A Christmas Blessing

armsaround her and held her close. Suddenly she no longer felt nearly so alone. Breathing inthe familiar masculine scent of him, crushed against his solid chest, she felt warm andprotected and cherished. Those feelings might be illusions, but for now she basked inthem.
After what seemed far too brief a time, Luke gently disengaged her andstepped back just far enough to examine her from head to toe. His expression hardened,as if something he saw angered him. She couldn’t imagine what it could be.
“What’s this?” he demanded, rubbing at the dampness onher cheeks. “What’s wrong, Jessie?”
Jessie hadn’t even been aware that she’d been crying beforehis arrival. Or maybe they were tears of joy at seeing him. Or perhaps simply the overlyemotional tears of a woman who’d just given birth. She couldn’t say. Shejust knew that at this moment she had never been more grateful to see someone in herlife.
“Jessie? What’s going on?” he asked as he led her awayfrom the door and shut it behind him. A worried frown puckered his brow as he waitedwith obvious impatience for answers. “What has my family done to younow?”
“Nothing,” she said. “Everything. Oh, Luke,they’re taking over. I’m trying so damned hard not to let them. I am not aweak woman. You know that.”
“No mistake about it,” he agreed.
Jessie barely noticed the sudden return of a twinkle in his eye. She wastoo caught up in trying to explain her frustration. “But they’re bulldozingright over me,” she said, giving full vent to her exasperation. “Theydon’t listen to a word I say. They don’t even hear me.”
To her astonishment, Luke chuckled. “Darlin’, that’snothing to get all stressed out about. That’s just Mother and Dad. Talk louder andstand your ground. Sooner or later, they’ll get the message.”
Jessie recognized the wisdom of his advice. She’d even seen how wellit worked in action. She’d just lost her strength to fight there for a minute. Shegazed up at Luke, tears still shimmering in her eyes, and offered a watery grin.“Quite a welcome, huh?”
He grinned. “Can’t say I’ve ever minded having a womanhurl herself into my arms,” he teased.
His gaze captured hers and held. Suddenly the teasing light in his eyesdied out, replaced by something far more serious, something far more compelling.Jessie’s breath snagged in her throat.
“Luke,” she began huskily, then cleared her throat and triedagain. “Luke, what are you doing here? Yesterday you flat-out refused to come. Didsomething change your mind?” She thought of the ring she’d left behind andthe odd call he’d made the day before when he’d discovered it.
“I suppose you could say I came to take the pressure offyou.”
She regarded him uncertainly. It wasn’t exactly the responseshe’d been anticipating. “In what way?”
He shrugged. “With me around, Daddy will be so busy trying to takecharge of my life again, he won’t have time to go messin’ inyours.”
“That’s what you think,” she said dismally.“Harlan could fiddle with the lives of an entire army platoon without missing abeat. As for your mother…” She sighed heavily.
Luke grinned. “Don’t I just know it,” he said, matchingher sigh with apparent deliberation. “Maybe we should both just hide out in herefor the duration.”
An intriguing idea, Jessie thought. She was stunned, however, that Lukehad suggested it, even in jest. Or, perhaps that was the point. Perhaps he intended totease and taunt her as he might a younger sister, robbing her of any notions that hethought of her in any kind of sexual way. She searched his gaze for answers, butwhatever emotions had been swirling there a moment before had given way to pureamusement.
“I have an idea,” he said. His voice had dropped to a daring,conspiratorial note.
“What?” she asked suspiciously.
“I saw this very bored young woman sitting right outside your door.I have a feeling she would be more than glad to baby-sit for a bit.”
Jessie rolled her eyes. Obviously Lara had decided to stay within shoutingdistance. “I’ll bet,” she muttered. “She’s there underorders from your mother.”
Luke chuckled. “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.Let’s let Lara do her thing. You and I can go to lunch.”
“I just ate breakfast,” Jessie protested.
“Obviously you haven’t noticed the roads into town. By thetime we get there, it will definitely be lunchtime.”
“Won’t your family be expecting you to eat lunch here? Haveyou even seen your father or mother yet? Or Cody?”
“Not hide nor hair of them. I snuck in the back way,” headmitted. “You can help me keep it that way a little longer. Are yougame?”
Jessie would have hopped a bus to nowhere if it would have gotten her awayfrom White Pines for a little while, long enough to get back her equilibrium. A tripinto town with Luke sounded perfect.
“You tell Lara,” she said. “I’ll get mycoat.”
As he started toward the door of the suite, Jessie called after him,“Luke?”
He glanced back.
“I don’t have any idea what really brought you here, butI’m very glad you came.”
An oddly wistful expression came over his face for an instant. It was gonein a heartbeat.
“Maybe I just heard your prayers for a knight in shiningarmor,” he taunted. “My armor’s a bit tarnished, but I can still standup to a common enemy.”
Hearing him expressing the view of Harlan and Mary that she’d beenthinking to herself only a short time earlier made Jessie feel suddenly guilty. For allof their bossiness, they had always been kind to her. The huge pile of Christmaspresents stacked in the corner—everything from a silver teething ring to a carseat for the baby, from a golden locket to a filmy negligee and robe forher—attested to their generosity.
“They’re not that bad,” she countered.
“Don’t need a hero, huh? Want me to head on home,then?”
Jessie had the feeling he would be only too relieved to comply. For amultitude of reasons, she wasn’t sure she could bear it if he left.
She leveled a challenging glare at him. “Just try it, Lucas.You’ll have to walk through me.”
He winked at her. “An interesting idea.”
That wink stirred ideas in Jessie that could have gotten her arrested insome parts of the world, she was sure. Harlan and Mary would certainly have beenscandalized