Harlequin Heartwarming December 2020 Box Set

by Cari Lynn Webb, Linda Warren, Mary Anne Wilson

  When the song finished, she was smiling. “I think I’m almost dancing.”

  “You are,” Jake said. “Liberty Connor can do anything she sets her mind to, apparently.” His eyes held hers. “That’s one thing I do know about you.”

  “I’m trying,” she said, then added, “I think I might be able to dance at my wedding and impress everyone.”

  “That’s the Liberty Connor I know and—”

  Jake turned abruptly, leaving her standing in the middle of the floor. He felt stunned at what he’d almost said. Love? “I want more bass,” he called over his shoulder as he headed to the CD player.

  He adjusted the equalizer and tried to concentrate on what he was doing. It wasn’t love that he’d been feeling. He reasoned he felt a need to protect her. He’d feel that way around anyone he cared about. He cared. That was that.

  Maybe now she’d say she knew enough to get by at the wedding. But when he looked, she was still there waiting for him. He had no choice, so he went back, faced her and got ready to endure the torture of feeling her in his arms and the scent of roses and vanilla with each breath he took.

  “Wait and we’ll catch the beat,” he said, not looking at her directly, but just past her.

  He finally looked at her mouth and saw her singing. “Okay, start.” Surprisingly, they caught the right moment, but she looked down at the same time and stepped on his foot. He stopped, ready to call it a day, but she had other ideas.

  She gave him a wry smile, and he read her lips. “Sorry, but I warned you. One more time, please.”

  “Okay,” he said, and she started singing again. She was right with him, step for step, easily following his lead now. It was as if it clicked for her, and she moved, coming closer and closer against him. He shut his eyes when he inhaled her scent as she rested her head on his chest. He hated it that holding her felt so good, that her slender body seemed to fit perfectly against him. Then her left hand moved up his arm and he felt it at the side of his neck. He closed his eyes so tightly color exploded behind his lids and he was holding his breath when Liberty stopped dancing.

  That was it. He opened his eyes. That was all he could take. Then Liberty looked up at him, her gaze vaguely unfocused as if she’d been lost in the moment. His world shifted on its axis when she smiled slowly up at him. “You are a terrific teacher.”

  He felt as if he’d heard those words, and he found himself leaning down. His lips touched hers, and they were soft and warm. For a treacherous moment, he let himself get lost in the contact, the way her mouth parted for his, the feel of her against him, his arms around her. It wasn’t a dream, it was reality, and it was something he’d wanted since he’d first looked into those green eyes. He’d wanted it every time she’d touched him, and every time she’d smiled at him.

  Liberty slowly moved back, the kiss over, lowering her left hand to his chest to press weakly against him. When he looked down at her, he thought he saw what he was feeling echoed in her eyes, then it was gone when she spoke. “I…I didn’t mean to… I…”

  He felt a cold distance growing between them even though she was still so close he could feel each breath she took. When he felt the steady beat of the music start again, he said, “Liberty, I’m…” He couldn’t finish.

  She wrapped her arms around herself. Her tongue nervously touched her lips for just a moment, and he was pretty sure her taste would still be lingering on his lips if he dared to check. “This can’t happen, Jake. I’m marrying Roger.” He saw her shoulders tremble when she exhaled again. “This was…impulsive and not real. But Roger’s real. My life with him is real.”

  “And this is just the calm in the storm,” he said before he thought about it.

  “No, it isn’t.” He saw real intensity in her eyes now. “I’m not going back into the storm. I’m going back to my life.”

  He had to stop any more of her words before they completely destroyed him, even if he couldn’t hear them. “No. Please.” He drew back and told a painful lie. “It was just a kiss, nothing to get upset about.”

  She looked as if she was going to cry. “I’m sorry,” he watched her say. “I’m so sorry.”

  She turned away from him to cross to the CD player. He felt the music stop abruptly. Without looking back, Liberty went into the office and closed the door. The action was final.

  Jake knew what a mess he’d made of everything. He should never have agreed to dance with her, ever. What difference would it make at her wedding if she still had to have everything she didn’t want? Why had he believed that it would be okay, that he could help her? He should have taken a step back, been smart enough to think about it without acting on it. But whatever sanity he’d had left fled for one stunning moment.

  After putting the braided rug back in place, he looked around. The office door was still firmly shut. Even Pax was smart enough to know trying to get into the office was a bad idea. Jake ran his hands roughly over his face, then went into the east wing to take a hot shower. He’d be out of here in an hour. He couldn’t offer Liberty what she had with Roger, and he wouldn’t get in the way of her engagement and her happiness. He would let her know what he was going to do, though, and not just walk out. He owed her that. But he had to get out of there as soon as he could.

  After his shower, Jake dressed in jeans but had to go out to the great room to get a clean shirt out of his duffel. He flipped on the overhead lights and crossed to the couch to crouch over his bag and take out a white thermal. His old metal box fell out, and he looked down at it. It was rusty, and the pictures of a jet fighter that had once been on the top had faded to almost nothing, but it held a lot of him inside. It held his whole past. He pushed it back into the bag, then stood and shook his shirt out. When he tugged it over his head, Pax came running at him from the entry.

  He waited for the dog to get to him, but Pax went right past. Jake turned to see the dog’s target. Liberty. She was standing on the far side of the pool table looking at him, her eyes wide and her hand clasped over her mouth. She looked horrified, and Jake realized the huge mistake he’d made because he’d been so distracted. Enough was enough.

  He turned, reached for the duffel, and dropped it on the couch. It hit the cushions just about the time he felt Liberty’s touch on his shoulder.

  * * *

  LIBBY TRIED TO catch her breath before she went toward Jake. The image of his back was seared into her mind. A long scar from the cap of his left shoulder angled downward toward his lower right spine. More scars, smaller but just as disturbing, showed a random record of something horrible that he’d survived. She got to him and felt him flinch when she touched him. But he didn’t turn to her when he spoke.

  “I’m leaving.”

  She drew her hand back and stayed put. With a deep sigh, Jake finally looked at her. “What more do you want?” he asked weakly.

  “What happened?”

  “I’m not big on analyzing what I do,” he said. “I told you a kiss was just—”

  “Not the kiss. Your back.”

  “It’s my business,” he said, and turned to grab the duffel bag.

  She couldn’t pretend she hadn’t seen the scars. She couldn’t pretend it meant nothing to her that he’d obviously been hurt so badly. It scared her to think he might have died. There would have never been a Jake Bishop in her life. She couldn’t image a world without Jake in it. She kept waiting. When he looked back at her, it chilled her that his face was devoid of any emotion, even anger, and he was holding the duffel at his side. She reacted without thinking, grabbing at the side strap of his duffel and jerking it out of his hand.

  Keeping her eyes locked with his, she dropped the bag on the floor by her feet. “Please, after everything, tell me what happened.”

  She knew he could force his way out, but he didn’t. He sank down on the couch. Even when she sat beside him, he didn’t look at her. After a nerve-
racking wait, Libby touched his forearm. He jerked away and turned to her.

  “Just tell me,” she said.

  “I’ll make this fast.” He shifted toward her and took a deep breath. “The fact is, I’m legally bound to not talk about anything to do with my situation. Sorry.”

  “You can trust me,” she said simply.

  There was tension between them. “Trust has nothing to do with it. I’m legally constrained.”

  “Okay, then. I’ll tell you what I think.”

  “Liberty, no.”

  She didn’t stop. “You were in an accident of some sort, probably while you were under contract, and it could have killed you.”

  He just stared her.

  “You’re healing physically, but it’s your hearing you want to get back, which seems a good bet with all the advances in medicine nowadays. But you’re here, not somewhere getting an operation. You’re here, waiting for something. I don’t understand.”

  He didn’t move.

  All she wanted to know was that he’d be all right. “How long until you’ll get surgery?” she asked.

  He looked as if he just wanted her to stop and accept what he’d revealed to her without digging. “Maybe never.”

  “Why?”

  “I’m in a situation where if I do the wrong thing, I’ll lose my life the way—”

  “You could die?” she gasped.

  “No, I’ll lose my life the way it was before.”

  Libby just stared at him, unable to speak now.

  “I’ll give you one huge piece of information, then I’m done here. Test pilots can’t be compromised physically. Hearing damage is a big eliminator. And I’m legally bound to disclose surgical intervention to any prospective employer. That means they wouldn’t hire me, and they shouldn’t. My career could be gone.”

  “So, a plane blew up with you in it. You won’t tell anyone because you want to get back in a plane that could possibly blow up with you in it again, if you heal naturally? And no one will ever know what happened.”

  “No, it’s not just that—legally I can’t tell anyone,” he said. “Whatever I’ve told you is between us, right?”

  She got up and stepped over his bag to get right in front of him. Then she crouched, waiting until he finally looked at her. “What are your chances of healing without surgery?”

  “Twenty-five percent, and right now, I have to focus on Sarge, and on my own healing… I’m leaving.”

  The idea of him leaving and just disappearing from her life was more than she could deal with right then. He looked tired, too. “Get away from here, if you want to, but wait until morning and get some sleep. I promise I won’t say anything about this to anyone. It’s your story to tell.”

  Jake sank back on the couch. “I’ll be out of here at dawn.” She knew she was frowning, because he frowned right back at her. “What now?” he asked.

  “Nothing at all. You said it’s none of my business, and I get that.”

  “Then why are you so ticked off about it? It’s my life, my problem. I should’ve left as soon as I found you here. You’re not part of this and I don’t want you to be. I don’t want anyone to be part of this. It’s mine. I’ll do it on my own. Whatever happens, it’s all on me.”

  “But I feel sad for you,” she admitted honestly, figuring she had absolutely nothing left to lose with the man.

  “Don’t you dare,” he said through clenched teeth. “That is exactly why I don’t want to be tied to anyone, to rely on anyone. I don’t want sympathy or pity. I just want to hear!”

  A bit of anger was edging out some of her sympathy. “Good for you. Do it your way. Give up everything, maybe even your chance at ever hearing again, so you might be able to do what you want to do.”

  His voice dropped low. “Don’t lecture me on what my life should be or what you think of it, and I won’t lecture you on your life choices.” Without warning, his face twisted in a grimace, then both hands went up to press against his ears, hard. She reached to try to help, but he pulled away from her, his hands still over his ears. She didn’t move. Slowly he lowered his hands. When he opened his eyes, he sat straighter. “It’s an earache,” he said.

  With that, he stood slowly, waiting a moment, then looked down at her. “Good night.” He headed out of the room.

  She heard his steps on the stairs to the second level, but she didn’t move. She sat there for a long time just staring across the room at the lit Christmas tree, where Pax was sleeping. Standing, she crossed to a chair by the fire and sat down facing the flickering flames. She knew she wouldn’t sleep, and she couldn’t stop going over and over what Jake had admitted to her.

  She knew he’d leave. He wanted it that way.

  * * *

  LIBBY STAYED IN the chair until she fell asleep, not wanting to use the couch again. When she finally woke, she twisted right away to see if Jake was on the couch. He wasn’t. The duffel bag wasn’t there, either. She got up and went to the master bedroom, then dressed in jeans and a bright red flannel shirt. With her hair loose, she went out onto the walkway and looked at the bedroom door to her right. It was slightly ajar, and she moved quietly toward it. But when she looked inside, the bed was made and there was no duffel bag in sight. He’d left.

  Slowly she went down to the entry. There was no smell of coffee or cooking of any sort. She stopped on the last step and saw Jake’s jacket and boots still at the cowhide bench. She’d missed them on the way up. He hadn’t left. Then he was there, coming out of the west wing hallway, dressed in a green thermal shirt and jeans. He saw her, paused, then went past her into the great room. She waited, then followed him. But she’d barely taken the single step down onto the slate floor when she heard the shrill ring of the landline phone. She hurried past Jake to get to the office and grabbed for the receiver. “Hello?”

  “Surprise, Libby,” she heard in her ear.

  She sank down in the chair as Jake looked into the room. “Roger?”

  Jake walked away as Roger asked, “Libby, are you okay?”

  She must have sounded as stunned as she felt. “I’m just surprised. How did you even get this number?”

  “My assistant found it for me.”

  “Your assistant?”

  “Well, he’s my assistant while I’m in the New York office.”

  “New York? What are you doing there? The last time we talked, you were coming here when you left the site.”

  “No, I came here. In fact, I’ve just arrived and have to hit the ground running to head off a situation with the foundation’s board of directors.”

  “You flew back to New York to meet with the board?”

  “More like to deal with the board. I have a lot of work to do here, but I called to tell you I’m here if you want to come for a quick visit?”

  She was dumbfounded, trying to figure out what he wanted her to say. “Roger, I can’t just leave here. I’m working, and I have things I have to deal with.”

  “Okay, sure, I understand. You’re working, and I’m working. That’s okay. Right now, it looks as if I’ll be in Seattle the day before Christmas. I’ll see you there. My parents are excited about you being there.”

  She didn’t want to leave here to go to Seattle and have Christmas with Roger and his family. She didn’t want that at all. “I don’t know.”

  “Wow, don’t get too excited.”

  “I am excited about having Christmas with you. But I thought it would be here. I honestly can’t just up and leave like that.”

  “You can work when you go back after I’m gone or ask the firm to send someone up to cover for you.”

  “Why can’t you come here? This place is incredible, and I already decorated the Christmas tree. It’s real and it’s beautiful.”

  “Don’t worry, my parents will have a great tree.”

  She tried
one more time. “Roger, I really want to stay here for Christmas. I want to show you the original cabin on the property. It’s so nice, all cozy with a potbelly stove and a breathtaking view. I was thinking we could stay in it when I come back later to continue with the project. I want you to see the plans for what I’m doing here.”

  “Libby, I’m trying to work this out. I only have so much time, and I really need to use it to straighten things out here. We can talk about this later.”

  She was wasting his time, and she felt it. This was all about Roger, and not about what she wanted or why she wanted it. She let go. “You go ahead and do what you need to do, and I’ll stay here and get my work done.”

  He exhaled, and she knew she’d taken a burden off him. She wondered why she wasn’t angry, just disappointed. That wasn’t right. In fact, that was wrong on so many levels, for an engaged couple to be okay with not being together. “That works for me,” he said. “We’ll meet up in Seattle.”

  He wouldn’t come to the ranch. He didn’t want to. How sad that them being separated was fine with him. “I guess.”

  “You know,” Roger said, “I wish I hadn’t had to come back for the board’s vote.”

  So he came back for a vote. She let that sink in. She wasn’t a priority for Roger at all. He cared, but not enough. “You can handle it, I’m sure.”

  “Yes, I will handle it.”

  “About Christmas…” she said, then altered the rest of her words to suit what she was feeling and knew right then. “You know, Roger, I love what you do and why you’re doing it. Your passion for it. That’s awesome. You were born to do what you do.”

  “You understand me,” he said simply.

  “I love you,” she said, and meant it. But she knew right then, she wasn’t in love with him. Maybe she never had been. She didn’t know. “You’re a good man,” she said honestly as she opened her eyes.

  She was startled to see Jake in the doorway watching her. Roger was saying something about Seattle, but all she could focus on was Jake with his jacket and boots on, holding his duffel bag at his side.