A Family for Christmas (Willow Park #3) Read online

  “Okay. That’s fine with me. But you can change your mind any time you want. It’s a standing offer.”

  She gulped and took a breath, telling herself she was a grown woman who had a lot more important things going on than turning into a puddle of goo over the idea of sex with her husband-of-convenience.

  “Okay,” she said. She suddenly realized that, at some point, she must have raised one of her hands to put on his chest. It was pressed against his shirt, just over his heart. He felt real, solid, beneath her palm.

  She pulled it away quickly. “Okay. We’ll say no to sex for now, leaving open the possibility of that changing. It’s probably a good idea to go over the other stuff, so the discussion doesn’t get awkward at the next session. Good thinking.”

  “I do think well occasionally,” he murmured, slanting her another amused look.

  For such a reserved man, he had a really good sense of humor.

  She liked that about him.

  She was hiding a smile when they walked out the back door to the fenced-off part of the grounds that held the playground equipment.

  Ellie wasn’t playing on the playground. She was reading a book on a bench, while her grandparents sat on another bench.

  Lydia didn’t feel like she’d gotten to know the girl very well, since Ellie was evidently as quiet as her dad. But she’d always been perfectly polite whenever Lydia had spent time with her and Gabe, so Lydia assumed the girl would warm up as time went on.

  After all, if Gabe and Ellie were going to be in the States during the school year, then it wasn’t like Lydia would be around her full-time.

  When Ellie glanced up and saw her father, she jumped up and ran over to him, her dark hair flying out behind her.

  She grabbed Gabe in a hug, which he returned, as if they’d been parted for days rather than less than an hour.

  “Were you reading the whole time,” he asked, stroking the girl’s long hair.

  “No.” She pulled away and stared up at her father soberly. “I talked to Grandma and Grandpa some.”

  “Good. Are you ready to go check out our new house?” he asked.

  “Yes.” Ellie was darting looks up at Lydia as she talked, but she didn’t smile.

  Lydia smiled at her, thinking it was sweet that the girl and Gabe were so close. It made sense, since her mother had abandoned her so early.

  “Everything okay?” Gabe asked, turning to his parents, who had gotten up from the bench and were approaching more slowly.

  “Oh, yes,” his mother said, smiling kindly at both of them. “How did the session go?”

  “It was—” Gabe broke off when his phone rang. After he glanced at it, he said, “I’m sorry. I better take this.”

  He walked over to the other side of the yard as he picked up.

  Lydia assumed it was business. He often got business calls when they spent time together. She didn’t care. He could work as much as he wanted, for all she cared.

  She was planning to spend most of her time working too—once she finally got to India.

  “Those business calls,” his mother said, tsking her tongue and then smiling at Lydia. “You’ll have your work cut out, trying to get him to turn the phone off sometimes.”

  Lydia smiled back, feeling a little awkward since Gabe’s parents obviously believed theirs was a normal marriage. “I’ll do my best.”

  “I’m so happy he found someone,” Mary Alexander went on, looking back toward her son. “We were so surprised. But so happy. After what happened—”

  “Mary,” Henry, her husband, murmured in a mild, soft tone. It sounded like a reminder to not say more than was appropriate.

  “Right,” Mary said, looking apologetic. “Anyway, all I meant to say is that we’re so happy Gabe will have a wife and Ellie will finally have a mama.” She patted the girl’s shoulder. “Aren’t you happy, sweetheart?”

  “Yes.” Ellie still wasn’t smiling. Just gazing between her grandmother and Lydia with unchildlike sobriety.

  “Sorry,” Gabe said, returning to where they were standing. “I need to get pulled into a conference call for twenty minutes or so. Would you mind taking Ellie to Jean’s to get a donut while I’m on the phone? Then I could meet you at the house.”

  “Sure,” Lydia said, wondering what she was going to do with this quiet girl for a half-hour on her own. “That’s no problem. Do you want to go with me for a donut, Ellie?”

  Ellie opened her mouth but closed it again as she looked up at her father’s face. He was giving her a little nod. Then she said, “Okay.”

  “Good.”

  Lydia didn’t dislike children. She’d always thought they were fine but not really her thing. She’d certainly never spent much time around them, other than occasional babysitting as a teenager.

  But she was determined to do her duty as Gabe’s wife, no matter what it entailed, since she was getting so much out of the arrangement. So she put on a calm, friendly demeanor as she thanked and said good-bye to Gabe’s parents and then walked to the parking lot, where Ellie got into Lydia’s car.

  “Thanks,” Gabe said quietly, after he’d shut the door for his daughter. “You don’t mind, do you?”

  “No, it’s fine,” Lydia told him with a smile.

  “I won’t be long.” He looked over the roof of her car to where his parents were getting into their van. “They’re watching,” he said in a low voice.

  She had no idea why he’d said that or why it mattered, so she was completely taken by surprise when he leaned forward and kissed her gently on the lips.

  It was just a brief kiss. Light. Not much of anything at all.

  But Lydia felt a rush of shocked excitement and couldn’t speak or move for a moment afterwards.

  One part of her mind understood that his parents were observing them so Gabe was trying to act like a fiancé would.

  But all the rest of her mind and body were screaming that he’d kissed her.

  “Is that okay?” he asked, evidently seeing something in her expression. “They think we’re in love, and I don’t want to disappoint them again.”

  She pushed through her reaction to say in a somewhat natural tone. “Sure. Of course. No problem.”

  She was still feeling rather rattled, though, as she got into the driver’s seat and started her car. “You ready for a donut?”

  Ellie eyed her somberly. “Okay.”

  There wasn’t anything obvious to say next, so Lydia was quiet as she pulled the car out of the lot and headed for the little bakery/coffee shop on Willow Park’s quaint downtown street.

  She wondered, a little distractedly, how Gabe had disappointed his parents before.

  Realizing that Ellie was still staring at her, Lydia said cheerfully, “So what kind of donut are you going to get?”

  “Chocolate frosting.”

  “Oh, that sounds good.”

  She waited, but Ellie didn’t have anything else to say. She still wasn’t smiling.

  How the hell was she supposed to know what to say to get the girl to relax and warm up? She felt kind of clueless, and she clearly wasn’t getting any miraculous insight at the moment.

  She’d spent time with Ellie before, but only in Gabe’s company, so they’d never had a real conversation of their own.

  Ellie didn’t seem to even like her.

  Lydia was searching her mind for something light and fun to say when Ellie asked without prelude, “Why did Dad kiss you?”

  Lydia felt just as much at a loss for words as she had by the car when Gabe had kissed her. She had no idea what she was supposed to say to such a question. “Well, uh, your dad and I are going to get married. He told you about that, didn’t he?”

  “Yes.” The deep blue eyes were unnaturally cool for a child. “He told me. I didn’t know he was going to kiss you.”

  Lydia flushed slightly, feeling ridiculously embarrassed—which was an absolutely unreasonable reaction to a conversation with a girl. “He might sometimes,” she said at last,
continuing to glance over to check Ellie’s expression.

  “Oh.” The girl paused, as if she were thinking something through. “I don’t really want another mom.”

  Oh, this was a terrible conversation. How could she possibly get out of it?

  Lydia was used to being efficient and no-nonsense with everyone she encountered, but she spoke slowly, as gently as she could. “Well, I’m going to be your dad’s wife, but that doesn’t mean I’ll be your mom.”

  “My mom left when I was really little.”

  Lydia’s hands clenched on the steering wheel. “I know she did.”

  “Why do you have to be his wife?”

  “Well, we both want to be married. I know it’s a big change for you, but I think it’s going to be good for all of us.”

  “Daddy and I are fine by ourselves.”

  Shit. Clearly, Ellie wasn’t at all happy about the upcoming marriage, and Lydia had no idea how to change her mind.

  She wasn’t any good with kids at all.

  “I’m sure you were fine, but maybe you can be even better. I promise I’ll never try to take him away from you.”

  They’d reached Main Street, so Lydia slowed down to look for a parking space.

  Ellie was silent until Lydia pulled the car into a space not far from Jean’s.

  Then the girl said, “He loves me best.”

  Lydia was so uncomfortable with this conversation and so confused about what she should say that she felt like jumping out of the car and running away. But she turned to look Ellie in the eyes, since she realized the girl was taking this very seriously.

  She had no idea what to say, and she had no idea what would make things worse. So the only thing to say was what she always tried to say. The truth.

  “Yes,” she said, “Your dad loves you best.”

  ***

  The conversation over donuts was just as stilted and awkward as it had been in the car, but at least eating the donuts created natural pauses in conversation.

  Ellie clearly hadn’t warmed up to her at all when they drove over to the house Gabe had bought.

  The price of real estate was higher in Willow Park than in the surrounding areas because the town was a popular magnet for travelers looking for quaint, small-town charm, beautiful mountain scenery, and regional crafts and antiques. But most of the houses in town were older and between two and four bedrooms.

  The house Gabe had bought was on one of the more prestigious streets with a huge yard and six bedrooms. For Gabe, though, it was downsizing. The house he’d owned in Charlotte was even bigger and more expensive.

  He’d bought this house straight-out. Hadn’t even needed a mortgage.

  Lydia didn’t know the extent of his financial worth, but he was definitely richer than anyone else she knew.

  She didn’t really care about it one way or the other. She’d never been particularly concerned with material things. All of this was transitory anyway, since she was going to live in India.

  Gabe must have just pulled in a minute before them, since he was getting out of the car as she parked.

  He was still talking on the phone, but he hung up a few seconds after he saw them.

  “How was the donut?” he asked, as Ellie scrambled out of the car and ran over to him.

  “Fine. I had chocolate frosting.”

  “We got you one too,” Lydia said, walking over to them with the takeout bag. “Ellie said you liked blueberry.”

  “I do. Thank you.” He looked into the bag.

  “Aren’t you going to eat it?” Ellie asked.

  “Of course.” Put on the spot, he pulled out the donut and took a bite. “Let’s go check out the house.”

  Neither Ellie nor Lydia had been inside the house before, so he gave them the tour.

  It was built in the twenties, but it had been beautifully restored and renovated, and even Lydia—who never suffered from house-envy much—gawked at each lovely, spacious room.

  Gabe had invited her to help with the house-hunting, but she’d only gone on a few token visits. It was going to be his house, after all. She would hardly be living in it after this winter and spring. She didn’t really need to weigh in.

  Ellie had gone through the rooms on the ground floor more quickly than the adults and was already running up the stairs.

  “Be careful,” Gabe called. “If you fall down, you’ll have to just lie there until we catch up.”

  “I never fall down.”

  He smiled and shook his head as they walked into the kitchen—stainless steel appliances, beautiful cherry cabinets that were done to reflect the period of the house, and a very cool-looking countertop on the center island.

  “What is this?” she asked, running her hand across it.

  “It’s quartz.” Gabe was dressed casually in a blue shirt and tan trousers, and he seemed to fill the room more than he should. “Micah Duncan flipped this house a few years ago, and the couple he sold it to had to move out of the area.”

  Micah was Daniel’s brother, and she’d grown up with him. “Micah did? No wonder it looks so great.”

  “He knows what he’s doing.” Gabe glanced over at her. “I guess he’s around your age.”

  “Yeah. We dated in high school, actually.” She smiled, since she’d always liked Micah, and she’d been thrilled when he finally settled down and married the girl he’d been in love with for years.

  “Did you?”

  There was an odd timbre to the tone, so Lydia glanced over at him. She couldn’t read anything in his expression, though. “Yeah. He’s a really great guy.”

  Gabe glanced away. “Well, he does great work. The house is in excellent shape. Do you want to see the upstairs?”

  “Sure.”

  They were heading up the stairs when Ellie came running down.

  “Can I have the room in the attic?” she asked, gazing up at her dad.

  He reached out to steady her, since she’d stopped so abruptly she wobbled a bit. “Of course. You can have any room you want.” He looked back at Lydia and explained, “There’s a little garret room on the third floor. It’s not really the attic.”

  Lydia didn’t care if it was the attic or not. And she didn’t care that he’d given Ellie her pick of rooms in the house without even asking her first.

  What she was thinking was that it was a good thing she had no expectations of feelings to come along with this marriage.

  Because she could easily read the look in Gabe’s eyes as he looked down at his daughter.

  And it was more than obvious that Ellie had been right in what she’d said earlier.

  There was no way any woman could have an equal place in his heart.

  Three

  “If you need help,” Gabe said, standing at the door to the dressing room in a department store, “just open the door.”

  “I don’t need help,” Ellie said from the other side.

  Lydia was in the dressing room too, standing a little farther back from Gabe. She could see from the opening beneath the door that Ellie had put on the long dress with a thick lace hem they’d picked out, but the fabric kept moving so the girl was clearly still working on the buttons.

  “It’s hard to get all the buttons if they’re in the back,” Lydia said, trying to sound light and friendly, although she was tired and a little bored, since the shopping trip to buy Ellie a dress for the wedding was taking longer than she’d expected.

  The girl was nine, but she clearly had very concrete ideas about the dress she wanted.

  It wasn’t surprising that she was a little spoiled, since it had just been Gabe and Ellie for years. Lydia tried to remind herself of this fact and remain patient, even as the girl rejected dress after adorable dress—all of which looked equally nice on her.

  “I can do the buttons myself,” Ellie said from behind the door.

  “Okay.” Gabe turned and gave Lydia a half-smile. “Take your time.”

  He stepped over Lydia and leaned against the wall beside her.
“I think we’re almost done here,” he said, very low. “She seemed to like this one the best.”

  Lydia nodded, realizing that he must have recognized her impatience. “No problem. We’re not in a hurry.”

  He raised his eyebrows with a warm irony that made her smile.

  “Patience isn’t my virtue,” she admitted softly, since he’d obviously sensed her mood. “But it’s really fine. She should get the dress she really likes, especially since this is going to be a big transition for her.”

  “She’ll do fine.”

  Gabe didn’t seem worried as she studied his face, noticing—and not for the first time—how strong and masculine the square jaw, the slight stubble, the well-chiseled cheekbones were. There was a very faint scattering of gray in his dark hair.

  He felt solid. She liked that about him.

  It was more than evident that Ellie had hidden her displeasure about this marriage from him, and Lydia felt uncomfortable saying anything, since it felt like she was either tattling or complaining.

  Ellie hadn’t done anything that was genuinely naughty. She’d just made it clear that she wished Lydia wasn’t around.

  “I got all the buttons but two,” Ellie said, opening the dressing room door.

  She looked very pretty in the feminine dress, but it didn’t appear to be hanging right.

  “Maybe Miss Lydia can get the last two buttons for you,” Gabe said, straightening up.

  Ellie frowned. “I thought she was Aunt Lydia now.”

  “Oh. That’s right. You can call her whichever you’d like.”

  They’d had a long conversation about what Ellie should call Lydia. It would feel wrong to Lydia for Ellie to call her some version of “mom,” so she’d said she’d rather they not suggest that to Ellie. Gabe flatly refused to let the girl call her just “Lydia,” which would have been Lydia’s preference, since he didn’t allow his daughter to call adults by just their first names. So they’d compromised on Aunt Lydia, which was frankly a little weird but was the best they could come up with.

  There were all kinds of strange details to work out when planning for a marriage of convenience.

  Ellie was still frowning. “I want you to do the buttons.”