Ever After (The Christmas Cottage - Book 2)

by Samantha Chase

  So many times over the course of the evening he’d look over at Ava as she held the baby and just felt his gut clench. It was very easy for him to temporarily forget that they weren’t married and that it wasn’t their child she was holding. It fit; it worked. They worked well together tonight with Olivia. True, it was only for a few short hours but for two people who had never spent time together with a child, they honestly and truly survived it and had fun doing it.

  At one point when Olivia had been particularly upset, the look of pure devastation on Ava’s face broke his heart. He knew that she was hurting for her niece and would do anything to make her feel better. How much more would she be willing to do for a child of her own? Their own?

  He wrapped an arm around her a little tighter and sighed with contentment. Soon. They would talk about their future soon. He could tell that Ava was feeling the same things he was this night and although he would have loved to talk about it more with her, he knew that tonight wasn’t the right night. She was focused on caring for the baby and not letting Lacey and Ean down. She needed to put all of her energy into being the caretaker this evening and he wasn’t so selfish that he would try and distract her from her responsibility.

  Soon, though, he thought. For the first time in his life Brian was confident in what he wanted and who he wanted. He wanted a future with Ava and he wanted that future to start as soon as possible.

  Chapter Nine

  Olivia had only woken up once in the night and both Ava and Brian had gotten up to tend to her together. While Ava had changed her and soothed her, Brian had gone and heated up a bottle for her. Ava sat in the rocking chair in the nursery while Brian went and made himself a middle- of-the-night snack and was back just as Ava was placing the baby back in the crib. All in all, it was pretty uneventful and before they knew it they were all going back to sleep.

  When the alarm went off at seven, Ava felt that she had gotten a pretty decent night’s sleep. She took a quick shower while Olivia was still sleeping and as she got out and got herself ready for the day, Brian headed into the bathroom to take his turn showering.

  Lacey had texted that they were on the road at seven-thirty and somewhere near eight, Olivia let out her first sleepy cry. Ava tended to her niece and by the time she had her cleaned up and dressed, Brian was emerging from the guest room looking too delicious for words and as if he was ready to tackle the day.

  “I’m going to head out in a few minutes and go back to my place and pack up for the weekend and I’ll meet you back here. What time did Lacey and Ean say they’d be back?”

  “Sometime around ten,” she replied. “You don’t have to come back here if you don’t want to; we can just meet up at my place at noon. Most of my stuff is packed up so really, we’ll just need to grab my bags and go.”

  “What time is the interview?”

  “Four so we’ll really be under a time crunch.”

  “No worries; if you dress for the interview, we can go directly there and I’ll hang out while you’re in your meeting and then we’ll head to your parent’s place. What do you think?” He took Olivia from Ava’s arms as they prepared to head down the stairs.

  “That works for me. So my place? Noon?”

  “I think I’m still going to head back here; I want to just run a few things by Ean and if worse comes to worse, you can leave and I’ll finish up with your brother and still be to you in time to leave.” He settled Olivia into her swing and set it in motion before turning back to Ava.

  “You’re a natural with her you know,” Ava said lightly.

  “So are you,” he replied evenly. “We make a good team.” He wanted to say something so badly about how good they would be with their own kids but didn’t want to take a chance of seeming pushy, especially if she wasn’t on the same page as him.

  “Well, she’s my niece and so we’ve got a bit of a connection. But you? Most guys aren’t so at ease around babies. Do you have any nieces or nephews?” It hit Ava just then how little she knew about his family.

  “Unfortunately, no. I’m an only child so the only kids I get to be around belong to friends.”

  “Well, you are definitely a natural with them. Olivia is completely smitten with you.” As if to prove her aunt’s point, when Brian turned to look down at her, Olivia seemed to blow raspberries at him and then giggled. “See? She’s flirting with you.”

  Brian turned and wrapped Ava in his arms and kissed her. “She’s a little young for me and besides, the only woman I want flirting with me is her smoking hot aunt.”

  “Smoking hot, huh? I think I like that title.”

  “I’ll have the t-shirt made,” he joked and released her. “Let me head out of here before it gets too late. I’ll be back in about an hour and a half. Don’t do anything to traumatize Olivia,” he teased and headed for the door.

  “Not funny,” she called after him but she was grinning from ear to ear. Looking down at Olivia, she continued to smile. “Okay, little miss, let’s get you fed and ready to see your mommy and daddy.” With that she lifted her up and together they went to the kitchen in search of their breakfast.

  ****

  Lacey came barreling through the door at exactly ten o’clock. She looked more relaxed than she had the previous morning but had the harried look of a mother who had missed her baby. “Is she awake? Did she go down for a nap yet?”

  “Please, like I would put her down before you got home,” Ava said with an eye roll. “We were just reading about bunnies and although I for one am anxious to hear how the story ends, I think Olivia wouldn’t mind if we waited until next time.”

  Lacey scooped the child from Ava’s arms and held her tight. “Oh, I cannot believe how much I missed her,” she said, her voice catching. “We thought that it would be no big deal to be away for one night but I have to tell you, it was like a giant part of me was missing! I just can’t believe how hard it was.”

  “Well, technically, she is a part of you,” Ava observed. “It’s only natural that you’d miss her.” She stopped speaking for a moment to watch Olivia place her tiny hands on Lacey’s face and thought how much she would love to have a child of her own do that to her. Clearing her throat, she spoke again. “So, how did the meeting go?”

  Sitting down on the floor and not taking her eyes from her daughter, Lacey replied. “It all went very well. They’re an architectural firm moving their operations here to Raleigh and they wanted to get started on making plans for their new offices. The building’s not even done yet, but it’s never too soon to start.”

  “Couldn’t your firm send somebody else for the preliminaries? I mean, why interrupt your maternity leave for this?”

  Lacey finally looked at Ava. “Actually, this is my first step in branching out on my own.”

  Ava stared at her for a moment in confusion. “Wait, what? What do you mean branching out on your own? Aren’t you going back to work?”

  “Oh, I am; I’m just going to be doing it for myself now. I’m starting my own company.”

  “When did this happen? Why is this the first time I’m hearing about this?” Ava actually cringed at her accusatory tone, but not that long ago they had promised each other to not hide what was going on in their lives and here they were, outing something big.

  “Okay, okay, I know I should have said something sooner but it wasn’t until I left that meeting yesterday that I knew for sure. Ean’s been encouraging me to go out on my own so that I could be home with Olivia more. I wasn’t sure if I was ready for such a big step and that’s why yesterday was such a big deal. I figured if I could handle this presentation and feel that it was a project that I could manage, then I’d be ready to leave the security of the firm I’ve been with.”

  “So this extension on the house is going to also include work space for you, right? That was the new stuff that Ean added to the plans but Brian didn’t share with me?”

  “We just didn’t want to put it out there in case I chickened out. Don’t be mad at me, Ava
,” Lacey sighed. “I didn’t mean for it to be some big secret, it was just something I had to figure out for myself.”

  “Okay, whatever,” Ava said as she rose from the sofa. “Look, I need to get home and finish packing for the weekend. I’ve got that interview at four and…”

  “Is this a position that you’re really interested in?” Lacey asked, coming to her feet as well.

  “It’s alright, I guess. Nothing has wowed me so far. This one was really just an excuse to get up to the cottage for the weekend with Brian.” She looked up as Ean walked into the room and came over to take Olivia into his arms and kiss her hello. The scene was beyond sweet and she felt like an intruder watching it all. “I better get going.”

  Ean turned and looked at her. “Big interview today, huh?”

  “Could be, who knows?” she replied lightly.

  “Where are you guys staying? There’s that great new resort up there that looks amazing. What’s it called?”

  “We’re staying at the cottage,” she said a bit too defensively.

  Ean couldn’t mask his disappointment in that statement. “Really, Ava?”

  “Really Ava what, Ean? What is so wrong with me going to the cottage for the weekend?” Her tone raised a little and she quieted instantly when Olivia let out a cry. “Why is it okay for everyone else to stay at the cottage but not me?”

  “Because everyone else isn’t crazy, that’s why,” he said, handing his daughter back to Lacey.

  “Oh, now I’m crazy? Gee, thanks for the update, Ean. I appreciate that.”

  “Ava,” he said with exasperation. “You’re not crazy, but something about that place makes you crazy. All I’m saying is please don’t turn this weekend into some kind of crazy production and put all kinds of pressure on yourself or Brian or the house for that matter. If you’re just looking for a nice getaway then go and enjoy it. But don’t let yourself believe that the cottage is the be all, end all for your happiness.”

  “Thanks for the advice,” she said flippantly as she headed for the door. “Olivia’s had her breakfast and she’s clean and changed and ready for the day.” She looked over at Lacey. “I’ll call you when I get back.”

  And then she was gone.

  “That was your idea of brotherly advice?” Lacey asked him after the door shut.

  “You and I both know from personal experience what she was like at this time last year over that cottage. She may not admit to it, but this thing that she has for that place it unrealistic. She thinks it’s the key to all of her happiness, but it’s not. You know it and I know it.”

  Lacey had to agree. “Nothing that anyone has said to her has changed her mind, though.”

  “Maybe the wrong person is talking to her,” Ean said and kissed his wife on the cheek and then his daughter and then headed out of the room and into his home office where he thought out what needed to be done.

  ****

  Brian arrived back at the Callahan’s thirty minutes later and was a little disappointed to see that Ava’s car was already gone. He knew he’d be seeing her shortly and then they’d have the whole weekend together, but he found that he missed her already.

  Lacey let him in and led him into Ean’s office and then went back to putting Olivia down for her nap. He sat down in the chair Ean gestured to. “The plans look good, Ean,” he began. “I think that the whole project is going to be textbook easy and that the timeframe will be something that both you and Lacey will be comfortable with.”

  “That’s great. Really. I knew after our meeting the other day that we were on the same page and that you understood our situation.”

  “Are you really going to stay someplace else while the construction’s going on?”

  “I’m keeping my options open at this point. My folks have offered to let us stay with them if we need to. This time of year they tend to head up to Asheville and spend some time at the house up there.” He hesitated a moment as if this was all just coming to him. “Oh, hey, isn’t that where you and Ava are heading this weekend?”

  Brian nodded. “Personally I was hoping for a five star resort with room service but she really was adamant about going to your folk’s place.”

  “Well, Ava has a little bit of an obsession with that place. But you’re a firmly grounded guy and I know you’re not buying into all of that nonsense.” Ean shifted some papers around as if looking for something to show Brian. “I was thinking of adding…”

  “Wait,” Brian interrupted, “what nonsense?”

  Ean halted his search for the non-existent piece of paper and looked at Brian awkwardly. “Oh, um…it’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. You’re going to have a great time. The place is beautiful. As I was saying…”

  “No, come on, Ean, you were about to say something and I’m curious. What kind of nonsense? What am I getting myself in to?”

  Ean sighed. “Look, it’s just a silly myth or some would call it a ‘legend’ about the cottage but Ava’s really the only one who takes it seriously. Really, it’s nothing to worry about. I’m sure that she’s going to be fine with the whole thing.”

  Brian ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “Dammit, Ean!” he said and then stood. “I knew something was weird about this whole thing. I had a bad feeling about it. What kind of legend are we talking about here?”

  “Brian, I really didn’t mean to get you all worked up. It’s silly really; our family cottage has a reputation of being a bit magical and any couple who stays there is supposed to be promised a love everlasting.” God he hated saying that out loud! “Personally, it’s not the cottage. Our family has had our share of long lasting marriages, but we’ve also had our share of miserable ones. Ava chooses to only pay attention to the long lasting ones and claims it’s because of the cottage.”

  The wheels were turning in Brian’s head as Ean continued to talk.

  “She was majorly pissed at me and Lacey last year when we got snowed in at the cottage because she felt we had stolen her magic and for a while she blamed us for her problems with Mason. Of course at that point she was still in major denial about how wrong they were for each other but it was a tense couple of weeks.”

  “So you and Lacey,” Brian began as he cleared his throat, “what you guys have…”

  “Has nothing to do with the cottage. Lacey had a crush on me before I left for college and I’d always thought she was pretty, but back then she was way too young for me. I saw her in the grocery store, only I didn’t know it was her, and I was drawn to her like a magnet. What happened between us would have happened whether there was a cottage or not.”

  Ean watched as a war was being waged inside of Brian and felt a little guilty that he was throwing all of this at him. The truth was that he liked Brian and he could tell that Brian really loved Ava; the only way their relationship was going to work was for Ava to deal with reality and stop living in a fantasy world based on a legend.

  Looking at his watch absently Brian said, “I need to get going. We need to be on the road before noon if Ava’s going to make her interview.” He stretched out his hand to shake Ean’s and said goodbye but his mind was elsewhere.

  After he left, Lacey walked into Ean’s office. “Well?”

  “Just like I thought. It was all new information to him.”

  “What do you think he’ll do?” Lacey asked, concern filling her voice.

  “I’m hoping that he’ll do whatever needs to be done to bring Ava back down to Earth so that she can finally be happy.”

  “What if she can’t be happy until she goes to the cottage?”

  Ean looked up at his wife’s sad tone. “Somehow I think that Brian is the man to show her that she doesn’t need that to be happy.”

  “I hope that you’re right, Ean,” she said as he pulled her into his embrace. “I really hope that you’re right.”

  Chapter Ten

  Ava was dressed and waiting when Brian finally knocked at eleven-thirty. She opened the door with a big smile. “I’m pac
ked and ready to go!”

  He walked in and barely looked at her. When he was in the middle of her living room he finally turned to face her. “I’m not going,” he said simply.

  More than a little confused, Ava shut the door and walked over to him. “What do you mean you’re not going? Has something come up with work?”

  Brian shook his head. “No.”

  Eyebrows drawn, Ava stared at him. “Brian, what’s going on? Less than three hours ago we were all set. What happened?”

  How could he possibly explain to her what was going on in his head? Ean had dropped a bombshell on him and Brian wasn’t sure if he should curse him or thank him. “Let me ask you something, Ava,” he began calmly. “What if I said to you that I would go only if we stayed at a hotel?”

  “I’d have to ask why. What changed your mind?”

  “Fair enough question,” he said and then began to circle around her, his eyes never leaving hers. “I’m not sure just quite yet. Let me ask you something else, how do you feel about me?” He wanted to come right out and ask if she loved him, but he wanted to draw this out a little and see if she would admit to her real reason for wanting to go to the cottage.

  “How do I feel about you? What kind of question is that?” she asked nervously, not liking his accusatory tone or the look on his face. “Brian, you’re scaring me. What’s going on?”

  “It’s a simple question, Ava. I’ve told you that I love you and you never seem to tell me how you feel about me. Why is that?”

  “I…I’m not good with talking about my feelings,” she stammered. “I thought that you could tell easily enough how I feel.”

  “I don’t particularly enjoy having to be a mind reader. Sometimes a man likes to hear how the woman he loves feels about him.” His eyes narrowed a bit and he could see how nervous he was making her.

  “This is ridiculous, Brian, and I’m going to be late for my interview!” she cried.

  “Then answer my question,” he said flatly.