A Christmas to Remember(18)

After she’d cleared the dishes, Carrie made her way to her room, noticing a light on in the office. She wondered what could possibly be so important that it couldn’t wait until the next day when he was so clearly tired and hungry. What about the person on the other end of that call? Did he have a family to go home to? Was Adam requiring that person to work beyond reasonable hours? Or were they both workaholics? He’d said that some nights he came home even later than he had tonight. When did he see his children? He’d gone out this morning shortly after they’d gotten up and he came back after they were in bed. How could he cope with that?

She’d had to put his entire supper back in the fridge. Exasperation slinked through her slowly until she could feel it harden her expression. There was no reason to work like that. It wasn’t right. She didn’t know anything about what it took to run a business, but she knew what it was like to have responsibilities, and Adam had more responsibilities than just that brewery. He had two children and a life, and he was choosing work over both.

No wonder he didn’t know his children. If tonight was any indication of how he spent his days, it was clear that he was never around enough to know them. Part of her wanted to go into his office and let him know all the things she was thinking, but she knew it wasn’t her place. It made her feel helpless as she saw the faces of David and Olivia in her mind. They had so much joy to offer, if he’d let them.

She remembered the ramekin on his desk and wondered if he ate most of his meals in his office. He hadn’t had supper, and, adding to her annoyance, she couldn’t sleep, knowing that he probably hadn’t eaten since lunchtime. With a huff, and only so that she could have peace of mind, she slipped on her jeans and a sweater and went down to the kitchen. It was still dark and clean the way she’d left it. She opened the fridge, sending the only light into the room, and pulled out some sandwich fixings. She fixed him a sandwich and glass of water and headed upstairs.

As she neared the office, she could hear the sound of keys clicking. The clicking increased to a frantic pace and then subsided, then more. What was he doing? Why couldn’t he just wait? Carrie rolled her head around on her shoulders in an attempt to release the tension created by her irritation. She walked through the door, and he looked up.

“I brought you a sandwich,” she said, inwardly squirming because she’d just stated the obvious. His rudeness tonight had made her so flustered that she couldn’t get her thoughts together.

Adam’s face dropped from expectant to serious, and he looked contemplative and maybe even regretful. She didn’t know him well enough to be sure, but he did leave his supper to get cold without even a proper apology. Did he feel impolite at all for leaving her sitting there on her own? She set the sandwich on his desk and turned to leave. He was clearly busy, and she didn’t want to interrupt him. If she did, he’d probably never go to bed.

“Carrie,” he said quietly. She turned around.“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” she returned, still feeling aggravated that his life consisted of this when he had so much more right in front of him. His two children and that lovely house were there, just waiting for him to make memories, and it seemed that he didn’t even realize it.





Chapter Six





Know your strengths and use them. Carrie could definitely follow this suggestion from her book.

“Let’s decorate for Christmas!” she said to the children, the front door wide open and the brick landing full of the boxes of Christmas decorations that she’d ordered. She pulled them inside one by one, dropping snow onto the oriental runner that ran the length of the hallway. David tried to get one of the boxes open while Olivia hopped up and down in excitement. Olivia had dressed herself today, and she had on her fairy tutu, a green and white striped shirt, and her bunny slippers.

“I can’t get it,” David said, his face full of concern. Carrie smiled, thinking how much he looked like Adam. He was just like him in so many ways—the way his eyebrows pulled together, the pout of his lips when he was thinking, his serious personality. Had Adam realized how similar they were? Unlike his sister, David had asked Carrie to pick out his clothes, ensuring that they were meant to go together.

“It’s okay. I’ll get some scissors from the office. Do you want to come with me?”

“Yes!” Olivia bounced up and down, and Carrie laughed. How funny that the personalities of these two twins were like night and day.

The children followed her to get the scissors, and, when she entered the office, she noticed that Adam must have taken care of the plate from the sandwich last night. She wondered what time he’d finally gone to bed. He was already gone when the kids woke her up this morning, and the coffee was cold in the coffee pot, so he must have left quite early. She opened the drawer and retrieved the scissors.