Holiday Fantasy

by Adrianne Byrd

  “I…I really liked your parents. I…”

  Mark squeezed her hand, offering her comfort. “It’s okay.”

  Andrea wiped at a tear.

  “Let’s talk about Terrence,” Mark suggested.

  Instantly, Andrea smiled.

  “There. That’s what I want to see. Your smile.”

  If Andrea had ever doubted it before, she didn’t now. Mark was an incredible man. He had a warm and giving heart and knew just what to say to make a person feel better.

  And even though he could have let go of her hand, he didn’t. Andrea didn’t want him to.

  She settled back against the seat and looked out the window. She didn’t talk, and neither did Mark. They drove in comfortable silence, as if they had done this a million times before.

  Their connected hands seemed to say all that was in their hearts.

  Chapter 9

  Andrea was in awe the moment she stepped inside Amoré, a five-star Italian restaurant in downtown Buffalo. The walls were covered in dark red velvet. The place was filled with dim lighting and lots of candles, creating a romantic atmosphere.

  “Mark,” Andrea whispered, clutching his arm, “I don’t think I’m appropriately dressed.”

  “Andrea, you look beautiful.”

  His tender compliment relaxed her instantly—and filled her heart with happiness.

  Mark walked up to the hostess. “I have a reservation for two. Potter.”

  “Come this way, Mr. Potter.”

  She led them to a table in a corner. It was more private than the rest. There was a bucket on the table, chilling a bottle of champagne.

  “Mark?” Andrea looked up at him.

  “Thank you,” he said to the hostess.

  Ever the gentleman, Mark held her chair for her. As Andrea sat, she said, “You arranged this for us?”

  “I figured we had a lot to celebrate. Your recovery, for one thing.”

  And perhaps something more?

  “You are just the sweetest—” Andrea stopped short. If she continued, she just might blurt out that she loved him. Did she? Could she, after all this time?

  In a way, it seemed impossible. But that’s what she was feeling in her heart, like things had picked up where they left off with Mark ten years ago.

  Their waiter arrived and poured the champagne. When he was gone, Mark lifted his glass in a toast. “To life’s surprises,” he said.

  “To miracles.”

  They clinked their glasses.

  They spent some minutes going over the menu and ordering their food.

  With that out of the way, Andrea spoke. “I have to tell you, Terrence had such a great time at dinner on Sunday. He was raving about you the next morning, saying how much fun he had decorating the tree with you. It was nice, Mark, to see him so happy.”

  Mark nodded as he looked at her, but a question popped into his mind. He wondered if she meant that Terrence had been happy to have a man around, a man who could be a father figure.

  “Tell me about Terrence’s father,” he said.

  Andrea rolled her eyes as she sipped her champagne. “There’s nothing to tell. He was a guy I met at Princeton, I was wildly in love with him, and I thought he felt the same way about me. He said he did. And then I got pregnant.” Andrea shrugged as if to say the rest of the story was obvious.

  “Does he ever see Terrence?”

  Andrea shook her head vehemently. “It drives me crazy when I think about it. But if he’s the kind of man who doesn’t care about his child, then we’re both better off without him.”

  “Did you love him as much as you loved me?” Mark was horrified to realize he’d asked that question aloud. He quickly said, “You know, forget I asked that. I’m not sure where that came from.”

  Andrea reached across the table and covered his hand with hers. “No, you’re right to ask. I mean, I think it’s something we’ve both wanted to talk about, but neither of us really has brought it up. That’s why we’re here, isn’t it? That’s why we’re spending time together. We’re trying to reconnect…aren’t we?”

  Mark nodded. “I know I still have feelings for you.”

  “But?” Andrea asked. Because she sensed there was one.

  Mark shrugged. He fiddled with the stem of his champagne flute. “I know it’s been ten years, but I do have some questions.”

  “I’m sure you do.” Andrea sighed. “But first, let me apologize to you. You know the truth now, that my family lost their business. I didn’t mean to lie to you that day at the restaurant. It was just that seeing you caught me off guard, and I was self-conscious about not being at the place in my life I had planned to be…”

  Mark waved a hand dismissively. “That’s neither here nor there.”

  “You sure? Because it just slipped out. I don’t want you to think that I’m the type of person who would lie to you.”

  “Why’d you end things, Andrea?” At her confused look, he said, “I know what you told me, that you didn’t love me anymore. That you realized your parents were right and we were from two different worlds. But I never believed that.”

  A lump suddenly lodged in Andrea’s throat, a lump caused by the bittersweet memories of yesteryear. How had she ever said those words to Mark?

  It was seeing him with Marsha Whitfield that had gotten her so riled, so completely insecure. She’d never given him a chance to explain. She’d simply dumped him before he could dump her. Given everything that had happened, she wondered why Mark even wanted to be within five hundred feet of her. At least he didn’t hate her for what she’d done.

  “You want the truth?” she asked.

  “The truth.”

  “I loved you deeply. You knew that. But my parents forced me to break up with you. Even still, I wasn’t sure I would. Then, when I showed up at your football game and I saw you with that cheerleader, Marsha Whitfield—I guess I kinda lost my mind.”

  “Marsha?” Mark looked confused.

  “She was flirting with you, and I freaked out. I waited until she walked away from you and then I went to you and told you what I did.”

  “I was never interested in Marsha.”

  “I was young and insecure and jealous. And torn. My parents were forcing me to end my relationship with you. So when I saw you with her, that became a convenient excuse to do what they’d demanded.” Andrea paused. “I’m sorry.”

  The memories came rushing back. As if it were yesterday, Mark remembered how, after he had graduated from Belfield High, he had asked Andrea to come see him at the school’s football field. He and a bunch of guys had gotten together to hang out and throw the football. Mark had wanted to spend every free moment with Andrea before leaving for Kent State, where he had been awarded a scholarship. Instead of being her normal cheery self, she had pouted and shrugged away from his touches. At first, he’d thought she was angry because he was going off to Kent State, even though he promised he would visit her as often as he could.

  It was when he told her that he was going to miss her that she shattered his world, leaving him wondering what on earth had happened. “I don’t love you anymore,” she’d told him. She had gone on to make things worse by saying, “It was fun while it lasted.”

  The words had hurt, more than he’d ever thought possible. Over the next few weeks, he had tried to reach her, but she had not taken any of his calls.

  “Mark…”

  The sound of Andrea’s voice brought Mark back to the present.

  “I’m sorry,” she said again. “I can see it in your eyes, the same thing I saw the day I ended things. It’s a look that’s haunted me so much…”

  Mark finished the champagne in his glass and poured himself another one. “I just…I never…” He shook his head, not completing his statement.

  “Mark, please believe me. What I said to you was a lie. I was young and stupid. There’s nothing more I can say.”

  Andrea shoulders slumped as she stared across the table at Mark. He wasn’t meeting he
r eyes.

  He finally lifted his gaze to hers. “I can’t believe it still hurts.”

  “It still hurts me, too. But I hope we can move on. To a new place.”

  “I hope so, too.”

  They were interrupted by the food arriving, and spent the rest of the evening talking about more pleasant things. His career, her aspirations of opening her own business.

  “You’d think that after my parents lost their business, it’s the last thing I’d want to do. I want to open a children’s clothing store as well.”

  “That doesn’t surprise me,” Mark said.

  “Really? It surprised my parents. They keep telling me how hard it will be, especially with me being a single mother. But I can’t let that stop me.”

  “People succeed despite the odds all the time.”

  “Exactly. I’m not planning on a chain of stores like my parents owned, but a small, personal boutique. If I can make a name for myself with one store, then I’ll consider expanding.”

  Andrea’s eyes suddenly lit up. “You know, I already know that one of my assignments next semester will be to interview an entrepreneur. Maybe I can interview you.”

  “Sure.”

  Andrea and Mark fell silent when the waiter came to clear their plates. He proceeded to tell them about dessert options.

  Andrea opted for the flan, while Mark settled on a specialty coffee.

  “You know,” Andrea began, “I don’t think I answered your question.”

  “What question?”

  “If I loved Terrence’s father, Richard, as much as I loved you.” There was a flash of something in Mark’s eyes, something Andrea couldn’t read. She reached across the table and covered his hand with hers. “The answer is, no, Mark. I never loved Richard the way I loved you. I’ve never loved anyone the way I loved you.”

  Mark didn’t say anything, just linked his fingers with hers and ran the pad of his thumb over her skin.

  All too soon, the evening ended. Now, Mark was parked outside Andrea’s building. She didn’t want to get out.

  “I had a nice time,” she told him. “I’m glad we…talked.”

  “I’m glad, too. It doesn’t matter how old the pain is, if there’s no closure…”

  Closure! Andrea’s brain screamed. Was that what this was about? Getting closure on their ten-year-old relationship?

  The thought made Andrea’s stomach clench.

  She had to let him know that this was about more than that for her. That despite everything that had happened between them, she still cared for him deeply and hoped this could be a new beginning for them.

  “Mark?” she began tentatively.

  “Hmm?”

  I love you, she almost said, surprising herself. Did she love him? And if she did, would it seem too sudden to tell him that—too contrived?

  Instead she asked, “When do you leave town?”

  “Some time tomorrow. I have to get back to the office.”

  Andrea groaned.

  “I know,” Mark said, sensing her frustration. “But Chicago’s not that far. I can always catch a flight here to visit you. I know I’ll have some time near the end of next week.”

  Andrea had lived without him for ten years, and now being apart for a week seemed too long. Since her accident, however, she didn’t want to waste another moment. Her heart told her she should be with Mark, and she wanted to do everything in her power to make that happen.

  “Christmas is just around the corner,” she said. “Do you have plans?”

  Mark shook his head. “No. Not really.”

  “Then maybe you could…spend it with me and Terrence?”

  “We can certainly talk about that.”

  Andrea tried to read in Mark’s eyes what he was thinking, but she couldn’t. “Will you come by tomorrow before you leave for Chicago?”

  “Definitely,” Mark said. “I’ll call you in the morning.”

  Andrea couldn’t deny the sadness she felt at the thought of Mark leaving again, especially with so much unresolved between them. On Sunday, she’d had so much hope, but today she felt uncertain about where their relationship was headed. It wasn’t anything specific Mark said.

  Perhaps it was what he hadn’t said.

  “I wish we lived in the same city,” Andrea told him. “It would be so much easier.”

  “You said yourself, nothing worth having ever comes easy.”

  Andrea wrinkled her nose. “I did, didn’t I?”

  “I’m sure Terrence is waiting for you.” Mark opened his door. “Let me help you out.”

  Mark bristled against the cold as he stepped outside. Andrea watched as he hustled to her side of the car, wondering why some woman hadn’t already snagged him. She almost asked him that as he walked her to her apartment’s entrance, but thought better of it.

  Inside the lobby, she gazed up at him. “Tomorrow?”

  “Not so fast.”

  “Hmm—”

  Before Andrea could finish her question, Mark drew her to him and planted his lips on hers. She gasped in surprise, then relaxed against him, slipping her good arm around his waist. His lips played over hers skillfully, gently nipping and suckling and leaving her breathless. When he finally pulled away from her, she collapsed against him with a satisfied sigh.

  “Wow,” she said.

  “I hope that’ll hold us until the next time we see each other.”

  “I’m kinda doubting that.”

  Mark’s lips curled in a smile. “You’re still something, you know that?” He gave her a soft peck on the cheek, which, surprisingly, had her heart racing as much as the previous kiss. “Tomorrow, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “Give Terrence a kiss for me,” Mark told her.

  “Sure. He’ll like that.”

  Mark pulled the lobby door open and headed out of the building. Andrea didn’t take her eyes off him as he sauntered to his car, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to see if she was still looking at him.

  And she knew, without a doubt, that she did love him.

  Chapter 10

  “Mummy.” Andrea spun around at the sound of her son’s voice. Terrence was standing behind her chair where she sat at her desk, clutching his favorite stuffed giraffe. He was barefoot on the cold tiled floor, and she immediately reached for him, pulling him onto her lap.

  “Hi, sweetie,” she cooed softly in his ear. “Did you sleep well?”

  Resting his head against her bosom, Terrence nodded. “But I’m thirsty now. I want some juice.”

  “What kind of juice? Orange or apple?”

  “Orange!” he announced proudly.

  Giggling, Andrea planted a soft, wet kiss on Terrence’s temple. “Orange it is. Go put some socks on, sweetie, and I’ll get you something to eat.”

  Andrea’s parents were still sleeping. With them around, and with seeing Mark, her life had been slightly more hectic than normal, so she had gotten up early this morning to work on her school assignment. It was due in a week, just before the Christmas break began. Thanks to Allison, she had been able to stay on top of her studies.

  A short while later, Terrence entered the kitchen and climbed onto a chair. His little feet dangled in the air. Some days, he seemed like he had grown so much, and others, she was reminded of just how small he was. He would always be her baby, no matter how old he got.

  Andrea passed him a plate of whole-wheat toast, a boiled egg, and orange juice in his favorite Goofy cup. She had already cooked the eggs, but had waited for him to get up before eating. Putting her plate of breakfast down beside him, she slipped into her seat.

  With a wave of emotion washing over her, she paused for a moment to watch her son eat. Where had the years gone? Once he had been a small, innocent baby in her arms. Now he was old enough to question things he didn’t understand—like why he didn’t have a father. Most of his friends in the neighborhood had two parents, and he’d recently realized that he didn’t. Now, he had so many questions, but Andrea
was uncomfortable giving him answers. How did you tell a four-year-old boy that his father wanted nothing to do with him?

  Richard’s outright rejection of her after she’d told him she was pregnant had been the hardest pill to swallow. Richard proved to be an utter and complete jerk, and had denied the fact that the baby was his. He’d accused her of sleeping with other men, which had been far from the truth. Making love with Richard had been her first sexual experience, and to this day she wished she hadn’t let herself be pressured to have sex before she was ready. It had cost her her last year of college, because she had to drop out once she got pregnant. Richard was long gone from Princeton and from her life by the time Terrence was born.

  So far, Andrea had answered Terrence’s questions carefully, telling him that his father was away for a long time and that she didn’t know when he would come back. Although he seemed to accept her explanation, she could tell that he still didn’t understand. A boy needed his father.

  When he got old enough to understand why his father really wasn’t around, he might be devastated. She could only hope that by showering him with all her love, he wouldn’t be scarred for life.

  Maybe Mark can fill that void, she thought.

  “Bobby went to the zoo yeserday, Mummy. He saw monkeys and giraffes. Can we go to the zoo today?”

  Reaching out, Andrea tenderly stroked Terrence’s adorable face. “You know how cold it is outside?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And you still want to go to the zoo?”

  “Uh-huh. I wanna see a giraffe!”

  “Of course you do.” Giraffes were Terrence’s favorite animal, and his room was decorated with all sorts of giraffe paraphernalia. “Well, I guess we can. We’ll have to make sure we’re bundled up nice and warm. But if the animals survive in the cold, I suppose we can, too.” She hadn’t planned to go to the zoo this weekend, considering that she had to finish her paper, which was due next week. But how could she say no to Terrence?

  Just seeing him smile made her life seem complete.

  Terrence threw his hands up in the air. “Yay!”