The Texas Christmas Gift (2 page)

“More exclusive, top-dollar listings and sales,” Astrid declared, already pulling out her calculator.

Vanessa winked. “Not to mention that new Mercedes convertible I’ve been coveting.”

Marjorie dabbed a bead of sweat from her hairline. “Luckily, we all have clients wanting to close on homes before the end of the year.” Briefly, she went over the list of Astrid’s and Vanessa’s clients, as well as her own. Then she turned to Eve, addressing the properties and clients of primary concern. “There’s Flash Lefleur’s condo—which we really need to get sold before the listing expires—and Derek McCabe.”

“Right.” Eve steeled herself for her mother’s disapproval as she prepared to talk about the latter. “About that...”

Marjorie’s hand went to the left side of her neck. “Don’t tell me there’s a problem there.”

Except for the fact I fired him
?
Not a one
.

Eve noted her mother was pressing her hand against the bottom of her jaw. “Mom, are you all right...?”

Marjorie winced, as if in pain.

Something was wrong! Eve rushed toward her in alarm. “Mom!”

Her skin a peculiar ashen gray, Marjorie swayed slightly. “I feel a little dizzy,” she said, then slumped in her chair in a dead faint.

* * *

O
NE HARROWING AMBULANCE
ride,admission to the hospital and balloon angioplasty later, Marjorie was finally declared stable and moved to a room in the cardiac care unit. Once she was settled, the doctor came in to go over the results of all the tests, as well as the emergency surgical procedure. “You were lucky. It was only a mild heart attack,” the cardiologist announced.

“Impossible,” Marjorie declared, still looking awfully pale and anxious, despite the medicines they had given her to help her relax. “I’m in perfect health. It was indigestion. A lunch gone wrong. That was all.”

The doctor turned to Eve. “Is your mother always this difficult?”

“Yes,” she said.

“No,” Marjorie stated at the same moment.

Dr. Jackson smiled and shook his head in silent remonstration, obviously having dealt with similar situations before. He turned back to his patient. “We’re going to keep you in the hospital, as a precaution, for forty-eight hours, Mrs. Loughlin. After that, I’d like you to go to the cardiac rehab unit, in the annex across the street, for another month, for further evaluation and treatment.”

“That’s impossible!” Marjorie folded her arms belligerently. “I have
work
to do.”

Clearly unintimidated, the physician countered, “It’s absolutely necessary, Mrs. Loughlin. You need to rest and rebuild your strength, and above all else, rethink how you’ve been living your life.”

Marjorie sent Eve a look, begging her to intervene.

“I agree with the doctor,” Eve said as the physician slipped from the room, wisely leaving the persuasion to a family member.

“But the annual sales award...”

“I’ll see we still get it,” Eve promised gently.

Still, Marjorie fretted. “I have a new client, that Houston oilman, Red Bloom, coming in soon to see the Santiago Florres‒designed home.”

Eve smiled. “Not to worry, Mom. I’ll take care of that, too.”

“You have Derek McCabe....”

Eve had had plenty of time to regret her foolhardiness. “I’ll handle his sale, too,” she reassured her mother.
At least
I hope I will
.

“You’re sure?” Marjorie started to relax, as the meds finally kicked in.

She nodded. Her mother had done so much for her over the years. It was now her turn to be the caretaker. “Just rest now.” She bent and kissed Marjorie’s temple. And then, hoping like hell it wasn’t too late to undo the damage, Eve went to make good on her vow.

* * *

“
W
HAT DO YOU
mean, it didn’t work out?” Derek’s ex-wife said over the phone late the next afternoon. “Marjorie Loughlin is the best Realtor in Dallas!”

“I didn’t get her. I was assigned her daughter.”

Carleen paused. The sounds of their infant daughter and Carleen’s lively household could be heard in the background. “I haven’t met Eve Loughlin, but she’s supposed to be good, too.”

She was beautiful, Derek mused, that was for sure. Temperamental, too. A knock sounded at his door. Aware that his assistant had already left for the day, he said, “Can you hang on a minute?” He walked across his private office and opened the door.

On the other side was the show-stopping beauty who had sent him packing. In a long cashmere coat, vibrant blue business suit and suede heels, Eve Loughlin was the epitome of Texas elegance and style. Around five feet seven inches tall, she was slender and lithe, with great legs and even more spectacular curves. From her full breasts to her narrow waist and hips, there wasn’t an inch of her left wanting. And despite his irritation with her, his attraction didn’t end there. Her skin was fair and utterly flawless, her nose pert, her cheekbones high and sculpted. Her shoulder-length golden-brown hair was so lush and thick he wanted to sink his hands into it. Most mesmerizing of all, though, were her intelligent, wide-set amber eyes, which seemed to hide as much as they revealed.

Derek swallowed around the sudden dryness of his throat, and tore his eyes from her plump, kissable lips. No good could come of this. “Listen, Carleen, I’ve got to go.”

As always, his ex understood. “I’ll see you at five-thirty. Craig and I will have Tiffany ready to go.”

“Thanks. See you then.” Derek ended the call.

Meanwhile, Eve Loughlin waited with a patient, angelic smile.

Not about to make it easy on her, after the way she had summarily dismissed him the afternoon before, Derek lifted a brow. Waited.

Her smile only became more cordial and determined. “I’m sorry to interrupt.”

If that was the case, Derek thought, she already would have left. “What brings you here?”

“I wanted to apologize for what happened yesterday.”

She looked as if she actually might be regretting her actions, if the shadows beneath her eyes—shadows that hadn’t been there the day before—were any indication. Derek’s attitude softened just a little, even as the rest of him remained wary as all get-out. “I’m listening.”

She held her red crocodile briefcase in front of her like a shield. “If you can find it in your heart to forgive me, I’d like to retain your business for Loughlin Realty.”

Maybe it was the way his marriage had turned out, or the experiences he’d suffered through with women he had dated since, but he’d had enough fickle women to last him a lifetime. Regarding her skeptically, Derek lounged against his desk, his arms folded. “If that’s the case, then why did you fire me as a client in the first place?”

* * *

T
IME TO GROVEL
, Eve thought, setting her briefcase on the seat of the armchair beside her. Not her favorite thing, but in this case, extremely necessary if she was to make good on her promise to her mother. Eve noted the spacious office matched him well. Done in varying shades of gray, with large masculine furniture befitting a man of his physical stature, the executive suite had a beautiful view of downtown Dallas.

Gathering her courage, she looked into Derek McCabe’s vivid blue eyes. “Let’s just say it was an all-around bad day.” Bad time of year, actually. Christmas always made her feel out of sync and vaguely depressed. “I took my frustrations out on you,” she admitted, “and that was definitely not the right thing to do.” She lifted her palms apologetically. “I wasn’t brought up that way, and as a real estate agent, I certainly wasn’t trained to behave like that.”

Derek looked her up and down, then paused, his broad shoulders relaxing slightly. “I wasn’t brought up that way, either.” An awkward silence ensued, and then he slid her a long, thoughtful look. “I probably shouldn’t have kept you waiting outside your office for a good half hour while I handled other calls.”

Understanding flowed between them, as tangible as their previous frustration. Eve easily met him halfway. “Thanks for acknowledging that.”

His eyes twinkled. “So maybe we were both at fault yesterday?”

“Maybe.” And there it was, she thought as his rueful smile broadened, the legendary McCabe charm.

“Well, good.” He came forward and briefly shook her hand to seal the truce. “Then we have something in common.”

Eve’s skin tingled as they broke contact and politely stepped away from each other. He inclined his head. “So what’s next?” he murmured.

She drew a deep, bolstering breath, then took a seat in the armchair and opened her briefcase. “I’m ready to meet your demands.”

His phone chimed. He peered down at it, then set it aside. His full attention on Eve once again, he asked, “What stopped you yesterday?”

Watching him take a seat behind his desk, Eve sensed sugarcoating the situation would get her nowhere with the accomplished businessman. “I didn’t want to proceed because I felt selecting a property for you, without knowing anything about you or your specific needs, would be a disservice to us both.”

He pressed his fingertips together. “In what way?”

“If you end up purchasing a home you’re unhappy with, that dissatisfaction will eventually be heaped on Loughlin Realty. And more specifically, me.” Hesitating for a moment, Eve crossed her legs and discreetly tugged her skirt a little lower over her knees. “My reputation depends on being able to find the exact right home for my clients. If I can’t do that, I may as well not continue as an agent.”

His dark brows furrowed. “That’s why you wanted me to fill out the forms?”

Finally, they were getting somewhere! “I don’t even know how old your daughter is. Or if she lives with you full-time or part-time, or simply visits.”

“Tiffany lives with me fifty percent of the time. My ex and I share custody.”

“Do you want her to go to public or private school?”

“Probably public, if we’re in the Highland Park district, but we’re not there yet. She’s just turned one.”

What was it about this man that had Eve losing her equilibrium? Usually, she was much better at maintaining a casual, inscrutable demeanor. Blowing out a breath, she attempted to rein in her reaction. “You must be very recently divorced.”

“It was final last summer. We were separated for a year and a half before that,” he related mildly.

And his child was one now, Eve thought, doing some quick calculations.

* * *

“
A
REN’T YOU GOING
to say it?” Derek asked, something akin to disappointment on his handsome face. He studied her bluntly. “What a terrible person I must have been to have left a pregnant wife?”

This felt like some kind of a test. Deliberately, she held his gaze. “I’m sure you had your reasons.” Her manner matter-of-fact, she continued, “In any case, it’s none of my business.”

He appeared to be mulling that over. “So when did you want to get started?” he finally said, after a long, awkward pause.

Glad he had decided to use their firm for his home search, after all, Eve smiled. “I’m available anytime.”

“Right now?”

Another test
. Eve inhaled and smiled again. “Absolutely.”

Derek stood and reached for his coat, all McCabe determination once again. “Then let’s go.”

Chapter Two

“Mind if I drive?” Derek said as they walked out the door of his swanky office complex.

Whatever the client wanted. Within reason. That was the rule. “Not at all,” Eve fibbed. “Where are we going?”

“I have to pick up my daughter by five-thirty. I’ll have her until tomorrow evening.” He paused to help Eve with her coat, and then escorted her out to a late-model Jaguar SUV. He opened the passenger door, waited for her to slide in, then circled around to the driver’s side.

Impressed with his good manners—it had been a long time since she had met anyone so naturally chivalrous—Eve pulled out her notebook again. Determined to keep things strictly business, she asked, “You want to take her with us when we look?”

“Tomorrow, when we go see the house we select, yes. As for this evening, I plan to take her back to my hotel, feed and bathe her, and then put her to bed.”

Eve wasn’t sure where that left her and the business she needed to conduct.

Derek continued, “And while I do all that, we’ll have a little chat about what property would be best suited for my daughter and me.”

Eve wasn’t surprised. Most single parents were adept multitaskers. Still, she would have preferred they talk under less intimate circumstances. She wanted to know only enough about him and his life to do her job well. Anything else would be just too personal.

He turned onto Crescent Avenue. “I assume you have most of the property specs on the computer?”

Eve nodded. “Including visual tours.”

“Then we should be able to pick one.”

Derek parked in the driveway of one of the largest, most elegant properties in Highland Park. “Mind giving me a hand? There’s a lot of stuff when we switch back and forth.”

So now she was a bellboy, too. What next? A nanny? Tamping down her irritation, Eve flashed a smile. “No problem.”

This time, she managed to exit the sedan before Derek could gallantly lend a hand. If he noticed her effort to keep things on an impersonal level, he didn’t show it. Instead, he seemed distracted, almost eager, as they walked to the front door. The doorbell was answered by an attractive brunette in a silk shirt, heels and jeans. She had a pair of reading glasses perched on the end of her nose and a pen tucked into the short, sophisticated curls above her ear. Her expression was intellectual—and kind.

“Hey, stranger!” She greeted Derek with a friendly pat on the arm and a peck on his cheek. “How’s the house-hunting going?”

Derek inclined his head at Eve. “We haven’t really started yet. Carleen, this is Eve Loughlin. Eve, Carleen Walton, my ex-wife.”

The woman grinned and extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you,” she said.

They certainly were friendly, Eve noted. Maybe the most amiable exes she had ever seen. “Nice to meet you, too,” she replied.

A tall forty-something man ambled up with a baby in his arms.