Heart of Clay (19 page)

When Bobbi and Steve arrived, Josh opened
the door and ushered them inside.

“I’ll just set down dessert before I take
off my jacket,” Bobbi said, walking toward the kitchen.

“Why don’t I take that for you?” Josh
offered, not wanting Bobbi to drop the plate and ruin a perfectly
good pie when she saw Callan. Bobbi and Steve removed their coats
then walked into the kitchen.

Jenna and Callan stood with their backs to
the door. Jenna insisted Callan not look up until Bobbi got
closer.

“Hello, Jenna. How are you?” Bobbi asked.
“Who do we have here? Callan didn’t mention any other guests.”

Callan turned around, beaming.
“Surprise!”

“Oh, sweetie!” Bobbi gasped, clasping her
hands beneath her chin. “You look amazing! When did you do
this?”

“Jenna, Laken, and I went into the city
yesterday. They helped me pick out some new clothes and a
hairstyle. We even got our nails done.” Callan wiggled her fingers
at her mother-in-law. Bobbi grabbed her hands and admired the
manicure.

“Has Clay seen you yet?” Steve asked,
hugging his beautiful daughter-in-law. It had been a while since
he’d seen her eyes spark with such life and excitement.

“No. He took the kids to the district
competition last night. He’ll be home in about twenty minutes.”

Steve started laughing and slapped Josh on
the shoulder. “Oh, this is too good. I want to see his face when he
comes through that door.”

Josh shot Jenna and Callan a “see, I told
you” look while he and Steve went into the family room to wait for
Clay’s arrival.

The hug Bobbi gave Callan was almost as big
as her smile. “Callan, you just look radiant. I’ve never seen you
look so beautiful!”

“I have you to thank, Mom. I put that gift
card you gave me for Christmas to good use yesterday. It made it so
easy to do this. I want you and Dad to know how much I appreciate
it.” Callan hugged her mother-in-law again, giving her an extra
squeeze.

“Don’t thank me,” Bobbi said, a mischievous
glint in her eye. “I think Steve would pay money to be able to
watch Clay tonight.”

Jenna and Callan joined in her laughter.

Purposefully ignoring the comments from his
students about hurrying them off the van, he rushed them to get
everything put away.

The sooner he got dinner over with, the
sooner he could shoo the company out the door and enjoy the evening
with his wife.

Finally finished at the school, he hurried
home. Clay hummed a tune known only to him as he opened the front
door and walked inside the house. Voices in the kitchen and family
room trickled out to greet him.

“Hello, everyone,” he called as he hung his
coat in the closet. A rush of quick footsteps sounded from the
kitchen, as if someone ran into the room.

“Hello, Clay. We’re in the kitchen,” Callan
called to him. “How did it go today?”

“Fine.” He tugged off his boots and chucked
them in the closet. He might as well be comfortable. It was just
family, after all. “The kids did a great job. They placed first in
one competition and second in two others.”

As he walked into the kitchen, Clay looked
around at the occupants. Everyone was dressed up, but he didn’t see
Callan anywhere.

His dad and Josh leaned against the counter
with big grins on their freshly shaved faces. In dress shirts and
nice jeans with polished boots, they looked like they were ready
for a night on the town. Jenna wore a pretty dress and heels while
his mom had on dress pants and a sparkly blouse.

Clay tried to recall if Callan had mentioned
inviting anyone else. An unfamiliar woman stood at the sink between
his mom and Jenna with her back to him. Annoyed by the unexpected
company, Clay didn’t want to have to be on his best behavior.

“Is Callan in the bedroom?” he asked,
starting that direction.

“No, I’m here,” Callan said.

Clay spun around. He heard her voice, but
still didn’t see her. He knew something was going on, especially
since his dad and Josh struggled to contain their laughter.

With all eyes on him, he grew uncomfortable.
Something was definitely not right. The woman standing between
Jenna and Bobbi turned around. He absently stuck a hand out her
direction in welcome while his gaze traveled around the kitchen,
trying to locate Callan.

She grabbed his hand and started pulling him
close, as if she planned to hug or kiss him.

Clay turned his attention to the woman while
his eyes grew wide with shock. Shocked, he jerked his hand away and
stepped back.

“Whoa, there! I don’t know what…” Clay took
a good look at the woman.

His woman.

Callan looked like she’d walked right out of
a fashion magazine. For a moment, he felt sick, wondering what
inspired her to cut off her gorgeous auburn hair.

He frowned as everyone laughed, unable to
find any humor in the situation. However, his wife sported a huge
smile while her green eyes sparkled like emeralds.

“Callan?” Clay looked sheepish and confused,
feeling out of sorts. He certainly hadn’t seen her makeover
coming.

“Yes.” She nodded her head as her smile
slowly melted and uncertainty crossed her features.

Clay forced himself to smile, although it
fell short of reaching his eyes. “Well, I guess this joke’s on
me.”

Josh slapped him on the back
good-naturedly.

The fact Callan made Salisbury steak with
mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, and homemade rolls for dinner
almost helped alleviate the shock and embarrassment Clay endured.
It was one of his favorite meals. After grabbing another roll and
slathering it with butter, he bit into it savagely.

Although he shouldn’t pout, he couldn’t help
himself. He’d played plenty of jokes on every person seated around
the table, but this seemed unfair.

He hoped taking a shower and shaving would
give him time to get into a better mood before dinner.
Unfortunately, it hadn’t helped at all. If anything, getting
dressed up to eat dinner in his own home with family made him more
annoyed.

As a final act of rebellion, he refused to
tuck in his shirt or put on shoes, coming to the dinner table in
his sock feet. Callan only raised one shapely brow in his direction
before shaking her head at him.

Clay acknowledged it wasn’t the joke they’d
played that made him angry.

The unbelievable transformation in Callan
and his inability to pinpoint exactly what was different caused his
irritability. He got the feeling much more than Callan’s outward
appearance had changed. Something within her had shifted, altered,
and he struggled to make sense of it all.

Discreetly, he studied her as she chatted
with his mom and Jenna. She looked amazing. More beautiful than he
could ever remember. Once he recovered from the shock of her hair
being shorter, he could see how flattering the style was on her.
She had on more makeup than her usual quick swipe of mascara, but
it looked nice.

Clay worked to carry on a conversation with
Josh and his dad, but his mind and eyes kept wandering to his
wife.

His gaze lingered on the pink sweater Callan
wore. Since it flawlessly glided over every curve, he assumed it
was new. Otherwise, he would have remembered seeing her wear
it.

Jenna said something to make her laugh and
Callan leaned back in her chair, crossing one long leg over the
other. Her slim gray skirt and strappy heels were about to drive
him to distraction.

When she absently placed a manicured hand on
his thigh and patted it gently, Clay stifled a groan. Convinced the
dinner would drag on forever, he couldn’t wait to get Callan
alone.

While he ate a generous slice of the peach
pie his mom made, he practically jiggled his foot in irritation. He
felt more like a lusty teen spying on his current crush than a
married man in his mid-thirties. At that very moment, he couldn’t
recall ever wanting his wife so much.

Clay needed everyone to leave.

Now.

The waiting was nearly unbearable.

Despite his turbulent longings, Callan
appeared to have a wonderful time. She and Josh told a story about
their dad that had everyone laughing. Clay wasn’t sure he had ever
seen her so open and relaxed around others. For her sake, he would
tamp down his impatience and let her enjoy the evening. As he
continued to watch her, he realized there were depths to his wife
that he hadn’t even begun to plumb, let alone understand.

Maybe that explained why he felt so odd.
Unless he was getting sick or experiencing exhaustion from the long
trip, nothing else could explain his growing sense of agitation and
expectation, or the tightness in his heart. Perhaps indigestion
from eating too fast caused him to feel such strange stirrings
inside his chest.

Or maybe it was because Clay had fallen head
over heels in love with his wife, again.

Callan was glad everyone stuck around longer
than Clay obviously wanted. She wasn’t certain how he liked her new
look. She knew he thought he’d been ambushed when he arrived home.
His displeasure filled both his face and his voice all through
dinner.

As Jenna and Bobbi helped with the dishes,
they both teased her about the effect she had on her husband.

“I haven’t seen him this pathetic since he
first tried to ask you out, Callan,” Bobbi said with a laugh. “This
is just too much. He looks so ferocious. I suppose he’s ready to
throw us all out in the cold by now.”

“It is pretty entertaining, Cal,” Jenna
added with a smile, scooping leftovers into smaller containers and
setting them inside the refrigerator. “His act of trying to be
irritated isn’t hiding the fact that he looks completely infatuated
with you.”

“Really? You think so?” Callan snuck a
glance at Clay through the kitchen doorway. He pretended to look
interested in Josh and Steve’s conversation about spring farm work
and failed miserably. “I’m afraid I might not have thought this out
as much as I should have. What if Clay hates my hair shorter?”

“Oh, phooey.” Bobbi waved her hand in the
direction of the men. “What do they know about anything? I’ve never
seen you look lovelier, honey, and that is the truth. We’re going
to clear out of here and let you deal with your out-of-sorts
husband all by yourself.” Bobbi kissed Callan on the cheek and
patted her encouragingly on the back. “I’m so proud of you for
making so many positive changes in your life, sweetie. You just
keep at it.”

“This was such fun.” Jenna looped her arm
around Callan’s and strolled into the living room where the men sat
around the fireplace. “Let me know the next time you have a rash
idea that will push Clay over the edge of reason. I wouldn’t want
to miss out on anything.”

“Great. Thanks, Jen,” Callan said dryly.
“You’re really making me feel better about this whole situation.”
After helping Jenna slip on her coat, she gave her a hug. “Thanks
for coming with me. It was so nice to have you and Laken there. It
meant so much.”

“Anytime!” Jenna squeezed her hand. “I had
oodles of fun. And Bobbi’s right. You’ve never looked more
beautiful.”

Josh gave his sister a hug then waggled his
eyebrows at her while tipping his head toward Clay. Everyone except
Clay laughed.

He sat in his chair by the fireplace moping
as she closed the door behind their departing company. She wasn’t
sure if his dour mood was because of the fact he’d been teased and
the butt of their jokes, or because he was upset with her.

Second-guessing herself, she worried that
she had rushed into this whole makeover thing without thinking it
through. Maybe she should have asked Clay for his opinion
first.

Then she remembered how good she felt after
getting her haircut. How liberating it felt to change how she
looked as she worked to change her attitude and outlook on life.
Deep down, she knew what she’d done was a good decision for her.
She hoped Clay would eventually agree.