Chapter 21
December 22, 2006
Rachel finally sat down at the kitchen table with a mug of coffee. She'd been on the go since early that morning. But now she was nearly done and she was allowing herself a break. Kevin was picking Jemma up at school in an hour. Aaron was spending the day at Tim and Tracy's, with his cousins. And at the moment, Kevin was also at Tim and Tracy's house. She thought back to that morning.
She was up and fixing breakfast when Kevin came into the kitchen.
"Mornin'," he yawned. "What's up for today? You're up awfully early."
She grinned. "Not really. You're the one who's up early."
"Don't play word games with me at this hour," he grumbled. "How the hell was I supposed to sleep with you down here banging around?" He grinned up at her as he sat at the table.
"It never stopped you before," she teased.
"Is the coffee ready yet?" he groaned.
She chuckled as she brought him the pot and a mug. "Think that'll keep you for a while?" He shot her a mock glare and poured. "As for what's up for today," she continued. "Shopping. Speaking of which, have you done any for your family yet?"
Kevin shook his head. "I know pretty much what I want to get-except the for kids." He looked up at her. "Got any ideas?"
"How about a list?" she smiled. "That way you can pick and choose. Also, I don't know how you handle Santa-."
"I'm not sure myself. Mom-always took care of it. I guess I'll have to check with Tim and Tracy." He looked down at the table. "How lame is that?" he whispered.
"Kevin-don't do that," Rachel said gently. "You're changing things. That's what counts."
Kevin cleared his throat and looked up again. "Okay. So-shopping. That's going to be most of the day. Then what?"
"Jemma's play at school this evening," Rachel reminded him. "She has to be there by six-thirty-the play starts at seven. We'll probably be home by eight-thirty. These things don't usually last very long."
"Okay. And what are you going to do today?"
"Me?" she said in surprise. "I've got cleaning and shopping of my own to do. You've got two parties scheduled here in the next three days."
He tipped his head to one side and smiled. "Do you mind?"
"No," she said softly, thinking 'That's where Aaron gets that from-that head tilt when he's asking a question.'
As they walked through the house to the front door, Kevin grimaced. "I know the kids are happy with the decorations, but don't you think it looks a little like a three-ring circus in there?" he asked, gesturing toward the living room.
Rachel laughed. "Personal opinion? Yes. But I don't know what they're accustomed to. How much did your mother do?"
"I don't remember it being this much," he chuckled. "And I don't see how we're going to be able to pull back now. They'll notice if something's gone."
"Let me work on it," she said with a smile. "I'll see what I can do."
* * *
And after she had taken Jemma to school, deposited Aaron at Tim and Tracy's, and completed the grocery and gift shopping, she had gotten to work on it. She smiled to herself, finished her coffee and took the mug to the sink to rinse it out. Back to work, she thought. As she headed toward the den, she stopped in the living room and switched on the stereo. Handel's Messiah filled the house with music and she moved happily down the hallway to complete the last of her tasks in preparation for the holiday parties coming up.
When Kevin arrived home with Jemma and Aaron, he was immediately aware of the changes Rachel had made. He smiled. She had done it. Toned things down to suit him, and still kept all the things the kids wanted displayed. It had been a simple redistribution process. The decorations were now scattered throughout the house, instead of being concentrated all in one room. And she had added more greens to connect things together. There were pine swags twined around the newel post at the bottom of the stairs and running up the banister to the second floor. Pine boughs across the mantle above the fireplace in the living room, and draped over the tops of the windows. Not a lot of bows and stuff-just the greens, with some pinecones still attached. When she emerged from the back of the house, Kevin smiled at her and said softly, "Thank you. It looks great."
Jemma and Aaron now had a new game to play. They hunted through the house to discover where Rachel had moved the various decorations. Rachel let them play while she fixed an early dinner. And then they were off to the school. The play was a rousing success and Jemma got to show off her Daddy to her admiring classmates.
On their return to the house, the children insisted on turning on the Christmas tree lights and all of the other lighted decorations in the living room. They then sat, staring at the tree for some time. Rachel finally insisted that they had to get to bed. When she returned half an hour later, from tucking them in, she found Kevin turning things off. He looked up and grinned. "It's still a little 'busy' in here," he said apologetically. Rachel smiled and reached over to turn off the switch for the tree. "Well, we don't have to turn all of it off," he protested. She flipped the switch, plunging the room into darkness.
"Come on-I have something to show you," she said softly. Her voice coming out of the darkness sent shivers up his spine. He groped his way to the door and her hand closed around his. She led him down the hallway to the door of the den.
"Rachel-what?" he started to ask. And then she pushed the door open and he exhaled softly. "Whoa."
"Do you like it?" she asked. There was a fire crackling in the fireplace, and the only other light in the room came from the small Christmas tree in the corner. Decorated only in tiny white lights and silver fabric bows, it was simplicity itself. The sofa had been slipcovered in a white and silver brocaded fabric that caught and reflected the firelight, and again the motif of pine boughs connected everything together.
Kevin unconsciously slid his arm around Rachel's shoulders as he stood in the doorway surveying the room. "It's beautiful, Rachel," he breathed.
"I thought you could use a more grown-up atmosphere-kind of a retreat from all the 'crazies' out there," she smiled. "Go sit down. I've got some cider mulled in the kitchen. I'll bring it."
When she returned to the den, she found Kevin stretched out on the sofa. He smiled up at her. "This is wonderful," he said quietly. "So peaceful." He paused as Rachel handed him a mug of warm, spiced cider and sat down on the floor in front of the sofa. "You were busy today." He looked down at her. She was leaning back against the sofa, looking at the fire and her face was in profile to him. The firelight played across her features. She turned and realized he was watching her.
"It was a good busy," she smiled. "I enjoyed it." She turned back to gaze at the fire again. The flickering of the flames was mesmerizing her. The hissing of the logs was the only sound in the room. Her eyes closed.
"Rachel?" His voice was as soft as a caress. "Do you ever wear your hair down?" Her heart began to beat a little faster.
"Sometimes," she whispered. Her eyes were still closed. And then she felt his hand-gently smoothing her hair. As it traveled toward the back of her head he fingered the clip that held it in place.
"Can I-?" he asked softly. She bit her lower lip and nodded almost imperceptibly. She felt the clip loosen as he squeezed it and then her hair slipped free and cascaded down her back.
Kevin's breath caught in his throat as he inhaled. He set the clip aside and reached back to touch the mass of wavy auburn hair that pooled behind her on the sofa. "Why do you hide this?" he whispered. "It's beautiful." He continued to stroke her hair.
Rachel took a deep breath and cleared her throat. "Well, it's-um-not very business-like, and it does get in my way when I'm cleaning-and-cooking. It's-just easier to-to pin it up-out of the way." She slowly pulled away from the danger that was his hand on her hair. "I really need to get to bed," she said as she stood up. "There's still a lot to do tomorrow to get ready for the parties. I'll-see you in the morning."
As she turned away, Kevin reached up and caught her hand. "Would you wear it down for the parties?" he asked quietly.
She looked down in surprise. "The parties? I hadn't expected to be here."
"Why not?"
Rachel looked into his eyes. He wasn't joking. "Well, I do have to put in an appearance with my family at some point," she smiled. "And it's all of your professional 'family' here on Christmas Day-I don't think I fit into that picture. And Christmas Eve is your family."
"Don't you think you fit in with my family?" he asked. He chuckled softly. "I'm sure some of them would say you fit better than I do." He paused. "It hadn't even occurred to me that you wouldn't be here. I'm sorry. It was rude of me to just assume-Rachel, I'd really like it if you could be here-for both parties. Couldn't you visit with your family Christmas Day before the guys get here?"
She couldn't look into those eyes a moment longer. "I don't know," she whispered. "I'll have to see." She hesitated. "Thank you for the invitation."
Kevin was still holding her hand. Now his thumb massaged it gently. She looked at him again. "I hope your answer is yes," he said softly. There was a pause. He let go of her hand and she started toward the door. "Rachel-?" His whisper stopped her in her tracks. She turned. "Wear it down." He smiled and she returned the smile uncertainly for a second before she escaped.
Chapter 22
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