Christmas is in the Air

by Cary Morgan-Frates

  “So I shouldn’t be concerned with leaving him in class. You have it under control?”

  “Mr. Barrows.” The teacher put a hand on his forearm. “Gabe is one of the sharpest little boys in my class. He can read at least a grade level above his age group. I understand your concerns about wanting to protect him and keep him sheltered from physical or mental harm. My son has Asperger’s syndrome, which is a mild form of autism. You just want to put them in a bubble and love them, but you have to let them test their wings. It takes the support of others to help you on a daily basis with a special needs child. I also know it’s difficult to know what the right answer is.”

  “It’s just the two of us. I have to know what the right answer is.”

  “I’m afraid you might do more harm than good if you moved him now. Leave him in class and don’t worry so much. I already see social improvement. I went to a district training session last week and I might have someone who can be a big help to Gabe.” She rifled through her desk until she found a business card and handed it to him. “It’s a local company. I’ll give them a call and then let you know what I learn.”

  He paused. At first he was going to say no, but then thought about what she’d just said about accepting the help of others. “Sure.”

  “Just a minute Sally,” Mrs. Gelles said as a small girl with blonde pigtails tugged on her skirt. “Don’t doubt yourself. You’re doing a great job. You have to believe that.”

  Chapter Two

  Hanna pulled her junky car to a stop in front of the modest one story house and cringed as the car chugged and groaned long after she turned off the ignition. She’d helped her sister buy textbooks for the winter quarter college classes and now couldn’t afford to take this piece of junk in to be fixed.

  “What do you think Cody? Will you be okay by yourself in the car?” She swiveled in her seat and patted the Golden Retriever on the head. He wagged his tail in what she assumed was a “yes.”

  Her boss was called away to a “family emergency.” One of the wires on his teenage daughter’s braces popped free and she had a school dance to attend that night. Stop the world. His daughter was a princess through and through, and nothing like her who preferred tennis shoes and jeans over high heels any day of the week.

  So here she was… in the snow… on her only day off this week, talking to another potential customer.

  As she ascended the short porch steps, she stomped to loosen snow off her boots. A storm last night dumped a fresh three inches of snow in the Denver area, but at least the roads were clear. She pressed the doorbell and waited until the door opened.

  A little boy said brightly, “Hi! Who are you?”

  “I’m Hanna Acker,” she answered the boy, and then said to the tall man who stood behind him, “I’m here from the Pet Joy agency.”

  “I talked to a man named Robert,” the man she assumed was his father said, as he opened the door wider.

  “Bob was tied up with family obligations, so he sent me out to see if we can help you.”

  The man stepped to the side. “Come on in, it’s freezing out there. Can I take your coat?

  Hanna shucked her fleece-lined jacket off her shoulders, handed it to him and watched him hang on a hook. A huge, decorated tree soared past eight feet in the corner of the living room’s high-beamed ceiling. One worn stocking and a newer one hung over the mantel. She’d been so busy in the past few weeks, she hadn’t had time to decorate. Not that her family had ever really been into Christmas.

  “This will just be a quick visit today, and part of the initial assessment to see if it’s possible to be of assistance to you and your son.” She took out a pad for notes.

  “My name’s Gabe. This is my dad, Julian” the little boy piped up as she followed him into the living room. “Why are you here?”

  “Well,” Hanna began as she sat next to the boy on the couch, “I have one of the best jobs in the world. I get to work with dogs all day. I’m a private trainer.”

  Julian sat in the chair beside her. “I’d never heard of seizure dogs until Gabe’s teacher gave me a card and told me to look up your agency online. How can they help Gabe?”

  “Our service dogs are very responsive to anyone experiencing an epileptic seizure. They can even be trained to activate alarm systems or alert someone if the person is in need of help.”

  Gabe jumped off the couch. “I love dogs. Where’s your dog?”

  Hanna paused. “He’s in the car.”

  “It’s cold outside, why don’t you bring him in before his paws freeze?” Julian’s lopsided grin revealed a dimple in his cheek. His smile was warm and lit his slate blue eyes. He pushed his dark brown hair off his forehead and crossed one long leg over the other. Hanna caught herself staring. It had been way too long since she’d been on a date.

  This is a client. Pull yourself together. No ogling clients. You need this job to pay rent.

  “I never bring one of our dogs inside a house without asking the owner first. Is there anyone else we should ask permission from before I bring him in?”

  “It’s just me and my dad,” the boy answered. “My mom doesn’t live here anymore.” Gabe hopped off onto the hardwood floor and varoomed a plane over the stack of cars and the toys piled high.

  “If it’s okay with Gabe, its fine with me. I’ve always been a dog person,” Julian said. “Can I help you with anything?”

  Hanna and Julian stood at the same time and almost bumped heads. A little flustered, Hanna moved off to the side. With a nervous giggle, she headed toward the door. What was wrong with her? She was acting like a giddy tweener, not a professional mid-twenties woman with bills to pay and a new client prospect in front of her.

  Most of her clients were older. Gabe was the youngest client she’d talked to, and in a short time she’d established that his very handsome father was also a single dad. The last thing she needed was a man in her life right now. But Julian was a nice eyeball distraction from thinking about dog training all day.

  Now she needed to stop acting like a dip weed around him.

  As she opened the front door of the house, she drew in a deep head-clearing breath of icy air. When she reached the car, Hanna found the leash and put it through the hook on Cody’s collar. He leaped out of the car and danced around in a circle, kicking up snow. As she looked back at the house, she noticed Gabe’s face pressed against the large window. The glass had steamed white where his breath touched. He was laughing and pointed at her and Cody. Julian appeared. She could tell he was laughing at his son’s animated movements.

  Heaven help her… did Julian have to be so cute? It had been… well never, that she’d had such an instant attraction to a man and this wasn’t the right time.

  Hanna led Cody up the steps and Gabe whipped open the door as they reached the landing.

  “My friend has a dog, but I never get to play with him,” Gabe said out of breath. “Can I play with your dog? Does he like Legos?”

  “He loves to play.” Hanna dropped down on one knee when she got inside. “Gabe this is Cody. Shake, Cody.”

  When the dog extended his paw, Gabe burst into a wild giggle. She grinned and looked up at Julian who smiled too.

  “I had a golden retriever when I was a kid. Her name was Lucy. She was one of the best dogs ever,” Julian said as he scratched the dog behind the ears.

  “Cody’s my own dog,” Hanna explained as she watched Cody trot after Gabe. “I’ve been training him for over a year to sell as a full service dog.”

  As Julian led her into the living room again, he said, “It looks as though you two are pretty close. It will be hard for you to give him away.”

  “Oh, I won’t be giving him away, he’s going to help pay for my sister to finish college.”

  “I’m new to all this.” Julian said watching Cody run after Gabe, who ran around the couch. “I have no idea how this works. How much would one of these seizure dogs run me?”

  “There are many levels of trained companion
s, but Cody is at the top of his field. I have a couple on the east bank that put in an offer of twenty-eight.”

  “Hundred?”

  “No thousand.”

  Julian choked on the sip of hot chocolate he’d just taken. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

  “Cody could fetch as much as thirty,” she said proudly, but then watched Julian’s face darken.

  “Well that’s good to know.” He set the cup solidly on the table and straightened his posture. He laced his fingers together and leaned forward. “So why exactly did you come over today?”

  “Our agency wants to see if we can help.”

  “Obviously, you help people who have money. Lots of money.” He finished his sentence with a sarcastic laugh.

  “No… we want to help all people in need of our services.”

  “How does that work?”

  “In the past, people have held fundraisers to help.”

  His steely gaze cut through to hers. “Ms. Acker, I run my own business. I barely have time to eat and sleep after taking care of Gabe’s needs. I’d do anything for my son, but I truly don’t have time to hit up pizza joints to ‘donate to the cause.’ I’d never be able to come up with even a partial payment.” Julian’s demeanor changed. From fun to still and formal, she’d hit a sore spot.

  “That’s just one of many ways that we match dogs to clients. There are organizations that can help defer costs.”

  Cody’s whining made her look up. The dog was pawing at the boy’s sleeve and then ran over to Hanna, before returning to the boy. Thank goodness the little boy was already sitting on the floor. His eyes rolled up and he fell onto his back, his legs and arms convulsing. The boy hit his head against the floor lamp

  “Oh…God.” Julian jumped off the couch and ran to Gabe. Julian shoved the lamp out of the way. It toppled to the side and crashed to the kitchen floor. Glass shattered. Julian didn’t look up.

  “Come on. It’s okay. Dad’s here.”

  Hanna dropped down beside them and scooped the sharp Legos and toys from around Gabe’s head and hands.

  Julian turned him on his side and stroked his back. A sliver of drool trailed from the boy’s mouth. “You’re okay. Daddy’s here. You’re okay.” The calm in Julian’s voice was tinged with repressed panic.

  The seizure ended and Gabe slowly opened his eyes. “Daddy?”

  Julian let out a sigh and cradled Gabe in his arms, pulling him close. His eyes were tightly closed and the compassion on the young father’s face brought tears to Hanna’s eyes. Finally he looked up and said, “I’m going to have to get Gabe into bed for a bit. He’s always tired and disoriented after a seizure. Thanks for coming over. Please let yourself out.”

  Julian scooped up the boy, and headed upstairs.

  Hanna stood, her legs shaking. She’d trained seizure dogs every day, but honestly, she’d never been with a client so young when they experienced an attack. She couldn’t imagine the fear Julian experienced. It would be hell, but he handled it day in and day out, because he had too.

  That’s what parents did.

  Reaching in her pocket, she pulled out a treat and handed it to Cody. As she slipped on her coat, she scratched him under the collar. Bending down, she said, “Good boy. I trained you well… you did it.”

  Chapter Three

  Julian barely slept. Every time he started to drift off, Gabe made a noise and moved, and he’d wake up to check on his son to make sure he was okay. It led to many broken hours of restless sleep that were beginning to take a toll. Red-rimmed eyes gazed back at him in the bathroom mirror as he ran a quick brush through his hair and threw cold water onto his face.

  When Julian arrived in the kitchen, Gabe sat at the counter. He was trying to sing along to a song on the radio, as he scooped up the last fruity cereal into his spoon and pushed them in his mouth. Always a happy kid in the morning, Gabe bopped his head as he murdered the lyrics of the latest Katy Perry song. Julian smiled.

  There wasn’t a trace of anxiety from the seizure event the day before. It was always a new day for Gabe. Julian needed to look at life like that. If Gabe could do it, so could he.

  But he still worried every waking moment. That was something he knew he couldn’t change about being a dad.

  After he’d straightened his son’s shirt collar and handed him his lunchbox, Julian dropped Gabe at the classroom door. He watched for a few minutes as his son dove into the morning activities. As soon as he sat down, another little girl joined him and they started to play.

  When Julian left, he drove to his favorite local coffee shop and ordered a double tall espresso. When he returned to the car, he sat for a long time and stared at the white lid of the coffee cup.

  He made a quick call to his foreman, and then he turned the car in the other direction to drive into town.

  ****

  Hanna concentrated on the computer screen in front of her but looked up when she heard the bell jingle over the front door . She began to say, “Welcome to…” but her words trailed off.

  “Hi,” Julian said. He held a charming miniature live tree no more than a foot tall and decorated with small shiny balls and tinsel. “I’d like to apologize for all that happened yesterday.”

  “You don’t need to apologize for anything. Gabe’s your top priority. I figured you’d be in touch if you had questions.” She stood from behind the desk and straightened her sweater and skirt. She took the small tree from his hands and placed it on the corner of her desk. The smell of fresh evergreen wafted to her nose and she brushed a hand over the prickly green branches.

  He glanced around the office and shifted to his other foot. “I do have some questions. Can I take you out for breakfast?”

  “The boss isn’t in yet, so I can’t leave.” She gestured to the empty seat. “If you want to talk, we can do it here.”

  Julian sat down and crossed his long, jean-clad legs. “I couldn’t sleep last night… like most nights. I kept playing the afternoon over in my head. I realized that your dog sensed when Gabe had his seizure. Just like you said he would.”

  “That’s what he’s trained to do.” Hanna leaned forward.

  “I’m not used to asking for anyone’s help. I grew up on a farm in the Midwest. My fathers’ attitude to everything was always buck up and figure out a solution to your own problems. But I have to put Gabe above my male ego and my upbringing. I think a seizure dog may be the most important thing that I can offer my son right now. I’m here to see if there is any way that, if I work with your agency, we can make this happen.”

  “Of course it’s possible.” Hanna saw the stark emotions on Julian’s face and her heart tightened. His heartfelt confession of the trials and tribulations of being a single dad drew her in. She knew it wasn’t easy for him, and that made it even more special.

  “You said Cody is already spoken for by another family or families, but how can I go about getting Gabe on some kind of waiting list for another dog? I’ll do whatever I need to if it will help Gabe get a dog that can predict seizures a protect him when he has them. I read the information you gave me. Besides detecting the advent of a seizure, the dog can help clear harmful objects around them too. It’s pretty amazing.” He raised his gaze to hers. “I know… I’m busy. Everyone’s busy. I don’t want that to be an excuse. ”

  “I’m sorry if I came across sounding like the decisions are all based on money. That’s not true at all. The dogs go to the families who need them the most.”

  “I can work more, which means less time with Gabe. It’s always a tough call when it comes to money.”

  “Gabe won’t remember money. He will remember the evening you spend with him.” She smiled.

  “I know that’s always what I think.” Julian scrubbed a hand through his hair. “So what’s next?”

  “Paperwork.” Hanna opened the bottom drawer of her file cabinet and drew out a blue folder. “You need to fill out the forms in this packet. It will help establish Gabe’s need for a
dog.”

  He took it from her. “Thanks.”

  “When you’re done, you can bring it to me tomorrow night at Crenshaw’s Skating Rink. Cody and I are going to be there at a fundraiser for another family. You can buy me breakfast.”

  A slow grin split his face. “But it won’t be breakfast time then.”

  “There’s a great 24-hour diner next door. Waffles are the best for dinner, don’t you agree?”

  “Gabe and I eat breakfast for dinner a lot of nights. He loves waffles, and I can cook up a mean one. I’ll see how the diner compares to mine.”

  She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, very aware of his gaze. Why did this man make her tingle from a simple look? Hanna had a feeling that a kiss from him might just make her combust like a Christmas tree without water.

  When he stood he stepped closer and took her hand. His voice dropped. “Not that you’d give it to me, but I don’t want special treatment. We’re not a charity case. I’ll do everything in my power, but I understand there are many people with the same needs. There are probably lots of kids like Gabe. I just want a chance to get him a dog.”

  “Show up tomorrow night. That’s a start.” She extended her hand to shark.

  “I’ll be there.” He raised her hand to his lips, brushing a kiss over her knuckles.

  Oh, dear. Did she really let out an audible sigh?

  Chapter Four

  The ice rink was filled with people, music and lights. Santa Claus is Coming to Town rocked over the speakers and the kids darted around the adult skaters. Hanna straightened her scarf and fidgeted with the knot for the hundredth time.