He nods. “She is perfect for me.”
She puts her hands on each of his cheeks, pushing so hard that his mouth is misshapen. “Don’t blow it this time!” He laughs and she slaps his cheeks with each breath. “I’m serious! Don’t! Blow it! With her!”
“I won’t! I won’t!” he says, laughing.
She sits down, satisfied with herself. “That’s what I want for Christmas.” He raises an eyebrow. “I want you and Amy together for every Christmas.”
TWENTY-THREE
Amy finishes washing the dishes in her kitchen and picks up stray books and TV remotes from the living room before heading to her bedroom to change. Her heart is thumping; she is so nervous, feeling like a teenager about to go on a first date. She picks out a black turtleneck with a flowing, sea-foam-green vest over it and a pair of jeans. She looks at herself in the bathroom mirror, examining the lines around her eyes and the beginning of gray-colored roots at the hairline above her ears. This face doesn’t fit a first date, she thinks. When she was in college, she had dreams of starting her own business, getting married, and having children, with two dogs running over the yard that surrounded their home. The face looking back at her is lined here and there with reality and the wisdom that comes with falls along the way. The doorbell rings and she exhales, taking one final look in the mirror before turning off the bathroom light.
Gabe is on the front porch wearing a blue dress shirt with a tie, and a plaid wool sports jacket with black pants. She grabs her coat from the closet and opens the door, smiling. “I think I might be underdressed.”
He beams, looking at her. “I think you look great.”
She moves aside for him to come in. “Seriously. Am I underdressed?”
“Maybe just change the jeans.”
She closes the door and throws her coat on the back of the sofa, while she moves back down the hall toward her bedroom. “I thought you said we’d go out for barbecue or something,” she says from behind her closed door.
“I decided on something instead of barbecue,” Gabe says, looking at pictures on top of the fireplace mantel. “Your mom and dad look really good.” He picks up the picture for a closer look. “Is this your niece? Did she graduate?”
Amy emerges from her bedroom wearing a long, navy blue skirt and tall brown boots. “She graduated in May. My brother feels old now.” She looks down at herself. “Is this better?”
He smiles. “Perfect. You look amazing.”
She looks around, uncomfortable in her own home. “I don’t know why, but I’m so nervous. I was thinking before you got here that I’m not really prepared for first dates anymore.”
He puts the photo back on the mantel. “Me neither. So let’s not think of it that way.” She tries to muster a smile as his eyes scan her home. “I love your house. You’re a great decorator. You’ve always known how things should go together.”
She looks at him and feels her throat tighten. “What if we don’t go together, Gabe? What if this doesn’t work again? What will we do then?”
He steps in front of her. “What if it does work?” He smiles at her. “What will we do then?” He kisses her forehead. “Maddie told me not to blow it with you and I’m going to take her advice.”
She laughs out loud. “She said that? Really?”
He reaches for her coat on the back of the sofa. “Yes! She gave me strict orders not to blow it this time.”
He drives to the lake on the outskirts of Grandon and parks in front of Ellery’s Seafood and Steaks. Amy looks at the cedar shake building and reaches back into her memory, trying to recall when she was here last.
“Do you remember this place?” Gabe asks.
“I’ve eaten here but I don’t remember when.”
He parks his truck and turns off the engine. “I brought you here on our first date.”
“Oh yeah.” She looks at him. “That wasn’t our best night. Not a great first date. I complained too much and you drank too much and I had to drive you home.”
“We were younger then and I was an idiot.” She laughs, shaking her head. “Tonight, let’s show those young people from all those years ago how two people get to know each other.”
Gabe had requested the table by the fireplace a couple of days ago and the hostess leads them there, where he pulls Amy’s chair out for her. He sits across from her, putting the napkin on his lap. “Did I tell you that you look amazing?”
“Yes. You did,” she says, smiling. “And you look very handsome, Gabe. I actually think you’ve grown more handsome over the years.”
“So my mother was right! I thought it was just a mom thing.”
“How are your mom and dad?” she says, chuckling.
“They’re doing great. I told them that I was coming here with you tonight and I think my mom actually fainted.” She laughs again and he talks over the laughter. “It was either that or she was standing on the other end of the phone with her mouth open, speechless.” He mimics what his mother must have looked like. “They thought the world of you. It was very hard on them when we divorced, on my mom especially. And my dad thought you were supercool because you could carry on a conversation with him in Spanish.”
“Only near the end of our marriage. And then it was so slow and painful. I don’t remember much at all anymore.”
He speaks slowly in Spanish and she looks down at the table, listening. She cocks her head and he says it one more time. “Well?”
She grins. “I heard the words Spanish and bike.”
He speaks in Spanish again and her eyes light up. “I can’t pick out all of the words but you basically said, Spanish will come back to me like riding a bike.”
“Sí,” he says.
The waiter comes and Amy finds herself beaming as Gabe orders filet mignon and she orders salmon. “Is this a special occasion?” he says to them.
Gabe looks at Amy and her eyes are warm. “Yeah, it’s our second date here.”
When they finish their meal, Amy leans her arms on the table. “Will we do this again?”
“Would you like to do it again?” he says, hopeful.
Her mouth turns up a little as she nods. “I’d say this was a promising second date.”
“Now what to do on the next date? George Bailey said he’d lasso the moon for Mary. I’m not sure I could swing that. I couldn’t give you the world either. God’s pretty much got the market closed there. I could—”
She shakes her head, smiling. “I’ve never wanted the world. I don’t need fancy meals or fancy gifts. I’ve never gone for fancy anything. I just want to be with a man who—”
“Who knows your worth?” he asks.
“Yeah. And a man who—”
“Who sees that you are the most valuable thing on earth? A man who believes that the world is a better place with you in it and he can’t imagine a world without you in it? Someone who feels like a better man when he’s with you? A man who knew you when you were years younger but thinks you’re more beautiful than ever? A man who doesn’t look at magazine covers or on TV, the internet, or the movies for what a gorgeous woman looks like because none of them can hold a candle to you? A man who knows he can’t live a day without you and wants the rest of his life to start with you as soon as possible?”
Tears pool in her eyes as she places her palms on the table, lifting herself up to kiss him.
TWENTY-FOUR
Gabe carries a few groceries in his basket to the front at Clauson’s and when he sees Ben, he slips out of the line he’s standing in so he can receive one of Ben’s notes. Each customer in front of him rummages through their bags as they exit and read notes like:
Christmas has to live in your heart. If it doesn’t, it’s just another day. Merry Christmas, Ben
Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year! Hope it’s wonderful for you, Ben
Scrooge said, “I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.” That’s good advice for all of us! Merry Christmas, Ben
“Hello, Gabe,” Ben says, reaching for the groceries.
“Hi, Ben! I moved over into this line so I can get one of your notes.”
“I hear that people do that a lot,” Ben says. The cashier nods, smiling in agreement. “How’s Amy? You still love her, right?”
Gabe smiles as he pays. “I’d really like to know how you knew that.”
Ben shrugs, handing him the two bags of groceries. “When you’re around people as much as I am you become an expert.” The cashier and Gabe laugh together. “You looked at Amy like my dad looks at my mom. Or how Travis looks at Lauren or how Mr. Marshall looks at Miss Glory. It was obvious,” he says, reaching for the next customer’s groceries.
Gabe pats Ben on the shoulder and says, “Have a great day, Ben. You sure make it awfully good for lots of other people.”
He slides behind the steering wheel of his truck and sets the groceries on the passenger seat, reaching into one bag and then the other before finding the note. It’s on a red piece of paper, shaped like a star, and reads, Love came at Christmas and is here to stay. Merry Christmas, Ben.
Gabe sticks the note inside his pocket and drives to Pender’s Fine Jewelry on the town square, opposite Betty’s and across the street from the library. Gabe zips up his coat as he gets out of his truck and runs inside the store. “Anything we can help you find?” a woman polishing a glass case asks.
“Looking for a ring,” he says.
TWENTY-FIVE
Gabe and Amy pick Maddie up at Linda’s house, promising to have her home no later than eight. She buckles herself in and crosses her arms, smiling. “What’re you smiling at?” Gabe asks.
“I called it,” she says.
Amy cocks her head. “Called what?”
“This,” Maddie says, sweeping her arms out in front of her. “You two. Together. I called it.”
Amy and Gabe laugh together and Amy reaches back to squeeze Maddie’s leg.
“You did call it,” Gabe says.
“And you’re not blowing it, right?”
Gabe looks at Amy. “I don’t know. Am I?”
Amy grins at Maddie. “I’m happy to report that he’s not blowing it.”
“Thanks to me,” Maddie says, crossing her arms again. “So, where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise,” Gabe says, backing out of the driveway.
After they’ve driven several minutes and the sign for Carmine’s comes into view, Maddie squeals in delight. “My favorite!”
“My favorite too,” Amy says.
Ralph, the owner of Carmine’s and a man probably around fifty-two or so with a slight build and receding hairline, leads them to a table and places menus in front of each of them. “The special today is Mama’s Favorite.”
“And what is Mama’s Favorite?” Gabe asks.
“Spicy sausage, fresh mozzarella, ricotta, and pecorino romano cheeses, and spinach,” Ralph says as he moves away from the table to seat other customers.
“Is Ralph the owner?” Maddie says, studying him as he helps at another table.
“He is,” Gabe answers.
“Then why is this place called Carmine’s?”
Gabe grins. “Let’s just say Ralph is a genius at marketing and advertising.” He sets his menu down. “And even though he’s from somewhere in Kansas, he sure knows how to make a great Italian pizza.”
“Mama’s Favorite?” Amy says.
“She still knows me,” he says, winking at Maddie.
“A slice of cheese for me,” Maddie says.
Gabe raps his knuckles on the table. “You know what we need to do? We need to go ice-skating sometime.”
Maddie grimaces at the thought. “I can’t ice-skate.”
“Have you ever gone ice-skating?” Gabe asks.
“No!”
“Then how do you know you can’t do it?”
She looks at him as if to say it should be obvious. “I know what I can’t do.”
Amy glances over at Gabe. “One of my favorite memories as a child is ice-skating not too far from here with my family.”
“Bet you didn’t fall a few times,” Maddie says.
“You’re right. I didn’t. I fell a bunch of times.” Maddie glances up at her. “Too many times to count. The first time I put on a pair of ice skates I probably fell fifty times. I even sprained my ankle one time when I went. Everybody falls. Expect it. It’s part of the fun.”
Maddie spins her napkin on the table. “A grown-up’s idea of fun stinks.”
Gabe places their order with a waitress and then folds his arms on top of the table. “It is fun! We can take you to other fun spots around here too.”
“Like where?”
Amy cocks her head, thinking, before saying, “Pumpkin Fest at Granger Farm, a trip to the falls, which are beautiful in the summer, uh…”
Gabe joins in with great enthusiasm. “The firefighters’ chili cook-off and then the policemen’s barbecue cook-off and the Humane Association’s cookie bake-off.”
“You only know food events,” Amy says.
“I love food!”
Maddie laughs, listening to them. “I love you guys. I hope we’ll always be friends.”
Gabe and Amy look at each other and Amy puts her arm around Maddie’s shoulders. “We will be.” She clears her throat and reaches for her water. “So, what are you wearing to Lauren’s wedding?”
Maddie shrugs. “Beats me.”
“Do you have a pretty dress or a skirt or a pair of dressy slacks?”
She bulges out her eyes. “No way.”
“Then we need to make a stop at Wilson’s. Every little girl needs something to wear to a dress-up occasion. Don’t you agree, Gabe?”
“Yes, I do! But first we eat,” he says, lifting his fork in the air.
When they finish eating, they bundle up and brace against the cold for the short walk around the square to Wilson’s. Maddie holds on to Gabe’s and Amy’s arms and shrieks whenever the wind whips up around them.
“Hi, Mr. Marshall,” Maddie says on entering the store. Marshall Wilson is chatting with a sales clerk but his face brightens on seeing Maddie. “These are my friends Gabe and Amy. Amy helps at Glory’s Place.” She looks at Amy. “This is Miss Glory’s husband.”
Amy extends her hand. “I just love your wife.”
“That makes two of us.”
“Three of us,” Maddie says, thrusting her finger upward.
“Are you looking for anything in particular?” Marshall says, looking down at the little girl.
“They’re making me get something fancy for Lauren’s wedding.”
Marshall nods, smiling. “Ah. Well, it just so happens that we have lots of things that are just fancy enough for adults, yet not so fancy for little girls, and all can agree on. Just head downstairs and ask for Mary Beth. Tell her I said you’re looking for something fancy but not so fancy.” He bends down to whisper in her ear. “And be sure you pick up some hot chocolate and the cookie of the day. It’s a pinwheel with lots of sprinkles.”
Maddie smiles as they make their way downstairs. Mary Beth proves invaluable, first picking out a pair of fake-velvet pants with a beautiful turtleneck, then a dress with a black velvet top and a red satin bottom, and a long black skirt with a fun, frilly top. Gabe and Amy wait as Maddie tries on each outfit and then twirls and spins in front of them. The more they compliment her, the more she giggles and the more they smile. Always conscious of her leg, Gabe and Amy both assume that she would choose the pants and are surprised when she chooses the black skirt and frilly top. “I’ve never had anything like this,” Maddie says, touching the blouse.
“Well, you can’t wear a skirt like that without boots in this kind of weather,” Gabe says.
A simple pair of black dress boots is chosen, and as they walk to the cash register Gabe and Amy notice Maddie beaming, looking at the clothes in her arms. “Lauren’s we
dding is going to be the best day of my life,” she says, placing the clothes in front of the cashier.
Gabe carries Maddie’s bags to the front door of Linda’s house and hands them over to Maddie as she goes inside. Before Linda can close the door, Maddie wraps her arms around him, burying her head against his chest. “Thank you so much, Mr. G.” Linda smiles as Gabe waves good-bye.
Amy is quiet when Gabe gets back in the truck. “Anything wrong?” he asks.
“I just watched her hug you. She’s so excited over those clothes.” She looks over at him. “I really love that little girl.”
TWENTY-SIX
At eleven thirty on the morning of the wedding the sun is so bright against the snow that many in the setup crew wear sunglasses, while others squint as they place chairs around the gazebo. Miriam’s arm swings around, directing the position of each chair, making sure the placement is perfect, while looking down at her phone in the other hand.
“Why do you keep looking down at that phone?” Gloria scolds. “It’s annoying.”
“I’m watching the weather forecast, Gloria!”
“It’s cold this morning. It will be cold this afternoon. There’s your forecast,” Gloria says, snatching the phone out of her hand. “You won’t melt during the wedding ceremony.”
“Melting is not my concern. Turning into a Popsicle is!”
“Popsicles are sweet, Miriam. Trust me, you’re not in danger.”
“I want the day to be beautiful, Gloria. Lauren deserves a beautiful wedding day.”
Gloria sighs, handing Miriam’s phone back to her. “It’ll be cold but it will be beautiful. Everything will be perfect for her.”
* * *
Heddy is still busy working on Lauren’s wedding ensemble in Stacy’s living room, while two hairdressers work on Lauren’s and Stacy’s hair. “Heddy,” Lauren says, under curlers. “It’s beautiful. You don’t need to keep working on it.”
Heddy bends over her work, carefully sewing on more pearls to the new sleeves she created because the original sleeves were torn in a couple of spots. “It’s not perfect yet. But it will be!”
The Christmas Star Page 12