A Hickory Ridge Christmas (17 page)

“I love you, Todd. Do you think there's a chance for us…after everything?”

His heart squeezed as he stared into her pleading eyes. Even after all this time she still didn't know how deeply he loved her. Wordlessly, he showed her, first by gently taking her hands and pulling her to her feet and then by pressing his lips to hers.

Never had a kiss felt so perfect. He didn't know if it was possible to squeeze a lifetime of hopes and dreams into a single kiss, but he tried to convey it the best he could.

“I love you,” he breathed against her skin.

Tracing her hands over his shoulders, Hannah clasped them at his nape. She smiled up at him, her eyes shining, and then stood on tiptoe to kiss him. It felt as if she was giving him a message of her own—one of promises made and promises kept.

When the kiss ended, he touched his cheek to hers. A chuckle bubbled from deep inside him. “Look at us. We've had to travel so far to get to each other.”

Hannah pulled her head away so she could look up at him. “Some of us farther than others.”

“At least we can tell our grandchildren I flew around the world to win you back.”

“Grandchildren?”

Todd couldn't help grinning. It was so nice to lighten the mood after the intensity of the conversation they'd just had and the week they'd just survived. “You think we should worry about raising the children before we make plans for the grandchildren?”

“Children? As in plural?”

“Is that a problem?” He waved his hand to dismiss the subject. “We don't have to make decisions about the future right now. It's too early for such serious discussions.”

Hannah shook her head, looking at him with a confused expression. “Too early for what?”

“Too early Saturday morning.” He pointed to the wall clock that read half past midnight.

“Oh, I should be getting home,” she said, taking another step back from him.

Automatically, both of them turned to look at the door, and just as quickly Todd realized he wasn't ready for her to leave. If she left now, he would wonder if her visit tonight had just been the one pleasant dream on his uncomfortable couch bed.

“I don't know about you, but I'm starved.” He waited until she looked back at him before he spoke again. “How about I make us some breakfast?”

She lifted a shoulder and lowered it, probably preparing to decline, when her belly growled. Pressing her hand against her stomach, she gave him an embarrassed grin. “I wasn't hungry earlier.”

“Sounds as if you are now. Besides, are you in a hurry to go out in that?” He stepped toward the front window and gestured for her to join him.

Outside, a new blanket of snow had transformed Milford into one of those scenes on a Christmas card, and the snowfall didn't appear ready to taper off anytime soon.

“I guess I'm not in a rush. It's pretty out there, though.”

Todd slipped his arm around her shoulder, and they watched the snowflakes flutter to the ground for a few minutes longer. The snow was pristine, still unmarred by foot traffic or turned to gray sludge by automobile tires and exhaust. Under the streetlights, some of the flakes on the ground sparkled like diamonds.

That fresh snow reminded him of the new, tentative relationship they were forming inside the glass. Without the stains of past mistakes, everything felt new.

R
everend Bob blinked a few times before finally opening his gritty eyes. The space around him blurred first and then settled into an equally confusing clarity. It was dark outside his low-lit patient room, and several snowflakes clung to the window.

He wasn't sure how long he'd slept this time or whether he was better off now than he'd been the last time he'd awakened. Now that the medication was wearing off, his body felt as if he'd experienced the unfortunate end of a battle with a steamroller. At least the doctor had warned him to expect some soreness.

Turning his head slowly toward the side of his bed where his IV stand rested, he was surprised to see he wasn't alone. Mary Nelson slumped in a chair next to the bed rails, her head at an awkward position on the backrest. She would be sore when she awoke, but she dozed so peacefully that he hated to awaken her.

He reached for his glasses from the bedside table
and glanced at her again. She was a handsome woman with a youthful face, an ever-present smile and a contagious joie de vivre, but there was an extra sweetness about her while she slept.

Come to think of it, Mary had been around a lot the past few days, always seeming to be with Hannah when he'd awakened. He couldn't have been more grateful to her and the other church members for helping Hannah.

Suddenly, her eyes fluttered open.

“Hi,” he said when her gaze came to rest on him. “You again.”

She straightened in her seat and patted her dark hair nervously though its no-nonsense, short style appeared tidy as always. “Yes, me.”

“Where's Hannah?”

“I sent her home for some sleep.”

“Thanks. You look like you could use some sleep, too.”

Mary waved away his suggestion with her hand. “I'm fine. I just wanted to help out.”

“You've been hanging out at the hospital a lot this week. You must really like the antiseptic smell.”

He'd meant it as a joke, but she looked embarrassed, refusing to meet his gaze. Bob drew his eyebrows together. Maybe the painkillers hadn't worn off as much as he thought, and he was still under a medicated haze.

“I just couldn't leave, not when you were lying there, when you still didn't know.”

“Know what?” As soon as the words were out of
his mouth, he realized he knew the answer to his own question. A hundred tiny things—inconsequential things like an offer of help on the church Christmas Decorating Committee and kind words after some of his sermons—added up in his thoughts. Though not overt like Olivia's attention, Mary had shown her affection in simple ways, and he'd been oblivious to it all.

“I'm sorry. I didn't realize.”

She smiled. “People are blind sometimes.”

“I suppose they are.” He smiled back.

Strange how he knew Mary so well, as a church member, a friend to his daughter and to him and a child-care provider to his granddaughter, but until now he'd never seen her as a woman. A kind and compassionate woman. She'd fit so seamlessly into their lives that he'd never noticed.

He noticed now.

“In all these years, you've never told me about your late husband,” Bob began, suddenly wanting to know everything about her.

“George has been gone ten years now.”

Mary's eyes took on a faraway look that Bob recognized. Others probably had read it in his eyes hundreds of times over the past few years. Clearly, Mary remembered her late husband the way Bob cherished his memories of Deborah. Mary would understand that a part of his heart would always belong to his late wife.

They continued talking in hushed voices for another half hour, sharing stories of Bob's daughter
and the happy life Mary and George had lived together though they'd never been blessed with children. Occasionally, Mary would offer him ice chips or a cup of water. The conversation was simple and unrushed as the two of them got to know each other for the first time…all over again.

 

Hannah followed as Todd led the way to the kitchen. She should have gone home, especially with all that snow blowing around outside. But she couldn't bring herself to leave him now, not when they had just found hope for a new beginning. Besides, it was only breakfast. She would leave right after they cleaned up the dishes and after she cleared the snow off her car.

“What are you hungry for?” Todd said as he peered into the shelves of his refrigerator. “Eggs? Pancakes? I make a mean omelet.”

“No Belgian waffles or a soufflé?”

“You're testing your short-order cook's abilities here.” His head popped up from behind the refrigerator door. He kicked it closed, balancing eggs, a stick of butter, green peppers, mushrooms and tomatoes in his arms. “The fridge is looking pretty bare except for these.”

“What a coincidence. I just happen to have a craving for scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mushrooms and green peppers.”

“Then we're set.” He lowered his collection of food to the kitchen counter and gestured for her to sit at the glass dinette.

“But I can help.”

“You can also sit there and watch me.”

Todd collected a mixing bowl, cutting board and frying pan from the cabinet and pulled a knife and a whisk from the drawer next to the stove. He seemed utterly focused on his culinary duties, as if their conversation from twenty minutes before hadn't fazed him a bit.

How could he concentrate on dicing vegetables and melting butter when their relationship had just taken a huge step from impossible to probable? Hannah was glad she wasn't cooking because she would have sliced off a finger or two along with the tomatoes.

“You're awfully quiet,” he said, not looking up as he poured the egg mixture into the pan.

“Just thinking.”

“Care to share?”

“Not especially.

He shrugged, but even in profile, she could tell he was smiling. Though she suspected he was enjoying her discomfort a little too much, she couldn't help smiling with him.

Just as the toast popped and Todd moved the frying pan from a heated burner to a cold one, Hannah heard a sound behind her. Rebecca stood in the doorway wearing her yellow, footed pajamas and a frown. She rubbed her eyes and squinted under the fluorescent kitchen light.

“Daddy? Mommy? Is it morning time?”

When her daughter crossed the room and climbed into her lap, Hannah brushed Rebecca's
messy hair back from her face. “Hi, sweetie. Did we wake you up?”

“It smells funny,” Rebecca said, wrinkling her nose.

“Green peppers. I guess a smell like that is better than an alarm clock.” Todd grinned when he turned back from the stove with two filled plates in his hands. He set one plate in front of Hannah and the other at the empty space beside her.

“Honey, we'd better get you back to bed. It's too early for you to be up.”

Rebecca pointed to the dark bread sticking out of the toaster. “I want to eat breakfast, too.”

Todd pointed to his colorful egg dish. “Want some?”

“Yuck.”

“We like it.” He looked conspiratorially at Hannah. “Do you think we should share some of our toast with her?”

Hannah squinted her eyes, trying to appear deep in thought. “I don't know. Only if we put jam on it, I guess.”

“Ooh, jam.”

Soon the three of them were seated around the table, enjoying an early-morning, family breakfast. Hannah found herself memorizing the sights, sounds and tastes of it. This was what she'd hoped for. This was how she'd always imagined family life to be, and if it wasn't really like that, she hoped she wouldn't wake up from her dream.

When they had taken the last bites of eggs and Rebecca had enough jam on her face to spread on a third piece of toast, Todd cleared away the dishes,
refusing any help. He made quick work of loading the dishwasher and then opened a cabinet to put away the spices he'd used.

Sitting opposite Hannah, on her knees so she could reach the table, Rebecca planted her elbow on the table and rested her heavy head on her hand.

“Do you want me to carry you back to bed?” Hannah's heart warmed as she watched her sleepy little girl. In another couple of years, she wouldn't even be able to carry Rebecca to bed. She hoped that time passed as slowly as possible.

“Can Daddy carry me?” the sleepy voice asked.

Quickly, Todd turned his head back from the sink where he'd returned to wash his hands. He appeared startled that Rebecca had chosen him over her mother, even for this small privilege. His gaze met Hannah's, and he waited.

In the span of a heartbeat, she smiled. His expression softened, as well.

“Sure, I can take you, honey.” He turned away from them, digging his hand into the spice cabinet once more. “But I need to do one more important thing first, okay?”

“Okay, Daddy.”

Hannah turned back to the counter, not seeing anything left to finish. Then Todd approached the table with a satiny white box in his hand, and she knew. She drew in an unsteady breath. But when his lips curved upward and his gaze connected with hers, all of her nervousness drifted away.

Never breaking eye contact with her, Todd
lowered himself on one knee and opened the box in his hand. Again, the lovely solitaire winked out at Hannah, not long ago a painful reminder of broken promises and now a symbol of a lifetime commitment.

“Hannah, I've loved you ever since I can remember.”

“Daddy, are you and Mommy going to get married now?” Rebecca asked, suddenly bright-eyed instead of drowsy.

Hannah started, having forgotten momentarily that this tender moment was for a crowd of three rather than two.

Todd looked up from his position on the floor and held the white box high enough for Rebecca to see. He lowered his voice and winked as if he were sharing a big secret. “I'm getting ready to ask her.”

The preschooler grinned as if she'd had her second Christmas in a month. Hannah looked back and forth between the man she loved and their child. Perhaps it wouldn't be as private as some proposals, but it certainly would be as memorable.

“As I was saying,” Todd began again, “I've always loved you, even before I understood what love was and what it meant to put someone else's needs ahead of my own. Though our mistakes pulled us apart, God has led us back to each other and given us the most awesome responsibility of raising our child.

“I would love to do that with you, side by side. Will you please be my wife and finally make our family complete?”

“Please, Mommy, say yes.” Rebecca had climbed
down from her chair on the opposite side of the table, and now she knelt by her father on the linoleum floor.

“Yeah, please, Mommy, say yes,” Todd chimed in with a grin.

“Well, you two are pretty persuasive. I think I'll have to say…yes. Definitely. Absolutely. I want more than anything to spend the rest of my life with my best friend. How's that for an answer?”

“Good enough for me.”

Todd pulled the ring out of the box and, taking her hand, slipped it on her finger. Still holding that hand, he leaned forward and touched his lips to hers in a kiss of commitment.

“Me, too.” Rebecca snuggled between them.

Todd stood and, with one arm, scooped up a giggling Rebecca, while extending his other hand to pull Hannah to her feet. For several seconds, the three of them stood there in the kitchen, in a tight group hug.

Hannah inhaled the sweet scents of the two people in the world she loved most. Her feelings must have shone in her eyes because Todd smiled down at her. “You see, I told you I would ask when the time was right.”

She reached over and brushed Rebecca's hair back from her face. “I think you picked a perfect time.”

When Todd released her, Hannah glanced down at the blindingly beautiful ring on her finger and then up at him. “I thought you said you were planning to return the ring.”

“It's a better story to say that I decided not to return it, knowing that in the end we would be
together, but the truth is this week was so crazy for all of us that I didn't get around to taking it back.”

“Go with the first story. The grandkids will like it better.”

“Grandkids?” He glanced at the child still propped on his hip.

“Ah, but we should probably focus on our children before we worry about that next generation.”

“Children? As in plural?” he said, repeating her words from earlier.

“We'll have plenty of time to discuss that later.”

But Rebecca, who had rested her head against her father's shoulder, once again close to dozing, suddenly straightened. “I want a baby brother.”

“Is that so?” Todd tweaked her nose.

“And a dog,” Rebecca added.

“Oh yes, the dog.” He turned back to Hannah to explain. “Max got a dog after Tricia and Brett were married.”

He ruffled Rebecca's hair. “How about we worry about that after your mom and I are married? But first we get to plan a big church wedding.”

Rebecca was cheering, the baby brother and the dog forgotten for now, but Hannah stared at Todd in shock.

“A big church wedding? Don't you think it would be inappropriate—”

Instead of answering her, Todd gave his daughter a conspiratorial glance, the side of his mouth pulling down in a frown. “I'm going to have to convince your mommy to have a big party, so I'm going to take you back to bed first, okay?”

Rebecca didn't argue with that, so he washed her face and left the room with her, staying gone only long enough to tuck her in and kiss her good-night again. But that was plenty of time for Hannah's secret dreams of a perfect, elegant church wedding to resurface. She'd understood that they were just dreams, each time she'd awakened from them, still humming the organ postlude. Was it right for a young mother to still wish for all that pomp and ceremony?

When Todd returned to the kitchen, he jumped back into the conversation before she had her argument ready.