“We still on for tonight?” Nash asked the next morning when he stopped by to have breakfast with the two of them. Being here was a great way to start off his day. Especially when Callie looked so darned beautiful and welcoming.
He could tell that, like him, she wasn’t long out of the shower. Her dark curls were still slightly damp, and smelled of the flowery shampoo she used. Her ivory skin was smooth and flawless, her cheeks tinged with pink. But it was the lively light in her deep blue eyes—the one that indicated she was considering kissing him again—that really drew him in.
His spirits soaring, Nash lounged against the counter, watching as Callie stood at the stove and poured pancake batter onto the griddle.
She met his glance and nodded in answer to his question. “Yes. My in-laws will be here at three. I want to spend a little time with them, too, but should be free to leave here around six this evening.”
Sounded good to Nash. “How about I come pick you up then?” he asked, as Brian ran over to him and held out his arms, indicating he wanted to be picked up.
Callie smiled as Nash hoisted her son in his arms.
“Wouldn’t it be easier for me to drive to your ranch, since all the things that need assembling—” she continued talking in a code only the “grownups” could comprehend “—are going over there this morning?”
“Whatever you think is best.” Noting that Callie had her son’s breakfast ready, Nash carried him over to the booster seat and set him down. When Brian was centered in the cushioned insert, he slid the big chair closer to the table. “Do you have a curfew this evening?”
“Um, no.” Callie poured a little syrup on her son’s plate and handed him a fork. “Not really.” With Brian eating, she returned to the stove. She looked at Nash, speaking in code once again. “Doris and Rock already know it’s going to take however long it takes to do that stuff.”
And anything else we might get around to, Nash thought mischievously.
Callie continued, “They’re going to go on to bed at their usual time, which is around ten.”
Nash accepted the mug she handed him and poured himself a cup of coffee. “Well, then, since you have an actual babysitter, how about you and I make it a date?”
Which was something, up to this point, they hadn’t actually had.
Callie paused then squinted at him uncertainly. “To put together stuff?”
“To have a grown-up dinner first, just the two of us—in San Antonio. And then put together stuff. Or I can do the assembling this afternoon at my place. Then you and I can just have the grown-up dinner on the River Walk.” Which was, he admitted, what he really wanted. Uninterrupted time alone with Callie.
She handed him a plate with a piping hot stack of buttermilk pancakes. “You really wouldn’t mind all that direction reading and so on?”
He shrugged. “I love that stuff.” Sitting down at the kitchen table, he spread some whipped butter over the stack, drizzled some maple syrup on top and then dug in. “Seriously, anything I can do to make your holiday a joyous one is great with me.”
“Well...” Callie regarded him happily. “I really do suck at that kind of stuff. I’m always putting things on upside down and backward.”
He chuckled, glad he had won her over. “Then it’s a date?”
“Yes.” Callie brought her own plate to the table and sat opposite him. She wrinkled her nose. “As long as we don’t refer to it as that to anyone else.”
Somehow, Nash wasn’t surprised she remained cautious. Lifting a shoulder, he watched her over the rim of his coffee mug. “So it will be a secret date.”
His teasing brought a flush to her cheeks. “Do you mind keeping our private life private?” She searched his eyes.
“Not at all.”
It was enough she had officially agreed to go out with him.
Because that was one step closer to where he wanted to be. Nash grinned. Who said Christmas didn’t come early?
Nash completed the tasks for Callie, as promised, then dressed as they had agreed he would. Happy to be spending the evening with her, he headed for the ranch next door.
“Well, hello, Nash!” Doris Grimes opened the door. “Come on in. Callie’s running a little late this evening.”
Rock Grimes came forward to shake Nash’s hand, too. “Good to see you, son. You’re quite the hero around here.”
Hero? Nash kept his expression inscrutable. He strolled into the living room. “Callie said that?”
“Didn’t have to.” Rock beamed. “We could see it in her eyes. And of course little Brian can’t stop talking about you, either. It’s ‘my friend Nash this,’ and ‘my friend Nash that.’”
That wasn’t such a big surprise. Nash couldn’t stop talking about Brian, either. He was such a cute kid. As for Callie, well, was there a moment in the day when she wasn’t on his mind...?
Aware Callie’s in-laws were waiting for his reaction, Nash returned pleasantly, “It’s nice to have such great neighbors. And nice to see the two of you again.”
Weary of the grown-up conversation, Brian ran up to his grandfather. “Are you my daddy?” he asked Rock.
Giving Rock no chance to reply, Brian hammed it up and shook his head dramatically, as if enacting a scene from his favorite storybook. “No. You’re not my daddy.”
Brian ran up to Doris and comically repeated the same thing.
The coatrack was next. Then the grandfather clock. Finally, Brian turned to Nash and, arms spread wide, said with complete and utter confidence, “You’re my daddy!”
Silence fell.
Talk about an uncomfortable moment, Nash thought, given the fact that Rock and Doris were Seth’s parents. To their credit, though, they seemed to accept their grandson’s clowning around as the mischievousness that it was meant to be.
Figuring the best way to put an end to it was to react in kind, Nash scooped Brian up into his arms. “No,” he declared, pointing his finger at the center of the little boy’s chest. “You are my daddy!”
Brian burst into gales of laughter that soon had everyone chuckling, too. “No!” he proclaimed, flushing and shaking his head. “I not your daddy! I little boy.”
“Yes, you are, and a cute little dickens at that.” Nash gave Brian another hug, silently beseeching him to let the search for an acceptable daddy go—at least for the evening—then attempted to transfer him to his grandfather.
Brian reacted by holding on to Nash a little tighter.
Again, neither of Seth’s parents seemed to mind. “Why don’t you come in and sit down,” Doris invited. “We can get to know each other better while you’re waiting for Callie to come downstairs.”
Nash sat on the sofa. “Sure.” Although it suddenly felt as awkward as his teen years when he had arrived to pick up a date.
“I gather you’re not married,” Rock said.
Brian slid onto the floor, picked up two toy construction trucks and brought them back to the sofa. He kept one and gave the other to Nash.
“No, I’m not married,” he replied genially, resurrecting his best poker face. What had Callie told them about their plans for the evening anyway?
“Would you like to be?” Doris asked.
Bored, Brian settled on Nash’s lap and worked at undoing the knot of his tie. “Married? Yes, I would,” Nash said. Especially if the bride in question were Callie.
“What about kids?” Rock persisted. “Any plans there?”
Another easy question. “I love them. I’d like to have some.”
“Any particular number?” Doris smiled.
“Definitely more than one,” Nash said.
Brian yawned and snuggled close to Nash. He cuddled the little boy close in return.
Abruptly, Callie appeared in the door.
She was dressed in a cranberry-red suit and heels, her cloud of dark-chocolate curls beautifully encircling her face. She had a briefcase in hand. “Ready?” she asked in a brisk, professional tone.
Nash kissed the top of Brian’s head before setting him down. Stood.
“I go?” Brian asked plaintively, clinging to Nash’s leg.
“No, honey, this is a business meeting.” Callie picked up her son and danced him around the room. “But you are going to have fun with Grandma Doris and Grandpa Rock tonight. I promise...”
A smiling Doris and Rock distracted Brian so Nash and Callie could take their leave. When they were completely out of earshot, he echoed, “Business meeting?” He had assumed she would say they were going out either as friends or to meet friends. Not this.
He held the door for her, aware all over again just how beautiful she was.
“Trust me,” she said, her manner as formal as her words. Looking past his shoulder, she waved at the threesome standing in the window, then climbed gracefully into the cab of his pickup truck. “This is for the best.”
“This is actually a great time for me to go over the suggestions I have compiled to help advertise the expansion of your business,” Callie told Nash once they were en route to the city.
While he drove, she talked. By the time they reached downtown San Antonio, she had talked about each option in depth. “Of course, I’ve written it all down for you,” she said. “So you’ll be able to take it home later and review it at your leisure.”
“Great job,” he said.
“So what was the interrogation from my in-laws about?” she asked, once they were strolling along the River Walk. It had been beautifully decorated for the holidays. Thousands of twinkling lights formed a glittering canopy overhead. Long rows of glowing luminaries lined the walkways. On the river that cut through the heart of the city, boatloads of carolers and bands serenaded them.
Looking resplendent in a dark suit, striped shirt and tie, Nash took her hand in his. He had shaved closely. Maybe gotten a haircut, too. “I think they were trying to figure out how marriageable a guy I am.”
Callie moved in closer, to avoid a group coming their way on the sidewalk. Nash responded by curving an arm about her waist and pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
“And the result was...?” Callie asked, trying not to get too caught up in the brisk masculine scent of him.
Aware they were still a little early for their dinner reservation, he took her up to one of the stone arches that overlooked the river below. He lounged against the side of the walking bridge and looked down at her. “They seemed to approve. They sure didn’t appear to mind when Brian was facetiously claiming me as his daddy. I have to tell you...” He paused, shook his head. “I wasn’t sure how that was going to go over. Their late son actually being Brian’s father, and all.”
Callie had been nervous about it, too—unnecessarily it had turned out. “They know how hard I’ve worked to give Brian some sense of his dad. They also know I may have come up with a solution.”
He lifted a brow, listening intently.
Callie drew a breath and pushed on. “I’m going to make a video like the ones they show about the bride and groom at rehearsal dinners, and have it set to music. It will only run a couple of minutes, but I think it will be more engaging to Brian than a simple photo.”
He kept his eyes locked with hers. “That’s a good idea.”
Bolstered by his support, she continued, “Doris, Rock and I were working on it this afternoon, going through some old photos. And I think I have the ones I’m going to use.”
“That should help.”
“I hope so.” Callie sighed, then pushed on to the more difficult part of the conversation. Once again, she lifted her gaze to his, and kept it there. “In the meantime, Doris and Rock really want me to get married again.”
A wealth of feeling was in his eyes. “To anyone in particular?”
“Yes. You.”
He stared at her a long silent moment. Then leaned closer once again, inundating her with the tantalizing, masculine scent of his cologne. “You’re kidding.”
Suddenly, she was having trouble catching her breath. “I wish I was.”
His voice dropped a seductive notch. “They barely know me.”
She gazed into his eyes, adding even more softly, “They feel they know enough about the important things.”
Incredulity mixed with the concern on his face.
“You have a good reputation within the community and the business world,” Callie continued, figuring for all their sakes she should tell him everything she had learned. “Yes, they are pragmatic enough to have had you checked out by their attorney.”
“Wow.”
She had never seen so many expressions cross his face in one minute. Shock. Disbelief. Wariness. Joy. “They’re impressed by how attached Brian is to you already.”
“I care about him, too, you know that,” he interjected gruffly, squeezing her hand.
“And—” she drew a quavering breath, ignoring the warmth spiraling through her “—they can see there is a basic attraction between you and me. Enough of one to build a relationship on, in their view.”
He closed the distance between them and gazed at her as if she were the sexiest, most desirable woman on earth. “What about love?”
Callie’s heart thundered in her chest. “They don’t expect me to duplicate what I had with Seth with anyone else. But they do think both Brian and I would be a lot happier if we had a man in our lives, and to them, at least, you are the perfect candidate.”
His eyes crinkled at the corners and his lips took on a mischievous tilt. “How so?”
Callie shrugged, aware they were headed into dangerous territory here.
“You already live next door.” She did her best to maintain her pragmatic attitude. Not easy, when all she could think about at the moment was kissing him again.
“You’re committed to the land and the business you inherited, just as I am committed to my new venture.” She paused to wet her suddenly dry lips and saw his eyes track the movement in return.
“Brian loves you. And you adore him in return. And like I said, they have noticed there is a physical chemistry, as well as a budding friendship.” And like her, had difficulty figuring out a reason why she shouldn’t get closer to this big strapping man. Maybe even come to depend on him...in the same way she had once depended on their son.
Nash put his hands on her shoulders and gently ran them down the length of her arms, to her hands. He peered down at her. “What do your parents think of all this?”
“The exact opposite. They urged me to be cautious and not leap into anything, given the enormity of my loss and the fact that I’m still in a ‘vulnerable’ state.”
He searched her face, then asked huskily, “What do you think?”
I don’t want to make the same mistakes I made when I was married to Seth and overly romanticize things to the point I lose sight of myself and my ability to stand on my own.
But, not wanting to get into a discussion about her late husband, she simply said, “I don’t want to think. I just want to spend time with you.”
And make love with you. And not worry about the future and all the things that could go wrong if I tie myself to you the way I tied myself to Seth.
All of a sudden, the grin was back on his handsome face. He lifted her hands to his lips and kissed the back of her knuckles, in turn. “Sounds good to me.”
On impulse, she wound her arms around his neck, went up on tiptoe and kissed him tenderly. “Then how about this?” she proposed softly. Nearby a mariachi band broke into the cheerful melody of “Feliz Navidad.” “Why don’t you and I be each other’s Christmas present—to each other?”
Nash kissed her back gently, lovingly. “You’ve got yourself a deal...”
“Santa’s workshop is coming along nicely,” Maggie observed from the corner of the Double Knot party barn on Thursday afternoon, where the setup for the Christmas celebration was taking shape.
Callie grinned, admiring the sight of Nash in rugged work clothes and a tool belt jangling around his waist as he helped fasten the various parts of the North Pole into shape.
“Good thing we have so many big strapping Texas men to help.”
“Speaking of the one in your life, how are things with Nash?” Maggie asked.
Callie went back to draping cranberry-red tablecloths over the tables. He had become so much a part of her life in the past four weeks, it was astounding. “Fine.”
Maggie added the centerpieces—tall hurricane glasses with thick white candles, surrounded by pretty red-and-green wreaths. “I mean, really.”
No use pretending; her twin knew her thoughts and feelings almost before she did. “So good it scares me,” Callie admitted quietly.
With her last event for the month over, and his schedule relatively freed up, the two of them had had plenty of time to spend together. To the point they found a reason to be together at least once every day.
“I hear you’re helping him devise ways to market the extension of his business into xeriscape plants and lumber.”
After the tablecloth was situated, Callie replaced the chairs. “Yes. I think he’s going to be enormously successful.”
Maggie moved on to the next table along with Callie. “So, why haven’t you told everyone you’re dating?”
Callie focused on her task, rather than her twin’s assessing look. “Because we’re not dating exactly,” she protested. “We’re just hanging out a lot as friends.” And lovers.
Maggie regarded her with sisterly affection. “Well, just don’t wait too long to let him know how you really feel. Otherwise, he’s likely to think you aren’t as serious about him as I know you are.”
To Callie’s relief, the rest of the day passed quickly. It pleased her to no end that preparations for the celebration were coming together so well.
Finally, right before they all headed home, costumes for everyone working the event were passed out. Maggie’s husband, Hart, got two.
The first, the same “Texas gambler” all the men were wearing. The second, a complete Santa ensemble.
“Now be sure you keep this under wraps,” Fiona Sanders told her son. “We don’t want Henry to guess his daddy is going to be Old St. Nick when the time comes.”
Hart grinned. “Mum’s the word, Mom.”
Callie turned to Nash. Garment bags looped over their arms, they walked out to their vehicles, which were parked side by side. “You don’t think Brian will recognize his uncle, do you?”
Nash held her costume for her while she unlocked her SUV. “If anyone can pull it off, Hart can.” He leaned past her to put it in the cargo area.
Callie followed him over to his truck. She watched as he opened up the rear passenger door. “That’s not really an answer.”
Nash leaned across the seat to lay his bag flat. “You want me to be blunt?”
She tore her eyes from his firmly muscled thigh. “I’m not sure...”
He removed his tool belt, set it on the floor in front of the seat and then straightened to his full six foot two inches. “Your son is one of the brightest little kids ever put on this earth. Under normal circumstances, not much gets by him.”
True, Callie knew.
Nash flashed an inviting grin. “On the other hand, he can be as starstruck as everyone else. And once he gets a load of all that fake snow, the glittering trees, the elves from the high school drama department and the big guy in the white beard and glasses and red suit, it will probably be all he can do to tell Santa what he wants for Christmas.”
Callie relaxed at the reassuring words. “You’re right. That will be okay. What might not be is Brian’s preschool party tomorrow.”
Accurately sensing she had something important to say, Nash waited.
Drawing a deep breath, Callie pushed on, “Most of the other kids are going to have a mom and a dad there for them. Unfortunately, neither of Brian’s grandfathers are available. Hart will be there—for Henry—and could sort of step in for Brian as his uncle, at least part of the time, but...”
“You’re worried Brian is going to pick up on the fact that he doesn’t have a daddy again. And be upset about it.”
Callie nodded. Tears pressed at the back of her eyes. “This is the first Christmas he’s ever had where he’s really aware of what’s going on. I really want it to be a good one for him.” Nash’s expression gentled. Because there were others around them, heading to their vehicles, he didn’t touch her, but he might as well have. She felt his tender concern that intensely. “You want me to go—as his friend?”
And mine, Callie thought.
But aware they were still in a place where they could be overheard, Callie only smiled and responded as casually as possible, “I know it would mean the world to him—” and to me “—if you could.”