Page 15 of A Dye Hard Holiday
“We’re thrilled that you want to be near us,” I replied. “It’s the best present you could’ve given to our family, Mom.”
Martina released a shaky breath and gave me a relieved smile. “Yet, I’m sensing a but here.”
“There’s always a but,” my mom added. “Is there something that concerns you, love?”
Gabe and I decided not to discuss our concerns with them until after Thanksgiving because the last thing we wanted to do was ruin anyone’s holiday. However, it seemed silly to say that we didn’t have issues one day then turn around and tell the truth a few days later. I decided to ease them into it by utilizing the tact I’d cultivated from dealing with salon clients for almost a decade.
I took a deep breath and released it.Here goes.“The only concerns we have are that you’ll give up everything to move here and regret it later, or you’ll be upset when we tell you that we intend to keep Jennifer as our nanny.” It was my turn to hold my breath while I waited for their reaction.
When it came, it wasn’t anything that I expected. The moms burst into laughter, clutching each other like it was the funniest thing they had ever heard.
“Josh, we have no desire to raise your children for you,” my mom said haughtily.
“That’s not exactly what I said,” I told her, sounding more than a little irked. “We just didn’t want your feelings to get hurt.”
“Honey, we’ll find plenty to do,” Martina said. “Heck, Al is already thinking about opening a body shop here. He made more friends in one day here than we made the first year we moved into our new neighborhood in Miami. This is going to be a great move for us.”
“We can’t stand the idea of missing another Halloween like we did this year. Sure, the kids didn’t go trick-or-treating, but seeing your family dressed as characters from The Wizard of Oz in pictures isn’t enough. Gabriel as the Tin Man and you as the Scarecrow was so cute, and little Dorothy and Cowardly Lion were just too precious for words.” My mom smiled through the tears that formed in her eyes. “We want to spend more time with our sons and grandchildren, but that doesn’t mean we want to be in your face every second of every day. We won’t tell you how to raise your children, but we’ll be on hand if Jennifer gets sick or needs some time off too. I promise you that it will be a wonderful thing for all of us.”
Everything they said sounded almost too good to be true, but I decided to accept it at face value and deal with problems if, or when, they arose rather than trying to micromanage every little detail and person in my world. I smiled and said, “That sounds perfect, and we’re so excited that you’ll be here for all of Destiny and Dylan’s milestones.”
“Oh my gosh,” Martina said wistfully. “First day of preschool…”
“And kindergarten,” my mom added. “Blink and that day will be here.”
“You know it,” Martina agreed. “Oh, and visits from the tooth fairy.”
“Next thing you know, they’ll be going to prom and graduating from high school.”
Tears filled my eyes, because as fun as those sounded, it would happen too soon. I wasn’t ready for them to go to school and lose their teeth. They looked at Gabe and me like we hung the moon and stars, but someday they would look at us and roll their eyes because we were the stupidest people on the planet. And I sure as hell wasn’t ready for the day that some girl or boy broke their hearts.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Josh,” my mom said. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I blinked and wiped the tears that slid down my face. “Why does time have to go by so fast?”
Gabe walked into the kitchen just then with both kids in his arms. Hand to the heavens, I must’ve emitted some kind of signal because my man always knew when to swoop in and make things better.
“Daddy!”
“Daddy!”
Gabe took in my wet, swollen eyes and looked suspiciously at the moms. “What happened in here?” he asked suspiciously.
“It was the onions,” I said, wiping my hands on my apron and taking the babies from him. That would explain the wet eyes, but not the trembling lips I pressed to one forehead then the other.
“He just realized how fast this year has gone and got a little emotional,” Martina told Gabe.
“All lies,” I said, trying to sound tough. “It was the onions.”
“I’ve never seen onions make you cry in the years that I’ve known you,” Gabe said. He smiled wryly as he pulled the twins and me into a hug. “I get it, Sunshine. I want to stop the ride sometimes too.”
“Or just slow it down a little. I’m not ready for them to lose teeth, go to school, think we’re stupid, or get their hearts broken.” My voice was muffled against his chest, but I could tell he heard every word because he tightened his arms around us like he could protect us from all those bad things.
“Let’s just enjoy today because it’s all that we have, Sunshine.”
I nodded after I pulled back. “I’m going to let the moms finish making the stuffing while I get the twins ready for our guests.”
“Get ready? They’re already dressed,” Gabe said, sounding perplexed.