Winter Hearts

by A. E. Radley

  Mr. Ling watched him work the shell off and then nodded in approval. “Good.”

  Mimi said something in Mandarin to her father and then kissed him on the top of his head. He kept chewing, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

  Mimi leaned into my shoulder. “My father still gets self-conscious about his English even though he’s been here for forty years. I told him to relax and make friends.”

  That explained why he hadn’t said much. “Does your dad play mahjong?” I asked.

  Mimi laughed. “Are you kidding? Yes!”

  “Maybe they can get a game going. My parents belong to a group back home.”

  “No!” she said in disbelief. Then she nodded back toward the dining room table. “Brace yourself. I think it’s happening.”

  Michael and Wendy had moved to the head of the table. Michael clinked his glass with the side of a fork. “Can I get everyone to come over here for a second?”

  “Let’s switch the TV off, dad,” Mimi said gently and commandeered the remote.

  Mrs. Ling and my mother came in from the kitchen. I went and sat with my nieces; they both vied for a space on my lap. Mimi sat with her niece on the armrest of her father’s chair. All eyes were on Wendy and Michael.

  “Thank you Ma and Marion for creating this beautiful feast,” he began. “But before we dig in, I wanted to say a few words. First of all, thank you, everyone, for coming all this way to celebrate this special occasion with us. Being together for the holidays means a lot to both Wendy and me.” Michael gripped Wendy’s hands and looked down into her eyes. “Wendy and I met in a playground. She was sitting on a bench by herself while I sat on another just a few feet away. Our girls had already met each other and were digging in the sandbox, playing like sisters.”

  “Jenny is our little sister,” my niece said loudly.

  “Yeah, she’s the baby,” said her twin.

  Jenny’s little face glowed with delight.

  “That was a very special day for me,” Michael continued. “I knew the moment I saw Wendy that she was someone I had to talk to. I was lucky because it turned out that Wendy had the same feeling about me. It hasn’t been that long, but both of us know that the decision to join our families is the right one. I’m proud to announce our engagement, and our plan to be married next summer.”

  They didn’t seem surprised, but my mother and father both hugged Wendy and then congratulated Michael with warm smiles and handshakes. The three little girls began to dance around the room like fairies. Mimi and I went up in turns and congratulated them, but Mr. and Mrs. Ling were quiet as they both eyed each other from across the room.

  “So, everyone, please, grab a plate and eat,” Michael said.

  After helping my nieces choose the food they liked, I filled a plate for myself and then went to thank the chef. “Thank you, Mrs. Ling. This looks incredible.”

  “You’re welcome. The wok works perfectly,” she said. “Good as new.”

  “Do you have a favorite dish here?”

  “I enjoy hot pot,” she said and then pointed to the platter of tofu, mushrooms, mixed vegetables, and greens. “But for me, this one is comfort food.”

  “I can’t wait to try it,” I said.

  “Tell me what you think,” she said and smiled.

  I went and sat in the living room with Mimi. “So… we’re going to be in-laws.”

  Mimi smiled back at me. “At least they seem more relaxed now.”

  “I couldn’t help but notice that your parents didn’t seem that impressed with the announcement.”

  Mimi sighed. “Well… Michael’s last marriage didn’t end so well. I don’t blame him for wanting out, he just went about it the wrong way.”

  “Can I ask what happened?”

  “He was married to the daughter of a prominent businessman in the Chinese community. My brother had worked for him for years. But, I always felt like the marriage was more of a business arrangement than anything. He and his wife both strayed, but my brother was the one that got publicly called-out and then fired. His wife kicked him out, there was a custody battle. It was messy.”

  “Oh dear.”

  Mimi looked at me. “He’s not a bad person, he was just miserable for too long. He tries to do things the way he thinks my parents want him to. It makes him seem very traditional. My parents spent forty years cultivating their community in San Francisco and my brother messed it up. Another wedding isn’t going to change that, you know?”

  “Right,” I said, looking down at my plate.

  “And they already know not to expect anything like that from me.”

  “They must be proud of you otherwise; you’re a published author, a Ph.D., and a public speaker.”

  “They’re very proud, but until I’m married to someone they approve of and have his children, I’ll be incomplete.”

  “That’s a lot of pressure,” I said.

  “Only if you take it on, which I don’t. When I broke it off with Ross, they were devastated and they didn’t even like him, but they still don’t see how ridiculous that is. That’s why I’ve been thinking about moving, so we can all have some space from expectations. I have a book to finish.”

  “Where are you going to go?”

  She looked at me. “Not too far. Got any suggestions?”

  CHAPTER 6

  After the meal was done, Mimi and I banished our mothers from the kitchen so that we could take care of the clean-up. My sister and Micheal went upstairs to get the girls settled into their rooms. Our parents sat down at the dining room table for a game of mahjong. Everyone seemed happy and relaxed where they were, so when the clean-up was done, Mimi and I decided to try out the hot tub.

  We met back on the lower deck. Both of us wore the thin white robes that had come with our rooms. The air on the deck was cold but the hot tub steamed away. The colored lights around it shifted from purple to blue to red. The sound of the surf was deeply relaxing. I was full of mulled wine and an incredible feast.

  Mimi walked to the edge of the glass rail and looked out over the water. “I just love being close to the ocean like this.”

  “Me too,” I said.

  “Can you hear it from your bedroom?”

  I’d taken the smallest room with the single set of bunk beds at the back of the house, but even still I could hear the surf outside the walls. “Yep. How about you?” Mimi had been assigned the room with the double bed that was beside the upstairs bathroom. Her window overlooked the neighboring property. “I can hear it perfectly,” she replied.

  She turned and looked over at me. “Our conversation on the beach got interrupted earlier.”

  “Yes, it did,” I replied.

  Mimi smiled. “Have you thought about it at all?”

  I looked into her eyes. “I haven’t stopped thinking about it.”

  She nodded and took a step closer.

  “Mimi, have you thought that maybe we’re just supposed to be friends? Maybe us meeting on the highway and then back here is just a coincidence and it means nothing in the grand scheme of things?”

  Mimi shook her head. “Even if I believed that, we’re here, attracted to each other enough that we’re talking about it. That’s pretty big for two women that just met, don’t you think?”

  “Maybe, but it’s also Christmas and we’re with our parents and your brother and my sister and it’s got to be the most un-sexy environment ever.” I began to chuckle.

  Mimi laughed too. “I know, it’s like the most perfectly imperfect storm.”

  “Maybe we should wait on this,” I said softly.

  She looked back at me and gave me a gentle smile. “And maybe we shouldn’t wait on it.”

  “We’re going to be in-laws soon.”

  “Next summer,” Mimi sighed.

  “So then… if you and I get together and it’s not magic, it’s just going to be weird between us forever, isn’t it? Seriously, imagine this: we’re here next Christmas and it’s all…”

&nbs
p; “That wouldn’t be good,” Mimi said, frowning.

  “So we should hold off, right? Maybe the next time we see each other you won’t have the same feelings about me and you’ll be like, phew… good thing I didn’t go there!”

  “But what about you, Brooke?”

  “Well… I’m different.”

  She looked at me and laughed. “Why are you different?”

  “You know, I’ve won some and lost some. I’ll get over it.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Yeah, it’s worked before. I’m tough.”

  “You’re not even kind of tough. If you could see your eyes right now…”

  “Why? What are they doing?”

  Mimi made a face that resembled one of those cartoon kittens with the big eyes. “Someone needs to slide you under the mistletoe and kiss the puppy dog right out of you,” she said huskily. “And I know exactly who that someone is.” She took a step closer.

  “Okay wait… here?” I said, looking above to the deck that overlooked ours.

  “Yes, here,” Mimi said.

  “Someone might see us,” I said.

  “No one is going to see us. They’re all inside.”

  Suddenly, her brother’s sharp voice called out and we both jumped. “Mimi, what are you doing down there?”

  Mimi sighed and took a step back from me. “Gee, Michael, what does it look like I’m doing?”

  He gave me a sour look. “I… don’t know.”

  “We were just about to get in the hot tub. Want to join us?” She leaned her back against the railing and looked up at him.

  He didn’t respond.

  “No?” Mimi said, “then, I guess it’s just Brooke and me.” She untied her robe and then walked into the steaming water. “Holy night, this feels so good.”

  Michael scowled and then retreated into the house.

  “I swear, your brother is watching us,” I whispered.

  “It does seem that way,” Mimi muttered as she sat down in the water.

  “What about your parents?” I whispered.

  Mimi opened her eyes. “What about them?”

  “Okay, say that you and I did act on this, and it went well. Say, hypothetically, we moved forward even—maybe a month, maybe two or even six. How are they going to handle this? And how are you going to handle them?”

  She looked out over the water. “My parents and I have worked through differences of lifestyle before. I’ve always found honesty and respect to be the best approach for them. Regardless of what they might think of my actions, they’ll always appreciate that. Besides, my mom is really excited about the custom cookware you’re going to make her and that’ll buy us a little leverage.” She grinned back at me.

  “Okay, fine,” I sighed. “You seem to have all the answers. I’m…”

  Mimi was grinning at me. She cocked an eyebrow upward. “You’re…?”

  “I’m not going to fight it anymore,” I said. “It’s probably a wildly terrible idea but… let’s see how this perfectly imperfect storm plays out.”

  “Are you coming in the hot tub now?” Mimi asked.

  “Yes,” I groaned. I took off my robe, left it on the railing and waded in, choosing the bench across from Mimi in case brother Michael was spying on us again.

  “How come you’re sitting way over there?”

  “Because… spy bro,” I said, thrusting my finger toward the upper deck.

  “He’s gone now,” Mimi laughed. “Wanna hear a fantasy?”

  I knew I was going to hear it anyway. I glanced above me one more time.

  “Santa isn’t actually an old, plump, married man,” Mimi began, “but a beautiful elf.” She looked at me and then grinned.

  I held my hand about a foot above the surface of the water. “A wee elf?”

  She snorted. “No, I was thinking human size; gorgeous eyes, shiny translucent skin, that sort. Someone that knows how to forge metal.” She winked at me.

  “Go on,” I said, my interest piqued.

  “So… the elven princess magically slides down my chimney and then creeps into my bedroom.”

  “The elf is a princess?”

  Mimi made a face at me. “Yah! I’m not going to try and tell you a fantasy about a prince.”

  “Okay… so then what?”

  “So then, she stands at the foot of my bed, wearing nothing but shimmering fabric, loosely draped over her sculpted body.”

  “Wait, is this shimmering fabric… red and white?”

  “Of course, I have to know it’s Santa somehow.”

  “Are you sure this elf isn’t just a lost Canadian tourist?”

  Mimi laughed.

  “I’m sorry, you were saying?”

  “The beautiful elf slides into bed with me and, well, I’ll let you guess the rest since you’re the expert.”

  I pretended to fan myself. “Phew! You must have been extra good this year.”

  Mimi shrugged. “Maybe I was. Maybe I wasn’t.”

  “And how long have you had this fantasy?”

  “Oh… for the last four or five minutes.”

  I laughed again. “That’s some fantasy.”

  “Well, there’s been a lot of magic kicking around for the last couple of days, who knows what could happen on a night like tonight?” She gave me a salacious grin.

  This was getting very interesting.

  “And you?” she asked.

  “Me what?

  “Do you have any Christmas fantasies that you would like to share?”

  “Um…” I tried to think of something, but Christmas had never been a particularly fantasy-invoking time for me. I glanced up at the deck again. “Err…”

  She laughed. “Don’t force it.”

  “I’m sorry, I’m a little stuck on the hot elf princess climbing into bed with you. I don’t know if I can do better than that.”

  Suddenly, I heard the sliding door upstairs and then my father’s voice. His head peeked over the rail above us. “How’s the water?”

  A few minutes later, my dad and Mr. Ling were stomping down the steps in their white robes. “For crying in the soup,” Mimi muttered. Micheal’s smiling face appeared over the railing. “Thought you might like some company.”

  “Sure,” I said. “The more the merrier.”

  Mr. Ling took off his robe and began patting his chest and arms. Then he did a series of deep-knee bends. His loud orange, blue, and black flowered bathing trunks had a cruise ship insignia on them. My father watched him for a moment and then began to follow along. “Good for the circulation,” he said. Mr. Ling nodded.

  Then, there we were, sitting with our dads in the hot tub. As nice as it was to see that they were getting along, I was reminded again of how seriously un-sexy Christmas could be. Mimi hadn’t stopped chuckling to herself since they’d got in; the humor of the situation just kept on giving. After I felt sufficiently boiled, I stood up. “Well, I’m going for a cold dip in the ocean.”

  Mimi looked shocked. “You’re not seriously thinking of going in that water, are you?”

  “Why not?” my dad said, smiling up at me.

  A few minutes later, the four of us were down at the water’s edge with our robes off. “Don’t have a heart attack, dad,” Mimi said warily.

  Mr. Ling shook his head and patted his chest again. “Don’t worry about me. I’m strong.” He began to wade in and was soon up to his knees.

  “Man, it’s colder than I thought it would be,” my dad said after dipping his foot in. He looked over at me. “Remember that year we did the polar bear swim?”

  “I sure do,” I said.

  “Are you crazy?” My mother shouted behind us. We all looked back. She and Mrs. Ling were walking across the sand toward us with a stack of towels in their hands.

  “Yes, they are,” Mimi called back to her.

  “Well, if you’re going to do it, don’t draw it out,” mom called back.

  I looked at Mimi and then at our dads. “Are we doing this?” />
  My dad and Mr. Ling nodded. Mimi began to whimper. “Okay.”

  I held up my hand. “One, two, three…” and the next thing I knew, I was diving head first into the frigid water.

  I heard Mimi’s howls when I surfaced. Our mothers were at the water’s edge, laughing. Mr. Ling, my dad, and Mimi were all trying to catch their breath. Everyone had a huge smile on their face.

  “It’s warm. You should come in,” Mr. Ling called to his wife and then winked at his daughter.

  “No way. I’m staying right here,” his wife said back to him.

  We splashed around for a few more seconds before the water temperature started to feel a little less icy. “This is actually quite nice,” Mimi said, shivering a little. “But I don’t think I’ll do it again.”

  “I’m ready to get back in the hot tub,” my dad announced and ran out to get his towel. Mr. Ling followed and so did Mimi and I. Our mothers joined us for a soak in the hot tub after. Then, the three girls came out onto the upper deck to say goodnight. The minute they saw us all in there, they begged and begged to come in too.

  “Maybe it will help them sleep,” Mimi suggested since we all knew they wouldn’t otherwise. Mimi and I got out to make room for the little ones.

  “Maybe auntie Mimi will read you one last bedtime story,” Michael suggested to his daughter.

  “Of course, I will,” Mimi replied.

  “Can you come too, Auntie Brooke?” My nieces asked.

  A half hour later, with the three girls dried off and dressed in their Christmas pajamas, Mimi and I sat on their little beds and read them the Night Before Christmas.

  “What’s a sash?” my niece asked.

  “It’s the part of the window that opens,” I replied.

  “Why is that man wearing a cap to bed?”

  “Because old houses were very cold,” Mimi replied.

  “Can I sleep with you, Auntie Mimi,” her niece asked.

  “Sure you can,” Michael said from the doorway.

  Mimi shot him a look before smiling down at the little girl. “Sure. There’s lots of room.” That set off a chain reaction. Soon, my nieces were begging to sleep with me. I had no choice but to say yes, though I wasn’t exactly sure how it would work with two single bunk beds. While Mimi finished off the story with the girls, my sister and I went to work on the bed layout in my room.