LITMIR.BIZ

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      He was attractive. Okay, very attractive. Sexy. He didn’t have the kind of muscular body Elliot had, but he was fit in a lean and lanky way. His eyes were more gray than blue and they’d sparkled with mischief. His neatly trimmed brown hair had the kind of golden highlights that came from spending time outdoors. And he had a dimple when he smiled. That dimple had knocked her socks off, which had been a shock. She’d thought herself immune.

      His clothes had been casual, but she could easily envision him in a shirt and tie. A tailor-made suit. He was a professional man, if she was any judge.

      Elliot didn’t appear convinced. He moved a stack of papers from the extra chair, then sat down, propped his feet on her desk and pulled out a cell phone.

      “What are you doing?” Jeanette demanded.

      “Calling Karen to let her know I’ll be late.”

      “Why?”

      He grinned. “Because I’m not leaving here without you. It would tarnish my sterling reputation as a nice guy. Last time I let one of the Sweet Magnolias out of my sight when my gut told me not to, she nearly got herself killed.”

      Jeanette winced. She recalled the incident. “You weren’t responsible for what happened to Helen. Her client’s husband was determined to get even with her. No one was going to stop him.”

      “Not entirely, no,” he agreed cheerfully. “But I’m not taking any chances.”

      Jeanette saw the stubborn set of his jaw and gave in. “Oh, for pity’s sake. I’m not going to be responsible for you turning up late at Karen’s.” She stood up. “Let’s go.”

      He gave her a smug look. “Good choice. Want to come have dinner with us? I’m cooking Mama’s famous seafood paella.”

      “You’re cooking?” Jeanette said incredulously as they stepped outside. “Your wife works in a restaurant.”

      “Which is why she shouldn’t have to cook at home on her day off.”

      Jeanette regarded him with wonder. “Why don’t you have brothers, instead of all those sisters?”

      Elliot chuckled. “I have cousins. Want to meet one of them? I’m the best of the lot, but there are one or two who come close.”

      “Are their egos as big as yours?”

      “Twice the size,” he declared.

      “Then, no. I think I’ll continue to fly solo.”

      Elliot shook his head. “That’s a pity. You’re a beautiful woman with a good heart. You should share your life with someone special.”

      Jeanette sighed. “Once upon a time, I thought the same thing.”

      “Don’t say that,” Elliot chided as he tucked her into his car. “The right person could be right around the corner.”

      Jeanette couldn’t help thinking about the way she’d felt earlier with the stranger’s eyes on her. Maybe Elliot was right. Maybe it was a little too soon to give up on love.

      Mary Vaughn Lewis had her jam-packed day planner spread open on her desk and was trying to transfer all of the information into her new BlackBerry, something her daughter, now a sophomore at Clemson, insisted she needed. Since she was about as computer literate as her Persian cat, Mary Vaughn wasn’t so sure. Still, in this day and age, she couldn’t afford to be left behind. People had certain expectations of the most successful Realtor in Serenity. Add to that her role as president of the Serenity Chamber of Commerce, and she desperately needed something to keep her schedule straight. Rory Sue swore this gadget was the answer.

      When it rang, she was so taken aback she almost dropped it on the floor. It took her a minute to find the right button and answer.

      “Yes, hello, Mary Vaughn Lewis,” she murmured distractedly, still reading the directions as she spoke.

      “Mom, it’s me. Am I your first call on your new Black-Berry?”

      “You absolutely are,” Mary Vaughn told her daughter, brightening at the sound of Rory Sue’s voice.

      “No wonder you sound so weirded out. You’re going to love it once you get the hang of it. I promise.”

      “Yes, well, we’ll see about that. What’s up, sweet pea?” Mary Vaughn suspected this midweek call had nothing to do with checking on her technical prowess and everything to do with a plea for money for shopping. Rory Sue would continue to shop even if the store was burning down around her. And somehow she’d talk the clerk into giving her a fire-sale discount while she was at it. It was a skill she’d learned at her mama’s knee, though Mary Vaughn would have preferred if she’d learned a few Southern graces instead.

      “I wanted to talk to you about Christmas,” Rory Sue said.

      “You want to talk about Christmas? In September?”

      “Yes, well, I thought I’d better ask about this now and not hit you with it at the last possible second.”

      Mary Vaughn’s antenna shot up. “Hit me with what?”

      “I was thinking that since we don’t really have a traditional celebration, you know, the way we used to when I was little…”

      In other words, before Sonny had divorced Mary Vaughn and ruined their daughter’s life, she thought sourly as she waited for the other shoe to drop.

      “Anyway, I was thinking that maybe you’d let me go away over the holidays,” Rory Sue concluded in a rush. “To Aspen. Jill’s family goes there to ski every year and she’s invited me to come along. I have to let her know right away, though, because if I can’t go, she wants to ask someone else.”

      “No,” Mary Vaughn said without giving it a second’s thought. “People spend Christmas with their families. It’s not a time to go gallivanting off with strangers.”

      “Jill’s not a stranger. She’s been my roommate for two years now.”

      Mary Vaughn could have corrected her with a reminder that the second year was just starting, but she didn’t waste her breath. Instead, she said, “You hardly know her family and I don’t know them at all.”

      “You’re just worried about how it will look if I don’t come home for Christmas,” Rory Sue accused. “You’re afraid that people will think you’re a failure as a mother. That’s it, isn’t it? All you care about is your image in that stupid town.”

      To Mary Vaughn’s regret, that was part of it. She hated that her own child, whom she loved more than anything, didn’t even want to spend Christmas with her. How pitiful was that? She simply didn’t want people in this town to feel sorry for her the way they once had. She’d spent her entire adult life trying to change the way people looked at her.

      But the other part, the most important part, was how lonely she’d feel. What would she do if Rory Sue didn’t come home? Sit in that big ole house of theirs and stare at the walls? Light up that little ceramic tree she’d inherited from her mother and drink eggnog until she forgot she was all alone? No, the bleak picture she envisioned simply could not happen.

      A couple of years from now Rory Sue might well be living on her own in some city far away. She might be unable to get back home for the holidays, or she might even have a family of her own and Mary Vaughn would have to go to some strange city to celebrate, but not this year. This year, Mary Vaughn wanted her daughter right here in Serenity. She wanted a traditional Christmas and she intended to have it, even if Rory Sue hated her for insisting on it.

      “No,” she said again, flatly.

      “You won’t even consider it?” Rory Sue pleaded.

      “No, absolutely not. And don’t call your father and try to get him on your side, either. I won’t have you trying to play us off against each other. That might have worked when you were ten, but it won’t work

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