Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses: A feel good Christmas romance novel (23 page)

“Then what in the world would I do? I’d just come up with some other business and I’d have to start from the ground up. I’d rather not.”

“You could write music.”

He laughed. It wasn’t a funny laugh, though. “You’re dreaming, Abbey. That isn’t a career. It’s a few pages of rambling notes I put on paper.”

“No it isn’t,” she said emphatically. “Look, decorating your house has been a huge challenge for me. I was terrified, but I did it! It took me deciding to take a risk and believing that I could do it. Nobody knows what tomorrow will bring. You’re good at putting down bets, at taking risks.”

“Calculated risks. You’re asking me to be ruthless with my choices, to risk my income on a dream.”

“It’s not all about money, Nick. You don’t strike me as a person who cares to impress those around you. Who are you making all this money for? You never enjoy it, you always want to spend it on someone, but you won’t let anyone get close enough to let you.”

“I really need to go.”

“No! You’re not going to get off that easy. Talk to me.”

“What do you want me to say, Abbey? That I’m going to give up a two-generation company that makes me millions of dollars so I can live in Richmond and scribble notes on paper all day, doing nothing with my life?”

“That’s not what I want you to say at all. I want you to say…” She didn’t want to admit it. She didn’t want to have to voice it. Just the thought of saying what she was about to say was filling her with anxiety and she was trembling all over.

“What? What do you want me to say?” His voice was quieter now, anticipating what she was about to tell him. Did he know? Did he want to hear it from her lips? Or would she make a complete fool of herself?

“I wanted you to say that you liked being relaxed. That you wanted to spend more time with me and with Max and your family. That you’d rather give up your millions than lose the chance for a wonderful life with lots of memories of time spent with people you love. There are people here who love
you
. There are people who want you here.”

“I would let my mother down. I would dishonor my father. I would lose my ability to maintain my lifestyle. It isn’t as easy as running off into the sunset, Abbey.”

“I know that. Believe me. I know.”

“I wish it were.”

He did? He wished it were that easy? Then why didn’t he work at it? “Come home,” she heard herself say.

The line was silent. She could hear his breathing on the other end, a swallow. What was he thinking? Why wasn’t he talking? “Aaarrgggh,” he said very quietly under his breath. She smiled, not meaning to frustrate him but glad that he didn’t have a cut and dry answer. It meant that he was thinking about it.

“Can I ask you something?” The fire in the ballroom was low, spitting sparks upward, but the warmth still filled the air around her.

“Yes.”

“Why did you play me your music? I mean… Why me?”

There was a huff on the end of the line and she could feel his smile coming through. “I knew you would get it.”

“Why though? I don’t play piano.”

“Yes, you do,” he was chuckling. “You told me so.”

“Yeah, I remember… Haha.”

He let out a small laugh and the sound of it sent a thrill through her. “It was a grand rendition of ‘Chopsticks’.”

“Why did you think I would get it?”

“Because you are an emotional person. You wear your feelings on your sleeve at all times. You are artistic and thoughtful and passionate about everything you do. I wish I were more like you.”

“You are a lot like me. You just don’t allow yourself to be. You’re artistic—you write music! And it is beautiful music. It was so moving that it brought me to tears, Nick. You need to share it with everyone. You’re thoughtful and kind and generous. You bought me pies, and you took Max to see Santa, you were a human train track for the boys. And you’re passionate about what you believe in. So passionate that you’re willing to give up opportunities for happiness just to honor your father.”

“I’m sorry, Abbey,” was all he said, his honesty coming through in his words.

Her shoulders slumped at his response. “Me too.” The fire popped, bringing her thoughts back into the reality of the day. She looked at her watch. “I have to check on Caroline. Text me if you want anything special for the nursery. Otherwise, I’ll make another bedroom for you.”

“Okay,” he said quietly, and it was apparent his mind was elsewhere.

“Why did you, all of a sudden, think someone else might need the nursery furniture?” she asked.

“I saw family at my home for the first time, and it inspired me. Someone out there is building a family, and if they don’t have what they need, I wanted to be the one to give it to them because families should be happy.”

“Nick…”

“Yes?”

“I still want you to come home.”

There was silence.

She cradled the phone to her ear. She didn’t want to leave the call but she knew it was coming to an end.

“I know you do. We’ll see.”

“Bye,” she said against her will.

“Bye, Abbey.”

I
t was amazing
how much time Caroline was spending walking around at Nick’s since Robin and her family had come. Once they’d gotten settled, Thomas was busy most of the day with private tutors, arranged to keep him on track with the school work he was missing until Max got home from school. James was in and out, and Caroline, Robin, and Abbey spent time talking. For the past few days, they’d settled into a friendly routine. It was so nice to have them to talk to.

“Mom’s coming in today,” Robin said with a loaded look to Caroline as Abbey rearranged a few knickknacks.

“Is she?”

“Yes. She says she has something to tell us.”

Caroline eyed Robin, her interest palpable. “Oh?” she said, her word drawn out in an interested manner.

“I wonder what it is.”

“Whatever it is,” Caroline said, her lips pursed in disapproval, “I’m glad it prompted her to bless us with her presence. She’s been in hiding since Aaron died, and she needs to be with her family.” Caroline looked over at Abbey as she straightened a picture on the wall in the living room. “This room looks amazing, Abbey,” she said. “The whole house does.”

“Thank you.”

“Would you like to do my loft?” Robin said. “If Caroline is moving closer to me, perhaps you could come for a working visit.” Robin smiled at her in a playful way.

“Do you think I should? I’ve been considering the idea of doing more decorating. I’m just a little nervous about taking the leap to having my own business.”

Abbey thought about it. She’d get to do what she loved, see Caroline again. See Nick. “What would I do with Max?” she asked. “I couldn’t leave him with my mother—I’d miss him too much—and he has school.”

“Easy,” Robin said. “I’d throw tutoring into the contract.”

Caroline smiled at this. “You’re making it difficult to pass up, Robin.”

“The loft is much smaller than this,” she waved her arms around the giant living room. “This house is huge. And! Nick’s going to need someone to decorate his new apartment, I’m sure. We could do a two-for-one deal.”

Abbey laughed, the excitement getting to her.

“I’m serious,” Robin said. “It would probably only take three or four weeks. I don’t have a crew like you had here. I only have cleaning. We’d have to move all the furniture in ourselves unless you’d like to negotiate a staff…”

“Are you still serious?” Abbey asked.

“Yes. But I have to warn you, my friends are going to die of envy when they see your work, and you might get busy.”

There was no long-term security with the decorating job, even though her prospects were promising. What would happen when she’d exhausted Robin’s friends? Then what?

“Say yes.”

Abbey surfaced from her thoughts to see Robin awaiting an answer.

“I’m dying for your expertise.”

She knew that if she didn’t take the chance now, she might not get it again. Here were possibly two more opportunities to decorate and add to her portfolio. If she didn’t make the leap now, she never would.

“Just think about it,” Robin said as she stood up. “I’m going to check to see if lunch is ready.”

When Robin had left the room, Caroline leaned toward Abbey. “Are you going to take Robin’s offer?” she asked.

Abbey had told Caroline about Gramps. “I worry about leaving Gramps,” she said, voicing her fears. “But I know it’s a good thing. I’m seriously considering it.”

“I understand.” She looked thoughtful. “You are very thoughtful to consider your grandfather, but I’m sure, if he’s anything like me, he’d tell you to go for it.”

“Look who I found when checking for lunch!” Robin’s voice broke into the conversation between them. Abbey turned around to see a striking woman, maybe in her sixties, her dark brown hair positioned into perfectly sprayed waves, an enormous pair of sunglasses pushed up on top of her head, causing the waves of hair to cascade symmetrically on either side of her face. She had red lips and long eyelashes, her fur coat nearly reaching the floor, allowing a view of her fashionable high heels. She carried a designer bag in the crook of her arm.

Caroline stood up and Abbey followed suit. “Susan,” Caroline said with a welcoming smile. “I’m so glad you decided to come visit your family.” It was clear that she was teasing and Abbey noticed no hostility whatsoever. “We have missed you.” As Caroline got closer, she ran her hand along the coat. “Dear Lord, child, is that fur?”

“Faux, of course.” Susan kissed Caroline on each cheek. “I’ve made a lot of changes in my life, but my personal values haven’t changed a bit.”

“Still eating only salads then?” Caroline allowed a chuckle.

“How else can I fit into this dress?”

The two women had an easy way of talking to each other, although their conversation was so different to any that Abbey had had with her own friends. Watching their interaction was mesmerizing—like watching a movie on TV. Right in front of her were three generations of wealth. Caroline was refined in her actions, Susan, more open but clearly affected by it, and then Robin who, while wealthy, was so down to earth that Abbey barely noticed the money that surrounded her. It was so interesting to watch them.

“The house is stunning!” Susan said, her eyes roaming the room. “Has Nicholas found himself another little trophy who decorates?”

Abbey felt her eyes widen at that statement and she had to consciously hide her astonishment.

No one answered, and Susan added, “If so, this one knocks Sarah right out of the park in decorating. Sarah was lovely, though, wasn’t she?”

There was an uncomfortably giddy silence still lingering.

“What?” Susan said impatiently.

Caroline put her hand on Abbey’s arm. “Susan, this is Abbey… My nurse.”

Susan seemed a bit taken off guard, having been pulled from the line of conversation, but she recovered and reached a delicate hand out to Abbey. “Oh, forgive my rudeness. It’s so nice to meet you,” she said, smiling warmly at her. “I’m Susan, Nicholas’s mother.” She let go of Abbey’s hand and looked around the room as if she’d lost her keys. “Where is Nicholas anyway?”

“In Chicago,” Robin said.

Susan rolled her eyes. “What for?” she said in mock annoyance.

“Work.”

“Ugh,” Susan said. “In and out, in and out. Never still. He’s just like his father.”

Abbey tensed at that comment—Susan’s comments seemed to straddle that edge of inappropriateness, but no one seemed overly bothered. She had to admit, his absence was maddening to her as well. She tried not to think about the fact that tomorrow was Max’s “Bring Your Daddy to School Day.”

“Well, if he’s not here to show me this gorgeous house of his, then please, Robin, take me around! The entrance blew me away. I want to see what else he’s had done.” She shrugged off her faux fur and draped it on the sofa, then turned to Caroline and Abbey. “Ladies, would you like to join us? I’m dying to hear what company he hired to decorate. I’m feeling all Christmassy!” She fluttered her hands in the air before turning and swishing down the hallway toward the front of the house.

Chewing on a smile, Abbey followed slowly with Caroline, her confidence in her talent growing miles with every step.

A
bbey hit the gas
, trying to balance going fast enough to exceed the speed limit and yet not fast enough to get a ticket. Nick hadn’t come home last night. Her last day decorating had ended with little fanfare other than Susan’s complete surprise when they’d finally told her who’d done the decorating. All she had left were a few more finishing touches on the living room tree.

When she’d dropped by her apartment to get the mail last night, she’d seen a legal envelope with Nick’s name and address as the sender. She opened it and had to steady herself as she read the numbers on the check. He’d overnighted her seventy-five thousand dollars. The envelope was absent of any correspondence. It was just the check.

Now Abbey was trying to get to Max’s school as fast as she could. Since Nick had not come home from Chicago, she’d had to prepare Max for the disappointment; the regret she had over it was almost too much to bear as she saw his face. It had been her fault. Max had fallen hard, just like she had, and now, he had to deal with the fact that Nick wasn’t around. Nick had warned her enough, but she’d thought she could change his mind.

She’d tried to shield Max as much as possible this morning, telling him how Nick had gotten caught at work in Chicago, and that he had to fly in an airplane to get back home. He wouldn’t be able to make it. Then, in the silence of the morning, with all the doors in the house still shut but theirs, she promised that she’d come instead so he’d have someone there for him.

“But you’re not a daddy,” he’d said, his distress clear. She’d assured him that it would be fine if she came instead, but she could tell that he was uneasy about it.

The light turned green and she hit the gas again.

In minutes, Abbey pulled the car into the lot at Max’s school and got out. Her heart was pounding as she looked at her watch. She was late. She ran up to the door, trying her best not to slide on the ice, and hit the bell to enter. Her head pounded with every tick of the clock as she filled out her name and got her visitor’s badge in the office. The woman behind the counter was smiling, slowly completing her information for her. She wanted to snatch the badge out of her hand and run down the hallway. Max was waiting for her with no parents, probably watching the other dads with sadness in his eyes. She looked at her watch again.

The woman finally handed her the badge and she peeled the backing off as she ran down the hallway, rushing past two students who turned around to look at her. She stuck the yellow visitor sticker on her coat and came to a stop outside Max’s classroom door. She took one more second to get herself together and catch her breath before going in. When she opened the door, the teacher greeted her. All the children were at their tables, their daddies beside them, sitting in little chairs, their knees all resting higher than the tables themselves. They were smiling, talking quietly to their children as they made a craft with craft sticks and paint.

Abbey scanned the crowd for Max. The teacher had moved seats, and he wasn’t in the same place as he’d been when she’d visited last. She looked for his brown hair, his blue shirt, and then, she stopped, her entire body freezing in surprise, tears filling her eyes. She blinked to clear them so that she could be sure that what she was seeing was real. Max had his back to her, and beside him, holding a craft stick and talking sweetly to her son, was Nick. She walked over and squatted down beside them.

“Hi, Mama!” Max said, a proud look on his face. “Nick came!”

Kneeling down, she was eye level with Nick and she could tell that he’d noticed her emotion. “I wouldn’t have missed it,” he said quietly to her in almost a whisper, and she felt like her chest would explode. “I caught the red eye last night and got in very early—it was the best I could do.”

She tipped her head back to try to keep the tears from falling.

“It’s okay,” he said into her ear, causing goose bumps down her arm. “I know by your actions that you’re not used to being able to trust people, and I haven’t given you much opportunity to trust me. But you can. You taught me how important it is to just be there.”

She nodded, trying to calm down and enjoy her complete relief.

Abbey sat next to Nick as they finished their craft—a small birdhouse. Nick had helped Max paint it, his fingers red even after wiping them off. It made her smile. Max had stood with the other students in his class and they all sang a song. Finally, there were refreshments. When it was time to say goodbye, Max hugged Nick a little longer than the other boys and asked Nick when he’d get to see him again. Nick had said that he wasn’t leaving anymore this week. It was Nick, not Abbey, who’d gotten him settled back at his seat. Then, they both said their goodbyes and walked into the hallway.

“What are you doing now?” Nick asked her.

“I was going to go shopping for teacher gifts for Friday, but that can wait. What’s up?”

“Feel like chatting with my mother?”

“Why?” She smiled suspiciously.

“She has… news. She wants us all together to tell us. I’m a little worried about it. We never know with her what she might be up to. I can’t do it alone,” he teased. “And, she said she likes you.” He smiled down at her. “We’re meeting for lunch at Lemaire.” Abbey had never heard of it before. He clarified, “It’s in The Jefferson Hotel.”

She had heard of The Jefferson Hotel. It was a grand hotel, built in the late 1800s and only a mile from the James River. It was breathtakingly beautiful inside with its marble floors and columns and stained-glass domes. There was nothing else like it in the city.

“I might need to change,” she said, worrying already that she didn’t have anything nice enough to wear. “I’m not sure I have anything… clean,” she said as they walked to the door.

“It’s right near Carytown. There are tons of dress shops,” he said, opening the door, the frigid cold hitting her and nearly taking her breath away. They walked until they were at his car. “Let me buy you something. Then you don’t have to worry about anything. It’ll be my treat for your company at a lunch where my mother is going to dominate all conversation.” He smiled.

She looked at him, deciding.

“Please?” he said, opening the passenger side and gesturing for her to sit. “We’ll come back and get your car after lunch.”

She got in.

The Mercedes started with a purr. “I really enjoyed that today,” he said as he backed the car out of its spot. “Max is really a great kid, Abbey. He’s so kind,” he said, pulling out onto the road and merging onto the highway. He smiled at her, the happiness lingering subtly on his lips as he drove.

A
bbey hadn’t even known
this shop was here—she’d never been down to Carytown for anything more than an ice cream or a ninety-nine-cent movie. Most of the shops here, while amazing, were completely out of her price range. She stood in the pristine dressing room, staring at the wooden hangers with the brass hooks that held a perfectly tailored pair of navy wool trousers and a matching blazer with a silky white top that Nick had picked out for her.

She slowly slipped off her jeans and sweater and tried them on, still unsure, immediately noticing how they felt against her. They fit like they’d been sewn together to match just her body. She slid on the coordinating high heels and looked in the mirror at the person staring back at her. Her reflection didn’t look a thing like her, and it startled her. Was this the kind of girl Nick dated? Was this what he’d want her to look like if they ever got together? He’d picked it out after all. She tried to imagine a time when she’d feel normal in clothes like these. Would they grow on her like the ballroom had? The trouble was, the ballroom was just a space, whereas how she dressed was a representation of who she was, and this wasn’t who she was at all. She ran her fingers through her hair and then dug around in her handbag for her powder and lip-gloss. She freshened up her makeup and fluffed out her hair.

“Or there’s this,” she heard from the other side, and Nick’s hand appeared above the dressing room door, a green dress in his hand. A shoebox slid toward her on the floor through the open space under the stall.

She took the dress from his hand and hung it up, then opened the door to show him the first outfit. There was a visible reaction and his eyes slid from her face down to her feet. “That’s…” he looked back up at her, “really nice.” He swallowed and handed her a pair of navy teardrop earrings. “These would go with that if you decide to get it.”

“Do you want me to try the dress on, or do you like this?” While beautiful, none of it was her style anyway, so it was up to him.

“It’s what
you
like. Get what makes you comfortable.” He cleared his throat, clearly still affected by how she looked. “But, yes,” he smiled. “I’d like to see you in the green dress.” His eyes moved around her body one more time, and she couldn’t help but feel a little self-conscious.

She went back into the dressing room. As she took off the suit and hung it up, she noticed the price tag on the blazer and nearly fell over. One thousand eight hundred ninety dollars? She grabbed the tag on the trousers. One thousand seven hundred ninety-five. She didn’t bother to look at the shirt. There was no way she was going to let him buy something like this for her. She slipped on her Chuck Taylors and opened the door.

“The dress didn’t fit?” he asked, but she didn’t answer. She was still in a daze, trying to figure out if people really paid that kind of money for clothes when she waited for the thirty percent coupons to come in the mail so she could apply them to a twenty-dollar top at her local mall shops.

“I didn’t try it on…” she said, still thinking.

“You’re going with the blue then? Good choice.”

She attempted to push away her growing worry, willing herself to focus on the conversation. “Um… No. I’m not getting either… They’re so expensive…” she nearly whispered.

“Well, it’s Gucci. Of course it costs more than an average brand. It’s well worth it.”

She remembered how the fabrics felt against her skin, how perfectly they’d fit, and she knew he was right, but she couldn’t bring herself to make him spend that on her.

“It’s fine,” he assured her.

She shook her head. “No. It’s not fine at all.”

He looked at his watch. “I’d suggest going somewhere else, but we’re running out of time. We only have about twenty-five minutes. You looked amazing in the blue, but if you want to wear what you have on, I’d be just as happy sitting beside you.”

“Would you? Or are you just saying that?” She looked back at the outfit still hanging in the dressing room. It really was beautiful, but she was paralyzed by the price. She just couldn’t let him pay that much for something that she’d never wear again.

“Sarah loved this shop, so I thought since you needed to dress up that perhaps this would be a shop you might like as well. I didn’t want you to feel out of place wearing your regular clothes, that’s all.”

“I’m not Sarah,” she said. “At all, in any way.”

“I know, but—”

She cut him off. “And you thought I’d feel out of place?”
Or was it that he felt I was out of place in what I have on?
she worried.

“I just want you to be comfortable,” he said. “It’s a dressy occasion.”

“Well, I’m not. I’m not comfortable in a fancy restaurant in jeans but I’m also not comfortable in what you’ve picked out.”

“Well, which makes you the least uncomfortable then?” he asked.

She didn’t have an answer.

“I’ll tell you what,” he said. “I’ll buy it and when we’re done today, we’ll sell it online and donate the profits to your favorite charity. Would that make you feel better?”

“Okay,” she said, still feeling uneasy about wearing it in the first place.

“Good.” He took the shoes, earrings, suit, and top up to the register. “We’ll have these, please,” he said to the salesperson. “And then if you could assist Miss Fuller with the tags so that she can change immediately, that would be fantastic.”

“Yes, sir,” the salesperson said, her black hair straight as an arrow, a scarf tied around her neck in a small knot at the side. She looked over at Abbey and smiled, clearly working overtime to keep her eyes from appraising Abbey’s current attire.

“And please offer Miss Fuller any of the cosmetics that she may need,” he said as he pointed at the makeup options displayed along the back wall. “You can put them on my bill.”

Was there something wrong with her makeup?

Nick turned to Abbey. “I’ll wait up front.” He grabbed a navy handbag off the shelf nearby and set it on the counter before leaving. “That too.”