Not Just For Christmas. Debbie Macomber

family lived in Hawaii, there was little opportunity to see them. Vaughn Kyle had assumed a special significance for her. Neither his parents nor anyone else knew how deep her feelings ran. With a determined effort, she’d remained on the sidelines of his life, writing occasional letters and sending gifts at the appropriate times.

      Now she would have the opportunity to give Vaughn the things she’d set aside for him so many years ago. It’d been her prayer that they meet before she died.

      She had to stop herself from being greedy. She would gladly accept whatever time Vaughn Kyle was willing to grant her.

      * * *

      Carrie found herself smiling as she walked into the family home shortly after six. She paused in the entryway to remove the handknit scarf from around her neck and shrug out of her coat. Softly humming a Christmas tune, she savored the warm feelings left by her visit with Vaughn. She’d enjoyed getting to know him. Even though it’d been years since she’d spent this much time in a man’s company, the initial awkwardness between them had dissipated quickly.

      Vaughn seemed genuinely interested in learning what he could about Hassie and Buffalo Valley. What she appreciated most was that he hadn’t asked any prying questions about her divorce. A lot of people assumed she wanted to tell her side of it, but Carrie found no joy in reliving the most painful, humiliating experience of her life.

      Their dinner conversation had flowed smoothly. He was easy to talk to, and Carrie loved telling him about Buffalo Valley. She was proud to recount its history, especially the developments of the past five years. The improvements could be attributed to several factors, but almost all of them went right back to Hassie Knight and her determination and optimism. Hassie refused to let the town fade into nothingness, refused to let it die like countless other communities throughout the Dakotas.

      When Carrie walked into the living room, her mother glanced up from her needlework and her two younger brothers hurried in from the kitchen. All three fixed their eyes on her. Everyone seemed to be waiting for her to speak.

      “What?” Carrie demanded.

      “We’re curious about your dinner date,” her mother said mildly.

      Carrie should’ve realized her family would hear she’d gone out with Vaughn. How they knew she could only speculate, but in a small town word traveled even faster than it did on the Internet.

      “How’d it go?” Ken asked, looking as though he’d welcome the opportunity to defend her honor should the occasion arise.

      Part of the pain of her divorce came from knowing that she was the first in their family’s history to whom it had happened. Long-standing marriages were a tradition she would gladly have continued. But she couldn’t stay married to a man who didn’t honor his vows, a man whose unfaithfulness undermined her self-respect, as well as their marriage. Her four brothers had hinted that things with Alec would have worked out differently if they’d been around to see to it. Needless to say, the last thing she wanted was her brothers, much as she loved them, playing the role of enforcers.

      “He’s very nice,” she said, carefully weighing her words. She didn’t want to give the impression that there was more to their meeting than a simple, friendly dinner.

      “He didn’t try anything, did he?” Chuck asked.

      Carrie nearly laughed out loud. “Of course he didn’t. Where’s Dad?” she asked, wondering why her father hadn’t leaped into the conversation.

      Before anyone could respond, her father shuffled into the room, wearing his old slippers, a newspaper tucked under his arm and his reading glasses perched on the end of his nose. He stopped abruptly when he saw her.

      “So how was your hot date?” he asked. He stood in front of his easy chair and waited for her to answer.

      “It was just dinner,” she protested. “The only reason he asked me out was to kill time while he waited for Hassie.” It was unlikely they’d be doing this again, which she supposed was just as well. She had to admit she wanted to, but from what he’d said, he was only in the area for the Christmas holidays and then he was going home to Seattle. There was no point in starting something you couldn’t finish, she thought. Not that she knew if he was even interested in her … or available.

      “Will you be seeing him again?” her mother asked, but Carrie wasn’t fooled by her nonchalant tone.

      “He’s coming back Sunday afternoon to—”

      “That’s great.” Her mother smiled, clearly pleased.

      “He isn’t returning to see me.” It was important her family understand that she had nothing to do with his decision. The sole reason for his visit was to spend time with Hassie.

      “That’s a shame.” Her father claimed his chair, turning automatically to the sports page.

      “Did you invite him to the tree-lighting ceremony?” Ken asked.

      Her father lowered the newspaper and her mother paused in the middle of a stitch to await her response.

      “No,” Carrie admitted reluctantly. She’d thought of mentioning it, but couldn’t see the purpose. She glanced around the room, looking at each hopeful face.

      What she didn’t say was that she would’ve welcomed the opportunity to know Vaughn Kyle better. The few hours she’d spent with him had helped her realize that her heart was still capable of response, that it hadn’t shriveled up inside her like an orange left too long in the fruit bowl.

      For that she was grateful.

      As Vaughn pulled the rental car into the long driveway that led to his parents’ home, he saw that his mother had turned on the back porch light. It wasn’t really necessary, since the outside of the entire house was decorated with Christmas lights.

      He knew his mother had made tentative plans for a dinner with friends on Sunday afternoon and might not be pleased by his absence. However, Vaughn didn’t mind returning to Buffalo Valley. He’d enjoyed meeting Carrie and learning some of the town’s recent history. He’d report this information to Natalie; she might find it useful. Carrie Hendrickson was an interesting contrast to the women he’d met and dated in Seattle during the past few years—including Natalie, his sort-of fiancée. Carrie had shied away from talking about herself, which was a refreshing change from what he’d grown accustomed to hearing. A recent dinner date with Natalie had been spent discussing every aspect of her career and the Value-X corporation—as if their work was all they had to talk about. He’d come away with a letdown feeling, feeling, somehow, that he’d missed out on something important … only he didn’t know quite what. After all, he admired Natalie’s drive and ambition and her unemotional approach to life.

      His mother was finishing the dinner dishes when he entered the kitchen. “How was your visit?” she asked, rinsing a pan before setting it on the drainboard.

      “Wonderful.”

      “How’s Hassie?” she asked, looking expectantly at him as she reached for the towel to dry her hands. “You did give her my love, didn’t you?”

      “She was exhausted.” He explained that the pharmacist had been at a meeting when he arrived and that her assistant had convinced him to wait until she got back. Neither she nor Carrie had mentioned the reason for the meeting, but whatever it was had drained her, emotionally and physically.

      His mother’s brow furrowed with concern. “She’s not ill, is she?”

      “I don’t think so, but I didn’t want to tire her out any more than she already was, so I told her I’d be back on Sunday.”

      His mother’s face clouded and he knew what was coming. The subject of Vaughn Knight always distressed her. Every time his name was brought up, she grew quiet. He suspected she’d postponed a promised visit to Hassie because, for whatever reason, she found it hard to talk about Vaughn. More than once he’d seen tears fill her eyes. His mother wasn’t the only one; his father also tended