The Heart of Christmas

She felt bad about the fear that entered their faces, and the way they sank slowly onto the sofa. “Good. I was going to suggest you sit down.”

“Is it that bad?” her mother asked.

“It’s nothing to be proud of.”

Her father seemed baffled. “What could it be? We know you. We know who you are.”

“You don’t know this. I went out last night...by myself and...and got a little drunk.”

They sat blinking at her, saying nothing. No doubt they could tell there was more coming.

“And I met someone,” she continued. “A...a stranger. He was handsome and charming and he’d also had too much to drink.”

“You’ve met someone?” her mother echoed.

The hope in that question didn’t make this any easier. Her parents wanted her to marry and start a family almost as much as she wanted the same thing. Grandchildren had been mentioned on a number of occasions. Since her brothers were fifty and fifty-two, one an avowed bachelor and the other divorced without children, her parents probably wouldn’t have any grandkids unless they came from her—although they viewed Cheyenne as a daughter and were excited to welcome her first child into the world.

“No. Not really,” Eve said. “It’s not what you might think.”

“Then what is it?” her father asked.

Throwing back her shoulders, she blurted out the truth. “I took him home with me.”

There was a moment of awkward silence. Then her father cleared his throat. “Eve, we’ve never gotten involved in your personal life. I mean, in that part of your personal life. This isn’t something you have to report to us, especially at thirty-five. In fact, I’d prefer not to know, and I think I can speak for your mother on that, as well.”

Eve couldn’t help smiling at his response. “I wouldn’t have said anything except...I’m afraid you’ll hear it around town in the next few days, and I didn’t want you to be blindsided. Or disappointed,” she added, “but there’s no way to avoid that now.”

“I see,” he said. “And why would someone tell us? Why is it any of their business?”

“It’s not. But Noelle Arnold works at Sexy Sadie’s and—”

“Ah, I see,” her mother piped up. “Olivia’s sister is spreading the news.”

“Yes.”

Her mother frowned. “I’ve never thought very highly of her.”

That was a scathing rebuke, coming from her sweet mother. “You’re in good company,” Eve responded.

“So...that’s it?” her father asked. “That’s what has you so upset?” He studied her carefully. “It doesn’t get any worse, does it?”

“Isn’t that enough?” she said, surprised that they weren’t more upset themselves.

“Honey, everybody makes a mistake now and then,” he said. “It’s not up to us to judge you or to...to tell you how to run your life. We had our chance to guide you when you were little, and we did our best. Now you’re in charge, and while I can’t say I’m happy about what you did last night, I can understand how it happened and why.”

“It’s not as if your father was a virgin when he met me,” her mother said. “He slept with loads of women.”

“Adele!” her father snapped, obviously appalled. Then Eve had to laugh and, once she started, she couldn’t seem to stop. She recognized how her parents felt about her confession, because she felt the same about what her mother had just revealed. She didn’t want to view either one of them as sexual in any way, not even with each other.

“I’m sorry,” she said as she wiped away the tears streaming down her face. “I don’t mean to laugh, and I don’t want you to think I’m not taking what I did seriously, but—”

Her mother got up to hug her again. “I’m glad you can laugh. Let it go, honey. We know it hasn’t been easy watching all your friends get married. We were as disappointed as you were last year when things didn’t work out between you and Ted. He’s a good man. But there’ll be someone else, someone very special.”

She caught hold of her mother’s arm before Adele could release her. “What do you think about me...going somewhere else and...trying something new?”

“You mean leave Whiskey Creek?” her dad asked.

“I love it here, but...I’m not sure it’s the only life I want to know.”

This seemed to sadden them more than the news of how she’d spent last night. Her brothers had gone to Texas A&M on football scholarships, then joined the air force and never returned to California. Her parents often lamented how little they saw of Darren and Dusty.

“We would certainly miss you,” her father said. “But we don’t want to hold you here if it’s not where you want to be. We don’t want Little Mary’s to hold you here, either.”

She glanced around. She loved the B and B almost as much as she loved them. But there had to be some way to vanquish the dissatisfaction that had crept into her life and seemed to be growing stronger by the day. She didn’t want to wake up one morning when she was sixty-five and wonder why she’d never made a change.

“You’re not saying... Should we put the inn on the market?” her mother asked.

“No, no. Nothing that drastic,” she said. “I’m just thinking of hiring someone to run it for a year so I can try something else before I settle down, you know?”

Her parents wore somber expressions as they nodded. “We understand. And we want whatever will make you happy,” her father said.

Eve couldn’t imagine she’d be happy leaving Whiskey Creek. Besides her parents, she had so many good friends here—and she’d be the godmother to Chey’s baby, which would bring a great deal of joy into her life. But would that be enough? Suddenly, it felt as if she was living off the crumbs of other people’s lives and trying to tell herself that she would be content with that indefinitely. “We can talk more about it after the holidays.”

Her mother managed a smile. “So there’s no hurry?”

“None whatsoever.” Eve held up the watch. “Thanks for this. I’ve never seen anything quite so lovely.”

“You’re ten times as lovely,” her mother said.

She made a face. “Oh, yeah? Be prepared for the rumors that are swirling around town.”

“No one can change our opinion of you,” her father insisted.

Cheyenne walked into the parlor almost as soon as Eve’s parents left. The Christmas music playing in the dining room grew louder when the door opened, causing Eve to look up. She was sitting on the antique Eastlake chair she’d purchased from an estate sale in Sacramento last year. She’d been gazing down at her new watch, thinking about how lucky she was to have such wonderful parents and wondering if she’d be doing the right thing by leaving them. She had a responsibility to herself but, since her brothers seemed to feel no obligation to their aging parents, she had to make sure they were happy and well cared for, too.

They had their RV, however. They could come and see her....

“How’d it go?” Cheyenne asked.

“I told them I slept with a stranger,” Eve said.

Her friend stopped in her tracks. “Are you kidding?”

“No. I figured it would be better for them to hear it from me.”

“But they might never have heard it at all!”

“I didn’t want to take that chance.”