A Home for Christmas (12 page)

“I come bearing hot muffins. You'd better have coffee.”

“You're in luck. It just finished brewing.”

Dixie came inside and unbuttoned her coat. Blake helped her out of it and draped it over a kitchen chair.

“I'm surprised you're here,” she said. “I saw your car in the drive as I passed by on my way to Susan's. I promised to sit with her while the rest of the family goes to church, so I can't stay long.”

“I overslept.”

“You?” She opened the bag and the aroma of blueberries filled the room. “I wasn't aware you knew how.”

He pushed his wet hair off his forehead. “Guess there's a first time for everything.”

“Don't suppose it'd have anything to do with a certain blonde sleeping a block away warm and snug in her uncle's house?”

He gave Dixie what he hoped was a look that clearly stated he didn't want to discuss Janice Thornton. Fact was, he'd been up most of the night hanging wallpaper and trying to decide what his next move with her would be. If there would be one.

“I just got a passing glance at her last week, but seein' her standin' there with you in the diner yesterday, I gotta tell you, I think she's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen.”

The statement reminded him of the exchange with Cory yesterday. The anger that had been simmering since then threatened to rise to the surface.

“Of course, it shouldn't surprise me. I heard her mother was a real looker, too.”

Blake gave her a look again when he set a plate in front of her.

Dixie held up her hand. “Just coffee for me. I gotta get movin'. Can't keep the mayor waitin'. You know how he can be. But I got a piece of advice for you before I go.” She pinched a bite out of his muffin and popped it into her mouth.

“What if I said I don't need any advice?”

“You're gettin' it anyway. If you're really interested in this woman, don't beat around the bush about it. Go after her. Women like that don't stay on the shelf long.” Dixie brushed the crumbs off her hands and stood. “Now don't give me that look. I know you. You were probably up half the night plannin' your next move, and that's why you look like six miles of bad road.”

He saluted her with his cup. “Thanks, Sis.” He took a long draw of the strong liquid and closed his eyes while the caffeine worked its magic.

She shrugged into her coat. “Word is she's only going to be here until Christmas, then she's jettin' back to the city. You got no time to waste, and you sure don't want to let someone else around here get the jump on you.”

“Dixie . . . ” He couldn't think of anything worse than having his baby sister telling him what he needed to do to snag a woman. He definitely didn't want to hear that he might have competition.

“Okay, okay. I'm outta here. Think about what I said.”

Her voice trailed off as she hurried down the hallway to the front of the house. “Well, good mornin', Doc. I was just on my way out. Come on in. Blake's back in the kitchen.”

Blake stood and made it to the doorway of the kitchen in time to see Dixie leave and Janice come in.

“Bye,” Janice said to a banging door.

Blake leaned against the doorframe and looked his fill. She was all bundled up in an off-white coat, her cheeks pink from the cold. Dear Lord, one look at her and every doubt or reservation he had fled.

Janice pulled her hat off. “Hi.” She looked back over her shoulder at the door. “Was that a whirlwind or your sister that just blew through here?”

“That's Dixie. She's hard to pin down for more than five minutes.”

Janice removed her gloves and swiveled back to face him. “I hope you don't mind me dropping by un—
um
—unannounced . . . ” Her words trailed into nothing.

“Of course not.”

She took a breath and looked away, biting her upper lip. “I'm sorry. You must have just been getting dressed.”

He glanced down at his shirt hanging open. “Oh, sorry.” He secured the two middle buttons and buttoned his jeans. “I'd just gotten out of the shower when Dixie showed up.” She still stood near the door, looking unsure of what to do or where to look.

“Join me for a cup of coffee?”

Watching her walk toward him was pure pleasure. Even bundled up so that only her face showed, she was stunning. When she stood before him, he couldn't help himself, he reached out to unwrap her long green scarf. “Are you in there?”

She smiled up at him then and it seemed the most natural thing in the world to lean down and kiss her cheek. “Man. You're like a human ice cube.” He rubbed her arms. “Come in the kitchen and let me get you a cup of coffee.”

“Thanks.”

She preceded him into the kitchen and went directly to the coffeemaker. “It must be ten degrees out there.”

Blake peered at the thermometer outside his kitchen window. “Fifteen.”

Her laugh seemed a little nervous. “Is there really a difference between fifteen and ten? If you ask me, anything under twenty is just cold. Really cold.”

Blake poured a large mug of coffee. “Spoken like a true southern girl.”

“Considering the fact that I grew up in the Northeast, I have pretty thin skin. I admit it.”

“You take it straight?”

“Absolutely.”

He handed her the steaming mug and she held it with both hands, sipping the hot liquid. “Thank you.”

He frowned. She still wasn't looking at him.

“So, what brings you my way?”

Her gaze made it as high as his chest before she set the mug on the island and said, “I have something for you.”

She reached in her pocket and scooped out a handful of gray fur. A wiggling handful of gray fur that said,
Meow,
and looked up at him with huge, curious blue eyes.

“I found her at my uncle's this morning. I wasn't sure what I should do with her. With it being so early, I couldn't go knock on doors to see if she belongs to someone. Then I remembered that you said you were in desperate need of a cat, and I thought you wouldn't mind taking her in for now.”

He rubbed the soft fur under the kitten's chin. She closed her eyes and extended her neck to give him better access. “She hardly looks old enough to be away from her mama.”

“I know. Do you think she'll be all right?”

The concern lacing Janice's words made him want to ease her mind. She brought out every protective instinct he had and then some. “Well, if we can't figure out who she belongs to, we could take her in to the vet in Maryville. Have her checked out.”

“Tomorrow?”

“Sure.” He had a full day, what with things wrapping up at the library and another crew starting two houses in a new subdivision in Lenoir City, but he'd make time. Somehow.

She moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue. “If she doesn't already have a home, will you keep her?”

If she kept looking at him like that, he would promise her anything.

“Are you sure you wouldn't rather have her? I think she's bonded with you.”

She stroked the kitten in a rhythmic motion. “Oh, no. I couldn't.”

“Why not?”

“I'm not sure how my uncle feels about cats, and the complex I live in doesn't allow pets.”

“That won't matter if you move into your uncle's place permanently. I'm sure he wouldn't mind you having a pet until then.”

“I can't make the commitment right now. There's a lot to consider. You know that.”

“Tell you what. I'll keep her under one condition.”

She chewed her full lower lip and her gaze dipped to his chest again.

“What's that?”

“That you exercise liberal visitation.”

“Deal. I'll even pay the vet bill.”

“Can't beat that.”

He bent his knees and caught her gaze. Her cheeks immediately flamed. He took the cat from her and set it on the floor. It rubbed against his ankle. “You okay?”

“
Um
, sure. Now that I know you'll keep her, I'm,
um
, fine. Fine.”

That incredible emerald gaze dipped. Again. And she licked her lips. Again. Desire, hot and fast, washed over him and he couldn't resist teasing her. “See anything you like?”

She gasped and would have turned away, but he caught her wrist, halting her retreat. Pulling her forward, he pressed her palm flat against his chest.

“Oh . . . ”

Her breath came out in a little puff that teased his neck. Her cold hand felt like a branding iron on his overheated skin, then it shifted inside his shirt, out and down over his flat, taut nipple. She scraped his ribs with her fingernails.

He unbuttoned her coat and eased his hands inside. She wore a heavy pink cotton sweater that almost reached the waistband of a pair of black, hip hugging knit pants that fit her real nice. In that moment, he thought every morning should start this way. With Janice standing in his kitchen inviting him to seduce her back into his bed with only a touch. A heated glance.

He pulled her forward with a hand at either side of her hips while she worked the buttons on his shirt. When she had it open, she smoothed her hands across his chest. Sliding his hands to the backs of her thighs, he pulled her up tight against him and did what he'd wanted to do since she walked into his kitchen . . . he kissed her. He didn't wait for a warm-up kiss, just slanted his mouth on hers, open, hot and hungry. Judging from the way she responded, she'd been more than ready.

He plunged his tongue into her mouth. She dropped her hands letting her coat fall to the floor, then stood on her toes to wrap her arms around his neck. God, she fit so perfectly against him, they felt like two parts of a whole finally coming together.

While their tongues did a wild dance, he slid his hands up over her bottom until he found that enticing gap of warm, smooth skin between her stretch pants and her sweater. He swept his hand up under it and found she hadn't bothered to put on a bra. He groaned deep in his throat, but before he could regain a shred of control, she started an exploration of her own. She trailed hot hands down his chest, his sides, then swept them around to his back and lower . . . .

“Doc Prescott!”

Both Blake and Janice jumped apart at the sound of Dixie's voice.

Blake groaned again as his sister burst into the house and rushed into the kitchen. The cat skidded across the hardwoods and hid under the kitchen table.

“Doc Prescott, I need you. It's Susie.”

It took Blake a second to figure out his sister was speaking to Janice, who didn't waste time correcting her.

“Slow down,” Janice spoke in a calm, reassuring voice to his sister. “Tell me what's wrong.”

Lord, he wondered how she could regain control so quickly? She trailed a shaky hand down her thigh, and he smiled. She was feeling it, too.

“It's my friend, Susie. I was walking her to the bathroom and she passed out on me. You have to help her.”

Janice picked up her coat and moved toward the front door with Dixie. Blake stepped into some shoes, grabbed his car keys and coat.

“I don't have my medical bag.”

“We'll swing by and pick it up,” Blake said.

“I'll meet y'all there.” Dixie had run out the door, down the sidewalk, and around the block before Blake had Janice in the front seat of his truck. Blake fired the ignition and put the truck in gear.

“Has your sister's friend been ill?” Janice asked.

“She has cancer. It's pretty advanced.”

They made it to Doc Prescott's in record time. Janice jumped down from the truck and ran to her car. She was back in a moment with her bag. Blake grasped her hand and helped her up. As soon as she was in, he continued down the road to the mayor's house.

When they arrived, Janice didn't wait for Blake to help her out of the truck. She hopped out of the cab before he'd brought it to a complete stop and sprinted up the sidewalk, into the house.

“Dixie?”

“Up here.”

Janice took the steps two at a time. He wasn't far behind. They found Susan, wrapped in a blanket, lying on the bedroom floor near the bathroom. Dixie was at her side, cradling Susan's head in her lap.

“How long has she been out?” Janice asked as she checked the prone woman's pulse.

“She passed out right before I came for you. Is she—”

“Her pulse is weak and thready, breathing shallow.” Janice dug in her bag for something. “How did she seem when you got here?”

Blake squatted with the women and squeezed his sister's shoulder while Janice worked.

“Weak. Like always.”

“Tell me what you know about her condition.”

Janice lifted her eyelids and shined a light in Susan's eyes.

“She has advanced breast cancer. She's known for a few months. Refused treatment because the doctors said it wouldn't cure her.”

“Has my uncle been treating her?”

“He's been trying to keep her comfortable. She's really gotten worse in the past couple of weeks.”

“Is she eating? Able to take fluids?”

“Not much.”

“We need to get her to a hospital. Blake, call an ambulance.”

“No!” Dixie grabbed Blake's arm so he couldn't move away. “No hospitals. She can go to Doc's clinic, but not the hospital. She'd never forgive me if—if I let her die in a hospital.”

“She's severely dehydrated. She needs an
IV
. If we don't get her the treatment she needs immediately, her condition will worsen. I'm not familiar with my uncle's clinic—”

“I'll get him from church,” Dixie said.

“I can't take her in my truck.”

“Take my car. I'll take your truck.”

Blake exchanged keys with Dixie, then lifted Susan into his arms. She weighed no more than a child. She felt so fragile. This happy, carefree woman who'd been like a sister to him shouldn't be fighting for her life. She was too damn young. The same age as Dixie.

Emotion clogged his throat as he carried her downstairs. Dixie and Janice followed. He settled her in the back seat of Dixie's Explorer with Janice, then got behind the wheel and drove the short distance to Doc Prescott's.

Blake gathered Susan in his arms and followed Janice into the clinic. He passed her and carried the unconscious woman into the large examination room. It was where Doc Prescott did the more complicated procedures. Janice was digging through drawers when Doc Prescott and his nurse, Mable, came in with Dixie and the mayor close behind.