Jane's Gift Read online

  He still didn’t understand why he was so willing to let that go when it came to Jane. She should scare the hell out of him.

  The thought of never seeing her again scared the hell out of him more.

  Now with a grudging heart and a weak and achy body, he’d gone to Jane’s house to pick up her and the kids. Questions had run through his mind repeatedly. Why are you doing this? What are you gaining? Her daughter hates you, Jane only wants to be friends, so why all the torture?

  But then Jane had opened the door, pretty and fresh in jeans and a bulky, soft pink hooded sweatshirt. Her dark hair a smooth curve that framed her face, her smile bright, the children gathered at her feet.

  Well, the two youngest were. Lexi was nowhere in sight.

  “Hey. Are you ready to go?” He tried to keep the weariness out of his voice but knew he wasn’t successful by the look of concern on her face.

  “The kids have been ready since last night.” She smiled and it sent an arrow straight to his heart. “So have I. But are you? You don’t look so good.”

  Chris shrugged. At least he wasn’t puking any longer. “I covered for Eric and worked the last thirty-six hours. He got sick.” No need to mention he did, too. She’d send him home for sure. “We were pretty busy.”

  Her delicate brows drew down. She looked disappointed—and was that concern? “Should we get together some other time? Since you’re not feeling well?”

  “Nah, I’m good. I’ll be all right. I don’t want to let the kids down. Or you. ” He tried to smile but even his face felt tired. His bones were weary, his head hurt—and he rarely got headaches.

  But a promise was a promise and he didn’t want to let this little family down.

  “You’re so sweet.” Her gaze softened. “Better watch out or I might take advantage of you.”

  Well, wasn’t that comment loaded with all sorts of potential? He stood straighter, told himself to snap out of his funk. He had a flirtatious Jane on his hands and he needed to be on his game.

  “So where’s Alexis?”

  Her green eyes went a shade darker and she cleared her throat. “She’s still at my parents’ house. She didn’t want to leave her cousins.”

  “Oh, okay.” Lexi probably couldn’t tolerate the idea of spending any amount of time with him.

  “They leave later this afternoon and she wanted to get in some last-minute playtime first.”

  “It’s cool.” He smiled at Logan and Sophia and earned shy smiles in return. “We’ll have a good time, right, guys?”

  “Yeah!” they both shouted enthusiastically.

  Chris helped Jane load up the kids in the backseat of his truck and then they were off, headed up the mountain to a grove he’d heard about from a coworker. It was pretty common for most local residents to purchase a tree permit; he’d gone ahead and bought his even though he didn’t plan on having a Christmas tree. Really, what was the point? He worked long hours and spent most of his time off these days either outdoors, vegging on the couch, or in bed.

  Man, when had his social life taken such a dive?

  “Look, snow!” Logan rapped his knuckles against the window.

  “I wonder when we’ll get more snowfall,” Jane murmured as she stared out the passenger side window. “I love when it’s fresh during the holidays. Makes everything so cozy.”

  He had a feeling she’d make him feel pretty damn cozy. “I think we’re getting snow next. Right now we’re only a few hundred feet above Lone Pine Lake, and that rain we had last night was pretty slushy.” Hence the sketchy road conditions. “Car accidents kept us busy last night.”

  “Oh, that’s terrible.” Jane turned to look at him, concern in her eyes. “No wonder you’re so tired.”

  “Yeah.” He didn’t feel like mentioning Audrey’s call. Or his illness. Damn, he hoped he wasn’t contagious. “People, especially out-of-towners, don’t know how to drive on the windy roads in bad weather.”

  “Neither do locals sometimes.” She smiled. “I’d be slipping and sliding all over the place. I’m not used to driving in this kind of weather.”

  He returned the smile, tried his best to pay attention to exactly where he was going, looking for a full-enough grove where’d they have their pick of trees. He put the truck in four-wheel drive and the kids cheered and laughed with every bump he drove over. It made him smile.

  Once he found a good spot, he parked and the kids spilled out, their little booted feet crunching and sinking over the new snow. The rapidly moving clouds cast dark shadows upon the grove one second and then showcased the bright sun the next. Another storm was coming in, and coming in fast. They needed to get moving and find a tree so they could beat the brunt of it.

  Jane set about on her search, casting a critical eye at every tree she came upon. Chris watched with amusement at the serious way she wrapped her hand around a tree and shook it, or how she brushed her small hand over the branches, fingering the pine needles.

  When she caught him watching, she smiled and shrugged. “I want it to be just right.”

  “Like Goldilocks?” He tipped his head toward her.

  She laughed softly. “I guess. Last year at this time I wasn’t…in the Christmas mood. This year I’m determined to make it special for the kids.”

  “I would want to do the same.”

  “My children have been through enough. Even though my family rallied around them and helped make the holidays fun, they were still suffering over the loss of their father. It wasn’t fair to them.”

  “I’m sure you’ll make it awesome for them this year.” He took a step toward her. “You’re a good mom, Jane.” Grabbing her hand, he laced their fingers together. “So, what exactly are your big holiday plans?”

  “Well.” She smiled, the joy clearly reflected in her eyes. “Thanks to your invitation, this is just the start. I also want to take the kids caroling around the neighborhood, maybe go see The Nutcracker in Sacramento. Oh, we might go to that winter wonderland thing they have going on up at the ski lodge.”

  “Sounds fun.”

  “And corny, right? But yeah, it’ll be fun.” She shrugged, squeezing his hand. “Thank you again for taking us to get the tree. Logan and Sophia have been anxious about it ever since they woke up this morning.”

  “Lexi wasn’t interested, though, huh?” Why did he keep picking at this wound? He needed to accept that the little girl didn’t like him.

  “Lexi is still unhappy with me.” Jane shook her head. “I went over to my parents’ house yesterday and had a talk with her. Turns out her oldest cousin told her Santa doesn’t exist. She’s now accusing me of being a liar all these years.”

  “Ah, man.” He could remember clearly the moment he discovered Santa was no longer real. He figured every kid remembered that life-altering moment. He’d been eight—the same age as Lexi.

  “I know. I read Patrick the riot act and he apologized, but really, I can’t blame him. Madison’s almost nine so it’s understandable. I just wish she hadn’t said anything.” Jane paused and her voice lowered. “I think Lexi clung to the notion because she needed to believe, you know? It gave her hope, believing in Santa. She’s had to grow up so quickly in so many ways…”

  “Did you try to convince her otherwise?” Logan chose that moment to throw a snowball at the back of Chris’s knees and he groaned playfully when the damp blob hit him. Chris bent to scoop a handful and tossed it back at Logan, missing him on purpose.

  “Yeah, but she wouldn’t hear any of it.” Jane sighed, stroking her fingers along yet another tree. “This time of year is supposed to be magical. All about the children, you know? I hate to see her become a non-believer.”

  “It’s a shame.” He nodded his head toward the tree she stood next to. “You like that one?”

  “I do. It has a nice shape. Good color, too.” She bent her head and sniffed. “Nothing smells better than a Christmas tree.”

  He had to disagree. He thought Jane smelled far better than any old tree.
“You want that one, or should we look around some more?”

  “I’ll keep it under consideration, but I wouldn’t mind checking out a few more. What if I’m missing the absolute best tree?” She beamed, the sight of it sending his earlier, way too cynical thoughts scattering to the wind. All it took was being around this woman and he turned into a slobbering puppy dog, following her and eating up every word she uttered.

  He enjoyed watching her interact with her children, the tender way she spoke to them, listened to them, the way she brightened their moods with a few choice words and sweet kisses. They demanded her attention constantly, and even though she was preoccupied with tree-picking, she still knew how to make them feel good.

  She was a good mom, an affectionate mom, and despite what happened to her, she always soldiered on. She’d never mentioned it, but he had a feeling her injuries had a permanent effect on her movement, the way she did things. She favored her right side in general and he noticed she walked with a slight limp this afternoon, as if her knee and thigh bothered her. Again, the hair covered the left side of her face in such a way that he had a hard time making out her scars.

  Curiosity consumed him, and though he’d wondered before, now he really wanted to know how badly she’d been burned. Would she ever tell him? Would he ever see?

  Did he want to see?

  Sophia walked beside him as they followed her mother, Logan as usual running far ahead of everyone else. The wind had picked up, whipping cold and brisk around them, and Jane stopped at another tree, shoving her hands in the front pocket of her sweatshirt as she contemplated it for a moment before she finally shook her head.

  They wandered around some more, Chris trying his hardest to ignore the wind and how sick he felt. He wished he were as blissfully ignorant as the kids, running around like it was a warm spring day. Laughing and grabbing at snow with their gloved hands, stomping their booted feet in the increasingly slushy stuff again and again.

  “I think I want this one,” Jane finally said, once they’d circled back to the original tree she’d picked out.

  “No surprise,” he said with a slight smile.

  She looked sheepish. “I should’ve just agreed when you asked. I’m freezing. Where my skin was grafted, it’s really thin. I feel the cold so much more now.”

  He appreciated how casually she mentioned that. Was she starting to feel comfortable with him? “You should’ve said something.” He really had no clue just how much she’d endured, how much she still suffered.

  Not one clue.

  “It’s my own fault.” She shrugged, her mouth quirked in a little smile. “I’ll be all right.”

  “I’ll hurry up and cut this thing down and then we’ll head back. Let me grab my saw.” He started for the truck, pondering what she’d just said. Pondering everything she’d said. She was sharing so much information from the accident and her injuries, and he liked it. Wished he had the courage to ask her questions and find out more details.

  It hadn’t felt right to drill Mac about what happened. He didn’t want to make him suspicious, and besides, he didn’t want to pry. When she was ready to tell him, she would.

  Within minutes, he had the tree sawed down and set carefully in the back of the truck. He wrapped it in canvas to protect the branches and needles and then they were on their way, the kids whining about staying longer and Jane shooting him thankful glances that said she was glad they left.

  The headache that had nagged quietly through the day roared to life the instant he was in the car, making it hard for him to concentrate on the road. The heater ran, and Jane actually shivered, rubbing her hands in front of the vent. He wished he could turn it off.

  He was tired and so warm. His bones hurt, his head hurt…

  Oh man, his head. He breathed deeply, thoughts tumbling back at him. Eric had returned to work this morning, bright eyed and raring to go. Whatever he’d caught had been quick, Eric said, but it made him bone weary about twenty-four hours in.

  Damn. He didn’t want to deal with this, not now. He was due for a couple of days off, since he’d switched with Eric, and the last thing he needed was to be sick. Chris shook his head once and pushed the hair away from his forehead. His eyelids felt heavy. He probably shouldn’t be driving…

  Hell, he needed to get home, stat.

  Jane’s cool hand touched his bare forearm and he glanced at her, caught her alarmed expression.

  “Are you sure you’re okay? You don’t look so good.”

  “I, uh, don’t feel so good, either.” He was thankful they were close to town, because he didn’t think he could drive much longer.

  “Pull over.” Her quiet command had him hitting the brakes. “I’ll drive.”

  “You don’t have to—”

  “No protests. I think you’re coming down with something. What was wrong with Eric again?”

  Chris switched sides with her, the both of them walking around the front of the truck, before he answered her. “He had a virus. And uh, I was sick last night.”

  She glared at him. No wonder her kids behaved so well—that was the mother of all death stares. “Why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you call and cancel?” She put the truck in gear and pulled back onto the road with ease.

  “I didn’t want to disappoint you or the kids.” He tilted his head back against the seat and closed his eyes. Right now, all he wanted was to be in bed with the covers pulled up to his chin. Fast asleep so he wouldn’t have to feel so crappy.

  “Trust me, I would’ve understood.” He heard her mutter something that sounded like, men before she raised her voice. “Let’s go back to the house and I’ll take care of you.”

  “Aw, you don’t have to do that. Seriously. I can bring your tree over tomorrow. I just want to go home and crash for the rest of the day.”

  “I wouldn’t feel right even letting you drive home right now.” She glanced at him, the concern and worry written all over her pretty face. “I hate to be mean, but you look pretty terrible, Chris. Glassy eyed and tired.”

  “Okay,” he said weakly, not in the mood to argue.

  Besides, it was pointless. He knew she’d win.

  With brisk efficiency, like the true mom she was, she got them home and all unloaded, helping Logan and Sophia shed their coats, gloves, and boots before setting them up with cartoons on the TV. She shot him a pointed look and he followed her, wondering where she was taking him.

  “You can stay here, in the guest room.” She opened the door and flicked on the overhead light, illuminating a cool, sparsely furnished room. A bed with a simple dark red comforter covering it sat in the middle of the small room against the wall, a bedside table with a single lamp to the right of it.

  “How many rooms does this place have?” The house was enormous, even bigger than he thought.

  “Four bedrooms, nothing too outrageous. Sophia and Lexi share one, Logan has his own, and I’m in the master bedroom.” She went in and switched the lamp on to its dimmest setting, then turned down the comforter and plumped the pillow before stepping back. “Get comfortable and climb into bed. You need to rest.”

  “Jane.” He paused, watched as she flicked off the overhead light and then turned to shoot him a questioning look. He knew she didn’t want to argue. Knew she wouldn’t listen to him if he did. “I’ll only crash here for a couple of hours and then head home.”

  “However long it takes until you feel better. It’s no big deal. I’m not sending you away when you’re sick, so don’t bother arguing.” She smiled. “I’ll get you a bottle of water and search the medicine cabinet. If you want to take something?”

  “I don’t really feel bad, just tired. Water sounds great, though.” He felt awkward, standing by the bed in her guest room, drinking in her quiet beauty while he felt like he could topple over and fall asleep at her feet.

  What did she think of him? Why was she being so nice? He could’ve gone on home and taken care of himself no problem.

  But it was kind of nic
e to have a woman want to help him. He had to admit that.

  “I’ll leave you alone for a few minutes, but I’ll be back, okay?”

  “All right.” He nodded, took a step backward, and bumped into the edge of the bed. The last thing he wanted was to give her this sickness, so she could then spread it to the rest of her family. “You better steer clear of me. I don’t want to get you all sick.”

  She smiled, the flash of teeth noticeable in the dim light. “I’m an old pro at taking care of the sick and needy. I have three children, remember? Lots of hand washing and keeping the kids away from you will be enough, I’m sure.” And then she left, the door clicking softly behind her and the quiet coolness of the room soothing his frazzled nerves. He discovered there was a connecting bathroom and, thankful for it, he splashed ice cold water on his face, though it only offered temporary relief.

  He was so tired, he felt a little out of his mind with it.

  Chris stripped, leaving on only a T-shirt and his boxer briefs, and then climbed into bed, thankful the sheets were cool cotton and not warm flannel. They soothed his weary bones and he sighed with relief. Head buzzing, he slid his eyes closed with ease. The exhaustion came swiftly, his achy bones settling into the mattress, and he curled onto his side, nestled his head into the soft, but not too soft pillow.

  The bed was comfortable, the noise minimal, almost pleasant, comforting. The muffled sounds of the cartoon playing on the TV, the occasional chatter from one of the kids, and Jane’s soothing voice calmed him. Filled him with contentment. He could grow entirely too comfortable in this house, with this woman.

  Jane’s pretty face was the last thing he thought of before he drifted off to sleep.

  Chapter Ten

  Jane stood in front of the guest bedroom door, her fingers wrapped around the handle and ready to turn.

  Was Chris still resting? Did he feel okay? He’d been in there for hours. His truck had caused a few questions on Patrick’s and Lyssa’s part when they stopped by to drop off Lexi before they left for home. Patrick had put on the overprotective big brother act and drilled her about Chris and why the guy was holed up in a bedroom at his house. One of the only times he’d referred to it as his since they suggested she stay there.