“You sound as if that’s the worst thing he could possibly want to learn,” she teased. “Are you scared of skiing?”
“Of skiing? No. Of running into a tree, yeah.”
Emily laughed.
Boone frowned. “I suppose you’re an expert.”
“Not me,” she said. “There’s no way to go up the mountain that I find acceptable. I’m content right here in the lodge.”
“And yet you were making fun of me,” he said. “How is that fair?”
“What does fair have to do with it?” she inquired, feeling amazingly carefree and giddy all of a sudden. Boone was here. He’d surprised her. He’d been adamant about being with her. Surely that meant everything was going to work out, even if there were a few bumps along the way.
It seemed as if there was every chance this would be the merriest Christmas ever.
* * *
Boone woke with Emily in his arms and all seemingly right with his world. This was exactly the way it had been meant to be, the two of them together, sharing magical moments.
When his cell phone rang, he glanced at the caller ID, then frowned when he saw Jodie’s number. Holding back a sigh, he answered.
“Good morning, Jodie. How are you?”
“I’ve been better,” she said, a familiar tight tone to her voice.
“What’s wrong? Is B.J. okay?”
“B.J.’s with us,” she said, then added irritably, “Of course he’s fine.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“I thought you were going out of town on business. Instead, I find out that you’re off on some tryst with that woman.”
Boone winced. He’d told her only that he was going to California and then Colorado. He’d deliberately left Emily’s name out of the conversation. Someone, however, apparently hadn’t. Since he doubted Jodie had been talking to Cora Jane, it had to have been Pete. He hadn’t thought to swear him to secrecy.
Jodie continued, “Since she’s obviously more important to you than your son, Frank and I intend to take B.J. down to Florida with us for the holidays. That way you’ll be free to do, well, whatever it is you insist on doing with that woman.”
Boone sat up on the side of the bed, barely smothering a curse before he responded. Yelling wasn’t going to accomplish a thing. Unfortunately, he doubted reason would, either.
“Jodie, you really don’t want to do that,” he said quietly.
“It’s exactly what I want to do,” she corrected. “She’s obviously more important to you than your son.”
“No, Jodie. The only thing this proves is that I should never have made the mistake of giving you a chance to have your grandson with you for a few days. If I’d had any idea at all that you would try to twist this situation to your advantage, I’d have brought B.J. with me. Believe me, I won’t make that mistake again. If you want all-out war, then that’s exactly what you’ll get.”
“I should have known you’d resort to threats,” she said with a huff.
“Let me talk to Frank,” he commanded.
“Sorry, he’s not available. He’s loading up the car.”
Since he was getting nowhere with Jodie, anyway, Boone disconnected the call and dialed his father-in-law’s cell number. Frank picked up on the first ring.
“I’m sorry, Boone,” he said before Boone could utter a word. “I’ve tried to get through to her, but Jodie’s determined to do this. If I hadn’t agreed, she’d be taking B.J. and heading off on her own. At least this way, I’ll be around to keep an eye on things.”
“Frank, you know I have no beef with you. I even understand what Jodie is going through, but you all do not have my permission to take B.J. to Florida. Don’t make me call the authorities. I don’t want to do that, not for B.J.’s sake or for yours. Talk some sense into her before this gets out of hand. Please.”
“I’ll do what I can,” Frank promised. “But you know where we’ll be if I don’t have any luck in changing her mind. And you know B.J. will be safe. I’ll see to that.”
Boone disconnected the call and started calling the airlines. By then, Emily was awake and had obviously grasped some of what was happening.
“This is because of me, isn’t it?” she said, her tone flat. “Jodie’s flipped out because you’re here with me.”
“Jodie’s just flipped out, if you ask me,” he retorted, though he knew she was driven by grief and anger. He’d been as understanding as he possibly could be, but this was absolutely the last straw.
“They’re heading for Florida?” Emily asked.
“Unless Frank can talk sense into her,” Boone confirmed.
“Then why fly to North Carolina?” she asked. “Fly directly to Florida. I’ll come with you.”
Boone shook his head. As desperately as he wanted Emily by his side, he didn’t want to inflame the situation. Who knew what Jodie would do if they both showed up?
“You’re right about going to Florida,” he said, “but I need to go alone.”
Emily’s expression immediately shut down. “Sure. I understand. Why make things worse?”
“I’ll pick up B.J. and we’ll be back in North Carolina in time for Christmas,” Boone promised. He pretended not to notice the tears gathering in her eyes. If he acknowledged them, it would be his undoing. He knew she was being made to feel like an outsider, when all she’d done was love him and his son.
An hour later, he’d made his reservations, and Emily dropped him off at the airport. “You’re not flying out today?” he’d asked when he noticed she hadn’t brought her bags.
“Not until later,” she told him.
Boone kissed her hard. “I love you,” he reminded her. “We’re not letting anything keep us apart, okay? I’ll be back in North Carolina in a couple of days at most. We’re going to have an amazing Christmas.”
She smiled, though it was clearly forced. “Sure,” she said. She stayed there until he was through security, then waved one last time. Something in her forlorn expression cut straight through Boone, but he simply couldn’t deal with that now. All he could think about was getting his son
