A Christmas to Remember(20)

“Why?” she asked.

“Well, because he may want to help us pick it out.”

“He won’t want to.”

“How do you know?”

“Because, silly, he has to work!” Olivia giggled, but Carrie felt the weight of her words Adam had shown his kids that he’d rather work than be with them. They didn’t even believe that he was capable of wanting to get a Christmas tree.

“David, don’t you think your daddy would like to get a Christmas tree with us?”

“He’ll probably tell us to get it. That’s what he does when we need things.”

“Well, I think we should ask him to go. Let’s tell him how wonderful it will be and make him want to go with us. I think it would be fun.” Carrie was hoping to convince the children, but their looks to one another told her she may have some more persuading to do.



It was after eight o’clock again when Adam got home. He entered the kitchen, talking on his cell phone. Does he ever switch that thing off? she wondered.

“What’s the printing cost if we switched printers?” he said, his eyes darting to Carrie and then away. The excitement she felt seeing him mixed with the frustration she had for the way he ignored everyone, giving her a headache. She rubbed the bridge of her nose, trying to ease the pinch there but stopped quickly when Adam turned around. “While you’re with the team,” he said, still not looking at Carrie, “let them know that I’ve signed off on the Westwood building with Robert. I’m sure glad we had him on our side.”

Carrie sat at the table with a bowl of stew she’d cooked during the day and two cards made by Olivia and David. “…And I’ll need a cost proposal for the printing.” Adam shrugged off his coat and set his shoes neatly by the door to the hallway. Carrie got up and dished Adam a bowl of stew from the pot that she had warming on the stove. Then, she poured two glasses of the wine from the bottle that he had opened last night. He seemed to finally notice that she’d prepared supper and said, “Okay. Let me chew on the rest a while. I’ll call you back.” He set his phone onto the counter and turned toward the table.

She was getting a little less nervous around him, which was good since she’d have to see him every night. She could at least form sentences. Maybe it was her impatience with his work that was making the nerves subside. She was too bothered to be nervous. While she understood that having his own business would certainly take a lot of work, the fact that he couldn’t spare any time at all rubbed her the wrong way. But still, she felt almost giddy when he entered a room. She wasn’t trying to, but she noticed his idiosyncrasies, his habits, his mannerisms, and learned them almost immediately. Her heart raced whenever he looked at her, and she craved his smile, any attention at all that would give her a chance to see his gorgeous face. Already, she felt invested in his family, in him.

“I thought I told you that you didn’t have to make me supper,” he said with a tired grin.

“I didn’t. I made myself supper. You just benefitted from the large recipe,” she teased, hoping she hadn’t crossed any lines. She took a risk teasing him, but seeing his friendly grin, she felt like she could. “Wine?” She held out a glass. He smiled that smile that could make her knees buckle. There was something there between them, as if she’d known him longer than she had—at least on her end. Even when she was frustrated by his behavior, she was glad to have him around. She felt as though her real personality was finally emerging through the nervousness. As long as he didn’t look at her too long, she could manage. And, when he finally stopped working for a second, it was nice to have his company. While she loved the children, she enjoyed having an adult around. She wished he’d stay still, sit down, and talk to her. She was interested in knowing more about him, but he seemed to always be on the move, always working.

“Have you been baking?” he asked.

“No. Just the stew. Why?”

“I smell peppermint.”

“Oh, it’s the Christmas candle.” She pointed to a large red and white striped jar flickering on the island. It had been one of the purchases she’d made with his credit card.

“It’s nice,” he said. When he sat down, she slid the two cards toward him. “What’s this?” he asked, taking a sip of wine.

“David and Olivia have written you a letter.” She put her finger on the front of each card. “Why You Should Get a Christmas Tree With Us,” she read, looking up at him as anxiety tickled her skin. She didn’t know him very well, and she was pushing things to impose something like this on him It made her feel a little worried that she’d offend him, but she’d already started the conversation, so she’d better finish it. Trying to keep her hands steady, she opened the cards. “Olivia said that you should get a Christmas tree because they are heavy, and you can help to carry it for us. See,” she tapped a circle with eyes on the paper, “this is you carrying the tree.” She took David’s card and read it aloud. “David says you should get a Christmas tree with us because you could help us pay for it. That’s his money there.” She set the cards down on the table. “Olivia thinks you’re strong and David thinks you can provide for the family.” She didn’t want to point out the obvious—that neither child said they wanted to be with their daddy to get a tree. She was hopeful that Adam would make that connection and realize that he needed to be with them sometimes if he ever planned on having any kind of bond with them.