No sooner than Scarlet gets comfortable against me, she jumps up.
“Salsa, get out of the tree.” She grabs the black kitten and brings him to the couch with. He stays for half a second and jumps down, pouncing on the pile of discarded wrapping paper.
Midnight, the mother cat to all the kittens, curiously walks over, batting a plastic bow across the living room. We were only going to take the kitten, but the mama cat really likes me for some reason. She’s a bit annoying, really, and rubs her head all over me while purring almost every night when I go to sleep.
Scarlet laughs, watching the cats have almost as much fun as Jackson with the presents. I take her in my arms again, stealing a kiss before Jackson moves onto the next present.
“I love you,” she whispers, running her hands through my hair.
“I love you too,” I tell her, and we settle back against the couch as Jackson finishes opening his presents. It doesn’t take long. That kid could win an award for fastest present opening.
Once he’s done, I deal with the aftermath of the wrapping paper, torn boxes, and toys scattered throughout the living room. Jackson plays with a new remote control dump truck, ‘helping’ me clean up the mess.
The smell of cinnamon rolls fill the air, and Scarlet turns on Christmas music. She comes back into the living room with a cup of tea in her hand, stopping in the threshold of the room with a smile on her face.
“Breakfast will be ready soon,” she says, taking a drink of tea. She sets her cup down and pulls Salsa from the tree again. I stashed all our breakable ornaments when Jackson was a baby, replacing the pretty glass balls with shatterproof plastic ones that actually look just as good as the others. I almost dug them out of the basement this Christmas and I’m glad we didn’t.
“Then I need to shower so we can get ready to leave.”
I scoop up another armload of wrapping paper and add it to the big gift bag a toy came in. We have a lot of stops to make on the way to my parents’ for their big Christmas party.
The first stop is to Eastwood’s Senior Care Center, where Mr. Cooper now lives. We were able to get him a room there around the first of the month, and it’s been a big weight off Scarlet’s shoulders. The old nursing home was a dump. I didn’t want to say anything and make Scarlet feel worse, but I was shocked when I walked in, and not in a good way.
The second stop we have to make won’t be fun. It’ll be awkward and uncomfortable, but it’s something I couldn’t rightfully refuse to do.
Daisy’s parents want to see Jackson on Christmas. They got him presents and asked if he could come over for lunch. Scarlet and I are going with, and I’m not sure if Daisy will be there or not. The judge let her off easy, and she’s going to court-ordered therapy. I haven’t seen her since she left the last time, and now all the paperwork is official and filed.
I’m not married to her anymore. I’m free to remarry anyone I want, and that person is standing in the living room with a squirming kitten in her hands. Quinn suggested I propose while we’re all at Disney World together after her wedding. Scarlet’s never been and is just as excited as Jackson to go.
It’s a damn good idea and would be magical and fitting for Scarlet, but I don’t know if I can wait that long. I love her, and I know there will never be another who fits with us as well as she does.
Things were awkward for a while after we told the rest of my family the truth. I was good with not ever bringing it up, but Scarlet insisted she come clean and start with no secrets. Dean and Archer had the hardest time with it, convinced she wasn’t trustworthy. Owen already knew, of course, and told Logan later that day after I left the bar. Dad didn’t understand how I could be so understanding and forgiving, and when I tell the whole story, it surprises me too.
But Scarlet isn’t that person anymore. I don’t think that’s ever who she really was in the first place. She’s a good person, and I know one day soon she’ll make a good wife.
“Merry Christmas!” Jackson shouts, running through the kitchen. He’s on the lookout for more presents.
“Hey, Sheriff,” Owen says, piling more cookies on his plate. Ever since I won the election, that’s all he’ll call me. He knows it annoys me.
“Hey,” I say back, letting it go this time. “Save some for the rest of us.”
“You should have gotten here sooner.”
Mom comes in, shooing Owen away with her hand. “Those are for dessert. We haven’t even had dinner yet.” She gives me a hug and moves on to Scarlet.
“You look lovely, dear. And I love your necklace.”
“Thanks,” Scarlet says, hand going to her neck. “Wes got it for me for Christmas.”
“He has good taste.” Mom smiles and goes to the stove to check on dinner.
“Yeah,” Scarlet says with a smile. “He does.” The necklace is a little star, encrusted with diamonds. I know how much she loves to look at the stars. I fill a plate with appetizers and take Scarlet’s hand, going into the living room to find my other siblings. We’re early, but soon my extended family will shuffle into the house and things will get loud.
“Logan brought Danielle?” Scarlet whispers, slowing before we get into the living room. “I thought they were just friends?”
“That’s what he tells us.”
No one believes them, and if they really are just friends, then they’re both missing out. I don’t know Danielle well, but she seems nice enough and gets along with Logan better than anyone I’ve seen him with.
He brought her to Thanksgiving too, which threw us all for a loop. He’s never brought anyone home for a holiday. He claims it was because Danielle’s at odds with her family right now. They’re rather conservative and had a whole plan laid out for the rest of her life that she had no say in. She basically ran away from it all last year, coming to live at her grandfather’s farm here in Eastwood.
“Quinn and I had an idea and we think—”
“No,” I say with a laugh. “We shouldn’t get involved. And you know by now how much my sister likes to play matchmaker.”
Scarlet smiles and gives my hand a squeeze. “Maybe just a little push?”
I shrug, not seeing how any harm can come from that. “Fine. But nothing more than a little push.”
I don’t see how the push can hurt, and if one of them confesses how they really feel they finally won’t be able to deny it anymore. I want my brother to be happy, and I know he’ll be happy with Danielle.
A push could be a good thing.
Unless they’re pushed too far.
“Merry Christmas,” Quinn says, coming into the room. She’s holding Emma, who’s dressed like a little elf.
“Oh my God,” Scarlet coos, going over. “This is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen!”
“She’s adorable!” Kara agrees.
“Does it make you want one?” Quinn teases.
“Nope. No way.”
Scarlet takes Emma from Quinn’s arms, cradling her against her chest. Her eyes meet mine and I know what she’s thinking, because right now I’m thinking the same thing.
It’s making us both want a baby.
“Did you get everything you wanted for Christmas?” Archer asks Jackson, scooping him up.
“I did!” Jackson says excitedly and goes on to list all the new toys he got. I step next to Scarlet, putting my arm around her shoulder. I got everything I want too.
Scarlet’s phone rings, and she scrambles to get it from her purse. Her brother is supposed to be calling today, and was trying to call around this time. He’s stationed somewhere new and it’s looking like he’ll come home in January.
I go into the kitchen, finding Owen stealing more cookies, and take one too. Mom comes in and shoos us both away. Scarlet is in the dining room, and I want to give her some space while she talks to her brother. I go back into the living room with the rest of my family, hanging out and talking until it’s time for dinner.
Scarlet, Jackson, and I are stuffed and tired by the time we get ho
me several hours later. I changed Jackson into his PJs and brushed his teeth at my parents, knowing he’d fall asleep on the short ride home. I carry him upstairs and lay him in bed.
“Dad?” he grumbles, eyes fluttering open.
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, buddy.”
He closes his eyes and reaches for the yellow unicorn. “And I love Scarlet.”
“That’s something we both have in common.” I run my fingers through his hair and kiss his forehead. The kid is wiped out and falls asleep within minutes. I tuck him in and go downstairs to find Scarlet.
Only, she’s not in the house. This time, there’s no panic or worry. I know exactly where she is.
Grabbing a blanket from the couch, I find her on the back porch steps, looking up at the clear sky above us. I sit next to her, draping the blanket around our shoulders.
“This is perfect,” she whispers, wrapping her arm around me. “I’m kind of sad Christmas is over.”
“We’ll get to do it again next year.”
She looks at me with a smile. “Are you sure you want that?”
“More than anything. I want you next year. And the year after that. And the one after that. Actually,” I start and get up, extending a hand. Scarlet takes it, eyes sparkling with amusement. “I love you, Scarlet Cooper. This isn’t how I planned it, because I don’t even have a ring yet, but you’re right. This is perfect.”
“Wes, what are you—”
I get down on one knee. “Will you marry me?”
The blanket slides off her shoulders and tears fill her eyes. She stares at me in disbelief, and for a moment I think I asked too soon.
Then the biggest smile takes over her face. “Yes! Yes, of course I will marry you!”
I get up and pull her into my arms. “I love you. Today, tomorrow, and every day after that. I will always love you.”
Epilogue
Scarlet
Six months later…
“Thank you so much,” Quinn says, pushing her messy hair out of her face and takes Emma from my arms. “With Archer’s parents up in Michigan visiting Bobby and my own consumed with construction on the hospital, I’m struggling.”
“It’s no big deal.” I look down at Jackson. “We had fun. Emma was perfect.”
Quinn raises an eyebrow in disbelief. Now that she’s over a year and is walking, Emma is a handful. And poor Quinn has been puking nonstop pretty much since the day she conceived her second child. She said she went through the same thing with Emma, making me question her sanity on getting pregnant again.
“Is Archer going to be home soon?”
“Yeah, thankfully.” We move into Quinn’s house, which is far from neat and tidy like it usually is. I hope when I’m finally pregnant I don’t get hit with morning sickness like this.
Right after Wes proposed we started trying in a sense. I knew it would take a miracle to knock me up, but I was hopeful. We had a small but beautiful wedding on Valentine’s Day, and then I had a sit down with my OB to talk about what was really wrong with me. After a slew of tests, I’ve been taking fertility drugs and we’ve still had no luck.
I know many couples try much longer than we have, but it’s starting to really weigh on me. Jackson is dying for a sibling.
“How’s your sister?” Quinn asks, sinking down on the couch in the family room. Three of her six cats are in here, lounging around.
“She’s doing pretty well, actually. I think the group home is a good adjustment for her. She got a job last week at a bookstore.”
“That’s great!”
“Baby steps, but a step is a step.” Heather got out of prison last month. Around the New Year she started going to a church group with a few other inmates and it actually turned her around. She still goes to church and is currently living in a group home for troubled young adults with mental health issues. She’s still in Chicago, but we try to see each other at least once a week.
“When will your belly get big?” Jackson asks, looking at Quinn’s stomach.
Quinn puts her hand on her belly. “You’ll probably notice a baby bump in a month or so. I’ve heard you show sooner with the second.”
“You’re totally going to be one of those pregnant ladies who’s all belly and boob, aren’t you?” I ask.
Quinn smiles. “I was last time.” She makes a sour face and then gets up, rushing to the bathroom to throw up. Jackson and I stay a little longer, waiting to leave until Archer gets home. He thanks me as well for helping out with Emma today so Quinn can rest.
“Are you tried?” I ask Jackson when we get home. “I’m tired. Emma wore me out.”
“I’m not tired,” he says with a yawn. “Can I go play now?”
“Yeah, that’d be great. Dinner will be ready in about an hour.”
He goes upstairs and I have every intention of starting dinner, but I fall asleep on the couch, not waking until Wes comes home.
“You feeling okay, babe?” he asks when I get up.
“Yeah, I’ve been tired all day. Maybe I’m coming down with something.”
Wes raises his eyebrows. “Or maybe…”
“I wish.” I shake my head. I’ve been pretty good about waiting until after my period is supposed to begin before taking a test.
“You’ve been tired all week.”
“That’s just one symptom,” I remind him, though after watching poor Quinn puke her brains out I just kind of assumed I’d be like that too and I’d know with absolute certainty that I was pregnant.
Still, Wes’s question hangs over me throughout dinner. And dessert. And bedtime. So much so that I break a rule and bust out a test.
Jackson is fast asleep, and Wes is watching TV downstairs. I said I was going to change into PJs and be right back. Taking one test won’t take long. And I have to pee anyway.
My hands shake and I close my eyes, talking myself down. Flipping that test over and seeing a big fat negative is more disappointing than I ever expected.
But this time…
“Wes!” I blink. Once. Twice. “Wes!”
I hear him running up the stairs. “What’s wrong?” he asks, pushing open the bathroom door. I’m standing in front of the sink, too stunned to talk. I hold up the test.
Wes looks at it, at me, and back at the test again. Then he pulls me into his arms.
“You’re pregnant!”
CHEAP TRICK, book four in the Dawson Family Series, features Logan Dawson and is releasing in late winter 2019. Click here to sign up for a release alert.
After Dark (Quinn & Archer novella)
1
Quinn
“Isn’t it a little early to be decorating for Halloween?”
I take another step up on the ladder and turn around to dubiously stare at Dean. “Nope.” I drape the black lace over the mirror above the living room fireplace. “How does that look?”
“It’s a little uneven. Pull it to the left.”
I spend a minute adjusting the lace, climbing down the ladder to further inspect it. The mantel is decorated with a black candelabra and white and black pumpkins. I have a theme going on in this room, and it’ll only take one or two—or ten if I’m being honest—more trips to Target to complete it.
The front door opens and closes, and the loud voices and laughter of my twin brothers fills the foyer. I move the ladder to the side and wave to Owen and Logan.
“Hey, guys!”
“Looks good, sis,” Logan says, taking off his shoes and stepping into the living room.
Owen nods approvingly. “I feel like I stepped foot in the Haunted Mansion.”
“Yes!” I exclaim, a little too enthusiastically. “That’s part of what I’m going for.”
“It’s still September,” Dean mumbles as he walks around the living room, letting Emma see the new decorations. Fascinated in what Mommy was doing, she’s been quiet this whole time. Owen comes over and holds out a hand. Emma smiles and reaches for him.
> “She wants her favorite uncle,” Owen says.
“She’s with her favorite uncle,” Dean deadpans.
“Obviously not.” Logan joins us. “Because I’m not holding her. Give her to me.”
“Not happening.” Dean turns away with a smile.
I laugh and pick up the little pieces of plastic wrappers that fell from the packages. Emma is a crawling machine these days and everything is fair game for going right into her mouth.
“Feel free to come back at three in the morning and fight over who gets to get her when she’s crying or has had the biggest poopy diaper that requires a bath, and outfit change, and a change of sheets.”
Owen makes a face. “Don’t you co-sleep?”
I raise an eyebrow. “Some nights. So yes, before you ask, it’s always me who gets covered in baby poop.”
“This is good birth control,” Dean says, smiling down at Emma. She reaches for his face and he sticks out his tongue. She laughs and my heart melts. This isn’t good birth control for me. Or Archer. We really want another baby, but are waiting until after our wedding this summer, and it seems so. Far. Away.
Especially when I see Archer with our daughter. She’s starting to look like him, but we think she’ll end up with my green eyes. Emma adores her father, and I couldn’t ask for a better daddy for our daughter.
The beginning of our relationship was rocky to say the least, but things couldn’t be more perfect with Archer now. I have a big rock on my left hand, we’re getting married at the Grand Floridian at Disney World this coming June, and we’re settling into our new house.
Everything is so perfect, in fact, that I worry it will all come crashing down around me. Not that I think Archer will fall out of love with me or anything. There’s a greater chance of hell freezing over and the Devil himself paying me a personal visit with cakes and pleasantries than Archer’s love dwindling. That man worships me, just like I do him.
Dawson Family Boxset (Books 1-3) Page 78