Romancing the Holidays: Twelve Christmas Romances - Benefits Breast Cancer Research

by Crista McHugh

  “I see you decided to escape the heat as well,” Angel Haven said to me as she exited the store shortly after I did.

  “It has to be ninety degrees in there,” I said to my pregnant friend after hugging her hello.

  “I really don’t know why they have the heat up so high. It seems like a total waste of energy, for one thing. For another, I’m going to bet we aren’t the only ones to decide to leave before we were done shopping. I bet the store is actually losing a lot of money.”

  I glanced toward the front door, where a Salvation Army volunteer was chatting with two women who also were complaining about the heat. It seemed Angel had a point. There most likely were patrons who would have shopped longer if the temperature inside the store had been more agreeable.

  “I noticed Mrs. Jasper is working the counter,” I commented. “It seems that poor old dear is cold even when it’s ninety degrees. Chances are she’s the one who set the thermostat. Is Jesse still inside?”

  “Yeah, he’s paying for the stuff we picked out. I had no idea how much it was going to cost to outfit a baby. All I can say is that I’m so grateful to you for convincing Mr. Pottage to change his mind about tearing down the apartment building. You’re a true hero. The building is old and run down, but it’s home.” Angel rubbed her big belly in a circular motion.

  “I haven’t convinced him yet,” I clarified. “I’m trying, but it’s still a long shot.”

  Angel pushed her hands into her back. “I know it’s not a done deal,” Angel said, “but you’re so good at persuading people to do stuff. I’m sure you’ll figure out a way. I don’t know what we’re going to do if we have to move. Where will we go? Before you got the old man to delay the evictions I was seriously beginning to fear I was going to have to have my baby in someone’s barn, just like in the Christmas story.”

  I took Angel’s arm and moved her to the side as two boys on bikes went barreling down the sidewalk. “I can’t promise what Mr. Pottage will do in the long run, but I’ll try my very hardest to convince him to find a solution that will allow the tenants to stay. I’m working on a project for him that seems to be going nowhere, so prayers would be appreciated.”

  “You’ve got it.” Angel hugged me again. “And thank you. I know you’ll try your hardest.”

  Suddenly, I felt burdened with a huge responsibility. Twelve families were counting on me to do the impossible. Oh, no, I hadn’t bitten off more than I could chew. I was running out of leads, but I still had a few people to talk to, so maybe something would pop soon.

  “I ran into Destiny at the doctor’s office yesterday.” Angel changed the subject. She’d probably noticed the panic on my face. “Did you know we’re due on the same date?”

  “No, I didn’t realize.”

  “Chances are we won’t actually deliver on the same day, but I thought it was cool that the possibility existed. She’s having a boy and I’m having a girl. Maybe they’ll share the hospital nursery, grow up friends, fall in love, and have babies of their own.”

  I laughed. “Boy, you like to jump ahead.”

  Angel smiled. “Everyone loves a love story.”

  I almost mentioned that Destiny was most likely going to give her baby up for adoption, but I wasn’t sure she wanted anyone to know what she was considering.

  “Even their names go together,” Angel added.

  “Names?”

  “I’m naming my baby Jordan and she’s naming hers James. James and Jordan; how cute is that?”

  I hadn’t been aware that Destiny had picked out a name. Maybe she was leaning toward keeping the baby after all. She certainly had been putting off signing the paperwork the adoption agency had given her.

  “We’re all set,” Cody said as he came out of the store with Jesse beside him.

  “It was good talking to you.” I hugged Angel one last time, then looked at Jesse. “Text me when the baby comes.”

  “I will. It won’t be long now.”

  Jesse put his arm around his wife and they walked away together. They looked so happy. If it were me having a baby I’d probably be more terrified than excited.

  “I can’t believe Angel is going to be a mother,” I commented. “She’s the same age I am.”

  “Twenty-six isn’t really all that young to have a baby,” Cody pointed out.

  “Yeah, I guess not. It just seems so strange that the girls I grew up with are all getting married and having families. Tara and I are the last two in the group we hung out with in high school who are still single and childless.”

  “I guess it must be different for guys. Of the ten or so guys Danny and I hung out with the most in school only one is married and we’re two years older than you.”

  I frowned. “I guess you have a point. Angel is twenty-six, but Jesse is thirty-two, and my friend Reina just married a man who was thirty-five last summer.”

  “Does it bother you?” Cody asked.

  “Does what bother me?”

  “That all your friends are getting married.”

  I thought about it. “No, not really. I think Tara is starting to think about having a family, but I feel like I’m still trying to figure out my life. I know I’ll want a family one day, but at this point I’m happy with the way things are.” I looked at Cody. “How about you? Is your biological clock ticking?” I teased.

  Cody looked me in the eye. “Maybe a little.”

  Maybe a little? What did he mean by that? Was Cody ready to settle down and have babies? I knew I wasn’t, so I decided I wasn’t going to ask a question I might not want to hear the answer to.

  “I feel a lot better now that I’m out of that oven of a store,” I said as we walked toward the car. “I think what I have on will be fine for dinner. Maybe after we eat we can go up to Lookout Point to see the lights.”

  “That sounds nice. One of my fondest memories is of the Christmas when I was sixteen and you were fourteen and you had just had a huge fight with Siobhan, so I took you up to the Lookout in my dad’s car.”

  I stopped walking and turned to look at Cody. “Really?”

  “Yeah. It was my one big chance to play the knight in shining armor. You came to my house looking for Danny but he’d already left, so I took you up to look at the lights and we talked for hours.”

  I remembered every minute of that magical night, but I’d had no idea Cody remembered it too. We hadn’t been dating and he certainly wasn’t interested in me in a romantic way then. I’m sure all I was to him at that point was his best friend’s pesky little sister.

  “You really did help me put things in perspective that night. I went home and made up with Siobhan and we had a wonderful Christmas. I’m pretty sure I never even thanked you.”

  “You can thank me later tonight.” Cody winked.

  I smiled. “I might just do that.”

  I took Cody’s hand as we continued down the street. I had always enjoyed coming downtown with my parents when I was a child to look at all the beautifully decorated windows. In a way, walking along Main Street so close to Christmas made me feel like a kid again.

  I glanced at Cody. He looked so handsome in his forest green sweater. His thick dark hair was just a little long, causing it to brush his crew-neck collar. He smiled at me and suddenly I was no longer feeling like a kid. Maybe we should just skip dinner. Pick up takeout. Go back to my place so I could make good on my promise to thank him for that long-ago Christmas.

  “Remind me to pick up a gift for Mr. Parsons while we are out,” Cody asked, interrupting my daydream. “I thought I’d give it to him on Christmas Eve before everyone shows up for our dinner.”

  “By the way, I hope you don’t mind, but I decided to invite Maggie and Marley to our Christmas Eve dinner. I realize we’ll see them both on Christmas, but they didn’t have any other plans for Christmas Eve and I thought they’d fit right in.”

  “That’s fine,” Cody answered. “I invited Father Kilian and Sister Mary as well. He has Mass at five, but he said he should
be able to make it by seven, so I thought we’d just serve appetizers and then eat the main meal when he arrives.”

  “That sounds nice,” I said as I mentally adjusted my menu to include appetizers and accommodate two more diners. “Maybe we should invite Pete Baxter. He’s usually alone for the holiday and that would make an even dozen.”

  Pete Baxter was the local postmaster.

  “That’s a good idea,” Cody agreed.

  When we got to the car, Cody put the bags in the trunk while I checked my texts. There was one from Tara, asking me to call her. She ended the text in 911, so I did just that.

  “What’s up?” I asked when Tara answered on the first ring.

  “It’s Destiny. She’s in the hospital. She slipped on the ice and fell.”

  “Oh, God. Is she okay?”

  “She seems fine.”

  “And the baby?”

  “They’re doing some tests. Destiny is hysterical. I could really use some backup. I wanted to call her mom, but she refused to let me.”

  “Cody and I are on our way.” I turned to him as I ended the call. “Destiny is in the hospital. We need to go there now.”

  Cody turned the key in the ignition. “Is she okay?” he asked as he pulled out into traffic.

  “I don’t know. I hope so.”

  Cody and I rode in silence as we made our way to the hospital. I was saying prayers the whole way and I was willing to bet Cody was doing the same.

  “How is she?” I asked as soon as I rushed through the ER entrance to find Tara pacing in the waiting area. Cody had gone to find a parking space.

  “I’m not sure. When we first arrived Destiny was completely hysterical. They had to give her something to calm her down. The doctor is in with her now.”

  I hugged Tara. I could see that she was a bundle of nerves.

  “The whole time we were driving over here she kept yelling at me not to let her baby die. I’m not sure how I held it together enough to get her here, but now that she’s in the doctor’s capable hands I feel like I might pass out. Or throw up. Or both.”

  “Let’s sit down.” I took Tara’s arm and led her to a sofa. “Cody, can you find us some water?” I asked as soon as he came in.

  Tara began to cry. “She was having sharp pains in her abdomen. It totally freaked her out. It totally freaked me out.”

  I took a deep breath and squeezed Tara’s hand. I prayed that both Destiny and her baby would be okay. I felt so helpless and I knew Tara did too.

  “Maybe we should call her mom,” I suggested.

  “She said not to. I told you, I wanted to, but she made me promise.”

  “She’s a minor,” I pointed out.

  “Yeah, I know. She told the doctor she was eighteen. He’s new and doesn’t know her, and there was so much confusion when we came in that he didn’t argue, but eventually things are going to calm down and they’ll ask us to fill out additional paperwork. I guess we should call her mother.”

  “I’ll do it,” I volunteered. “That way you’ve kept your promise. You just sit here and take some deep breaths until the dizziness passes.”

  I watched the nurse behind the counter as she answered her phone and then hurried through the double doors. I had a feeling it was going to be a long night.

  Chapter 11

  Sunday, December 20

  “My mom said Destiny is going to have her baby this week,” Serenity Paulson informed me as we prepared for the Sunday morning service.

  “Yes, I know. Are you excited?”

  “Very. I’m going to be an aunt. Mom said I can hold Baby James when he’s born. I hope he has dark hair like me.”

  It had been a tense night on Friday, but after all the tests were completed it was determined the baby was fine, although they’d ordered complete bedrest for Destiny until the baby was born. My sister Cassidy was out of school on Christmas break, so she’d volunteered to stay with Destiny while Tara was at work. The doctors planned to induce labor at the end of the week if she didn’t deliver naturally by that time.

  “I bet he’ll be a beautiful baby whatever the color of his hair.”

  “Maybe. Destiny wants him to have dark hair too. She said his daddy’s hair was blond and she doesn’t want the baby to look anything like that jerk.”

  “She told you that?”

  “No. She was talking to Jake and I overheard them. I think Destiny feels bad that James’s dad doesn’t want him.”

  “Yes,” I agreed, “I’m sure it’s a very emotional situation for her. Why don’t you go see if Trinity needs help with her robe?”

  I wasn’t certain discussing Destiny’s love life was appropriate for the choir room.

  “Did you learn all the lines for your solo?” I asked Holly.

  “Yes. My mom said it sounds real nice.”

  “I’m sure it does. You have a beautiful voice.”

  “Ms. Cait,” Robby interrupted, “my robe won’t zip. I think it’s broken.”

  I joined the six-year-old. “Let me have a look.”

  The St. Patrick’s children’s choir was due to go on in less than five minutes. I really didn’t have time for broken zippers. Luckily, Robby had just caught some of the fabric in the zipper when he’d put the robe on and I only needed to work it loose.

  “I talked to Santa last night at the church dinner,” Ricky said as I worked on Robby’s robe. “I told him about the shoes and socks and he said he’d see what he could do.”

  “That’s great,” I responded. I’d already spoken to Sister Mary, who’d assured me that Santa would come through. That was one of the best things about being part of a small community; everyone looked out for everyone else.

  “I asked for blue socks to go with the blue shoes I want, but if Santa doesn’t have blue socks white will be fine. My mom says Santa has a lot of deliveries to make and we can’t be picky.”

  “Your mom is right, but I’m sure Santa will try his very best to get the socks you want,” I said.

  I stood in the middle of the room and looked around after Ricky and Robby had walked away. On the surface there appeared to be total chaos, but I could see that everyone was working toward doing what it was they needed to do.

  “Can you ask Stephanie to sing a little more quietly?” Annabelle asked as I began to pass out the hymn books. “She’s singing off key and it’s messing me up.”

  Annabelle had by far the best voice of anyone in the choir, but she also had the prickliest personality. Most of the other kids didn’t really like her, which made me feel bad for her, but I had to admit she tended to bring it on herself.

  “How about if I ask Cody to move you closer to the middle so you aren’t right next to Stephanie?” I suggested.

  “I guess that could work, though it would be better if she just moved her lips and let those of us who can actually sing do it.”

  “Stephanie has a nice voice. Besides, God loves to hear the voices of all His children praising Him with song.”

  “Maybe God is tone deaf,” Annabelle grumbled as she walked away.

  I looked around the festively decorated room. There was an energy and excitement in the air as the kids lined up in preparation for their journey down the hall and into the main part of the church, where Mass was being held. We planned to perform Christmas carols in place of the usual hymns. I loved everything about this season, but the thing I loved most was the joy it brought to the people around me.

  “Are we ready?” Cody asked.

  “Ready,” all the kids responded.

  “Remember, we’re going to segue directly into the second song from the first without a break. Can everyone remember that?”

  “Yes, Mr. Cody,” everyone said.

  “Okay. Everyone smile,” Cody instructed as he led the group out the door.

  I took up the rear to make certain everyone, including Robby, would behave themselves. I was proud of the kids. They’d worked hard and took their role in the choir very seriously. I couldn’t help but predi
ct that each and every one of them was going to grow up to be an awesome adult.

  * * * * *

  After church Cody and I went to my mom’s for our weekly family dinner. Ever since I was a little girl, dinner on Sunday afternoons was mandatory for the entire Hart clan. As a teenager I wasn’t fond of the time away from my friends, but as an adult I wouldn’t trade the weekly event for anything.

  “What time can you be here on Christmas?” my mom asked the minute I entered the kitchen.

  “What time would you like me to be here?”

  “Early. Maybe eight. I thought we could all have brunch before we opened presents. I’m planning on serving dinner at around three, so I figured it would be best to have brunch early in the morning.”

  “That sounds fine to me.”

  “And Cody?”

  “I’m sure it will be fine with him as well. Have you checked with Danny? If anyone’s going to be late it will be him.”

  “He’s going to spend the night here. Siobhan told me eight is fine with her and Finn. I’ll check with Maggie when she arrives, but she’s usually an early riser.”

  “Can I bring Max?”

  Mom hesitated.

  “It’s Christmas, and I’ll be out for a good part of the day.”

  “Oh, all right, you can bring the dog.”

  My mom wasn’t really an animal person. I’d never had a pet of my own until after I’d moved out of the house and into the cabin. Now I couldn’t imagine my life without one.

  “Caitlin, can you set the table?” Mom asked after delegating other chores to other members of the family.

  “How many are we having?” I asked.

  “Fourteen. I invited Father Kilian and Sister Mary to join the family.”

  “Okay, I’m on it.”

  I assumed the other twelve consisted of Cody and me, Aiden and his girlfriend, Danny and Tara, Siobhan and Finn, Cassie and Mom, and Maggie and Marley. Up until a few days ago Cassie’s boyfriend would have attended as well, but I’d heard the pair had broken up, which I assumed explained Cassie’s sour mood.

  “I’m surprised Tara is here,” Siobhan said as she pitched in to help me set the table. “I figured she’d be watching over Destiny.”