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“Are you okay with this?”
Her head snapped up when he asked the question. He sounded different. He wasn’t the stuttering uncle, and he was no longer the bigshot businessman. He sounded like … a friend. He was checking that she was okay?
She had to smile. “Yeah. Thanks. I don’t remember the last time anyone did that for me, either.”
His gray eyes held her gaze for a long moment. She could tell that he understood what she meant. Even though it had been weeks ago, and they both should have forgotten it by now, he’d told her that he didn’t remember the last time anyone had tried to put him at ease.
He smiled and nodded, and finally let go of her hand. “As long as you’re okay with me joining you, we should catch up with Hannah and Grady.”
“Oh, of course.” Becca hurried after them.
She slid into the seat next to Grady, and he turned and smiled at her.
“Are you okay?” he asked in a low voice.
She could feel her cheeks burning again as she nodded. She was okay, but she couldn’t help asking him with her eyes just what the heck was going on.
Grady chuckled. “You’ll be fine, but let me know if you’re not, okay?”
She nodded again, and then sucked in a deep breath and turned back to Jacob when he spoke on her other side.
“I should wait until afterward, but I don’t want to miss the opportunity to ask. A few people are coming back to the house after the concert. It’s mostly for Ava; a little hot chocolate and Christmas cookies party. Would you come with us?”
She looked back into the depths of his gray eyes – depths she couldn’t quite fathom. The way her body was reacting to his closeness, she kind of wanted to think that he was asking her back to his place. She barely managed to stifle a laugh at that crazy thought. It was more likely that he was just being polite. He was an important member of the community. He was only being polite toward his niece’s teacher. And besides, she did have a deal with herself that she had to accept every invitation that was extended to her.
“Okay. Thank you.”
Her insides turned to mush when he smiled at her and nodded. That wasn’t the smile a local dignitary gave to a schoolteacher – it was the kind of smile a man gave a woman. She might not be all that worldly – but she knew that much.
~ ~ ~
Jacob enjoyed the concert. His cheeks were aching from smiling so much as he watched a bunch of eight and nine-year-old kids singing Christmas carols. This kind of thing usually left him cold. He attended just enough of the community events to look like he was involved, but he usually spent the time checking his watch and waiting for it to be over.
Tonight, he hadn’t given a thought to the time since they sat down. He glanced over at Becca, who was nodding encouragingly at the boy standing in front of his classmates as he performed his solo. He hadn’t given a thought to the time since he’d laid eyes on her.
He’d barely had the chance to talk to her, just a few minutes before the performance started, but he still felt like he was getting to know her. She was living every moment with the kids, mouthing the words along with them, giving encouraging smiles whenever one of them looked her way. She’d even grabbed his hand at one point when one little girl had forgotten her words in the middle of her solo. While the rest of the audience had fallen into an uncomfortable silence, Becca had raised up from her seat and waved as she mouthed the next line. The little girl had gone from looking like she was about to burst into tears, to smiling at Becca and singing again.
Hannah had caught his gaze and grinned at him when Becca did that. His sister knew how much that kind of behavior impressed him.
He didn’t know how impressed Hannah was going to be with him as they made their way out of the auditorium. He had to pull her aside before she and Grady left to find Ava. He hated to leave Becca’s side – afraid that if he did, she’d change her mind about coming back to the house with him. He had to do it, though. He had to get Hannah to round up a bunch of people and bring them back to the estate.
This hot chocolate and Christmas cookies party that he’d told Becca about had been the only way he could think of to spend more time with her after the concert. He highly doubted that she would have come back to the estate with just him if he’d asked her. Now, he had to make the party happen – and he needed Hannah’s help.
He was relieved when a group of kids gathered around Becca once they were out in the foyer. He took the chance to go and grab Hannah.
“What’s up?”
He gave her a sheepish smile. “I saw that all the old gang was here. Do you want to invite everyone back to the house?”
She gave him a puzzled look. “No. We’re going to get Ava and take her home.”
He held her gaze for a long moment, not wanting to explain himself.
She laughed. “You can’t Jedi mind trick me into doing what you want. What’s up, anyway? It’s not like you to suddenly feel social enough to want to throw an impromptu get-together.”
He pursed his lips, wondering how little he could get away with telling her.
“Oh!” She grinned. “You want to invite Becca back to the house?”
