A Corisi Christmas (Legacy Collection #7) (6 page)
Read A Corisi Christmas (Legacy Collection #7) Online
Authors: Ruth Cardello
Dominic took Abby’s hand in his. “Thank you, Stephan, for being so good to my sister. We’re lucky to have you in our family.”
Abby gave her husband’s hand a squeeze.
Judy turned to Dominic. “Now can I open one of mine? Please?”
Dominic eased her onto her feet. “Go pick one out, Princess.”
Judy placed the gifts in a row and read over each tag of the most important presents beneath the tree. “Uncle Jeremy and Auntie Jeisa. Auntie Zhang and Uncle Rachid. Auntie Alethea and Uncle Marc. Uncle Stephan and Auntie Nicole. Which one do I open first?”
“How about the one from Nicole and Stephan?” Abby suggested.
Nicole knelt beside her niece. “Open it. I hope you like it.”
Abby said, “She’ll like it. No matter what it is. Right, Judy? We’re always grateful for anything anyone gives us.”
Judy rolled her eyes and quietly said to Nicole, “She was a teacher, and she can’t turn it off.” Louder she said, “Yes, Mom.” She ripped open the package and clapped. “It’s an airplane. Does it fly?”
Nicole sat back and nodded. “It sure does.”
Judy hugged Nicole. “You rock. Thanks. And it flies. That’s cool.” She picked up a small box. “This one is for you and Uncle Stephan. It’s from me.”
Nicole carried it over to Stephan. She opened it and held up the handmade frame Abby had helped Judy decorate. “It’s beautiful.”
Judy smiled. “You can put a picture of me holding your baby when it comes. That way you have two people you love in one picture.”
Nicole wiped tears from the corners of her eyes. “What a perfect gift, Judy. Just perfect.”
Judy reached for another gift. “Mom said we have to take turns opening them, so Dad is next.” She walked a large rectangular box over to her father. “Dad, this is for you and Mom. Uncle Jake helped me pick it out.”
She handed it to Dominic who held it out to Abby, but Abby said, “No, you can open it.”
Dominic removed the paper and the cover of the box, then one of his eyebrows rose as he studied the contents.
Judy pulled one of the garments out of the box and held it up. “They’re pajamas for Christmas. Look, Dad. You get to be Santa. Mom gets to be Mrs. Claus, and I’m an elf. Isn’t that awesome? Can we wear them tonight?”
Dominic looked over at Abby who smiled back at him. “Remember, it’s the love behind the gift that matters.”
“When do we see Jake and Lil?” Dominic asked with a growing grin.
“Thursday.”
“That should be enough time for me to find the perfect presents for his children.”
“Dominic . . .” Abby started to say, then gave in to the fun of the idea. “I’ll help you.”
Judy picked up another present and opened it. “Auntie Zhang sent me a real princess dress. She says I can look like her now.” Judy spun with it. “I love it.”
She looked over at her parents. “Can I open another?”
“Go ahead,” Abby said, and Dominic put an arm around his wife.
She tore the wrapping off the next gift. She looked at the pictures on the box and turned it around a few times. “What is it?”
Abby went onto the floor beside her daughter. “It looks like Alethea and Marc sent you a spy kit.”
“That’s what we need, for her to see
more
of what’s going on in the house,” Dominic joked.
Judy clapped her hands together happily. “I’m going to be a spy when I grow up, just like Auntie Alethea. She’s so cool.”
“Not a princess like Auntie Zhang?” Nicole asked with humor.
Judy gave Nicole a look as if to say there was no comparison. “A princess wears a tiara and has to sit pretty. A spy gets to sneak around and look at everything.”
Abby looked over at Dominic. “Are we letting her spend too much time with Alethea and Marc?”
Judy was already onto the next present. “Uncle Jeremy sends the best gifts. Remember last year he gave me a robot that knew my name.” She ripped the present open and frowned. “It’s a button.” She looked at the words written on it and sounded them out. “Pr-ess h-ere. Press here.” Then she did.
All the cell phones in the room buzzed and started playing one of her favorite winter Disney songs. She pressed it again and they all switched to another Disney song. “That is so cool.”
“I’m going to kill him,” Dominic said as he looked at his phone and couldn’t figure out how to get the music to stop.
Judy brought a note over to Abby. “What does it say, Mom?”
“It says press the button again then take a picture of your father’s expression with someone’s phone and send it to Uncle Jeremy.”
Judy laughed and used her mother’s phone to take several photos, then she swiped back and forth between the best of them. “Which one do you like best, Dad?”
“You pick one, Princess.” Dominic looked at Abby and shook his head. “People used to fear me.”
Judy climbed back up onto his lap. “Why would anyone be afraid of you?” She hugged him. “You’re just a big, old, grumpy teddy bear.”
Dominic hugged his daughter to his chest. He closed his eyes for a moment, and Abby’s heart melted. Dominic had survived a hellish childhood and, unlike his father, he had not passed his rage on to his child. Watching him finally see that was the best Christmas present Abby had ever received.
A
week later Nicole was holding Stephan’s hand and mingling in the Andrade home in New York. She’d lost count of how many times she’d been hugged and congratulated on her pregnancy since Stephan and she had arrived. Instead of being overwhelmed as she had feared she’d feel, she basked in the warmth of their love.
Over the past week, she’d read and reread her father’s letter. His final words had given her what she had needed to set herself free from her fears. He had been an extremely troubled man, but he’d loved her. And Dominic had shown his love for her by facing the past. How could she be afraid, when her life was full of so many people who cared about her?
Stephan leaned down and said, “Tell me when you get tired and we’ll go.”
She hugged his arm to her. “I know I said I didn’t want to come this year, but I’m so glad we did. I wanted a Corisi Christmas, and I got one, but this is also my family. Thank you for understanding that this year I needed to heal one family before I could appreciate the other.”
He kissed her on the temple. “My Christmas will always be wherever you are, Nicole.” He looked down at her stomach. “You and our child. Without you, I wouldn’t be here, either. I was lost once, and you guided me back to my family. If you ever feel afraid again, don’t hide it. Reach for me because I’ll always be right here, beside you.”
Before Nicole had a chance to answer Stephan, his father, Victor, swung her away from him and off her feet into a hug. “Merry Christmas, Nicole.”
Stephan’s mother said, “Victor, put her down.” She shook her head. “Stephan, ever since you told us Nicole’s pregnant, your father has been as loopy as your Uncle Alessandro. He’s picking out toys already.”
Victor was all unapologetic smiles. “I’m going to be a grandfather. Finally. I can’t tell you how happy I am.”
Nicole met her brother’s approving gaze from across the room, then looked back at Stephan who was beaming with pride, and his parents who were gushing with love for her and the child they would spoil rotten. Nicole linked hands with Stephan and smiled. Christmas was a time for new beginnings and for letting go of things no longer relevant. No matter what the future held for her, Nicole knew she was where she belonged. She had found her voice, and no one had walked away.
It was a Christmas she’d never forget and one she’d always be grateful for.
THE END
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*
Also available in audiobook format
Where my billionaires began.
Book 1: Maid for the Billionaire
(available at all major eBook stores for FREE!)
Book 3: Bedding the Billionaire
Book 5: Rise of the Billionaire
Book 6: Breaching the Billionaire: Alethea’s Redemption
Book 7: A Corisi Christmas Novella
The Andrades
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A spin off series of the Legacy Collection with cameos from characters you love from that series.
Book 1: Come Away With Me
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Book 4: Somewhere Along the Way
Recipe For Love, An Andrade Christmas Novella
The Barringtons
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Ruth Cardello was born the youngest of 11 children in a small city in northern Rhode Island. She spent her young adult years moving as far away as she could from her large extended family. She lived in Boston, Paris, Orlando, New York—then came full circle and moved back to Rhode Island. She now happily lives one town over from the one she was born in. For her, family trumped the warmer weather and international scene.
She was an educator for 20 years, the last 11 as a kindergarten teacher. When her school district began cutting jobs, Ruth turned a serious eye toward her second love– writing and has never been happier. When she’s not writing, you can find her chasing her children around her small farm, riding her horses, or connecting with her readers online.
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Read on for an Excerpt from Always Mine, Book 1 of the Barrington Billionaires