Page 14 of A Baby for Christmas (Love at the Holidays)
Jake
One Year Later
W ith one eye on the clock, I made listening noises as my client complained. Most of the time, they just wanted to be heard. We were on the phone and not a video call, so at least I didn’t have to put on a shirt and tie for this meeting.
I knew exactly how to fix the issue, but I waited and let him vent. My second-floor office window overlooked the front…well, it wasn’t really a yard when it stretched for miles.
I could see the snowy peaks of the Rockies over my monitor, and outside, I could hear Cora shrieking with delight as she played with Mrs. Pinter—Lori.
It was so tempting to stand and peek out the window to see what was making her so happy, but I focused on my client. It was my last call of the day, and considering my boss had let me transition to part time indefinitely, I had to put in my best work.
It was the beginning of December, and the days were getting shorter and shorter. By the time I tugged on my boots and outdoor gear, the golden sunset spilled over the snow-covered land.
Lori waved, and Cora’s beautiful, perfect face lit up. It wasn’t windy, but the air was crisp, and her cheeks were pink.
“Dada!” Holding a red plastic spade, she ran over on her tiny legs, her bulky purple snowsuit giving her an awkward gait. She was still small for almost eighteen months, but she was hitting her milestones.
I scooped her up and pressed kisses to her cold cheeks. “Hi, sweetie.” A green crocodile hat knit by Lori protected her head and covered her dark curls. They were just like mine had been in the baby album I’d found in the boxes in Uncle Steve’s garage. We didn’t see him or his family much, but that was fine.
I’d found my own family.
“Look!” Cora pointed her mitten-clad hand toward a pile of snow. She grinned, her cheek dimpling the way Anna’s did, which I thought was a nice gift from her mother. I hadn’t heard from Anna, and I didn’t expect to.
Groaning softly, Lori pushed to her feet. “Snow’s not good for packing, so our castle looks more like a hill. But she’s having fun.”
I oohed and ahhed over the small snow mound and encouraged Cora as she filled her small plastic beach bucket again.
To Lori, I said, “Thank you. Are you sure—”
She cut me off with a firm shake of her head, her silver ponytail swaying. “I’ve told you and Cam a hundred times that it’s my pleasure to come by whenever you need me. My grandbabies are all the way in Calgary and Edmonton. I need my fix. There’s no sense in you driving her all the way into Lonely Creek for daycare when I’m right up at the big house with not enough to do. Though I’d better head back now and get dinner out of the crockpot.”
We hugged, and Cora waved bye-bye to Aunt Lori. Cam and I managed our schedules weekly to split caring for Cora, and we’d arranged it so he could bring her to work sometimes, performing tasks like cleaning out the stable with her strapped to his back. But there were days when Cam had to be off on a distant part of the ranch all day.
Lori’s taillights had only disappeared where the road dipped before Cam’s headlights appeared. The sun was below the mountaintops, the lingering golden light bathing us.
“Bam-bam!” Cora shouted.
Cam tooted the horn as he pulled in, which made her flail with joy every single time. He parked his truck in the garage beside my SUV—a used Subaru that so far was performing far better than the Ford I’d bought in Toronto. Granted, that was a low bar.
With Cora in my arms, we met him in front of the garage. “Bam-bam!” she cried.
“Hi, sugar pie.” Cam took her from me, kissing her nose and making her giggle.
For whatever reason, “Cam” had translated to “bam” in Cora’s mind before evolving into “Bam-bam.” We put on old Flintstones episodes sometimes, and she pointed to Cam every time the character of Bam-bam was mentioned.
Honestly, it suited him.
“Hey, babe.” I kissed him, loving that his lips tasted of his favorite mint Chapstick. “How’d it go?” He’d been helping Hal Sr. with the cattle, so he’d taken the truck over to the big house, and Bonnie had had the day off in her paddock.
“Good. I stopped into town too.” He nodded to the truck. “Give me a hand?”
I gasped as he pulled back the tarp. “I thought we were waiting a week so the tree doesn’t dry out too much?”
He shrugged. “Wanted to surprise you.”
The pine tree was beautiful. It was also definitely a two-person job to maneuver it inside, even with Cam’s muscles. The pine smelled like heaven, even if the needles scratched.
With the tree in front of the soaring picture window in the living room, we strung the lights and hung the new decorations I’d bought along with the ones Lori had gifted Cam for the cabin.
While Toby raced around, getting under foot, Cora tried to eat the tinsel, then started knocking the ornaments off like a cat.
It was perfect.
On Christmas morning, Cam woke me in the predawn darkness, spooned behind me with his erection hard against my ass. He whispered, “Roll over and let me fuck you.”
“ Tell me what to do ” was often unsaid now. I wasn’t overwhelmed and exhausted the way I had been a year ago, but his taking control was our secret handshake, one of the tender threads binding us. He always knew how to take care of me. How to love me.
And I loved him right back.
Suddenly awake, I got my knees under me, thighs spread. “Fuck, yes.”
Cam’s slick cock nudged at my hole. “That’s a loonie for the swear jar,” he teased.
“Make it a twoonie. So fucking—” I gasped as he slowly pushed inside me, hot and raw, “—worth it.”
From the first time Cam had fucked me on the new mattress on the floor, I’d loved having him inside me. It wasn’t only the delicious stretch of his cock, but the caress of his lips on my neck or cheek. The whispers of encouragement. The power and tenderness of his big hands.
“That’s it,” he murmured now, lips warm on my ear as he rocked inside me. “I’ve got you. I’m gonna make you come.”
And boy, did he ever.
Downstairs, we’d left the Christmas tree lit overnight, and the rainbow glow welcomed me as I tiptoed down in the too-big reindeer onesie that I still loved wearing.
I knew Cora was still too young to really understand Santa, but I’d kept most of the presents wrapped and waiting in a garbage bag at the back of the guest room closet.
Tail wagging, Toby bounded in from the kitchen, where I had all the fixings for blueberry pancakes waiting. I bent and scratched his head, letting him lick my chin.
I’d just finished arranging the boxes and bags under the tree when Cam came down with Cora in his arms, his steps padded by the thick carpet runner on the stairs. He wore his usual sweats, T-shirt, and woolly socks, and I hoped he’d agree to wear the matching Christmas pajamas I’d gotten the three of us.
“Merry Christmas!” I cried, and Cora clapped, her eyes lighting up. “Santa was here. Look at all the presents under our tree! And he filled our—”
I blinked past the rocking chair at the three red stockings hanging from the mantel with care under the flatscreen TV. In neat white script, our names had been sewn into each:
Cora
Dada
Bam-bam
Joy flowed through me. “How? When?”
Cam lowered Cora to the rug so she could run to the tree, Toby darting around her. He shrugged, but he couldn’t stop smiling, which was adorable .
“I had it done in town. Switched the stockings out with decoys. So now we have six, FYI.”
Grinning, I traced the letters with my finger. “This is why you insisted on stuffing the stockings last night.”
“Yep. Thanks for the Chapstick.”
I slapped his chest lightly. “You weren’t supposed to open anything!”
“I didn’t! Don’t tell me that tiny tube is anything else. I’m impressed that you were able to wrap it.”
“I’m very skilled, and—”
We both turned at the sound of ripping paper and joined Cora and Toby before they could do too much damage.
Later, I posted a selfie in our matching PJs that Cam took with his long arm. We were laughing in front of the tree with a mess of wrapping paper and bows scattered around us, Cora in my arms and Toby licking Cam’s ear. The pic was blurry and too close.
Cam offered to take another, but I didn’t want to change a thing.
THE END