“What was that for?” he said, their faces still close.
“I had to,” she teased. “We’re under the mistletoe.”
“Mmm hmm,” he said, leaning in for another. Then, he looked up at the mistletoe and shook his head.
* * *
The next morning, the plows had finally come and Abbey could go home to pack properly for her and Max’s stay at Nick’s. Given his recent news, however, the wind had been taken out of her sails, and she was apprehensive about staying there with him. It would only make things more difficult.
Richard helped her put the few bags she was taking back to the apartment into her car as Max climbed into the backseat. Richard had returned her house key and assured her that someone would bring all her food by once the power had come back on at her apartment.
Once Max was in his seatbelt, she made her way down the long drive. Max was quiet, clearly sleepy from all the excitement yesterday, and she was relieved because it gave her time to clear her head. It was probably good that Nick would be gone next week. Then, she could just finish decorating what she could get done and have maybe only one more week after he returned. She wished things could be different… Abbey stopped herself. She wasn’t going to do any wishing. There were no Christmas miracles. She needed to get a grip and get over him.
She drove straight to her mother’s. She was leaving Max there for an hour or two to go Christmas shopping for him before she went home to pack. The good news was that she would get her check from Nick soon, so she could afford to spend a good amount on her son for once. She even planned to get Nick a present.
Abbey was already worrying about missing Nick. Her mother would help her through this. As she drove, Abbey wondered exactly what this was. She wanted to see Nick. She didn’t want him to go to New York. Those were the facts.
They pulled into the drive, and sitting on the front porch was Señor Freckles. He darted across the yard to the car, which was surprising. Abbey got out and walked around to make sure Max could get out all right on the ice. When she did, she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Señor Freckles was at Max’s door, purring. Max reached down to pet him, and the cat ran away. Didn’t that ridiculous cat know that if he would just hold still, and allow it, they’d cuddle him and pet him?
Abbey’s mom opened the front door, that motherly expression on her face. “Have you been snowed in this whole weekend?” she asked, tiptoeing her way across the icy porch to greet them.
“We stayed at Nick’s house!” Max answered for Abbey, and she felt her face go white.
It was silly to make a big fuss of it. Her mom had always said Abbey picked the wrong guys, and what Abbey didn’t ever tell her was that she knew that. Nick wasn’t like the others at all. He was far from it. And she knew what her mom would be thinking. She knew that her mom would be thrilled beyond belief if something were to happen between them. And if her mom got excited, it would only get Abbey thinking about how much she liked him. She looked over at her mother who was eyeing her, her eyebrows raised in anticipation.
“It was so fun, Nana,” Max said. “We built a snowman and watched TV on a giant screen, and I played ‘Hide and Seek’!”
Her mother flashed an excited grin.
“It was very fun,” Abbey said for Max’s benefit but her face told her mother something else. “I’ll fill you in when we get settled.” Abbey opened the door, Señor Freckles darting between them into the house. Max rushed in after him, trying to catch him, but Gramps intercepted Max in the hallway.
“Hiya, buddy,” Gramps said, tousling his hair.
“Hi, Gramps!” Max said as he wrapped his arms around Gramps’s waist.
“Come on in and get warm,” Abbey’s mom said as she put her hands out to take their coats.
“Where did Señor Freckles go?” Max asked as he plopped down on the sofa and crossed his legs. “He ran too fast for me to catch him.”
“He doesn’t want to be caught,” Gramps explained, gingerly lowering himself down beside Max, his knees wobbling with the movement. “He’s a wild cat. He’s used to being strong all on his own. When you see him again, just talk to him. He likes that.”
Max nodded.
As Gramps began a conversation about how he’d originally found Señor Freckles, Abbey’s mother ushered her out of the room.
“Tell me!” she said. “What were you doing at Nick’s all weekend?”
“My power was out. He offered for us to stay with him.”
“How did he know your power was out?”
“He was shopping with us.”