Bring Me Home for Christmas

squeezed shut while he undressed in the semidark. She was afraid a mere glimpse of him undressed might blow her mind. She held stock-still while he rustled around on his blow-up mattress. Seemed like he flipped around for a long time before she said, “Everything all right, Denny?”
    “Huh?”
    “You sound real restless,” she said. “You okay?”
    “Just getting comfortable,” he said.
    “Why don’t I sleep on that thing tonight so you can get a good night’s sleep in your own bed,” she offered.
    “I’ll be fine in a second. This bed is good.”
    “I don’t mind at all….”
    “Shh,” he said. “Go back to sleep.”
    But she was completely conscious of his presence. She inhaled deeply; she could smell him and he was divine. She wanted to put her arms around him, hold him, kiss him, taste him… She had missed him so.
    Becca had absolutely no idea where they might go from this point, but one thing was glaringly obvious to her—she had to come clean with Doug. She wouldn’t cheat; she wouldn’t mislead. And she couldn’t leave Doug believing they were quickly moving toward a permanent commitment when, in fact, she was trying to figure out what her relationship was with her ex-boyfriend.
    Which meant there were going to be two very uncomfortable phone calls in the morning.

    Becca dreamed about the day she met Denny. On a weekend pass from Camp Pendleton, Rich brought Denny over for dinner with their parents. Becca was home from college for the weekend.
    They locked eyes and that was just about it. He grinned at her and she smiled at him. Rich said, “Oh, crap! I should have known something like this would happen!”
    From that moment on, if they were in the same room, they were touching. They abandoned Rich and went off to be alone together. They talked on the phone daily, sometimes several times a day. There was passion between them almost instantly. They talked about everything in life; they could go from hysterical laughter to serious heat in seconds.
    When they made love for the first time, it was perfect. That first time they were a little clumsy, but utterly intoxicated with each other’s bodies. By the time they’d made love a few times, they were absolute experts. Denny taught her about men; he told her nothing was easier than satisfying a guy, so encouraged her to help him concentrate on pleasing her. He put her at ease; he inspired her trust. While she felt inexperienced and awkward, he treated her like a goddess. Every time they made love was better than the time before.
    She woke up at dawn, her eyes misting over with memories, with longing.
    She heard the shower running in the little efficiency and was grateful. She needed a little time to compose herself. By the time he came out of the bathroom, she was ready to face him. She did have to concentrate to keep from staring at his naked chest.
    “Want me to take you to breakfast with Dirk and Troy?” he asked.
    “Are they leaving right away?”
    “We planned to meet at Jack’s for breakfast first.”
    “Why don’t you go ahead while I dress. I think I’d better make a couple of phone calls before sliding down the stairs.”
    He pulled on his sweater, boots and jacket. “If you want help, call Jack’s and I’ll come back for you.”
    “Thanks,” she said with a wan smile.
    He frowned slightly. “You okay, Becca?”
    “I’ll be down shortly.” She turned the bedside clock toward her. It was still early on Sunday morning—with any luck, she wouldn’t have to just leave voice mails. “Go on now. Let me get going.”
    Once he’d gone, she dove right in. She called her mother’s cell phone first. “Hey,” she said when Beverly Timm answered. “How was Cabo?”
    “How is Cabo, you mean. Glorious! It’s the best idea I’ve had in years! We’re going to be on our way to the airport in a couple of hours, home by late afternoon. And how is Cape Cod?”
    “Well, that’s why I’m calling. At the last minute, I changed my mind and I came to Virgin River with Rich. To hunt.”
    “You what?” Beverly asked, sounding genuinely confused.
    “Okay, I didn’t change my mind about Cape Cod at the very last minute, but almost. I wanted to see Denny.”
    Dead silence answered her, so she hurried on.
    “I had the sense that Doug was getting serious,” Becca said. “I needed to be sure this was resolved somehow, this traumatic thing between me and Denny. I knew it wouldn’t be fair to either me or Doug to try to move