be here any moment.” She stood back as the doorbell rang. “How do I look?”
“Cute,” Kelly said at the same time Kadence said, “Sexy.”
“Sexy?” She gaped at her seven-year-old. “Where did you hear that?” She moved over to open the front door, where Audrey stood with another girl. Her little sister. “Hello, girls. Come on in.”
They did, and Janelle crouched down in front of Kadence. “Where did you hear that?”
Kadence shuffled her feet and looked at the ground.
“Kade,” Janelle said, lifting the girl’s chin. “It’s okay. I’m not mad. I just want to know where you heard that word.” And if she knew what it meant. Janelle had been going for cute and sexy, but she’d never thought one of her daughters would say it.
“This girl in my class,” Kadence said. “She said her sister only wears skirts that make her look sexy.”
“Okay.” Janelle exhaled. “Well, it’s not really a word a little girl like you uses. We’ll talk about it tomorrow, okay?”
Kadence flung her arms around Janelle’s neck and kissed her cheek. “Okay, Momma. Love you.”
“Love you too, baby.” She stood up and drew Kelly into a hug too. “Remember our deal.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Kelly said, and Janelle stepped over to Audrey and Allison to give a few last-minute instructions. Satisfied that Audrey knew Kelly needed to be kind in order to get to make cinnamon rolls, and that she had permission to text Janelle after she went through the cupboards, Janelle grabbed her keys and headed out to the garage.
She texted Russ before she backed out. Running late. See you in ten, and then got on the road. He hadn’t texted since saying he had to go because his cinnamon roll had arrived, and Janelle couldn’t wait to see him.
Her pulse skipped around merrily as she drove, and before she knew it, she’d reached the junction where the road that led out to the ranch met the main highway. Russ waited there in his truck, their common meeting place one they could both reach in a matter of minutes.
Janelle stuffed her phone in her purse, turned off her car, and put her keys in a side pocket before getting out. She couldn’t help half-running toward Russ, who’d gotten out and stood near the hood of his truck.
He was the epitome of sexy—and she definitely knew how to use the word. He wore a pair of blue jeans, cowboy boots, a black shirt, and a cowboy hat to match. He seemed to know exactly how to stand to appeal to her, and she practically threw herself into his arms.
Chuckling, he swept his arms around her, and Janelle held onto him as pure joy streamed through her.
“Hey, baby,” he practically purred in her ear. “Rough time getting out of the house tonight?”
“Negotiations,” she said, stepping back. “But I told the girls about meeting you tomorrow. They seemed excited.”
Russ swallowed, the only sign of his nerves. “What time are y’all comin’ out?”
“Nine?” she guessed. “Is that too early?”
“Baby, I’ll be up by five.” He chuckled and laced his fingers through hers for the two steps to the passenger door.
“Do you actually get out of bed at five?” she asked. “Or just wake up?”
“Once I’m up, there’s no use of lying in bed.”
“Oh, that’s where you’re wrong.” Janelle loved lying in bed almost as much as she loved chocolate and that cowboy hat Russ wore. “But I’ll be up early tomorrow too. The girls want to make cinnamon rolls.” She cut him a look out of the corner of her eye as she climbed onto the higher truck seat. “I didn’t know you loved them so much.”
“Trying to hide my flaws for a bit.” He chuckled, closed her door, and rounded the hood. He got behind the wheel and turned down the radio. She knew he loved to listen to loud country music, and the first time he’d belted out a song with one of the most popular artists in the world, Janelle had started falling for him.
He had a beautiful singing voice, and Janelle loved it when he hummed as he drove. He didn’t even seem to notice that he did it.
“So,” he said as he pulled onto the street and pointed the truck in the direction of PotPied. “I met your ex-husband today.”
Janelle sucked in a breath at the same time she tried to exhale, and she ended up choking. Then coughing, painfully. “What? Where?”
Russ looked at her for a long moment before focusing on the road in front of them again. “At the hardware store.”
“What in the world was he doing there?” she demanded. Her hands shook, and not for a good reason. “Did he know who you were? What did he say?” Janelle was aware her voice had pitched up, both in volume and timbre, and Russ gazed at her again, pure curiosity flowing across his face.
“I don’t know what he was doing at the hardware store,” Russ said. “But he knew we were dating.”
“I didn’t tell him about you,” she said. “I mean, I did. I told him I was seeing someone, but I didn’t give your name…” Her voice trailed off. She lived in a small town, with a rampant rumor mill. Everyone in town knew she and Russ had been seeing each other. They’d been out to almost every restaurant in town and the surrounding area.
“He had a can of paint,” Russ said.
“He lives an hour north of here,” she said. “Out in a suburb of Austin. And he stopped by my office two days ago, so why—?”
“He stopped by your office two days ago?” Russ asked. “Why?”
Panic flowed through Janelle, and she pressed her palms to her thighs. She took a deep breath in, held it, and pushed the air out. “He stopped by to say he wanted to come home.”
Russ said nothing, but the atmosphere in the truck’s cab changed. An electric charge filled the air, and Janelle struggled to breathe against it.
“He’s not coming home,” Janelle said. “I moved after the divorce, and I don’t want him back.”
“That so?”
“Russ,” she said, realizing that she didn’t say his name very often. “That’s very so. I told him that in no uncertain terms.”
“And yet, he’s still in town.” Russ made a turn, and he could’ve looked at her, but he chose not to.
“I’ll call him and tell him to go home.”
“Is he hanging around for the girls?” Russ asked. “He is their father.”
“No,” Janelle said. “He took them for Thanksgiving. He’s not supposed to see them again until January.” Janelle rolled her shoulders, which were suddenly so tight. “I mean, there’s no ‘supposed to.’ We have an open custody agreement. He can ask to see them more often, and if it works, it’s fine with me.”
“Did he ask to see them?”
“No.” Janelle swallowed, her mouth sticky. She couldn’t wait for a tall soda from PotPied, as they had some of the best diet cola in the county. “We talked for maybe five minutes. He interrupted my meeting, and I was annoyed. He left without a fight.”
“Okay,” Russ said, but his voice seemed a bit too high.
Janelle didn’t want Henry to ruin their magical, holiday evening together. The streetlamps on Main Street now bore Christmas wreaths, and Janelle loved the holidays in Che
stnut Springs.
“They City Center has the lights up,” she said as the bright, colorful lights came into view.
“How they do that all the way to the top of the trees is impressive,” Russ said, and his voice seemed normal now.
“Isn’t it?” Janelle tucked her hair behind her ear, wishing the conversation they’d just had didn’t still seethe under her skin. “I had a client once who worked for the city, and he said it takes a crew of ten men to get all the lights up. Only takes them two days.”
“Is that so?” Russ gave her a smile, and Janelle returned it. Hers felt a little shaky on her face, but Russ didn’t seem to notice.
The mall loomed ahead, and Russ made a left turn into the parking lot. Plenty of Christmas lights had been put up on the mall too, and some of Janelle’s tension leaked out of her muscles.
“I love Christmas,” Janelle said. “Tell me what you’re thinking.” She forced herself to look at Russ, though she was afraid of what he’d say.
He remained silent until he pulled into a space near the restaurant. Then he put the truck in park and faced her too. “I’m thinking that I like Christmas too,” he said. “But what I’m really thinking is that I need to know more about you and Henry.”
“What?” Janelle asked. “Why?”
Russ cleared his throat. “Because what ex-husband thinks he can show up and interrupt his wife’s meeting, only to ask her if he can come home?” He looked away, pure frustration pouring off of him. “So just be honest with me. What’s really going on with you and Henry?”
Chapter Eleven
“There is nothing going on with me and Henry,” Janelle said, and Russ really wanted to believe her. He told himself for the tenth time that she wasn’t the best lawyer in five counties for no reason. She could put together a killer argument, and he couldn’t forget that. He hated that he didn’t fully trust her, but he couldn’t ignore the facts.
And the first fact was that she had been married to Henry. They had two children together. She’d always be connected to him, and Russ needed to know what he’d be dealing with for the rest of his life—if he stayed together with Janelle.
“Janelle,” Russ said, and she held up both hands.
“Okay, listen. This doesn’t mean anything, okay?”
“What doesn’t?”
She inhaled slowly and looked him squarely in the eye. He sure did like that, and he wished his crush on this woman wasn’t quite so large. “Henry and I were married for twelve years,” she said. “We’ve been divorced for three, and…and…I’ve taken him back three times. I guess he thought it was time for a third.”
“And is it?”
“No,” she said emphatically. “Absolutely not. I told him that. My personal assistant was there. I am not taking him back. I don’t want him back. That’s why I told him I was seeing you, so he could see that I’d moved on—and that he should too.”
Russ looked away from her, his mind spinning through everything. He sometimes needed to get out of his own head, but he didn’t know how. Not for something like this.
“I’ve been cheated on before,” he whispered, almost to himself. “I don’t want to go through that again.”
“Russ.” Janelle’s voice held only agony, and that was the reason he looked at her.
“Henry cheated on me for five years before I left him. Both times I took him back, he said he’d changed. That he wouldn’t ever do that to me again.” She wrapped her arms around herself, and Russ’s heart started to bleed for her.
He wished it wouldn’t. He needed to think clearly when it came to this relationship, not let his heart lead.
“The last time, he was only faithful for six days before I found him with another woman.” Her chin shook, but she didn’t cry. Russ wondered what would make a woman as strong and confident as Janelle Stokes cry. “I would never—never—do that to someone else. I know exactly what that feels like, and I would never do that to you.”
Russ nodded, because he believed her. “All right,” he said. “Are we still feeling festive?” He was starving, but he could drive Janelle back to her car if she didn’t want to go out with him.
“I am,” she said. “You?”
“I could at least eat,” he said.
She smiled and swiped at her eyes, though he still saw no evidence of tears. “You can always eat, Russ.”
He reached for her hand, glad when she let him hold it. “I’m sorry, baby. I just…had to ask.”
“I know.” She nodded and put his palm against her cheek. “I’m glad you did.”
“Promise me you’ll tell me if you want to move on,” he said. “Get back with Henry. Whatever it is.” He couldn’t promise that he wouldn’t crack and break, but at least he wouldn’t have to guess about what she wanted. He hated the guessing, the speculating, the obsessing, most of all.
If Janelle would just tell him when she wanted to move on, he could at least turn up the music and keep the damaging thoughts from keeping him on the ranch for another five years.
“I’ll tell you,” Janelle said. “I had no problem telling you I was uncertain about you meeting the girls, right?”
“Right.” Russ got out of the truck and went around to Janelle’s side. He leaned into the space between the door and the seat so she couldn’t get out. “And so we’re clear, I want you to know I sure do like you, Janelle Stokes. I don’t want to break up. I want to meet the girls. I want to celebrate Christmas with you.”
Janelle’s eyes searched his, and they softened by the moment. “I like you too, Russ. I don’t want to break up either, and I’m a little nervous about tomorrow morning, but it feels right. And I can’t think of anything better than spending Christmas with you.” She gave a little nod at the end of her speech, and Russ really wanted to kiss her.
But the foot traffic going in and out of PotPied made him uncomfortable. He wasn’t a fifteen-year-old with his first girlfriend, unable to control his hormones. There was an appropriate time for kissing a beautiful woman, and in the parking lot of a busy restaurant wasn’t it.
“Let’s go eat,” he said. “And then you can educate me on the finer points of holiday shopping.”
Janelle’s face lit up from within, and Russ grinned too. He’d spoken true, and he was glad Janelle hadn’t gotten scared by it. The last time he’d tried talking to her about something serious, she’d said she needed a break.
“Oh, the special is green chile pork,” she said. “I’m getting that. It’s fantastic.”
“Is it spicy?” Russ asked, his eyes scanning the menu for his favorites.
“Not at all,” she said. “It’s a green chile verde sauce. Really great. It comes with potatoes and carrots and a creamy gravy. It’s so good.”
“Mm.” Russ kept examining the menu until it was their turn to order, and then he said, “I’ll take a large braised short rib, and we need a large special, too.”
“Braised short ribs,” Janelle said, linking her arm through his. “I should’ve known.”
“I like red meat,” Russ practically growled, and he got rewarded with Janelle’s feminine giggle. He could listen to that sound all day, every day, and he tucked her closer to his side.
They ate, the conversation light and easy now that they’d gotten the harder topics out of the way.
“All right, cowboy,” she finally said, standing up. “Let’s hit the mall.”
Normally, those words would strike fear in the heart of any man. But tonight, they held great promise for Russ.
Christmas music played in earnest inside the mall, and Friday night was apparently the time when couples descended on the stores in great force. Russ held Janelle’s hand and let her lead him from store to store as she exclaimed over the “perfect wrapping paper” or the “most adorable Christmas ornaments.”
“I buy one of these every year,” she said, placing two globes in her basket. “One for each girl. Kelly has a teddy bear theme, and I started a collection of ornaments with a rabbit theme fo
r Kadence.”
“Wow,” Russ said. “What do they do with them?”
“We decorate a couple of trees,” she said. “Our main tree is already up. That’s where all of my ornaments go. The girls put up and decorate their own trees on Christmas Eve. Well, if I have them. Henry’s only taken them for Christmas once.”
“When do you do if he takes them?”
“The morning before they leave,” she said. “Their trees are small, only four feet tall.”
“Three Christmas trees,” he said, glad Travis was upping the ranch’s holiday game. Russ couldn’t even remember the last time he’d put up a Christmas tree.
“Oh, come on,” Janelle said. “Don’t tell me you don’t have stockings for every horse and every goat on the ranch.” She laughed, and Russ joined in.
“No stockings for the livestock,” he said. “Sorry to disappoint. But I do go out and give them treats on Christmas morning.”
“Of course you do.” She looked at an assortment of snow globes, picking one up and putting it back on the shelf. “What kind of treats do goats like?”
“Oh, all the animals like butterscotch,” Russ said. “We buy them in bulk in December.”
“You must really need to budget for that,” she said.
Russ said nothing about that, because he’d stopped budgeting much of anything a couple of months ago when his mother had gathered all the boys around and told them she owned half of a multi-billion-dollar cosmetics company.
Consequently, Russ had become a billionaire along with the rest of his brothers. He’d bought himself a truck and not much else. Besides all the meals out, that was. Russ sure did love to eat good food, and he sometimes made it and sometimes bought it.
“What do you want for Christmas?” he asked. He caught her looking at him, but he kept his eyes forward, on the crowds of people in the mall. He didn’t particularly like crowds or noise, but the scent of pine needles and the jolly holiday music did have a certain appeal.
“What do I want for Christmas,” she mused. “I don’t know. I usually buy myself a new pair of shoes or another sweater. I love sweaters.”
