Home for the Holidays: The Forgetful Bride / When Christmas Comes

“Lindy, you’re still here,” Paul said as he strolled into the office. He inclined his head briefly in Cait’s direction, but she had the impression he barely saw her. He’d hardly been around in the past couple of days—almost as if he was purposely avoiding her, she mused, but that thought was too painful to contemplate.

“I was just finishing up,” Lindy said, glancing guiltily toward Cait. “We both were.”

“Fine, fine, I didn’t mean to disturb you. I’ll see you two in the morning.” A second later, he was gone.

Cait gazed after him with thinly disguised emotion. She waited until Paul was well out of range before she spoke. “He’s so blind. What do I have to do, hit him over the head?”

“Quit being so negative,” Lindy admonished. “You’re going to be sharing an office with him for another five days. Do whatever you need to make darn sure he notices you.”

“I’ve tried,” Cait murmured, discouraged. And she had. She’d tried every trick known to woman, with little success.

Lindy left the office before her. Cait gathered up some stock reports to read that evening and stacked them neatly inside her leather briefcase. What Lindy had said about her being methodical and careful was true. It was also a source of pride; those traits had served her clients well.

To Cait’s dismay, Joe followed her. “So,” he said, smiling down at her, apparently oblivious to the other people clustering around the elevator. “Who have you been kissing these days?”

Hot color rose instantly to her face. Did he have to humiliate her in public?

“I could find myself jealous, you know.”

“Would you kindly stop,” she whispered furiously, scowling at him. Her hand tightened around the handle of her briefcase so hard her fingers ached.

“You figured it out?”

She nodded, her eyes darting to the lighted numbers above the elevator door, praying it would make its descent in record time instead of pausing on each floor.

“The years have been good to you.”

“Thank you.” Please hurry, she urged the elevator.

“I never would’ve believed Martin’s little sister would turn out to be such a beauty.”

If he was making fun of her, she didn’t appreciate it. She was attractive, she knew that, but she certainly wasn’t waiting for anyone to place a tiara on her head. “Thank you,” she repeated grudgingly.

He gave an exaggerated sigh. “How are our children doing? What were their names again?” When she didn’t answer right away, he added, “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten.”

“Barbie and Ken,” she muttered under her breath.

“That’s right. I remember now.”

If Joe hadn’t drawn the attention of her co-workers before, he had now. Cait could have sworn every single person standing by the elevator turned to stare at her. The hope that no one was interested in their conversation was forever lost.

“Just how long do you intend to tease me about this?” she snapped.

“That depends,” Joe responded with a chuckle Cait could only describe as sadistic. She gritted her teeth. He might have found the situation amusing, but she derived little enjoyment from being the office laughingstock.

Just then the elevator arrived, and not a moment too soon to suit Cait. The instant the doors slid open, she stepped toward it, determined to get as far away from this irritating man as possible.

He quickly caught up with her and she swung around to face him, her back ramrod stiff. “Is this really necessary?” she hissed, painfully conscious of the other people crowding into the elevator ahead of her.

He grinned. “I suppose not. I just wanted to see if I could get a rise out of you. It never worked when we were kids, you know. You were always so prim and proper.”

“Look, you didn’t like me then and I see no reason for you to—”

“Not like you?” he countered loudly enough for everyone in the building to hear. “I married you, didn’t I?”

Chapter Two

C ait’s heart seemed to stop. She realized that not only the people on the elevator but everyone left in the office was staring at her with unconcealed interest. The elevator was about to close and she quickly stepped forward, stretching out her arms to hold the doors open. She felt like Samson balanced between two marble columns.

“It’s not the way it sounds,” she felt obliged to explain in a loud voice, her gaze pleading.

No one made eye contact with her and, desperate, she turned to Joe, sending him a silent challenge to retract his words. His eyes were sparkling with mischief. If he did say anything, Cait thought in sudden horror, it was bound to make things even worse.

There didn’t seem to be anything to do but tell the truth. “In case anyone has the wrong impression, this man and I are not married,” she shouted. “Good grief, I was only eight!”

There was no reaction. It was as if she’d vanished into thin air. Defeated, she dropped her arms and stepped back, freeing the doors, which promptly closed.

Ignoring the other people on the elevator—who were carefully ignoring her—Cait clenched her hands into hard fists and glared up at Joe. Her face tightened with anger. “That was a rotten thing to do,” she whispered hoarsely.

“What? It’s true, isn’t it?” he whispered back.

“You’re being ridiculous to talk as though we’re married!”

“We were once. It wounds me that you treat our marriage so lightly.”

“I…it wasn’t legal.” The fact that they were even discussing this was preposterous. “You can’t possibly hold me responsible for something that happened so long ago. To play this game now is…is infantile, and I refuse to be part of it.”

The elevator finally came to a halt on the ground floor and, eager to make her escape, Cait rushed out. Straightening to keep her dignity intact, she headed through the crowded foyer toward the front doors. Although it was midafternoon, dusk was already setting in, casting dark shadows between the towering office buildings.

Cait reached the first intersection and sighed in relief as she glanced around her. Good. No sign of Joseph Rockwell. The light was red and she paused, although others hurried across the street after checking for traffic; Cait always felt obliged to obey the signal.

“What do you think Paul’s going to say when he hears about this?” Joe asked from behind her.

Cait gave a start, then turned to look at her tormenter. She hadn’t thought about Paul’s reaction. Her throat seemed to constrict, rendering her speechless, otherwise she would have demanded Joe leave her alone. But he’d raised a question she dared not ignore. Paul might hear about her so-called former relationship with Joe and might even think there was something between them.

“You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

She nodded. At the very mention of Paul’s name, her knees went weak. He was everything she wanted in a man and more. She’d been crazy about him for months and now it was all about to be ruined by this irritating, unreasonable ghost from her past.

“Who told you?” Cait snapped. She couldn’t imagine Lindy betraying her confidence, but Cait hadn’t told anyone else.

“No one had to tell me,” Joe said. “It’s written all over you.”

Shocked, Cait stared at Joe, her heart sinking. “Do…do you think Paul knows how I feel?”

Joe shrugged. “Maybe.”

“But Lindy said…”