The Texas Christmas Gift (19 page)

Chapter Thirteen

Sasha greeted Eve at the office door on Thursday morning. “Red Bloom phoned, asking to speak to you. He’d like you to return his call right away.”

Finally,
Eve thought. “Thanks.” She took the message, went into her office and shut the door.

He answered promptly. “I hear you’ve got Florres ready to meet with me,” Red boomed.

Although she had no idea how the brash Houston oilman could possibly know this, Eve affirmed with customary zeal, “I do.”

“I’m going to be in Dallas later this afternoon. Does three o’clock work for you?”

Hoping and praying she could get the architect there, too, Eve said, “Absolutely.”

“See you at the house, then.”

Luckily, Santiago Florres was free to meet them, too. Probably because he was eager to defend his reputation as a creative genius.

Eve got to the house first. Red Bloom arrived next, in a white Rolls Royce with a Christmas wreath attached to the front grill. He squared his dove-gray Stetson on his head and strode toward her, the edges of his cashmere coat flapping open as he moved. As soon as cursory greetings were exchanged, he said, “I’m afraid I owe you an apology. I had no idea you were a friend of the McCabes until I spoke with Derek this morning.”

Of course. Not sure how she felt about Derek interfering in her business life, Eve smiled brightly and pretended this wasn’t news to her. “The two of you spoke?”

Red nodded. “He emailed me late last evening, and we spoke first thing today.” The edges of Red’s mustache curled upward. “His mother and I go way back. I’ve known Derek and his brothers since they were kids. His dad, too. Derek told me what a great help you’d been to him and his little girl. Said I couldn’t go wrong listening to you, or your mother, for that matter.”

Eve fished the key to the lockbox from her handbag. “I’m glad to hear Derek was so happy with the service he received from our company.”

Not so glad Derek had gone behind her back to lobby for her, but that was another matter, Eve thought. One that would be dealt with privately when she figured out if having him involved in every aspect of her life was a good or bad thing.

Trying not to feel overwhelmed in the way Derek always made her feel, Eve started up the walk, just as a third car pulled up at the curb. Red turned. “Santiago Florres?” he asked as the driver joined them on the sidewalk.

“One and the same.” Santiago reached out and shook his hand.

Eve could see she’d been right. When face-to-face, the two gentlemen had entirely different attitudes toward one another.

Hoping this session would have a better ending than the last, Eve led the way to the front steps of the starkly angular contemporary home, and on inside.

An engrossing two hours later, Eve said goodbye to both men and drove downtown to the McCabe Venture Capital office. Derek was in a meeting when she arrived. She elected to wait.

Eventually, he came out of a conference room. Smiling cordially, he shook hands with the group of techies he’d been talking with, all of whom were bearing Tech Wizard T-shirts. Eve guessed the young businessmen and women were part of the small percentage that Derek said yes to, because they looked as if they had just received serious encouragement.

Looking incredibly happy to see her, as well as incredibly attractive in a dark suit and tie, Derek motioned Eve into his private lair and shut the door behind them.

Derek pulled her into a brief hug. “This is a nice surprise.”

Eve withdrew. Part of her knew she shouldn’t have been surprised by what Derek had done. After all, the McCabes were known far and wide for their kindness and generosity. Which was maybe the reason she had kept Red Bloom’s identity from him for so long. Because she had feared if he did know just who it was that was giving her and her mother so much trouble, Derek might interfere on her behalf, rather than let her solve her problems herself.

Eve draped her coat over a chair and set her shoulder bag down in front of it. “Guess who called me this morning?”

Derek gazed at her, his poker face intact.

Eve stalked closer, her footsteps muffled by the thick carpet. “Red Bloom.”

If there was one thing her mother had taught her, from the time she was a little girl, it was the importance of being self-reliant. The key to personal strength, Marjorie had said time and time again, was independence. Relying on others to support or defend you was the surest path to unhappiness.

Eve had seen enough divorces to know it was true.

When a woman gave up everything to marry a man and raise his children, it left her vulnerable in more than just a financial sense.

And it always started with a man rushing to the rescue.

“Ah, yes. Red Bloom.” Derek pulled a couple water bottles from the glass-door refrigerator built into the bar. He handed her one and twisted the cap off his own.

Eve sat down in a chair a distance away. She crossed her legs at the knee. “Apparently, you did a hard sell on my behalf?”

He came around to lean against the front of his desk, facing her. “I may have forgotten to mention he’s an old family friend.”

Eve sensed that was as close to an apology as she was likely to get. Like most gallant men, Derek would not harbor any regret for rushing to help a lady “in need.” Especially if that lady was intimately involved with him.

She attempted to untwist the cap on her bottle, only to find it...stuck. Sighing, she set it on her lap, unopened. “I could have gotten through to him on my own.”

Derek’s expression remained impassive. He took a slow sip of water.

“But you don’t believe that.” She tried again to open her own bottle, and failed.

Derek set his water aside and ambled closer. “I think eventually you would have found a way to get the two men together.” Wordlessly, he took the bottle from her and did what she could not, with a single, easy twist. His eyes locked with hers, he handed her the chilled water, stepped back. “Although perhaps not before the end of the year.”

Eve snorted and took a sip. The icy water cooled her dry throat, but didn’t do the same for her temper.

Derek leaned against his sleek mahogany desk once again. “How did the meeting with Bloom and Florres go, by the way?”

Eve took another sip. “Wonderfully. When they left, Red was talking to Santiago about designing a summer home for him in Galveston.”

“The place in Highland Park that your mother listed? What about that?”

Eve took another sip. Feeling unbearably restless, she got up and wandered to the window. Arms tucked against her waist, she looked out at the city she loved. “At the end of the day, the two men still disagreed about the price. Santiago thinks it is worth every penny. Red still feels because of the unique design in an area of mostly traditional homes, that he’d have a hard time selling it if he did pay top dollar. And Red, as you know, does not like to waste money.” Eve pivoted back to Derek. “However, he does understand Santiago’s approach to design now, so in that sense the meeting was definitely a plus.”

Derek tossed his empty bottle in the trash. “I’m sorry.” He walked toward her languidly. “I hoped it would lead to a deal so your firm could take top spot in the sales competition.”

Eve leaned one shoulder against the window. The chill of the glass was a marked contrast to the heat of his gaze. “It’s not your problem.”

He leaned a shoulder against the window pane, too, a small distance apart. “Funny,” he said, his response as carefully measured as her own, “sometimes, when I see you looking so down, I feel as though it is my problem.”

Eve slid him a wry look. It was a good thing he didn’t know how much the vulnerable part of her wanted to throw herself in his arms and let him take all her troubles away. “If we ever retake the lead, I want it to be because Loughlin Realty has earned it, not because my guy friend has pulled some strings on my behalf.”

Her declaration hung between them for a long moment. “Is that what I am?” Derek asked finally, masculine challenge in his eyes. “A
guy friend?
”

Eve ignored the implication to his question. “You know what I mean,” she said shortly.

Abruptly seeming to realize it wasn’t a good idea to push her—about anything—Derek dipped his head in acquiescence. “I do, and I’m sorry if I overstepped my bounds. I hope you’ll forgive me?”

What was it about this man that made him so irresistible to her? Eve couldn’t say; she only knew it to be true.

Eve released the breath she had been unconsciously holding. “I do.”

Derek smiled. “Still coming to help me and Tiffany celebrate our first evening in our new house tonight?”

That, she was looking forward to. “I wouldn’t miss it,” Eve replied. She paused again, aware all over again how much she would like to kiss him, then and there.

Realizing that they were still in his place of business, and should act accordingly, she stepped away and went to grab her coat and bag. “What time?”

He gave her another heart-stopping smile. “Seven-thirty.”

* * *

E
VE WAS STILL
at the office, wrapping things up, when Derek called her. “Do you want the bad news first, or the even worse news?” he rasped.

With her cell phone cradled against her ear, Eve walked a stack of letters to be mailed out to Sasha’s desk. “Hit me with both.”

“There’s something wrong with the HVAC. It’s not working at all.”

“Oh, Derek, no! Did you call the contractor?”

Weariness radiated in his low voice. “He was just here. He thinks there’s a flaw in the electronic ignition. Because it’s brand-new, he’s demanding a whole new unit from the manufacturer, but it won’t be here until Monday.”

Eve felt for Derek.

“The really big problem is I already checked out of my hotel, and they can’t take us back. They’re booked solid through the holidays.”

As would be the case at many of the area’s finer hotels. Eve shut down her computer. “Where’s Tiffany?”

“With me at the house. In her coat and hat.”

It was such a chilly day already, with the temperature set to dive into the twenties by nightfall. Eve didn’t even have to think what to do. “Come to my place. You can stay there.”

Sasha turned to Eve in surprise.

Eve waved her off.

With relief in his voice, Derek asked, “You’re sure?”

She shut the door to her office. “We were headed to your hometown tomorrow morning, anyway. This will make it easier to get an early start.” It didn’t have to mean anything.

“We’ll be right over. And, Eve?” he rumbled softly.
“Thanks.”

“The two of you are getting close,” Sasha remarked as Eve prepared to leave.

More than she felt comfortable with, that was for sure. Still, she couldn’t turn away a man and his child when they were in need. “I feel for him and Tiffany. That’s all.”

“Mmm-hmm.” Again that raised eyebrow.

Okay, so she could have helped him find another hotel, on the spot. Or had him call his brother Grady. Or let Carleen and Craig, or even his own assistant, Alma May, help. Trying not to flush, Eve shrugged on her coat. “He did me a favor. I owe him one.”

“Of course.”

She hunted around for her shoulder bag and keys. She’d just had them! “And Mom’s place is still empty, since she’s in rehab. I can stay there, while he and Tiffany bunk at my place.”

Sasha gave Eve a look that reminded Eve just how well they knew each other. “Be careful,” Sasha warned. “I know you like Derek and Tiffany a lot.”

“But what?” Eve demanded impatiently, sensing there was more.

Sasha frowned. “Playing house with a man and his baby is not the same as the real thing.”

That wasn’t what they were doing, Eve reassured herself as she walked out to her car. But somehow she couldn’t quite make herself believe it.

* * *

T
O HER CHAGRIN
, Derek had his own doubts, too. “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea, after all,” he said half an hour later.

Eve looked at the scowl on Tiffany’s face, aware once again how little experience she’d had with young children, or really, children of any kind.

Her mother had always been urging her to grow up, quickly! Not take care of other people’s offspring.

Eve reached for a tissue. Gently, she blotted Tiffany’s red, tearstained cheeks. The toddler studied her from beneath her fringe of thick wet lashes, as if silently beseeching her to do
something!
Eve just didn’t know what. “It’ll be fine,” she said, smiling despite herself when Tiffany reached out and curled her fingers around one of Eve’s.

Without warning, the little girl threw herself into her arms. Eve caught her and held her close.

Tiffany’s lower lip rolled out. She looked to be on the verge of another sob. Watching, Derek shoved his hands through his hair. “She’s been fussing since we left the house.”

Eve walked Tiffany around her apartment, rubbing her back gently. “Has she had dinner?”

He nodded. “Carleen fed her before I picked her up.”

The little girl let out another wail. A new wave of tears rolled down her face, silent ones this time, which made her distress all the more heartbreaking. “Does she want a bottle?” Eve asked.

Derek produced one from the diaper bag. Tiffany pushed it away with both hands, and let out another angry, impatient wail.

Eve began to feel a little edgy, too. “Maybe if Tiffany was able to get down and walk around a little bit. Explore.”

Eve had already cleared everything not baby-friendly from her reach.

“It’s worth a try,” Derek agreed.

Eve set her down gently and knelt beside her.

Tiffany wailed.

“Oh, sweetheart,” Eve attempted to comfort the adorable baby girl. To no avail.

Derek hunkered down, murmuring soft words of comfort, too. That did not work, either. He eased off Tiffany’s hat and coat. She cried even louder.

Derek exchanged baffled looks with Eve and picked Tiffany back up again.

The tears kept coming.

While Derek walked Tiffany back and forth, Eve went to get her teddy bear and blanket.

Those offered no solace, either. They tried sitting together on the sofa. This had pleased Tiffany in the past. Tonight, Tiffany pushed both Derek and Eve away from her. Determined to find a way to comfort her, even if she did not have a rocking chair to sit in, Eve stood. She gathered Tiffany in her arms and began to sway gently, back and forth. The motion lulled the child, but only temporarily. “You don’t think she’s getting sick or something, do you?”