Silent Night, Unexpected Night by Ella Jade Page B

were a darker shade of red. Her embarrassment somehow suited
her face. “I guess you haven't seen me in a while.”
    “Come,” he said as he walked down the
hallway to the family room. Tanner heard the click of her black stilettos
hitting the hardwood floor. How she managed to walk in them in this weather was
beyond him, but they accentuated her long, toned legs.
    Once they entered the large room, she
stopped to admire the tree. He wasn't sure why, but it seemed to get larger
each year. Maybe he was over compensating for the time he’d spent alone around
the holidays.
    “Your Christmas tree is beautiful. I
loved coming to your house during the holidays when I was a kid. You always had
the biggest tree.”
    She shivered, but that didn’t surprise Tanner
since she was practically naked. The dress was hot, but it didn’t hide much of
her porcelain-like skin.
    “Sit by the fire.” He poured her a glass
of brandy. “This will warm you up.”
    “I've never had this before.” She took
the glass from him and then plopped down on the floor in front of the hearth.
    “Brandy?”
    “I just turned twenty-one in September,
but I don't really drink much.”
    Twenty-one, right.
    “That's probably a good thing.” He sat
down next to her feeling rather amused that they were on the floor. He couldn't
remember the last time he sat there. “You should take your time with it. If
you're not used to drinking, it'll go right to your head.”
    She nodded before taking a small sip.
She crinkled her nose and shook her head. “Yuck.” She looked as if she wanted
to spit the amber liquid back into the glass, but she managed to swallow it.
    Tanner couldn't stop the laugh that
escaped his mouth. “I take it you don’t like it.”
    “I'm sorry,” she said. “That was rude.”
    “It was cute. I should have warned you
it might burn going down.”
    “I'm sure the brandy is really good,
but, um—”
    “It's okay.” He continued to laugh as he
took the glass from her. “It's an acquired taste.”
    “If you say so.”  She shrugged and
stretched out her legs, kicking off her heels.
    He found her purity refreshing. “What
have you been up to? I haven't seen you much since Aiden went off to college.”
    “I'm in my last year of school.”
    “What are you studying?”
    “Journalism. I love to write.” She
tucked one of the loose strands of hair that had fallen from her clip behind
her ear.
    “Good for you.” He had to suppress the
urge to free her hair from its confines. He imagined it was long, thick and
would look fantastic fanned out against his silk sheets.
    No, no, no. He had to stop thinking about her like that. She was twenty years younger than him.
It was absurd to think about her in such a disrespectful manner. He had no idea
what had come over him.
    “I have an internship at a building not
far from the hospital. Sometimes I see you on your way in and out.”
    “Really? Why don’t you say hello?” If
she approached him, he would stop to hold a conversation with her. Now that he
knew she worked in the area, he’d have to keep his eye out for her.
    “I know how busy you are. I didn’t want
to bother you.” She gazed into the fire. “Plus, I wasn't sure if you'd remember
me.”
    “Don't be silly. You spent many years in
this house. My son adores you. How could I not remember you?”
    I’ll never forget you now.
    “I keep in touch with Aiden as much as I
can, but in the past few semesters we haven't been able to see one another as
often as we used to. We're both really busy.”
    “Did he tell you he got into medical
school?”
    “Yes, you must be so proud.” She smiled
and he couldn’t help but memorize every feature of her face especially the tiny
mole just below the left corner of her lip. “He always wanted to be just like
you.”
    “He's staying closer to home too.”
    “You must be happy about that.”
    “Perhaps you’ll spend more time here
with us.” What am I thinking? “Well, because I’m