Carl decided to broach the subject that he knew she wanted to avoid. “So, no date then?” he asked nonchalantly.
“Seriously, Dad!” Maggie stopped washing the bowl that was in her hands and looked him dead in the eye.
“Yeah, seriously. I, for one, think it could be fun. I mean, a free vacation and all in Vermont. Skiing, fancy dinners, a beautiful resort--”
“Dad, stop. Just stop!” Maggie exclaimed as she dried off her soapy hands and walked over to take a seat at the kitchen island.
“What is the big deal? It’s just a date? It’s not like you are getting marr--'' Carl stopped himself. He hadn’t said that word to her in over ten years. Carl glanced over and saw a tiny teardrop slip down Maggie’s cheek.
Maggie quickly swiped the lone tear away, trying to hold it together so the waterworks did not break free. She had not thought about that night in so long and had thought that wound had finally healed. But tonight, after hearing her name announced as the winner of a date with Bradley Thomas, she knew she was still not ready to move on and may never be.
She could forgive her friends, they only thought they were doing her a favor. But the thought of actually dating someone terrified her. Plus, to have her first date in over ten years be with a womanizing, egotistical, cheating, just plain asshole, was far too much. If she ever dated again, she at least wanted a say in who he was.
Carl sat down and placed his hand on top of hers. “Honey, it’s okay to move on. Isaac would never have wanted you to waste away pining over him.”
“You mean like you still do with Mom?” Maggie shouted right back.
“Honey, I know that’s what you think I’m doing, but you forget, after your mom died, I spent the better part of my youth raising you. Plus, I took that leap once and I’m not opposed to finding love again. I just…anyway this isn’t about me right now,” Carl continued, avoiding Maggie’s stare.
“It was a shame about Isaac’s passing, I loved him too. That night was the worst night of my life. When the state trooper stopped at my door and I thought I’d never see you again. And then seeing you lying there in that hospital room, hooked up to all those machines...well, my world about ended that day. I know it did for you,” Carl paused, flashbacks of that horrible night replayed in his mind.
When he had answered the door that night, he could never have imagined he may lose his only child. The trooper had told him that Maggie was in critical condition at the local hospital. That she and Isaac had been in a horrible car accident. Maggie had been so excited to go away with Isaac for the weekend. They’d been dating for over four years, college sweethearts. Isaac had asked Carl for Maggie’s hand in marriage a few weeks early, so he expected that that weekend was the one Isaac had intended to propose to his daughter.
Later, they would both find out that Isaac had every intention of that that weekend. The officer had brought all their luggage to Carl’s house and while Maggie sorted through it all she found the ring he had bought for her. Maggie made no comment, but only placed the box safely away in one of her dresser drawers, never to look at it again. Since then, Maggie devoted all her time and energy to finishing her degree in veterinary medicine and then building her own practice.
Many times, Carl tried to broach the subject about meeting someone and one day having grandchildren, but Maggie immediately shut the subject down. Now she was faced with the fact that in a few days’ time a famous celebrity was on his way to their small town to surprise her as the winner of a dating contest. And it would be aired for all to see. So when reporters started to call, it was no surprise to Carl that Maggie told them it was all a big mistake and she was not going on any date.
“Maggie it’s time to move on and it’s also time for me to move on. We both need to do this for ourselves,” Carl admitted to not only Maggie but himself.
Maggie’s mouth hit the floor when her dad continued to speak.
“So, I’ll propose a deal. You go on this date and I promise to go on a date myself,” Carl stated, resigning to the fact that he needed to do this if it meant helping his daughter finally find someone to love again one day.
“Wait, you mean, you want me to go on a date with some jerk--”
“No. Just think of it as a practice run. Plus, there’ll be so many people around that it’ll feel less like a date and more like a gathering of people. And even if he is a jerk, he’ll need to be on his best behavior in front of the cameras, I’m sure,” Carl stated matter-of-factly.
Maggie mulled over the idea. It had been a long time since she had been alone with a man that the idea kinda scared her. So maybe this was the best way to try it again. And she figured her dad had to be right, that there would be no way in hell Bradley would do anything to further tarnish his image in front of the world. And if she totally made a fool out of herself, who cared? It was not like she actually worried about getting him to like her.
Maggie extended her hand out towards her father for him to shake. Carl hesitated for a split second before placing his hand in hers and firmly shaking it. “It’s a deal,” Maggie confirmed.
Letting her dad’s hand go, she started to walk out of the kitchen and then turned around quickly to add, “By the way, I get to choose your date.” With that, she left the room.
Carl looked down at Rex who had been sleeping on the kitchen floor the whole time, oblivious to anything going on around him. “Well, bud, I think I just made a deal with the devil.” Rex looked upwards at him; one eye open. Taking a big yawn, he flapped his gums and grunted at Carl as he lay his head back down on the floor, disinterested in the conversation.
********
The rest of the weekend went by quickly. Maggie spent much of her Sunday decorating her house, which had been her dad’s and her tradition growing up. He had always told her that Christmas was her mom’s favorite time of the year. They would start by putting up the tree and then they would make popcorn to string. They always made extra, because most of it made its way into their stomachs instead of becoming part of the decor.
Next, Carl would get out her mom’s prized possessions: her Christmas snow globes. She had started collecting them as a young girl and had over twenty of them from all over the world. Maggie would spend hours shaking them all and watching the snowfall around them. Her favorite one was of their family home. Her mom had found someone who made them, and she sent them a picture of their house to have a replica made. Outside the house was a snowman and pine trees all decorated like Christmas trees.
Every time she looked at it she felt close to her mother. She never got the chance to know her, but somehow this small object made her feel like her mother was still there. After she got her own house, Carl gave her the box of snow globes to decorate her own home. So, every year, she would put up the tree and then place the globes out all over the house just like she did growing up.
After she finished decorating, she poured herself a glass of red wine and sat down to check her phone messages. It had been beeping all day, but she had resisted the urge to look at it until now. She figured it was mainly news reporters wanting more answers about who she was and if she was excited to go on a date with Bradley. As she rummaged through the messages, she saw that Jim had called three times. She knew she couldn’t ignore him forever and no matter how hard she tried she could not stay mad at him for long either. No matter what, she knew his heart was in the right place, even if what he did was a total dick move.
Maggie was about to call Jim back, when a text from a strange number caught her attention. She clicked on it and saw who it was from. As she read through the message, she could tell there was a sense of urgency and concern from this man who stated he was Bradley’s manager. Maggie was not sure if someone was messing with her or not, but this Todd guy was very concerned about her cancelling the date and wanted to talk to her immediately.
Unsure if this was a creeper or not, she decided to err on the side of caution and deleted it with no response. For all she knew, it could be some deranged fan tr
ying to get her address to come hack her up in the middle of the night. The thought sent a chill down her spine. Taking a sip of the delicious liquid, she turned her thoughts back to more pressing matters--calling Jim.
She hit dial and Jim picked up before it had a chance to ring twice. “What, got nothing else to do, but wait for me to call?” Maggie joked.
“Maggie, I’m so sorry. We never thought in a million years that you would actually be picked. It was a joke and-”
“Hey, it's fine. Once I got over the surprise and talked things over with my dad, I realized that it could be worse,” Maggie stated. “I mean, it is a shitty joke to play on someone, but I was able to make a deal with my dad and finally get him to agree to go on a date too. So, at least that’s a win, even if it means spending a weekend trapped with a man that I have no interest in.”
Jim laughed, “Well, Maggie, that’s just like you to take a crappy situation and spin it into something positive. I know you’re too good for this Bradley guy, and no one would blame you if you bail. Well, some women would think you’re crazy...I’ll never understand the female mind and the need to fall for the bad boys...”
Maggie laughed. They spent the next hour chatting about what she expected the date to be like and ways that she could make it the most miserable experience for him. Maggie secretly hoped he would end the date early if she was horrible enough. By the end of the conversation Maggie had nearly consumed the whole bottle of wine and was starting to feel the effects. “Hey Jim, I need to get some sleep. I have to go to work early tomorrow and coming in drunk is not the best plan.”
They said their goodnights and Maggie headed upstairs to bed. As she laid her phone on the nightstand, she saw there were a few more missed messages. Not feeling in the mood to deal with anything else tonight, she placed her phone on DO NOT DISTURB and fell asleep.
When she woke, she felt like she had not even slept. All night long, she was in and out of dreams about her date with Bradley. Many of them did not turn out well. Not sure if this was an omen, Maggie thought about calling it all off and then she remembered her deal with her dad and how much she really wanted him to meet a nice woman to grow old with.
She shook off the negative feelings from her dreams and proceeded to get ready for the day. It was going to be a busy one. She had back-to-back patients, with no time even for lunch. Maggie quickly got ready and grabbed her phone on the way out of her room. She glanced down and saw she had six new texts from this Todd guy again. Wow he must really want something badly. Or he is one crazy stalker. Having no time to deal with the situation now, she deleted the messages and headed off to work.
Chapter 5
Brad woke up the next morning with one of the worst hangovers he’d had in years. Rubbing the temples of his forehead to ease the dull ache, he flipped the covers back and glanced down at his naked form. For a moment, Brad wasn’t sure what happened to his clothes, when he heard a loud snort that drew his attention to the other side of the bed. Lying next to him was one of the women from the bar last night, or so he thought. In the daylight, she looked a lot different.
Trying to get out of bed without waking her up, he gently leaned forward to take a step when his foot landed on something furry. Brad jumped back, startled by what he had touched. Not sure if a small animal had gotten into his room and died, Brad gingerly reached his foot out to kick the offending object to see if it moved. When it did nothing, he leaned in for a closer look and saw what looked to be a pile of brown hair.
Looking back at the woman lying in bed, it struck him. That was why she looked so different. Last night she had a long ponytail in and today her hair was shoulder length. The rest of it was now lying dead on his floor. Brad rolled his eyes and wondered what else on her wasn’t real.
Before he had too much time to contemplate this notion, the ache in his head came back to remind him that whatever he did last night must have involved too much whiskey. Trying to not wake the woman sleeping in his bed, he quietly walked into the bathroom to find some aspirin to take the edge of the throbbing pain in his skull. Once he had successfully found what he was searching for, he tried to piece together last night's events.
From what he could recall, after Todd had left, he went over and joined the group of women at the bar. He vaguely remembered some shots, or was that body shots, he had no idea anymore...and then somewhere along the way he ended up bringing Ms. Brunette, he had no idea what her name was, back to his room. It appears they had sex before calling it a night. He just prayed he was smart enough to put a condom on in his drunken state. He was not ready to have a little Bradley walking around anytime soon.
Just then another loud snort emanated from the woman, still sound asleep. Brad almost laughed out loud at the noises as he tried to figure how to get this young woman out of his room in the most polite way possible. Figuring he may need some help, he threw on the hotel robe in the bathroom and made his way out of the bedroom to the living area. He found his phone still in the back pocket of his jeans, that lay crumpled on the floor.
Fishing it out, he automatically dialed Todd’s number. Brad tapped his foot impatiently while he waited for Todd to answer. When it went to voicemail, he tried again. Once again, no luck. “Shit man, I know you’re pissed, but come on. Help a fellow man out here,” Brad cried out loud with no one to listen to him.
Frustrated, he looked around the room and figured all he could do was wait for what’s-her-name to wake, and then try to quickly shoo her out. Brad sat down on the couch in resignation; it was not long until he heard her begin to stir. He got up and walked back into the bedroom.
The woman saw him standing in the doorway and smiled seductively. “I can’t believe I’m really in Bradley Thomas’s bed. My friends are going to freak when I tell--”
“Yeah, yeah. Uh, I need you to leave,” Bradley started, then saw the hurt expression on her face. “I mean, I have such a busy day. But I had a lovely time and I enjoyed getting to know you and uh...” he started picking up her clothes that had been strewn around the floor and flung them at her. “Here you go. So, I have to go, so just see yourself out and I, eh...I got you an Uber to meet you outside in five minutes.”
The woman looked like she had no idea what to say as Bradley helped her out of the bed and rushed her out of the room with only the bed sheet wrapped around her. He continued to usher her to the front door and out into the hallway, all the while making claims about doing this again and how much fun he had. Before she could get a word in or stop him, she was standing on the other side of the door, her clothes piled in her arms.
Bradley closed the door as she attempted to interject. He leaned up against the door, relieved that he had exited her from the hotel room. For a moment he did feel a twinge of guilt, but the feeling didn’t last long as his phone rang, and he saw it was Todd calling him back.
“Hey, where have you been?” Brad demanded. “I’ve been trying to call you all morning. I had a serious situation I needed help with.”
And what was that? Getting another strange woman out of your room?” Todd guessed.
“Yes!” Bradley shouted back. “But luckily I was able to figure things out myself.” Brad smiled proudly to himself.
“She’s not standing on the other side of the door, with just a bed sheet on, staring at your door, is she?” Todd asked, slightly irritated.
“Uhhh, maybe? How would you know?” Brad asked, unabashed.
“Because I’m looking at her right now, you ass,” Todd blurted out and hung up the phone.
Brad leaned his ear up towards the door and heard Todd’s voice as he soothed the upset woman in the hallway. A few minutes later, Todd walked into Brad’s room.
“Seriously man, you left her in the hallway with just a bed sheet on?! You’ve done some douche things before, but this is an all-time low. You need to get your shit together, if we want to stand any chance of salvaging your career,” Todd stated as he walked over to take a seat. Brad could see from the look on his face that
it was time for the lecture again.
“I can only do so much, Brad, but you need to help me out. Maggie is your last hope, if she’ll even agree to the date,” Todd stated.
“What do you mean, if she’ll agree to the date?” Brad asked, not sure what he meant.
Todd looked like he could kill Brad. “You seriously don’t remember a word of our conversation last night?”
Brad shook his head, trying to remember. But the whiskey had made his memory foggy. “Yeah, I got nothing.”
“Well, let me remind you. As of right now, your contest winner--her name is Maggie--is refusing to go out with you, lover boy. And to top it off, the network is about to pull the plug on your show. You see, they don’t feel you represent the image they want. You know, wholesome, family type--one that respects women. I have no idea why they would think any of that,” Todd replied mockingly. “So, your last chance of changing your image and showing the network, and the world, you’ve changed your ways lies with this one woman and she wants nothing to do with you! And she hasn’t even met you--imagine once she does!” Todd exclaimed as he threw his hands up in the air, defeated.
For the first time, the gravity of the situation sank in. He’d been in such a downward spiral since Christy left that he wasn’t sure what he cared about anymore. But seeing the look on Todd’s face, he knew he needed to try, if not for himself than for Todd. He was the closest thing he had to family and he could not lose him too.
“Okay, okay,” Brad sighed, “what do I need to do?”
Todd was skeptical that Brad was really being sincere, but he had no other choice than to trust he was going to do what he needed to to save his career.
“Well, we need to get on a plane and fly to Georgia to meet Maggie and get her to agree to this date. We need to get her to change her mind, before this weekend, when you are supposed to ask her out. Remember the cameras will be there to tape it all--so best behavior!”
A Date for Christmas Page 4
