Black Rose Page 0,33

a fussy Lily and cuddle her in his arms? It made up for finding herself at the head of this mixed generational train.

"I want to thank you for letting Logan stay tonight." Stella settled onto the sofa beside Roz.

"It's Christmas Eve. We generally have room at the inn."

"You know what I mean, andI know it's probably fussy and anal and silly, but I really want our first Christmas in his - our - house to be when we're official."

"I think it's sweet and sentimental, and selfishly I'm glad everyone's here tonight." She watched Hayley scoop Lily up as the baby made a crawling beeline for the tree. "Glad to have children in the house tonight. Austin!" she called out as her middle son began to juggle three apples he'd plucked out of a bowl. "Not in the parlor."

"That tune's so familiar, I can add the music." A tall, narrow-hipped young man with his father's wavy blond hair, he winked at Gavin while giving the apples one more rotation. "Not in the parlor, Austin, not in the parlor," he sang, making Stella's sons roll with laughter before he tossed them each an apple, and took a bite out of the third.

"Here, Mama, have some wine." Her youngest, Mason, sat on the arm of the sofa and handed her a glass. There was a wicked twinkle in his blue eyes that warned Roz trouble was coming. "Austin, you know the parlor is sacred ground. You don't want to be juggling in here. Especially something like, say, shoes."

"You can juggle shoes!" Awestruck, Luke goggled at Austin.

"I can juggle anything. I have amazing talent and dexterity."

"But sadly, I wasn't able to talk him into running off and joining the circus when he was eight." Harper took Lily when she leaned away from Hayley and held out her chubby arms to him.

"Can you juggle mine?" Luke asked.

"Hand one over."

"Austin." Resigned, Roz sighed and sipped her wine. "You break anything, you're grounded."

"Why, another familiar tune. Let's see, I need a challenge. Logan, looks to me like that shoe's big enough to house a family of four. Let's have it."

"I give you my shoe, you get grounded, I get fired. Call me a coward, but I'll soon have two growing boys to feed." He reached down to poke Gavin in the ribs. "And they eat like pigs."

"Oink." Showing off, Gavin grabbed a cookie from a tray and stuffed it whole in his mouth. "Oink."

"Oh, go ahead, Logan." Roz waved a hand. "He won't be satisfied otherwise."

"Let's see, one more." His gaze scanned, landed on Hayley. "Look at those pretty, delicate feet. How about it, sweetheart?"

Hayley laughed. "They're about as delicate as banana boats." But she slipped her shoe off.

"Harper, move your grandmother's Baccarat there to safer ground," Roz ordered, "so your brother can show off."

"I prefer the termperform. "

"I recall a performance that cost Mama a lamp," Harper commented as he moved heirlooms. "And got all three of us - and you, too, David, if memory serves - KP duty."

"In my salad days," Austin claimed. After giving the trio of varied footwear a few testing tosses, he began to juggle. "As you can see, I've sharpened my skills since that regrettable incident."

"Fortunate to have a fallback career," Mason told him. "You can take that act down to Beale Street."

The circling shoes had Lily giggling and bouncing on Harper's hip. For herself, Roz just held her breath until Austin took his bow.

He tossed a shoe back to a delighted Luke. "Can you teach me?"

"Me, too!" Gavin insisted.

"She's going to say 'not in the parlor,' " Austin announced even as Roz opened her mouth. "We'll work in a lesson tomorrow - outside - keep us all safe from Mama's wrath."

"She's the boss of everybody," Luke told him solemnly.

"No flies on you. Since nobody's seen fit to throw money, I'll have to settle for a beer."

He strolled over to hand Logan his shoe, then walked to Hayley. "All right, Cinderella, let's see if this fits."

He made a production out of slipping it back on her foot, then grinned at Harper over Hayley's head. "Shoe fits." He took her hand, kissed it. "We'll just have to get ourselves married when I get back from the kitchen."

"That's what they all say." But she gave him a flirting sweep with her eyes.

"Why don't you get me a beer while you're at it?" Mason asked.

"If I'm taking orders, what can I get everyone?"

After a scatter of requests, he looked over at Harper again. "Why