The Christmas Catch

was just a stack of papers. So why did Christine have a premonition her whole life was about to change?

    John flipped off the TV and set down the remote. On the coffee table before him, a bottle of champagne in bucket of ice sat untouched. He’d considered inviting one of his lady friends to join him for the evening, but somehow the thought of entertaining was distasteful. He didn’t really want to have anyone else over when the only person he could think of was Christine. While it had never been a big deal before, being physical with a casual acquaintance suddenly didn’t appeal to him. He’d only kissed Christine once, but their kissing session had felt as intimate as they come. She’d been so warm and willing in his arms, her flesh molding against his as their mouths melded. He’d never longed to make love to a woman more, slowly and tenderly, employing all of his manly talents. He knew he could treat her right, and would take every care to ensure her happiness in bed. Sadly, he hadn’t done such a hot job of filling her with joy outside of it.
    He glanced at Mason, still mad at him, on the other side of the room. The dog turned his back on John, sitting beside the Christmas tree.
    “Come on, boy. You’re not going to hold a grudge forever?”
    Mason walked his paws forward, slinking into a lying position. After a few moments, John heard him gnawing and knew he’d locked onto his giant rawhide bone. John sagged forward, his elbows resting on his knees, head in hands. If he’d really done the right thing with Christine, then why was everybody here trying to make him feel like he’d done something terrible?
    John thought back to Christine’s admission in the kitchen. He had made her happy out of bed, but then he’d gone and blown it big-time. But she’d caught him so off guard, he hadn’t known how to respond. What could he have said? That she made him happy too? John stared at the Christmas tree, mentally reliving every moment. Of course, she’d made him happy. She and Tyler both had, each in their own way. When he’d been with the two of them together, they’d been almost like a family. Although it had been pretend, he’d felt contented in that role. He’d just been so unfamiliar with the feeling, he hadn’t known what it was.
    John swallowed hard, thinking there’d been another emotion present, something deeply personal and just between him and Christine, but he’d been in denial of that as well. He had his hands full these days and building his career to consider besides. Despite the common myth of the easygoing life of the college professor, the hard truth was that competition in academia was exceedingly tough. You had to publish or perish, and keep forging ahead. John was an ambitious man who’d carved out a path for himself. His own dad had been an unsteady worker who was often unemployed and barely able to keep food on the table for John and his younger sister.
    John had vowed at thirteen to work his way past that. And, from that first job tending the golf course at that upper-crust country club to his full graduate school scholarship, he had. Still, John believed he shouldn’t become serious with any woman, or consider having a family, until he found himself in a financially stable position. He’d be damned if he was going to repeat the past, when he was capable of charting his own future. Of course, he was contemporary enough to understand his wife would have her own career, but that didn’t negate the sense of responsibility that had been pounded into him each time he’d seen tears of desperation welling in his mother’s eyes. Because his late dad had been unable to prepare for it, John was now making arrangements for his mom’s welfare too. He also helped out his kid sister, as he was able. She was a single mom and putting herself through school besides. There was a lot on his plate, a hell of a lot more than Christine, or anyone else—including Carlos—knew.
    John decided to open the champagne, thinking he might as well have a glass. There were so many emotions churning inside him, it was almost like he didn’t know where to turn. Man’s best friend had denied him, and it appeared his own heart had betrayed him too. He’d not even understood what he’d been feeling until now. And now, it was too late. The truth was that his promotion put him in a different place. Yes, he’d be working harder, but he’d also be making more money. A lot more money, he thought,