Cakewalk

by Claire Hastings

  “I can’t compete with that story,” he laughed, placing another ornament on the tree.

  “I didn’t realize we were competing,” she laughed in return. “Here, do you want to put this one there?” She handed him a small wad of white tissue paper, opened up to display two small figures molded together, both wearing matching red Christmas pajamas. His and Hannah’s names were written on each corresponding figure, with ‘Our First Christmas’ written underneath it. Holden felt the tears prick at the corner of his eyes as he stared at it, not sure what to do.

  “You don’t think it’s weird?”

  “No, why would it be? She’s a part of your life, a part of you, Holden. I know you miss her, and that you’ll always love her.” Gigi paused, letting her words sink in. He loved that she was so understanding and that she wasn’t threatened by his love for his late wife. She was right—Hannah was a part of him and always would be. Stepping in closer to him, she continued, “I want it on our tree. I think it belongs there.” He nodded, his heart squeezing all over again.

  They continued like this for another couple of hours, exchanging stories and loading the tree up with everything they could. When they finally didn’t have anything left to hang, Holden went and turned off the lights in the living room. The glow of the fire was the only thing helping him to find his way over to the plug so that he could light their tree.

  “Ready?" he asked, peeking around the robust bottom to see Gigi.

  “Yes! Just plug it in already!”

  Doing as she asked, he jammed the plug into the socket, and the tree came to life. The bright white lights illuminated the room, reflecting off the balls and the keepsake ornaments that adorned the branches. However, even all those lights were nothing compared to the look on Gigi’s face as she admired their handiwork.

  “What do you think, sweetheart?” he asked, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her into him so her back was against his chest.

  “It’s perfect,” she whispered.

  “I think it’s missing something,” he told her.

  “What? We put everything on there. What could it possibly be missing?” Her voice sounded panicked, and he could feel her tense up in his arms. He gave her a squeeze before letting her go and reaching over to the couch. Digging in between the cushions, he pulled out the small flat box he’d shoved in there before they had left earlier.

  “Here,” he replied, handing her the box.

  “Holden,” she said, her panic turning to another emotion he couldn’t quite place.

  “Open it.”

  She slipped her finger underneath the red ribbon that surrounded the box, letting it fall to the ground. Opening it up, she found a brightly colored cupcake ornament, her name written on the bright blue cupcake liner. She gasped, covering her mouth with her hand as she took it in. Holden’s heart stopped, waiting for her to say something, hoping that he’d done the right thing.

  “This is our tree, so it needed a little Gigi on it. I thought nothing was better than a cupcake for Colebury’s cupcake queen.”

  “Holden…” she choked out, looking up at him with tears in her eyes. “I…I…I…”

  “I know, sweetheart, I know.”

  Throwing her arms around him, she crushed their mouths together. She still tasted like chocolate, but now, she also tasted like something else. Like all the happiness in the world. He felt like he could burst from all the love radiating through him right now, making it seem like all was right with the world. With Gigi in his arms, there wasn’t anything else he could ever want.

  21

  Holden

  This was the kind of moment when Holden knew he should be nervous. His parents and godfather were due to arrive any time now, but the only thing he felt was a sense of excitement. Just like a little kid on Christmas Eve waiting on Santa, he couldn’t wait for them to arrive and to meet Gigi. The first time he’d done the meet-the-parents thing had been over a scheduled dinner when Hannah’s parents had come to visit Dartmouth—and he’d been scared out of his mind. He’d had no idea what to expect since every time he’d asked Hannah what they were like she’d simply respond, “They’re parents.” But now, his insides were humming with anticipation.

  Gigi, on the other hand, seemed to be distressed enough for the entire state of Vermont.

  She’d spent most of the morning rushing around the kitchen, trying to make sure that everything was beyond perfect. The buffet in the dining room was covered in more food than Holden had seen in there in maybe his whole life. Crab cakes, buffalo chicken sliders, chicken parmesan sliders, deviled eggs, sun-dried tomato pinwheels, and mini quiches were just some of the finger foods she’d already laid out, while he knew there was still more to be cooked or assembled. Not to mention the four types of cookies and two types of cupcakes she’d made. For a woman who had almost burned down a building a couple of months ago, she was certainly kicking ass and taking names now.

  The crunch of the gravel pulled Holden’s attention away from all the incredible smells wafting out of the dining room and toward the drive just in time to see his dad park their SUV. Running outside to greet them, he was a little taken aback when his godfather marched right past him and into the house.

  “Hello to you too, old man,” Holden called after him.

  “Yeah, yeah,” the tall, wire-thin man called back without even bothering to turn around. His salt and pepper hair was a little longer than Holden was used to, but at least from the back it seemed to suit him. “I want to meet this southern beauty who managed to remove your head from your ass.”

  Holden looked to his parents, both of whom shrugged in response. Everyone had always told him that he was the spitting image of his father, a fact that he’d always taken pride in, since Heathcliff was usually regarded as a good-looking man. These days his long beard disguised most of the resemblance, but he knew that if he were to shave, it would be like looking at his father in the mirror. Except for the eyes. The piercing blue eyes were the only part of his mother that he’d inherited, her fair hair and skin losing the genetics battle to his father’s dark ones.

  “He’s been like this the whole drive up,” his mother said. “You know how he gets.”

  “How are you, son?” his dad asked, embracing him. The contact felt good, and Holden wondered if it had always felt like this and he just hadn’t realized it, or if this was one more thing the magic of Gigi had changed.

  “I’m good. Although maybe a little worried about Gigi being left alone with him. She was already nervous enough about all this.”

  “Well then, let’s go save her,” his mom suggested.

  Holden and his father grabbed their suitcases, and he gestured for them to lead the way. The three of them made their way inside just in time to find Gigi standing in the living room, wide-eyed and slack-jawed in front of Caulfield, frozen in place, a tray of mugs in hand.

  “I should take that before you drop it,” Holden said, rushing over to her. She managed to hand him the tray, and he stole a quick kiss from her, not caring in the slightest that they were on display for his family.

  “Stop hoggin’ the pretty girl,” his godfather said, shooing him out of the way. “Young lady, I’m Caulfield Montgomery. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

  “GeorgiaGrace Elyse Hawthorne, née Shaw, as in Shaw Investments, not Shaw flooring, that's a whole other set of Shaws…” Gigi rambled. The words tumbled out of her mouth so fast, in such a thick southern accent, that it caught even Holden off guard. “And the honor is mine, Mr. Montgomery.”

  “Oh my dear, Mr. Montgomery was my father. You may call me Caulfield. Or even just Field like this one does.” He gestured to Holden with his thumb, a large smile taking over his face.

  “And these are my parents, Heathcliff and Catherine.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you both as well. I made hot chocolate,” she said, gesturing to the tray he’d taken from her and set on the table. He could tell she was still nervous, so he walked ov
er to her, taking her hand, hoping that it would be of some comfort. She let out a small sigh while giving his hand a squeeze, and he knew he’d made the right call.

  “So, Holden tells us that you’ve found a love for baking?” Catherine said, grabbing a mug and sitting in one of the chairs by the fire.

  “Yes. I kinda fell into it, actually. I took a class years ago on cake decorating, but skipped the learning to bake part,” she answered, as she and everyone else followed Catherine’s lead in sitting down. “I had a bit of a rough start, but I think I’m doing pretty well now. I hope y’all don’t mind, but I have a couple of new cupcake flavors that I need opinions on, so I figured I could try them out on you.”

  “What did you end up making other than the Arnold Palmer ones?” Holden asked.

  “You made an Arnold Palmer cupcake?!” Caulfield exclaimed, pushing up out of the chair he’d just sat in and hurrying into the dining room.

  “I made those, plus an espresso bean cupcake—so think a chocolate cake with espresso mixed in, with a mocha frosting, and chocolate sprinkles and a chocolate covered espresso bean. I thought since it’s a coffee shop, that maybe a coffee inspired item would be more appropriate.”

  “Heath! You gotta try this thing, man,” Caulfield called out.

  “On my way!”

  An awkward silence fell over them as Heathcliff joined his best friend in the dining room, and Holden searched for something to say. Every time he opened his mouth to say something though, he stopped himself, not wanting to say the wrong thing. He wanted to put Gigi at ease, to make her feel like part of the family. One look at her and he could tell what she was thinking. That she wasn’t good enough and that she was ruining his family holiday. Think of something, dumbass. Don’t just let her sit here and think she did something wrong…

  “Why’s it so quiet in here?” Caulfield asked, walking back into the room with a plate full of food. “Catherine, bust out the photos!”

  “Photos?” Holden asked, looking between his parents and Caulfield, all of whom suddenly had very guilty looking grins on their faces.

  “Oh, good idea!” Catherine said, reaching for her tote bag. As soon as Holden saw the spine of the mint-green photo album, he knew exactly where this was going.

  “Oh no, put that away!”

  “What is it?” Gigi asked.

  “Holden’s greatest hits!” Heath said, coming out of the dining room with plates of food for himself and his wife.

  “No, no! The greatest hits album has no place seeing the light of day on Christmas!”

  “I’m confused,” Gigi said, looking at him like his whole family was speaking in Russian.

  “You see, Gigi, Holden is an only child, with parents and godparents who are only children,” Heathcliff explained. “So we have albums upon albums of photos of him. At one point in high school, his Aunt Viv thought it would be a good idea to pick out the best of the best photos and put them all in one album for easier viewing.”

  “And when we say best of the best, naturally, we mean the most embarrassing,” Caulfield added on.

  “Join me on the couch. We can start from the beginning.”

  “Mom, I really don’t think that’s necessary,” Holden said. But it was as if he was the only one in the room listening, because Gigi moved about as fast as he’d ever seen. “Gigi, really, you don’t have to.”

  “Oh, but I want to!” The smile she gave him was mischievous and full of joy, making his heart squeeze. He loved seeing the light shine in her eyes like that, and if it meant he’d have to sit through his parents showing off every stupid thing he’d done as a child, well then, so be it. Better get cozy…

  “Holden was quite the nudist when he was younger. But the best was when he was about four, we were out shopping for Christmas. Viv had gone off to do something, I don’t remember what. Anyway, I had to use the bathroom, and like any mother with a small child, I took him with me. So there I was, sitting on the toilet, trying to pee as fast as I could, and there was someone in the stall next to us who was…well, this poor lady had eaten something that hadn’t quite agreed with her. If that’s not embarrassing enough, having that kind of moment in the mall restroom, then Holden here drops to the floor, halfway slides under the stall, looks up at the lady and goes ‘I smell you!’ I wanted to die! I pulled up my pants as fast as I could but wasn’t fast enough, because Holden shimmied his way out of the stall completely and took off! Along the way, he decided to strip…so I’m running through the mall, trying to find my child, left with a Hansel and Gretel type trail of his clothing. Viv and I finally found him on a rocking horse in the little tot lot area, naked as the day he was born! Luckily, Viv had a camera in her pocketbook, and we got this photo.”

  The whole group burst into laughter as Catherine finished her story. Even Holden couldn’t help but let out a chuckle and shake his head as his mother looked at him proudly. It was not the worst story she could have shared. But the look of happiness and ease on Gigi’s face would be worth every second of mortification.

  “Wait…wait…” Gigi managed to say, trying to catch her breath from laughing. “The kid stripping in the mall, that was in A Murder of Crows! Raewyn watches the two women chase a naked toddler through the food court! That was based on you?”

  Gigi

  Caulfield stopped, his second Arnold Palmer cupcake halfway to his mouth, and stared at Gigi. She froze under his gaze, suddenly worried she’d said the wrong thing. It was Raewyn, in A Murder of Crows, right? Yes, she was sure of it. She knew his books like the back of her hand. That particular story was toward the bottom of the list when she ranked his catalog, but it had still been written by him, which meant it was better than most other books out there. At least in her opinion.

  “Well, color me impressed. This beauty knows her books.”

  “I told you she was a fan,” Holden said. Gigi couldn’t help but feel a bit shy as Holden shared this fact. Caulfield Montgomery probably met fans everywhere he went. He didn’t need to be bombarded with yet another one in his own living room on Christmas Eve.

  “No, you told me she had read my stuff. You didn’t tell me she could quote my own work back to me. Tell me darlin’, which one is your favorite?”

  “Oh, hands down At Midnight. I have lost count how many times I’ve read it. And each time, even though I know it’s coming, I feel betrayed by Cretia. Ellis trusted her so blindly, and in the end, she was just a pawn in Cretia’s game.” She felt as though she were rambling and hoped to God that the words coming out of her mouth made sense. Holden reached over and took her hand, giving it a light squeeze. The contact felt good, natural, helping ease some of the anxiety rushing through her. Having him close like this made the moment feel as if she were a part of this family, and sitting adjacent to her favorite author was a regular occurrence.

  Caulfield threw his hands up in the air, like he was signifying that there was nothing left to say after that statement. “Young lady has excellent taste in books, I vote we keep her! Now, would you like to know which scene in At Midnight was inspired by this one right here?” he asked with a nod toward Holden.

  “Oh no! I draw the line at that story!” Holden said as his father burst into another fit of laughter.

  “Is there a Holden anecdote in every book?”

  “Sure is! Well, I take that back, he’s not in Convocation of Eagles, simply because he wasn’t born yet. But do you remember the café scene in On Parade? The baby boy that the waitress kept calling a girl? That was him.”

  “So what in At Midnight is Holden?” Gigi asked, her curiosity gnawing at her.

  “Don’t you dare!” Holden said sternly, pointing to his godfather.

  “Oh honey, just tell her. It’s not that bad,” Catherine said.

  Gigi looked at Holden, who was simply shaking his head in disbelief. She loved seeing this side of him—so at ease and so full of life. His family certainly brought out the best in him.

  “Fine, but I’m telling the story!” h
e said. Caulfield motioned for him to continue, and Holden sucked in a long, deep breath, taking his time to exhale. “So, you know the scene where Godwin asks Xander for a big Band-Aid? Well, I might have had a similar experience.”

  “Hold on…you…” Gigi stumbled on the words, trying to wrap her mind around what the always sexy, uber broody Holden was trying to tell her. “You nicked yourself manscaping?”

  Holden groaned, launching himself against the back of the couch, head thrown back as if he were trying to avoid looking at her. She squeezed his hand, just as he had done for her a moment ago. She wanted to remind him they were in this together, and that she would be here for him no matter what. Even if she did learn all his embarrassing secrets in one sitting. Goodness knows she had plenty of her own.

  “He’s leaving out the good bits!” Caulfield cackled. “He was a good bit younger than I made Godwin—so twelve, thirteen, somewhere in that range—and he’d read an article in Playboy or something that girls liked that kind of thing. Not that I have any idea who he thought was going to be seeing it. So he was upstairs in the bathroom, trying to give the boys a haircut, and sliced himself open! He hollered bloody murder, which I don’t blame him for, because that had to have hurt. So Heath and I go running up there, to find him standing in the bathroom, cupping his balls, hands all bloody.”

  “I freaked out, thinking something was really wrong,” Heath said, picking up where his best friend left off. “And called for Catherine to call 911. So she comes rushing upstairs to ask why, sees the scene, and about faints. That’s when Holden decided to fess up about what he was up to and where all the blood came from.”

  “I quietly excused myself at that point,” Catherine added in. “Best let the men handle that.”

  “This was not a story I ever intended for you to hear,” Holden murmured, still staring at the ceiling.

  “Would you feel better if I shared something?” Gigi asked, wanting to take some of the pressure off Holden. As much as she was enjoying hearing these stories about him, she wanted this occasion to be a good one for him too. For him to look back on this Christmas and smile. This was already the best one of her life, and she knew it was only getting started.