Shenandoah Christmas. Lynnette Kent
his brow as if he were in pain. When he looked at her again, need and passion had replaced all other emotions in his face. He dipped his head and Cait parted her lips, even leaned a little closer to hasten the kiss.
From the stairway behind them, a cry drifted down—small and soft, but they could hear energy gathering behind it to produce a full-blown wail.
Ben tightened his grip for an instant, then released her and backed toward the steps. “Look—I can’t let you walk home by yourself in the dark, not even in this little town. If you insist, I’ll put both the kids in the car and drive you myself. Or you can call David. I’ll go upstairs and stay there until he gets here. I promise. Whichever way you want to do this is fine. Just don’t leave alone.”
Cait blew out a sharp breath. “I’ll call David. And I’ll wait for him to pick me up,” she added, in response to the question in Ben’s eyes. “You go up and make sure Shep is okay.”
“Thanks.” He turned and climbed the stairs with a heavy tread. She heard the murmur of his voice in Shep’s room, the gradual easing of the little boy’s cry. Drained, frustrated, insulted and sorry, Cait went back to the kitchen and called her brother-in-law to come take her home.
WITH ONE LOOK at her sister’s face, Anna judged that the afternoon and evening hadn’t been much of a success. “How was the party?”
Cait began to braid her tangled hair without combing it first. “I don’t honestly know. Karen Patterson was nice, but I’m afraid I got in the way of her plans. The kids just kept asking for songs and stories.”
Anna nodded. “You’ve always been a magnet for children. That’s why—” She stopped herself just in time. Mentioning what their dad had planned for Cait’s future—a career as a church musician working with children—was exactly the wrong thing to say. “You’re later than I’d realized you would be. Did something else come up?”
“Shep started feeling sick. He wanted me to sit with him on the way home. Then he wouldn’t let me out of the car. His father managed to control his disgust of me long enough to get the children to sleep and feed me a bowl of soup.” Cait shrugged. “That’s all.”
That was far from all, Anna knew. “He’s had a rough time,” she said gently. “His whole life was shattered with his wife’s death.”
“And what am I supposed to do about that?” Her temper truly lost now, Cait paced the living room. “I’m not moving in on him. I don’t even want to talk to him. And he doesn’t have to talk to me. With the least bit of luck, we can avoid each other for the rest of the time I’m here. Which will suit me just fine.” She stomped out as David came in from the kitchen.
He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, then looked at Anna. “What was that all about?”
“Cait and Ben seem to strike sparks off each other whenever they’re together.”
“That’s not a signal for you to start matchmaking, Anna.” He sat in the wing chair across the room and let his head fall back, his hands hanging loosely over the arms. “Your sister doesn’t need a boyfriend.”
“I think he would be good for her, give her roots. And she would bring him back to life.”
“I think they would make each other miserable.” He rolled his head from side to side, closed his eyes. “Man, what a day.”
She hadn’t seen him since their lunch with Cait after the church service. “What have you been doing all afternoon and evening?”
“I met with Timothy for a couple of hours, going over the books. The end of the year will be here before we know it. And with everything there is to do at Christmas, I thought I should get ahead.”
Guilt twisted her stomach. “I’m sorry. If you brought some of the work home, I could help out here. I hate having left with you with so much to do.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he said gently, though his smile was a little forced. “I’m just in a bad mood tonight, I guess. It’s not all that big a deal. But I am tired. Ready for bed?”
He followed her into the bedroom, took his clothes out of the drawer and went into the bathroom, only returning when he was completely changed. Anna was already in bed, waiting. Hoping.
“Don’t worry about Cait,” he said as he turned off the light. “She can take care of herself. No doubt about that.” With a pat on his wife’s hip, he shifted to his side and pulled up the covers. “You just take care of yourself.”
Anna rolled carefully to face in the opposite direction, closing her eyes against tears. David was right, of course—she only had one responsibility right now, to do whatever was necessary to give this baby a chance. And though his…indifference…hurt her, he was simply doing everything he could to help her make the right choices. The doctor hadn’t forbidden sex, though he’d suggested they keep it gentle. By eliminating their lovemaking, Anna was sure her husband thought he was helping her to keep their son alive.
The baby moved inside her—a little hand or foot pushing gently against her flesh—and she put a hand over the place, hoping he felt her love, her yearning for him to arrive safely.
Don’t be in a hurry, she warned him. I’ll wait, for as long as you need.
We’ll all wait.
ON MONDAY EVENING, Harry sat at his desk long after everyone else in the office had gone for the day. For what was probably the fiftieth time, he picked up the letter he’d received that morning and read it through. The words still hadn’t sunk in.
“New owner.” “Efficiency expert.” “Downsizing.” “Restructuring.” “Early retirement.”
He understood the bottom line—he’d been fired. After thirty-five years of service, he had one week to clear out his desk, hand over his work and get out of the building. There would be a dinner to honor all the retirees at some future date.
Some honor. We’ll eliminate your job and give you a free dinner, maybe a gold watch.
Oh, the benefits were good enough. He’d keep his health insurance, his investment plans, his retirement savings. This so-called efficiency expert simply thought Harry would cost the company less money sitting on his duff at home rather than working. Who was he to argue?
But how was he going to tell Peggy he didn’t have a job anymore?
And what the hell would he do with the rest of his life?
CHAPTER FOUR
NEITHER MADDIE nor Shep came to choir practice on Wednesday afternoon. Cait started the children singing Christmas carols, but without Maddie’s strong voice, the sound just wasn’t the same. Brenna, looking rather wan herself, said Maddie hadn’t been to school all week.
Karen Patterson confirmed the news. “I know Ben’s had his hands full—two sick kids is a lot for one adult to manage.” She put a hand over Brenna’s forehead. “I think I’m about to get my own case to deal with. Come on, honey.” She put an arm around her daughter. “Let’s take you home to bed.”
Brenna looked up in horror. “Mama, it’s Halloween!”
Karen winced. “Oh, yeah. Let’s get some medicine, then, see if you feel well enough to go out tonight.” She looked at Cait. “School might be optional, but trick-or-treating is a mandatory commitment.”
Nodding, Cait kept her face straight. “Makes perfect sense to me.” Then she smiled. “I hope you feel better, Brenna.”
She wondered if Maddie and Shep were still too sick to enjoy Halloween. What a shame, after all the time and thought invested in their costumes. And poor Ben, having to be the one to say no.
Later that night, after the trick-or-treaters had stopped coming and Anna and David had gone to bed, Cait sat in the living room with her guitar, playing with chords she eventually realized