Cries in the Night (23 page)

“It was an upgrade,” he admitted. “I see enough wood burning every day. I wanted to have something more interesting.”

Julie smiled and nodded. “You’ve got a lot of trophies.”

“They go all the way back to my t-ball league. As soon as I bought this place, my mom boxed them all up and brought them over. She said she had run out of room. We Wilsons are a pretty competitive bunch. She tried to be supportive and put all of our trophies out on the mantel, but I think she was relieved to have her mantel cleared. Now it’s full of frou-frou stuff like candles and flowers.”

“With three boys, she didn’t get much of a chance to have frou-frou around,” Julie commented.

“You’re right. The day after I moved out, she painted my room yellow. It was great motivation for me to never be tempted to move back.”

“You clearly prefer red.”

“Yeah, it’s my favorite color. I was sort of disappointed that Denver’s trucks aren’t red. It’s every little boy’s dream to drive a big red fire truck.”

“So, you’ve wanted to be a firefighter forever?”

He nodded. “As far back as I can remember,” he confirmed. “Fires always fascinated me. When I was a kid, I would set them, watch how they burned, then put them out.”

“I’ll bet your parents loved that,” she said with a chuckle.

He grimaced. “I almost started a brush fire once when it was a really dry summer, but it actually taught us a lesson about keeping a clear space around our house for protection. You can’t believe how fast even short grass fires can spread.”

Julie laughed. “I almost feel sorry for your mom, putting up with three active boys.”

“We probably caused her a few sleepless nights,” he admitted. “But I think our careers bother her even more. Not that she would say anything, because she wants us to make our own choices.”

Julie lifted her hand to his smooth cheek. “Your mom did a great job. All of you boys turned out to be fine men.” Impulsively, she stretched up on her tiptoes and kissed him. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her tight against him as he returned her kiss with equal passion.

Reluctantly, she took a step backward. “We need to go.”

His hands dropped back to his sides, but the heat in his eyes told her he would much rather stay.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

The mall was super-crowded with everyone shopping the last-minute sales for Christmas gifts. It took Rusty several circles of the parking lot to find a space. As they walked along, not in a particular hurry to get to the phone kiosk, he caught her hand and entwined his fingers with hers. It was a ridiculously simple gesture that made Julie, for the first time in a long time, feel really special. Christmas music filled the air, along with the fresh smell of pine that came from the large trees that were elaborately decorated and placed throughout the mall.

Christmas had once been Julie’s favorite time of the year, but it was a holiday for kids. For the last five years, she hadn’t been able to bring herself to celebrate. With no family, she didn’t have any presents to buy except a few for her co-workers and staff, and she did that early to avoid the rush. So, as they strolled along, looking at the elaborate window displays, she realized she had missed all the color and sparkle. And the sentiment.

As they faced one of the big display windows, she saw their reflection in the glass. She and Rusty stood, side-by-side, her hand still snugly inside his much larger one. He was so tall and gorgeous that it took her breath away. The blue of the sweater brought out the intense color of his eyes and the delicious fragrance of his aftershave was driving her wild. How wonderful it would be to actually be a part of a happy couple, especially this time of year.

“Hey, Rusty … Julie,” a masculine voice called and they turned around.

Sam, Rusty’s younger brother and his fiancée Kate approached, their arms loaded with bags. Their gazes immediately took in Rusty’s hand gripping Julie’s possessively. Sam didn’t even pretend not to notice. Instead, he gave them a “gotcha” smile. “So, what’s new?” he asked.

“Oh, you mean my sweater?” Rusty bantered back. “Yeah, it is. Do you like it?”

“Looks good on you,” Sam answered. “I think you made a good choice, much better than some of the other sweaters you’ve worn.”

Rusty squeezed her hand. “This one is a good fit.” He nodded toward their purchases. “Looks like you two have been busy. What did you get Mom?”

Sam rolled his eyes. “She’s the only one left. I just can’t find anything.”

“She saves those Snow Village house thingies,” Rusty suggested.

“She’s got dozens of them. I have no idea which ones she needs.”

“How about a Painted Pony statue? I noticed she has started collecting them.”

Sam smiled and nodded. “Great idea.”

“We just passed a store that sells them,” Julie spoke up.

“So what did you get her?” Sam asked. “No, wait, don’t tell me … another gift certificate to Red Lobster?”

“No, I got her that last year,” Rusty scoffed. “This year, it’s for Carrabba’s.”

“That’s such a cop out.”

“No, it’s not. It’s a thoughtful, useful gift. She likes to eat. And I usually tag along when she uses it, so I get a good meal and some quality time with her. What’s wrong with that?”

“It’s just lazy. You don’t have to think about it or fight these crowds.”

Rusty grinned. “Yeah, pretty smart, huh?” He turned to Julie. “You’ve met Kate, haven’t you?”

“Yes.” Julie smiled at Kate. “It’s getting close to the Music Hall’s last performance, isn’t it?”

“Yes, I’m really sad about it,” Kate told her. “I’ve had a blast working there. In the last six months, we’ve put on four different plays, plus the children’s shows on Saturday. I’m really going to miss the cast. They’re such nice people.”

“Do you have something else lined up?” Julie asked.

“Not yet, but I just auditioned for a local production that will be at one of the smaller theaters in the Denver Center for the Performing Arts,” Kate answered.

“Isn’t that where …?” Julie hesitated.

“Yes, I was almost killed there, but I can’t let that ruin it for me. The guy’s dead, so it’s over. I try not to think about it.” Kate shivered, still affected by the memory. “But the whole incident was how Sam and I got together and fell in love, so the good outweighs the bad, don’t you think?”

Julie nodded. “Absolutely. You can be a victim or you can be victorious. It’s good you’ve chosen to move on.”

“Chris told us about your car accident,” Sam said to Julie. “A snake? That’s pretty weird, isn’t it?”

“It really creeped me out,” Julie admitted. “I’m just glad I didn’t hurt anyone.”

“If that had happened to me, I probably would have climbed out the window,” Kate said with a grimace. “I hate snakes.”

“Me, too,” Julie agreed. “I couldn’t get out of that car fast enough.”

“Don’s son gave it a good home,” Sam said, then turned to Rusty, “So, bro, are you coming on Christmas Day?”

“I get off at 7:30 that morning. Depending on how busy we are the night before, I might go straight to Mom and Dad’s or I might catch a few hours’ sleep.”

“We’ll open presents around noon and eat at two,” Sam told him. “Don’t oversleep.”

“And be late for turkey and dressing and pumpkin pie? No way.”

Sam and Kate looked over at Julie. They obviously wanted to ask if she was going to be there, but they didn’t dare.

The silence stretched awkwardly. Julie certainly didn’t want to think she expected an invitation when one wasn’t forthcoming, so she hurried to say, “Well, I have to work all day Christmas. I usually take the whole 24-hour shift so my staff can spend the time with their families.”

“That’s really nice,” Kate said. “I’m sure they appreciate that.”

“They’re all volunteers, so it’s the right thing to do,” Julie told her.

Sam gave Kate a little shoulder bump. “We’d better get going. “I’ve got to go to work tonight.”

“Let’s go get one of those horses for your mom,” Kate reminded him.

“See you two later,” Rusty said.

Sam gave them both a smile and a nod and Kate gave Julie a conspiratorial wink.

Rusty and Julie watched them walk away for a moment, then turned back to each other. “They’re so cute together,” Julie commented, surprised by the wistfulness in her voice. Hoping Rusty didn’t notice, she quickly added, “Let’s go find that phone store.”

 

Monday morning Julie arrived at the office in a much better frame of mind. She felt relaxed and invigorated, even though she had to explain to everyone why she had the remnants of two black eyes. The color had faded to a sort of sick-looking green which she hoped would disappear completely by the end of the week.

Once in her office, she flipped through the incident reports and the pile of missed call slips and sorted them by importance, then set about catching up. Weekends usually generated as much activity as all five other days. But on top of her pile was an urgent message from one of her staff.

Brenda was one of the volunteers that had been with her the longest. Very reliable and generous with her time and her compassion, she very rarely called off a shift. Julie dialed Brenda’s number.

“Hello.”
The voice on the other end of the line was distracted and upset.

“Brenda, this is Julie. What’s wrong?”

The sound of muffled sobs filtered through the phone.
“It’s my mom. She was just diagnosed with breast cancer, and I’ve got to go back to Kansas City and take care of her.”
Brenda sniffled and tried to get her emotions under control.
“I hate to leave you short, especially on the holidays …”

“Don’t worry about us,” Julie interrupted. “You need to be with your mother. I’m so sorry to hear about her diagnosis. They’ve got some amazing treatments now, but it’s going to be a rough road for her. I’m sure she’ll feel so much better with you there.”

“She’s always been so healthy. This was such a shock.”

“It’s good that she’s strong. You can help her fight this. I think attitude has a lot to do with recovery.”

Brenda sniffled again.
“I think you’re right. I’ve got to make sure she’s getting the right treatment and staying positive.”

“What about your children?”

“They’re out of school, so they’re going with me at least until after New Year’s Day. After that, my husband can take care of them. He’ll just have to come home a little earlier than usual.”

“Let me know if I can help in any way,” Julie offered sincerely. “Tell Richard to call me if he needs a backup.”

“I will. Thanks, Julie. I just hate to leave with such short notice.”

“I’ve been taking some time off, so I can take your shift.”

“I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

“There will always be a spot for you on our team,” Julie promised. “Just focus on your family for now and let me know when you’re ready to come back.”

“Thank you. You know how much I love the work.”

They wished each other a Merry Christmas, said their goodbyes and Julie hung up. She opened the schedule file on her computer screen and studied it. This was the worst time of year to ask for the other volunteers to take an extra shift. As Brenda had implied, the holidays brought out the dark sides to many relationships. Disappointments blew out of proportion and arguments ensued, followed all too often by physical fights or mental abuse. And of course, there was an increase in fires and robberies and personal assaults, all of which provided her with more victims who needed help.

Julie would have to reshuffle the schedule for January, but she would take all of Brenda’s shifts for the rest of December. Cat wouldn’t mind if she was gone an extra night each week and Julie didn’t have any other family who would care. Of course, there was Rusty.

That brought a soft smile to her lips. The weekend had been wonderful. Julie couldn’t remember a time where she felt happier or more relaxed. And then there was the sex. Just the thought of him lying next to her or walking with a complete lack of modesty, naked from the bathroom caused that now-familiar stir of desire to ignite in the pit of her stomach. He had a perfect body, and she had unabashedly stared at it.