Twelve Days of Christmas by Debbie Macomber Page A

relationship—not with me, at any rate.” And from what she’d seen of him, not with anyone.
    “He’s interested. I know my grandson. You might not realize, it but buying you that frou-frou coffee was a major concession on his part.”
    Julia thought it best to change the subject. “Can you tell me why Cain’s so…standoffish?” She searched for the right word.
Standoffish
sounded better than
cold
or
mean-spirited,
both of which she’d once considered him to be.
    Bernie’s amusement faded quickly. “The boy hasn’t had an easy life. His mother abandoned him when Cain was around four. Our son knew nothing about raising a child on his own so he brought Cain to me and my wife. Carl, that was our son, was brokenhearted after his wife left him. He never did recover emotionally nor did he bond with his son the way he should have. He felt guilty about that and after a while he stopped coming around.”
    “Oh.” Basically, both Cain’s parents had abandoned him.
    Bernie continued, “Cain needed his father. I tried to fill in as best I could, but it wasn’t the same.”
    Julia was beginning to feel terrible for judging him.
    “Then our son died in a car accident. Cain was about twelve at the time. He took his father’s death hard.”
    “Did he ever connect with his mother?”
    Bernie shook his head sadly. “Fortunately, my grandson was close to my wife, but then she died about three years after Carl.”
    “Oh dear.” Julia sank lower in the chair.
    “Her illness came at a crucial time in Cain’s life. He was going into high school, and until that point had always gotten good grades. I’m afraid I wasn’t much help, grieving as I was.”
    Julia placed her hand on Bernie’s arm. “I’m so sorry.”
    “It’s years ago now. One adjusts, although you never fully recover from the loss of a loved one. I sort of figured out a way to walk around that black hole in my life. I did the best I could, but it wasn’t near enough. Thankfully, he wasn’t the kind of teen to get into trouble or anything like that. He sank into himself, grew quiet and withdrawn. It’s like he’s afraid to let anyone too close for fear they’ll abandon him.”
    Julia was almost afraid to ask the following question. “Has Cain had any meaningful relationships?”
    “Romantic ones, you mean?”
    She nodded.
    Bernie rubbed the side of his face as he mulled over the question. “He doesn’t share a lot with me. After his grandmother’s death, Cain seemed to turn off his emotions, sort of the same way his father did when Gayle left him. I know there was this one woman a few years back. They worked together. Cain became a mentor to her, and then I suspect they became more. How much more I can’t say, but I do know Cain was serious about her for the simple reason he mentioned her a few times. It encouraged me that he was willing to open himself up. Then there was nothing and the light went out of his eyes.”
    “What happened?”
    Bernie shook his head. “I was never completely sure, but reading between the lines, I got the impression that this woman cozied up to him in order to gain his favor for a promotion. I assumed once she got what she wanted she dumped him.”
    Julia briefly closed her eyes. That explained a lot.
    “I’ve asked him about his social life, but he refuses to answer or quickly changes the subject.”
    Every ugly thought Julia had entertained about Cain vanished. Learning about his family and the woman who’d used him for her own personal gain changed her perspective.
    “Now you can see why I think this kindness experiment you mentioned is exactly what my grandson needs.”
    “I feel terrible.”
    “Why?” Bernie asked.
    Julia was sure guilt was written all over her face. “I haven’t exactly been thinking kind thoughts about Cain.”
    “No worries. Those will come in time.”
    The comment struck her as odd. “They will? What makes you say that?”
    “You’ll see.” Right away he changed the subject.