The Giving Season (7 page)

Michael took a deep breath and sighed. Apparently he’d picked up on the same note of accusation in his daughter’s voice that Jessy had heard. “Libby, this is my friend Jessy Monroe. We met on the bus and—I invited her to stay with us for Christmas.”

Libby stared at Jessy for what felt like an eternity, studying her with an intensity that made Jessy blush. She managed a faint smile, hoping she looked friendly and unthreatening. Some of the distrust faded from Libby’s eyes, and Jessy thought she might understand why: Libby knew that her father could never be anything but friends with someone overweight like Jessy. Common sense and her own painful experience told her
that
much.

“But Dad—” Libby looked back to Michael again. “What about Mom?”

Jessy cringed. Great. She stood mutely by the door, completely bewildered by how to handle this situation. Anything she said or did now would be wrong, anyway. If she came on too strong, too friendly, Libby would think she was just trying to butter her up and get on her good side. If she remained quiet and calm, she would seem like an aloof witch who didn’t care.

How did she get herself into these situations?

“Libby—” Michael’s voice was firmer, but no less loving. “Your mom and I have talked to you about this. I’m sorry, baby, but I don’t think we can ever go back to the way things were.”

“Don’t you still love her?”

Michael glanced almost guiltily to Jessy—which struck her as odd, because why should she care if he still loved his ex-wife? Of course, for some stupid reason she
did
care, but he didn’t need to know that.

“I’ll always love your mother because of you and Ben and Marie,” Michael said softly. “But we don’t love each other enough to be married. It wouldn’t be fair to any of us.”

“But what if she came back?” Libby asked, voice very quiet. “Like to spend Thanksgiving with us?”

Michael stiffened slightly. “What are you talking about, Lib?”

“Mom’s coming home for Thanksgiving. She called while you were gone.” Libby smiled slightly, a hopeful glow in her eyes. “She
never
spends Thanksgiving with us. Maybe she’s going to stay this time.”

“Lib, honey—” Michael seemed at a loss for words. He helplessly glanced at Jessy, not that she could help him out. She felt just as stunned as him, if not more so.

“Libby!” Lyssa yelled from downstairs. “Time to set the table!”

Taking that as her cue, Libby scrambled off the bed and hurried out of the room, leaving Jessy and Michael to look at each other in a suddenly awkward silence.

“Your wife is coming home?” Jessy finally managed to say, hating the squeaky nervousness in her voice.

“Ex
-wife. And I had no idea.” Michael ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath. “Usually she just calls the kids.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t stay,” Jessy said softly. She straightened up and nodded to herself. “Yeah, I should go. This is—you should be with your family.”

She hurried out into the hallway and was halfway down the steps before Michael caught up with her. He gently grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him. “Jess—wait a minute—”

“I shouldn’t—” Jessy took a breath and closed her eyes for a moment, collecting her thoughts. “This is the first Thanksgiving your kids have had with their mom for a long time. I shouldn’t be here.”

“Yes, you should.”

“I’m intruding.”

“No, you’re not.”

Jessy gazed at him for a moment. He was so placid, so damnably self-confident with his calmness, that she could almost believe the idea of staying wouldn’t turn into a horrible fiasco.

“What will your wife—ex-wife—think if I’m here?”

“I don’t care what she thinks.” Michael smiled faintly, deepening his dimples ever so slightly, and studied Jessy for a few moments. She could almost feel the tension floating out of her body; how someone could have so much of a calming effect on her, she’d never understand. “I want you to be here. For me.”

“I don’t want to cause trouble between you—”

“You won’t. Trust me. Our problems were around a long time before you entered the picture.” Michael’s smile widened. “So will you stay? Please? For me?”

“Boy, you’re really working the puppy-dog eyes, aren’t you?” Jessy couldn’t help but grin.

“Is it doing anything for you?”

“Possibly.”

“Then yeah, I’m working the puppy-dog eyes.” Michael batted his lashes and laughed. “Really, Jessy. I’d like you to stay.”

Jessy took a deep breath and gazed at him for a moment, and finally nodded. “Okay. But I swear, if you two start reinacting ‘Kramer vs. Kramer’ I’m out of here. Seriously.”

Michael laughed and slung his arm around her shoulders, a casual gesture that caused Jessy’s heart to catch and stutter. “You’ve got yourself a deal. Now let’s go eat.”

Jessy allowed him to lead her down the stairs and into the dining room, wondering just what fresh hell she’d stumbled into now.

Jessy felt as jumpy as a cat, even though dinner was blissfully uneventful, with no sign of the mythical ex-wife.
Which was fine. The longer Jessy could put off that eventual confrontation, the better. The woman was in for a potentially unpleasant surprise.

Jessy ate sparingly, even though dinner was delicious and she felt like she could demolish the entire tray of cornbread dressing by herself. She tried to relax and enjoy the dinner, but she could tell just by looking at Michael that he felt just as tense. Even Lyssa didn’t seem too happy about the prospect of hosting her ex-daughter-in-law for dinner.

At least the kids were happy, and their unabashed joy helped Michael unclench his jaw and smile more as the dinner wore on. By the time all of the second and third helpings had been eaten, the atmosphere at the table was as relaxed as it was going to be. As they talked and laughed and got to know each other, Jessy realized that they made her feel more welcome than she had ever felt in her life.

And it was all because of Michael. The warmth she saw in his eyes, the quiet joy in his smile, made her feel as though she truly belonged somewhere—and that scared her. She didn’t want to get too close to him and his family, but she couldn’t bear to keep her distance, either. She needed this too badly.

“Dinner was great, Mom.” Michael smiled as he folded his napkin and leaned back in his chair, looking over to Jessy. She returned his smile and quickly looked away. Prolonged eye contact with him still made her feel antsy and way too warm.

“Well, it wasn’t
all
my doing.” Lyssa looked to Ben and smiled. “I had some help, didn’t I?”

“Yeah,” Ben said, flashing Jessy a snaggle-toothed smile. “I helped make the tea.”

“Daddy says we make the best tea in the world,” Marie said proudly.

“And your daddy’s absolutely right.” Jessy took another sip of tea and smiled at Michael over the rim of her glass. He grinned and lazily draped an arm over the back of Ben’s chair, unabashedly staring at her.

Hoo boy,
Jessy thought as she struggled to swallow the tea without choking.
That man knows how to use those eyes. He’s lethal.

“Michael tells me you’re a woman of mystery,” Lyssa said with a teasing smile. Jessy gratefully turned her attention away from Michael’s disconcerting stare, even though she had a bad feeling some personal questions were coming up. “What exactly do you do in Kentucky?”

“I teach third grade.” Jessy managed to keep from glancing back to Michael, even though she could feel him still watching her.

Lyssa’s smile widened—and if Jessy wasn’t mistaken, she thought she could see something like approval in the older woman’s eyes. “So you like children, I take it?”

“Yes, Mom,” Michael said as he stood and began gathering plates. “Especially broiled and served with carrots.”

Lyssa laughed. “Okay—point taken. I’m getting snoopy.”

“But we love you anyway,” Michael said, pausing just long enough to kiss the top of his mother’s head as he passed behind her chair. Jessy, smiling, caught Michael’s eye as he haphazardly stacked the rest of the dinner dishes. As he walked out of the room she forgot herself for a moment and stared at his broad back and shoulders, admiring his effortless grace, his easy strength, his jeans clinging so tightly to his—

Lyssa cleared her throat and Jessy, red-faced and flustered, looked back to the table. How could she lust after him in front of his own mother?

“You know, I feel like I should thank you.” Lyssa glanced over to Marie and Ben to make sure they weren’t listening. Instead, they were embroiled in a take-no-prisoners game of thumb wrestling. “With everything that’s been going on here, it’s just good to see Michael smile again.”

Jessy’s smile half-slanted into a frown. “Thank
me?
Why?”

“Well—” Lyssa lowered her voice and leaned forward slightly. “I’m sure Michael’s mentioned his—situation.”

“Situation? He hasn’t really said anything—”

“No, Michael wouldn’t.” Lyssa sighed and frowned slightly, shaking her head. “I probably shouldn’t be saying anything, but I think you should know.”

The bad feeling in the pit of Jessy’s stomach was getting worse by the second. “Is everything okay? Is it one of the kids?”

“Oh, no—thank God, no. It’s nothing like that.” Lyssa smiled faintly as her gaze went back to Marie and Ben. “It’s his ex-wife, Ann.” Lyssa dropped her voice to a whisper. “She’s talking about asking for custody of the children.”

Ben leaned against Jessy’s arm. “Can I sit on your lap, Jessy?”

“Sure, honey—” Distracted, Jessy helped him crawl up to her lap, more than a little stunned by Lyssa’s words. Custody?

“I want to sit on your lap, too,” Marie said, climbing aboard before Jessy could say anything. Laughing, she helped Marie squirm into a comfortable spot. She’d forgotten how heavy a six-year-old could be. Two of them at the same time made her legs go almost instantly numb.

Ben cuddled close to Jessy, slinging one arm high around her neck, and cocked his head so that he could look up at her. Marie mimicked the gesture, playing idly with a lock of Jessy’s hair.

“Jessy,” Ben said as he copied Marie and twirled a curl of Jessy’s long hair, “do you like kids?”

“Well, sure. I used to be one, y’know.”

Ben grinned, his nose crinkling. “Did you like dinosaurs?”

>“Like
>dinosaurs?” Jessy’s smile widened. “I used to ride them to school.”

Libby rolled her eyes and groaned, but Ben and Marie were delighted. “Really?” Marie asked.

“Uh-huh. I even had one as a pet.”

“Was it friendly?”

“Oh, yeah.” Jessy leaned forward, grimacing as she wrinkled her nose. “But cleaning the litter box was
yucky.”

Ben and Marie giggled, and even Libby cracked a smile. Jessy glanced over to Lyssa and saw whole-hearted approval in the woman’s expression. Great. Once again, Jessy Monroe impresses the bejeebers out of a guy’s mother. If everything goes as it’s always gone in the past, that means that Michael will have less than zero interest in her.

“Hey! Anybody home?”

The unexpected voice was unbearably cheery, and as Jessy saw the look of excitement that passed between Libby and Ben and Marie, she knew there was only one person the unannounced visitor could be.

Ann Forrester stepped into the dining room, thoughtlessly shaking snow from her hair and coat onto the carpet. Jessy’s heart sank as she got her first look at her. Of course Ann was gorgeous. Of course. In jeans and a sweater, with her honey-blonde hair perfectly styled to fall over her shoulders, Ann looked like the girl-next-door turned perfect wife and mom. Watching her as she hugged Ben and Marie, Jessy felt her stomach turning inside out. Here was that other shoe she’d been expecting, and it packed a wallop.

Michael stepped out of the kitchen, his expression neutral. He dried his hand on a dishtowel and slung it over his shoulder, a muscle in his jaw twitching as he stared at Ann.

But Ann wasn’t aware of Michael just yet. Her smile had frozen on her lips as she fixed on Jessy, a strained politeness that didn’t quite mask the unpleasant look in her eyes.

Jessy managed to smile pleasantly back to her. After all, just because the woman was beautiful didn’t necessarily mean she’d be judgmental. Jessy always hated it when people made assumptions about her personality just because of the way she looked; she could at least extend that same courtesy to Ann. Even if she
was
Michael’s ex.

Then in the next instant Jessy was dismissed from Ann’s attention as she knelt to scoop Ben into a bear hug. “Look at you, Benny-boy!” Ann laughed as she picked Ben up and squeezed him. “You’re getting so big! And Marie—you’re getting prettier and prettier every time I see you!”

Libby joined them, smiling brightly. “Hi, Mom!”

Ann’s reaction to her oldest daughter stunned Jessy. The smile slid away, replaced by disappointment. “Oh, Libby—you
promised
me you’d lose some weight!”

Jessy inhaled sharply, offended on Libby’s behalf. The girl’s smile dropped instantly, the pain in her eyes obvious to everyone in the room but Ann. Michael stepped out of the kitchen doorway and went to his daughter’s rescue.

“It might be nice to say hello to your daughter before you start criticizing her,” he said quietly.

“Hello, Mike.” Ann’s voice, husky yet soft, seemed inordinately loud in the quiet of the room. The affection in it sent an unpleasant shiver of premonition down Jessy’s spine. “I’ve missed you.”

Ann suddenly blinked, catching herself after an obvious moment of hesitation, all the better to allow the full impact of her slip of the tongue to hit home. “And the kids,” she added feebly. “
All
of you. Even Mom.”

“I’m not your mother, Ann.” Lyssa stood and walked out of the room, surprising Jessy with her abrupt coldness. She looked back to Ann just in time to see her roll her eyes impatiently.

And at that moment, Jessy instantly knew what kind of woman Ann was.

“It’s been too long,” Ann said, gaze softening as she smiled wistfully. “I can only stay for dinner, unfortunately. I have to get back to Chicago to interview the mayor and—” She sighed, still smiling. “And never mind all that right now. It’s just good to be home.”