Xmas Affair Read online

  Xmas Affair

  Title Page

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Xmas Affair

  By Ruth D. Kerce

  Smashwords Edition

  Xmas Affair

  Copyright 2011 Ruth D. Kerce

  All rights reserved. Except for review quotes, no part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission of the author.

  This story is a fictitious work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to known persons or places is coincidental.

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to the Smashwords store and purchase you own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Chapter 1

  "I am not putting that battery-operated Santa on top of my Christmas tree," Julie told her friend. She'd be mortified to have people see that thing.

  "Why not?" Carmen asked with an innocent look that she actually almost pulled off.

  "Look at him. He's naked. His candy cane cock is eight inches long. And the thing turns."

  "Don't you want to suck it and see what it tastes like?"

  "Ew! That is so not funny."

  "Oh, come on." Carmen laughed. "I swear, you are such a prude."

  "I am not a prude. If I were a prude, I'd have mentioned how disgusting it is that they used blinking Christmas bulbs for his balls. But I didn't, did I?"

  "Actually, I think you just did."

  "Hmm. Okay. So I'm a prude. Stick a sign on my forehead. Just take that thing away. The leer on his face is creepy. He's like Evil Flasher Santa or something."

  "You're just trying to distract me with baseless, holiday objections." She set the Santa tree-topper on a side table. "Let's get back to the subject at hand."

  "No!" Julie repeated for the fourth time. "I already told you. The subject at hand is closed. I don't do blind dates any more." How many times did she have to say it?

  "You said you wished you had someone special to kiss under the mistletoe."

  "A silly Christmas wish. I was rambling."

  "Well, you said yes on the phone when I called you about the date."

  "That wasn't me. That was my mother. She was here the other day, trying to cause me trouble again. She must have picked up the phone while I was in the bathroom." Her mother had often done that when she was in high school, and her friends could never tell the difference. It had been a constant source of frustration in her life. The worse part was that her mother apparently saw nothing wrong with it and enjoyed trying to steer her life in whatever direction she saw fit.

  "But I already told him you'd go," Carmen replied as she hung another bulb on the artificial tree.

  Julie shook her head, not believing this conversation. "Then you're just going to have to make up some excuse why I can't. Tell him I eloped or something. You are a major disaster when it comes to men, and I'm not going to endure any more of your matchmaking attempts." She hung a candy cane on a branch then cringed at the reminder of the obscene Santa. Whoever would do that to a Santa Claus should be strung up and denied Christmas presents for the rest of their life.

  "But I really think--"

  "No." Julie spun around to face her best friend. "It's settled. Okay?" She didn't want to hurt Carmen's feelings, but she couldn't face any more fix-ups. Since she'd turned thirty, every one of her friends -- and several relatives -- had tried to find her a husband. Not a one of them had bothered to ask if she even wanted a husband.

  "Fine. But are you sure that was your mother on the phone? It sounded just like you."

  "Yes, I'm sure."

  Carmen plopped down in a nearby chair and let out a long, dramatic sigh. "You are such a bore when it comes to relationships. When are you going to try something adventurous? You haven't even asked me about him. You might change your mind."

  "I highly doubt that." Carmen had an uncanny ability for setting her up with losers, not adventure. Besides, she was perfectly capable of finding her own dates.

  "Aren't you the least bit curious?" Carmen leaned forward. "I swear, this one isn't weird in any way."

  "That's what you said about the comb-over." She cringed at the memory of that interminable evening.

  "So, he was balding and combed his hair over. What's wrong with that? You shouldn't be so critical."

  "Critical? It was three strands of hair, two feet long. Then he spent all evening insulting my hair style. He told me I should cut my long hair into a short shag. Can you imagine that? I felt like yanking his three strands right out of his head."

  Carmen laughed and a twinkle entered her eye. "Well, this guy I found for you has a full head of hair, so no worries there. It's not even thinning yet."

  "No?"

  "No."

  Suspicion crept into Julie's thoughts. Carmen always held something back. "So what is he? Four feet tall? A hundred and three years old? An ax murderer? What?"

  "I thought you weren't curious."

  She couldn't help herself -- just in case Carmen had found a winner among her seemingly infinite list of male friends and acquaintances. "Well, maybe I'm a little curious, like those people who can't look away from a disaster ready to happen."

  "He's not a disaster. He's smart, well-off, handsome, tall, has a great sense of humor, and is only in his mid-thirties."

  He sounded too good. If he truly were so exceptional, why wasn't he taken yet? "Get to it, Carmen. What's his quirk? If he's that special you'd have snatched him up for yourself."

  "Maybe he doesn't have a quirk. And you know I'm seeing Shawn now."

  Julie cocked an eyebrow at her friend.

  "Okay." Carmen sighed. "There is one little thing."

  "Here it comes. I better sit down." She sat stiffly on the sofa, bracing herself. "What is it?" She plucked at a sofa cushion, imagining all sorts of weird or worse scenarios.

  "He has a bit of a reputation."

  "A reputation? Is that all?" She laughed and relaxed against the pillows. But then she sobered, forcing the smile from her face. There had to be more to it. "What kind of reputation?" she asked warily. With Carmen, the guy could be any sort of wacko.

  "He's, um, Jab Transon."

  "Jab Transon! You mean Jabot Transon, the one who's up on charges of bigamy?" There couldn't be two men with that name, could there?

  "Yep. That's him."

  "How do you even know him?" Given her own history with Jab -- something she'd kept from Carmen -- this seemed way too coincidental for her liking.

  "We met at that fundraising event for the city's homeless shelters several months ago. You were there."

  She remembered the event, given the drama of that particular night. "I never saw him at the banquet."

  "You left early. That's when you had the big fight with Ray."

  "Yeah, I know." Her former ass of a boyfriend.

  "I met him later that evening. He just walked right up and introduced himself. He's so nice. Shawn and I meet him for drinks sometimes. This bigamy stuff is simply a big misunderstanding. And, he's in the market." She grinned.

  "That's one hell of a misunderstanding," she murmured. "In the market?" she queried louder. "For what? Wife number three? No, thank you."

  "He told us that he's not married to either of those women and never was."

  "There's documentation. I heard it on the news." What were the odds that Carmen would even meet him, let alone set her up with him?

  "The
papers were forged, he said. The guy inherited a mint. He's got crazies, especially women, coming out of the woodwork at him."

  "Why is he still working at that rundown shelter if he's so rich all of a sudden?" She'd known him before the money, when he'd had a lot of plans and dreams for the future.

  "He wants to help the homeless. Actually, he was one of the sponsors for the event we attended. Once all this mess is straightened out, he plans on taking some of the money he inherited and opening up his own private facility in the city. If it works out well, he wants to expand to more areas in the state."

  "How lovely of him." She sounded catty and knew it, but Jab brought that out in her. She still hadn't gotten over what he'd done. And she probably never would, regardless of how charitable he was with others.

  "It's all true! So, see, it's not really a blind date. You know who he is. He's a good guy. Why can't you give him a chance?"

  Yes, she knew him, better than Carmen realized. "If he's got all these people, women in particular, causing problems for him, why on earth would he agree to a blind date? Did you tell him my name?" If Carmen had, that might explain why he'd agreed to the arrangement, though she would think he'd have run the other way, considering that's what he'd already done to her. This was just all too strange for her liking.

  "He knows you're okay, since you're a friend of mine."

  "That's not much of an endorsement. He does know how nutty you are, right?" Carmen was well-intended but bad Karma followed her like hungry dogs followed the scent of food.

  "Very funny. Insult me all you want. You two are perfect for each other."

  Julie noticed that Carmen hadn't answered the question about her name. A simple oversight, or had she avoided answering on purpose? Just when she was about to ask her again, an uncomfortable look crossed Carmen's face, and she blurted out her words so quickly that Julie barely understood them.

  "I invited Jab to the Christmas party I'm having this weekend, and I told him that you'd accompany him to keep the other women at bay."

  Julie sorted out the jumble in her head. "Good grief, Carmen. Why did you do that?"

  "Because I thought you had agreed to a date."

  "But that's not even really a date. Not if I'm simply a decoy." Figures. She knew there had to be a catch somewhere.

  Carmen waited a beat before answering. "Well, is being a decoy better or worse than being his date?"

  "Why?"

  "Because if it's better, then that's what I arranged. If it's worse, then I'll be affronted and say that you are his date. Besides, Ray's going to be there, and you don't want to show up alone."

  This day was going from bad to worse. Next Carmen would be telling her that chocolate had been outlawed for the holiday. "Why is Ray coming?"

  "You know I invited people months ago. I didn't know you two were going to break up. I couldn't un-invite him."

  "Why not?" She didn't want to attend a Christmas party if her former boyfriend was going to be there.

  "I've known him as long as I've known you, Julie. Anyway, he's, um, bringing Gretchen, he said."

  "Oh, wonderful. He's only bringing her, so he can shove her boobs in my face." Ray had always complained about her small breasts. Gretchen had breasts like basketballs. Not that she cared. Gretchen was nice enough, but Ray was only using her. She'd bet her last chocolate cupcake on it.

  "So, you go with Jab, and you can shove his sizeable cock--"

  "Carmen!"

  "What?" She smiled. "You have to admit that Jab is a major hunk."

  Julie wasn't about to admit to anything. Her eyes narrowed. "How do you know the size of his cock? Have you two--?"

  "No! Geez!" She fanned her face. "I'm just assuming."

  The doorbell rang, drawing their attention. Julie stood to answer it.

  "Oh, and there's one more thing," Carmen said quickly, stopping her in her tracks. But then she clammed up and simply chewed at her bottom lip.

  "What?"

  The doorbell rang again, and Julie raised her hand in a halting motion. "Okay, just hold that thought while--"

  "That's him. He's here."

  "Here? Who?" Julie's mouth fell open when the answer hit her like a sledgehammer to the head. "Jab? Now?"

  "I thought a pre-date was in order. I'll let him in." Carmen jumped up and rushed from the room like Evil Flasher Santa had come to life and chased her out.

  Julie shivered, and she wasn't quite certain which thought had disturbed her more -- the one of Santa or the prospect of seeing Jab again.

  Chapter 2

  Julie's knees immediately felt weak. She couldn't see Jab, not now, not like this. Her hair was a mess. Her clothes were too casual. She didn't even have on any make-up. How could Carmen do this to her?

  The deep timbre of Jab's voice reached her ears as he greeted her friend in the foyer. Well, she didn't have much of a choice now. She'd have to face him. She certainly couldn't hide under the Christmas tree, though the idea did appeal to her.

  He stepped into the living room, and her heart did a little tumble at the sight of his dark hair and blue eyes. Still as handsome as ever. But then, she'd known that. He'd been hounded by TV reporters over the bigamy scandal, and she'd seen him ducking cameramen on the news for weeks now.

  "Julie," he greeted, a slight grin tugging at his lips.

  He didn't look the least bit surprised to see that she was his blind date. She hadn't lived here when they'd been seeing each other, so he had to have known who he was coming to meet. Otherwise, she would have seen a completely different reaction from him. Instead, that little grin on his face told the whole story. She glanced around him. "Where's Carmen?"

  "I asked her to take off. I thought we could use some time alone."

  Her friend had turned traitor. She'd get Carmen back for this -- maybe she'd set her up with someone, if she and Shawn ever called it quits.

  Julie turned toward the Christmas tree and fumbled with some tinsel. She had to pull herself together and not let Jab get to her. "You knew that she set you up with me."

  "Yes, of course. You don't think that I'd really go out on a blind date, do you?"

  She didn't answer that, for she didn't like his tone. Or maybe she just told herself he had a tone, because of how unsettled she felt. She wanted to know if any of this had been fate or something else entirely. "Was meeting Carmen at that banquet a coincidence or did you arrange it?"

  He answered without hesitation. "I arranged it when I saw all of you come in together. After the argument you had that evening, I perceived an opportunity. That was quite a scene you made."

  "Yeah, well, I had help making it, believe me." She'd been so embarrassed by her and Ray's public display that she'd left immediately afterward.

  "I remember. I've been biding my time ever since then."

  So, not fate at all. Somehow that disappointed her. But it also thrilled her that he was still interested enough to manipulate a meeting. Though he'd certainly taken his time. The banquet was months ago. "Biding your time? Or secretly stalking me?"

  "Just keeping tabs, Julie. I was actually surprised that you agreed to a blind date. Unless Carmen told you that it was me before you agreed?"

  He sounded almost wishful that she had known. No. She mentally erased the thought. That was simply her imagination. "You know she didn't."

  "Well, I thought maybe, um, okay. Fine. I just never expected--"

  "And I never expected you to get married. But here you've gone and done it. Twice." She couldn't help the dig. In actuality, his words about blind dates had rubbed her the wrong way. She'd been out on a few and didn't feel as if it was a pathetic thing to do, even though she hadn't wanted to go out on this one. Nor had she agreed to it, as he had assumed.

  When several moments passed and she didn't get a response, she rounded to face him, wondering if maybe he'd turned and left. No. He stood there glaring at her. She shrugged. "It's been all over the news. What am I supposed to think?"

  "You know me better
than that."

  "I thought I did." Her voice caught in her throat. "Once."

  He stepped closer and slowly raised his hand. He touched her cheek just barely with his fingertips. "I've missed you."

  At his touch, all the emotions she once felt for him rose to the surface. "Jab, why are you really here?" She took a step back, needing distance. "Nothing's changed."

  Sadness filled his eyes. "We can correct that."

  Hope momentarily filled her heart, but then she dashed it away. He'd walked away from her well over a year ago and had never even called. He'd just disappeared for months. When she finally learned he'd returned -- from Aruba, of all places -- he still hadn't called, and she hadn't been about to call him. In fact, she should be throwing him out of her house, not standing here talking to him like an old friend.

  She turned abruptly, not wanting him to see the tears in her eyes. When he stepped close enough for his chest to brush against her back, she almost melted against him. His heat penetrated her as deeply as his body used to penetrate hers. The memories made her whole body tremble.

  "I'm sorry things didn't work out, Julie."

  She shrugged. "It's over. We're over." He stood too close for her comfort, but the Christmas tree blocked an easy escape, so she whirled around to confront him. The best defense, she figured, was a no-nonsense offense. "By the way, we won't be going to Carmen's party."

  He took a step back. "Why not? Don't you want to show up that guy -- Roy?"

  "Ray." A frown briefly creased his forehead, and Julie wondered what he was thinking, and how he felt about her moving on with another man.

  "Yeah. Whatever."

  Apparently Carmen had told him more about her recent life than she would have liked. "I'm surprised Carmen even told you about him."

  "Only after I asked. And then she was hesitant." He flashed a grin and stepped closer once again, looping his arms around her waist. "Luckily I have ways of making women talk," he replied in a mock German accent. "Besides, I'd love to show this guy what a jerk he was for leaving you."