The Mistletoe Affair

Her mother extended her hand, brandishing an antique diamond engagement ring. Tears glistened in her mother's eyes. “I'm so happy. He bought this for me weeks ago, but I never knew it.” She blushed. “You were right, Katherine. We needed to talk it all out. We're getting married right after Christmas.'

Katherine hugged and congratulated them again. She glanced from her mother to Thomas and was warmed again by the love and adoration that shone in their eyes for one another. “You're just in time for cake and coffee. I'll call and invite Jared to come and celebrate with us.'

Matt glanced up, licking the icing from his fingers. “My grandma's getting married, too?'

Katherine chuckled and wet a dishtowel to clean some of the chocolate layers off his face. “Yes. Mr. Hughes will be your new grandpa soon.'

Her mother took the cloth from her. “I got him.'

Katherine dialed Jared's number but it was busy. “It's just up the street. I'll go get him.'

“Boy, Matt, you're a mess,” her mother said.

Katherine smiled and turned away as her mother rinsed the rag and washed Matt again.

“Will this still be Grandma's house?” Matt asked.

Katherine paused at the door and looked back. What would Thomas say, and what would Matt think? So many things had been changed for him in the last few years, but Grandma's house had always been his mainstay. He looked forward to visits months in advance, with its huge yard and special swing set, erected just for him, ‘by a neighbor,’ Grace had told her last summer. It turned out ‘the neighbor’ had been Jared. Her heart started beating faster as she watched Thomas kneel beside Matt. The potential for disruption in her son's life was enormous if Thomas didn't answer right.

Thomas knelt beside Matt and nodded. “This house has been in your grandma's family for generations. Everyone who loves her knows what this house means to your grandma. I wouldn't dream of taking her away from here.'

Matt smiled.

Katherine practically flew down the street and leapt up the steps to Jared's house. Her heart thudded with excitement as she stood on his huge front porch. She glanced past the rocking chairs to the right and noticed a Toyota parked in the driveway.

Someone must be visiting.

She laughed. Wait till I tell him how well everything turned out.

The front door stood ajar. She stuck her head inside and yelled, “Jared? Are you there?'

She stopped to listen.

Alan Jackson's, “Don't Close Your Eyes” floated from the back of the house. The song brought back torrid memories of when Jared had held her in his strong arms and the heated kisses they had exchanged.

“Jared, it's me,” she called. Adrenaline rushed through her veins making her giddy as she headed down the hall.

The refrains of the love ballad seemed to come from the room directly ahead. She reached for the knob and opened the door. It swung outward and Katherine's jaw dropped.

Jared stood with his back to the kitchen cabinet. His hands clutched the counters. A voluptuous redhead plastered her body against his and held him in a passionate kiss.

Katherine stared and shook her head, willing the image to disappear. Tears stung her eyes, causing the mirage to shimmer, but the sordid reality remained.

Damn him! He is just like Paul!

“Jared! How could you!” she demanded.

Breaking the kiss, he swung his gaze to Katherine, his eyes widening in shock. Too late, he thrust the woman aside.

Pain rocked Katherine.

Jared moved toward her but she turned and ran, tears streaming down her face. His footsteps sounded behind her as she raced for the front door, flung it open and ran across the porch. “Katherine, come back. It isn't what you think. Trust me!” he shouted.

“No, it's exactly what I think,” she spat through her tears as she stumbled down the front steps, slipping on the damp wood.

“Katherine,” he shouted again, his voice insistent, “Trust me!'

Chapter Sixteen

Katherine stopped running. She turned her head and glared over her shoulder. The street was empty and cold, trees stripped of their leaves reached into the night like angry sentinels. Jared had slipped back into his house with the other woman. The memory of his words tore at her heart. ‘It isn't what you think. Trust me.’ She ripped her gaze off his house and stared at the ground, gulping air into her lungs. She had eyes. How could it not be what it had looked like?

Trust me.

How could he ask her to trust him in a situation like that?

But that was what she had asked of Jared. She had asked him to trust not what he had heard from her lips, but what he heard with his heart. She stumbled on the uneven sidewalk in front of her mother's house. Why didn't she have that same faith in him?

Because there was no other way to interpret what she'd just seen. He had betrayed her.

The thought stopped her cold. She stared at the icicle lights he'd put up for her. “Jared,” she cried softly, feeling the hurt and loneliness sinking deep in her soul.

If I hurt you, I hurt me.

Well, he had hurt her.

Tears filled her eyes as she spun around and faced Jared's house again. Anything could be going on inside. Two images whirled in her head, both merged into a conflicted melding of Jared and Paul. Cheating men. She shook her head, trying to concentrate on Jared. The whirling images became crystal-clear memories of her times with Jared. His worrying about her, the way he looked at her, their talks in the kitchen, his putting Matt to bed, taking him shopping, making him laugh, Jared searching for her, and winking at her just before Paul walked through the door of Jared's office. Everything he did showed his love for her and Matt.

Katherine, trust me!

Oh, God, how could she have been so foolish? She sped back to Jared leaping up two porch steps at a time and hurried inside. Her heart pounded as she wove her way through the rooms, tugged the door open and stepped inside the kitchen again.

Jared and the other woman glanced at Katherine.

“What took you so long?” Jared rasped, coughing to clear his throat. “I'm sorry.” He shook his head and Katherine saw the deep hurt in his eyes. “It was not what it seemed. I can explain.'

“No, let me,” the female voice interrupted. “I'm Shannon Raven. You must be Katherine Cahill.'

Katherine stared at the tall, beautiful woman standing in his kitchen with tears in her eyes. “Two of the biggest mistakes I made in my life involved Jared. First, I jilted him and went back to my sorry ex. I barged over here and didn't believe Jared when he said it was over.” She hesitated. “I kissed him. He did not kiss me.'

Katherine glanced back at Jared, who stood watching her in silence. His face was unreadable-it was up to her to decide. “I know,” she said slowly.

Shannon wiped her eyes as she walked toward the door. She glanced over her shoulder. “Jared was right about us. If I had really loved him, I never would have jilted him. Be happy, you two.'

After the door closed behind her, Jared's fingers brushed across Katherine's lips, outlining them with caresses. “We will be happy, Katherine. I promise.” He wrapped her in his arms, folding her in his love. “You trusted me.'

Her voice faltered. “I-I trusted our love.'

His body trembled. “Do you want to know why I let Shannon kiss me?'