Unforgettable Christmas Dreams: Gifts of Joy

by Rebecca York

  He took the beast from the little hands and held her against his chest, getting his chin bathed by the rough tongue and puppy breathe. “She doesn’t recognize me yet because I just got her very recently.” Yeah, like a few seconds ago! “I’ll have to train her to stay, ahhh… where I put her.” Reed had no real intention of keeping the animal. As soon as he could escape from this awkward situation, he would find out if anyone knew where the pup came from. If not, he’d find a home for it. Someone among the staff at the hospital would take the little pain-in-the-ass off his hands.

  “What’s her name, sir?” Hollie couldn’t seem to let go.

  “I haven’t named her yet.” Without even pausing to consider the question, he asked, “What would you call her?”

  “I’d call her Cloud.”

  No hesitation. Hollie answered and he had to ask. “Why Cloud?” The name surprised him. He’d expected Fluffy or Snowball, or something equally childish.

  “Because she’s white, soft and round like a cumulus cloud. I love clouds. Did you know there are a lot of different ones?”

  Shocked stupid, Reed only nodded, his eyes flying to Lindy, who was trying not to let her pride be overcome by a smug grin. Intelligent beyond her years, the kid must be a handful.

  Securing the blanket around her daughter yet again, Lindy picked her up and stood. She faced him as a stranger, a warm smile of appreciation lighting her beautiful face.

  Reed, holding Cloud, got to his feet and waited, trying to decide if he should remind her of their last meeting almost five years earlier, the weekend of his May 12th birthday. He watched her expression, peered into her oblivious gaze and decided she had no idea who he was. Strangely, that hurt. Made him decide the hell with reminding her of a night he’d spent years remembering.

  Lindy smiled. “Please, what’s your name? I want to thank you, and it seems too informal to call you sir like Hollie.”

  “I’m Reed Carlton. I work as a surgeon at the new hospital here at the Grove.”

  Lindy’s expression closed and her smile faded. “You’re a Carlton?”

  “Yes.” He’d never had to apologize for his antecedents before. But for the first time in his life, he felt compelled to say he was sorry. And if it would bring back the smiling girl from minutes earlier, he’d seriously consider changing his name to Wojciehowicz or Stubbs.

  Stiff now, her previous warmth vanished, Lindy spoke in crisp tones, an order her daughter knew better than to ignore. “Hollie, thank Mr. Carlton for saving you today. He was very brave and we’re both grateful.” So saying, she forced her hand out to shake his. Pulling away as soon as his fingers closed around hers, she leaned her daughter closer and waited.

  “Thank you, Mr. Reed. Me and Cloud are very happy you were there.”

  “Me too, sunshine. Be good and listen to your mom, okay?”

  “Okay.” Reaching with her small hand, he thought Hollie was aiming for the wriggling puppy. Not so. He felt her little fingers gently pat his cheek. “Be nice to Cloud. Maybe we can meet in the park, in the mornings on weekends and I can play with her.”

  His eyes flew to meet Lindy’s. She shook her head, the movement quick and furtive, her eyes now empty of their previous warmth.

  Huh? What just happened? “That’s a deal, honey. I’ll watch out for you.”

  Chapter Seven

  Of all the men in a city of over seventy thousand and rising, Belinda couldn’t believe that Reed Carlton would be the one to save her baby. After all, the Grove was big enough that she’d gambled on never having to deal with a member of the family she’d detested for almost five years.

  Maybe it wasn’t fair of her to blame the entire Carlton clan for what had happened to her. But since her disgrace had occurred in their ostentatious home, and she had no idea of the actual culprit, it was just easier to condemn the host. Who, of course must have been a Carlton, maybe even Reed himself. Truthfully, she didn’t know because she couldn’t remember. How could she when she’d been drugged and virtually raped?

  Just the thought of what had happened to her that May weekend was enough to make the sandwich she’d gulped down earlier feel like it would be making a re-appearance.

  Stop thinking about it! You have to live here, there’s no other choice.

  Carlton Grove was where her family was and though they weren’t able to help her financially, they did allow her to bring their grandchild to stay overnight when she had late shifts at the pub where she bartended. Without that second income, she doubted she could manage to bank even a penny of the wages from her other job.

  Rushing now, Belinda zipped around their tiny apartment chosen because it was close to the park. Quickly, she bathed Hollie and made them both ready for the day.

  Later, after listening to the little one chatting continuously about Cloud and Mr. Reed, pretending to pay attention with the occasional nod and hum of agreement, Belinda stopped her old beater and dropped her little monster munchkin off at the day-care.

  “Hollie, remember your promise? We agreed that if I took you to the park this morning and we played on the swings, you would be a good girl this afternoon. Since it’s your first day back, you must find a way to get along with Miss Dummy and behave…”

  Giggling, her hands over her mouth as if to stop the laughter, Hollie scolded, “You mustn’t call her that, Mommy. Remember? It’s Miss Dumry.”

  Red-faced, trying to hide her own smile, Belinda glanced around to make sure she hadn’t been overheard. “Sorry.” She gently slapped her own mouth and said, “My bad! Miss Dumry hopes to find more time to be with you, so be nice. Okay?”

  “Mommy, if she’d put her phone… O-kay! I’ll be good.”

  Belinda kissed her and watched as her little hellion ran off to join with a group of the others, mostly boys, and observed Hollie pushing her way in and then taking over the conversation. No doubt, by the end of the day, everyone would have heard about her morning’s exploits.

  This didn’t bother Belinda near as much as what had happened earlier, while they were still at the apartment. She’d left Hollie in the bath so she could call her mother to make arrangements to drop her daughter off after supper. She had her regular housekeeping job for the afternoon, had time to make them supper and then do a late shift at the pub.

  Returning to the washroom, she’d spied her daughter in the mirror. Hollie had been rocking, hugging herself and crying softly, tears streaming from her sad eyes. Piled in front of her sat a mountain of soft white bubbles closely resembling a cloud.

  Chapter Eight

  Reed stood holding the crying puppy, soothing her as she wriggled to get down. Finally, he lowered the fluffy animal to the ground and then had to run and scoop her up again as she took off, following the woman and child now some way ahead.

  “Oh, no, you don’t! They can’t take you, Trouble. Hey, settle down.” The pup had a mind of her own and was frantic to get to the little girl who kept glancing back and waving sadly.

  Finally, Reed had to wrap Cloud inside his blanket and turn the other way before the puppy stopped fighting him and relaxed with a whine of dismay.

  “Harley! Man, I’m glad you waited.” Reed sloshed his way to where they’d parked, glad to see his brother leaning against the car, a cellphone held to his ear and a smile plastered over his face. As soon as he saw Reed, he shut down the conversation and stood. “Hey, bro, quite a morning you’ve had, super hero of little children and puppies.”

  “Zip it, dumbass! Here, take the mutt.”

  Harley stepped back and held his hands up in denial. “Nope. I don’t want the headache, man. It’s all yours. Sure is a cutie though.”

  “Just hold her so I can get these wet clothes off me. I have a set of sweats in the car.”

  Shaking his head vigorously, Harley laughed. “I ain’t falling for that old trick. You’ve gotten away with it more times than I want to remember. That animal is all yours.”

  Pissed and showing it, Reed’s voice deepened. “Did you by an
y chance see where it came from? Or notice anyone looking for her?”

  Harley laughed out loud once more and shook his head, obviously enjoying his brother’s predicament.

  Sighing with disgust, Reed used the towel to make sure Cloud was dry, opened the rear door and shoved her carefully onto the seat. Then he closed it and went to the trunk. “Look, you’re a cop, right? You’re supposed to be so observant. Did you see anyone searching for a missing… ? Stop grinning like an idiot and shaking your head. It’s beginning to make me want to hurt you. “

  Harley cracked up. Not intimidated by his older brother’s grouchy disposition, he finally straightened his face and solemnly answered. “I already told you. I didn’t notice any unusual behavior, but I can put an APB over the system to see if we can apprehend the nasty varmint who’d leave a teeny-weeny, adorable little puppy all alone in a park in the hope that some big-hearted, pea-brained shmuck would take pity on it.”

  “Jesus, man, with that smart mouth, I can’t believe you passed the academy.”

  “And I can’t believe you’re a wealthy young surgeon who hangs out alone in a big old house, I might add, with a fenced-in yard, never goes anywhere and lives like a hermit. Guess it’s your ugly face that’s the problem. Must be why you never have any girlfriends.”

  “Yeah, right. At least I’m not a slut like you, always with a new chick on my arm, breaking their hearts every time you cut them off. Don’t know how you sleep at night with all those rejected women calling you to reconsider.”

  Purposely, Reed used this example to get at the now straight-faced man glaring his way. One time Harley had left the speaker on his phone open and the whole family had overheard a female voice begging him to give her another chance. When he needed taking down a notch, they used this to tease the best-looker in the family of handsome boys.

  Harley stiffened and straightened. His face lost its teasing look and his voice turned to steel. “That bitch did me wrong, not the other way around. And no one makes a fool of me and gets a second chance to do it again. And… in case you never figured it out, the females I spend my time with are all women who know the score. Until I meet ‘the one’, they’re only pit stops on the course.”

  Knowing he’d overstepped the boundaries, Reed reached out and grabbed Harley’s arm to shake it consolingly. “Sorry, man. That was shitty. I didn’t mean it. Guess my temper’s still working on high. I know you’ll find your one and only. Hell, you’ve been talking about her as long as I can remember. But, I’m different. I’m a moody, introverted prick and I like my own space. Can’t imagine any woman wanting to put up with the likes of me and wouldn’t take the chance if I found one.”

  “Don’t blame you. She’d obviously have mental issues to even consider taking you on.” Harley, now visibly relaxed, patted his brother’s hand before it disappeared. Reed didn’t touch people often and when he did, it mattered. Being a smart man Harley apologized also. “I shouldn’t have teased you, bro. Sometimes the devil gets into me and I can’t resist. Look, I’ll ask around and see if anyone knows anything about the pup. But my guess is that whoever dumped her here wanted her gone and couldn’t be bothered to find it a home. My advice is to either take her to Mom or to the pound. She’s cute. She’ll be adopted.”

  “Yeah, well, I can’t do that. I kind of promised the kid that I’d meet her in the park sometimes and let her walk Cloud. I can’t go back on my word.”

  “Cloud?”

  Reed shook his head. “It’s a long story.”

  “So what were you planning to do if you’d have sucked me in to adopting the mutt?”

  Reed grinned. “I’d have played uncle and taken the nuisance on outings, just like I expect you to do now.”

  “Yeah, like that’s going to happen.”

  Chapter Nine

  Mindlessly cleaning the house of her oldest client, Belinda tried to come up with some plan where she could somehow keep the little puppy and make her adored baby’s dream come true. The image of Hollie sobbing into her hands had broken her heart, as it would any loving mother who knew the one thing her child most wanted, she’d just refused to give to her.

  Plus, it had been obvious to anyone with eyes and a heart that the two little ones had bonded from the beginning. Belinda had heard Cloud whining after they’d walked away, and she’d seen Reed chasing the pup when she had tried to follow them.

  But, no matter which way she jiggled her daily routine, there was no time in her busy schedule for the care of an active puppy. Especially one that looked like she’d be growing into a fairly large dog.

  After all, not only would she need to be housebroken and have a fenced-in yard, she’d have to be fed, walked, groomed and trained. And… those things didn’t happen in a few spare minutes. As it was, Belinda gave every bit of her free time to her daughter and those precious hours never felt sufficient.

  Most days, guilt had her questioning all her decisions. Does this laundry, baking, vacuuming… really need to be done, or should I use the precious time to play with Hollie?

  Also, the expense of taking on a pet just didn’t fit into her overextended budget either. Already she did without a lot of ordinary comforts in order to save her pennies.

  Completely lost in concentration, she knocked over a vase which brought her back to the present. The oil she’d been waxing into the antique furniture gave off fumes of cleanliness and old times that usually cheered her. But today, no matter how gleaming the tables looked, her heart was heavy with uncertainties.

  Falling snow caught her attention. She straightened and stared out of the bay window at the luxurious gardens surrounding the older home. Because of the weirdly mild autumn, huge baskets of fall mums were still vying for attention. Now, all were slowly being buried under a white comforter.

  “Belinda. You have sighed more than that old furnace does in the winter, and trust me, it’s on its last legs and needs replacing. Can’t you please tell me what’s on your mind? If there’s anything I can do to bring back your usual happy face, I’d like to help.”

  “So now you’re telling me I sound like a crappy old furnace and look like a grinning computer icon. My day can’t get much better.” Laughing to take any sting from her words, Belinda went to her employer and, leaning over her wheelchair, she gave her a gentle hug.

  Maeve Wakefield giggled, the sound brightening Belinda’s spirit. “Put words in my mouth—go ahead—see if I care. But don’t ever make light of how much I appreciate everything you do for me. It’s because of you that I’m able to continue living here. Your help makes it possible.”

  “You pay me, Maeve.” Belinda cut in softly.

  “Not nearly enough. For one thing, I’ve never seen you just walk around here, you’re usually moving at a sprinter’s pace. And you know darn well I couldn’t manage without you cleaning my house, doing my shopping and laundry, preparing a lot of my meals and even taking out the garbage. Those care-givers who come in and dress me and come back in the evening to put me to bed do help too. I appreciate you making those arrangements with them. You look after all those things, so do you see what I mean? It’s only because of your constant attentiveness that I’m able to stay home.”

  “It’s been my pleasure; you know it has, Maeve. I don’t know what I’d do without you and this job.”

  “I just wish I could pay you more so you wouldn’t have to take on the extra night work. Maybe I’m being silly hanging on to the old barn. I should probably sell and look for some place smaller?”

  “Maeve, we’re not getting into that nonsense again. I love helping you here at Cherrylane. If you moved away from your memories, you’d be sick at heart, and if you add that to the already weak valves you’re living with, there’s no telling what would happen.”

  The two laughed comfortably together and Belinda began sighing with relief for having gotten out of a tight spot. But… she should’ve known better. Previously having been a lawyer, and a damn good one, the seventy-eight-year-old hadn’t forgot
ten the original thread that had started the conversation. “Sit down here and tell me what happened to give you such a pinched look and sad expression.”

  Taking a final glance at the shining room full of treasures, gilded mirrors and frightfully expensive keepsakes, then peeking at her watch and seeing she had a few minutes to spare, Belinda did just that.

  “Hollie fell in love this morning.” Telling a story to Maeve had to be done with drama. She wasn’t the type who appreciated a boring tale.

  “Aha! Well, I won’t ask when the wedding is since I do believe Hollie graduating elementary and high-school is compulsory, but you can tell me about her new beau?”

  Laughing, enjoying the discussion as much as she knew she would, Belinda played along. She smirked while answering, “The name is Cloud.”

  Maeve’s eyes twinkled and her wrinkled hands folded together before she dropped them in her lap. “Very interesting! He’s either a Native American, or quite possibly a Doberman pincher. Which is it?”

  “Ha! You’re so smart. And quite close. From the looks of his coloring, his beady little black eyes and grinning… ahhh…snout, I would say she’s more likely to be a Samoyed puppy.”

  “How precious! I love that breed. They make wonderful family pets, especially the females. Can you bring Cloud to see me?”

  Losing her grin, Belinda stared at her red, chapped hands. “We didn’t keep her. She was wandering in the park this morning, slid down the embankment and went right into the lake. My impulsive and irrepressible Hollie happened to see this and went right in after her, thinking to save the pup. Instead, she lost her footing and took a header. I arrived in time to see a man rescuing them both. He ended up with Cloud.”

  “The dog was his?”

  “Not really. I think she’s a stray. Despite all the onlookers nearby who saw what happened, not one stepped forward to claim the animal. And Hollie was wearing me down with her begging. Then Mr. Carlton claimed her. I believe he lied to help me, though I begrudge having to accept this gesture. Quite possibly, if I’d known he was a Carlton I wouldn’t have, but it’s too late to back down now.”