A Love Inspired Christmas Bundle: In the Spirit of...Christmas / The Christmas Groom / One Golden Christmas

He waited for the familiar pain to come, and was surprised when it didn’t.

Jade caught sight of him somehow and her entire face brightened. Had she thought he wouldn’t stay?

With a start, he realized how wrong he’d been to let his own loss and pain affect his child’s happiness and wellbeing. Huddled in his darkness, he’d let two years of Jade’s life pass in a blur while he nursed his wounds and felt sorry for himself.

As the program ended and Jade was swept away in the thundering mass of first-graders, Jesse looked down. At some point during the play, he’d taken hold of Lindsey’s hand and pulled it against his thigh. How had that happened? And why didn’t he turn her loose now that the play was over? But with her small fingers wrapped in his, he was reluctant to let her go.

“She was wonderful,” Lindsey said, eyes aglow as she turned to him.

“The best one of all.”

“Of course.” And they both laughed, knowing every parent in the room thought the same thing about his or her own child.

And even though she wasn’t Jade’s parent, Jesse knew Lindsey loved his daughter unreservedly.

Still holding her hand, and bewildered by his own actions, Jesse rose and began the shuffle out of the jammed auditorium and down the hall to the classrooms. There they collected Jade from the rambunctious crowd of first-graders and headed out the exit.

“Excuse me.” A man about Jesse’s age stopped them as they started down the concrete steps. A vague sense of recognition stirred in Jesse’s memory. “I saw you earlier and couldn’t help thinking that I should know you? Did you ever go to school here?”

Jesse stiffened momentarily before forcing his shoulders to relax. No use getting in a panic. Play it cool. “Sorry. I’m a newcomer. Moved here back in October.”

The man tilted his head, frowning. “You sure remind me of a kid I went to junior high with. Aw, but that’s a long time ago.”

“Well, you know what they say,” Jesse shrugged, hoping he sounded more casual than he felt. “Everybody looks like someone.”

“Ain’t that the truth? My wife says I’m starting to resemble my hound dog more and more every day.”

They all laughed, and then using the excuse of the cold wind, Jesse led the way to the truck. He’d been expecting that to happen. Sooner or later, someone was bound to recognize him from junior high school. He glanced at Lindsey as she slid into the pickup. Still smiling and fussing over Jade, she hadn’t seemed to notice anything amiss.

Cranking the engine, he breathed a sigh of relief. That was a close one.

Chapter Ten

“Ice cream, Daddy. Pleeease.” Jade, who’d begged to keep her costume on, bounced in the seat of the Silverado. She was still hyper, wired up from her very first Christmas program. With every bounce, her angel wings batted against Lindsey’s shoulder.

Lindsey awaited Jesse’s reply, hoping he’d see how much Jade needed a few more minutes of reveling in the moment.

Jesse shook his head as he turned on the defrosters. “Too cold for ice cream.”

The three of them had rushed across the schoolyard to the parking lot, eager to escape the cold wind after the brief, but chill-producing delay by the man who’d thought Jesse looked familiar. The truck was running and heat had begun to blow from the vents, but they still shivered.

“Hot fudge will counter the cold,” Lindsey suggested, casting a sideways grin at Jesse. “We gotta celebrate.”

“You’re no help,” he said, rolling his silver eyes. “But if you ladies want ice cream, ice cream you shall have. Let’s head to the Dairy Cup.”

A quiver of satisfaction moved through Lindsey. Jesse had enjoyed tonight, she was certain. But what had really stunned her was when he’d reached over and grasped her hand. For a second, she’d almost forgotten where she was, though she doubted Jesse had meant anything by it. Most likely, he’d reached for her in reaction to Jade’s thrilling grand entrance. Still, those moments of her skin touching his while they shared Jade’s triumph lingered sweetly in her mind.

As the truck rumbled slowly down Main Street, her legs began to thaw.

“I’ll be glad when the weather warms up again,” she said.

Jesse’s wrist relaxed over the top of the steering wheel. “Supposed to tomorrow, isn’t it?”

“Some. But there’s a chance of snow too.”

“Snow!” Jade exclaimed and started bouncing again. “Can we make a snowman?”

Lindsey patted the child’s knee. “Wouldn’t be any fun unless we did.”

Jesse glanced her way. “I have a load of trees to haul to Mena tomorrow. I hope we don’t get snow before that’s done.”

“If it snows, you can’t haul those trees. These mountain roads can be treacherous in snow or ice.”

“Might as well get the job done. I have some other business to take care of in Mena, too.”

His personal business intrigued her, though she would never pry. Several times he’d taken off an afternoon for “business reasons.” And just last Sunday at church someone had mentioned seeing him at the municipal building several times. What kind of business would require so many visits to the courthouse?

“Well, all right, stubborn. I’ll just pray the snow holds off.”

She managed to distract the wiggling Jade by pointing out the Christmas decorations visible everywhere. They drove past closed businesses gaily decorated with white stenciled greetings and flashing red and green lights. Fiber-optic trees rotated in some display windows, and attached to the light posts were giant candy canes that caught the reflection of car lights and wobbled with each gust of wind.