Unlikely Santa

by J. E. B. Spredemann

  He grinned and turned to find the bathroom.

  Shannon took the opportunity to quickly tiptoe and peek in on Melanie. The little one rolled around on her bed, talking to her fingers. Shannon just stood there for about ten minutes, watching quietly. Her baby sister was so precious, she hoped she’d be able to raise her right.

  A fresh smell and an uncanny feeling like someone was behind her caused Shannon to turn.

  “Hi.” Wesley smiled. His damp hair was a bit tousled. Man, he was smoking in his jeans and t-shirt. How did he make such a casual outfit look so good?

  “Hi. You take a quick shower.” She smiled back, but not before he caught her drinking him in. Her cheeks warmed.

  “Momma!” Melanie stood up on her bed and clapped her hands.

  Shannon hurried to her before she took a tumble. “No, no. No standing on the bed.” She shook her head.

  “No, no.” Melanie repeated.

  “That’s right. You could fall down and get hurt. You don’t want owies, do you?” Shannon made her sit down, then helped her off the bed.

  “Fall down. Get owies.” Melanie’s eyes grew large as she said the words.

  “That’s right. So no standing on the bed.”

  “No standing.” Melanie shook her head. “No, no.”

  “Come here, you little stinker.” Shannon scooped her up into her arms and kissed her repeatedly. “You ready to go watch a movie?”

  “Watch movie!” She clapped her chubby little hands.

  Wesley stretched out his arms to her.

  “Do you want to go to Wesley?” Shannon asked.

  “No Wesley.” Melanie shook her head several times.

  He chuckled. “Okay. No Wesley.” He puffed out his bottom lip. “Now Wesley is gonna be sad.”

  “Wesley be sad.” Melanie nodded.

  Shannon laughed. “She doesn’t seem to be feeling your pain.”

  “Apparently not.” He chuckled. “She is a little stinker.”

  Shannon set Melanie down and she ran to her brothers.

  ~

  “Hey, do you mind if I take the boys out one of these days?” Wesley stuffed his hands in his pockets and attempted to keep the excitement off his face.

  “Oh.” Surprise lit her countenance. “You’d want to do that? What for?”

  He shrugged nonchalantly, as though he didn’t have some great scheme in mind. “You know, hang out, do guy stuff.”

  A gentle smile graced her lips. “That would be wonderful.”

  “Great. So, Tuesday, after school? Would that work for you?”

  “Sure, that sounds awesome.” She sucked in a breath. “And Wesley…”

  “Yes?”

  “Thank you so much. You really don’t know how much this means to me. What it will mean to the boys.”

  “It’s my pleasure, Shannon.” Anything to bring a smile to her pretty face. She’d had way too much sadness in her life. She deserved a little happiness.

  “Ready for the movie? The popcorn is finished. I already dished it into bowls for the kids. I figured we could share the big bowl.”

  “Sounds good.” He surveyed the sectional. “Where should I sit?”

  “Next to me?”

  “Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.” He winked.

  Shannon put the movie in and grabbed the remote control. She lowered the lights with a dimmer switch on the wall. The boys had already found their spots and Melanie sat on one side of Shannon after she’d sat down. Wesley staked his claim on the other side.

  As soon as the movie started and the boys’ attention was riveted on the screen, Wesley draped his arm around the back of the couch. Or around Shannon’s shoulders, more accurately. She snuggled into his side, sending his pulse racing. A rush of dopamine must have coursed through him, warming his whole body. If the kids weren’t there…

  He should focus on the movie, but it was difficult with Shannon’s soft form pressing against him. He really needed a distraction from his thoughts. He reached into the bowl of popcorn and tossed a few kernels into his mouth. The burst of salty sweetness pleased his taste buds.

  “This is really good,” he whispered in Shannon’s ear.

  “Thanks. My secret recipe.” She turned and grinned up at him.

  He stared at her lips. That was a mistake. He couldn’t help lowering his lips to hers and indulging in a kiss. His fingers slipped through her hair and his palm held the back of her head, bringing her face closer to his. Her lips were soft and yielding and…

  “Are you guys gonna kiss through this whole movie?” The disgusted look on Brighton’s face almost made Wesley laugh. He’d change his mind in a few years.

  Shannon giggled. “Maybe. Just ignore us and watch the movie, Brighton.”

  “Are you gonna go to your bedroom again like you did with Aiden?” Jaycee added his two cents.

  Wesley wished he hadn’t. But he was a five-year-old and five-year-olds tended to speak whatever was on their mind. Wesley wished that hadn’t been on Jaycee’s mind. Because now it was on his.

  “Jaycee!” Shannon shot upright. She squeezed her eyes closed and sighed.

  Wesley’s lips pressed together in a frown. Whoever this Aiden guy was, he really didn’t like him.

  “Just watch the movie, boys, or I’m sending you to bed early.” Shannon huffed. She looked at him with an apologetic smile, but she didn’t say anything. “No more comments.”

  But it was too late. Wesley attempted to enjoy the movie after that, as though he hadn’t just heard Jaycee’s proclamation, but he couldn’t. All he could think about was his beautiful Shannon and some guy named Aiden going to her bedroom.

  It bothered him. Big time.

  ~

  Wesley had been silent and kept his distance for the remainder of the movie, no doubt thinking on Jaycee’s careless words. Shannon wished she could erase them. She’d read the disappointment in Wesley’s eyes, as though the words had crushed his soul.

  She worried he might have changed his mind about her. She had to do something, say something to make it right before he left. “Listen, Wesley. About what Jaycee said. Aiden and I, we dated for a year—”

  He held up his hand. “You really don’t need to explain it to me.”

  The chill in the night air caused her to shiver. She wished Wesley would pull her close and hold her, like he had when the movie began.

  “I-I’m sorry.” She felt like weeping.

  “Shannon…” His tone was pensive, sad. “Hey, it’s fine. Whatever. What’s past is past, right? It’s not like we can go back and change it.”

  She frowned. “I just feel like there’s this huge wall between us now.” She shook her head. “I don’t like it.”

  “Just give me some time to process it, okay?” He blew out a breath. “I need to pray.”

  “Okay.” She stared at the ground. “But…”

  He reached over and caressed her cheek all too briefly. “I’ll see you on Tuesday, alright?”

  “Yeah. Okay.” She watched as he climbed into his truck, regret weighing heavy on her soul.

  He smiled, but a shadow lingered behind it. He lifted his hand to wave, then drove off.

  If only this evening had ended differently.

  THIRTEEN

  Monday morning, Shannon dropped a delighted Melanie off with Judy and Christopher. She’d never seen her little sister take to someone so readily. There was something special about the elderly Amish couple. Well, other than them being Wesley’s grandparents.

  Thinking of Wesley… She really needed to have a talk with him about her and Aiden’s relationship. He needed to know. Everything.

  Before she clocked into work, she tried to mentally prepare herself for the day. She’d work till three, pick the boys up at home, then head to Amish country. Judy and Christopher had truly been a Godsend. They’d invited them to stay for dinner tonight. That would be one less meal she would have to cook, and they all enjoyed Christopher and Judy’s company.

  A
bout an hour into her shift, a familiar face walked through the door.

  Aiden.

  She sighed, wondering what he wanted. There were other places to eat around town, so why did he keep choosing her place of employment?

  He plopped down on one of the seats at the counter. “Hey, Shan. I’ll just take a root beer float.” He threw the words into the air as she’d walked by.

  “One root beer float coming up.”

  She returned a couple minutes later with his order.

  “Sit with me?” His brow shot up.

  “Why?” She frowned and returned a stack of menus to their pile.

  “I just want to talk.”

  She shook her head. “I’m working.”

  His eyes roamed the empty restaurant. “Looks pretty dead to me.”

  “Maybe, but there are other things I need to do. The ketchup bottles need to be refilled. And the napkins. I have tables to prepare. There are many things that need to be done.”

  He reached for her hand to stop her. “They can wait, Shan.”

  She should have noticed when the next customer walked in, but she’d been too distracted. She didn’t until he was standing right there. Her eyes widened. “Wesley?”

  He stared at her hand, still in Aiden’s. And frowned.

  She quickly pulled her hand from Aiden’s grasp.

  “You gonna join me or not?” Aiden asked, briefly glancing at Wesley as if he was of no consequence.

  “I already told you no.” She stood her ground. “I’m busy.”

  “Is there a problem, Shannon?” Wesley’s brow lowered in clear concern. He placed a hand on her shoulder, studying her face.

  She shook her head, then gestured toward Aiden. “Wesley, this is Aiden, my ex. Aiden this is Wesley, my…”

  “Her current,” Wesley affirmed.

  “Current?” Aiden scowled.

  “Permanent.” Wesley glanced at her and smiled.

  She liked the sound of that. Apparently, the prayer had done him good. She didn’t catch a hint of the melancholy she’d seen on his face the previous night.

  “And I’d appreciate you not trying to make a move on my girl.” Wesley stared Aiden down.

  My girl?

  Aiden held up his hands. “Sheesh. A bit possessive, aren’t we?”

  Wesley’s arms crossed firmly over his chest. He clearly possessed a physical advantage over Aiden. And right now, he looked like he wanted to show him. “Yeah, I get that way about those I love.”

  Love? Her heart flip-flopped.

  Aiden snorted. “You better watch out for this one, Shan.”

  Oh, she was watching alright. This was a side of Wesley she’d never seen. And she liked it. Fierce loyalty was a quality she could admire in a man.

  Unlike Aiden, who’d bailed at the first hint of responsibility. Wesley, on the other hand, had stepped up to the plate.

  “Put this in a to-go cup for me, will you?” Aiden pushed his root beer float toward Shannon. “The customers are a little hostile today.”

  Wesley cut Aiden a look that conveyed he’d be willing to step outside if need be.

  Shannon worried her lip. She’d never had two guys fighting over her. This could go badly.

  If Aiden was smart, he’d stop talking.

  Shannon set his to-go cup down in front of him, hoping he’d vacate the premises as soon as possible.

  “A straw, please?” Aiden’s tone caused Wesley to grunt.

  She quickly pulled one from her apron pocket and handed it to him.

  Aiden stood from the bar stool. “I’d leave you a tip but—”

  “You’ll leave her a tip anyway,” Wesley demanded, working his jaw.

  “Wesley,” she whispered the desperate plea, shaking her head.

  “You have nerve. You know I could have you thrown out of this restaurant,” Aiden threatened Wesley. He looked at Shannon. “Who does he think he is?”

  “Aiden, just go. Please.” Shannon couldn’t lose this job. And with the way Aiden and Wesley were behaving, that could be a very real possibility.

  He pulled a five-dollar bill out of his pocket and grudgingly plopped it on the counter. “Keep the change.”

  Shannon sighed in relief when Aiden finally exited the restaurant.

  Wesley’s brow furrowed and he thumbed over his shoulder. “So, that was Aiden?”

  “Yes. And we need to talk. I want to clear the air after what happened last night.”

  “Okay.”

  “Do you need to be somewhere soon? I’m not really due for a break for a couple of hours.”

  “I can sit at a booth and bring my laptop in. That’s the beauty of my job. It goes with me and I can do it anywhere.”

  “Great. Would you like coffee?”

  He stepped near and lightly caressed her cheek with his thumb, sending shivers down her spine. “Yes, please. I’ll hold off on breakfast, though, until you take your break.”

  She nodded. “I’ll bring your coffee out to you.”

  ~

  Wesley sat in a corner booth, half working and half admiring Shannon’s interaction with her customers. She really was an amazing young woman. He found himself wanting to know everything about her.

  “Here you go. Does it look right?” She smiled, placing his breakfast platter on the table.

  His eyes slowly roamed her face, then he took the rest of her in. “It looks perfect.”

  “You didn’t even look at the plate.” Her hand situated on her hip.

  “Don’t need to.”

  She shook her head, a smile playing on her lips, then slid in the booth across from him.

  “You’re sharing this with me,” he insisted. “That’s why I got the big breakfast platter.”

  He bowed his head and prayed aloud for the food, but silently he asked forgiveness for his jealousy and short temper with Aiden earlier.

  “Thank you.” Shannon took a bite of the English muffin.

  “My pleasure.” He nodded slightly. “Go ahead. Tell me whatever’s on your mind.” He dug into his eggs, but trained his eyes on her.

  “Well, okay. Aiden and I dated for about a year or so. Before Mom and Dad, well…” He gathered she was trying to get through this without crying. “Anyway, he sounded like he wanted to get serious and all that. I thought maybe he might propose. He came over after, you know…”

  He nodded. “Your parents.”

  She swallowed. “Yeah. And I was pretty torn up. He was comforting at first.”

  “At first?”

  “Yeah. Apparently, we weren’t on the same page. What he meant by going to the next level was not the same as what I thought.”

  “Which brings us to your bedroom.” He could hurt the guy.

  “Well, yeah. He wanted to, but I said no. After that, he was different. He said he was too young to take on the responsibility of an instant family. He even suggested putting the kids in foster care. Can you even imagine? I would never abandon them, especially after we’d just lost Mom and Dad. They would have been devastated.” She shuttered and brushed away a tear.

  He reached across the table and took her hand. “You did the right thing.”

  “I know. But it’s been really hard.” Twin tears raced down her cheeks now. “I can hardly put food on our table. And the bills just seem to keep coming. DCS has come by a couple of times. I’m just afraid that if I get sick or something…What would happen? I don’t want them to take my siblings away.”

  “That’s not going to happen.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “Didn’t your parents have a life insurance policy or anything?”

  She nodded. “My dad did, but it wasn’t much. I paid for the funerals and then I was advised to pay some toward the house and for future insurance payments. It certainly helped because it lowered the house payment. I wouldn’t have been able to afford what Dad had been paying.”

  “How about other family? Or didn’t your parents have friends that could have helped you?�
��

  She shrugged. “My mom has a sister over on the west coast. She offered to move us over there.” She shook her head. “I didn’t want to leave the only home we’ve ever known and go someplace foreign. It would have been too big of an adjustment for the kids.”

  “I understand.”

  “She did send us some money. I bought the boys’ school clothes and supplies with that and filled up my tank with gas a few times. Their friends brought food by for a few days after the funeral. But that only lasts so long.”

  “I see.” His mind volleyed for words of encouragement. “You know I will help you out any way I can. You don’t have to do this alone.”

  “Wesley…” She shook her head. “I can’t ask you to—”

  “You didn’t ask. And I insist. Don’t think you’re going to change my mind.”

  “You’re stubborn, you know that?” She laughed.

  “One of my best qualities.” He raised his eyebrows twice.

  She aimed a fork in his direction. “What am I going to do with you?”

  “Well, to start, I’m hoping to get a kiss. Before I leave? Please?”

  “Hmm…” She tapped her chin. “I’ll have to think about that one.”

  “You do that. I like it when I’m on your mind.” He winked. “But do it while you’re eating, because I don’t want you to go hungry.”

  Shannon returned to work fifteen minutes later, but not before delighting him with the kiss he’d been hoping for all morning. Their conversation had solidified his determination to take care of her and her siblings, and it confirmed to him that it was, indeed, God who had brought them together.

  God, is Shannon the one?

  It sure seemed like things were leaning in that direction, although he’d never be able to fully commit unless she became a Christian. He needed to pray. Urgently.

  FOURTEEN

  “Wesley,” Dad’s voice echoed from the living room.

  Wesley poked his head out of his bedroom. “Yeah, Dad?”

  “Come here. Your mother and I would like to talk to you.”

  “Sure.” He stepped out into the hallway and made his way to where Mom and Dad sat. Looking rather serious. What was going on?

  He planted himself on the couch when he realized this was going to be more than just a quick chat.