Debbie Macomber - Home for Christmas

“Oh…”

He might have been wrong, but Cal thought he detected a note of disappointment in her voice. Surely she’d known he was married. Annie must have said something. But then again, perhaps not.

“My boy is three and my daughter’s eighteen months.”

“Congratulations.”

“Thanks,” Cal said, feeling a bit self-conscious about dragging Jane and his kids into the conversation. But it was the right thing to do—and it wouldn’t hurt his ego if the information got back to Jennifer, either.

Nicole helped herself to another chip. “The last time Jennifer and I spoke, she said something that might interest you.” Nicole loaded the chip with salsa and took a discreet nibble. Looking up, she widened her eyes. “Jen said she’s always wondered what would’ve happened if she’d stayed in Promise and you two had gotten married.”

Cal laughed. He knew the answer, even if Nicole and Jennifer didn’t. “I simply would’ve been husband number one. Eventually she would have moved on.” In retrospect, it was easy to see Jennifer’s faults and appreciate anew the fact that they weren’t married.

“I don’t agree,” Nicole said, surprising him. “I think it might have been a different story if she’d stayed with you.”

The waitress brought her drink and Nicole smiled her thanks. She took a sip, sliding her tongue along the salty edge of the glass. “Jennifer might be my best friend,” she went on, “but when it comes to men she’s not very smart. Take you, for example. I couldn’t believe it when she told me she was calling off the wedding. Time has proved me right, too.”

Cal enjoyed hearing it, but wanted to know her reasoning. “Why’s that?”

“Well, it’s obvious, don’t you think? You were the only man strong enough to deal with her personality. I’m very fond of Jennifer, don’t get me wrong, but she likes things her own way and that includes relationships. She was an idiot to break it off with you.”

“Actually it was fortunate for both of us that she did.”

“Fortunate for you, you mean,” Nicole said with a deep sigh. “Like I said, Jennifer was a fool, and if she doesn’t realize it, I do.” After another sip, she leaned toward him, her tone confiding. “I doubt she’d admit it, but ever since she left Promise, Jennifer’s been looking for a man just like you.”

“You think so?” Her remark was a boost to his ego and superficial though that was, Cal couldn’t restrain a smile.

The waitress returned with his order, and Nicole drank more of her margarita, then said, “I’ll leave you now and let you have your dinner.”

She started to slip out of the booth, but Cal stopped her. “There’s no need to rush off.” He wasn’t in any hurry, and he had to admit he liked hearing what she had to say about Jennifer. If he missed Jane’s call, he could always phone her back.

Nicole smiled. “I wanted to thank you, too,” she murmured.

“For what?” He cut into an enchilada with his fork and glanced up.

“For giving me a recommendation at Tumbleweed Books.”

“Hey,” he said, grinning at her. “No problem.”

“Annie called me this morning and said I have the job.”

“That’s great.”

“I’m thrilled. I’ve always loved books and I look forward to working with Annie.”

He should probably mention that the bookstore owner was Jane’s best friend, and would have, but he was too busy chewing and swallowing—and after that, it was too late.

Nicole checked her watch. “I’d better be going. Like I said, I’m meeting a…friend. If you don’t mind, I’d like to buy your dinner.”

Her words took him by surprise. He couldn’t imagine what had prompted the offer.

“As a thank-you for the job reference,” she explained.

He brushed aside her offer. “It was nothing—I was glad to do it. I’ll get my own meal. But let me pay for your drink.”

She agreed, they chatted a few more minutes, and then Nicole left. She hadn’t said whom she was meeting, and although he was mildly curious, Cal didn’t ask.

He sauntered out of the restaurant not long after Nicole. He’d been dragging when he arrived, but with his belly full and his spirits high, he felt almost cocky as he walked toward his parked truck. He supposed he was sorry to hear about Jennifer’s marital troubles—but not very sorry.

As it happened, Cal did miss Jane’s phone call, but was quick to reach her once he got home and had listened to her message. She sounded disappointed, anxious, emotionally drained.

“Where were you?” she asked curtly when he returned her call.

Cal cleared his throat. “I drove into town for dinner. Is everything okay?”

“Mexican Lindo, right?” she asked, answering one question and avoiding the other.

“Right.”

“Did you eat alone?”

“Of course.” There was Nicole Nelson, but she hadn’t joined him, not technically. Not for dinner, at any rate. He’d bought her drink, but he didn’t want to go into lengthy explanations that could only lead to misunderstanding. Perhaps it was wrong not to say something about her being there, but he didn’t want to waste these precious minutes answering irrelevant questions. Jane was sure to feel slighted or suspicious, and she had no reason. At any rate, Annie would probably mention that she’d hired Nicole on his recommendation. He could deal with that later. Right now, he wanted to know why she felt upset.

“You’d better tell me what’s wrong,” Cal urged softly, dismissing the thought of Nicole as easily as if he’d never seen her. Their twenty minutes together had been trivial, essentially meaningless. Not a man-woman thing at all but a pandering to his ego. Jane was his wife, the person who mattered to him.

“Dad didn’t have a good day,” Jane said after a moment. “He’s in a lot of pain and he’s cranky with me and Mom. A few tests came back and, well, it’s too early to say, but I didn’t like what I saw.”

“He’ll be home soon?”

“I don’t know—I’d thought, no, I’d hoped…” She let the rest fade.

“Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. Take as long as you need. I’ll manage.” It wasn’t easy to make the offer, but Cal could see that his wife needed his support. These weeks apart were as hard on her as they were on him. This was the only way he could think to help.

“You want me to stay longer?” Jane demanded.

“No,” he returned emphatically. “I thought I was being noble and wonderful.”

The tension eased with her laugh. “You seem to be getting along far too well without me.”

“That isn’t true! I miss you something fierce.”

“I miss you, too,” Jane said with a deep sigh.

“How did lunch go with your friends?” he asked, thinking it might be a good idea to change the subject.

“All right,” she said with no real enthusiasm.

“You didn’t enjoy yourself?”

Jane didn’t answer immediately. “Not really. We used to be close, but that seems so long ago now. We’ve grown apart. Julie’s into this beauty-pageant thing for her daughter, and it was all she talked about. Every weekend she travels from one state to another, following the pageants.”

“Does her daughter like it?”

“I don’t know. It’s certainly not something I’d ever impose on my daughter.” She sighed again. “I don’t mean to sound judgmental, but we have so little in common anymore.”

“What about Megan?”

“She came with her twelve-year-old daughter and is terribly bitter about her divorce. At every opportunity she dragged her husband’s name into the conversation with the preface, ‘that bum I was married to.’”

“In front of her kid?” Cal was shocked that any mother could be so insensitive to her child.