by Zoe Matthews
Megan and Colleen came back into the room, and Garrett suddenly couldn’t take his eyes off of her. She was so pretty. She had put on the skirt and blouse he had given her, and he wished they were going to be spending the evening alone. He obviously had some things he needed to talk to Colleen about. He marveled how Keegan was able to see the entire picture so clearly. He knew if he were going to have any type of relationship with Colleen, he needed to step up and become the type of man she needed.
Chapter 16
Colleen loved the Christmas program. She had gone to many similar programs in her time. She had always enjoyed listening to children sing Christmas songs; they sounded like angels to her. They did a great job of telling the story of Christ’s birth and the real reason why Christmas was celebrated. She liked knowing the Christmas story from the Bible was the same no matter what time period a person lived in.
The next day, she helped Megan make Christmas cookies and decorated them. They made enough to deliver to some of their neighbors. A few days later, she finished the small blanket she had started. She decided to give it to Megan and Keegan for Christmas and as a thank you for letting her stay with them.
Garrett made sure he came over every evening after work and spent the evening with her. She loved being with him. He taught her how to play some board games, and they watched Christmas movies. She loved the idea of a story being acted on a large screen. Her favorite movie was The Christmas Carol. It was one of her favorite stories in her time, so it was fun to see the story be acted out like a play. Garrett also showed her how his tablet worked, and he gave it to her to use. She had a hard time understanding all of it but she did enjoy the idea that she could basically read any book she wanted, and it was all being stored on the tablet. Garrett helped her download some Christmas books she was used to reading around this time, her favorite being the Bird’s Christmas Carol. He also taught her how to play a simple game called Solitaire which she had fun doing.
****
One evening, the day before Christmas Eve, Garrett was getting ready to go over to Keegan’s to see Colleen when there was a knock on his door. When he opened it, a woman stood outside on the porch.
“Can I help you?”
“Are you Garrett Foster?” The woman had a mixture of excitement and hope cross her face.
“Yes.”
“I am Shelly Sorensen from the Denver Tribune. I have been doing some research on a family that went missing eleven years ago. I was wondering if I could talk to you for a moment.”
Garrett was so shocked that he couldn’t say anything for a few seconds. He wanted to send her away, but he also knew that if a journalist somehow figured out that he was searching for information, she wouldn’t stop until she got something to report on. So, he let her in. He also realized he recognized her name. She was the one who had written most of the articles he had found on his family.
“What information are you looking for?”
“Are you Garrett, the son of Justin Foster?”
“I am not answering any of your questions until you answer some of my own,” Garrett said firmly.
Shelly kept her face passive as she agreed, but Garrett could almost tell that she was smirking. She firmly believed he was going to tell her everything. “Okay. Sounds fair enough.”
“Why do you even care about a family that disappeared over eleven years ago? And how did you find out I was doing my own searching?”
“We got some hits on our website on those articles I wrote. Don’t you realize how strange it was that an entire family just disappeared? Their belongings were left behind. Their bank accounts were no longer used. A court finally gave another family member power of attorney to decide what would happen to their belongings.”
“Who was the family member?”
“A Mr. Bruce Monson.”
Garrett remembered that Bruce was his great uncle, a brother to his grandmother.
“How did you find me?”
“Anyone can be found with the right resources.”
Garrett did his best not to groan. This was one part of the future, of his time, that he didn’t like. Nothing was private. If someone wanted to find out something about another person, it was quite easy to do so, because of the connection everyone seemed to have through social media. Although he had done his best to stay off all social media sites, he couldn’t all the time, especially since he had started college.
“I am not prepared to tell you anything at this time. I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” Garrett said, as he stood and opened his front door.
Shelly looked flustered and upset. “I answered your questions. Why won’t you answer mine? Can’t you at least tell me where you have been? Has your entire family come back to Denver?”
Garrett wondered what her reaction would be if he told her what really happened to them all, but he knew that he had to keep the time travel a secret. He wondered if Shelly would really believe him anyway, if he did tell her what really happened. He decided it was too late to deny that he was part of the family she had written about.
“I need to talk to my other family members before I give you any information.”
Shelly refused to take no for an answer, and he had to admire her tenacity and determination. He was finally able to get her to leave, but not before leaving him her card and making him promise that he would contact her as soon as he talked to his family.
Once he was sure Shelly had really left (he wouldn’t put it past her that she could be hiding behind a potted plant until he left his apartment, and he smiled at the vision), he headed to Keegan’s house. He wasn’t sure how he was going to handle this, and for the first time he wished he could talk to his father. Even though it had greatly irritated him when he was younger, Justin had a very laid-back and humorous attitude about time travel and being forced to stay in 1893. He probably would be able to help Garrett figure out a way to get rid of Shelly without too many questions.
When he pulled in the driveway, he leaned his head back against the headrest of his truck. His busy mind went over everything that had happened to him over the last sixteen months, since he arrived in the time period he was born in. Would it be better if he did leave with Colleen after Christmas? Then he knew what he had to do.
****
Colleen was excited for the next few days. Tomorrow was Christmas Eve, and then it would be Christmas Day. She was looking forward to spending Christmas in the future, but she also felt sad, for she knew that she would be leaving and time traveling back to her time soon after. She was determined to enjoy the next few days as much as she could.
When Garrett arrived that evening, a strange energy radiated from him, and Colleen wondered what was causing it. He seemed excited and determined about something.
“Is something wrong?” Colleen asked after he greeted her with a kiss.
“No. I have an idea, but I want to talk to everyone about it.”
“Well, dinner’s almost ready,” Colleen said. “I prepared a hearty stew and rolls today so Megan could rest her feet a bit.”
“It smells good. I’m hungry, so let’s go eat.”
Once the prayer was said, and everyone’s plate was filled with food, Garrett immediately spoke.
“I think all four of us should go to the ranch for Christmas. We can leave tomorrow, and we’ll be there in time for Christmas Eve dinner.”
The room went absolutely silent at Garrett’s words, and Coleen was confused. She thought he would never go back ever again, and now he was suggesting that they all go? Had he changed his mind and decided he wanted to stay in her time for good?
“Explain why you want to do this, Garrett,” Megan gently suggested.
“I guess I realized that, even though we all live in two different time periods, we need to stay in contact with each other. I left very abruptly, and I need to make amends with my father and Bridget.”
“Is it possible to get to the portal this time of year?” Megan wondered.
“I look
ed. The snowfall has been pretty mild so far this season, and it has been warmer than usual for December. We might have to park further down the mountain and hike up, but we should be able to make it to the portal.”
“I’m not sure if Megan should go since she is pregnant.”
“I think I’ll be okay, Keegan,” Megan said. “If we walk up the mountain carefully and have enough snow equipment, I’ll be okay. I’d like to see your family again.”
“Are you staying?” Colleen asked softly. The room became quiet again while she waited for Garrett’s answer.
“No. It will be a visit.”
“Then I will come back with you when you return,” Colleen told him, knowing he would understand that she was agreeing to marry him.
Garrett smiled at her, stood up, and then helped her stand. He pulled her into his arms, and they held each other for a long time. The peace that overwhelmed Colleen told her that she had made the right decision.
Early the next day, the four of them drove to the parking lot and parked the car on the far side of the lot, making sure it was out of the way. They started to walk up the path. At first there was little snow, but as they went up further, the snow became deeper. Keegan and Garrett had come prepared with snowshoes, and soon all four of them were wearing them. They took their time because of Megan’s pregnancy, but they made it to the portal in time. Keegan hid their snowshoes behind a large pile of rocks, and then, at the appointed time, all four of them grasped hands and stepped inside the portal. Almost instantly they were transported through time to 1906, to the family ranch. After they arrived and Keegan made sure Megan had faired okay, they stepped out of the portal and headed towards the ranch house.
Colleen saw a wagon that was just outside one of the barns, and she knew that Justin had brought his family to the ranch for Christmas. She knew Garrett was counting on his father being at the ranch, and she had wondered what he would have done if Justin wasn’t there this year. There were some Christmases that the weather had prevented them from traveling the distance from Denver. She was glad to see that this wasn’t going to be one of those years. Garrett kept her hand in his as they approached the house, answering another question she had thought of on their way up to the portal. Was Garrett going to let their family know of their feelings for each other immediately or wait until an appropriate time?
They had almost arrived at the door when it swung open. Richard, Kimberly’s son, had opened it, and Colleen could tell that he had been going to the barn since he was dressed in a warm coat, gloves, and hat. His eyes opened wide, and then a grin split his face, as he launched himself onto Keegan.
“Uncle Keegan!” Richard yelled with glee. “Did you come for Christmas?”
“Yep, we sure did,” Keegan told him, as he gave his nephew a hug. “We thought we’d spend the next few days with our family.”
Others must have heard Richard’s yell because soon everyone had crowded around for hugs and to welcome the four of them, many with teary eyes at seeing everyone so unexpectedly. Colleen noticed that Justin greeted Garrett last. Garrett had kept her hand in his throughout all the greetings, and Colleen saw Justin’s eyes look at their clasped hands before looking at his son. Garrett led Colleen to his father.
“I’m sorry, Dad, for disappearing like I did. It was wrong of me; I see that now.”
Justin looked at Garrett for a long moment, and the family became silent, as if wondering what was going to happen next. Then Justin smiled at his son and gave him a long hug. Colleen breathed a sigh of relief. Justin wasn’t angry at Garrett.
The next few hours were chaotic as the entire family gathered in the living room to catch up with each other. Questions were asked about what Keegan had been doing, Megan’s pregnancy, and how their store was doing. Bridget had birth to a little girl a few months after Garrett had disappeared. She was now over a year old and was getting into everything.
As soon as everyone was caught up adequately, Patrick stood up. “Who’s ready to decorate the tree?”
All of the kids jumped up in unison.
“Let me help!”
“I’m the tallest; I should put the angel on!”
“Let’s do the popcorn string first!”
Patrick laughed. “Everyone will get an opportunity to do something important.” He went over to the tree that was held up in a small, tin bucket filled with coal. First, let’s spread the cotton. Each child helped spread cotton thinly over the branches to make it look like snow. Then, they hung popcorn garland over the branches and placed painted stars throughout. The adults then carefully added their few precious ornaments they had collected over the years. Katherine was chosen to put the angel on top of the tree, as she hadn’t had a turn in several years.
Rather than fight with the older kids, Josephine chose to sit in the corner quietly setting up a twig fence, and placing some of Keegan’s wooden, carved animals carefully inside.
Colleen’s heart warmed, as she watched her family. She had missed them all so much. She felt Garrett’s arm slide around her in a hug, and one look at his face told her he was emotional. Up until yesterday, he likely thought he wouldn’t ever see any of his family again.
The kids were sent to bed with promises of a wonderful morning. All the adults stayed up late, talking and catching up on everything they had missed out on. When Colleen finally went to sleep, it was with a wide smile on her face.
****
Colleen woke up to the hoots and hollers of the young children waking up to their presents under the tree. She climbed out of bed with excitement. She hadn’t had time to plan any presents and wasn’t planning on receiving any, but the thought of being with family was enough to rush into the main living room with the rest of the children.
All of the children were waiting patiently to be handed their presents. Finances were tight some years, and it was important to all the parents that their children find the joy in giving and receiving a few small presents, and not expecting more.
First, each child was handed a stocking that had small candies and little cookies folded and tied in a pretty cloth. Then, they each got a present from their parents, and it was clearly the presents they all had been hoping for. They each got one more present from an assigned aunt or uncle in the family. Presents for the children went quickly, and it ended with large smiles on everyone’s faces.
Justin cleared his throat and stood up. “I have a gift for Bridget,” he announced, and he walked out of the room, returning shortly with a beautifully carved and stained chest. “You are always talking about wanting a safe place to keep your mementos from the children. Here is a special chest just for that purpose.”
Bridget walked over to it and touched the delicate designs carefully. “How on earth did you find the time to make this?”
“I’ve been working on it a little bit all year. I had to keep it up here at the ranch so you wouldn’t find it,” Justin said, clearly happy that his wife loved his gift so much.
“It’s perfect. Thank you, Justin.” Bridget stood, and gave him a tight hug.
The other couples exchanged gifts while the children played, most of them simple but thoughtful. Colleen watched her whole family with happiness. She wasn’t expecting Garrett to stand up as well.
“I... uh,” he cleared his throat, seemingly struggling for words. “I brought something with me. For Colleen.”
Everyone in the room instantly quieted and exchanged meaningful looks with each other.
Garrett pulled a small box out of his pocket and knelt down on one knee. “Colleen, I have known you since I was eleven, and I grew to love you not long after that. It has been a rough road to where we are now, and you have always been there for me. Please let me always be there for you. For the rest of your life.” He opened the box, where a thin gold band laced with diamonds was nestled.
Colleen’s eyes filled up with tears. “Yes!” was all she could squeak out. Garrett slid the ring onto her finger and stood to give her a hug and quick kiss.
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Congratulations and hugs were all given by everyone, and the happy tears kept flowing down her cheeks.
Kimberly was the last to congratulate the couple, then she loudly asked, “Who is ready for breakfast?”
Everyone moved over to the table, still talking about marriage and how they had all known Garrett and Colleen were going to end up together. Kimberly and Nicky dished out an egg, bacon, and potato casserole, and passed the plates around. Soon the room quieted as everyone ate.
Garrett leaned over to kiss her temple. “If you don’t like the ring, we can take it back and find something that better suits you.”
Colleen almost looked at him in horror. “You will not take this ring away!”
Garrett and several others laughed. “Okay, okay. I didn’t have a lot of time to pick it out, so I just wanted to check.”