A Family for Christmas (17 page)

“Why
not?”

“Because
it’s a present. It’s under the tree. You have to wait to open it. And don’t
forget to act surprised when you open Ellie’s tie for you.”

“I
know. I’m good at acting surprised.”

“I
supposed you just acted surprised last night when I showed up at your door to
make me feel better.”

“Right.
That’s exactly what happened.” His lips and eyes were both smiling.

“Liar.”

“Okay,
fine. I was so shocked and overjoyed I couldn’t even move. But I’m well-known
for my composure and aplomb in the corporate world, so let’s try not to let the
news get around.”

She
giggled and rolled over on top of him. “You’re well-known for your aplomb, are
you?”

“Right.”
His hands settled on her hips.

“Maybe
I should discover how much aplomb you really have.”

His
eyes got suddenly hot. “Go right ahead.”

“Dad?
Aunt Lydia?” The voice was just outside the door.

Gabe
smothered a groan, and Lydia giggled as she rolled off him.

“Come
on in, Ellie,” Gabe called out, sitting up in the bed.

Ellie
opened the door. “Oh, good,” she said, grinning at them. “You’re in bed. Stay
there and don’t move.”

Lydia
and Gabe gave each other questioning looks, but they did as she’d instructed as
Ellie disappeared.

They
heard her running down the stairs. After a minute, they heard her coming back
up more slowly.

She
appeared carrying, very carefully, a loaded tray in her arms. “I made you
breakfast in bed for Christmas!”

Lydia
gasped in surprise, and turned to look at Gabe, who was obviously just as
surprised as she was.

“Thank
you so much,” Gabe said, as the girl walked over to the bed. “You didn’t have
to do that.”

“I
wanted to. It seemed like a Christmas-y thing to do.” Ellie was beaming at
them.

“No
one has ever made me breakfast in bed before,” Lydia said. “I’m so excited about
it!”

Lydia’s
smile faltered in astonishment and feeling when she saw the frozen waffles that
Ellie had toasted and plated up on the tray.

They
were decorated with berries, whipped cream from a spray container, and
chocolate syrup.

She’d
written “Dad” on Gabe’s waffle, and “Mom” on what must be Lydia’s.

“I
know you’re not my mom for real,” Ellie said seriously, looking nervously from
the waffle to Lydia’s face. “But I couldn’t fit Aunt Lydia on it, but you act
like a mom to me now, so I thought it might be okay.” She took a strange, shaky
breath. “Is that okay?”

Lydia
raised a hand to cover her mouth, frozen by the crashing wave of emotion.

“Is
that okay?” Ellie asked again, looking nervously from her father to Lydia.

“Of
course, it’s okay,” Gabe said, rather hoarsely. He pulled Ellie onto the bed
and gave her a one-armed hug. “Of course, it’s okay. She’s just really touched
by it. Aren’t you?”

Lydia
nodded, lowering her hand and pulling herself together. “I am. Thank you so
much, honey. I love that you put that on my waffle. And you can call me that,
if you want. Or anything you want.”

Ellie’s
pretty face relaxed, and she scooted over her father to hug Lydia, almost
toppling the tray in the process. “Good,” the girl said, settling herself
between them. “I’m glad you married Dad, and I’m glad you’re having Christmas
with us.”

“I’m
glad too.” Lydia was so full of feeling she’d lost her typical practical,
no-nonsense attitude, but she assumed it would come back eventually.

“And
I’m glad too,” Gabe put in, “so we’re all agreed. Did you want to say a prayer
for the food?”

Ellie
agreed and bowed her head to thank God for the waffles and the whipped cream
and for Christmas and for Lydia and for her Daddy and for the baby Jesus.

Gabe
met Lydia’s eyes over his daughter’s head as Ellie said, “Amen,” and Lydia
could see clearly see how full of joy and awe he was this morning.

It
made sense to her, since she felt exactly the same way.

So
they had the waffles, which were admittedly overly sweet and no longer warm. But
Lydia had never enjoyed a breakfast—on Christmas morning or any other
morning—more than she did that one.

They
were finished, and Ellie had carried the tray downstairs to the kitchen and was
back to try to hurry them up so they could go downstairs to open presents, when
the doorbell rang.

They
all looked at each other in surprise for a moment. Then Lydia decided she was
more presentable at the moment than Gabe, so she got up to go see who it was.

Thomas
was on the front doorstep with a pan of their mother’s cinnamon rolls.

“They’re
still warm,” he said with a grin. “Mom said I had to take them over right away
and insisted you wouldn’t be still asleep.”

Lydia
laughed and gave him a hug, which he returned with one arm. “We weren’t asleep.
Merry Christmas. Come on in.”

He
walked into the kitchen with her and set the pan on the counter. Glancing
around at the quiet house, he asked softly, “So is everything all right?”

“Yes,”
she said, unable to keep from smiling like an idiot. “It’s all good.”

His
eyes rested on her face for a moment, and then he smiled too. “Good for you.
I’m really glad.”

She
understood that he was glad, but there was also an underlying poignancy to his
expression that made her heart go out to him. She couldn’t imagine how hard it
would be to not be allowed to spend Christmas with Gabe and Ellie.

“We
were about to open presents,” she said, reaching out to squeeze his arm. “Why
don’t you stay and join us.”

He
shook his head. “It’s your first Christmas. You should do it as a family.” When
she started to object, he went on, “I’m fine, Lydia. Seriously. Mom and Dad are
expecting me back at their place, and I’ve got to call Mia in a few minutes
anyway. You all have a good time, and I’ll see you this evening.”

They
were going to her parents for dinner that evening, after having lunch with
Gabe’s parents. Lydia was going to be so full at the end of the day she might
not be able to waddle home.

“Okay,”
she said, reaching out again to give him another hug. “I’ll see you then.” She
hugged him tighter than usual as she added, “Thank you. For everything.”

He
was smiling in his typical dry way as they pulled apart, and they were walking
toward the door when Ellie came racing down. “Uncle Thomas!” she exclaimed on
seeing him. “Merry Christmas.”

She
gave him a hug like they were long-lost friends, and she and Lydia went out to
the porch to wave Thomas off as he drove away.

Gabe
was coming down as they returned, and some sort of internal radar pointed him
immediately to the cinnamon rolls. Ellie took hers enthusiastically, but she
groaned as they brewed themselves coffee to go with them.

When
they were done eating, she demanded that it was finally time for presents and
there couldn’t possibly be any more delays.

Ellie
had many more presents than Gabe and Lydia, so she got to open hers first. She
was ecstatic over all the books and clothes and toys, and the necklace with a
book pendant that Lydia had picked out for her was a definite hit.

Then
it was Lydia’s turn to open presents. Ellie had picked out a necklace for her
too—a pretty heart on a chain. She’d also gotten Lydia a fantasy book series
that the girl assured her she would absolutely love. Gabe got her books on
jewelry making, to help with her ideas about work for the rescued women. And
he’d gotten her lovely, soft pajamas with cars on them—“since you asked so
nicely the other night,” he explained with a grin. And he’d gotten her pair of
earrings that were nicer than any jewelry she currently possessed except her
engagement ring.

She
loved her gifts, but she was almost more excited about Gabe opening his.

“Open
mine first,” Ellie insisted, plopping a box on his lap that was wrapped with
more enthusiasm than skill.

Gabe
made a big deal about slowly unwrapping the paper until Ellie was squirming
with excitement.

Then
he gasped as he opened the top to reveal the blue tie with books on it. “It’s
amazing,” he said, picking it up. “How did you possibly find it?”

“We
looked forever,” she admitted, giving Lydia a little smile. “But I knew exactly
what I wanted to get from you.”

“I
can’t believe you found something so perfect.” He reached over to give the girl
a hug. “Thank you so much. I’ll wear it on Sunday.”

“Oh,
and you have to open this now too,” Lydia said, handing him a small box.

Gabe
gave her a curious look, and she was barely holding back laughter as he opened
it with raised eyebrows.

Inside
was a tie clip with a sculpted pile of books on it.

Ellie
squealed with delight. “It’s perfect! It goes with the tie!”

Gabe
burst into laughter as Ellie moved over to hug Lydia, and Lydia decided her
present was a resounding success.

After
a while, Ellie brought her hoard of books upstairs to organize them on her
bookshelves, and Lydia scooted over toward Gabe on the couch. His eyes were
soft when he looked at her.

“I
have another present for you,” she murmured huskily.

He
arched his eyebrows. “And when do I get it?”

“Tonight.
It’s not fit for mixed company.”

A
certain smolder ignited in his eyes. “I see.”

“I
have something for you to wear and something for me, but they’re both presents
for you.”

“I
have a feeling I’m going to like yours better than mine.”

She
laughed and kissed him, just to the side of his mouth. “You probably will.”

“I
don’t suppose there’s any chance of a nap some time earlier today,” he said,
stroking down her back toward her hip.

“I
doubt it, between visits to your parents and mine. We’ll have to wait.”

He
made a guttural sound. “Now I’m going to be thinking about it all day.”

“Not
around your parents, surely.”

“Hopefully
not.”

“Well,
I can’t wait to see you in your present. And you know that patience isn’t my
virtue.”

“When
it comes to you,” he said, meeting her eyes with a deep, hot look, “It’s not my
virtue either.”

He
pulled her into a kiss, and they were still kissing when a voice came from the
entrance to the room. “Are you kissing again?”

“Maybe
a little,” Gabe said, pulling away from Lydia’s mouth and smiling toward his
daughter. “But she’s my wife, so I’m allowed.”

“I
guess so. But this isn’t kissing time. This is family time. Isn’t it?” Ellie
didn’t look upset or grouchy as she came over to the couch to sit with them.
She looked like she was laughing.

“Yes,
it’s family time,” Gabe agreed. “But a few kisses are allowed during family
time.”

Gabe
and Ellie continued on with an extended conversation about how much kissing was
acceptable during family time, but Lydia was only half listening.

Mostly
she was thinking that this morning was the first time in her marriage when she
felt like she was part of this family—wholly, completely, no more questions or
hesitations. She was theirs as much as they were hers.

***

If you haven’t already read them, the
first two Willow Park books are already available.
Married for Christmas
is Daniel and Jessica’s book, and
A Baby for Easter
is
Micah and Alice’s book. The fourth Willow Park book, called Reconciled for
Easter (about Thomas and Abigail) will be released in March.

If you enjoyed A Family for Christmas, you
might check out the excerpt from Bittersweet, another of my books, on the next
pages.

“What British novelist
also invented the mailbox?”

Zoe
had been eating her salad, but at this question she set down her fork. “Wait, I
know this one. My professor talked about it in lit class last year.”

She’d
been trying for cool indifference—as if knowing the answer to Adam’s trivia
question was second nature to her—but her voice reflected obvious excitement.

She
couldn’t help it. Adam had been asking her random trivia questions for two
months, and this was the first one she actually might know.

Adam
wasn’t smiling, but his eyes—such a dark brown they were almost black—warmed in
amusement. “I’ll clarify that we’re talking about the red pillar mailboxes in
England.”

“Yeah.
I know this.”

“So
who is it?”

“It’s
Thackeray. No, wait, that’s wrong. That wasn’t my answer.” She racked her mind,
searching for the name she remembered hearing in class last year.

Zoe
always did fine in school—getting B’s without straining too much—but she’d
never been academically inclined and certainly didn’t collect various snippets
of knowledge for the sole purpose of knowing them the way Adam did.

“I’m
waiting,” he said, an irresistible edge of teasing in his voice.

“I
know this.” She stared down at the strawberries and pecans on her salad. “We
didn’t actually read this guy’s books—my professor just mentioned it in
passing. When he was talking about Dickens, I think. I know it.”

“If
you know, then you’d better tell me.”

She
curled her lip to show she wasn’t pleased with being rushed, but was soon
distracted by searching her memory. “Wait, I know. Tramp…trollop…Trollope!”

Adam
laughed uninhibitedly—the sound washing over her and giving her a distinct kind
of pleasure. “Right. It was a strange way to get there, but you got there.”

Zoe
threw her hands in the air. “Ha. Victory!”

The
other diners in the café turned around at her outburst, but Zoe didn’t care
about the attention she’d drawn. Getting one of Adam’s trivia questions correct
was worthy of a celebratory gesture.

Zoe
was an assistant department manager at the upscale department store next door,
and she always came to the café for her lunch break when she was scheduled to
work midday hours.

A
couple of months ago, she’d noticed a brown-haired guy had started to show up to
eat lunch at the same time. He was always reading or working on a laptop, and
he was just slightly geeky with his impressive array of camp shirts and his
intent focus on his thick books—just geeky enough to be adorable.

One
day, he’d come over to ask if he could have the salt from her table.

The
next day, he came over to ask her for the salt again.

The
third day, she asked him why he hadn’t grabbed the salt before he sat down.

They’d
started having lunch together after that.

At
first, Zoe assumed he was interested in her and would be asking her out. He
wasn’t really her type. She’d always dated athletes when she was in high school
and college.

But,
from the first time she’d talked to him, she was awed by how smart he was.
Plus, he was funny and very attractive with his amazing dark eyes, lighter
brown hair, and very fine shoulders. He also seemed genuinely interested in
what she had to say, which wasn’t always her experience with guys.

She
didn’t think he was her destined soul mate or anything, but if he’d asked her
out, she definitely would have said yes.

He
never did, so more than a month ago he’d moved in her mind from “potential
date” to “casual lunch buddy.”

Still
reveling in her trivia victory, Zoe picked up her fork to finish her salad.

“How
did your history midterm go?” Adam asked, after finishing off the last of his
sandwich.

She
nodded until she swallowed her bite. “It was fine, I think. I didn’t do great,
but I’m pretty sure I passed.”

She’d
been working at the department store since she was a freshman in college in
order to make some extra money to buy the clothes and shoes she wanted. A few
months ago, the store had wanted to promote her. She hadn’t yet graduated,
but—after long conversations with her parents and her friends—she’d decided to
take the job with its longer hours and finish college part-time.

She
actually liked working retail. She loved designer clothes—loved them—and she
was really good at working with customers and keeping her department running
smoothly.

It
was a good job, and there was a lot of potential for her to advance in the
store chain. She hadn’t lived on campus since her freshman year, so her social
life wasn’t affected by the transition. She didn’t mind taking classes in the
evening, but she didn’t always study as much as she should.

“If
you’d told me the exam was coming up earlier,” Adam said, “I could have helped
you study over lunch.”

She
laughed. “You just want any excuse to show off.”

His
dark eyes warmed again in that way he had—which made it seem like he was
smiling even when he wasn’t. “Now what could I possibly want to show off?”

“Oh,
I don’t know. Maybe your freakish knowledge of all areas of history. I thought
you were working on your MBA. How do you know so much history anyway?”

He
glanced away, looking slightly diffident. “I read a lot. Plus, I got a Master’s
in history before I started the MBA.”

Zoe’s
eyes widened. Adam didn’t share much personal information with her, but she’d
put together the facts she knew into a rough timeline to estimate his age.
She’d been thinking he was around twenty-four, three years older than she was.
But she now bumped it up to twenty-six.

“If
you’re such a history buff, why are you doing the MBA?” It was a personal
question—more personal than anything she’d asked him before.

For
a moment, she was nervous, wondering if their casual relationship would allow
it.

He
didn’t hesitate before he answered. “History was for me. The MBA is for my
family.”

“Oh.
That’s a pretty big thing to do, just because your family wants you to.”

“Yeah,
I guess. My dad always wanted me to do it. He died a couple of years ago, so I
thought…”

He
trailed off, but Zoe understood anyway. He’d gone against his family’s wishes
by going into history, and the MBA was a gesture of loyalty now that his father
was dead.

For
some reason, it touched her. That Adam loved his family so much. For the first
time, she looked at him with something more than amusement and interest—with
something deeper.

“What
does your mom think?” she asked, hoping she wasn’t intruding on his privacy but
wanting to know more.

“She
died too. Same time as my dad.” When she gasped, he added in explanation, “It
was a boating accident.”

Details
clicked in Zoe’s mind then. A boating accident. Two years ago. “Is your…is your
last name Peterson?”

Adam
let out a textured sigh and leaned back in his chair. He didn’t look upset by
her discovery. Just slightly rueful. “Guilty.”

Zoe
had heard about the Petersons. Everyone who spent any time in the area had
heard about the Petersons. They were a kind of First Family for the city, with
a long history in business development and local politics. Harold Peterson, who
must be Adam’s grandfather, had spent decades as the mayor.

“Wow,”
she breathed. “I had no idea.”

“Yeah.
I know you didn’t.”

When
she just looked at him, trying to reconcile her lunch buddy with this local
dynasty, he gave a half-shrug. “It’s really not that big a deal.”

She
realized she was making him uncomfortable, so she pulled it together. “I’m
sorry about your parents.”

His
expression changed, softened. “Thanks. They were great. I still miss them.”

Both
of Zoe’s parents were still alive, and she was really close with both of them,
so her heart went out to him. “Your grandfather is still alive, right?”

“Yeah.
He’s thrilled about the MBA. I’m sure he has visions of my becoming a pillar of
society and maybe going into local politics.”

“Is
that what you want?”

“I
don’t know. Not the politics thing, no. But the MBA has actually been rather
helpful. My cousin and I have started a company.”

“Really?
What’s that?”

He
looked a little sheepish—like he was really proud of something and slightly
self-conscious because of it. But he pulled something up on his laptop and
moved it over so she could see.

She
looked at the screen and saw what appeared to be a video game.

Adam
explained, “Josh, my cousin, is a tech guy, so he did all the coding. We’ve
already started to launch it, and so far it’s going pretty well. It’s called
Light Switch.”

Zoe
clicked a few times, just to see what happened. Her eyebrows arched as a
question popped up on the screen.

“It’s
a trivia-based game,” he added.

She
started to laugh. “It looks great. Very cool.”

“I
can send it to you, so you can try it out, if you want.”

Her
eyes rested on him, and she felt a strange surge of fondness, kinship. He looked
so pleased with himself but was trying to play it cool—just the way she’d felt
when the store had wanted to promote her.

“Yeah.
I’d like that.”

“I’ll
need your email address.”

She
gave it to him. “It’s nice you could partner with your cousin.”

“Yeah.”
Adam finished typing her email address and put the laptop away. “He’s actually
supposed to come by in a few minutes so we can do some work on Light Switch
plans.”

“I’ve
got loads of cousins, but I only talk to them maybe once a year. How great that
you two are friends.”

“I
don’t know if we’re really friends yet. I don’t know him as well as I’d like.
His mom cut ties with us—the rest of the family, I mean—so I didn’t know him at
all growing up. He’s been kind of hard to get to know. I think maybe he resents
that he had a harder time growing up—since she wouldn’t accept any help from
the family. He always says he’s not a ‘real’ Peterson. But it’s getting better
now. He likes the idea of the game, and he did a really good job with it.”

“I
can’t believe you invented a game and set up your own company. I’m pretty
impressed.”

“We’re
actually having a get-together on Saturday night for everyone who worked on it
to celebrate the launch. Maybe—”

His
eyes slanted over to the door to the café and he cut off what he was starting
to say. Zoe turned automatically to see what had diverted him.

When
she saw the young man who entered, she realized it must be Adam’s cousin.

He
was the best-looking guy she’d ever seen in real life.

As
he approached, she did a quick assessment of her appearance. She wore a
cashmere twin set and pencil skirt that she thought were flattering. She wasn’t
as tall as she’d like, so she always wore high heels to compensate, and her
shoes today were new.

She
smoothed down her fair hair—even though it was ruler-straight and had never
shown the slightest tendency to wave or curl in her life.

Deciding
she looked as good as she could for the moment, she turned to be introduced to
Adam’s gorgeous cousin.

Adam
was obviously not interested in her romantically—having not made any sort of
move in two months—but that didn’t mean his cousin wouldn’t be.

He
grinned as he approached their table, his smile absolutely breathtaking.

“Well,
hello,” he said, his hazel eyes resting on her face with obvious interest. “I’m
Josh.”

***

You can find out more about Bittersweet
here.