A Perfect Holiday Fling (11 page)

“I guess that’s a yes,” Callie said.

“I believe so. You mind staying out here with him while I put Sandy inside and lock up the house?”

Callie nodded and went into the Jeep.

“Are you coming Christmas tree shopping with us?” Jacob asked.

Callie froze, unsure if Stefan had mentioned anything to his nephew about her possibly being around more.

“I don’t have a Christmas tree yet and your Uncle Stefan invited me to come along. I hope that’s okay.”

“As long as we get the bigger one,” Jacob said.

Well, that was easy.

Moments later, Stefan came outside and they were on their way.

Callie was taken aback by Jacob’s animated talk as they drove to the tree lot. The timid little boy who’d shyly clutched Sandy to his chest in the clinic’s waiting room had been replaced by a chatterbox who felt the need to fill her in on everything he and his Uncle Stefan had done these past few weeks.

The only thing that finally halted his prattling was when Stefan turned up the volume on
Jingle Bell Rock
, which Jacob decreed, was the best Christmas song ever. Callie laughed as she watched him over her shoulder, dancing along to the music.

Settling back in her seat, she surveyed the houses lit up with Christmas lights. She could remember her dad taking her around Maplesville when she was a child to see all of the decorations. She looked forward to it every year.

The drive over to the northwest side of town should have taken no more than ten minutes, but the population in this area had swelled with the explosion of new businesses and subdivisions over the past couple of years, bringing with it traffic problems they’d never had to deal with before. Callie was still unsure how she felt about it. It had been a boost to the local economy—her practice included. Operating the only veterinary clinic in several towns, she’d seen marked growth in patients this past year—a good thing now that she was back to a one-income household.

But that wouldn’t matter if she were no longer living in Maplesville, would it?

Callie shut her eyes tight against the tough decisions looming in her very near future. Those weighty issues would still be there tomorrow. Tonight was about spending time with Stefan and his nephew.

Stefan managed to find a parking space near the entrance to the tree lot. As they started for the rows and rows of trees, Callie pulled in a deep breath of the pine-scented air, the smell bringing home thoughts of Christmas like nothing else could.

“I love this time of year,” she said as she strolled with Stefan, a few feet back from Jacob, who was inspecting the trees with the thoughtfulness of someone buying a new car.

“Christmas was never a big deal in our house,” Stefan said. “I think that’s why Stef has tried to go all out for Jacob.”

“You all didn’t do the tree with all the trimmings?”

He shrugged. “Maybe once or twice when we were younger, but it was never a big tradition.”

Callie thought about the box of ornaments in her attic, passed down from both her mother and grandmother. She hadn’t put up a tree last Christmas because Adrian’s betrayal had been so raw. She hadn’t anticipated putting one up this year because it seemed as if, mentally, she were still in that same place.

But she wasn’t. She’d come a lot farther than she’d given herself credit for. The fact that she was tree shopping with the man she was currently sleeping with was a glaring example of the leaps and bounds she’d taken this past year.

Getting back into the spirit this Christmas was the perfect way to finally wash away the last remnants of Adrian from her life.

“Do you need ornaments?” she asked Stefan. “The outlet mall is right across the street.”

“Stefanie had a box. Jacob and I put up the outside lights earlier today. Well, I put them up, and Jacob watched. He said that his dad told him he could put lights up when he turned seven.”

Cautiously, Callie asked, “How has he handled his father’s death?”

Stefan looked over at her and she shrugged. “It’s a small town. People talk.”

He nodded his understanding. “I think he gets better every day. Believe it or not, I think Sandy has been a big help.”

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Callie said. “When I lost my parents, our family dog, Huck, was my saving grace. He was the one I turned to when I needed to talk things through. Everyone else always had an opinion, but Huck would just listen and, you know, be there. I cried more when I lost Huck than when I buried my parents.”

Stefan took her hand in his and gave it a squeeze. “How did you lose your parents?”

She pulled in a deep sigh. “A car accident. I was nineteen.”

“Damn, Callie.”

She shook her head. “It’s okay. I’m not over it—I realize that I’ll never fully be over it. But, it’s okay now.
I’m
okay now.”

“I guess Jacob will be the same way. Eventually.”

She tilted her head, looking at the little boy as he continued to inspect the trees. She’d sensed that familiar sadness in him, and knew from experience that it was something he would carry for a long time.

“It’s still new to him,” Callie said. “Still too raw. But he’ll eventually be okay, too.”

“I like this one, Uncle Stefan!” Jacob stood next to a huge Douglas fir that had to tower at least seven feet.

“I should have known he’d pick the biggest one on the lot,” Stefan said.

“Go big or go home,” Callie laughed.

Because there was no way they could fit a second tree on the car, they decided to return to the lot tomorrow to pick out one for Callie. While they waited for one of the lot attendants to tie the massive tree to the roof of the Jeep, Stefan determined that they would need to make a trip to the outlet mall after all, anticipating that the one box of ornaments they had wouldn’t fill up half of the tree.

Callie’s first thought was to turn down Stefan’s invitation to stay and help decorate the tree. In her mind, this thing between them was still classified as a fling, and trimming a Christmas tree while they sang carols was much too cozy for her peace of mind. But when Callie pitted it against what was awaiting her at home—reruns of TV dramas on her DVR—the decision wasn’t a hard one to make.

Stefan brought in mugs of hot chocolate, handing one to her while she hung a red and green star-shaped ornament on one of the higher tree limbs that Jacob couldn’t reach. It took them nearly an hour to adorn the massive tree with the dozens of ornaments, tinsel and beaded garland, but when Jacob ran to turn the lights off in the living room, and Stefan did the honors of flipping the switch on the tree lights, it was all worth it.

The twinkling lights and rich pine scent suffusing the air reminded Callie of what Christmas was all about.

Family. Togetherness. Hope.

Love.

There was so much to love about this time of year. So much of it she’d learned from the people around her, the people who had nurtured her, who’d held her hand during the darkest hours of her life.

As she stared at the tree, an overwhelming sense of loss washed over her—not for what she had lost already, but what she stood to lose if she decided to leave this town that meant so much to her.

“Not bad for a night’s work,” Stefan said.

Callie furtively wiped her cheeks, and pasted on a smile. “It’s gorgeous.”

He pulled her into his arms, wrapping them around her waist and splaying his hands over her stomach. Callie’s bones melted at the feel of his solid chest against her back.

They stood there staring at the glittering tree for several minutes, until Stefan pointed to the sofa. “I guess the excitement was too much for him,” he whispered against her temple.

Jacob lay curled up with Sandy against his chest, his soft snore bringing a smile to Callie’s lips.

As Stefan scooped him up, Callie nestled onto the couch with Sandy in her lap. She rubbed her hand along the cat’s soft coat, loving the feel of her soft fur. She’d toyed with the idea of getting another pet off and on after Adrian took Atticus, but something had stopped her each time. No, not just
something
. Callie knew exactly why she’d resisted the temptation of bringing another pet into her home, into her heart.

She couldn’t afford to get attached to another thing that would eventually leave her. She’d been through it too many times. Her parents, Huck, her husband, her beloved Atticus. The heartbreak varied in degrees, but it was always there, waiting to be unleashed with a phone call from the state police, or red taillights pulling out of the driveway, heading east to Atlanta.

She just didn’t want to face another loss.

Callie thought about the temptation she
hadn’t
resisted, the one whose footsteps she could hear padding down the stairs at this very moment. The one who’s departure was inevitable. And all she could think to do was escape.

She set Sandy on the floor and rose, grabbing her coat from where she’d draped it over an armchair.

Stefan stopped short when he reached the bottom of the stairs. “You’re leaving?”

“It’s getting late,” Callie said, shrugging into her coat.

“It’s not even nine o’clock.”

“Stefan…I—” She shook her head.

“What?” He caught the hem of her coat and pulled her in close. “Hey,” he said, bringing a finger up to caress her cheek. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Callie lied. “Really, I’m fine. It’s just been such a long day.” She forced a sly smile that she didn’t really feel. “And, in case you don’t remember, someone kept me up way past my bedtime last night.”

His naughty smile was just what she’d anticipated, yet it still wrung a laugh out of her.

She placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. “Good luck at the doctor’s tomorrow.”

She turned to leave, but Stefan caught her wrist, pulling her back to him. He crushed her mouth to his in a kiss that made everything inside of her go liquid. Callie melted against him, her entire being reverberating with the wicked sensations this man elicited.

“Sweet dreams,” he whispered against her lips.

Callie was able to get out in just enough time to leave with her sanity intact. But just barely.

She sat behind the wheel of her SUV, staring at the soft glow of the Christmas tree lights dancing in the living room window.

Maybe it was a good thing Stefan’s time here was temporary. If there was any chance that he would be around Maplesville for the long haul, it would make the decision she had ahead of her all that much more difficult.

Chapter Eight

Stefan sat on the edge of the hard chair, his skin crawling with anxiety as he waited in the stark, sterile exam room. He swallowed back the nastiness that always seemed to climb up his throat whenever he was at the doctor’s. With so much riding on the outcome of this visit, the revolting taste was worse than usual.

When the door opened, Stefan practically leapt out of the chair.

“A little nervous, are we?” Captain Ronald Finch, the ophthalmologist who had been assigned to his case, said in greeting.

In no mood to beat around the bush, Stefan didn’t even wait for the man to sit before asking, “What’s the verdict? Am I going to fly again?”

The doctor didn’t have to say a word. The answer was written all over his face.

Stefan slumped in his chair and threw his head back, a string of curse words flowing from his mouth.

“I’m sorry, Lieutenant,” Finch said.

Two hours later, Stefan pulled into the only available spot in the eight car parking lot in front of Maplesville Animal Clinic.

He shouldn’t be here
, he thought as he shut off the engine. His grip tightened on the steering wheel as he debated whether or not to go inside. If the cars cluttering the parking lot were an indication of the number of patients waiting to be seen, Callie was way too busy to listen to him gripe over the end of his naval career.

It wasn’t her burden to carry anyway. What they had, whether it was a relationship or just a fling, was too new for him to pile a bunch of his crap onto her. He needed to deal with this on his own.

But he’d been driving around for two hours, and dealing with it on his own just wasn’t cutting it.

Stefan climbed out of the Jeep.

If she could spare a minute, fine. If not, he’d drive around some more. Maybe go back to Gauthier and check out some of the shops that had already closed on Main Street by the time they finished their dinner the other night.

As expected, the waiting room was filled with people accompanied by various pets. Several dogs barked at him as he walked up to the receptionist.

“Oh, hello, Mr. Sutherland,” she greeted. “Did the cat cough up another hairball?”

Despite the overall shittiness of his day, her remark drew a smile from him.

“None that I know of,” Stefan said. “I was hoping to talk to Dr. Webber if she has a minute. Tell her that I’ll understand if she doesn’t.”