Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses(53)

“My friend’s having a party tomorrow night and her caterer canceled. I have to help her make food and I need to go shopping,” she explained.

“Oh. That’s no problem. Would you like me to arrange to have a caterer for her?”

“No… You don’t need to intervene.” Any caterer he hired had probably never set foot in a party like the kind Adrienne was throwing. Crème brûlée wouldn’t complement the annual red and green Jell-O shooters.

“But don’t you need a caterer?”

“If you want to help, you could help me do the cooking.” She was only kidding but she could see he was considering it.

“Why would we cook when we clearly aren’t as qualified as caterers?”

“To show that we care.”

He looked at her as if her comment was the most ridiculous thing he’d heard.

“How would you show someone that you care if you didn’t have your money to fall back on?” she asked.

He stared at her. He didn’t have an answer. She didn’t have time to help him understand. She needed to go, but the problem was now he’d had food cooked for her. She could smell it and it made her tummy rumble.

She struggled for a way to make everyone happy. She had to somehow not waste Nick’s dinner he’d had made, shop for Adrienne, relieve her mother, and spend time with Max—all before cooking for the party.

“Come with me,” she said in desperation. Her mouth dried out before the words had left her lips. What are you saying? she immediately thought. You shouldn’t be asking this. “Box up our dinners. I’ll share mine with Max.” Max will be delighted. “We can eat at my apartment.” I haven’t cleaned…

That curiosity that she’d seen before was all over his face. “I’ll get our coats.”

She couldn’t help the rush of excitement. Despite their conversation earlier, she could still distract him. She didn’t have time to ponder the consequences.

It had only taken a few minutes, and she found herself being let in to her own car by Nick, their dinners in his hand. She slid inside and eyed the old stray receipts and a tube of lip-gloss on the passenger seat. Quickly, she scooped them up and stuffed them into her handbag. Nick got in, fastened his seatbelt, and set the large brown paper bag of dinner on his lap. The smell of it was so rich and strong that her stomach growled again.

They drove quietly, the two of them eyeing each other as they made their way to her apartment. Once, they’d glanced over at each other at the same time, and he’d smiled at her, sending her stomach flipping.

When they arrived at her apartment, Nick got out and followed her toward the stairs.

Before they could get up the steps to her door, she saw Max peeking through the blinds. Then, the door swung open and Max came running down the stairs toward them. “Hi, Mama!” he called just before breaking into a bigger grin. “Hi, Nick!”

“Max,” Abbey giggled. “Go back inside. You’re barefoot!”

“What do you have in that bag, Nick?” he asked as they met him on the stairs and Abbey ushered him toward the warmth of the apartment, his hand skipping over the red velvet Christmas bows on the railing as he held on for support in his bare feet. Max walked beside Nick.

“Dinner. Do you like spaghetti?”

Max nodded.

“It’s like fancy spaghetti.”

Noticing the uncertainty in Max’s eyes, Abbey said with a grin, “I have chicken nuggets we can heat up if you don’t like it.” Max was a somewhat picky eater, and she wasn’t at all that sure he would give Nick’s dinner a try.

When they opened the door, Abbey’s mom was busy wiping down counters, looking out of breath, and Abbey wondered if she, too, had peeked outside. It warmed Abbey that her mom would try so hard to make her apartment look presentable. Her mom smiled, tossing the rag behind her back.

“Hello again,” she said, nodding in a way that made her look like she was in the presence of royalty. Abbey chewed on a grin.

“Hello, Leanne,” he said with a charming smile, and Abbey could tell he was trying to put her at ease. Nick set the bag down on the counter separating the small living area from the kitchenette.

“Well, I have to be going,” her mom said. “Your grandpa’s alone at home with no one to keep him company.”

“It was nice to see you again,” Nick said as her mom grabbed her bag off the sofa and shuffled over to the door like she was imposing.

“Same here.” She eyed Abbey, giving her the oh-my-goodness look. She was asking with her silence what in the world he was doing back at the apartment again. Abbey knew what her mom was probably thinking. She was thinking there was something going on between them.