Sleigh Bells in Valentine Valley (22 page)

Lyndsay rolled her eyes. “Well, you thought it would be weird to call me Aunt Lyndsay in front of your friends. ‘People might think you're playing favorites, Ms. De Luca.'”

“They all still think I can ask you for favors. Then I showed them that test of yours that I flunked.”

“Flunked?” Kate echoed, eyeing her son.

“I still think you did that deliberately.” Lyndsay turned to Kate. “Got a couple invitations for you. You doing anything tonight?”

“Can I catch up with Brad?” Ethan said, disentangling himself from his aunt and backing away. “We're, uh, doing homework together after school.”

“Homework,” Kate said. “How interesting.”

“Bye, Mom.” Ethan took off.

“It's Friday, isn't it?” Kate said dryly to Lyndsay.

“He's your kid; don't ask me to explain him. Anyway, you work tonight, right?”

“Right.”

“I've got two events we can attend together tomorrow night, and both are so exciting, you won't be able to handle it.”

Kate chuckled.

“First is the annual gingerbread house contest at the community center. Emily and her little sister Steph are judging.”

“Ooh, when it's done, do we get to sample?”

“Uh, no.” Lyndsay grinned. “And then afterward, my band is performing at a little jazz club down in Carbondale. You want to watch me make a fool of myself?”

“Do I? Yes!”

Saturday night, the gingerbread house competition was more fascinating than Kate had imagined. There were several dozen entries, some from schools, others from talented artists. There was a youth prize, an amateur prize, and a professional one. She thought the Sweetheart Inn re-creation should have won in the professional category, but someone had made the Valentine Valley town hall to perfection. The amateur prize went to a woman who'd re-created part of Main Street, and the youth prize went to a log cabin that any nineteenth-century silver miner would have been proud to live in.

It was a relief to go to the jazz club for food, since the untouchable gingerbread had made Kate hungry. She had some appetizers while she watched Lyndsay's band perform. It was a small group of six, with some brass and rhythm instruments, all people with regular jobs who loved keeping music in their lives. Kate watched the happiness suffuse their faces, and she remembered how much she'd enjoyed playing the trombone back in high school. She'd given up music—hell, she'd given up so much pursuing her career.

When Lyndsay finally joined her, Kate gave her a big hug.

“That was just wonderful!”

Lyndsay blushed. “Well, I don't know about that. I missed a few notes, and the audiences here are really forgiving.”

“Have you played at Tony's?”

“Yeah, once or twice. I feel a lot more nervous then, like everybody knows I only got the gig because of my brother.”

“Bull. You guys sounded great—
that's
why you got the gig.”

They ordered dinner and chatted about the band, then the dentist Lyndsay was casually dating.

“Lynds, do you mind if I ask you something that's maybe too personal? You just tell me if it is.”

“Go ahead, but remember I might take my revenge,” she said, pointing at Kate with her fork full of steak.

“What ever happened to the guy you dated for a lot of years in college and then afterward? I never asked Tony, because I didn't think it was my business after the divorce.”

Lyndsay smiled even as she sighed. “Yeah, Bryan was as close as I ever got to marriage and having it all.”

“I'm sorry if I'm bringing up painful memories. Just ignore me.”

“No, no, it's okay. I really thought we'd get married. Hell, I was positive he was going to propose when he took me to the French restaurant at the Sweetheart Inn.”

“He didn't?”

“Nope. He broke up with me. Wanted it to be in a nice place, you know, as a thank-you or something.”

Kate winced, swallowing her pasta. “Oh, that's awful.”

“Yeah. I think he just hoped I wouldn't make a scene. Like I would. That should have been my clue that he didn't know me all that well, but at the time . . . well, it hurt. And then he made things worse—further proving I was lucky to be rid of him—by saying he'd begun to feel like I was his sister. His sister!”

“Ugh!”

“I know! What, he slept with his sister? It gives me the creeps remembering it. Whatever. I got some minor revenge quite by accident. Turns out he was dating a zumba instructor, who ended up being a prostitute.”

Kate's mouth fell open.

“Yeah. He even got his name in the paper as a john.”

Kate giggled, then covered her mouth in shock. “I'm so sorry,” she said around her fingers.

Lyndsay laughed. “Don't be. It's funny, now that a lot of time has passed. Maybe not to him.” Her smile faded. “But ever since, I feel like I've been floating. Lately, I'm questioning every decision I make, even my teaching career.”

“No! Lynds, all you ever wanted to be was a teacher.”

Lyndsay shrugged, idly moving her fork through her mashed potatoes and making rivers with the gravy. “I know, and on a good day, I still love it. But . . . it's not quite what I thought it would be, and the paperwork and testing are getting out of control. I . . . I even found myself wondering if you made the choice I should have, leaving town to follow your dreams.”

Kate's eyes widened. “Lynds—”

“So if I came across a little hostile a couple weeks ago, it was also about me, not just you and Tony and the divorce.”

“I don't exactly feel successful right about now. I know everyone goes through their ups and downs, and my job is pretty down lately. Although I did find a retired chemist who worked with my client—oh, never mind, this isn't about me. I don't even know if I made all the right choices. I'm not perfectly happy. I don't have a guy either.” She thought about Tony and bit back any words about him.

“But you've got a great kid, Kate.”

“I'm glad you think so, but we're heading into a rough patch. He's . . . not happy with me, and I don't know why. I thought it would be great to be here for him through Thanksgiving and Christmas—the one bright spot on this stupid sabbatical.”

“He's a teenager, Kate, you know that. Don't let it hurt you.”

“I'm trying not to.” A tear slipped down Kate's cheek, and she wiped it off quickly. “I've been sort of worried about him since I arrived. He seemed so surprised I could take any time off, even worried about
me
—kind of like I'm worried about my mom overdoing it. Yeah, my parents had a business they needed to focus on as I was growing up, but I took their drive so much to heart, and that's what I've been showing my son. Maybe he resents me. He doesn't even want to watch
It's a Wonderful Life
.”

And then they both chuckled, and Kate wiped more tears away. She was glad for the dark, high-backed booths that muted conversations around them.

“And the Christmas train layout at the Hotel Colorado?” Lyndsay asked with gentle humor.

Kate just shook her head, and their chuckles faded. She sighed. “He's growing up, I know. But . . . I don't feel like a lawyer right now, and sometimes I don't even feel like a mom.” She sniffed and reached for a tissue in her purse. “If it weren't for Tony . . .” She trailed off and sighed, blowing her nose.

Lyndsay frowned. “Tony?”

Kate stared at her friend, remembering how betrayed Lyndsay had felt when Kate hadn't confided her marital problems in her. She didn't want to make that mistake again. “Yeah, we're . . . sleeping together.”

The word
gape
wasn't strong enough for the way Lyndsay's mouth dropped open and her eyes bugged out.

“You're kidding me.”

Kate winced. “Are you angry? Tony said it's called ex-sex and—”

“Ex-sex?” Lyndsay gasped, then covered her mouth and looked around to see if anyone had noticed her outburst. She stared at Kate for a full minute. “I—I—” Then she started to laugh. “Oh, how did I not see this happening?”

“Well, we have kept it pretty secret,” Kate insisted.

“I bet it was Tony's idea.”

“How did you know?”

“He's a guy. I didn't think you'd be the one to risk everything by trying to seduce him. But hell—this is such a big risk, Kate.”

“I know,” she said, shoulders bowed.

“Do you regret it?” Lyndsay asked hesitantly.

“No. I can't. We're adults, and though we resisted for a while, I'm not upset about it. We're having fun, and we never had any problem in bed. Wait, that's not true,” she suddenly remembered. “But all those problems were mine, my exhaustion, how focused I was on trying to find a way to be a good mom while studying all hours of the day and night. Poor Tony sometimes got left out. I was an idiot.”

Lyndsay eyed her thoughtfully. “You sound like you might be regretting the divorce.”

Kate stiffened. “I didn't mean it that way—I think. I can't look back on the past, something I can't change. Whatever decisions I made, I can only learn from them.”

“What about the present? You can change that.”

Kate stared at Lyndsay, feeling her stomach tighten with distress. “I—I don't know what you mean,” she said lamely.

“You and my brother are obviously having a great time. Maybe that should tell you something. And I'm not saying that just because I'm his sister. Hell, if I was acting as his sister more than your friend, I'd tell you to stop playing around with my brother's heart again.”

“Lynds, it's just sex, I promise. No hearts involved.”

“Really? Is it that easy to forget you loved him, that you've loved him since childhood?”

Kate could only stare at her.

“God, you've gone white,” Lyndsay said, reaching to touch her hand. “I'm sorry if you haven't thought about this, but you should. Maybe your body is trying to tell your heart something.”

L
ate Sunday morning, Tony was working in his basement workshop, setting up for the Christmas gift Ethan had asked him to help make for Kate. All around him on the workbench and on metal shelves, he was surrounded by the tools his dad and grandpa had given him over the years, as well as the ones he'd saved up to buy. He was humming to himself, feeling pretty satisfied with the world—some regular sex could do that for a guy.

He heard the door open at the top of the stairs. “Ethan?”

“No, it's Lyndsay. Can I come invade your male sanctuary?”

He laughed. “Get down here.”

She came down slowly, then sneezed. “Sawdust always does that to me. Whatchya making?”

“I'm helping Ethan with some Christmas gifts. It's a secret.”

“Nothing but some piles of wood, as far as I can see.”

“We're behind.” He leaned back against the workbench, crossed his arms over his chest, and studied her. “Don't you have a wedding shower to attend?”

“Yeah, I'm on my way.” She swiped a hand across a dusty stool and sat down to face him. “So . . . I had dinner with Kate last night. I hear you two are doing the nasty again.”

Tony sighed. He couldn't be surprised that Kate had spilled their secret to Lyndsay. “It's a good thing my son can't overhear this.”

“I made sure he was at Kate's.”

“So your point is . . . ?”

“Kate didn't want to lie to me again, but I see you had no such problem.”

“Lynds, I'm not talking to you about my sex life. That must cross some kind of sibling boundary.”

She smiled. “Yeah, I guess it does.” Her smile faded. “And maybe another boundary is keeping silent when you think your sibling is making a mistake, but I just can't do it.”

He arched a brow. “No one would ever accuse you of keeping your opinions to yourself.”

“Nope, I don't want to have any regrets. Tony, if you keep this up, one or both of you will get hurt. I told Kate you both need to think about why you're doing this.”

“Because it's fun,” he said dryly.

“That's all it is—fun? I remember you as a little kid—you followed her around before you even understood why. And by the time you were a teenager, you didn't want anyone else. You couldn't
see
anyone else. And you think those feelings disappeared just because you got divorced?”

She was making him feel uncomfortable, and he wasn't sure why. “Look, Lynds, I appreciate the worry. Really. But nine years—”

“Don't bother with the numbers. I don't think the years matter when you love someone like you loved Kate. She hurt you—hell, you hurt each other—and maybe by pretending it's all about sex, you think you're exorcising the ghost of your marriage or something.”

“No,” he said patiently, “I think I'm enjoying no-strings-attached sex.”

She heaved a sigh and stood up. “You keep telling yourself that. But she's leaving here, Tony, leaving you behind again. I only hope the breakup is on better terms this time.”

To his surprise, she kissed his cheek before jogging up the basement stairs.

He realized he was grinding his teeth together, and he made himself stop. His sister was well-meaning, but she was wrong. He'd learned his lesson. He was never going to let any feelings for Kate obscure his good judgment.

I
t had been many years since Kate had been to the Silver Creek Ranch. She drove up the snow-covered road that wound its way through barren fields, where cows huddled together against the wind. The house and outbuildings all had red roofs, but it was to the barn she was headed. Josh Thalberg had converted the second story into an apartment, where he lived with Whitney and their baby girl.

There were lots of cars parked in the yard, and Kate regretted her high-heeled boots as she was forced to pick her way across frozen ruts in the ground. To her surprise, Lyndsay was waiting for her just inside the big barn doors.

“We should have planned this better,” Lyndsay said, pulling her inside and up the stairs, both of their packages bumping walls as they went. “I could have picked you up. Even one less car in the yard would have helped.”

Kate paused appreciatively in the doorway of the apartment. It was one big open room, with the furniture designating each section, from kitchen, to great room, to bedroom. Tall windows looked out on the snow-topped mountains, and beautiful landscapes dominated the walls. Fifteen or twenty people already milled about, eating appetizers and drinking Bellinis.

When Kate took her first sip of the Bellini, she hummed her approval. “Lynds, you know what I did after your band concert? Got out my trombone. My lip is gone, but it was fun trying to blast some notes.”

“Think you'll pick it up again?”

“Maybe. Or maybe something else musical, like guitar or keyboard. That might be quieter in my condo.”

“You mean when you go back to Vail.”

“Yep.” But Kate didn't meet Lyndsay's curious gaze. She didn't want to talk about Tony, or if things had changed between them. Her decisions were still churning around in her mind and in her heart. And then she saw Whitney, holding Olivia on her hip as she tried to pour another Bellini.

“Let me.” Kate swooped up the baby before anyone else could.

“Thanks,” Whitney said. “Believe me, at these kinds of events, I barely get to hold her, and the one time I'm hostessing, she wants her mom. But she seems to be doing pretty good with you.”

Kate grinned down into the little upturned face with the big eyes and the trembling lips that began to ease into a smile. “I always loved babies. True, it's been a long time since my own was one, and I didn't get to enjoy him nearly as much as I wanted to. Remember to appreciate every moment.” She kissed the warm little head with its soft dark hair. The ache to have another of her own rose up inside her, maybe a little girl she could dress in the cutest clothes . . .

She was rewarded with a sigh and a snuggle, as Olivia brought her fist to her mouth and chewed. Kate hummed and swayed.

Lyndsay eyed her. “She looks comfortable—so do you.”

Kate just shrugged and sighed with happiness.

“Hello again, Kate.”

Kate turned at the mildly familiar voice and saw Beverly Zeigler, Brad's mom—who'd once dated Tony. For just a moment, Kate wondered if they'd slept together, and she felt a shot of jealousy she had no business feeling.

“Hi, Beverly. I didn't know you knew Brooke.”

“My son takes riding lessons from her.”

“Oh, right, I completely forgot about her riding school.”

“How do you know Brooke?” Beverly asked.

“I went to school with her brother, Nate.”

“Who's good friends with your ex-husband.” Beverly glanced at Lyndsay. “And you seem good friends with Tony's sister, too.”

“We've known each other our whole lives.” Kate smiled at Lyndsay.

“It's nice to have a sister's support,” Beverly said before eventually moving on to the next chatting group.

“What was that about?” Kate whispered.

“She once told me she thought I could have done more to ‘help' her when she was dating Tony.”

“Like Tony doesn't have a mind of his own?”

“Hmm, yeah. And I'm only helping you by giving you my advice. Did you think about it?”

“Let's not get into it here.”

Wearing an amused expression, Lyndsay shook her head.

Brooke approached and gave them both a hug. “So glad you could make it, Kate.”

“It was nice of you to include me. I can't believe how much everyone has made me feel welcome.”

Brooke laughed. “Well, it's your own hometown, isn't it? Now that you've spent so much time here, think you'll move back someday?”

Kate blinked in surprise. “Well . . . I don't know. I really haven't given it much thought. My job's in Vail right now.”

“Which is why I was surprised about you taking a temporary job here instead of relaxing. I think you're crazy.”

“Thanks, but it's been fun. For instance, I was going to talk to you and some of the other girls about the band festival I have planned for the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's. Would you be interested in becoming a sponsor? We'd line the parking lot fence with banners promoting you.”

“That sounds great. I'm sure the other girls would love to join in. Let's get them together.”

“Oh, wait, no,” Kate insisted, resettling Olivia on her chest. “This is your shower, I didn't mean to—”

“Nonsense. We're just standing around talking now. And we'd all do anything for Tony.”

Yes, everyone loved Tony, and Kate couldn't blame them. Soon enough, all her friends' businesses were “signed up” to be sponsors: Monica's Flowers and Gifts, Sugar and Spice, As You Like It Catering, Leather and Lace, and Thalberg Riding School. She told them about the bands she'd already lined up, and the last one she was going to see.

“The Dead Can Sing is a band?” Brooke's mom asked doubtfully.

Kate smiled at Mrs. Sandy Thalberg, a cheerful, dark-haired woman who leaned on a cane to accommodate her MS. “My son recommended them, so I've got to go hear them perform live. Their videos are . . . confusing,” Kate confessed.

“To say the least,” Lyndsay added. “Yeah, the kids are obsessed with them. That'll be a whole new generation at your festival—if you like the band.”

“I hope I do . . .”

After brunch, Brooke opened gifts, saving the widows' gift for last. Everyone seemed to be holding their breaths as Brooke started to pick up the box and it sagged in her hands.

“It's so heavy,” she said warily.

Mrs. Palmer, the groom's grandmother, and Mrs. Thalberg grinned at each other, while Mrs. Ludlow just sighed.

Brooke took off the wrapping, opened the box, and spread wide the tissue paper. “It's . . . plumbing fixtures?”

“It's a chrome-plated dual shower head,” Mrs. Palmer said proudly. “One of them comes right off the wall so you can enjoy—”

“Grandma!” Brooke interrupted. “I'm sure we get the point.”

“I knew we'd make her blush,” Mrs. Thalberg said proudly.

Mrs. Ludlow gave her roommates a long-suffering look. “I barely stopped them from ordering edible body paint online.”

There were shouts of laughter, even as Whitney hastily announced dessert. The guests munched on tarts and Christmas cookies provided by Sugar and Spice.

Kate was standing beside the elder Mrs. Thalberg, and they were having a cheerful debate about which cookie was better.

“I don't know, Mrs. Thalberg, those cookies you served when we had dinner at your house—Tony thought they could win a competition. You could give Emily a run for her money.”

“Then we
should
have a competition—maybe at your band festival?”

Kate eyed her. “What do you have in mind?”

“Well, we could benefit some kind of charity—oh, wait, maybe our school! That way we could get the young people involved. There could be a Christmas cookie bake-off, and maybe a bake sale at the same time. It would be wonderful if the children did some of the baking as a way to contribute toward their school.”

“That's a great idea!” Kate said enthusiastically. “But do we have enough time to pull it off? There's only a week left.”

“You leave it to me.”

“And me,” Lyndsay said. “If you want the kids to bake, middle school kids might be the ones to work with. I'll talk to the principal. They can always use a fund-raiser, and we like teaching kids the responsibility of being involved. Plus, it'll give us something to talk about with them other than Christmas, Christmas, Christmas.”

“It is almost that time,” Jessica Fitzjames said as she joined their conversation. “I can't believe how many kids have entered my Christmas writing contest at the
Gazette
.”

Kate sighed. “I've tried to get Ethan to write something, but he's resisting.”

Jessica chuckled. “Yeah, I haven't gotten all that many entries from middle school. But thanks for trying. Any way we can encourage kids to write is good.”

She and Jessica clinked punch glasses, but Kate couldn't help thinking that Ethan probably wouldn't do anything she suggested lately . . .

Kate enjoyed another half hour at the shower before she had to go home and get ready for work. She wrote down all the ideas for a bake sale and cookie bake-off, and came up with some templates of posters and announcements, before e-mailing them to Lyndsay to show her principal. Everything was coming together with the festival—though she couldn't say the same for the retired chemist she was trying to track down, who didn't want to answer e-mails. It was Christmas, after all, but she wasn't about to give up.

She got to Tony's Tavern early and helped Erika finish up her tables. It was a Sunday night, and slow, and to her surprise, the grumpy guy she'd had as a customer before came back in, cell phone still pressed to his ear, wearing a rumpled suit, as if he had to work on Sunday.

She left a menu and water while he was talking, and when she returned, she smiled at him, hoping to get one in return. No dice.

“Hey, I remember you,” she said cheerfully. “I asked you what band you'd like to see at our band festival, and you said Double Cyn.”

“Oh, right,” he said absently.

“Well, they agreed to come.”

His eyes focused on her for the first time. “Really? To a small place like Valentine Valley? They've had some famous songs. I remember they played with the Boston Pops on the Fourth of July.”

“I know, I was shocked, too. My favorite song of theirs is ‘Who Can Tell in the Dark.'”

He nodded.

“Their manager said they were going to relax for the holidays in Aspen—what a freak coincidence, huh? You going to come see them?”