Page 8 of Ayden (House of Frazier #3)

“What did you want to get your brothers for Christmas? It’s in a few days, and I’ve not seen you shop for them.” He said he got it back in August for them. “Really? What did you get them? I’ll wrap it up for you to put under the tree.”

“We never wrap them.” Ayden was sitting at the table when she’d asked him about the gifts, and the girls were with him. “We wait until Christmas week, then when we see each other, we give them to each other. It’s all right.”

“What did you get him?” He told her. “Socks. Which brother did you get socks for? And so you know, we’re going to wrap everything and put it under the tree this year. We have a family.”

“I got them all socks. Can I have some more of those eggs? They’re really good.” She got up to make him another four eggs, asking him why he would get his brothers all socks for Christmas. “We get each other socks for Christmas. And we get them in August because that’s when the back-to-school prices are the best. We get a bag of socks and one pair of black ones for funerals, and being turned down at the bank for each of us. It’s practical, and since we need them, we have them for the entire year. See? It’s a good gift.”

She just stared at him. Then he explained how the banker used to simply turn them down for any kind of loan, so they called them their funeral and turn down at the bank socks. He said they would make them look more professional if they wore the black ones in.

“So each of you would buy each other a bag of socks for Christmas, you’d not wrap them up, and you’d just—I’m supposing that you didn’t have a tree either.” He told her that the one in their living room was the first tree he’d ever had in all his life. That made her sad. “You have money now. You can buy each of them whatever you want.”

He looked at her, confused, and she wanted to hug him. He didn’t get it. It was something that he’d been doing all his life, and it didn’t stop just because he had money and a good job now. She was going to go out that day, buy each of the men in her life gifts, and put on the tag that said it was from her and Ayden. Her heart broke each time she looked at the bags of socks not wrapped under the tree. She decided to call Brandy and Mac.

After telling them what she’d discovered, Brandy said she’d not asked Lica what he’d gotten his brothers. When he told her that he’d done it, she assumed that he’d done something special and didn’t want her to know about it. Mac had said the same thing. After looking around, they both found the five bags of socks for each brother and the five pairs of socks in the same black color. None of them knew what to do.

“Did you know that this is their first tree ever? Ayden told me that this morning.” She was an emotional wreck, thinking that these men who were so generous with not just their time but their hearts had never celebrated the holidays like… “That’s why they were so confused at Thanksgiving. They didn’t understand that families got together and had a large meal, then sat around being full. It was the first time that they’d had that kind of family over.”

“Lica said that he understood that people ate big on that day, but he’d never participated. I just didn’t understand that it was because he didn’t know how not that he didn’t want to. Oh my god, when I think of the things that he said to me that day, about all the leftovers, how much food I was having made. I get it now.” The three of them met at her house and cried all afternoon while they talked about their husbands and their brothers. The things that they missed out on and the things that they’d never experienced. “I’m going to make sure that we celebrate each and every holiday on the calendar. I don’t even care if it’s Taco Day. I’m going to make it special for them. When I think of all the things that they missed because…it hurts me to my core to know that they, these wonderfully wonderful men, have given so much of themselves that they never had anyone give back to them. I mean it. This is going to be the first of the best holidays that I can make for them.”

“We have to do this in a way that doesn’t hurt them.” Mac had a point. They weren’t being selfish, just uninformed. As they decided what they were going to do and how they were going to fix this, it was Mac that came up with a plan. “We buy them gifts that they never would have gotten for themselves or from anyone. Games that they can play together. New sweaters even though the other one isn’t worn out yet. When I think of seeing all those socks in his drawer and why there was still a package unopened in the closet, I understand what their thinking was. They weren’t being mean by buying each other socks. It was practical. It was on sale in August, so they got it then and held onto it even though they each knew what they were doing. I can see them now, handing off the bags to each other in large grocery bags because that, too, would have been practical. When I think of their parents, I want to find them and beat the shit out of them.”

It took them most of the day to get things set up. They had never ordered things for the holidays three days before Christmas, and so far, it was going to work. They got them all kinds of things that they should have had as a child through their teenage years. As soon as they were finished, the three of them had an idea that they’d not have to do this for the next wife, whoever she was, they were going to set the men up so that they not only had the holiday spirit, but they would hold it year-round.

The boxes and bags began to arrive that afternoon. It helped to have money to burn so that they could make this work. Hiring a few of the pack to help them, they put large and sometimes giant blow-ups in their yards. Christmas presents that were jokes, and some that were serious. Through it all, they laughed, wondering how their husbands were going to react to their first Christmas. It was Hattie, Lica’s cook, who told them to get them ornaments that had their first Christmas for them. By the end of the day, they were so excited that they had to refrain from telling their brothers and husbands. It was going to be epic, and they couldn’t wait to share.

She was able to see Ayden’s face when he got home that night. He was excited about the blow-ups but more so about the gifts under the tree. She’d even been able to get her daughters involved in the planning, and they were just as excited as she was about the morning of Christmas.

“You’ve been so busy.” She told him that she had been, just for him. “You didn’t have to do that. I got all I need right here with you and the girls.” But she could tell that he was curious.

“How did you like the front yard?” He said that he’d seen them from the highway, and there were so many of them. “We’re going to have even more by the time the girls are moving out. I plan to make every holiday the best that we can make it. We have a lot to make up for.”

“I bet. The girls said that they were only able to get a couple of things for Christmas. I’m glad that—” Selma told him that they were all for him. “Me? No, that’s not right. I’ve had good Christmas’s.”

“You’ve had Christmas. You’ve never had good ones. We’re going to have fun this year.” She could tell that he was embarrassed, but she didn’t care. She didn’t want to blindside him about the holidays and have him feeling bad. Instead, she gave him a list of things that the girls were getting and asked him what else he wanted to give them. They had been getting socks as well. And the funny part was, she knew that he’d paid full price for them as they didn’t have back-to-school sales in November.

By the time she was ready for bed, Summer could tell that Ayden was getting excited. He kept looking out the front of the house and to the tree. There were about two hundred gifts under the tree and most of them were for him. She couldn’t wait for him to begin opening them. She also knew that they were all going to benefit from him having such a lovely holiday.

“I don’t understand.” She asked him what he meant as they were preparing for bed. “Why are you making this big deal for me. We have children now. It should be all about them.”

“Because it’s never been all about you.” He asked her what she meant. “You’ve never, not any of you have, had a holiday where it meant something. Not even your birthdays. It was just another day for you.”

“But that’s all right.” She told him that it wasn’t all right that he deserved more than anyone. “But I’m all right with how things went for us. We’re who we are simply because of the way that we grew up.”

“That’s bullshit.” He looked taken aback, and she told him that again. “You’re who you are because you’re a good man. All of you are. It had nothing to do with those people that raised you. If they were here now, I’d beat them to death and not think a thing about it. You were raised by people who should never have had kids in the first place. But I’m glad they did because I was able to have the best husband and friend in the world. A good parent to the daughters we have. A good man that helps others despite being so busy with things himself that he really doesn’t have time. I love you, Ayden Frazier. So much that I’m not sure that words can relay to you what my heart already knows. I was so lucky that you found me and my girls that I can’t tell you how happy you’ve made us all.”

“Oh, honey.” When Ayden sobbed a little, she looked up at him. “I don’t know a thing about having fun with the holidays. I know you guys, you and Mac and Brandy have been good to us in our lack of—I thought about the socks that I got my brothers. Not because I put any thought into the gift but because that was what we always did. Like I said, it was practical for us to get each other what we needed not what we thought that we would like. I wouldn’t know the first thing about buying a gift for someone simply because I could.”

His tears moved her in a way that nothing else could have. He was genuinely upset about not having any idea how to get a gift for someone. She had realized at some point today that he’d gotten the girls what they told him. He was not looking around for anything that would surprise them, no. It was just a thing that they had asked for, and he got it. She was sure that it was the same for her. She’d asked him for something that she’d been looking for the other morning, and she’d bet herself that it was wrapped up under the tree with her name on it. He was, for lack of a better term, uneducated about getting things that he thought would be a good gift for someone.

“I’m going to teach you how to spend money on gifts.” He told her that he’d like that. “It’s a bit late this year, but we’ll start as soon as the new year rolls around. It’s your birthday in February, and we’re going to get you things that we find fun and nothing to do with socks. All right?” Ayden laughed. “Good. All right, we’re going to teach you how to have the best holidays in the world.”

The plan was set. As soon as they got up in the morning, they were going to start putting together a plan for the Christmas holiday. So far, they were going to spend Christmas Eve in the pack house to work on things for the pack. This wasn’t something that they wanted to do, but with the things that were going on right now, they needed to get things organized before the kids went back to school in January. Then, for the rest of the day, they’d be putting together a plan for the teachers to follow.

All of them had been arrested, and the entire staff was gone. The buildings were being torn down today and tomorrow, and by Christmas day, things would be clean slated. There would be nothing in the field to show that there had ever been a mess of a school.

Then, that evening, they were to go to Lica and Brandy’s home for the evening meal. It was going to be epic as well. It was being catered again since there was so much going on, and no one had time to plan it. Their daughters had made placards with names on them, and she thought that they were going to be doing that for years to come.

The day after Christmas, they were going to start hiring teachers. The other packs around had been very helpful in giving them a list of teachers that would teach in the new buildings. The trailers wouldn’t be like a room, but it would be the first of many changes to the kids’ school year. She didn’t know how to thank her girls for what they’d done in getting things squared away. Even Lica said he was humbled by what they’d gotten done for him.

Then, from the New Year until mid-January, when the kids went back to school, they’d be scrambling to get things prepared for them so that they’d be able to learn more than one plus one equaled two. At least, she hoped so.

Summer was going to see if she could help out at the school. She knew that Mac was going to be working there as well as Brandy, but she didn’t want to spend all her time at the school. First of all, she thought it would be odd for her children, and secondly, she wanted to be a stay-at-home mom so she could help with homework, not assign it. Now that she’d been able to do it, she didn’t want it to change.

~*~

That night, when they went to bed, Ayden had a lot on his mind. A lot of it had to do with his beautiful mate, but there were other things as well. Like the money that he’d found in the ledger that had been at the school. Nearly seven hundred thousand dollars of found money was there for him to turn over for the new schools. He wondered what they had planned to do with the money. There was so much of it that he had a feeling that it was going toward something huge, but for the life of him, he couldn’t think what it might have been. All he could center his thoughts on was that the money had been on the books for the last ten years, well before his brother had taken over the pack. He called his brother as soon as he got up.

“That’s a great deal of money.” He said that he knew that, but he couldn’t figure out how they had had it. “I have no idea why, but I have a feeling that you do know where it came from. You do, don’t you?”

“I think I do. And if I do, then it’s a lot worse in this pack than I thought Lincoln said it was.” Lincoln Bates had been the former alpha when Lica had taken over. “I think that he’s been funneling money to the teachers to keep them quiet. And in doing so, he allowed them to do what they wanted so that there would be good reports about the school so that it would get more money from the state. That’s the only thing that I can think has happened.”

“So he gave them free reign and money to make sure that the money that he wanted was there all the time. I wonder why it’s still there? I mean, why didn’t he take it with him when he left?” Lica told him what he thought. “He was waiting until the end of the year bonuses and going to take the rest? I guess I can see that. He’d have to be aware of what was going on, don’t you think? There isn’t any way that the entire school could run like it did without him knowing.”

“I didn’t know.” Ayden told him that he thought he’d have gotten around to it eventually. “That’s not making me feel better. I know that the girls told us what was going on, but I’d like to think that I did what was necessary to make things right. But I have to admit, I do feel like I went a little overboard with this.”

“Why?” He told him that they had no buildings to teach in. “Yes, we do. They’re coming soon. And there wasn’t anything left for the kids in those buildings. Even the heat wasn’t up to par. Had you waited until summer to react, Lica, then the kids would have thought, just what the girls did when we bought our house. That it would be put off and off because you can say things that you want to do but that doesn’t mean that you’re going to actually do them. You did what needed to be done, so show that you’re not one to put things off. You did just what anyone would have…no, you did what you needed to do so that the people of the pack know that you’re a good man and a better leader. Had you put it off, do you think that it would have made as big an impact as it did? I don’t. The pack respects you for what you did, and I can’t tell you how proud I am of you.”

“Thank you.” Ayden asked him what he wanted to do about the money. “I don’t know. I’m hoping you have a plan. I can just take it and use it for the schools like it should have been done, but I have a feeling that you have a better idea.”

“I’ve been learning a great deal about the holidays and the way that we used to celebrate it. I think that we should take the money that is found and divide it up between the families of the pack. Give each household a percentage of the money according to how many children they have in the household. We don’t have a large pack, but I was figuring that a family of four would get about ten grand. That’s a chunk of money for them anyway. The families with more would, of course, get more, and those that have less would get a great deal, but not like the families with kids would get. Even the elderly would get about three grand a household.”

“You’ve figured it out.” He told him how much of the money would be used to give to all the families. “that would help a lot of families this year.”

“I have it worked out so that I can have the checks made out by tomorrow. I know it’s a little late, but it could also help the town out with after-Christmas sales.” He asked if he had to do anything. “Yes, you need to sign the checks, you and Brandy. I’m calling it the school fund. That way, we can let them know that things are going to start to improve.”

Lica said that he’d meet him at the house. Having the computer print out the checks, he was about as excited as he’d ever been about this. A few days ago, he would have put the money aside for a rainy day. But after talking to his wife and children, he was excited to be able to do this for the other families. However, he didn’t know how his brother would feel about him getting a check as well, but in order to make it fair, it was what they had to do. Everyone in the pack would receive a check.

His would be a little more because he had two children, but his brothers would get about fifteen hundred dollars apiece. Then, the married ones would be about twenty-five hundred. He met both he and Brandy there ten minutes later.

“I’m going to hire you to work on the ledgers from now on.” He told Brandy that he didn’t know that he’d be able to find money all the time. “It doesn’t matter. You did great with this, and the pack is going to be grateful. I know that I will be.”

Even after explaining how they’d get a check, too, they seemed to be all right with it. After putting them in the envelopes that he had printed as well, he was ready to go take them to the post office. However, they did it better by just going to each house and handing it over. They got to see the gratefulness on each face as they realized that the money was theirs with no strings attached. Also, it got Lica out to see the houses that were in his pack. He was going to be making improvements on those as well when the spring and summer rolled around.

By dinner time, they had handed out all the checks. It was as if Christmas had come early for him, seeing the faces of the people they were able to help. Of course, there were a lot of people going to complain about others getting more than them, but he was all right with that as well. Next time he’d tell them, he’d think twice about handing over money that was found.

Tonight, they were having dinner with the family. He was so excited about that, having a new outlook on things that he was cheerful, even when his brothers were complaining about the money being spent. But they did perk up when Lica handed them over the checks, and it was Guy who said he was going to buy himself something special with the money and not use it to pay off something. That’s what they were hoping: that the money would be something to stimulate the economy a bit, too.

By the time they were finished with dinner, he was exhausted. Having been up most of the night and early this morning getting things ready for the money, he hadn’t slept all that well. Now, all he wanted to do was sleep for a few months and get up when spring was here. He didn’t care all that much for the cold weather, but his wolf loved it.

He and his brothers were going to start meeting once a week to go running. They used to have dinner in town, the six of them, but things had started getting in the way. He was also going to make sure that they did that again as well. He was going to make sure that family, no matter how large or small, came first. And he was going to make sure that he lived every day like it was his last. Just as he was getting into the bed, he saw that there was a message on his cell phone.

“I got this message on my machine just now and wanted to share it with you.” It was his brother Lica. “It’s from Mrs. Rodney. She’s raising her son’s five kids, and I’m so happy that you took that into account when you were putting the money together.”

“Alpha, this money couldn’t have come at a better time. I had no idea how much it costs now to have so many young ones around. I’ve been fretting and wondering how I was going to clothe the lot of them for summer after getting them a little something for Santa Claus. Now, thanks to you and your family, not only can I get them some nice things to wear but a little something extra too. Even shoes are going to be gotten for the little ones at the same time. Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to my growing family.”

He cried for twenty minutes. He wished then that he’d been able to help them more, but he did make a list of names for the other projects that he was taking care of. Families that were helping out, like Mrs. Rodney, were with her son’s family so that they could find jobs. He was going to make sure that when times were tough all around, he was able to go and get them extras that they might need.

“You’re going to hold onto Christmas year round, aren’t you, Dad?” He told Harley that he had a real eye-opener. “I’m glad. I have to tell you, when Mom told me that you got your brothers’ socks for Christmas every year, that I had to point out to her that she did the same thing. Selma and I got them and pajamas every year, too.”

They both laughed. “I didn’t even have a tree until this year.” She said she knew that and sat on his lap. “What’s up, little one? You seem to need to tell me something. You know that I’m here for you.”

“Always.” She fussed around with the hole in his shirt, and he decided that he didn’t need to wear clothing until it was nothing, not even good for the rags pile. “Selma is special, but I’m not.”

“What do you mean?” She told him as best she could between fumbling for words. He had a feeling that, like him, she was fumbling because she was upset. “You are special to me, Harley. You protect your sister even though you can’t see what she’s dealing with. Not to mention, I know you’ve been helping her with her chores around the house so that she can take care of the ghosts, too.”

“That’s just what sisters do.” He told her that he knew a lot of families that didn’t help one another like she did her sister. “She’d do the same for me. In fact, when I have something that I need to get done, she helps me with chores, too.”

“That is what family does. But honey, not all families are like that. In fact, I was just thinking about this family I knew the other day and how none of them appreciated one another at all. Especially not their mother.” He thought about the family again before continuing. “The kids decided that they were going to not work because they had their mother to do things for them. And she did it all. Laundry and cleaning their rooms. Even making their beds. But the kids, there were four of them, decided that if she was going to do it, they were going to let her have more work. Then she got sick. Still working at the jobs around the house, the kids took more and more advantage of her. I’m not telling this very good. Basically, they abused her so badly that she died young, and they didn’t know what to do after she was gone. And they blamed it all on her. I don’t remember all the details, but when she died, they had to sell the house and cars because…you know what, that was a dumb story. Let me tell you another one.”

“Never mind, I get it.” She looked at him. You were trying to make it up, weren’t you, so that you’d know how much you appreciate me.”

“Something like that. I’ve never had a story told to me before, so I guess I’m a little rusty at it.” She said he’d have to get better if he was going to tell stories to their little brother. “You know you might get another sister out of the deal. What will you do then?”

“Love her like she’s Selma and hope for a boy the next time. You have to keep trying, Dad. I need a little brother to protect.” After she went to bed, he sat there and thought of the fact that she wanted a brother. He thought that if he had all girls, he’d be thrilled. Being one of six boys had taught him nothing about little girls. But he did like their mother, so that was good.

Going up to bed, his ass dragging, he decided that he’d have to get up early tomorrow because it was Christmas. And for the first time in all his life, Ayden was looking forward to the day more than he had forever.