High-Caliber Christmas

by B. J Daniels

  What the hell? He was sure it hadn’t been there before. Or had it?

  He picked up the present and shook it suspiciously. It wasn’t ticking. He tore off the paper and opened the box. A shirt.

  He stared it at. Definitely not his style. But it was his size.

  Putting it back under the tree, he searched the rest of the house to see if anything else was missing—or added—since he’d been there.

  He found his suitcase in his old bedroom. It was empty. Opening the closet, he found his clothes hanging in the closet along with some of his old Western shirts. His underwear was neatly folded in his chest of drawers.

  Who? Kayley. He swore. Who else? She hadn’t just propped him up at the funeral, she’d decided to settle him in Whitehorse?

  Like hell.

  He stormed out of the bedroom and headed for his rented SUV.

  Kayley had said she was living just down the road in her folks’ old place. He saw her pickup parked out front as he turned down her road. He refused to think about all the other times he’d driven down this road, parked in front of the house and been like a member of her family.

  He climbed out, stormed past her truck and pounded on the front door. Moments later the door swung open and she stood there looking surprised to see him. She’d changed from the dress she’d been wearing earlier and now wore faded jeans, a T-shirt with an old worn flannel shirt over it that could have once been his. Her feet were bare.

  She frowned. “Jace?”

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  She blinked before narrowing her gaze at him. “I beg your pardon?”

  “I’m not staying in Whitehorse, and trying to move me back in here isn’t going to change anything.”

  “Are you talking about me showing up at the funeral? I thought—”

  “You know damned well that’s not what I’m talking about. Stay out of my house. Stay out of my life.”

  He turned and stalked back to his SUV. She was still standing in the doorway, staring after him as if he was crazy.

  Maybe he was. He sure felt on the edge. As he reached the highway, he knew he couldn’t go back to that house. He sat at the crossroads, not knowing which way to turn, telling himself he had to get out of this town, out of this state. This trip down memory lane was killing him.

  His cell phone rang. He checked the number, half expecting it to be Kayley. It was Cade Jackson, his one-time best friend and the husband of the reporter he’d met at the Milk River Examiner and had given his number.

  “I saw you at the funeral but didn’t get a chance to talk to you,” Cade said. “Want to get together for a drink?”

  Jace chuckled. “Boy howdy.”

  He heard the smile in his friend’s voice as he asked, “Remember Sleeping Buffalo? I thought you might want to get out of town.”

  “You are right about that.”

  “See you there in fifteen?”

  “Cade? Thanks.”

  SEEING HER SON HAD SHAKEN Virginia Winchester more than she wanted to admit. She’d seen the recognition in his gaze. He’d looked panicked.

  “You went to the funeral?”

  She turned to see her mother standing in the doorway, leaning on her cane.

  “I wanted to see him,” she said as she tossed her coat down on the bed.

  “Well?”

  “He’s my son.” Her voice broke. “I would think you would understand.”

  “He’s a grown man.”

  She turned to look at Pepper. “How could anyone not have known? He looks like the rest of our family.” She smiled. “He is so handsome and yet so…” She shook her head.

  “He’s home to bury his mother and uncle. Of course he looks sad.”

  “Not just sad. He looks as if his feet have been kicked out from under him. I felt so sorry for him.”

  “There is nothing you can do for him.”

  “I know.” She sat down on the side of her bed. Her mother leaned into the doorframe. Virginia was surprised to see compassion on her mother’s face.

  “I missed his whole life.” Her eyes burned with tears. She’d been so angry and bitter since learning the truth, but right now all she felt was heartbroken that she hadn’t known her son.

  “Marie did a good job of raising him. Everyone says he’s a fine young man,” her mother said.

  “Is that supposed to make me feel better? We both know you don’t think I could have done as good a job raising him.”

  “Marie was married and settled. But then so was I, and look how that turned out.”

  Virginia glanced over at her mother and saw the pain in Pepper’s expression. “You don’t believe Jordan would have married me, do you?”

  “His mother would never have allowed it.” Pepper let out a rueful chuckle. “I should know. I destroyed my own children’s relationships.”

  “You sound almost sorry about that.”

  Pepper smiled. “Almost. My sons had terrible taste when it came to women.”

  “You like McCall.”

  “Yes. She turned out all right in spite of her genes.”

  Virginia laughed. “You haven’t changed at all.”

  “Few of us do,” her mother agreed.

  When Virginia looked up again, the doorway was empty. Yet she felt as if that had been the first time she and her mother had ever had a civil conversation. Almost like what she considered normal mothers and daughters.

  CADE WAS SITTING AT the end of the bar when Jace walked in. His friend grabbed his beer and motioned to a booth at the back.

  They shook hands, and Jace felt as if it hadn’t been years since they’d last seen each other as Cade ordered them a round and they sat down.

  “So, what’s new?” Jace asked him.

  Cade grinned. “Still raising horses and running the bait shop. Got married. She said you met her. She keeps me on my toes.”

  Jace could see how happy he was. He remembered his mother telling him that Cade had married right out of high school but his wife had been killed in a car accident. She’d been pregnant, and it had taken years before he’d fallen in love again.

  Jace had known that kind of pain. Only the woman he’d loved hadn’t died. He’d deserted her.

  “I was really sorry to hear about your mom and uncle,” Cade said.

  “Thanks.”

  They talked about people they’d known. Jace noticed the way Cade didn’t mention Kayley.

  “I saw you limping at the funeral,” Cade said.

  Jace thought he’d hidden it well. Obviously not. Kayley, he knew, had noticed it as well, but she hadn’t said anything.

  “I would have been home sooner, but I ran into a little trouble.”

  Cade smiled. “I know if you told me, you’d have to kill me.”

  “Something like that.”

  “You happy?” Cade asked.

  Jace shrugged. He didn’t think of life in terms of happy or sad, good or bad. It just was. “I’m okay.” Cade nodded.

  “Has everyone always known about me?” Jace had to ask.

  “Hell, Jace, you look just like the Winchesters. I’m surprised someone didn’t put it together years ago. Maybe they did and just kept quiet about it. Everyone loved Marie and was so happy for her that she had you.”

  “I saw my birth mother earlier at the funeral. Virginia Winchester.” Jace swore and finished his beer.

  “I heard she was back in town. It doesn’t have to change anything.”

  He laughed. “Right. If you find out tomorrow that you’re not a Jackson, that won’t change anything.”

  “It would just mean I could stop trying to live up to my brother Carter,” Cade joked.

  “It was just a lot to be hit with. Audie…”

  “That did come as a shock. I’m sure he felt he was protecting his sister.”

  Jace shook his head. “It’s as if everything I believed was a lie.”

  “You know my old man married Lila Bailey, Chester’s ex-wife. They live in Fl
orida. Apparently they were always in love.” He shrugged. “It’s hard to know what’s in someone’s heart.”

  Yeah, he thought, thinking of Kayley.

  “Do you ever wonder what your life would have been like if you hadn’t left?” Cade asked as if knowing what his friend was thinking.

  Jace scratched at the label on the beer bottle with this thumb for a moment. “I did when I saw Kayley after all these years.”

  “I really did think the two of you were meant for each other.”

  Jace took a sip of his beer and said nothing.

  “I suppose she told you that she’s seeing Ty Reynolds.”

  Jace’s head jerked up.

  “I guess she didn’t,” Cade said. “They’ve been dating for a while now. I worried she’d just keep carrying a torch for you. I was glad to see her move on.”

  “She can’t be serious about him.” The words were out before he could call them back.

  Cade laughed. “Spoken like a jealous man. Ty’s crazy about her. I wouldn’t be surprised if he asked her to marry him at Christmas.”

  Jace took another drink of his beer, hating the way the news had made his stomach drop. “Ty’s a nice guy,” he said, making his friend laugh again. “You really did think she was going to wait around for you her whole life.”

  “No, it’s just…” He shook his head, thinking about what a jackass he’d made of himself earlier when he assumed it had been Kayley who’d moved him into his old bedroom. It had probably been some well-meaning friend of Marie’s, who was only trying to make him feel more at home. Not Kayley.

  What a fool he’d been to think she could still be in love with him after all these years and what he’d done to her.

  As he left the bar, he thought about dropping by her house again to apologize but realized it was much too late. No lights were on at her farmhouse as he drove past.

  Once in the house, he locked the doors and went up to his room. He thought about moving everything back into the guest room but was too tired and mellow after the beers he’d consumed and spending time with his old friend Cade.

  He lay down on his bed, thoughts drifting pleasantly in the past. He woke to the sound of the phone. The clock next to his bed read just a little after midnight. The phone rang three times before Jace could find it. “Hello.”

  He could hear someone breathing on the other end of the line.

  “Hello?”

  A soft click as the person disconnected.

  He hung up, thinking nothing of it. Just a wrong number.

  Chapter Five

  When Kayley opened the door the next morning, she looked wary.

  “I’m sorry,” Jace said.

  She leaned a hip into the door jamb and crossed her arms.

  “Someone was in my house. They put my clothes away and left me a present under one of those fake Christmas trees.”

  “The bastards,” she said. “Did they clean, too?”

  “I thought—”

  “I know what you thought.”

  “Yeah, well, I’m sorry. I really appreciated you letting me lean on you at the funeral.”

  “I did that because I knew you didn’t have anyone else.”

  “You felt sorry for me.”

  She didn’t deny it.

  “I never deserved you.”

  She said nothing, those blue eyes of hers simply watching him.

  “I guess I’ve proved once again what a jerk I am. I just wanted to apologize. I won’t bother you again.” He started to turn away.

  “If you’re through beating yourself up, would you like a cup of coffee? Unless you think it’s part of some evil plot.” She held up both hands. “Nothing up my sleeve.”

  “I’d like that,” he said, grinning.

  IT WAS THAT GRIN THAT had been responsible for her losing her virginity to him, Kayley thought as she held open the door and Jace stepped in.

  That grin, and her love for him. He’d been the love of her life. She’d been so happy when he’d asked her to marry him. Then just weeks later when she’d realized she was pregnant with his baby.

  She couldn’t help but remember the night she’d told him. Jace had tears in his eyes. She’d never seen him more excited. He was convinced it was a boy. He’d been right about that, she thought at the painful memory of her miscarriage.

  As she followed him back to the kitchen, she couldn’t help but notice that he’d filled out. He’d left Whitehorse a boy, but he’d come back a strong man. She noticed also that he was wearing cowboy boots again and his old black Stetson. She warned herself that it meant nothing.

  She poured him a mug of coffee, and he took a stool at the breakfast bar. She preferred to stand on the other side, cradling her own mug in both hands for the warmth.

  Having Jace in this kitchen again was too familiar. They’d spent so many hours here, sitting around talking and laughing. They’d been so close. She’d thought nothing on this earth could come between them.

  “How are you doing?” she asked although she knew.

  “I’ve been better.”

  She could see the sadness in his eyes, the hurt, the regret, the guilt. He hadn’t been here when his mother had died. She knew Jace and how that would always haunt him—even if he had a good reason, and she suspected he did.

  As hard as he tried not to, he was limping. Something to do with his job, she guessed. All she knew was that it was undercover and dangerous. Marie had worried about him. So had Kayley.

  “The place looks the same,” he said, glancing around.

  “Nothing changes in Whitehorse.”

  His gaze came back to her as he recognized his own words spoken to her the day he left her. He took a sip of his coffee, eyeing her over the rim of his mug. “Some things change,” he said as he put the mug down again. “I heard you’re dating Ty.”

  She nodded, keeping her gaze down.

  “I’m happy for you.”

  Kayley lifted her eyes to his. “Are you?”

  “Ty’s a nice guy.”

  She laughed. “You never could stand him, and you know it.”

  He laughed, too. She’d missed that sound.

  “You deserve better.”

  She shook her head. “If I didn’t know you so well, I’d think you were jealous.”

  He said nothing as he picked up his mug again.

  “So, when do you leave?”

  His head came up in surprise.

  “I know you aren’t staying. Whoever put your clothes away doesn’t know you as well as I do.” Jace had run away twelve years ago. With everything that had happened with his mother and uncle, he must be champing at the bit to get out of here.

  “I’m not sure. A couple of days.”

  She nodded.

  “Maybe we could have dinner.”

  “What did Cade tell you? That I’m serious about Ty? Is that what this is about?”

  “Are you serious about Ty?”

  She turned her back to him to take her mug over to the sink. “You want more coffee?”

  “No, thanks. You didn’t answer me. Are you going to marry this guy?”

  “He hasn’t asked me,” she said, turning to look at him again.

  “So that means you can have dinner with me?”

  “I can do whatever I want.” She hated that she sounded defensive.

  “Good.” He grinned. That damned grin of his. “Tonight? Come on, the whole town is already talking since you were by my side at the funeral. What could dinner at the Tin Cup hurt? Unless Ty won’t let you go.”

  Jace was so transparent. He knew she’d balk at even the suggestion that any man controlled her.

  “Great,” he said, seeing that he’d won. “I’ll pick you up at six.” He slid off the stool. “Thanks for the coffee and for forgiving me.”

  “What makes you think I’ve forgiven you?”

  His gaze locked with hers. How easy it would have been to fall back into those deep, dark eyes. “Maybe someday,” he said, regret making
his gaze bottomless.

  “Maybe.” She glanced at her watch. Time to get to work.

  And he was gone.

  She stood watching him drive away, just as she had twelve years ago. Only back then, she’d believed he would come back for her. Now she was much too smart for that. She’d only agreed to dinner because it had felt like a dare. Proof not only to Jace, but also to herself that she could let him go again.

  THE MOMENT JACE WALKED into the house, he’d known someone had been there again. For the past few days his instincts had been so off, he hadn’t trusted them.

  But his survival skills seemed to be improving, he thought as he checked the front door. No signs of a forced entry, and this time he’d remembered to lock it after finding a set of keys hanging by the back door.

  He moved cautiously through the house, doing a thorough search. This time he knew it wasn’t Kayley. He’d been a fool to think it had been her the other time. Just the thought of her made him excited about their dinner tonight.

  Cade said she’d moved on with Ty Reynolds. After tonight’s dinner, Jace thought he’d have a better idea of whether or not that was true.

  Not that he wasn’t happy for Kayley if it was. He just thought she deserved better than Ty. Kayley needed someone special. He didn’t want her to settle. When he was gone from here, he wanted to know that she was truly happy.

  As he finished his search of the house, he realized that, just as before, nothing seemed to be missing. Instead, someone had apparently left him another gift.

  The bottle of cologne sat on the shelf in his bathroom. He probably wouldn’t have noticed it if he hadn’t searched the place the day before.

  The bottle was new and not a brand he had ever used. He didn’t wear cologne, preferring a light aftershave. This cologne was one of those cloying scents he’d always hated.

  Why had someone left this for him? And how did they get in?

  Grabbing one of the hand towels, he picked up the cologne bottle and carried it downstairs, where he put it in a paper bag.

  For a moment he stood in the kitchen, debating what he should do. Was he really going to take this to the sheriff and ask her to check it for fingerprints?

  In a few days, he would be gone, so what would be the point? Maybe this was like the shirt, just someone’s idea of a thoughtful gift. Or maybe not.