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A
Heath walked out of the den and A
She put her head down on her cradled arms and slowly closed her eyes.
* * * *
The afternoon of Christmas Eve was the longest period of Heath’s life. He had no idea what to do with himself so he drove to the mall on Big Palm and sat on one of the stone benches, watching the tardy shoppers hurry past him. The kids were hysterical with pre-Christmas excitement and the parents rushed and preoccupied. He was oblivious to the Christmas carols blaring over the intercom and the advertisements for the last-minute sales while his whole history with A
He was through trying to force her into his mold. The idea must be hers.
When he got back to the house, the sun was begi
A
He stared back at her, a muscle jumping along his jaw.
“Come here,” she said.
Heath sat next to her on the loveseat near the window.
“Do you want me to go?” she whispered.
He bent his head.
“Do you?”
He shook his head mutely, unable to look at her.
A
“I’ll never leave you now, Heath. We’ve wasted far too much time already.”
He closed his eyes, the spider web lashes sweeping his cheeks.
“I love you, princess,” he said huskily. “I always have and I know I always will.”
A
“Why don’t you take me into the bedroom and prove it?” A
He swept her up into his arms and carried her out of the living room. A
Heath set her on the edge of the bed and unbuttoned her blouse. “You looked so beautiful last night, you took my breath away,” he said, bending to kiss the smooth shoulders he had exposed. He unhooked her bra and discarded it, undressing her carefully and gently until she was naked. Then he undressed himself, dropping his clothes on the floor and joining her on the bed.
“I’m going to make you forget everything except how much I love you,” he said.
He did just that.
* * * *
Later that afternoon A
“Hi,” she said.
He smiled and she was perfectly happy.
“Do you know what tonight is?” he asked, stretching and yawning elaborately.
“The first night of the rest of our lives?” she asked, and he laughed.
“Well, that, too,” he said. “But it’s also Christmas Eve.”
“Aha! That’s why that gigantic tree is standing in the front hall. I was wondering about that.”
“Let’s go Christmas shopping.”
“I’ve already been shopping, Heath.”
“Well, I haven’t. The perso
“Do you know what the stores will be like tonight, Heath? Are you pla
“Come on, where’s your Christmas spirit? Fighting your way through the throng is half the fun.”
“I’ve already fought my way through several throngs. Pritchard’s last week looked like the Roman triumph crowd scene from Ben Hur. I half expected to run into Charlton Heston and his chariot in the luggage department.”
Heath chuckled. “But you’ll brave it all again for me, won’t you, darling?” he said.
She sighed. “Do I have a choice?”
“No. And I am going to make a reservation at Lusardi’s for a late di
“What?”
“Rapprochement,” he said, and she smiled.
“Say what?” she asked.
“Don’t laugh at me,” he said, throwing off the sheet and going into his closet, emerging with his robe belted around his waist. “I am determined to put some flesh on those bones. You are going to have a stuffed artichoke heart, a Mediterranean salad, three-cheese lasagna, and tiramisu for dessert.”
“I am not going to have anything, Heath—you’ll never get a table for Christmas Eve at this late hour.”
“I’ll get one,” he said firmly. “I’m going to see if Daniela left us any coffee. Be right back. Don’t go away.”
A
A
“So you survived the party,” Amy said.
“Barely. I’m afraid to leave the house, I might trip over a dead body in the driveway.”
“How’s Heath?” Amy asked cautiously.
“Heath is just the most wonderful man in the world,” A
“What happened?” Amy asked sharply.
“Rapprochement,” A
“What the hell is that?”
“Kind of like detente, except between people instead of countries,” A
“Holy smokes.”
“Yup.”
“You have to give me all the details.”
“Not now,” A
“He came home early for Christmas Eve?”
“He didn’t go to the office today. There’s a reform movement under way.”
“Oh, I see.”
“I am now considering having about six of his children. Maybe seven.”
“That must have been quite a post-party turnaround.”
“It was.”
Amy chuckled wickedly. “Leave it to Heath. When he turns on the charm, he takes no prisoners.”
“I believe he really wants to make it work, Amy,” A
“I’m sure he does. I’ve never doubted that he loves you, A
“We talked about the past and got things straightened out, but I’ll tell you all about it later. Right now I have to get dressed. Heath wants to go Christmas shopping.”
“Tonight? That’s a death wish. Good luck. Wear your flak jacket.”
“By the way, why did you take off last night?” A
“I figured you and Heath were better off left alone, and wasn’t I right?”
A
“Going to my mother’s. Have you heard from Tim?”
“Yes, he’s spending the holiday with his college roommate in Massachusetts.”
“Thanks to you. Otherwise he’d be spending it in a less congenial place.”
“Thanks to Heath, you mean.”
“Well, I’ll let you go. Merry Christmas. From what you’ve told me, I’m sure yours will be very merry. I’ll be at my mother’s until Thursday. Give me a call later on in the week.”
“Okay. Bye-bye.”
A
A