A Season Of Miracles

by Christine Michels

  Devon closed her eyes in despair “You’ll be home from your parents by Sunday afternoon, won’t you? I’ll come over to your place then, all right?”

  “Why not? I don’t have any plans.” He hung up in her ear.

  Lifting the receiver away from her head, Devon stared at it and then slowly replaced it on its cradle. Men!

  Trying to dismiss the fact that a relationship she had relied upon was falling down around her ears, Devon went to the closet. The new dress hung before her, and she fingered it indecisively. She really shouldn’t go to the dance Not with her emotions in turmoil the way they were. But she had promised Geoff, and, to be honest with herself, she wanted to go It had been a long time since she and Geoff had danced. She’d missed it. Would this new Geoff dance as well as the man she’d married? Would he lead with the same confidence? Hold her with the same gentleness? Or, would this be the area where this Geoff failed to live up to the expectations she held of the old Geoff?

  Two and a half hours later, Devon’s heart pounded erratically as Geoff led her through the steps of a dance, but its pounding was only partially from exertion. Having discarded his black suit jacket earlier, Geoff was excruciatingly handsome in black trousers and a snow-white shut that accentuated his dark attractiveness to perfection. And she wondered how she could ever have doubted that her husband would, once again, meet her expectations.

  Geoff danced as well as he always had, with an added measure of almost-menacing intensity, his eyes holding hers with unsmiling dynamism. He led her with the same confidence, and added a seductive quality of purpose. He held her with the same gentleness, but let her feel the unyielding strength in his arms and fingers. Devon swallowed as heat coiled in her lower abdomen. The changes in Geoff were subtle, but definite, and for the first time she admitted to herself that she found this darker, somehow more dangerous version of her husband almost unbearably attractive. He was seducing her. She knew it, and she was powerless to stop it, for his seduction was waged with his eyes and his soul rather than with words and touches. The sexual tension between them was so palpable that she was scarcely aware the music had stopped until Geoff drew her to a halt and offered her his arm.

  “Would you like to get something to eat?” he asked. Tingles of awareness raced through her body in reaction to the caress of his slightly rough baritone voice. “The ladies usually cater a pretty good meal.”

  Devon glanced toward the colorfully decorated buffet tables. Apparently the tradition in Northridge was to leave the buffet in place most of the evening for people to help themselves. People who ate, drank less and they had fewer problems with inebriated citizens As a result, the hall was organized in such a way that the dance went on in the center of the floor while people dined at the tables on the fringes

  Devon nodded mutely in response to Geoff’s query. She wouldn’t have been able to speak at that moment if her life had depended on it.

  Geoff flashed her one of his all-too-fleeting grins. “Good, ’cause I have to confess I’m famished.”

  She was too, she realized. She’d just been so caught up in other sensations that she hadn’t noticed. Devon managed to find her voice. “That’s what happens when you’re too wrapped up in your computer to even eat a sandwich. And I bet you didn’t stop when I left either, did you?”

  He shook his head. “I hooked up the modem and did some research on the Internet. Future-Tech has its own web page, did you know that?”

  Devon frowned thoughtfully. “I don’t recall anybody telling me about it, but I could be mistaken.” She looked at him. “So, did you learn anything more?”

  “I learned some things about Future-Tech that I needed to know,” he said as he picked a plate from the stack at one end of the buffet. “How many people it employs, management’s stated commitment to ongoing research and development in order to turn out innovative products at competitive prices, some of the details about product lines—” he shrugged “—that kind of thing ”

  Devon studied his profile. He seemed thoughtful. “You are the one who had the commitment to research and development, Geoff,” she said as she too picked up a plate. At Geoff’s indication, she preceded him along the buffet table laden with food

  Minutes later, they found an unoccupied table and, after setting down his plate, Geoff left to get some wine for them. When he returned, they ate, shared half a bottle of the wine, and talked Occasionally townsfolk would drop by the table to visit, wishing them a “Merry Christmas!” before bluntly asking “Jack” for an introduction to his companion. But they were unfailingly polite and welcoming, so Devon didn’t mind the interruptions. She was simply enjoying the evening, basking in the accord that had developed between herself and Geoff, and trying not to contemplate their next dance. Geoff was so easy to be with. Too easy to be with. Because of that, because of her seesawing emotions for both David and Geoff, her own future was now up in the air. She could no longer contemplate the weeks and months ahead with any certainty. And yet, tonight, none of that seemed to matter.

  “Where are the kids staying while you’re here?” he asked suddenly.

  “With my parents.”

  “Good,” he said with a nod, and Devon realized that he’d been considering the possibility that she’d left the children with David. She almost smiled. Now that would have been funny. David was good with the kids—kind if not particularly demonstrative—but the thought of them in his neat orderly apartment where even the magazines were stacked in a tidy little pile on the coffee table was a bit like picturing a lively pair of Saint Bernard puppies in a china shop.

  “I’m glad you’re coming home in time for Christmas,” she said, and then wasn’t sure she should have. She didn’t want him to misunderstand “It’ll be good for the children to have you back in their lives.” She hoped that he’d be able to recapture the camaraderie he’d once had with them. She hoped that he never remembered whatever it was that had made him a stranger to them all, or that, if he did, this time he’d be able to deal with it.

  Geoff nodded and then stared at her with something akin to horror in his eyes

  “What is it?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “I don’t know how I could have forgotten something so important.”

  “What?” she asked again.

  “Presents!” he exclaimed. “We’ll have to stop somewhere tomorrow so that I can get some presents.”

  Devon nodded. “Of course, if you like But I’m sure the children will be happy simply to have you home.”

  “Kids need presents,” he insisted.

  They had just finished their supper and were planning their tnp to Kelowna the next morning—Geoff had decided to follow her in his own vehicle since he’d need one when he got there anyway—when an exceptionally attractive blond woman approached their table. Devon estimated her age at twenty-five. “Hi, Jack,” she said She wore a short denim skirt, a fancy denim shirt decorated with sequins and metal studs, and high-heeled black sandals that showed far too much of her long, shapely legs as far as Devon was concerned.

  “Marissa,” Geoff acknowledged the woman with a nod and a faint smile. “You made it home all right the other night?”

  She nodded. “If I hadn’t, you would ’a heard about it,” she said with a feigned pout. “Standing me up like that. I may never recover from the blow to my ego.” Marissa’s voice was deep and husky, a Kathleen Turner voice that was undoubtedly the envy of every woman in town.

  “Uh-huh.” Geoff didn’t seem too concerned about the blow to her ego “Marissa, I’d like you to meet my.. friend, Devon Grayson. Devon, Marissa Grainger.” His hesitation was so brief that it was barely noticeable Was he beginning to think of her as his wife? Devon wondered. She found the idea inexplicably gratifying. But, of course, he couldn’t very well introduce her as his wife without opening himself up to a million questions from everyone in Northridge who still knew him as Jack Keller.

  Devon offered her hand and Marissa grasped it with a friendly smile. “Do
you mind if I steal this gorgeous hunk of male for a minute, Devon? He owes me a dance and I mean to collect.” She leaned forward to whisper in Devon’s ear, “Not that it will do me much good. He seems to have appointed himself the big brother I never had ever since the first time I met him. But a lady has to try.” She smiled and straightened, then continued in a normal voice, “I promise I’ll bring him back.”

  “Of course,” Devon said. Despite herself, she liked the unpretentious young woman. “Go ahead.”

  “You’re sure?” Geoff asked her. When she nodded, he rose and moved out onto the dance floor with Marissa Grainger who, as fate would have it, looked remarkably like a slightly younger and more flamboyant version of Geoff’s sister, Holly. No wonder Geoff had treated her like a sister. In some part of his mind, he must have felt the same protectiveness toward her that he’d always felt for Holly.

  But even knowing that didn’t keep Devon from feeling just a tiny bit jealous, for Geoff and Marissa looked wonderful on the floor together. His dark handsomeness was a perfect foil for her fair beauty; her flamboyant grace an interesting contrast to his restrained strength.

  “Well now,” a voice suddenly boomed at her side, “I can’t leave an attractive lady sitting all by herself at a public dance That would be a sin for sure.” Devon looked up into the handsome face of a tall blond man. “I’m Tom Kane,” he said, with a drop-dead gorgeous smile as he offered her his hand.

  Devon grasped his hand and smiled. “Devon Grayson”

  He nodded. “Merry Christmas, Devon,” he said in a low voice “May I have the pleasure of this dance?”

  Devon hesitated, but Geoff was still out on the dance floor with Marissa. “Why not?” she said with a smile. Kane offered her his hand and she accepted, allowing him to lead her onto the dance floor.

  Besides being breathtakingly handsome in a Slavic way, Kane was a smooth and accomplished dancer, Devon discovered. Yet dancing with him was comfortable rather than exciting.

  “I understand you’re in town visiting Jack Keller?”

  Devon looked up at him. “Yes. Do you know him well?”

  Kane shrugged. “It’s a small town. Everyone knows everybody to some degree. So, how long have you known him?”

  Devon hesitated She didn’t want to leave Geoff open to uncomfortable questions from his friends until he was ready to discuss their situation. “Not long,” she said. She wasn’t really being dishonest After all, when she thought about it, she really hadn’t known this Geoff long at all.

  “Did you meet around here?”

  Devon nodded. “At Deer Lake.”

  “Really?” Kane’s eyes searched her face and Devon received the distinct impression that he didn’t believe her, though why it should matter to him was beyond her understanding. “That’s interesting.”

  She nodded, but offered him nothing more as the song came to an end and they separated Devon looked across the dance floor to see Geoff escorting Marissa to a table on the other side of the hall A handsome young Brad Pitt look-alike was already seated there, apparently awaiting Marissa’s return. Her date, no doubt Geoff said something to him, the two men shook hands, and then Geoff turned to make his way back to their table That was when he caught sight of Mr. Kane with her

  His expression didn’t change so much as it...froze in place, an unreadable mask He veered toward them.

  Kane smiled. “Hi, Jack. I was just about to escort your lovely lady friend back to your table.”

  Geoff nodded cordially, but he didn’t smile Then again, he rarely did. Kane didn’t seem to take it amiss. “No need,” Geoff said. “I was planning on asking her to dance anyway.”

  Kane stepped back. “Well then, it was nice meeting you, Ms. Grayson. Thank you for the dance. Enjoy yourselves.”

  “Thank you. We will,” she said. Geoff said nothing.

  She turned to face him, stepping naturally into his arms as the music started up again. “Is something wrong?”

  His gaze was still on Kane “What did Sergeant Kane want?”

  “Sergeant Kane?” she repeated.

  He looked at her then. “You didn’t know?”

  She shook her head “He introduced himself as Tom Kane.”

  Geoff studied her face for a moment as though seeking something. “Did he ask you anything in particular?”

  “Just how long I’d known you. I told him not long. Why?”

  He seemed to relax slightly then. “No reason I guess. Just my instinctive paranoia surfacing again.” Then, with a fleeting smile, he said, “But, let’s just forget all that and enjoy the dance, shall we?”

  It was an invitation Devon couldn’t refuse. She felt his large warm hand on the small of her back, felt his thighs brush against hers as they moved, and knew she didn’t want this night to end. Tomorrow would bring with it so many uncertainties, so many decisions she wasn’t prepared to make. For tonight, all she wanted to do was bask in the sensation of being in Geoff’s arms again. Her limbs grew languorous and her blood thickened until it seemed to throb through her veins Her breasts swelled and tightened, becoming sensitive to the slightest brush of contact with his chest. And her heart contracted as she drank in his handsome face with her eyes. How could she have forgotten how absolutely gorgeous he was? And what the hell was she going to do about her complete lack of resistance to his charm?

  The music came to a stop and the musician spoke into the microphone. “Well, folks, for the second time tonight we have a couple standing right under the mistletoe. And a real nice couple they make too. Jack Keller, if you don’t kiss that lovely lady you’re with, I’ll come down there and do it for you With Angela’s permission, of course.” The speaker waggled his brows questioningly at a woman sitting on the sidelines who gave him a muck scowl and shook her head “Oops.” He laughed. “Guess you’ll have to do it, Jack.”

  As the crowd began to hoot and clap in good-natured encouragement, Devon cast a startled glance up. Sure enough, they’d ended the dance standing directly beneath the mistletoe. She felt the heat of a flush crawling up her cheeks Oh, boy! Now what had she gotten herself into?

  As she lowered her gaze to meet Geoff’s she found herself gazing into smoldering green embers, and the sound of the crowd faded to a dull roar as blood rushed through her veins in response to the accelerated pounding of her heart. Without a word, Geoff lowered his head to press his lips to hers It was a chaste kiss. The kind of kiss one bestowed amidst a crowd of people But the contact was pure velvet heat and it robbed her of both breath and thought.

  And then it was over, and the sound of the crowd rushed back in. “Would you like a drink?” Geoff asked.

  Devon nodded “Yes, please,” she replied in a tone scarcely above a whisper. She needed the opportunity to regroup, to gather her muddled senses.

  It was getting late, and they’d danced most of the night. Geoff sighed inwardly—he’d actually begun to think of himself as Geoff again—and wished he could delay the inevitable end of the evening. Then, he looked down once more at the woman in his arms God, she was beautiful. He couldn’t seem to get enough of looking at her. Slowly, leisurely, he traced the delicate bones of her bare shoulders with his eyes wishing he could do it with his lips instead. Then, lifting his gaze to hers, he almost missed a step. For the sultry, hungry look in her eyes could mean only one thing: she was as attracted to him as he was to her. But in the next instant she blinked and focused her gaze beyond his shoulder, and he couldn’t be absolutely sure that he hadn’t simply imagined something that he very much wanted to see.

  “Well folks, it’s well past midnight and this will be the last song,” the band’s singer suddenly announced. “Merry Christmas everyone’ You’ve been a great audience, and we hope you enjoyed the evening.”

  Oh, yeah! he had definitely enjoyed the evening, Geoff thought as the audience clapped their appreciation And he still wasn’t ready to let Devon out of his arms. Unfortunately, he wasn’t going to have a choice in the matter As the song ended, he re
leased her with more than a twinge of regret. “I guess we’d better get going.”

  She nodded. “Yes. We’ll want to be on the road by midmorning at the latest.” Did she too sound just a little bit regretful? He hoped so.

  “I could have danced another hour or more,” he mused.

  She smiled. “It’s been a long time, and it was fun.”

  They retrieved their coats, and left the hall. The night air was cnsp, condensing their breath in small clouds of steam as they moved across the parking lot to the Bronco. Geoff unlocked the door and silently aided Devon in before moving around to the driver’s side After starting the vehicle and activating the heater, he turned to her. He could barely see her in the darkness—it was an overcast night—but he could smell her perfume. At odd moments throughout the night, he’d caught himself inhaling deeply in order to better appreciate its gentle fragrance. He would never grow tired of its subtle exotic flowery scent. “We still have some plans to make,” he said. “Would you like to stop by my place for coffee?” The hall where the dance had been held was on Lake Shore Drive, beyond his place, so they’d have to pass his cabin on the way back to the bed-and-breakfast anyway.

  He could feel her gaze on him in the darkness, and for the longest time, she didn’t reply. Finally she murmured, “What kind of plans?”

  “Where I’m going to stay in Kelowna, for one,” he said. “When you’re going to reintroduce me to the staff at Future-Tech and what we’re going to tell them. What kind of role I’m to play in the kids’ lives for the first while. That kind of thing.” He shrugged. “I want as much as possible settled before we get there, and since we’re driving down in separate vehicles, we won’t be able to discuss it on the way.”

  He sensed more than saw her nod “All right, Geoff. But I can’t stay for long.” Her tone was wary. She probably didn’t trust his motives.

  Smart lady! Because he fully intended to seduce her, to make her admit that there was still something between them, while he still had the home advantage.