She nodded tightly, but I could see she was panicked. Maybe she didn’t know how to relax. Or maybe she didn’t know how to enjoy herself.
Sighing, I left the car, waiting for her to also exit before climbing the steps to the porch. We walked to the front door together and I rang the doorbell, a little flutter of excitement in my stomach growing and reaching a crescendo as the door was pulled open.
I grinned. “Cletus.”
He grinned, his eyes devouring me. “My Jenn.”
He was so handsome, but I didn’t get much of a chance to count the ways because he pulled me forward, wrapped me in his arms, and gave me the most magical of all kisses, cupping my jaw with one hand, tilting my head to one side then the other, tasting me from every angle and making my toes curl in my shoes.
I clung to him, my heart racing, my blood singing in my veins—more, more, more.
And then my mother cleared her throat.
And so did someone else, followed by a voice chiding, “We’re going to move that mistletoe, Cletus. That’s the twelfth person you’ve kissed tonight.”
Cletus lifted his head and turned an angry expression on Beau. “That is a falsehood. I’ve kissed no person for ten days.”
Beau elbowed him out of the way and reached for my mother’s hand, placing a gentle kiss on the back of it and saying, “Please excuse my brother. He usually has better manners. Won’t you come in?”
My momma gave Beau a tight smile. “Yes, thank you for having us.”
“Our pleasure,” the redhead responded graciously, offering his arm.
Despite my kiss haze, I could see Beau’s gentle politeness had worked as my mother walked by. She was by no means relaxed, but perhaps I needed to give her some time.
Fortunately or unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to say a word on the matter because Cletus pulled me to the porch, shutting the door behind us, pressing me against the side of the house, and kissed me again.
“I missed you,” he said between kisses, “so much.”
“I missed you,” I said when he gave me three seconds to gasp for air, but I didn’t mind. Not at all. I just wished we’d had a moment before now to catch up.
Eventually the kisses turned less frantic and frenzied. His lips softened. His fingers relaxed and smoothed down the length of my torso instead of gripping my hips with punishing fingers. We rested our foreheads together and attempted to catch our breath, neither of us willing to cease touching.
“I was very rude to your mother. I will have to apologize and compliment her pants.”
I nodded, laughing lightly. “You noticed my momma’s pants?”
“Yes. Of course. My whole life I’ve never seen that woman in pants.”
“Did you notice anything else?” I lifted my head and peered up at him, lifting my eyebrows in expectation.
He studied me, a confused frown on his forehead. “She’s not wearing her wedding ring.”
“No. Not about her. About me.”
His frown deepened and his eyes widened, like a deer caught in headlights. “You . . . changed your . . . toothpaste?”
I glowered at him. And then I smacked his arm.
“No, wait. You changed the address on your voter’s registration card?”
“Cletus.” I smacked him again.
“Sorry, of course, I’ve got it. You changed your mind about me sucking your toes.”
Despite myself I laughed, but I also smacked his arm a third time. “You are extremely irritating.”
Grinning, he captured my cheeks and pulled me forward, placing a soft kiss on my lips, then pulling away. His clever eyes moved over my head and he pushed his fingers into my hair.
“You are lovely, Jenn. No matter what color you paint your hair, I love it and I love you.” His gaze returned to mine and he added on a rumbly whisper, “But it’s your goodness, kindness, and heart that makes you beautiful.”
***
My mother didn’t stay long after dinner. I could see she was trying, but I also understood that being faced with a boisterous, happy family like the Winstons must have been painful on some level. She’d had two children, invested a lot of herself into us, and nothing had turned out like she’d hoped.
I walked her to my car and gave her a hug. She’d returned the embrace, kissing me on the cheek, and drove back to the lodge. She’d been staying there since splitting from my father. My father wasn’t at our family house either. My mother had changed all the locks and froze all the accounts. The gossip mill was having a field day with Kip Sylvester’s sudden disappearance. I endeavored to ignore the lingering looks and whispered questions.
I didn’t know where he was. He hadn’t made any attempt to contact me.
I tried not to think about it, about him. My life was full of too many wonderful things. I decided I didn’t have time or energy to waste on pointless endeavors.
Dessert was served outside, around a large bonfire as we all bundled up in blankets. Cletus passed out shot glasses of moonshine while Drew and Ashley passed out pie.