Mistletoe and Magic (9 page)

“I can’t do this, AJ.”

“Why not?”

“I have responsibilities.”

“Let me share those responsibilities with you.” She shook her head. “Mallory, I’m not going anywhere. If I thought you didn’t care, I wouldn’t be wasting my time. But I know you do. No one makes love like we just did without feeling a connection.”

She jumped out of bed. “I need to get the tree decorated.” She began to dress until he came over and engulfed her in another embrace. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been held,” she said. “And even longer than that for—” She didn’t finish.

“Then don’t fight it. Let me love you.”

She shook her head again and pulled the sweater on. Combing her fingers through her hair, she twisted the long ends and clipped it into place with a barrette. Rushing downstairs, she checked the time. Realizing she’d never get the tree decorated before the kids returned home from school, she called Dina.

“Having fun?” Dina asked.

“I’m working, Dina,” she said wryly. “Listen, I’m probably not going to be done in time for the girls—”

Dina interrupted. “I’ll take care of it. Miriam’s here with me and she won’t leave until she thinks I’m okay. Don’t worry about a thing.”

“Thank you.” Mallory blew out a breath. “I’ll talk to you later.” Just as she was about to click off, Dina said something.

“Mal, let your hair down and stop worrying about trying to be all things to all people. Okay?” Mallory said nothing. “He’s crazy about you. You have to know that.”

“Dina, this is a conversation for another time.”

“I know, but I’m giving you permission to do what you’re heart is telling you to do. Take everyone out of the equation for a moment and think about how you’d handle it. I think there’d be no hesitation to get involved.”

“I have to go, Dina.”

“Think about it, Mal.” She clicked off the phone and was startled when AJ came up behind her.

“See, even your sister knows.” He said taking the phone from her hand and setting it down on the table.

“You heard what she said?”

“She talks loud…and I’m glad she does. Mallory, I know this sounds crazy, but I’m falling in love with you and your daughters.”

“But you don’t understand. It’s complicated.”

“Not anymore complicated than my life. I have six sisters, Mallory. You want to compare notes?” He moved up close to her and wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her neck. Her scent affected every part of his body.

She slapped his hand and pulled away. “I have work to do.”

“Why won’t you admit that you’re falling in love with me?” The back of his hand caressed her cheek. “Do you care at all about me, Mal?”

“Of course I care.”

“Then let go of your hang ups. Whatever is bothering you and your family, we’ll work it out together. You have to know that I’m there for you.”

“I hate to see you waste your time.”

“I’ve got nothing but time, my darling. You can throw as many curve balls as you want, but understand I’m as persistent as the day is long.”

He scooped her up again, and the heat from his body ignited in her stomach as he carried her back to the bedroom. Dina’s words echoed through her mind. Yes, she was doing what her heart told her to because trying to resist him made her want him all the more. His kiss deepened and sent her back into a world of ecstasy with a man who had literally swept her off her feet.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

“I love you, Mallory,” AJ said as she was leaving. She didn’t respond. “You’re afraid to say it, aren’t you?”

“Please believe me when I say it has nothing to do with you. I need to think about this.” She kissed him. “I just don’t know.”

“Okay,” he jerked back and threw up his hands. “I’m a patient man. You’re worth waiting for.”

“Thank you.” She smiled. “I needed to hear you say that.”

“When you’re ready to say it, I will cherish every day of our lives together, and shower you with more love than you’ve ever known.” After helping her into her car, he waited for her to pull away. Contented and happy, he walked back inside the house, the smell of her cologne still lingering in his nose. He wasn’t sure what her hang up was, but he had a sneaky suspicion it had something to do with Jenny.

~~~

Mallory’s eyes filled with tears as she pulled away from the curb. She was falling in love with a man who would most likely run in the opposite direction when Jenny sensed something was going on. The one thing she did know was that writing in her journal tonight would be filled with wonderful memories of a day she’d never forget.

Driving down the street, she noticed every light was lit in her house. She saw Dina walk by the window and wondered if she’d be upset that Mallory was later than she’d intended. Mallory parked the car inside the garage and cut the engine. Dina had a huge smile on her face when Mallory walked into the kitchen. “Ohmigod,” she said, a joyful ring to her tone. With her hands firmly planted on her hips, she continued, “You’ve got the glow.”

Mallory feigned ignorance. “What glow?”

“The
you did it
glow.” She giggled. “It’s written all over your face.”

Mallory gave a nonchalant wave. “Seriously, Dina, you really need to start writing romance novels. You have such an imagination.”

“Okay, we’ll play the game your way. You know I’m going to find out sooner or later anyway, so if you have anything you want to tell me, now would be the time.”

“There’s nothing to tell. It’s cold outside.”

“But you weren’t outside, other than to walk to the house and back to your car.”

“How were the girls?” Mallory said, changing the subject. She had no intentions of sharing any of their intimate moments with her sister.

“The girls were delightful. They’re both doing homework.”

“Jenny was good too?”

“She seemed a little uptight when she found out you weren’t going to be home.”

“Then I’d better go say hello.” She headed for the hallway when Dina reached out and stopped her.

“Mal, I don’t mean to butt into how you raise your kids, but seriously, you don’t need to apologize for wanting to have a life.”

“I know.”

“No, I don’t think you do. It’s been two years since Mitch is gone. I know the girls will never get over losing their father, but you don’t need to pay for that. Mitch does and the sooner Jenny finds out the truth, the quicker you can all get back to a life.”

“We’re working on it, Dina. We’ve had one visit with Dr. Bean.”

Mallory pointed toward the bedrooms. “Let me say hello to the girls first so we can finish this conversation later.”

Dina nodded in agreement and walked with Mallory to the bedrooms. Mallory knocked on Jenny’s door.

“Go away and leave me alone,” Jenny shouted out. Mallory opened the door anyway and rushed in. Jenny’s journal was open, facing down, her hands covering it and she was sobbing.

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Mallory asked and reached out to hug her daughter, but Jenny pushed her mother away. Mallory jerked back in shock, a sickened feeling erupting in the pit of her stomach.

“Jenny!” Dina scolded. “That’s not very nice.”

“Go away,” she demanded. “I don’t want you in here.”

“Fine.” Mallory said, the pained expression encompassing her face.

“Why do you allow her to treat you like that?” Dina asked when they closed the door to Jenny’s bedroom.

“She’s hurting.”

“And you aren’t?” Edging their way down toward Lacey’s room, Mallory swallowed hard before entering. Lacey was sound asleep. She leaned down and kissed her cheek. Lacey stirred and turned over.

“She played hard after school,” Dina said. “C’mon.” She reached for her arm. “Let’s go sit in the living room. I have a fresh pot of coffee waiting for us.”

“Okay. That’s sounds like a good idea.”

“You go sit and I’ll be right in.”

Mallory sat down on the recliner and raised the leg rest. Her mind was racing with bittersweet memories of her day with AJ to a depressed world of sour remorse. She ultimately concluded all good things had to come to an end. There was no way she could ever bring AJ into her topsy-turvy world. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them because he deserved something better than inheriting a dysfunctional family. She wanted to believe that therapy would help Jenny in time, but seeing her aggressive behavior spiral out of control on a moment’s notice was too risky. Dina entered the room with a tray, her expression still and serious.

She offered Mallory the coffee. She took the cup and set it down on the end table. “I also bought some cookies at Nardone’s Bakery that I thought the kids would enjoy. After what I just witnessed, we’re the kids tonight.” Dina sat down across from Mallory, her brows pulled together. “Talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.”

Mallory blew out air in a quick whoosh. “I’ve been reluctant to talk to you about it because I don’t want you to judge Jenny.”

“It’s hard not to when I see her acting so poorly.” She frowned. “Tell me how long you’ve been putting up with this?”

“Ever since Mitch died. I told myself it was because she was having a hard time dealing with the loss and she’d get over it. Unfortunately, things haven’t gotten better, they’ve gotten worse. Much worse. That’s why I’ve sought therapy.”

“It’s a good thing you did.” Dina’s face went sternly serious. “Mal, I’m so sorry you’re going through this alone. Please let me help you deal with this.” Mallory’s lips thinned. “What did Dr. Bean say? Did she give you any idea about how to deal with it?”

“She spoke to each of us alone. I went first and filled in all the details of Mitch’s death, our marriage in general, and how he disassociated himself from us.”

“I’ve never understood that.”

Mallory sipped her coffee to moisten her dry mouth. “There is something I’ve never told you. Maybe it was because I was embarrassed, I don’t know. Mitch had a girlfriend,” she blurted out. Dina’s face hardened into a mask of stone. “She was a twenty-something biker chick.”

“That bastard!” Dina exclaimed. “While you stayed home and supported the family, he was off running around with a biker chick every weekend?”

“That was pretty much it. I had suspected he was cheating on me, but I told myself I was jealous because he was having fun and I wasn’t.
She
was the one who called to tell me what happened. She said they’d gone off to be alone.” Mallory swallowed hard. “When he’d taken the risky jump and fell, she panicked and by the time she got there, he was already dead. It seems the bike landed on top of him with the motor running. The weight of the bike crushed his chest.”

Tears ran down Dina’s cheeks. She quickly rose from her chair and rushed over to Mallory, pulling her up into a tight hug. “Oh God.” Dina covered her face with her hands and looked at Mallory with disbelief. “I can’t believe what you’ve had to deal with, Mal. I’m so sorry and even sorrier Mitch would do something like this to you and the girls.”

“I wouldn’t have thought so either, but it was what it was and I dealt with it. And I’m not looking for a pat on the back. Jenny was so close to him, I didn’t want her to grow up without a father.”

“Yeah, you didn’t want to do that to your kid, but he did it to her.” She continued to shake her head in disbelief. “Mal, I’m just flabbergasted. So tell me what the doc said.”

“After we each had a turn talking, we reconvened and talked as a family. When the time was up, she suggested we each record our thoughts in a journal. I don’t know if you noticed, but Jenny had her journal open when we went into the room and I’m thinking she was writing something she couldn’t deal with, and that’s why she lashed out at me.”

“But are you ever going to tell her about her father having a girlfriend and what he was doing?”

“No. I don’t want to ruin her memory of him. That’s all she’s got left of him, Dina.”

~~~

Mallory waved as Dina drove off. She shut out all the lights, yawned and made her way down the hall to her bedroom. She was tired both mentally and physically. Slipping into her nightgown, she eased herself into bed, pulling the covers over her shoulders. It seemed like forever that she lay still, willing her mind to shut down. With so many things going on, sleep refused to come. She reached for the lamp and turned it on. She’d read for a while when she heard her cell phone’s ringtone. By the time she’d gotten to the phone, it had stopped ringing. Checking the caller ID, she noticed she had five messages from AJ. Despite what she was feeling, she smiled. At least he hadn’t thought of her as a one-night stand.

Mallory listened to his messages.

“
Hi, pretty lady. I just wanted to make sure you got home okay
.” A slight pause and he continued, “
I wanted to tell you how much today meant to me. Mallory, I’ve never met anyone like you and I can’t let go. And even though we don’t know each other very well, honestly, it feels like we’ve been friends forever. And after what we shared today, I’m totally smitten with you
.” Another pause. “
When you pulled away, I sensed this might be our last time. I can’t even bear to think that’s even possible. Please give us a chance. I promise you now, that together, we can work anything out
.”

Mallory smiled while her stomach churned with each assertion he made filling her heart with more love than she’d ever experienced. Was she just lonely that everything he was saying made her feel as though he was her last chance at happiness? Her happy feeling diminished when she thought of Jenny and what she was going through. Afraid to listen to his four messages, she erased them and shut out the light.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Mallory turned on the Christmas music and walked out into the showroom and flipped on the overhead lights. The week before Christmas was always busy, and she didn’t think today would be any different. Lighting the displays, she heard Dina and Miriam’s voices.

“We’re here, Mal,” Dina said. “I brought coffee and muffins.”

“You’re going to make me fat, Dina.”