Just One Kiss (Whisper Lake #4) - Barbara Freethy Page 0,69

you be going with Jake?"

"No," she said quickly. "I'll be going with Brett."

"But Jake will be there."

"I doubt it. He's not close to his father, and it's his dad's party."

Her mother smiled. "But you'll be there, and he wants you back."

"I just don't know if I can let him back into my life."

"Oh, Hannah, he's already there," her mom said with a knowing smile. "I saw it last night. I didn't want to see it, but I did. There's still something between you, and maybe you need to find out what it is."

"Why would you encourage that? You don't like him."

"I liked him before he hurt you. Maybe he's changed. But one thing is certain, I've never seen you look at anyone else the way you look at Jake."

"You haven't really been around to see me look at anyone else," she said.

"Am I wrong, Hannah? Is there some great love of your life who I don't know about?"

She really wished she could say there was. "I've had other men in my life who I cared about," she hedged.

"But no one who stuck."

"That's part of the problem, Mom. How do I know Jake would stick when he didn't before? And his life—is it really here in Whisper Lake? He's an adventurer. He's traveled the world. He's back now, but for how long? Could he really be content here?"

"I can't answer any of those questions. But I can say that there's never a guarantee you won't get hurt. You have to decide if love is worth the risk."

"But wouldn't it be smarter to love someone who hasn't already hurt me once?"

"Probably. But since when does love make us smarter?"

Chapter Eighteen

Jake hadn't been in the new medical center since he'd come back to Whisper Lake, and he had to admit that it was impressive. With his father as chief of staff and his mother in charge of hospital fundraising, the facility had been remodeled and modernized with the latest technology. While he had many reasons to dislike his dad, he couldn't deny that the man was a brilliant doctor and good at his job. He'd just been a terrible father. Maybe not to his brother, Paul, but definitely to him.

His mother and brother had encouraged them to talk to each other, but they'd both managed to avoid that. He didn't want to hear what his father had to say, and he suspected his father felt exactly the same way. Which made him wonder again why he'd decided to come to a party where his father was the host, the center of attention, the leader of all men in the room.

There was only one answer—Hannah.

She'd be here. And since he hadn't been able to stop thinking about her all day, he had to be here, too.

He made his way up to the fourth-floor cafeteria, which had been beautifully decorated with holiday wreaths, a large Christmas tree, and buffet tables filled with food. An older man was playing holiday carols on the piano and there were at least thirty to forty people milling about. Some were in hospital uniforms, but most were in holiday clothes. There were also some kids in wheelchairs being entertained by a puppet show, with their parents and siblings sharing in the experience.

His gaze swept the room, settling on his mother and father. He shared similar features with his dad, Davis McKenna. They were both over six feet tall with brown hair and eyes, while his mother was a short, curvy blonde with light-blue eyes. His parents were laughing with their friends, Dr. Richard Peters and his wife, Cynthia. The Peters were also neighbors and would be attending his parents' Christmas dinner.

"Has hell frozen over?" a voice asked.

He turned around to see a look of amazement in his brother's eyes. "It might have," he admitted.

"I did not expect to see you here, Jake."

"It's been a while since I attended one of these." The hospital Christmas party had been part of his childhood. The tradition had actually been started by his grandfather, who had also been a doctor in Whisper Lake, before he and his grandmother had moved to a warmer climate. "Looks like you'll one day be carrying on this family tradition, Paul."

"One day," Paul murmured.

"Are you sure you don't want to work somewhere else for a few years? Get some big-city experience?"

"I'm considering all my options."

"I'll bet Dad is pressuring you to come here."

"More Mom than Dad," Paul replied. "Now that you're back, she'd like to have the whole family