by Claire Adams
“Nina!” I warned.
“Fine, I’ll be nice, but between you and Mom this holiday seriously blows,” she said, angrily storming up the walk into the house.
I followed her inside and watched as she grudgingly welcomed Emily before heading into the kitchen to find her grandmother. I shrugged at Emily, who smiled and shrugged back.
Chapter Sixteen
Emily
I watched as Nina hugged her uncle and called out to her grandmother as she entered the kitchen. Blake shrugged at me, and I smiled and shrugged back. I knew it couldn’t be easy for a teenager to welcome her teacher into her home, on a holiday, nonetheless, and I was more than well aware that I was a complete stranger to the Gaston family.
“Is that my granddaughter I hear stomping through my kitchen?” Blake’s father called, as he emerged from the basement.
“Gramps, I don’t stomp!” Nina laughed, as she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. “Merry Christmas, Gramps!”
“Merry Christmas, Punkin Pie!” her grandfather said, as he hugged her tightly. When Nina let go and stepped back, he looked over her shoulder and caught sight of me. “Well, who do we have here?”
“Dad, this is Emily Fowler,” Blake said, stepping closer to me as his father walked across the room. “Emily, this is my father, Alan Gaston.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Gaston,” I said, offering my hand.
“It’s Dr. Gaston,” Nina muttered, as she shot me a look that bordered on nasty.
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous; degrees are degrees,” Blake’s father said, shaking my hand as he leaned forward and added, “Thermometers have degrees, and you know where we stick those. Please, call me Alan.”
“Merry Christmas, Alan,” I said, looking nervously at Blake, who smiled and nodded reassuringly. I smiled back and said, “Thank you for letting me join you for dinner.”
“It’s our pleasure, Emily,” Alan said, as Brian emerged from the kitchen carrying several cold bottles of beer. He gave one to his father and offered the others to Blake and I. “What brings you to our table this evening? Were you not able to make it home to your family today?”
I inhaled sharply and tried to think of something to say that wouldn’t make everyone in the room look at me with pity. The words caught in my throat, and I felt the lump rising as tears began to well up.
“Emily lost her house in a fire this morning, Dad,” Blake quickly offered. “I thought she’d be better off having dinner with us than hanging out in a hotel room alone today.”
“Oh my goodness, what a terrible thing to have happen on Christmas day!” Alan exclaimed. “I’m glad my son brought you here. We’ll feed you well!”
“Thank you,” I nodded. I swallowed hard and then said, “It’s wonderful to be around such a warm and happy family today. It makes it feel a little more festive.”
“Dinner is served!” Ellie cheerfully announced, as she placed a steaming bowl of mashed potatoes on the table before returning to get the turkey.
I hung back as the family headed to the table until Blake smiled and gestured for me to take the chair next to him. Nina sat across the table from me and pointedly avoided looking at me as everyone took their seats. Alan reached out and took his sons’ hands, and soon we were all holding hands as Alan said a blessing.
“We’re so happy that we could have our whole family here for this wonderful celebration and this delicious meal,” he began. Blake’s hand was warm in mine, and I felt a tingle of electricity pass between us. I knew he felt it too when he squeezed my hand as his father continued, “We’re thankful that Emily could join us today even though the reason is not cause for celebration. We’re thankful for all that we have and all that we enjoy, but mostly we’re thankful for our loving family and the opportunity to spend time together. Amen.”
“Amen,” we said in unison.
“Does anyone want to add anything else?” Alan asked, looking around the table. His eyes rested on me, and I nodded almost imperceptibly. “Emily, go ahead.”
“I just wanted to say that I’m very grateful for Blake and his crew,” I began. “They didn’t save my house, but they did save Howard, and Blake’s generosity in bringing me here to your beautiful home is something I’m truly grateful for. So, thank you.”
“We’re glad you could be here with us, dear,” Ellie said, as she squeezed my other hand and smiled warmly. I had to fight back the tears that threatened to flow yet again. Blake’s family was so kind and generous, not at all like my family, and this was not at all like holidays at my family’s house. I cringed as I thought about what my family would be doing right now, and about the stiff way they would be waiting for dinner to be served. I returned Ellie’s smile as Brian grabbed the bowl of potatoes and said, “Let’s eat! I’m starving!”
After dinner, we all helped clear the table as Ellie and Nina stored the leftovers in brightly colored Tupperware containers. Alan brushed the crumbs off the tablecloth before setting a small, rectangular box down on the table.
“All right, who is going to take on the best domino player east of the Mississippi?” he bellowed. Groaned protests came from the kitchen as I gave Alan a confused look. He leaned closer and whispered, “They’re just jealous of my natural talent and ability.”
“Talent and ability, Dad?” Blake called. “It’s more like stubborn refusal to admit that you’ve been defeated!”
“I’ve never lost!” Alan protested.
“Says who?” Ellie, Brian, and Nina called in unison.
“You are all just jealous,” he grumbled with a smile, as he began to lay out domino tiles on the table. “But seriously, who's going to play?”
“C’mon, Dad,” Blake said, peeking around the corner. “You know we’re all in and we’ll play the winner.”
“I’ll start with Emily!” Alan declared. He explained the rules to me, and by the time the rest of the family emerged from the kitchen holding pies and plates, Alan had already beaten me twice. I laughed and held up my hands as I ceded my seat to Brian, who rubbed his hands together and cackled loudly before pulling his tiles.
Nina watched me warily out of the corner of her eye at first, but as the games progressed and she saw that I had no intention of coming between her and her father, she relaxed and let down her guard a little. Alan teamed us up against Blake and Ellie, and we won the first round. Blake grinned as I high-fived my partner and did a little victory chair dance.
We were all yawning and rubbing our eyes when Blake suggested it was time to head home. I hugged his parents and thanked them for a lovely meal and their kind hospitality. Ellie hugged me a little longer and tighter before saying, “You’re welcome, dear. It was such a pleasure having you here today; I’m glad you came.”
When we got to Blake’s truck, I headed for the back, but Nina intercepted me and said, “Nah, you sit up front.” I climbed in without protest, and we rode home in a vaguely uncomfortable silence. Blake hummed along to the radio until Nina said, “Dad, please. Enough with the Christmas music.”
“It’s still Christmas day, and you know the rule, Punkin,” Blake said.
“Dad…” Nina warned. Blake stopped humming, but his smile remained.
At the house, Nina disappeared into her room before I could say anything I’d rehearsed in my head on the car ride home. I shrugged it off and waited on the couch for Blake to say goodnight to his daughter. When he appeared again, he was carrying a bottle of whiskey and two glasses.
“What on earth?” I said, laughing.
“I’ve got a liquor cabinet hidden in the back so that teenagers can’t find it,” he grinned, as he handed me a glass and poured a finger of amber liquid into it. “To Christmas.”
“To Christmas,” I said, with a wistful smile. “Thank you for making this not the worst holiday ever.”
“Your house burning down and your cat being in the hospital isn’t the worst Christmas ever?” Blake said, surprised.
“Not even close,” I repl
ied grimly. “Thank you for sharing your family with me. They’re really lovely people.”
“I think they liked you, too,” he smiled, as he clinked his glass against mine and then raised it to his lips. We sat quietly staring at the tree lights as we let the warmth of the whiskey slide down our throats. It was Blake who broke the silence. “I’m not sure how to say this, but I want to see you again. I mean, not just because we had sex earlier.”
“Shhhh,” I said, casting a nervous glance towards Nina’s room.
“What? Oh, she’s not going to get worked up about it,” he said, waving his hand as if to dismiss the thought.
“Are you kidding me?” I replied, with a surprised look. “She’s pissed as hell that you brought her History teacher to the family holiday. If she thinks we’re sleeping together, she’s going to lose it.”
“She’s not going to lose it,” Blake said, shaking his head. “Well, maybe just a little. Fine, you can sleep in my room, and I’ll take the couch tonight…but it’s really such a pity.”
His warm brown eyes followed a path from my face down my body, and I felt the familiar tingling of nerve endings that had been woken from a long slumber.
“Don’t do that!” I whispered in a scolding tone. “You’re going to get us both in trouble!”
“I never thought I’d be sneaking around in my own home, hiding from my teenage daughter,” Blake whispered, as he bent to kiss me softly. When I returned the kiss, he whispered, “I always kind of thought it would be the other way around.”
Chapter Seventeen
Blake
The next morning, I woke up to the sound and smell of bacon frying and, for a moment, I panicked, thinking I was at the firehouse. I bolted up off the couch and was halfway to the bathroom when I realized where I was. I splashed some water on my face and rubbed the stubble that seemed to have appeared overnight. I looked tired as hell, but I felt oddly happy.
“Nina, what the hell are you—” I stopped short when I saw Emily standing at the stove with a towel thrown over one shoulder and her hair pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head. She was wearing the T-shirt and pair of sweats I’d given her. The shirt was knotted at her waist, and the pants were rolled down around her waist and cuffed around her ankles, and still, she swam in them. She turned toward me with a smile as she held out a cup of hot coffee.
“Good morning,” she said, as she turned back to the stove and continued frying bacon. I could see a plate of scrambled eggs sitting off to one side of the stove, and the light on in the oven gave me a preview of the huge stack of pancakes that sat warming on a plate.
“Wow, you really went all out, didn’t you?” I laughed, as I sipped from my cup.
“Well, after all you did for me yesterday, I thought this was the least I could do,” she said, turning to look at me.
“It wasn’t like it was that difficult,” I said softly, as I crossed the kitchen and quickly kissed her.
“Blake…” she warned, casting a glance toward the kitchen door.
“I know, I know,” I said, moving away. “I’m just saying…”
“I know what you’re saying,” she grinned. “And if we were alone, I’d be saying it, too.”
“Good, I’m glad I’m not alone,” I nodded.
“Alone where?” Nina said sleepily, rubbing her eyes as she tried to focus. “I smelled bacon.”
“Emily made breakfast for us,” I said, as I grabbed three plates from the cupboard and a handful of silverware from the drawer to set the table.
“There’s juice on the table or hot coffee in the pot,” Emily offered, as she pulled strips of crisp bacon out of the pan and then poured the grease into a soup can she’d found under the sink. “I thought we could eat and then, if you don’t mind, Blake, I want to go over to the house and see if there’s anything I can salvage before I pick up Howard.”
“You’re picking him up today?” I asked.
“They told me he was doing fine, and since I’m going to go stay at my friend Kendra’s house for a few weeks, I thought I’d get him acclimated as quickly as possible,” she said. I felt my stomach drop a little as the disappointment set in. I’d thought Emily would stay with me while she waited for the insurance to fork up the money she’d need to find a new place. I knew it was crazy, but after the wild roll in the hay yesterday, I had thought we might be on to something.
“Sure, no problem,” I nodded, without giving anything away. “We’ll go after breakfast. You want to come with us, Nina?”
One look from my teenage daughter told me the answer to that question, so I dropped it and tried to enjoy a quiet breakfast. The bacon was just the way I liked it, and Nina ate more than her fair share, laughing when I waged a fake protest over the last slice. Once we’d cleared the table and done the dishes, Emily and I headed over to the burned house to see what we could get out of it.
When we pulled up, I heard Emily inhale sharply. The house was a blackened shell of a building with the roof caved in and the outer walls scorched and bubbled by the heat. She covered her mouth with her hand and sat staring silently at it for a few minutes before she drew a deep breath and said, “Let’s go see what we can salvage.”
The living room and the bedroom had been almost completely destroyed, but the kitchen had managed to survive partially intact. We dug through the dust and dirt to find that Howard’s food and water bowl had miraculously made it through unscathed. His food had been stored in a bin in the closet and that, too, had survived. We gathered up a few things in trash bags, and I heard Emily sigh as she looked over the ruined remains of the living room.
“There’s nothing there worth trying to salvage,” she said, kicking a scorched couch cushion and sighing loudly again. I drove Emily to the clinic where she picked up Howard, who was only slightly disgruntled about having to have spent a night away from his person, but he quickly forgave Emily when she gathered him in her arms and held him to her chest. We stopped and picked up a few groceries and a litter box for Howard, and by the time we pulled up in front of Kendra’s house, he was purring contentedly as he pushed on Emily’s arm.
I unloaded the truck as Emily unlocked the door and turned on lights. I brought her meager belongings into the house and looked around. It was a clean but Spartan house.
“She’s out of town visiting her parents; I’m not sure when she’s coming back,” Emily said, without prompting. “I’ll just stay here until I get the insurance settled and find a new place to live.”
“Sounds good to me,” I nodded. “Meanwhile, I’d like to take you out on a real date. Maybe Wednesday?”
“I’d like that,” she smiled.
“Good, then I’ll pick you up at 7,” I said, as I kissed her and then turned to go.
“Thank you, Blake,” she said quietly. “It’s been a horrible couple of days, but you made it all much better.”
“I’m glad I could help,” I said, tipping my imaginary hat. “I’ll see you Wednesday.”
I stopped and picked up burgers for Nina and I before I returned home. When I got there, she was frantically texting with someone obviously more important than I was, so I held up the bag containing dinner and said, “Might want to come and get it while it’s hot!”
Nina set her phone down and followed me into the kitchen as I divvied up the burgers and fries and she grabbed the condiments and napkins.
“So, what’s going on with you two?” she blurted out. “And don’t lie to me; there’s obviously something going on.”
“I wouldn’t dream of lying to you, darling daughter,” I said, imitating her dramatic way of answering me when I dug into her personal life.
“Dad!” she protested. “I’m serious! What’s going on with you and Ms. Fowler?”
“I want to date her,” I said plainly. “So, I’m going to take her out to dinner on Wednesday.”
“This is so gross,” Nina said, shaking her head. “I can’t believe you’re going to date my teacher!”
“Who else am
I going to date, Nina?” I said. “And besides, you are the one who's been pushing me to get out there and mingle with the singles.”
“Yeah, but not my teachers,” she protested, before taking a huge bite of her burger.
“Then I can’t win,” I said exasperatedly. “I give up. You want me to call and cancel?”
“Nooooooo,” Nina said with a full mouth.
“Then what do you want me to do?”
“Just don’t be so obvious about it, Dad,” she grinned, as she grabbed fries off of my plate and popped them into her mouth. “Seriously. It’s gross.”
“Fine, I will conduct my business with all the secrecy of a CIA black-op,” I said solemnly.
“Oh God, don’t be so dramatic, Dad,” she said, rolling her eyes even more dramatically. “I’m just saying that you should keep it on the DL until you know if you two actually like each other or not.”
“The DL?”
“Oh my God, Dad! The DL is the down low! I’ve told you that a million times,” she exhaled exasperatedly. “What is wrong with you?”
“Dunno, maybe I’m in love,” I said, shrugging. “Or maybe I’m starving because my daughter is eating all of my food!”
Nina burst into giggles, and we spent the rest of our dinner hour laughing as we ate. As I got ready for bed later that night, I smiled as I realized that my date with Emily was the first thing I’d looked forward to in a long time.
Chapter Eighteen
Emily
I quickly settled in at KO’s. She might otherwise live a Spartan life, but KO had a bathroom that rivaled any spa in the state. I poured a glass of wine as the tub filled with hot water. I dropped in a bath bomb and watched it fizzle on the bottom of the tub before I climbed in and sunk down into the steaming water. I sighed as I leaned back and let the day’s events turn over in my mind.
In the span of only one day, I’d watched my house burn down, feared that I’d lose my feline companion, been rescued by Blake Gaston, had some amazing sex with him, and spent the day with his entire family. I reached over, grabbed the wine glass, and sipped the burgundy liquid as I tried to process it all. I quickly gave up and sank back, enjoying the combination of the wine and warm water.