“One of my buddies said dating a woman with a kid could get complicated, that maybe it isn’t such a good idea. What do you think?”
“That depends on the woman and her child. Do they both like you?”
He nodded. “Cecelia and I have fun with guessing games about some of the books she likes. Remember when I taught that summer-school class on children’s literature when I was a grad student? That’s why I’m familiar with most everything she’s into these days. She’s so open. I don’t have to guess what she’s thinking. She comes right out and tells me.”
“You should be honored. Not all nine-year-olds are like that, especially a little girl with a man she doesn’t know very well. Didn’t you tell Mike she’s never known her father?”
He nodded. “But I doubt she thinks of me that way. More like a big brother, someone to have fun with.”
“That’s what a lot of fathers are with their children. Not all are disciplinarians, you know. What about her mother? Does she approve of your relationship with her daughter?”
“I just took it for granted it would be okay. She watches out for Cecelia. If that little girl didn’t like me, I don’t think Amanda would let me near her.”
“Then what’s to worry about? If you’re serious about Amanda, and you and Cecelia get along, it should work out. The thing you need to remember is kids can be very protective of their parents, especially when it’s just the two of them. You have to think of them as a pair. You can’t have one without the other.”
He relaxed in the warmth of her smile. “How’d you get so smart, Evie?”
“Life has a way of developing wisdom. And that’s why your brother married me.” She pecked his cheek before taking a seat across from him.
He smiled and poured her a cup of coffee. “When I picked up Amanda the first time, I overheard Cecelia tell her no kissing on the first date.”
“What I just said—she’s protective of her mother.” Evelyn glanced out of the corner of her eye at Marcus before bringing the steaming cup to her mouth. “So … did you?”
“What?”
“Kiss her.”
His heart picked up speed, remembering. “Yes, but Cecelia was already in bed.”
Evelyn chuckled. “How much you wanna bet she checked back with her mother after that date?”
It was his turn to smile. “You’re probably right.”He got up and stretched his legs. “I need to jot down some things I just thought of—for the book.”
He went upstairs and pulled out his notebook. After recording what their conversation had reminded him of, he carried down the presents and put them under the tree. In the quiet of the house, he sat down and looked at the ornaments on the unlit Christmas tree. Many reflected the light from the streetlamps outside the front window.
You keep invading my thoughts, Amanda. Do you know that? Am I invading yours? He thought back on the times they had spent together since she first agreed to go steady. Except on campus where they maintained a strictly professional relationship with each other, she was becoming more relaxed with him. That day at the beach when she had kissed him, pushing him against a log, the angle preventing him from getting away—not that he wanted to—had surprised him, and later that evening their embraces had heated up rapidly. He smiled as his heart speeded in remembrance. From her actions, he knew she liked him. Or was it becoming more than like? Were they getting close to …? A soft fluffball of snow hit the front window and slid slowly down the pane. Someone outside was calling his name. He looked up. His brother, home from his shift.
Mike shed his boots in the entryway and hung up his heavy coat before joining Marcus on the couch. “You look comfortable.”
He nodded. “Comfortable. Yes.”
“You remind me of the Cheshire Cat—that grin on your face.” Mike gave him a playful punch. “Anything or anyone in particular on your mind?”
“Nothing I want to share.”
“Well, feel free to stay out here as long as you want. You’re on vacation, you know.”
He nodded as Mike headed for the back bedroom. Marcus looked once more at the tree, knowing it soon would be lit, its lower branches touching the mounds of presents to be opened in another day. Amanda had taken Cecelia home to Minnesota for Christmas. Was she enjoying herself, or eager to get back to Shoreville, where she had promised to spend New Year’s Eve with him?
Cecelia regaled her grandmother with her soccer games, the names of her new friends, and her teacher at the Campus School.Then she told her about the statue of Shakespeare in Amanda’s department. “Everyone rubs his hat for luck. That’s why it’s lighter than the rest of him. Beatrice told me it’s been there for ages and ages—older even than me, Grandma! Professor Hillier found it and brought it home with him from a trip to Europe. That’s way across the ocean. I rub it, too.”