Holiday in the Heart Page 8

  Amanda intertwined her legs into his and snuggled closer. Running her fingers in the dark curly hair on his chest, she raised her mouth to his and kissed the lips that had kept her from a minute’s sleep. She couldn’t get enough of him. She wanted him forever.

  “Merry Christmas,” she said.

  “It certainly is, cara. And you are the best present I have ever received.” He caressed her shoulder, then kissed the tip of her nose. “A present I want to keep forever.”

  “Forever is a very long time, Marco.”

  He turned his body toward her, and touched her cheek. “Not long enough when it comes to being with you. I want to spend the rest of my days with you, and to fill our home with love, love we have denied ourselves until now.”

  “I do love you, Marco,” she said, giddy with joy from her admission.

  “Perfetto! We will live our days to the fullest, grow old together, and pray our children and grandchildren find what we share.”

  She jerked up in alarm. Gathering the covers against her, Amanda pulled away. “Marco, we’re not twenty years old anymore. I will be forty soon and my son is graduating high school this year. I can’t have a child now.”

  “Why?” He sat up beside her, and in typical Italian fashion, began to speak with his hands. “Women much older than you have children. We are healthy, and we have so much to offer a child.”

  Turning her back to him, she slid her feet over the side of the bed and stood. “I can’t think, Marco. This is too much. Can we talk after I shower?”

  “We can talk whenever you want. But do not forget, I’ll not let you take my present back.” He stood behind her and kissed her shoulder. “We are going to grow old together. No more walking away with my heart, cara.”

  “No, but I do need to think.” Walking towards the en-suite bath, she turned and smiled. “And eat. It seems I forgot to eat dinner last night.”

  “You think? I will call for breakfast.” A smile teased his lips as he walked toward her again. Placing large warm hands in the small of her back, he pulled her close for a kiss. “I will ask for your things to be packed and brought here.”

  “No need. My things were never unpacked. My luggage is at the foot of my bed. The first thing I did after I checked in was go to watch the sunset and have a meeting with fate.”

  “I am happy you did.” A look of relief spread across his face.

  “Me, too.” She blew him a kiss from the doorway. “Me, too.”

  Contacting the front desk, Marco instructed them of the room change and requested they bring Amanda’s belongings up promptly. Stressing the need to direct all calls to his suite, he said, “It is Christmas and she is impatient to speak to her son. Please be sure to put Jason Jones through immediately. Regardless of the time.”

  ~*~

  The hotel staff delivered her luggage and released her room. Amanda had just finished pulling on her sweater when there was a second knock at the door. Room service. She popped her head into the bathroom. “Breakfast has arrived.”

  “Si bella, I will be right out.”

  Room service set the tray of fragrant coffee, cheeses and fresh baked bread on the table.

  Taking care to give a good Christmas-worthy tip, Amanda opened the door for the young woman to leave. “Thank you and Merry Christmas.”

  “Merry Christmas.” The girl turned and collided with a snow-covered young man.

  “Excuse me,” he said. “I didn’t see you.”

  “Jason!” Amanda pulled her ‘popsicle’ son through the door and into her embrace. “What a wonderful surprise.”

  “Merry Christmas.” Bringing his frozen lips to her cheek, Jason handed her a gift from the airport shop in Denver. “I couldn’t be mistaken for Dad’s new wife’s boyfriend one more time. I had to get away from Kitty! She’s nuts and a bimbo.”

  “Jason!” Amanda tried to sound serious, but couldn’t stop her laughter. “Oh well, she’s your Dad’s problem, not ours. But be respectful to your father anyway.”

  “Whatever,” Jason said shrugging his shoulders and throwing his wet jacket onto a chair. “Who cares? I’m here to spend Christmas with the best mom in the world.”

  She smiled and accepted another snow-frosted kiss. Taking his cold fingers between her hands, she guided him to the couch. “I’m happy you’re here. Whatever your reasons. I have so much—”

  Marco’s voice sounded from the bedroom. “Coffee here, bella? I am famished, and not just for... Oh, sorry.” He was now in the sitting room. “I did not realize...Jason?”

  “What the hell is this?” Jason stood and glared at the man with a white towel wrapped around his waist standing in his mother’s hotel suite.

  Amanda placed a hand on her son’s shoulder and nodded to Marco. “Yes, this is my son, Jason.”

  “Yeah, but who is he?” Jason’s gaze burned into Amanda. “And, what is he doing in your room?”

  Marco stepped forward and extended his hand to the shocked teenager. “I am Marco Tambu—”

  “Tamburi,” Jason interrupted. “I recognize you.”

  Amanda stared at Marco and raised her arms in question. How did Jason know him?

  “Good,” she said to her son. “Why don’t we sit and talk while Marco gets dressed. I have a lot to tell you.”

  Jason moved like a robot under her direction. He sat on the couch, but continued to glare at Marco. After shooting a quick glance at Amanda, Marco nodded and walked back into the bedroom, leaving Jason and her alone.

  Gingerly sitting on the edge of the couch, Amanda wondered how to explain Marco to her son without sounding as if she regretted the life she’d led. Her heart ached with the love she had for Jason, love she couldn’t imagine absent from her life.

  Holding his hand, she took a deep breath and began. “I’ve known Marco for a very long time. We lived in the same dorm during college.”

  “I know, Mom. I remember you telling me he was a good friend and all. I also remember you crying over his picture for a whole week after that.”

  A dim recollection of sitting at the kitchen table and talking to her first-grader entered her mind. She nodded and connected the pieces to the puzzle. “I didn’t remember that, Jason. I’m surprised you did. You were so young.”

  “I remember. You were reading one of those Italian gossip rags you love. He was on the front page with a pretty bride, and you started crying when you saw it. You called him a liar and threw the paper in the trash. When I came into your room to ask why you were crying, you said it was because you’d known the truth all along and there was no second chance.”

  Amanda felt the blood drain from her face. Jason remembered bits and pieces of the day, but how did she put it all together for him now? “You don’t have all the details.”

  “Obviously,” Jason hissed, rising from the couch. “You’ve shacked up in this joint with a married man and are acting like a cheap—”

  “Do not dare to speak to your mother like that!” Marco boomed entering the room.

  “You can’t tell me what to do,” Jason challenged. “You’re not my father.”

  “No, I am not. But I am sure he would agree with me on that demand.” Marco’s voice clearly displayed his effort at control. “However, no one talks to your mother like that. Not even you, Jason.”

  Jason’s mouth dropped and he turned a bewildered gaze to his mother. Gone was the tough-guy act and in its place stood a confused boy unable to speak.

  Amanda rose, stepped forward and took him in her arms. Stroking Jason’s wet blond hair, she kissed the side of his head. Her gaze met Marco’s and asked for his patience so she could explain to her son. He nodded and went to sit on a chair opposite the couch.

  “Honey, I don’t blame you for being surprised,” Amanda began gently. “Please hear me out from the beginning.”

  Jason looked at her with blue eyes that begged for her forgiveness and pleaded for her to continue. She obliged her son’s silent request.

  “Marco and I met in
college. We shared more than a typical boyfriend-girlfriend attraction and became very close. For my own personal reasons, I turned down his marriage proposal. We went our separate ways, but our love didn’t fade. When I saw the wedding picture you remember, I cried because I thought I’d never again have the opportunity to tell him how much I loved him.”

  Holding her son’s hand, Amanda paused to let him absorb what she’d said. She looked at the boy she cherished and prayed to find the right words for him.

  Jason’s eyes held tears in them. His lip trembled. “But you were married to Dad then. Why did you care about him? You had us.”

  “Yes, I had you, the best thing of my life. I would never change that for anything. Your dad and I wanted and loved you so much, that we tried to make our failing marriage work as long as possible. Then one day, we admitted to each other we could love you just as much if we weren’t married and making each other miserable.”

  “The divorce?”

  “Yes.”

  “Is he divorced, too?”

  “Actually, Gabriella died a few years ago. Marco is widowed.” Amanda swallowed the knot in her throat and contemplated her next words.

  “Jason, a piece of my heart has always been with Marco and I love him. I want to be with him.” She paused again, hoping her son would accept her decision.

  “I would never do anything to jeopardize our relationship—yours and mine—and my wanting to be with Marco doesn’t mean I don’t love you. Please know that, sweetheart. I love you more than life itself. But in a few months you’re coming to New York to start college, and you'll begin making your own way in the world. I’ll always be there for you. I just don’t want to be there alone.”

  Jason’s eyes fixed on her face. He didn’t speak, only nodded as she finished. Amanda felt Marco’s hand caress her shoulder. She hadn’t realized he’d come to stand behind her. She looked up at him, silently communicating she was done.

  Marco cleared his throat. “We have something in common, Jason. We both love this woman and want her to be happy. We are both a bit quick to jump to her defense, even when she is more than capable and does not need our protection.”

  The two men’s gazes met and held above Amanda’s head. She felt their love surround her and she smiled as she took each of their hands in hers. “This is the best Christmas ever. The two men I love most are with me. I want you to get to know each other, and once you do, I know you’ll like each other.”

  “Mom, I’m sorry I spoke to you that way. I was wrong...rude. Oh, Mom, I’m sorry.” Jason stammered, then hugged her. Turning to Marco, he offered his hand. “And Marco, I don’t like sharing, but if it makes Mom happy, welcome to the family.”

  Marco bypassed Jason’s extended hand and gave the young man a quick hug. “Grazie.”

  “Thank you, both of you. Now let’s have breakfast and get ready for Rockefeller Center. Honey, place your bag in that bedroom.” A joyous Amanda pointed to the second bedroom in the suite.

  ~*~

  The sun was low on the horizon as Jason witnessed his mother marry Marco on the last day of the year. The priest pronounced them husband and wife, congratulated them, and walked inside the eighty-sixth floor observatory for Jason to sign the marriage certificate.

  Marco pulled her into his arms and gave Amanda the first passionate kiss as his wife. “Finally, mia moglie, my wife.”

  “Yes, my husband.” Loving the sound, she repeated it. “Husband, how on earth did you manage to get a priest here on New Year’s Eve?”

  Marco laughed and placed an escaped tendril of hair behind her ear. “I told you, it helps to have influence, and for officials to owe you. I called in some favors.”

  “I’m glad you did.” She leaned up on her toes and kissed Marco. “Ti amero per sempre is engraved in our rings. Ti amero means I love you. But what is sempre?”

  “It is what I have been saying from the first time I met you. Forever, Amanda, I love you forever.”

  http://www.alekanakis.com

  The Christmas Curse

  Rachel Michaels

  Jenna Malone gasped as a wave of icy water splashed her face. “Dammit!” she sputtered at the departing bus, wiping ineffectually at the dirty mess it had left in its wake. She must look a complete wreck. Black slush stained her camel colored peacoat and her lovely Manolo boots were ruined. Well, to be fair, those were already ruined, as she’d broken the heel off the right one not more than twenty minutes ago.

  Why had she even left the house today? After all, it was Christmas. Okay, December 24th, but close enough. She should have stayed in her warm, cozy bed and read romance novels all day. Since Michael had dumped her earlier today, reading a spicy romance would definitely be the most exciting thing taking place in her bed any time soon.

  Ah well. Michael was a jerk anyway. Jenna couldn’t believe he’d had the nerve to dump her over e-mail. And after she’d given him the best six months of her life! Well, it hadn’t really been the best six months, but it hadn’t been the worst either. Still, she should have seen the break-up coming.

  After all, it was Christmas.

  She gave up trying to clean herself off and with the cold air stinging her still damp cheeks, hitched her large mahogany leather satchel into a more comfortable position. Criminy, it was frigid out! ‘Tis the season… Yeah, right! Sighing, she limped off toward home, trying to cheer herself along the way. She had five blocks to walk, plenty of time to improve her mental state. She tried to concentrate on positive things. As soon as she got home, she’d take a nice warm bath, listen to some James Blunt and dig into that bar of chocolate she’d been saving for emergencies. Then she’d go to bed, alone, have a restful night, alone, and wake up, alone, on Christmas morning. Hmmmm. This cheering up stuff wasn’t as easy as she’d hoped.

  The cold seeped through her clothes, causing her to shiver. Chunks of her soaked hair had frozen and now whapped the side of her head as she trudged along. Stupid bus. More like ‘stupid car.’ If her Honda Civic hadn’t broken down last week, she could have driven it and avoided the bus altogether. But it would stay in the shop until she could afford to pay for the repairs. So here she was.

  Jenna sniffed loudly as her nose began to run. She tugged at her heavy bag again. Why wouldn’t the stupid thing stay on her shoulder?

  Her eyes watered. She tried to convince herself it was due to the cold, but it was really because she felt sorry for herself. Okay, time for the cheering up thing again! Should she have gone to visit her family? No. It wasn’t like she’d have a great time with her family anyway. After all, it didn’t matter where she was—something was bound to go wrong. Just like every other Christmas.

  Jenna sighed.

  Her steps slowed as she reached the sidewalk leading to the old white Victorian housing her third floor apartment. Almost home. She paused, psyching herself up to climb the thirty steps between her and complete relaxation.

  For what she hoped was the last time, she hitched her bag higher on her shoulder, trying to find a more comfortable place for the strap. Looking up, a bright star caught her attention. Huge, it looked as though it hung right above the house. Mesmerized, she stared up at it. An idea popped into her head. Should I... Her head whipped from side to side as she shook her head vigorously, but the idea wouldn’t go away. With a sigh, she surrendered to the inevitable. I can’t believe I’ve sunk so low. Okay, Jenna, get it over with.

  “Star light, star bright, first star I see—oh screw this. Star, if you’re listening, how ‘bout a little help here? Even though you seem like some special Christmas star, which makes me justifiably nervous, I’m desperate here. I could use some good luck for a change. So I wish...I wish I could have, just this once, a merry Christmas.” She stopped, still staring at the star, almost afraid to look away, worried if she broke ‘eye contact,’ she’d somehow mess up her wish. For several moments, nothing moved in the frosty night.

  Finally Jenna shrugged, causing her satchel to slide off her shoulder again. Aggravated
, she didn’t bother to move it this time. She trudged up the sidewalk toward the porch steps, grumbling to herself. “What did I expect? Was Santa Claus supposed to show up? How about the three wise men? Maybe the baby Jesus himself? Or—I know! How about an angel?” She reached for the railing by the porch, but her errant bag snagged against it. She tugged on it and grumbled, “Yeah, that’s it. An angel is just going to appear—aaaaaaaack!” Her last thought as her feet slid out from under her was ‘Christmas sucks.’

  ~*~

  Jenna slowly opened her eyes and turned her head to see where she was. Wow, her head injury must be pretty bad. She was hallucinating that an angel leaned over her, softly calling her name.

  “Jenna? Jenna, are you okay?” the angel called.

  Jenna started to pull herself into an upright position and regretted it instantly as dizziness rushed over her. She immediately sank back down into the slush covering the icy cement sidewalk.

  She reached up and gingerly touched the back of her throbbing head, noting without surprise the large lump forming where she’d whacked herself after her losing battle with the ice. Trying to focus on something other than her excruciating headache, she looked back up at her angel, er, neighbor. Although he might be handsome enough to be a heavenly being, she now recognized the figure crouched next to her as her new neighbor from the downstairs apartment. Jim. No, Jeff. No, John! That was it! John something. He’d moved in at the beginning of the month. She’d noticed he was cute, and they’d had a few sessions of small talk while collecting their mail. Since she’d been dating Michael, she hadn’t paid too much attention.

  But now Jenna gave him a thorough looking over. All right, he might not be an angel, but he looked pretty dreamy. His tousled brown hair needed a haircut, but there was something very endearing about the way a lock of it curled right above his right eyebrow. And his eyes, wow, his eyes were the most gorgeous green. She thought she remembered him having a killer smile, but he wasn’t smiling now. Why was he frowning at her? Oh, right, because she was lying on the ground, not responding. He probably thought she was brain dead, and not only because of the fall.