A Tale of Two Christmas Letters

by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  Her excuse made sense. Yet Jack thought it might be something else, like the fact she had realized they had just a week left on their deal to help each other through Christmas. As well as the need to continue to sort out her feelings.

  He was okay with that. If she needed space to come to the conclusion he already had, that they were meant to be together for more than just a few heady weeks, he was willing to give it to her. Just as she had always given him space when he needed it in the past.

  She looked better, more herself, when he picked her up on Saturday to go to Winfield Ranch to sign the adoption papers and collect their puppies.

  Four hours later, when the two of them were seated on the floor of the gated-off portion of her living room and finally had the puppies situated, she looked even happier.

  “Oh, Jack,” she gushed, as Princess Abigayle and Lady Grace climbed up onto her lap and simultaneously licked her under her chin. “I think I’m in heaven!”

  She certainly looked blissed out, with two adorable fluffy golden retrievers on her lap, paying homage to her in every way they could. Jack captured the moment with the camera on his cell phone and then promptly texted the pictures to her.

  “You know what Betty said.” He grinned as the lovefest continued. “When they kiss you on the face, it means they are accepting you as their mother.”

  Tears of joy spilled out of her eyes. “I remember.” She laughed as one of the puppies caught her mouth with a big sloppy kiss. “Okay, my little pumpkins, let’s settle down a bit.”

  They stopped long enough to gaze up at her adoringly, their little tails wagging, then snuggled back down in her arms.

  Leaving their mama dog had been traumatic. The pups had turned to Bess for comfort from the moment they left, while Jack drove. And now that they were home, they were still looking to her for comfort.

  “This is like having twins,” she said.

  Except it was her sister Bridgett who was having the human twins. And though he knew Bess both loved and valued this kind of happiness, she also deserved the satisfaction of having a husband and children who loved her, too.

  But right now, as she snuggled and doted on the adorable puppies, she didn’t seem to be thinking about all that was still lacking in her life. She released a contented sigh. “Maybe this is what’s meant for me, Jack. I mean, maybe it’s my fate?”

  “Maybe,” Jack said. But maybe there was more in store for her, too. Lots more. Happiness he could help her achieve.

  Oblivious to his thoughts, Bess continued stroking the puppies’ soft golden fur. She shook her head in wonderment. “I never understood when people said that having a new puppy was like having a new baby.” She laughed as the pups gazed up at her as if they understood every word she said. She rubbed them tenderly behind their ears. “And now, at least for a bit, I’ve got two!”

  Aware he had never seen her look so radiant, Jack asked, “You’re sure it’s not going to be too much?”

  Bess shook her head as one of the puppies finally climbed off her lap and ambled over to see him. Her buddy soon followed. “This is why I saved up my vacation all year, so I’d be able to really enjoy this prime bonding time. I don’t have to go back to work until after the New Year.”

  Soon Jack had a lapful of puppies, too. “I’m off between Christmas and New Year’s, too. So maybe we can do a lot of this together then?”

  Bess flashed a contented smile. “I’d be happy to arrange puppy playdates at both our houses, as well as share whatever hands-on wisdom I develop during the first week.”

  It was just too bad they couldn’t all be under the same roof. Enjoying the experience together.

  Not that Bess wasn’t looking deliriously happy as it was. No, she was definitely all aglow.

  But Jack knew he had the power to make her even happier. Of course, since they were just friends with benefits and she was reluctant to take it any further than that, at least for right now, her childlessness technically wasn’t his problem.

  And yet, Jack thought, still watching her intently, somehow it was.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Jack headed for the hospital, early the next morning. He had an hour before he had to prepare for his first surgery of the day, which gave him plenty of time to do the research.

  Cup of coffee in hand, he settled down in front of his office computer. The information he wanted was easy to find. He was so engrossed in studying it, he didn’t hear the knock on his door, or was even aware of someone coming in, until he caught a drift of familiar perfume.

  Bess.

  Looking like she had just tumbled out of bed and thrown on the first thing she could find before heading for the hospital.

  Not about to let her see what was on his computer screen, he hit Escape and the data disappeared. He rocked back in his swivel chair. “What’s going on?” he asked, noting she wasn’t in uniform. So this couldn’t be work-related. She was still on vacation. “Everything okay?”

  She stuck her hands in her pockets and peered at him curiously. “I was going to ask the same of you,” she said as if intuiting that something was up. “I saw your Suburban in the lot when I came in. Figured you’d be in emergency surgery, and yet here you are—” she cocked her head “—doing...?”

  He told her what little he could. For now, anyway. “I’m checking statistics for surgical techniques.”

  She moved around his desk, perched on the corner and glanced over at his blank screen. “You know,” she teased, “if I didn’t know better, I’d think you’d just been doing something naughty.”

  He choked on his coffee, aware she didn’t know how close to reality she was.

  Bess clapped a hand over her lips. “I can’t believe that just came out of my mouth.” She leaned close enough to whisper, “See what being your lover has done to me?”

  He rubbed his thumb along the inside of her wrist. “Hey, darlin’, if that’s where your mind is going, I can’t say I mind a bit. As long as you and I are the starring players.”

  She uttered a low, sexy laugh. Looking heavenward, she said, “You are going to be the end of me, Doc.”

  He gripped her hand in his. “Seriously, if I looked guilty,” he said quietly, “there’s a reason.”

  She lifted her brow.

  “I was fibbing when I implied what I was doing was work-related. Actually, it was personal. Very personal.”

  She inhaled. “Okay.” Waited.

  He turned her palm over and traced the lifelines with the pad of his thumb. Felt her soft skin heat in response. “I didn’t want you to see what I was researching, because the subject matter had to do with your Christmas present.”

  She looked surprised. “We’re doing that this year?”

  Seeing a chink in her emotional armor, he nodded. “I’d like to. As long as it’s okay with you.”

  She disengaged their palms and moved away, her guard up once again. “Listen, Jack. Just because I’m giving the girls something again this year and they always make something for me doesn’t mean that you and I have to exchange gifts, too.”

  Refusing to let this be a roadblock, he rose and moved closer. “I want to do this, Bess,” he said resolutely. “I didn’t realize how much until this weekend.”

  Glowing with happiness, Bess cupped his biceps and gazed up at him. “Princess Abigayle and Lady Grace put you in the spirit, hmm?”

  And you. Definitely you. “So what would you like?”

  She dropped her hold on him. “You want me to just tell you?”

  Jack sat on the edge of his desk. “Well, that’s usually the way it works. Or at least it did with Gayle.” He shrugged. “She’d give me specific ideas, and as long as I chose from that list, we’d be good as gold.”

  “Well, I hate to break it to you,” she countered, looking a little hurt, “but that’s not the way it works with me. You d
on’t have to give me a gift... The time we have spent together has made me happy enough already. But if you do want to go down that path, then I’d rather you give me whatever you want me to have.”

  “So I’m on my own, then?” he asked. When it came to her, he was always up to the challenge.

  Bess grinned. “Afraid so, Doc. Whatever it is has got to be a surprise. And not to worry.” She patted him with a reassuring hand. “I’m sure I will love it.”

  Funny, Jack knew she would, too. He felt that in sync with her.

  “So what are you doing at the hospital so early?” he asked curiously. Still dressed in a pajama top and jeans, no less. Her hair a sexy, tousled mess.

  Bess collapsed into his desk chair. “Bridgett. She called from the ER a couple of hours ago, sure she was in labor. Turned out to be Braxton Hicks contractions.”

  “How did she take it?” Most new moms were distraught, hearing that diagnosis.

  Bess made a sympathetic face. “Exactly like you’d think. She was upset and embarrassed. Felt that, because she’s a nurse, she should have known the difference.”

  “But it was her first pregnancy.” Robby was adopted.

  “I know. That’s what I told her.” She rose gracefully. “Anyway, she went home half an hour ago. But they did tell her it could be any time now, since she is slightly dilated.”

  Jack reached out and kissed the back of her hand. “You seem really happy about this.”

  Bess leaned into his touch. “I am. I feel so close to her.” Her voice caught. She shook her head in contentment. “It’s like old times. The twin thing, of her joy being my joy. And it’s at least partially due to you, Doc.”

  “What do you mean?” he rasped.

  Her eyes sparkled. “You’ve given me hope again.”

  “Same here,” he said gruffly.

  Jack bent to brush his lips against hers.

  When the tender caress ended, she studied him intently. “So what do you want for Christmas?”

  Jack pretended to be affronted. “Hey, lady, you’re on your own there.”

  She laughed as he meant her to, and he pulled her close once again, giving her another sweet and tender kiss. “Seriously, whatever you give me, I’m sure I’ll love it, too.”

  * * *

  His decision finally made, Jack signed the receipt. The Laramie jewelry store, an institution in Laramie County, was the place where everyone he knew bought their engagement and wedding rings.

  Wanting to ensure privacy, he’d made an after-hours appointment for 8:00 p.m., after his girls were in bed. Which had turned out to be a good thing. It had taken a lot of thought, to make his decision. The private showing area in back was elegant and quiet, the atmosphere relaxed, even though they’d stayed open just for him. Hence, he’d felt no pressure from the jeweler, just himself.

  The store owner smiled. “The special lady in your life is going to love it.”

  Jack hoped so. He hadn’t been this on edge since the last time he’d tried—and failed—to pick out an adequate surprise push gift for the woman in his life. Gayle hadn’t liked it. And they’d ended up returning it. Or had planned to, until...fate had intervened.

  Now that gift sat in a safety-deposit box at the bank, along with the other jewelry owned by his late wife, waiting for the day when his daughters would be old enough to inherit it.

  “Especially when she understands the symbolism behind it,” he continued.

  “I hope so.” Jack smiled.

  The gift he’d chosen wasn’t as straightforward as a ring. But it was still better than the diamond tennis bracelet or earrings that had been suggested.

  “Would you like me to gift wrap it for you?”

  Jack knew that wasn’t his forte, either. “I’d appreciate it.”

  When he got home, he put the package in his sock drawer. Looked in on the girls. All were sound asleep. Mrs. D. was in the kitchen, doing some holiday baking. He chatted with her briefly, then ducked into his study and spent the rest of the evening doing more research on a subject he thought he would never need.

  To his satisfaction, the prospects for an immediate solution were positive. He could only hope Bess would be encouraged by it, too.

  * * *

  The next morning, the holiday spirit in his home escalated. “Daddy, we want to talk to you about something,” Nicole said.

  “We want to get Bess a gift,” Chloe added.

  “You already made beautiful pictures for her. Remember?”

  Lindsay frowned. “Besides that.”

  “We want to go shopping and buy something for her, too,” Chloe said seriously. “And for her new puppy.”

  “And for us,” Lindsay added.

  This was definitely going somewhere. His little girls were in full group-planning mode. Jack sipped his coffee. “Did you all have something specific in mind?”

  Vigorous nodding. “We want matching dresses. For Christmas. Like we used to wear with Mommy,” Lindsay explained.

  They had seen the pictures, even though they couldn’t likely recall that.

  “We all want to wear the same thing as Bess and we want her new puppy to wear the same dress, too.”

  Jack was momentarily dumbfounded. Although it was an incredibly cute idea.

  “When is she getting her new puppy, Daddy?”

  Jack answered carefully, lest he inadvertently give away any part of the surprise. “I think you’ll be able to see Lady Grace on Christmas Day.”

  Nicole brightened. “Same time as our new puppy!”

  “If Santa brings it,” Chloe worried.

  “I think he will,” Lindsay declared.

  The girls took a moment to think. “Well, then if he does, can we all wear matching dresses, including the two puppies?” Nicole asked.

  “Well...” Jack’s throat was suddenly a little rusty, at the thought his little girls might be every bit as ready for a new mommy as he was a new woman in his life. “First of all, I don’t think dogs wear dresses.” Although just trying to get them on the puppies would be riotous, a picture-worthy event he was sure.

  “Oh, yes, they can!” Lindsay argued. “I’ve seen them, Daddy! At Halloween!”

  That was true. More than one person had put their pet in costume during trick or treating.

  “Puppies are different, though,” Jack explained gently. “They’re just little baby dogs, and they need to be comfortable. They don’t like to wear things that scratch or itch or get in the way of whatever it is they are trying to do. Like run and jump and play. But,” he continued when the trio of faces fell in disappointment, “they do wear collars and have leashes that are made of different colors, and I happen to know that Lady Grace is going to have a rose-colored collar. So you all could get a matching scarf and hat and gloves for Bess to wear when she walks her puppy on a leash outside. That would be a nice surprise.” He thought. Hoped, anyway.

  “But what about us, Daddy?” Nicole asked plaintively.

  “I think you might want to get something to wear that is the same as the collar for the new puppy we hope Santa is going to bring us,” Jack said. “Maybe something pink. And let Bess wear something that matches her new puppy. That way, we’ll know who belongs with whom.”

  The girls fell silent, trying to wrap their minds around that. “And I am sure,” Jack finished, “that you all will look very cute in whatever you wear.”

  * * *

  “You know you don’t have to keep bringing me lunch every day,” Bess teased, when she met Jack at her door at noon on Friday. Although she did love seeing him come in, hair wind tossed, cheeks ruddy with the cold. And always so happy to see her and spend time with her, either during their casual midday encounters or leisurely late-evening lovemaking sessions.

  She reached up to buss his cheek. “I can cook for myself, you know. Even with two puppi
es to watch over.”

  Jack leaned down to kiss her fully on the mouth. “I could just be here to see Lady Grace and Princess Abigayle,” he teased, when the evocative caress ended.

  Still tingling, she took the take-out bags. “I don’t doubt for a minute the puppies are part of the allure. They’ve got me completely besotted, too.”

  Jack paused to study the sleeping puppies, who were curled up in their crates. “Adorable,” he murmured.

  Together they headed toward her dining room table. Missing work almost as much as she missed him when she wasn’t with him, Bess laid out the silverware and napkins. He set out the chicken Caesar salads and iced teas, then held out her chair for her and waited until she slipped into it.

  “So how are things at the hospital?” she asked.

  With a smile, he sat down opposite her. “Unusually quiet, at least on the surgical wards. Everyone who can put off an elective procedure until after the holidays usually does. So right now we’re just dealing with the emergent cases, which...knock on wood...have been few and far between for a change.”

  “And the girls?” Their knees touched briefly beneath the table. “Isn’t today their last school day before the break?”

  “It is.” He laughed. “A fact that is only amping up their excitement.”

  “I can imagine.” The only bad thing about having so much puppy duty was that she hadn’t seen as much of his girls as she would have liked this week. But that would change soon, she knew.

  “Naturally, we’d all like you to come over for pizza tonight,” Jack continued, forking up a bite of salad.

  “I could come for a little while.” Bess stirred in the dressing with her fork. “But then I’ll be right back on puppy detail.” Her cell phone buzzed, signaling an incoming message. She reached around to get it from the pocket of her jeans, then, seeing the text pop up on-screen, flushed and promptly put it out of sight.

  “Tim Briscoe again?” Jack asked lightly.