Justin and Jill went and sat with their grandfather, and he wrapped his big arms around them.
This was the worst of times.
And, for the first time in twenty-two years, Kyle could feel that it could become the best of times. If they could just let go of the hurt and the regrets and remember the good.
Lexi had brought him that.
She’d brought healing into his heart and to his entire family.
This was a Christmas he’d always remember.
And Lexi was a woman he never wanted to forget.
* * *
A long time afterward, Kyle carried Steven, who’d fallen asleep, as he walked Lexi and Trista home. He was so quiet, she had no idea how he felt. She’d bared her soul tonight, and so had he. Their emotions were raw. They seemed to be moving toward something more, something involving a commitment, but this was no time for her to be making new commitments.
She’d made that mistake once before, marrying because she was hurting so much over losing her parents.
Kyle waited for her to unlock her door, then he stepped inside. “Which way to his bed?”
Trista said, “I’ll show you.”
Lexi watched as the two of them climbed the stairs, Trista with her hand on Kyle’s arm. This just felt so right. She wasn’t a young, lonely kid any more. She was a woman who’d been tested and tried and made it on her own. She had two children to protect. And she’d been ready to do that.
But she didn’t feel they needed protecting from Kyle. For the first time since her grandparents died, since Grandma had gone to join them, she felt complete. Safe. Like she was finally...home. She felt safe with him. And she felt as though her children were safe, too.
As she busied herself in her kitchen, mixing up three more cups of hot chocolate, she listened to Kyle’s and Trista’s low voices and laughter as they came back down the stairs. When he caught sight of Lexi, his face lit up in a smile.
He stepped up to her, wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and spoke in a low voice that made her shiver. “Thank you for tonight.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I mean what you did for my family. You and Alyssa together. My father is right. You create family wherever you are.” His voice was soft and gentle. He was a tender-hearted handsome warrior.
That’s just what the maiden in distress in her had always felt she needed. Now she wasn’t sure of anything any more. She teased with him, “You were definitely a huge challenge.”
Trista nudged Kyle’s arm. “Come on. Tell her what you saw.”
Kyle laughed. “I have it on good authority that the perfect Alexis Anderson is human, after all. You do realize blackmail goes both ways, don’t you?”
Puzzled, she looked back and forth between the two of them. “What did you see?”
Trista said, “I was telling him which bedroom was Steven’s, but he opened the wrong door and--“
”I saw your boxes,” he said gravely. “Your entire house looked fantastic within one day, but you have a bedroom with unpacked boxes. Do you know how pleased that makes me?”
She smiled. “Actually, I have two bedrooms full of boxes.”
“Even better. Now, how long does a man have to wait to get another piece of pie around here?”
Trista said, “You are such a pig.”
* * *
Back home, Kyle couldn’t sleep. He was emotionally drained from feeling his hurt and regrets, but he was also buzzing from time spent with Lexi.
Trying not to disturb the others sleeping in his house, he stepped into his office, turned on the computer and started to type.
Her biggest challenge. It was the second time she’d told him that. Her words rang in his ears. In his heart. He wanted to be more than a challenge. Much more.
He’d thought his biggest challenge was to finish this book. But he suspected it was going to be figuring out how to fit Lexi Anderson into his life. And how to convince her that she belonged there.
The words flowed from him. He worked for close to three hours, and got the last three scenes done. The three he’d been struggling with for weeks. The three that hadn’t worked before, but now did, effortlessly.
Lexi’d been right about that, too.
He’d always clung so tightly to the work, that he’d never realized he needed the relaxation. That by relaxing he could work better. Besides, she’d help him learn that if you were going to have writer’s block anyway, you might as well play.
He hoped he could remember that.
He typed the last paragraph.
Jared had always known it was the gardener, Lefty Sims. He’d just never been able to convince the police of it. He smiled at Melinda. “Want to go grab a Coke?” he asked. “As a reward for us discovering the murderer, that is?”