Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses(74)

“It’s so… hard to explain,” she said, feeling her worry settling in her shoulders.

“You like him,” her mom noted.

“Very much. I think there’s so much more to him than he allows anyone to see. I can feel it. I used to think that I was the one with few experiences, but I wonder sometimes if he’s got fewer than I have. …Or maybe just not very rich experiences. No pun intended,” she smiled. “Did you know that he’s never been to a baseball game?”

“Really?”

“Really! And I took him to The Crazy Corner,” she smiled wider at the memory of him dancing.

“Alma’s restaurant?”

“Yeah. He loved it! He even danced with me.”

“He seems to like you.”

“I think so.”

“Then what more is there?”

“A lot. He said he isn’t having any kids, and I’ve got Max.” Her mom was about to respond, but Abbey stopped her. “And he’s moving to New York after Christmas.” She took a sip of her coffee and held on to the mug, warming her hands.

Her mom was still, her head tilted, her eyes wide. “Oh, no.”

“Oh, yes.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Well, to start, I’m going to go shopping with him today,” she said, huffing out a little laugh of disbelief. She put her head in her hands and covered her eyes. With her voice muffled by her fingers, she said, “He’ll be here in ten minutes. After that, I don’t know.”

“Ten minutes?” her mom nearly shrieked.

“Who’s coming in ten minutes?” Max asked, entering the room and nearly tripping over Señor Freckles. The cat, who’d come out of nowhere, darted away before Max had regained his balance, and he dropped the deck of cards on the floor. “I have to keep picking up cards,” Max said, a slight frustration to his voice.

“Nick’s coming in ten minutes,” Abbey answered his question, taking her mug with her to sip her coffee as she helped Max with his cards. “Where’s Gramps? Did you two finish playing your game?”

“Yes. He’s tired and wants to go to sleep. He kept dropping his cards.”

“I’m sorry,” she said. She worried for Gramps. Was he really tired or just annoyed at having a tough time holding the cards?

“Were you patient with Gramps?” she asked. “You know things like holding cards are difficult for him, and it aggravates him.”

“Yes. I was. …Nick’s coming?” Max said with a smile, and Abbey could feel the tension in her body as she saw his excitement. She didn’t want him getting close to Nick only to have him leave. It hurt her enough to think about him leaving; she didn’t want to have Max’s disappointment to deal with.

“I don’t think he’s coming in. He’s just picking me up to go shopping.”

“May I go?”

“No, but you can see him when he comes to the door. Okay? Why don’t you look out for him?”

“Okay!” Max ran to the living room to watch through the window.

“Max sure does have a fondness for Nick,” her mom said, a cautiousness to her voice.

“I know. Nick has been wonderful with him. Max seems to have connected with him so quickly. I’ve never seen him like this.”

“Nick’s a great guy. Maybe Max just senses that. He hasn’t had a lot of great guys in his life.”

The doorbell rang, and she heard Max opening the door. “Hi, Nick!” she heard him say.

“Hello, Max… Oh,” she heard Nick say. She got up to see what was going on.

Abbey entered the room to find that Max had wrapped his arms around Nick and given him a hug, but what surprised her most was the complete adoration on Nick’s face as he looked down at her son. He liked Max—it was clear—and she had to cough to keep the lump out of her throat.

Nick looked up, and as soon as he saw her, he smiled.

“We’ll be back in a few hours,” Abbey said to her mom, trying to keep the butterflies at bay. She grabbed her coat and handbag as Max stepped back and allowed her to exit.

The Mercedes was purring in the drive. It looked out of place against the small homes surrounding it. Nick put his hand on her back to guide her down the icy steps and into the car. She slid inside and waved goodbye to her mother and Max through the window.





Chapter Eighteen





“Let’s start at the sports memorabilia shop,” Abbey said as they walked the open-air mall. A group of carolers was singing “Deck the Halls” at the entrance, their voices like angels as Abbey and Nick walked by. Along the bricked walkways, they passed life-sized nutcrackers, towering Christmas trees, and more white lights than there was snow outside. Abbey took in the large swags of greenery, the lights, the bows on every shop door—it was like a Christmas wonderland. The weather was freezing outside, and she could feel the numbness in her nose and cheeks. There was a slight breeze that felt like an icy stab every time it hit her face.