Calendar Girl 12 - December (9 page)

“Look, Mia, you can’t blame yourself for feeling this way. You saw more and have been put through the ringer because of the blowback directly related to her abandoning your family. You need to take some time to filter this information through this thick skull.” He rubbed at my head again, and I moaned. “Give yourself a break, yeah? You’ve had a lot to deal with. We all have these past few months.”

I nodded, turned around, and pressed my head into his T-shirt-covered chest. He smelled like glue and goldfish crackers. I inhaled more fully. “Why do you smell like a five-year-old in a kindergarten class?”

He grinned. “Cyndi, Matt, and I have been making homemade ornaments with Isabel. Would you be interested in making your first ornament for our tree?” He smiled, and I leaned forward enough to kiss that smile right off his face. It deepened momentarily, and then I pulled away.

“Making memories?” I cocked one eyebrow.

He smiled and nodded. “You’d better believe it. All good ones.”

“Will you make me some hot cocoa?” I pouted, puffing out my bottom lip. Wes couldn’t deny the pout.

Wes had recently figured out my affinity for hot cocoa with marshmallows. I’d found a box of the stuff in the cabinet when I made coffee this morning.

“I’ll make you anything that will put a smile back on your face and the Christmas spirit back into your heart.”

“I love you. You know that, right?”

He pushed back a strand of my hair.

“I’m not sure I could handle all this without your support. You make everything easier. I could take on the world as long as you’re by my side.”

He kissed me on the tip of my nose. “That’s how it should be. You think you didn’t save my ass when I came home from Indonesia?” His eyes turned a dark green, narrowing into points of focus. “Mia, God. I could have been a shoulder-biting ball of insanity had you not put yourself out there for me. The things I did to you. What you let me do…blows me away. You alone brought me back to life. I owe you everything.”

“You owe me nothing. Remember, I give, you give. As long as we’re together, we will always have what we need.” I smiled and rubbed my nose back over his. “Now, all I need is a steaming, giant cup of hot cocoa, some Christmas socks, Christmas music, a child’s laughter, and my family. You prepared to give me all that?” I challenged.

Wes moved fast, lifted me up and sat me on my bottom at the edge of the bed. He went to our dresser and pulled out some yoga pants and tossed them at me. Then he hit my crazy sock drawer and pulled out a pair of knee-high toe-socks that were green with red and white polka dots on them and the toes were brown. On the top was a pair of black eyes and at the ankle a big shiny red ball. They were not socks you could wear with shoes, but they were so much fun. Ginelle had bought them for me and told me to “Go Buck Wild with Rudolph.”

Wes helped me put the socks on and added one of his thermal long-sleeved Henleys over my tank. “Good enough to eat,” he muttered.

I piggy-snort laughed, looking down at the picture I made. How he could love such a dork, I didn’t know, but I sure was grateful. He grabbed me by the hand, and we left our room and headed into the living room.

Maddy was cuddled with Matt on the couch, watching the fire. Cyndi was playing with the baby on one side, cooing at him. Isabel was hard at work on another ornament while Max helped her. All eyes turned to me when we entered the room.

It was go time. I needed to put myself out there to all the people who loved me and hope the backlash wasn’t more than I could handle. “All right. I’m done moping. I’m still mad at our mother. I’m not ready to deal with her in my life every day, but I am very much in need of all of you. So if you will forgive my pouting and cattiness, I will say I’m sorry and hope you can let this one slide.”

Max grinned. “Hey, Sis, wanna make an ornament? Bell has one all picked out for her Auntie Mia.”

I glanced at Maddy, and she smiled huge. “Prettiest girl in all the world,” I said, feeling choked up with pride at how much I loved her and Max for just moving on like nothing happened.

“But only when she smiles!” Isabel yelled from the table. “I know that one. Daddy says it to me!”

I walked over to Isabel, leaned down, and kissed the crown of her blond head. “He does?” I confirmed, while catching Max’s gaze.

“Yep. Picked it up from a wise woman I know,” he admitted.

Knowing that my brother was picking up things from me and sharing them with his daughter warmed my heart in all the ways I needed.

Before long, the Christmas music came on, and we were singing along to Christmas carols. Moments later, a steaming mug of hot chocolate in a soup-sized mug was set in front of me. “For my queen,” Wes winked.

“Oh, queens!” Isabel yelled. “ I have a crown for you to decorate, Auntie. Here, this one is for you, this one is for Maddy, and this one is for my mommy. We can all be queens and princesses this Christmas!” Isabel half-shrieked, half-giggled.

I grinned and picked up the small foam crown. Surrounding Isabel were glitter pens, glue, jewels, and the like. Everything a true craftsman would need to drum up some homemade Christmas cheer. The little love was in craft heaven. I, on the other hand, had not the first idea what I was supposed to do. So I sat next to my niece and had a five-year-old teach me how to make a homemade ornament.

The mom issues notwithstanding, this was already proving to be the best Christmas ever, only made better by the fact that Wes’s family would be arriving tomorrow, Christmas Eve. We’d planned a feast. Cyndi was going to rock a turkey and homemade stuffing, while I planned on going through life without the disgusting memory of putting my hands into a dead carcass. Although I loved the taste, the concept alone gave me the heebie-jeebies. I was, however, going to bust out some serious baked goods with Maddy. Between the two of us, we could bake almost anything.

A gift we must have gotten from a flour-spreading, dancing ballerina.

That was likely the only trait the woman who had borne us passed down. I might look like my mother, but I was nothing like her. I’d never be a woman who couldn’t be counted on no matter what the circumstances.

“
J
ingle bells
, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg! The Batmobile lost a wheel and the joker got away, hey!” Isabel screamed at the top of her lungs while banging on every door down the hallway.

I groaned, rolled over, and sat up. “We’re never having kids.”

Wes chuckled, pulled me down at the waist, and snuggled into my back. God, he was deliciously warm. He prodded my ass with a sizable morning erection.

With an evil grin, I shimmied away and popped out of bed. “No way! Nuh-uh! We’re saving it up for tomorrow night. I have a special outfit planned that I’m dying to wear for you on Christmas.”

“And why would that mean I can’t bang you now?” His eyebrows pulled together.

I bounced around and pulled out the clothes I planned on wearing today. A pair of dark skinny jeans, furry camel-colored Ugg boots, and a cream V-neck boyfriend-styled sweater. Simple, yet cute enough to see my future in-laws and celebrate a holiday with them.

I sighed. “Because I want to save it up. Now, come on, get out of bed. Let’s shower and get to helping in the kitchen. Your family will be here in a few hours, and I want the house to look perfect.”

Wes bumbled out of bed. He wore nothing but a pair of burgundy boxers and a hard-on. Christ, the man was sex on legs.

When he caught me staring at him and licking my chops, he hefted his heavy cock and balls with one hand through his underwear. I’m pretty sure a drop of drool slid down my chin.

“Shower quickie?” he asked, pulling my t-shirt over my head.

I gulped audibly. “Oh, yeah. Shower quickie.” I caved.

He snickered and pushed me through the open shower stall.

h
ristmas music
.
Check.

Decorations dialed in.
Check.

Goodies on the table.
Check.

Baked items cooling.
Check.

“How’s the turkey and everything coming?” I asked Cyndi while she squirted some type of juice on the giant golden bird.

“Right on time. Should be ready in another couple hours. We’ll put the potato casserole, green bean casserole, and the rolls in closer to the time we eat.”

I glanced at the tree and turned certain ornaments this way or that, wanting everything to be just right.

“Sweetheart, relax. Mom’s going to love it,” Wes said, catching me in the OCD act. A personality trait I wasn’t known for.

God, I sure hoped they thought so. Claire Channing might be rich, might be a social butterfly in the money circles, but she was also a
real
mom. She’d made sure her children grew up with morals, values, and a hard-working ethic. Claire also knew how to make a killer home-cooked meal, which is why Cyndi was doing the bulk of the items and not me. Though, I planned to win her over with my awesome desserts.

“I just want everything to be perfect,” I said in a hushed tone.

Wes put his arms around me from behind and rested his head on my shoulder. We both stared at the tree. I had to hand it to myself. The tree sparkled as if it had come right out of the pages of a modern homes magazine. At least I thought so. It was the ideal mix of homemade and beautiful, traditional ornaments the Channing clan had owned for years.

“Mia, it
is
perfect. The only thing Mom cares about is being with her family during Christmas. All of this”—he pointed to the tree, the decorations, the goodies that I had painstakingly laid out—“is just a bonus.”

I inhaled and exhaled slowly. “If you say so. I just want her to know that I’m capable of giving you a good life. That our holidays will be filled with family and beauty.”

He laughed against my shoulder and kissed my neck. “And it will. You’ve done an amazing job.” I held his arms and then tightened my grip at the sound of the door opening followed by a bunch of booted feet entering the foyer. “They’re here.” He grinned and plopped a messy kiss onto my neck before chasing a little blond firecracker down the hall to greet his family.

I waited a few painstaking minutes, adjusting the coffee table decorations one last time when they all came in.

Charles entered first, arms wide as he pulled me into a huge bear hug. “Mia, Merry Christmas. Where’s the booze? We’re going to need it after that landing. I swear to God, the pilot got his license from the school of hard knocks, with the way he maneuvered through that turbulence. Wretched.”

Max lifted a bottle of wine and a beer off in the distance. “Got you covered, Mr. Channing,” Max called out.

“That’s my cue,” he said after kissing my cheeks and heading off to meet my brother. I didn’t need to make introductions. Max would handle that himself.

Claire entered the room, pushing back her pale blond hair. “Mia, lovely to see you.” She came over to me and hugged me close. Her hair was cool against my nose, and I inhaled her familiar scent of peach, apricot, rose, and musk. The combination found in a perfume I later learned was called
Tresor
. When she pulled back, her eyes were wide. Slowly, she walked around the room. Her delicate fingers splayed out to touch a sparkled bow, caress the garland along the mantle, until she abruptly stopped in front of the tree, fingering a homemade ornament.

“Incredible. It hasn’t looked this cheery in years. However did you find the time to do all of this?” she asked.

The nervous tension I held lifted and blew away as I told her about Wes taking me to cut down my first tree.

“Your first tree? This can hardly be your first.”

I bit my lip and glanced away, never knowing how to deal with my shoddy upbringing. Maddy came up, slung her arm around my shoulder, and held out her other hand. “Our family wasn’t into the seasons, but we are. I’m Madison Saunders, Mia’s sister. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about you, Mrs. Channing.”

Here she comes to save the day!
The old Mighty Mouse song rang through my head. I squeezed my sister around the waist, thanking her silently for the topic change. I didn’t like to talk about what we didn’t have growing up, especially with someone who had everything. It made me feel small, even though I knew it shouldn’t. It wasn’t like I’d had a choice in the matter.

Claire and Maddy exchanged a few words until Claire looked at the mantle more closely. She grazed the silver candlesticks with her fingertip. “My goodness, that’s where these were!” she gasped. “Charles, remember these?” she said loud enough for the big guy to hear.

Charles came over to his wife’s side. He put an arm around her waist. “Wedding gift from my parents. I wondered why I hadn’t seen them in a while. Now I remember, we brought them up here to celebrate our very first Christmas as a family of four, remember?”

She raised her hand to her forehead. “Oh, dear, I remember that now. We’ve spent years looking for these, and they’ve been here all along.”

“I found them mixed in with some other decorations in a toaster box,” I grinned.

“Well, that explains it.” She rolled her eyes and glanced at her husband. “Who thinks that priceless candle holders would be in an old toaster box?” She chuckled and smacked her husband on the shoulder, clearly blaming him for the mishap.

“You think I did that?” he laughed, guilt lacing his tone.

“Who else? The children were babies.” She shook her head and focused on the candleholders. “Regardless of what happened, we are thrilled you’ve found them.”

“I say leave them out year round. If something is that important to you, reminds you of an important day and important people, why not have them grace your home all the time?” I shrugged, followed by an instant sense of prickling heat skittering up my spine when I realized what I’d said. Shit. No-filter-Mia at your service. “I mean…uh, if you want to.”

I closed my eyes and felt the heat sweep up my chest, neck, and into my cheeks.

“You’ve got a solid point. When we leave, we’re taking them back with us and putting them on the mantel at home, Charlie,” she said to her husband.

“Whatever you wish, dear.” He kissed her temple.

Whew! Bullet dodged.

Claire turned around and hooked her arm with mine. “You are a very smart girl, indeed. Now, can this smart girl get an old woman a glass of wine? That plane ride was an utter nightmare.” She scowled. Even her scowl was refined and pretty. Probably because it was in jest, and it didn’t last.

Wes had been right. I’d worried about impressing them, and I had, but that was not what they were here to do. They wanted to get to know our family as much as we wanted to connect with theirs.

A
couple
of hours and a few glasses of wine later, dinner was served. Cyndi and Max had outdone themselves. Every dish was better than the last. The turkey was juicy and the gravy sublime. I was pretty sure I ate my weight in turkey and homemade stuffing.

The table was joyous and loud. Just the way I liked it. Maddy sat on one side of me and Wes on the other. Together, we watched the magic of being with loved ones in complete awe.

“We have family now, Mads,” I whispered to her.

Her voice sounded small when she leaned toward me. “I never thought we’d have something this beautiful. I’m never going to take it for granted.”

I squeezed her hand. “Me either.”

“Hey, what are you two whispering about over there?” Wes asked playfully.

I shook my head. “Nothing. Just loving this night.”

Wes leaned forward and grazed his lips with mine in a simple kiss. Every kiss from Wes meant something. This one, though, was the best. Because it was during Christmas Eve dinner, where we’d merged our families for the very first time.

Peter, Jeananna’s husband, cleared his throat loudly and stood, holding his wine glass. He gently tapped the butter knife against the crystal.

All eyes shifted to him. He placed his glass down on the table and put an arm around Jeananna’s shoulder. “We have an announcement.”

Claire’s eyes instantly filled with tears. Jeananna smiled so wide, I could see her gumline. “Go ahead,” she suggested to her husband, her voice obliterated as tears ran down her face.

“We’re expecting a baby!” Peter said.

Before the word baby was fully out of his mouth, both Wes and Claire stood and went over to the other side of the table.

“Rockin’!” Maddy said, holding up her champagne. I cheered her glass and we both drank it down.

“Congrats guys. That’s amazing,” I said.

Wes put his arms around his sister, lifted her up into his hug. “Mia and I are so happy for you.”

At that moment, I realized the full scope of the “Mia and I.” Wes and I weren’t just together. We were now an
us
, a united team. As soon as we were married next week, we’d be referenced as “The Channings.” I’d never been a “The” anything before. And I had to admit, while I watched Wes hug his family, pat his sister’s still flat belly, that being a part of something bigger, a loving family, truly was what it was all about. I got it now.

Today, being with Max and his clan, Maddy with her man, and Wes’s family, it sank in. I was no longer swimming in a small pond with only couple of people to reach out to. I was now in an ocean of possibilities where everyone around me was willing to lend a hand, to throw out a life preserver when the waters of life got too hard to tread.

I was happy. Truly, wonderfully, beautifully happy.

T
he twelve
of us sat around the Christmas tree watching Isabel lose her mind over the mountain of presents that Santa brought. Not to mention, both Maddy and I bought her gifts, and as it turned out, so did Claire and Jeananna. They were tickled to go shopping for a little girl, and when they did, they went big.

“Thank God you have a private plane, Max,” I snickered, watching Isabel tear into more Barbie paraphernalia and squeal with glee the same way she had with every single gift.

Max blew out a long breath. “Sis, you are not lying. We’re going to fill the cargo hold just with her gifts.

Then we were startled by a loud screech. “Daddy! I got a real life crown like a princess wears!” Isabel ran over and showed off her newest prized possession.

“Wow, that looks mighty pretty, Bell.” Max’s eyes narrowed. “Wait a minute, let me see that.” He grabbed the tiara, not really a crown, which made absolutely no difference to a five-year-old. Max studied it in the light from the windows. “Who got this for you, honey?”

I shook my head because I’d gotten her the noisy rock band Barbie stuff. Maddy pointed to the travel painting easel and watercolors. Claire pointed to a yet another unopened present as did Jeananna.

“Let me see that, baby girl,” I said, and she handed me the tiara, jumping up and down in her footie pink pajamas.

The tiara was encrusted with a variety of crystals. I glanced at the inside and noted the company.
Swarovski
. Holy shit. This was a
real
crystal tiara. One that rich women wore in weddings or at fancy balls, not one of those pretend ones you got in the play dress-up aisle in Target. “Whose name was on the package sweetie?” I asked.

Isabel shrugged and plopped it on her head, the little prongs sinking into her curls nicely. Then she clasped her hands to her chest and spun around like only a true princess could. If she’d had the billowing ball gown, I’d have believed it myself.

Wes sat on the arm of the couch and handed me a fresh cup of coffee. He looked edible in his flannel PJ bottoms and white thermal shirt. If I hadn’t devoured him last night, I’d be drooling right about now. The twinge of pain between my legs reminded me of just how hard I’d taken him, but that didn’t stop me from my plans tonight. He might have gotten me to lift the sex ban I’d tried to place on him in preparation for this evening, but I would come out the victor tonight.

“I see you got my crown. It looks beautiful on you, Bell,” he said to our niece.

Max and I both shot our gazes to Wes. Maddy snorted and shook her head. Claire smiled sweetly.

“What?” Wes said, absolutely oblivious to the shock of his ridiculously ostentatious gift.

“You bought a five-year-old a real
Swarovski
crystal tiara?” I asked.