LITTLE MISS INNOCENT?

by Lori Foster

  “Come on. Brooding over here in the corner isn’t going to prove anything. And Annie is starting to give us worried glances. Besides, if you hide over here too long, Max will join you and try to steal a kiss, which will provoke Daniel just as Max hopes it will, and they’ll start arguing. Christmas will be ruined.”

  Lace laughed. “So I have the power to single-handedly ruin a holiday for the entire family? I don’t think so.”

  “I know so.” Guy took her arm and herded her back to the living room. Lace felt like a shrimp beside him, he was so tall, a good three or four inches taller than Daniel and Max, who shared a similar height of six feet.

  Daniel called everyone to dinner and Guy played the gallant, seating her next to him. Annie sat across from Guy, and Daniel and Max took opposite seats at the head and foot of the table.

  They were still serving themselves when Max said, “Heard your show last night, Lace.”

  She scooped up a serving of mashed potatoes and passed on the bowl. Without looking up, she said, “That was a fun one, wasn’t it?”

  “I thought so.” Then Max added, “And damned sexy.”

  “I wanted to do something a little more lighthearted for the holidays.”

  Guy handed her the platter of ham, then joined in. “I heard it, too. I loved the fellow who told how he’d met his wife in the back of a taxi they’d shared on Christmas Eve, both of them rushing to get a last-minute gift.”

  Annie leaned forward. “I heard that! It was so funny. Imagine practically making love to a stranger in a taxi!”

  The sound of a chair scraping back drew everyone’s attention. Daniel stood there, glaring at Lace. “Excuse me.”

  He walked out of the room, stiff-legged and stone-faced. Lace threw down her napkin, muttering to herself.

  Max burst out laughing. “God, he’s got it bad. I wish I could get him to listen to one of your shows, Lace. Imagine his reaction.”

  Lace turned her narrowed gaze on him. “He’s never even listened?”

  Annie reached across the table to pat her hand. “Now, Lace. You know how he is. Don’t let it bother you.”

  Guy just pursed his mouth and looked thoughtful.

  “I should probably go. Daniel obviously doesn’t feel comfortable and I feel like an intruder.”

  Vehement rebuttals followed her statement until Daniel reentered and calmly set a bowl on the table. He scanned the group, his eyes finally landing on Lace, his expression once more composed. “I forgot the sweet potatoes.”

  Max chuckled. “Can’t have Christmas dinner without sweet potatoes.”

  Other than the music in the background, silence reigned while everyone finished serving themselves and began to eat. Guy endeared himself to Lace for all time when he reopened the conversation.

  “I’ve listened to quite a few of your shows, Lace, and I think you do a fantastic job. It always amazes me how many people call in, and how open you are about things, making them comfortable, giving them someone to talk to when they have no one else.”

  Annie glanced at her brother, then lifted her chin. “She does a great service. Even the show last night, though it didn’t concentrate on problems, gave people a chance to remember how they’d felt when they fell in love for the first time. One man said he and his wife had been arguing about how expensive the holidays have gotten and how much she’d spent, when your show came on. Then he got to thinking, remembering when they’d met and all they’d been through, and instead of arguing, they … well…” Annie blushed, her gaze going to Guy. “You know.”

  Lace sighed. “They made love. I know. Too often people forget what is important and get wrapped up in the little things that annoy. It’s all too easy to forget your priorities.”

  Max nodded, trying to look serious. “Like making love.”

  Exasperated, Daniel threw a spoon at him. “Will you knock it off?” But it was obvious he wasn’t really angry because he chuckled. “You’re such a damned reprobate, Max.”

  “It’s my most redeeming quality.”

  They all laughed and after that, conversation resumed at a normal level. Lace stayed quiet, wishing herself elsewhere, anywhere other than in the midst of this family camaraderie. She felt out of place, and very uncomfortable. Fearing she might start another squabble, she simply stayed quiet and ate. Several times she felt Daniel watching her, but she refrained from looking at him, giving all her attention to the removal of the walnuts from her fruit salad.

  When they all returned to the living room to open gifts, Lace tried to sidle off to a corner alone, but somehow she ended up sandwiched on the couch between Annie and Max. Guy sat on the floor across from them and Daniel passed out presents.

  Max was incorrigible, shaking every gift, making wild guesses about what might be inside. Annie and Guy ridiculed him, saying he’d be lucky to get more than a lump of coal.

  After all the presents were dispersed, Daniel held up an arm, gave them all a huge smile, then dropped his hand as if signaling a race. The unwrapping began, and Lace, who’d had visions of a very dignified display, laughed hysterically at the frenzied ripping of silver paper and colorful ribbons.

  Annie “oohed” over her teddy, then held it up to show the others. Max cursed, Guy’s ears turned red and Daniel cast a frown at Lace.

  Lace waited, on edge as the others opened presents. But her fears were unfounded. Max cheered over his jazz CD and Guy launched a sermon on the type of fish to be won with his new lures. Lace was relieved by their apparent satisfaction of her gifts and her insecurity was put to rest.

  She sat there smiling, pleased with herself, until Max nudged her to open her own gifts. Tentative, Lace opened her gift from Max. Inside a sturdy box, nestled in tissue paper, she found a sculpted kitten of colorful carnival glass. The kitten frolicked, rolling itself playfully around a shiny ball. Lace bit her lip and thought of the perfect place to put the treasure, in the window over her kitchen sink where the sunlight would pour through it.

  “It’s beautiful, Max. Thank you.”

  Max grinned at her, looking almost bashful, and for the first time, she gave him a kiss. He pretended to swoon, much to Daniel’s disgust.

  “Now mine.” Guy prodded his present toward her. She hadn’t realized that everyone else had finished with their gifts, their enthusiasm making the process speedy in comparison with her restraint. She pulled the ribbon aside and carefully unfolded the paper. She found a beautiful selection of pastel-colored stationery bordered with flowers, her initials embossed on the top in bright, elegant script.

  She ran her fingers over the lettering and then smiled. “Oh, Guy, it’s perfect.”

  “So glad you like it. I know you do a lot of correspondence.”

  She accepted Guy’s hug and did her best to ignore the way Daniel scrutinized her reactions. She didn’t want anyone to know how emotionally touched she was by the gifts. She didn’t want them to know how needy she suddenly felt.

  Annie dropped a package in her lap. “Mine next. Come on, Lace, you’re so slow.”

  Lace laughed, wiped at her eyes and, to please Annie, ripped the paper away. She eased her gift from the box, and it unfolded into an incredible mobile of crystal birds in every color. Fifteen birds hung suspended from gold chains at various levels. “Oh, Annie.” Almost breathless, Lace searched for words. “It’s … it’s…” She bit her lip and shook her head.

  Annie laughed at her surprise, and they hugged each other, laughing and crying, oblivious to the indulgent male smiles surrounding them.

  “My turn.” Daniel picked up a large flat package, two feet by three feet. Annie scrambled to get the other presents from Lace and pile them together. When Daniel set the package in her lap, Lace blinked at the weight of it.

  “Careful. It’s fragile.”

  Lace couldn’t begin to imagine what it might be and she hesitated, looking at Daniel and feeling shocked at the tenderness in his eyes. She licked her lips and Max nudged her.

  “Don’t leave us i
n suspense. Get the thing open.”

  Teasing herself, Lace pulled away a corner of the paper, peeked inside, then covered it again. Her hand went to her throat and she blinked at all of them.

  “What is it?” Annie asked.

  Guy leaned forward. “Yeah, what did he get you?”

  “It’s too much.”

  Daniel shook his head. “I thought it was suitable.”

  “Oh, it is. But Daniel, it’s…”

  “Open the damn thing,” Max complained.

  Daniel nodded, encouraging her, watching closely to see her reaction, and Lace took a deep breath. She peeled back the paper and a beautiful, oak-framed stained glass appeared. The colorful glass was arranged in an exquisite profusion of spring flowers, delicately crafted, so many colors intertwined and complementing each other that even Guy and Max stared in wonder. Lace’s black sweater and slacks made a dramatic backdrop for the brightness of the glass as she held it balanced on her lap.

  Lace knew it was an artist’s piece, not a factory product. She could barely breathe, it was so beautiful, and so perfect. Already, she wanted to see it with the sunshine glowing through it, over it. She imagined it hanging in her bedroom, the many colors floating across her rainbow bed in the morning, brightening her day. She laid it flat on her lap.

  Burying her face in her hands, she burst into tears.

  She wasn’t sure how it happened, but suddenly there was a lot of shuffling and murmuring and she was alone in the room with Daniel and he was lifting the glass carefully away from her. His arms went around her and he hushed her with whispered words. “It’s all right, Lace.”

  She shook her head. She felt like an idiot, started to say so and hiccupped instead. “How did they all know?”

  “That you like color?”

  She nodded.

  “I don’t think they’re all as stupid as I am. They know you, Lace. They care about you.”

  That made her cry harder. She didn’t want them to care about her. Did she?

  Daniel handed her his hankie. “I hope these are tears of happiness, that you’re not considering breaking the glass over my hard head.”

  “And ruin my gift? No, I wouldn’t do that.”

  “I’m glad.” He rubbed her back. “You know, you scared poor Annie to death.”

  “I’m sorry.” Lace buried her face in his shoulder and refused to surface. She felt shamed to her very bones at her ridiculous display and didn’t want to face anyone, much less Daniel.

  “No reason to be sorry. Annie shuffled everyone into the kitchen to help with coffee. Max and Guy probably think it’s your time of the month or something.”

  Lace slugged him in the stomach for that male-inspired observation, and he grunted, then grabbed her fist and flattened it on his thigh. “Be fair, Lace. To the average man, that’s a thing of mystery. Men feel safe accounting all excessive female displays on a woman being womanly.”

  “The average man? I take it you’re excluding yourself from that category?”

  “I’m a doctor. Of course I’m exempt.”

  “I love my gift, Daniel. Thank you.”

  He cupped the back of her head and tilted her face up. When she allowed it, he wiped at the tears on her cheeks. “It feels so damn good to hold you again, Lace. You’ve made me miserable these past few days.”

  “Good.”

  A smile tilted his mouth. “You like it that I was unhappy?”

  “I like it that I wasn’t the only one feeling horrible.”

  He kissed her, but when they heard the conversation in the kitchen, he broke away.

  “Does your family know we’re … involved?”

  Stroking her cheek with his thumb, he smoothed away a new tear and smiled. “Nah. They figured I was the most qualified to deal with your hysteria, so they ran like the cowards they are and left me to fend for myself.”

  Mortification had her hiding her face again. “This is awful. I’m so embarrassed.”

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t tease you.” He kissed her temple and then set her away from him. “They know you well enough, Lace, to know you’re usually alone on the holidays. And they know how emotional this time of the year is for everyone. No one thinks anything of it.”

  Running her fingers through her hair in an attempt to straighten it, Lace considered what to do next. She couldn’t quite bring herself to look at Daniel.

  “Would you like to help me pick up all this paper, then we can join everyone else?”

  “Do you think they really liked my gifts? I wasn’t sure…”

  “Yes, they did. Very much.”

  Hearing the emphasis on “they,” Lace grinned. She’d deliberately held his gift back, not wanting him to open it in front of everyone. “I have something for you, Daniel. But you have to wait until later.”

  His gaze darkened and he looked at her mouth with interest. “I hope it’s what I’m thinking.”

  She laughed. “Well, it’s not, so stop thinking it.”

  “Go away with me, Lace.”

  Her heart skipped a beat. “What?”

  “Go away with me.” He took her hands and held them close. “I know you have some time off now. Annie told me you’re on vacation until after the first of the year. I am, too. Go away with me.”

  She stared at him, her body already heating in anticipation and her stomach growing tight. She carefully considered her response. “Go away, where?”

  “I have a cabin. We could go there.”

  “I’ve never heard anything about a cabin.”

  “That’s because I’ve told very few people about it.”

  “Wait a minute.” A horrible suspicion began to gnaw on her brain and she glowered. “Why would you be secretive about the cabin?”

  He looked away, then back again. “It just seemed appropriate, Lace.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Is this some secret bachelor’s cabin where you conduct your little liaisons? Is this where you gained all that damned experience you used against me?”

  He frowned. “Lower your voice. And I didn’t use anything against you, dammit. I gave you pleasure.”

  “Ha! Answer my question. Is this where you take women you have affairs with so that your reputation won’t get tarnished?”

  His face reddened and to Lace, that was as good as an admission of guilt. She started to stand and he grabbed her. “Wait a minute. It’s not like that at all. I’ve always tried to be discreet, something readily agreed on by the ladies involved, and this was the easiest way. But I haven’t been there since I first met you and I only ask now so that we can be alone together, uninterrupted.”

  “You don’t want anyone to know we’re sleeping together!”

  He pulled off his glasses and rubbed his face. “Lace, I’m not ashamed of being with you, if that’s what you think. But I think we need time alone together to sort things out.”

  “What’s there to sort? We wanted each other. It’s as simple as that.”

  “Nothing about it was simple and you know it.”

  “It was for me.”

  He shook his head. “Okay, then. You say you slept with me because you wanted to. So what’s changed? And don’t tell me you don’t want me anymore, because I won’t believe you.”

  She didn’t have a ready answer. And despite her arguments and indignation, she desperately wanted to go with him. “I’ll have to think about it.”

  He made a sound of disgust and stood. “You do that.”

  Lace watched him begin snatching up tattered paper from the floor with excess energy. He wadded it into tight balls and hurled it all into the fireplace, where the paper burst into colorful flames. Lace stood to help him, her thoughts whirling.

  As she tossed her own wad of paper into the fire, Lace shook her head. Daniel would someday get over his ridiculous conclusions that love was harmful and too powerful. Then he’d marry some prim and proper little lady, probably a doctor’s daughter or some such, and he’d live happily ever after in esteemed propriety.<
br />
  And, like her mother, she’d miss him forever.

  Lace squeezed her eyes shut and tried to push that troubling thought away, but it had rooted itself deeply and she felt buried beneath it. A wad of paper hit her in the rump and she turned. Max grinned at her.

  “Sorry. You’re blocking the fireplace.”

  With an evil smile and a sigh of relief to be distracted, Lace wadded another ball. Max went running. He caught Guy, who’d just started to wander in, and used him as a shield. Unfortunately, Lace had already let the wadded paper ball fly and it hit Guy square in the chest. He went stock-still and stared.

  Lace took a step back, trying to stifle her laughter, but the expression on Guy’s face proved to be too much and she giggled.

  “Okay, then.” Guy advanced, slowly, keeping Lace in his sights. Lace held out her hands, trying to ward him off even as she laughed some more. Just as he was ready to pounce, Annie slipped up behind him and slapped a huge red bow to the top of his head, where it clung to his short hair. Guy whirled on her and they both went running. Max watched them go, then hustled around the room gathering up new paper bombs, preparing for their return. He loaded up his arms and crept off after them.

  Daniel slipped his arm around Lace. “They’re all nuts, aren’t they?”

  She smiled. “Wonderfully so. You don’t mind that they’re racing through your house?”

  “Why should I?”

  Since she couldn’t think of a single reason, she shrugged. They heard squealing from the guest bedroom and Max came tearing out, Guy right behind him, pelting him repeatedly in the back of the head with the paper bombs. They flashed past into the kitchen where a loud crash followed. Annie, her feet now missing her sexy high-heeled shoes, came through with her own arsenal, in hot pursuit.