Be Mine at Christmas(11)
Author: Brenda Novak

“Yes.”

He considered Angela for several long moments. He was relieved to finally have his suspicions confirmed, to know he really wasn’t the callous jerk everyone had thought he was.

But that raised another question, one that seemed far more important now than it ever had before. “Did you know what she was planning before you went to the party? Did you help her?”

“No. I only knew that she had hopes of getting with you. She said you’d ‘be hers’ by morning. But she always talked like that. I didn’t realize, until she admitted it the next day, that she’d drugged you.”

He sighed. “I’m just glad she didn’t get pregnant. Can you imagine? It would’ve ruined my life.”

She said nothing.

“Angela?”

“That would have been terrible,” she said quietly.

He chuckled without mirth. “I don’t know many guys who’ve had to worry about being seduced against their will, especially at sixteen. Do you?”

“Stephanie was determined. When she wanted something, she stopped at nothing to have it.”

He studied her carefully, wondering why she was keeping him at arm’s length. “What about you?” he asked.

“What about me?”

“What do you do when you want something?”

She gazed up at the tree. “I try to think about how it’ll affect others.”

He knew her answer was significant. He just didn’t know in what way.

CHAPTER FIVE

“SO…DO YOU LIKE HIM?” As soon as they reached their room, Kayla sat cross-legged on the end of Angela’s bed and smiled eagerly, obviously expecting a girl-to-girl chat.

“He’s nice,” Angela replied, trying not to sound too enthusiastic.

“Just nice?”

Angela stepped into the bathroom to undress. “No, he’s cute, too.”

“Oh, my gosh!” she called back. “Cute? He’s like…Jake Gyllenhaal. Are you blind? I sat in there watching stupid television shows so you could be alone, and now you’re telling me he’s cute?”

“When I said he had a nice butt, you told on me,” Angela accused, trying to put Kayla on the defensive.

But when Angela emerged in her pajamas, she found Kayla stretched out on the bed, grinning unrepentantly. “Yeah, but he liked hearing it. He hasn’t been able to keep his eyes off you since.”

Angela’s head hurt from all the conflicting emotions. When she’d first decided to return to Virginia City, she’d expected to find Matt happily married with a few kids. She couldn’t show up on a man’s doorstep, a man who had a wife and children, and tell him he had another daughter he’d never even heard about. Not when the child had been conceived the way Kayla had. He wasn’t responsible for what had happened, so how could she justify disrupting his life and the lives of those he loved? Knowing she couldn’t do that had made her feel safe. She’d come here to put to rest the unsettling “what if” scenarios that had plagued her, even before she’d read Kayla’s essay. She’d wanted to validate the decisions that had been made in the past and gather more strength and determination to continue with things as they were.

Now she didn’t know what to do. She’d never bargained on Matt’s being single. Neither had she guessed that she’d be so attracted to him. Their interest in each other confused an already difficult issue. But with or without Kayla, she saw little chance that what they felt would ever turn into a committed, long-term relationship. They were both single at twenty-nine. That had to say something about them. Her life and her business were in Denver; his were here in Virginia City.

She wouldn’t tell him, she decided. Not yet. She didn’t know him well enough. Besides, as much as Kayla thought she wanted a father, Angela wasn’t sure the sudden upheaval and total change of situation would be good for her.

And yet…she felt guilty for keeping the secret. How could she deny Kayla the chance to know the man who’d fathered her? Especially when Angela had discovered it was Kayla’s deepest desire?

Smothering a sigh, Angela sat next to Kayla on the bed. What would be best for this girl? She’d promised Betty she’d never tell. But Betty had only been trying to right Stephanie’s wrong, to make sure others wouldn’t be hurt by it. When Betty had asked Angela for that promise, she’d been assuming Matt wouldn’t want to know he had a daughter.

Now, Angela wasn’t so sure. “What do you think of him?” she asked and tried to listen beyond the actual words.

“I think he’s great,” Kayla said. “Perfect.”

“In what ways?” she prodded.

“He listens when we talk. He’s patient and funny.”

“We’ve only known him a couple of days,” Angela said.

“That doesn’t matter. He won’t change.”

Angela pulled Kayla into an embrace. She thought the same thing. But she had to be positive. And, as she stroked the girl’s hair, she couldn’t help wondering—was Matt ready for the shock of his life?

CHRISTMAS WAS IN FOUR DAYS and Matt hadn’t bought a single present. He was reminded of that when his mother called him at work the following morning.

“You’re coming to the gift exchange, right?” she said.

He rolled away from his desk and locked his hands behind his head, stretching his aching back. He’d been doing paperwork since he’d arrived at seven, and it was nearly noon. “Why aren’t we having the party on Christmas Eve?” he asked.

“Because your uncle Jim’s leaving for New York. He and Don have wanted to see the city for years, and that’s their Christmas present to each other.”

“I see. So…” Matt rummaged through the stacks of papers on his desk to unearth his calendar. “When is it again?”

“Tomorrow night. At seven.”

“Okay. I’ll be there.” He jotted it down and started to hang up, but his mother was still talking.

“And do not have that friend of yours make Grandma any more eggnog,” she said.

He lifted the phone back to his ear. “Why not? She likes it.”

“It gives her gas.”

“Then why does she ask me for it?”

“The taste. Haven’t you ever liked something that wasn’t good for you?”

He was beginning to wonder if Angela fit into that category.

“You know how stubborn she is,” his mom added.