Christmas All Around Us ; The Perfect Time for Love ; Playing for Keeps

by Carla Kincaid

  Asking Julie for help was the first thought that popped into Rachel's mind when she came to her senses and realized she'd agreed to babysit Misty -- by herself! Something told her if there was anyone who was up to the task of looking after Gail's daughter it would be a woman who spent her days wrangling little kids in tights into straight lines. Agreeing to attend the gala with Julie was the least Rachel could do to thank her for her help. Besides, since Rachel obviously couldn't leave town while her friend was in need, spending a night surrounded by Christmas decorations would certainly be more tolerable in the company of an attractive woman.

  Rachel looked across at Julie, now seated with Misty in her lap. The two of them were flipping through a picture book with Julie making up funny voices for each of the animated characters in the story. Misty seemed calm and comfortable in spite of the fact she hadn't been able to see her mother yet. If it had been up to Rachel she would have handed the kid her cell phone and let her zone out on videos -- age-appropriate ones of course -- until the nurse came to take them to Gail's recovery room. Watching them, Rachel knew she'd made the right decision asking Julie for help with her guardian duties.

  "Which one should we read next?" Julie asked holding up two books for Misty to choose from.

  "This one!" Misty said pointing enthusiastically.

  Rachel could see from the back cover that the book was one from the Dr. Seuss series. A slight smile crossed Rachel's face at the memory of her own favorite Seuss stories. Reading had been her escape as a child and she'd probably read every kid's book the great Dr. had ever written.

  For Rachel, there had been no adult to share the experience with. By Misty's age, she'd already learned that her parents couldn't be depended on to meet more than her basic needs for food and shelter. Any affection or tenderness was in short supply in the Samuels' house and the memory of that lack pricked at Rachel's heart and brought tears dangerously close to her eyelids.

  Not wanting to visit those memories, Rachel shook her head and pulled out her cell phone and began composing an email to Joseph Brighton of Brighton and Myers Attorneys At Law. She needed to let the senior partner know that her trip to visit the firm would be delayed for a few days. Of course, Rachel wasn't worried about them resending the generous job offer they'd already made. As it was, they were willing to hire her without her making the trip at all. It was Rachel who wanted to fly out and meet the other partners prior to making her final decision to join the firm.

  She'd only been at her current firm for two years but that was about as long as Rachel stayed any place. For a while, after joining her current law firm, Thompson and Taylor, Rachel entertained the thought of settling down in Philadelphia but as the two-year mark inched closer on the calendar, Rachel felt a familiar sense of restlessness and quickly began to hunting around for another opportunity.

  Sunny California seemed like the perfect next place, she thought as the waiting room door slid open for the umpteenth time letting in an icy breeze. Even though she knew they still celebrated Christmas there, in Rachel's mind dealing with a Santa on a surfboard was preferable to one on a sleigh. Now it was looking like the beach would have to wait until the New Year.

  "Mommy, I brought you a candy cane to help you feel better," Misty said as a nurse guided Misty, Rachel and Julie into Gail's room.

  Julie lifted Misty onto the bed and Rachel watched as the little girl handed her mother the piece of candy and then gave her a big hug. With some effort, Rachel pushed thoughts of her own mother out of her mind.

  "Thank you, Sweetheart," Gail said as she kissed the top of her daughter's brownish curls. "This will definitely help Mommy get better real soon." Gail released the hug and placed her hands on either side of her daughter's face so the two were eye to eye. "Until I get all the way better you're going to stay with Rachel so she can take care of you, okay."

  Misty's face turned pale with worry. "You're not coming home, Mommy G.?" she asked in a soft, sad voice.

  "I'm not coming home tonight but you're going to stay with Rachel until I get out of the hospital. And I bet if you ask her really nice Rachel will help you with our Christmas to-do list."

  At first, Rachel thought Gail was referring to a shopping list. That she could handle but something in her friend's expression made her realize that wasn't the kind of list she was talking about.

  "Before Claire went out of town, she made a list of all the Christmas activities Misty and I were supposed to do together while she was gone."

  Her friend was only saying half of what she was thinking but Rachel picked up on the subtle meaning. Claire had given her a Christmas Honey Do List and now Gail had screwed it all up.

  "What is this about a Christmas list?" Julie asked with an exuberant level of interest.

  Gail smiled and turned to Misty. "Do you want to tell her?"

  The little girl looked at her mother and encouraged by her smile began to explain.

  "The list is on the 'fridgerator," Misty began. "We do fun stuff every day until Mommy C. comes home and Santa brings our presents." Misty's enthusiasm was obvious but Rachel wasn't sure it was a good thing to let little kids believe in Santa Claus. To her, it set them up for either too much disappointment when they didn't get what they wanted or an inappropriate level of entitlement when every frivolous request was granted.

  "Do you remember the things on the list?" Gail asked her daughter.

  Misty began ticking off activities on her fingers. "Buy a Christmas tree. Go on a sleigh ride. Watch a Christmas movie." She paused and her face scrunched together as she tried to remember what else her mothers had told her they were going to do. "And drink lots of hot chocolate!" she said with an exuberant finish.

  "Wow!" Julie exclaimed in a voice as enthusiastic as Misty's. "That sounds like a lot of fun. I'd really like to help you with your Christmas list if you'll let me."

  Julie's words made Rachel's normally Grinch sized heart expand ever so slightly. Maybe tackling the Christmas activities with Julie's help would make it a little more bearable.

  Misty's eyebrows were still furrowed together like two kissing caterpillars. For a moment she reminded Rachel of a particularly stern judge she'd often appeared before in court. She too was hard to persuade.

  "Okay," Misty finally said giving her new caregivers her blessing. It looked like they'd won her over but then she burst out with another concern. "What about Simon? Is he coming too?"

  Rachel's eyes flew open wide, and she was sure a look of terror crossed her face. She'd heard far too many stories about the antics of Gail's hyperactive Sheepdog. Just the thought of the huge mop-haired beast running around her pristine condo made Rachel cringe.

  "Maybe Julie and I should stay with you at your house," Rachel interjected quickly.

  Misty's somber judge expression returned. So, this is what Rachel's life had come to -- holding negotiations with a five-year-old. Rachel wasn't sure if her years of legal experience had prepared her for any of this.

  "I think that would be a great idea," Gail chimed in. "If it doesn't inconvenience the two of you too much."

  Rachel hadn't even considered Julie's point-of-view when she made the offer. Now all she could do was hope Julie didn't object either.

  "It would be like a sleepover!" Julie said clapping her hands together.

  Misty's eyes brightened slightly. Julie obviously knew the right way to pitch an idea to kids.

  "Wow! A sleepover! Doesn't that sound fun?" Gail asked Misty matching Julie's enthusiasm.

  The little girl continued to inspect the two women standing in front of her. Rachel felt her body tense as they waited for the verdict. Finally Misty nodded her head.

  "Okay," she whispered.

  With that, the matter was settled and Rachel's life as a full-time childcare provider was about to begin.

  Chapter 3

  Julie certainly hadn't expected her desire to be helpful to turn into an opportunity to share a roof with her secret crush but she wasn't exactly mad about the t
urn of events.

  "Thanks, again for agreeing to do this with me," Rachel said as the two of them drove to the Empowerment Now office to pick up Rachel's car.

  A nice nurse named Lori, who was finished with her shift, said she wouldn't mind sitting in Gail's room to keep an eye on Misty while the two temporary guardians prepared for their adventure. The generous offer gave Julie and Rachel time to collect Rachel's car, stop by each of their homes to pick up a few things and then drop Julie's truck off at Gail's house. By the time they drove back to the hospital in Rachel's car, it was way past Misty's bedtime which was probably for the best. A sleeping child made their departure from the hospital much less dramatic than an awake one would have.

  "I'll grab the bags. You get the body," Julie joked as they pulled up to Gail's house.

  Rachel seemed to hesitate for a moment before lifting Misty from her car seat. The expression on her face made Julie wonder if Rachel had any experience with kids at all. She didn't know Rachel well enough to have much information about her personal life. All she really knew was that Rachel was single, an attorney, originally from Chicago -- and really good at her job. At least that's what her expensive car, clothes and the condo in a fancy part of town indicated. Other than that, the woman's life was a bit of a mystery. One that Julie had to admit she was excited about unraveling over the next few days.

  "It must be nice to fall asleep anywhere, knowing someone will pick you up and carry you to bed," Rachel joked when she joined Julie in the kitchen after taking Misty to her room.

  "Yeah. I'd almost be willing to pay someone to carry me to bed every night," Julie replied. The statement came out laced with an air of sexual innuendo that Julie hadn't intended to speak out loud. She looked over her shoulder at Rachel but Julie couldn't read her expression. Was she intrigued? Surprised? Enticed? "I mean, I...," Julie stuttered, trying to clean up her words in case the expression meant Rachel was repulsed. "I just mean life was easier when we were kids," she stuttered.

  "Well, I don't know about life being easier," Rachel said offhandedly.

  There was something sad in the tone of her voice and it made Julie wonder what Rachel's childhood had been like. She wanted to ask more but just then Rachel let out a big yawn and Julie let the subject drop.

  "You want something to eat?" she said instead. She'd been fishing through Gail's fridge trying to find something she could prepare without a lot of fuss. "You have your choice of a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup or some leftover meatloaf."

  "I think I'll go for the grilled cheese and soup if it's not too much trouble," Rachel said with a smile.

  "Two grilled cheese sandwiches coming up!" Julie announced. She began putting the ingredients together for their meal -- grateful to have something to do with her hands while in such close proximity to Rachel.

  Even though she'd managed to get her nerve up to ask Rachel to the gala, it was more than a little challenging to deal with all the emotions being in the same living space was stirring up. Julie still suspected that Rachel agreeing to go to the gala with her had more to do with the woman's gratitude for Julie helping her with Misty than any interest in a romantic night out. Julie had to be careful not to reveal her own more-than-platonic interest because if the feeling wasn't mutual it would make the next few days absolutely unbearable. It's better to play it cool, Julie thought to herself. Although cool had never exactly been her forte.

  "So do you only teach dance to kids," Rachel asked oblivious to Julie's inner turmoil.

  "No. The kids' classes are my main gig. But I also teach a class at the Y that's open to all ages and a few classes at a local senior center."

  As Julie flipped the hot sandwiches over in a pan, she wondered if her career path sounded as flakey to Rachel as it did to her. Dance was the only thing Julie had ever really been passionate about and even though she'd had dreams of becoming a professional dancer, all she'd ever booked were a few productions with a small local dance company. Teaching was the only option that allowed her to stay connected to the craft she loved and make enough money to live on.

  "I've also started giving private lessons to adults wanting to improve their social dance skills," Julie continued, sharing the seeds of a new business venture she'd started.

  "I don't have what it takes to work with people up close like that," Rachel said. "I'm sure you must be good at it though. You're so patient and compassionate."

  Julie blushed at the compliment. "Thanks. Yeah, I like working with most of my clients," she admitted. "Although sometimes the senior citizens are even more exhausting than the little kids," Julie said with a laugh as she thought about some of her super energetic older students.

  "I've got two left feet myself," Rachel said with a shrug. "I wanted to help with the fundraiser because I believe in the cause but the thought of dancing in public makes me a little nervous. I was able to avoid it last year because I went out of town for a few weeks at the end of the year but now..."

  Julie tried to cover her surprise as she slid a grilled cheese sandwich onto a plate and handed it to Rachel. It was hard for her to imagine the esteemed attorney ever being nervous about anything. From Julie's perspective, Rachel always seemed to be so cool and confident.

  "Don't worry about dancing at the gala," Julie said with a boldness that only surfaced when she was talking about the art form she loved. "No one will be judging you there. And I'd be happy to show you a few steps." She smiled awkwardly as her eyes met Rachel's.

  The woman was wearing another indiscernible expression. I'd be willing to spend a week's salary just to know what she was thinking right now, Julie thought to herself.

  "This looks great," Rachel said without commenting further on the gala or the potential dance lesson. Instead, she dug into her sandwich causing the conversation to end.

  After eating, both Julie and Rachel agreed they were pretty exhausted, so they headed to bed -- Rachel in Gail and Claire's room and Julie in the guest bedroom down the hall. But as tired as Julie was, an hour after turning off the small lamp beside her bed she was still wide awake staring at the ceiling.

  In her mind, she kept picturing what it would be like to dance with Rachel at the gala. She imagined herself putting her arms around Rachel's waist and gently gliding her across the banquet hall floor. While swaying under all the twinkling lights, Rachel would finally admit her attraction to Julie and when they realized they were standing under the mistletoe, Julie would lean in and they'd share their very first kiss. Julie kept replaying the scene over and over in her imagination.

  This is ridiculous, she thought as she rolled over and looked at the clock on the nightstand. Another hour and a half had drifted by. You've got to stop this crazy fantasizing, she told herself. Julie knew she was going to regret not getting enough sleep. If there was one thing experience had taught her it was that kids had little to no sympathy for adults who didn't have the energy to keep up with them during the day. If she was going to be alert enough to spend an entire morning, afternoon and evening watching Misty, she was going to have to get some sleep. Maybe a glass of wine would do the trick, she thought remembering a bottle of Merlot she'd seen in the wine rack in the kitchen earlier.

  Julie slipped out of bed and tiptoed down the hall. Even though the weather outside was threatening heavier snow at any minute, the temperature inside was warm and toasty. She didn't even miss the bathrobe she'd forgotten to pack when she picked up a few things at her apartment.

  Julie uncorked the bottle and poured herself a small glass of wine. The liquid was smooth and warm but it needed something with it. Julie opened the refrigerator -- resigned to slicing off a chunk of the cheese left over from the sandwiches earlier -- when something in the transparent vegetable drawer caught her eye.

  "Cupcakes!" Julie whispered as she pulled a small cellophane container from it's hiding place. She shimmied with excitement. A little chocolate would go just perfectly with the wine and she knew by experience that after consuming both she'd be out lik
e a light!

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