Christmas Kisses (Romance on the Ranch Series #5) (9 page)

Cecelia arched into Mac. Everything about the
man intoxicated her—his slight, soapy smell, his rough countenance, his longish
black hair, his stormy grey eyes that sometimes became azure when he smiled,
his love for his child, but most of all, his spirit trying to find its way out
of a dark place. She wanted to be his salvation. She wanted her love to rescue
this tormented man.

For a long time she caressed him and allowed him
access to every secret place in her body and heart. Never had she felt such
all-consuming love. And when their bodies joined, she whispered her love.

After their passion was assuaged, Mac lifted
slightly above her. He kissed her forehead and moved his mouth to her ear. He
whispered, "Beautiful Cecelia, your love is misplaced with me. I'm cynical
and jaded. I do not believe in happily-ever-after. But if I did, you would be
the one to break me free of my prison."

His words touched Cecelia so much that she brought
her lips back to his, and said against them, "I expect nothing from you.
Like I told you before, I'm here until January. My desire is for you to enjoy
the holidays with your son. Can we share this Christmas with Sean without
expectations or judgments or thoughts of the future? Can we live in the now for
just a few weeks?"

Mac responded without removing his mouth.
"When you say it like that, how can I refuse?" He kissed her deeply
and rejoined his body to hers.

*

Sean waved at Harris as he approached the
theater. He was glad to get his mind off his father. The guy was impossible.
Before his dad had gotten into one of his funky moods at the table, Sean had
actually been enjoying Thanksgiving dinner. He'd even admitted his ability to play
music. If he had a kid, he'd sure want to hear him play something. The look on
his father's face had said everything—the last thing Mac wanted was to hear
Sean play anything. The rejection had hurt so much he'd almost cried.

He caught up to Harris who was already standing
in line. It wasn't until his friend stepped sideways that he saw Tessa. Harris
said, "My mom and dad invited Tessa's family to Thanksgiving at our house
and I thought she might like to see the movie, too."

Sean nodded. "Hi, Tessa."

When she gave him her sweet smile, his heart
started tripping all over itself and he forgot about his hurt over his dad. He
couldn't think of anything else to say. Thankfully, the line started forward
and she stepped so that her back was to him.
She probably thinks I'm an
idiot!

Inside the theater, Harris waved to Toby and
Preston. Sean groaned. He had no trouble telling the twins apart. Preston
always eyed him with animosity. He liked Toby, but Preston not so much. The
twins walked over and Preston said, "Hi, Tessa. Didn't know you would be
here."

Sean thought,
What a lame thing to say.

Tessa said, "Hi, Preston. Hi, Toby."

Sean saw Tessa glance across the room and her
expression changed slightly. He turned to see whomever or whatever she'd seen.
A boy, probably about the same age as Tessa, glared at her. Preston leaned
toward her. "Don't worry about him. If he bothers you, me and Toby will
kick his butt."

Sean was all ears at this latest development.
When the others started down the hallway toward the movie screens, he leaned
toward Harris and whispered, "What was that all about?"

Harris whispered back. "That guy is a real
jerk. His name is Jared and he likes to make Tessa's life miserable. He calls
her Tubby Tessa."

Sean jerked his head around to stare at Jared
and then back at Harris.

Harris nodded. "Yeah. He's a creep. I guess
no one knew about his bullying until he slipped up and Tessa's stepmom caught
him. My mom was there and the way she tells it, Mrs. Branigan lit into the kid
something terrible. Tessa's dad contacted the guy's parents and he caught holy
hell. Although Tessa's never said anything, I think he still gives her a bad
time when no one's around to hear."

Sean clenched and unclenched his fists. If there
was one thing he hated, it was bullies, and for someone to treat a sweet girl
like Tessa so badly, it made him want to pound him. While they walked up the
stairs to find seats, Sean positioned himself so that he could sit next to
Tessa. He saw Harris try to hide a smile. He didn't care. When Toby pulled
Preston to the row in front of theirs, Sean grinned at his good fortune of
Preston not sitting on the other side of Tessa. He searched the theater for
Jared and when he entered and sat in a front row, Tessa seemed to relax.

Harris said, "Hey, Tessa, now that we have
our seats, you can save them while me and Sean get popcorn and sodas. What do
you want to drink?"

Tessa said, "Seven-Up," and reached
into her pocket for money.

Sean said, "No. Keep your money. I got
it." Before she could protest, he stepped into the aisle.

Preston turned in his seat and asked,
"Tessa, will you watch our seats, too, so Toby and me can get snacks? Can
I get you anything?"

"Sure, I'll watch your seats. And no, I
don't need anything."

Preston and Toby followed Harris and Sean to the
concession stand. While they waited in line, Preston said to Sean. "If you
say anything hurtful to Tessa, I'll kick your ass."

Sean turned incredulous eyes on the kid.
"Now why the hell would I do that?"

Preston shrugged, "Just sayin'."

The kid behind the counter called, "Next!"
and when Sean stepped forward, Preston said, "You know, don't you, that you're
too old for her, she's only about to turn thirteen."

Sean decided to put an end to the conversation.
"I don't know what your problem is, but I'm out of this hick town in
January. It was only an emergency that's kept me here this long. So keep your
crappy comments to yourself."

The boy behind the counter said, "Ya'll got
people in line behind you. Do you want to order or not?"

Preston said, "Sean, you just made my day.
Have a great trip home."

Sean turned to the clerk who had opened his
mouth to say something else. He cut the kid off. "Two large popcorns, a
large Coke, and a large Seven-Up." He turned to Harris and said,
"Order what you want. I'm paying."

The movie was excellent, but Sean couldn't get
his mind away from Tessa. The more he was around her, the more he liked her.
When she squealed at a sudden scary part and ducked her head, he grinned, and
started to put his arm around her. He jerked it back. Heck, like he'd told
Preston, he was gone in a few weeks and the way his dad was acting, he'd never
return to this town. Sometimes life was a bitch.

After the movie, Toby and Preston took off with
friends and Harris glanced at his watch, "Let's get an ice cream at the
DQ. We've got time before my mom picks me and Tessa up."

Sean walked the two blocks to the DQ with Harris
and Tessa. It was just starting to get dark, and when they passed the coffee
shop, Tessa said, "Isn't it wonderful?"

Sean had to agree. Cecelia had strung the
outside with thousands of tiny white lights and the large murals inside had
spotlights shining on them when the shop was closed. Cardboard figures of elves
that had arrived a week after their decoration party and positioned in strategic
locations, made Santa's Workshop perfect. So perfect, in fact, it had become
the talk of the town.

They paused outside the window and Sean
chuckled. "I think Cecelia has added even more lights and decorations to
the Christmas tree."

Tessa's eyes were alight with wonder when she
looked at Sean and said again, "Isn't it wonderful?"

Sean had had a couple of girlfriends since the
age of thirteen, and even kissed them, but now, looking at Tessa's shining eyes
and cute dimple, he had to hold himself back from bending and lightly touching
his lips to hers. Instead, he said, "Cecelia closes the shop at three, but
she said the week before Christmas, she's going to reopen from six to nine.
I'll be working then; maybe you can stop by."

Tessa responded in her shy manner,
"Okay."

Harris said, "Cool. Hey, come on. I need an
ice cream fix."

When Sean tried to treat Tessa and Harris to ice
cream, Harris refused and insisted it was his turn to pay. Tessa ordered a
single scoop of pineapple sherbet, and although he could eat a triple scoop of
chocolate-chip fudge brownie, Sean decided to not overtax Harris' wallet and
ordered a double. Harris ordered a triple pralines and cream. They sat in a
booth and rehashed the movie. During a lag in the conversation, Tessa said in her
soft voice, "Um, Sean, I'm having a birthday party next Saturday. Would you
like to come?" She met his gaze and then quickly looked at the table,
turning red.

Sean's heart jumped in his chest. "Yeah.
I'd like that. Should I bring some food?"

Tessa lifted her long lashes and met his eyes
again. "Oh, no. My mom and dad have taken care of everything."

Sean glanced sideways at Harris who was licking
his ice cream and grinning like the cat in Alice in Wonderland. He looked back
at Tessa and teased, "So, are you going to be eleven or twelve?"

"Oh, no; I'm going to be thirteen."
When she realized he was teasing he got a good look at that dimple while she
laughed.

When they were about to leave and head back to
the theater, Tessa excused herself and went to the restroom.

Harris said, "So, you kind of like her,
don't you?"

Sean acted dumb. "Who?"

"Tessa, of course."

"Yeah. She's a nice girl."

Harris shrugged. "You
and
Preston
like her."

Sean ignored his last remark.

Harris started to say something else, but stopped.

Sean asked, "What?"

"Nothing."

"I hate it when people do that. What were
you about to say?"

Harris shrugged and wiped his mouth with a
napkin. "Your dad is something of a mystery around here. No one knows him except
Cecelia and she's not talking. The town even calls him Mystery Man."

Sean said, "So."

Harris grinned sheepishly. "I was just
fishing for information. You know how people can't leave the unknown alone."

Sean replied, "Well, if you find out
anything, then let me know. He's a mystery to me, too."

Sean glanced between his dad and Cecelia. The
day after Thanksgiving he'd noticed a change in both of them. Was he losing it?
They actually seemed to be making mushy eyes at each other. After the way
things had gotten tight during Thanksgiving dinner, he'd figured his dad would
be as close-mouthed as ever and Cecelia would act all bright and happy trying to
relieve the tension. Now, there was no tension in the air and his dad was
watching Cecelia with a little smile.
Have I entered another dimension?

Cecelia said, "Are you almost ready? If we
leave now, I'll get you to the party in plenty of time. Tooty gave me
directions to the Branigan ranch. It's only about twenty minutes outside of
town.

Sean shut down the game he was playing on his
iPhone. "Ready." He stood and stretched. "Just let me run
upstairs for my jacket and Tessa's present." He headed down the hallway
and glanced back once to see Mac and Cecelia smiling at each other again.
Sheesh!

In the hallway, he had to pass the
locked
door. That dang door was always locked. Almost every day when no one was
looking he tried the knob. From past experience, he knew secrets were hidden
behind locks. Was his father hiding secrets? He'd bet a year's allowance he
was.
And I'm going to discover them.

The drive to Tessa's house was filled with Cecelia's
usual upbeat chatter, which Sean didn't pay much attention to. Suddenly, he
asked, "Why is the door in the hallway always locked?"

Cecelia abruptly stopped talking. Her reply was a
little too breathless, "It's just a junk room."

Yep, they're definitely hiding something.
"Why keep it
locked?"

"Ah, the junk belongs to the owner of the
house and she doesn't want anyone going through it."

"So, my father doesn't own the house."

"No, he's renting it. As you know, I'm also
renting one a few blocks over. Sometimes you want to try out an area before you
purchase a home."

Her explanation sounded reasonable, but Sean
knew she was lying. Cecelia wasn't a good liar. Now he was more determined than
ever to break into that room.

Cecelia pulled his dad's Toyota SUV into a long
drive leading to a cabin. A
real
cabin. An
old
cabin. A
log
cabin. "Hey, this place is fantastic." He glanced past the cabin to a
big red barn with a couple of corrals nearby. "So, Tessa's father is a
rodeo star?"

"From what I understand. I knew his wife,
Monica, in New York before she moved here and married him."

"Really? Did she meet her husband at a
rodeo in New York?"

Cecelia grinned. "No, actually, their story
is very romantic."

Sean refrained from rolling his eyes. Women were
so
into romantic stuff. When she didn't continue, he said,
"And?"

She grinned. "Okay. I'll tell you the
story. Monica was a very successful interior designer in New York. In fact, she
decorated my brother's penthouse and well, they even dated."

Sean focused his full attention away from the
horses and back to Cecelia. This story was getting good.

She continued, "Anyway, Monica had some bad
luck and lost everything—her job, residence, just everything. Because she'd
previously known my brother, she called him to ask about a job lead, and ended
up spilling her story. To make a long story short, he checked around and found
out there was an opening with a local rancher and rodeo star who had busted his
leg and needed a housekeeper and someone to watch Tessa. Because Monica was
desperate, she applied for the job. Dirk, after talking to my brother, felt
sorry for her and decided to offer her the position." Cecelia lifted a
hand to her mouth and chuckled. "I guess things got interesting after that
because Monica had never been "domestic" in her life. I have to tell
you, that when I knew her in New York, she was spoiled and impossible and I
didn't much like her. Now–" she moved her hands in an expansive motion,
"–she's a sweet country gal who loves Tessa, her husband, and their six
month old baby, Candi. I swear she's not the same woman I knew."

Sean said, "Hmm. So, does Mr. Branigan
still ride in rodeos?"

"Tooty told me that last year he won the
National Finals in Las Vegas, one of the most prominent competitions, and
retired. Now he makes guest appearances, endorses products and–" she
waited for Sean to look at her, "–works as a horse whisperer."

"Huh?"

"Did you ever see the movie,
The Horse
Whisperer?"

Sean thought a second. "No."

"Well, a horse whisperer has an uncanny
ability to communicate with horses."

Sean repeated, "Huh? You mean like read
their minds?"

"From my understanding, something like
that."

He glanced back at the horses. "Sounds
weird to me."

"There are a lot of unexplained happenings
in this world."

Sean wanted to say,
Yeah, like my dad.
But he kept his thought to himself.

A car pulled behind theirs. Cecelia said, "Goodness,
we've probably been sitting here ten minutes." She glanced in the rearview
mirror. "Looks like Sage Tanner is dropping off his twins and
Harris."

Sean wanted to groan. He was happy to see Toby
and Harris, but Preston could have stayed home for all he cared. Cecelia opened
her door and stepped out. He did the same.

"Hello Sage, boys," she called as a
tall cowboy stepped from a van with the words
LAZY M RANCH
painted on the side.

They all called greetings.

The man looked familiar and even though he was
older, Sean wondered if he'd been in the movies. He had
that
kind of
face. Sean said low. "He looks familiar. Is he a movie star?"

Cecelia laughed. "No, but he's been on just
about every magazine there is. He's been modeling for years. I think he's
retired though."

Sean now understood where Toby and Preston got
their looks. He wondered if Tessa thought they were good looking.

Harris and Toby rushed to talk with Sean, while
Preston slowly approached. Another car pulled up, and then another. Soon there
was a congregation of teenagers. The front door to the cabin opened and a
pretty lady holding a squirming baby stepped outside, followed by a tall, rough-looking
cowboy who had to be Tessa's father with his matching dimple in one cheek. The
lady called, "Hello!" Sean could detect a New York accent. It sounded
funny coming from a woman wearing jeans, a cowgirl shirt with snap buttons, and
fancy boots. Her husband, dressed in similar duds, reached for the baby and bounced
her in the air in a playful manner. The kid laughed that cute sound that only babies
have. He then tucked her under his arm and called, "Howdy folks!" The
lady said, "Please come in! Tessa is still getting dressed, but she'll be
out soon."

Sean followed Harris into the cabin. He was
curious about the inside. It was
really
rustic, but had a great feel.
The long hallway led to a big living room with a massive fireplace. Over the
fireplace hung a huge family portrait that had obviously been taken recently and
on the mantle a mounted golden buckle sat directly beneath the picture.
Impressive
,
thought Sean.

The room had been decorated with streamers and a
big sign that said, HAPPY 13TH BIRTHDAY, TESSA!

Mr. Branigan welcomed everyone again and pointed
to a long table with a punch bowl, chips, dips, and veggies. "Ya'll help
yourself. As soon as Tessa's ready, we got a great day planned."

Most of the teenagers headed toward the snack
table. There was also a table for presents and Sean set his down. He sure
hoped Tessa liked the necklace with a stone the same green as her eyes.

Instead of grabbing a snack, he walked to the
mantle to look at some pictures in frames. There were several of Tessa and the
baby together, a school picture of Tessa, and two pictures of babies just after
being born with their hair standing straight up. Sean figured they were Tessa
and her sister. There was another photo of a man and woman with a young girl,
maybe four or five, standing in front of them. The man was definitely Dirk
Branigan. Sean looked closer. Mr. Branigan had his arm around the chubby lady
and he decided the child was Tessa. A voice beside him startled him. Mrs.
Branigan said, "We love that photo. It's Dirk, Tessa, and her
mother."

Sean looked from the photo to Mrs. Branigan.
"Yeah, it's nice."

Mrs. Branigan held out her hand. "I'm
Monica Branigan, Tessa's stepmother. I haven't been able to get to Dixie's
Cuppa Joe much lately, and when I have, you weren't working. It's a pleasure to
finally meet you. Harris and Tessa say nice things about you. They're going to
miss you when you're gone. But maybe you'll come back for another visit."

Sean doubted that, but he didn't say so. He
shook Mrs. Branigan's hand. "Nice to meet you, too, ma'am."

Harris said loudly, "Hi, Tessa!"

Sean turned to see the birthday girl and felt a
kick to his gut. He couldn't imagine anyone being cruel to such a sweet girl.
She gave a little wave and grinned, showing that pretty smile.

Preston was one of the first to reach her. Sean
sighed and realized it was going to be a long day.