Sleigh Bells in Valentine Valley (20 page)

“But this
is
fun for me. I wouldn't be doing it otherwise.”

His brow furrowed as if with skepticism, but he didn't contradict her.

“I'm aiming for the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's, so I have to settle on the bands quickly. I read an article that Jessica Fitzjames wrote on local bands. I've asked her for help, so she's coming today to talk—at the end of my shift, don't worry.”

He stood up and took her face in his hands, startling her.

“Kate, I don't worry. You'll handle everything. You always do.” He kissed the tip of her nose and walked out the door.

She stared at the empty doorway, not sure if that was a compliment. Then she shrugged and decided to take it that way. No point in thinking the worst. That only gave her a stomachache.

Her first table during the lunch rush was a middle-aged guy in a suit, constantly on his cell phone. He barely put it aside to place his order, and while he was eating, he was texting. She passed by once as he was grumbling.

She paused and asked, “Did you need something, sir?”

“No, just work stuff,” he said impatiently. “You're lucky you don't have a high-stress job.”

She hid a smile. “Well, when we get swamped, it can be very stressful. Some customers don't appreciate that we have several tables to juggle.”

He looked around. “Oh, yeah, right.”

And then his phone rang. While he answered it, she quietly placed his check on the table and kept going.

When she came back to pick up his credit card, she asked, “Do you have a favorite band?”

He blinked at her. “Band?”

“You know, singing, playing instruments? We're having a band festival in a few weeks, and I'd love to contact groups popular with our customers.”

He actually paused to think. “Double Cyn. They're a folk group. But they're national, not local. You might not be able to get them.”

“Thanks, I'll give it a shot.”

She asked other patrons about their favorite bands that afternoon, and by the time she got to Ned and Ted, the identical twin plumbers, they grumbled that she wasn't paying attention to them.

“I saved the best for last,” she insisted. “So who's your favorite local band?”

“Toke Lobo and the Pack,” they said in unison.

“They're from Colorado,” Ned said.

“They sing country,” Ted added.

“Sounds good,” she said. “They're on my list.”

Kate's shift ended and Erika took over. Kate headed to Tony's office to tell him about the bands customers had mentioned, and he looked up the contact info for the couple who'd already played at the tavern.

“You have another hockey game tonight, right?” Kate asked.

“If it's Wednesday and winter, it's hockey,” he said, swiveling his chair to look at her.

“I'd like to come if you don't mind.”

He studied her, and she couldn't quite read his expression.

“I'm not sure that's a good idea. We already work together, have the same friends . . .”

“And I want to see you play. But I don't want to make you uncomfortable. Ethan wants to go—how about if I use him as an excuse? I'll pick him up so you guys can go out afterward. I'll come ‘too early'”—she air-quoted the words—“and catch some of the second half.”

“Third period?”

She laughed. “Whatever.”

“I guess that works.”

She turned to go when he called her name.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked. “I thought being secret was enough for you.”

“It is, but . . . I just want to see you in action.” She gave him a cocky grin. “Maybe Valentine Valley just makes me feel young again.”

T
here were lots of pickups in the parking lot of the Aspen Ice Garden that evening, which made Kate smile. She passed through the warm lobby, where a couple dozen guys were putting on their skates and pads for the next game. Several watched her walk by, and one even whistled. She should probably have been offended—but she wasn't. Sometimes it was nice to be noticed.

She opened the door and stepped into the rink itself, where the cool air had the brisk smell she always associated with rinks. And then right in front of her, two guys slammed into the boards, making her jump. One of the guys waved at her, and though she wasn't sure who it was beneath the helmet, she waved back.

There was cheering from the small group in the stands, and she saw people she knew, including her son, of course, who was sitting with several teenagers. And then she winced, because Tony's dad was there as well and could have given Ethan a ride. Oh well, Tony obviously hadn't remembered that.

And to her surprise, there was Mrs. Thalberg sitting at Mr. De Luca's side. Now
that
was interesting. Kate had been seeing them together a lot. She climbed up into the bleachers, and although Ethan had known she was coming, he gave her an almost . . . disinterested glance that stung a little bit. Maybe he thought she'd sit outside in the car. But she understood his age, so she sat down by the older couple.

“Hi, Mr. De Luca, Mrs. Thalberg,” she said.

Mrs. Thalberg gave her a much more interested look than Ethan had. “Kate, good to see you.”

“I'm here to pick up Ethan,” Kate quickly explained. “Guess I'm too early.”

Mrs. Thalberg's smile deepened, but she didn't say anything.

Mr. De Luca gave a sudden, “Yes!”

Kate focused on the game. “Who's winning?” she asked when she saw that the scoreboard only listed the teams as Home and Visitor.

“The Valentine Massacre,” Mr. De Luca said, not taking his eyes off the ice. “Tony just scored.”

Number eleven had just scored, so at least now she knew which one he was without having to ask. She watched the game, enjoying the thrill of well-padded men trying to outplay each other for fun. Tony might have aged a few years since the last time she'd watched him play—and that had been in high school—but he hadn't lost his intensity.

When they were young, she'd never understood why winning and losing hadn't mattered much to him. He'd been just as competitive as she'd been, but when the game had been over, it hadn't mattered who had won. He'd reverted to laid-back Tony, who'd enjoyed playing more than he'd needed to win. Kate had made a career out of winning, though she'd had to lower her obsessive focus for fear she'd develop an ulcer over time.

During a time-out, Mr. De Luca went to buy popcorn, and Kate slid close to Mrs. Thalberg.

“I'm surprised to see you here,” she said to the widow.

“Surprised? You shouldn't be. My grandson Nate is number three.”

“Oh,” Kate said, glancing to where the team huddled together. “I thought you were here as Mr. De Luca's date.”

“Well, I do admit that a man with low blood pressure turns me on.”

Kate choked on the water bottle she'd started to swig, and Mrs. Thalberg just gave her an innocent smile.

“Kate, there's going to be a wedding shower for Brooke at Josh and Whitney's loft at the ranch this Sunday. Would you like to come?”

“Oh, I don't know if Brooke would want me there. She doesn't know me all that well.”

“She's close to Lyndsay, and you seem well on your way to becoming Lyndsay's best friend again. You'll know almost everyone.”

Kate felt her cheeks heat with a blush. “Why . . . thank you, Mrs. Thalberg. I'd love to come. I'd like to return the favor by inviting you to the band festival that will be at Tony's Tavern between Christmas and New Year's—I haven't settled on the exact date yet. I'm in negotiations with a few bands, and I'd like to go see a few in person, the ones whose YouTube videos aren't that helpful.”

“A festival! What a lovely idea.”

“The outdoor stage will be in Tony's parking lot, and Chef will be barbecuing. Hopefully the weather will cooperate.”

“You know, Renee reads tarot. She's quite popular. If you'd like her to set up a booth, I'm sure she'd love it.”

Kate imagined Mrs. Palmer chatting up band revelers between musical acts. “I think it's a great idea. I'll give her a call. And I'll make sure she has a heater in her booth.”

Mr. De Luca returned and sat back down near Mrs. Thalberg. He gave a bag of popcorn to Ethan, who at least thanked his grandfather politely before going back to his friends. Mr. De Luca had even bought a bag for Kate. It was so nice that he could see past the divorce and treat her with kindness. To her surprise, she felt a lump grow in her throat, and she forced herself to look back at the game, blinking rapidly.

Though she was fighting back tears, Kate realized that she was happy—truly happy. Happier than she'd been in a long, long time. She got to see her son almost every day, reacquaint herself with old friends, and hang out with her family. And mostly, she and Tony were friends again.

And then she told herself to snap out of it. She had the ability to make herself happy wherever she lived. These last few weeks, she'd learned some valuable lessons about being more balanced in her life and doing things for herself as well as for her son.

And the other thing she'd learned was that she needed to have a man in her life again, someone she trusted and had fun with—someone like Tony.

When the game was over, Ethan went to play in the game room with some friends. After his shower, Tony joined them, and Kate told him about Mrs. Palmer's tarot readings. He looked mildly skeptical, and Mrs. Thalberg chuckled.

After Mr. De Luca and Mrs. Thalberg left, Kate touched Tony's arm when he started for the game room to get Ethan.

“Wait. I'm so excited. I have to tell you something. You know I talked to your sister about my law firm problem, right?”

“No, I didn't realize you guys had gotten so close so quickly.”

“I know. Crazy, isn't it? In some ways it's like we never were apart. But anyway, she reminded me that I could do more in-depth research on my client than I'd done when I first took them on. At least I'd feel better about having to let it go if the firm forces the issue. Well, I've spent hours and hours looking, and I couldn't find anything bad about the company.”

“That's good, right?” he said, leaning against the wall.

“Right. But . . . it doesn't mean they're not doing wrong for the first time, you know. And people could get sick. But I got lucky.”

“With someone other than me?” he asked, smiling at her.

She looked around nervously. “Enough with the teasing. I got lucky finding an article about one of the cattle growth hormones my client produces. They named the chemist who'd worked on the project. He's retired now, so maybe I can get him to talk to me.”

His smile faded. “Is that wise, Kate? What if he tells tales to his old bosses, who complain to your senior partners?”

“I'll be very careful,” she said, sighing. “But . . . I just need to know the truth, Tony.”

They were standing close together, talking earnestly, when Ethan came out of the game room. He stopped in his tracks as he saw them, then frowned and turned away.

“What's wrong?” Tony asked, looking over his shoulder at where she was staring.

“Ethan saw us talking—and he didn't look happy about it.”

“Maybe he thinks we're talking about him.”

“Maybe.” But that answer didn't feel right.

“You're not perfect at figuring out a guy's every emotion just from his face,” Tony said. “Remember our first dinner party with the high-powered partners you interned with the summer before your graduation?”

She couldn't help smiling, even as she groaned at the memory. “You had that baby food stain on your shirt, and I thought you were miserable about it. I certainly didn't read your expression correctly that night.”

“I'm just as guilty. I thought you were embarrassed by me.”

“Sadly, it took us a while to figure out what each of us was really thinking,” she said quietly.

“Too bad we couldn't figure other things out.” Tony's smile faded.

They looked at each other for what seemed like a long time, and regret and sadness washed through her.

Then he gave a crooked grin. “Don't look like that. We're good, right?”

“We're good with Ethan, and we're good with sex,” she pointed out. His gaze dipped immediately to her breasts, and she was tempted to tip his chin back up herself. But no touching in public. “As for how we treat each other, you gave me a job as a challenge, as a way to shut me up.”

“Yeah, well, I might have been mistaken in my motives. It's worked out okay. I don't mind having you around.”

She sighed. “I'd give you a flip remark about that, but if I'm being serious, I can agree with you.”

“You're being serious—what a revelation.”

She punched him lightly in the arm—and again noticed Ethan watching them with a scowl.

“Okay, either our son is having a bad gaming night, or he doesn't like seeing us together.”

“That doesn't make sense.”

“Maybe not, but it's all I can deduce.”

“Maybe he thinks we should be discussing a new phone for him.”

“He's not close enough to know one way or the other.” To change the subject, she said, “So you and the team going out tonight?”

“Yeah, we're heading back to Valentine and going to Outlaws.”

“Ooh, the enemy.”

“It's a country western bar and dance club. Maybe I'm spying.”

“Maybe you just don't want to be the boss.”

“Maybe that, too.”

“Hey, Boss, just so you know, I'm being careful with the bands. Jessica and I are going to hear Red Dye 7 tomorrow night. They're a New York band hanging out in Colorado for the season.”

“Sounds good.”

But he didn't seem all that interested as his gaze roamed down her body again.

He said softly, “I don't suppose you want to drop Ethan at my place and wait up for me.”

Her heart picked up speed at the mere suggestion, and once again she looked around before lowering her voice. “While that's an interesting invitation, I think the point of me picking up Ethan is to spend time with him. And it's a school night.”

“When he's usually at my house anyway.”

“Now don't go talking custody to me, Mr. De Luca. I like how relaxed we've been about it while I'm in Valentine. It's just not suiting
you
tonight.”

“Tony, are you coming?” Nate called from the front of the lobby, where several of the guys had gathered near the door.

Kate turned her head, and she saw sudden surprise widen Nate's eyes, as if he hadn't seen her before. She noticed that Will just smirked, and she wondered what he knew. Come to think of it, since they'd skied last weekend, she hadn't seen much of him at the tavern.

“Hi, guys,” she called. “I'll be taking Ethan home with me so you guys can go be manly.”

“Thanks,” Nate said, but he looked back and forth between them with interest.

“Okay, I'm out of here,” she said. “Have fun.” As Tony slung his equipment bag over his shoulder and picked up his hockey stick, she hurried toward the game room and leaned inside. “You ready to go, E.?”

He was standing at a pinball machine, finishing a game. He barely glanced over his shoulder. “In a minute, Mom.”

She felt a surge of displeasure at his attitude, but now wasn't the time to talk about it. Ethan took his sweet time finishing up, then sauntered to her side. They both headed for the Range Rover.

“So what's going on?” she asked as they drove slowly down Main Street in Aspen before picking up speed after the airport.

He was looking at his phone. “Huh?”

“You can put that down, please.”

He sighed melodramatically and lowered the phone to his lap.

“You seemed upset when I was talking to your dad about the festival. Why?”

He shrugged and looked out the window, but the darkness only reflected the frown on his face.

“I asked your opinion about me working for your dad, and you said you had no problem with it. Has that changed?”

“Not really.”

He didn't look at her.

“We've been sharing time with you a little differently, too. Has it bothered you?”

“No.”

“Then what's going on, Ethan?”

“Nothing.”

She inhaled deeply and let it out. “Okay, then. I won't push it. But if you want me to leave you alone, then don't act all upset, like something's wrong.”

He didn't answer, just turned his phone over and over in his lap.

She didn't give him permission to use it, and when he didn't seem inclined to talk, she turned on the radio. She'd always liked their long talks—they used to be able to discuss anything. But something else was going on, and she didn't think it was the typical “I'm too cool for my parents” behavior. She'd just have to give him time, and hope that he eventually talked to her.

K
ate had the next day off, and Tony told himself that they should spend a day apart occasionally. But he couldn't stop thinking about how she'd told him she was going to see a band with Jessica, and it had taken everything in him not to ask to go along, too.

It was getting too easy to tease her when they were together, and sooner or later someone was going to notice. But he couldn't seem to help himself.

And now that she was planning the festival, she came to talk to him regularly during her shift, telling him about the window posters she was designing that ended with “Like us on Facebook.” He couldn't believe the list of sponsors she'd gotten for a festival that would mostly benefit him. True, she was trying to make it a great hangout event between the stress of Christmas and the party of New Year's Eve, so maybe people were just in the holiday spirit.