One Charmed Christmas

by Sheila Roberts

  “So what did you just ask for?” Sophie wanted to know.

  “Good stuff,” Trevor assured her. “The Pommes frites are French fries and the schnitzel is pork, pounded thin, breaded and fried. Our grandma used to make it.”

  “Pork?” she said weakly. “Trichinosis.”

  “Don’t worry, they cook it well,” Trevor assured her. “Germans eat this stuff every day.”

  “And how many of them have little worms in their stomachs?” she retorted. She was not a big fan of pork.

  But she became a big fan of schnitzel, salty and crispy on the outside and tender and moist on the inside. “I could eat this every day,” she declared after her first few bites. “Thank you for introducing me to schnitzel,” she said to Trevor.

  “I have all kinds of things I can introduce you to,” he informed her, his voice smooth as milk chocolate.

  She could already imagine. Was it suddenly hot in here? She needed another Spezi.

  * * *

  The more time Trevor spent with Sophie Miles, the more he liked her, he thought as they strolled the Christmas market after lunch. She looked so cute in her red knitted cap. Her parka covered her butt but not her legs. They were hugged by skintight leggings and they were a work of art. So was her smile.

  Yeah, she was a little obsessed with germs and getting sick, but everybody had their flaws and he’d sure dated women with worse: everything from drama queens so insecure they drove him nuts constantly checking up on him, to self-centered divas who excelled at manipulation. Someone who was health obsessed beat those kinds of women any day.

  Trevor also appreciated Sophie’s willingness to stop at whatever booths he and Kurt wanted to, offering to take pictures of them and buying them treats. That, in addition to seeing how she treated her sister, were all good indicators that she wasn’t selfish. And he got a kick out of her eagerness to learn the German language as they visited the different market booths.

  “Just be sure you ask everyone, ‘Ist das in Deutschland gemacht?’” Kurt advised her.

  “What does that mean? Something about Germany, right?” she asked.

  “It means, ‘Was this made in Germany?’ Not everything you see was handcrafted, so if you want authentic German items it’s good to ask.”

  “I definitely want the real thing,” she said, and was happy to try out her new sentence when they stopped at a booth selling candles.

  She had a flair for language. Her pronunciation was flawless when she repeated the words to the woman selling the candles.

  So flawless that the woman replied in German with far more than a simple, “Ja.”

  “Um.” Sophie turned to Trevor. “What did she just say?”

  “That she and her husband make these candles themselves.”

  “Oh. What can I say back? Something easy.”

  “Sehr gut.”

  “Sehr gut,” Sophie said to the woman with an enthusiastic nod.

  “How many do you want?” Kurt asked.

  “One for my mother, my grandmother and my sister.”

  “Okay, tell her, ‘Ich möchte drei, bitte.’”

  Sophie parroted what he’d told her and the woman got busy wrapping them for her.

  “That was fun,” she said when she’d finished conducting her business. “I may have to take your German class.”

  “You don’t need to bother with him,” Trevor said. “I can teach you all the German you want to know.”

  “If you don’t want to know much,” Kurt teased.

  “Funny,” Trevor said back. “Who invited you along, anyway?”

  “He’s very insecure,” Kurt said to Sophie.

  Oh, yeah, big brother was in rare form.

  Trevor didn’t mind, though. His brother was his best friend and he was pleased that Kurt and Sophie were hitting it off.

  “I like her,” Kurt approved later, once they were all back on board the ship and the brothers were in their room, unloading the presents they’d bought. “She’s nice.”

  “She is,” Trevor said. “Total hypochondriac, though. She’s convinced she needs to be with a doctor.”

  “Doesn’t a first aid course count?” Kurt asked, shrugging out of his jacket.

  Trevor tossed his coat on his bed. “It should.”

  “It better. You don’t have time to go to med school.” He kicked off his boots and slipped into loafers. “You can thank me anytime for making you come on this cruise.”

  “And you can thank God I didn’t kill you for sticking me with Harriet.”

  “I didn’t do that. She stuck herself. Anyway, you’re free of her now.”

  “For the moment.”

  Kurt shrugged and started for the bathroom. “She’ll get tired of chasing an old man. Just don’t feed her any more chocolate. You should have known better than that. It only takes one to get hooked.”

  “That’s for sure,” Trevor said. But he wasn’t thinking about candy bars. He was thinking about kisses, and that one he’d enjoyed with Sophie the night before sure had him hooked, possibly for life. Sadly, the moment had been cut short, but he intended to make up for it in the very near future.

  13

  The next day’s stop was the city of Freiburg, which Catherine quickly decided was her favorite so far. Although much of the city had been bombed during World War II, the people had taken great care to restore the buildings and it had a medieval feel to it. She was delighted by the Christmas decorations, lights and giant fir boughs strung between buildings on each side of its cobblestone streets making a canopy of green, and by the network of tiny streams that ran through the center of town. According to the guide on their walking tour, they had been originally created in the Middle Ages as a source of water for livestock.

  But the cathedral, built in the sixteenth century and said to have the most beautiful spire in the world, was her favorite stop. She stood in awe, taking in the stained glass windows, the panels, sculptures and art treasures.

  “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she said to Sierra, who had tagged along with her, Rudy and Athena, as well as Denise and her men, leaving Sophie free to hang out with Trevor.

  “It is,” Sierra agreed, although she didn’t sound as impressed as Catherine. Or even as interested.

  Catherine understood. It was hard to muster up an interest in the world around you when your own world was teetering on its axis.

  “Standing in a beautiful, old cathedral like this reminds me that there’s something, someone, bigger than me out there, and it gives me comfort,” Catherine said.

  Sierra nodded. “Right now I’ll take all the comfort I can get.”

  “I understand,” Catherine said. “I had a terrible time after losing my husband. I still miss him, but the pain has lessened. One thing I’m finding is that God has a way of bringing along just what we need to start healing and moving forward.”

  “I don’t want to move forward,” Sierra said miserably. “Not without Mark.”

  Catherine put an arm around her. “I know you don’t, but no matter what, forward is always the only way we can go.”

  Sierra bit her lip and nodded. “I’m sorry I keep dumping on you.”

  “I don’t mind.”

  “I guess it’s because you’re so easy to talk to. It’s a little like having my mom along.”

  “That’s one of the nicest compliments I ever had,” Catherine said.

  “I’m glad we met.”

  “Me, too.”

  “I hope we can stay in touch after the cruise.”

  “I’d like that,” Catherine said.

  She’d come on this cruise thinking it would be something to fill her empty days, a nice getaway. It was filling that emptiness, certainly, but it was becoming so much more. The people she’d met had unwittingly pulled something dark and heavy off her soul. Christmas th
is year would come wrapped in wonderful memories, and it looked like she’d be taking home some new friends.

  Even Athena seemed open to friendship now that she’d been assured Catherine wasn’t out to make a grab for her father’s money or break his heart. Later, she appeared at Catherine’s other side in the Christmas market as she and Sierra looked at cottage-shaped incense burners while Rudy stood in line for Glühwein.

  “Are you buying one?” Athena asked.

  “I’m considering it,” Catherine replied.

  “They’re really unique,” Sierra said. “You should definitely get one.”

  “You won’t find these in the States,” put in Athena.

  Catherine nodded. “I think I will. And one for my daughter, too.” She smiled and pointed to the ones she wanted and the woman behind the counter nodded, wrapped them in paper and slipped them into a bag.

  “Your kids didn’t want to come on this cruise with you?” Athena asked as Catherine handed over her money.

  “It was a spur-of-the-moment decision,” Catherine said. “Denise had booked the room for two with another of our friends, and that friend dropped out so she invited me to join her. Anyway, the kids already had plans.” She wondered if Lila ever found a babysitter so she could go to that Christmas party.

  Athena’s brows pulled together. “I’m surprised they let you go off all alone like this when you’ve been...” Aware of Sierra on Catherine’s other side, she shut up. But once Sierra got busy purchasing an incense burner for her mom she asked, “Didn’t they want to spend time with you after everything you’ve gone through?” She bit her lip, then said, “It’s just that I’d sure want to be with my mother under the circumstances.”

  “We can’t always make things work out the way we want,” Catherine said. “Anyway, I’m not alone. I’m here with my best friend and I’m making some very nice new ones.”

  “I haven’t exactly been one of them, I know.” Athena’s cheeks got a little rosier as she picked up an incense burner and examined it.

  “You’re just watching out for your father,” Catherine said.

  “Someone needs to. He’s so...trusting.”

  “That’s not a character flaw,” Catherine said gently.

  “Only when it comes to picking the right woman.” Athena shook her head and set the incense burner back down. “I guess it’s understandable. If you could have seen how miserable he was after Mom died.”

  “I can imagine,” Catherine said. “I’ve been there.”

  Athena’s cheeks turned rosier still. “Of course. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be.”

  “I think he still misses her. I know I do.” She pulled a tissue from her coat pocket and dabbed at her eyes.

  “It’s only natural that you would,” Catherine said. “I remember when I lost my mother. It was a year before I could think about her without crying. I miss her to this day.”

  “He’s all I have left.” Athena frowned. “All right, that’s not true. I have a son, and he’s the best. But he’s busy with school.”

  Yes, busy, thought Catherine. It was what happened when children grew up. They found lives of their own.

  “And parents are different,” Athena continued. She chewed on her lip a moment. “I worry about him. I really don’t want to see him hurt.”

  “I’m not going to do that,” Catherine assured her.

  “You wouldn’t intentionally.”

  Catherine knew exactly where she was going. Rudy had already buried one wife. He wouldn’t want to bury another. Cancer was still one of the scariest words in the English language.

  “Your father will find someone perfect for both of you eventually, I’m sure,” she said.

  Under different circumstances she’d liked to have been that someone. But there was no sense going there. Much better to keep living in the moment.

  Sierra was done with her purchase and Catherine picked up another little cottage. “I’d better get one of these for my daughter-in-law, too. I wouldn’t want her to feel left out.”

  “You’re a kind woman, Catherine,” Athena said. “My mother would have liked you.”

  Surely the highest praise one woman could give another. Catherine decided she liked living in the moment because this was certainly a good one.

  It was even better when Rudy gifted her with a charm for her bracelet shaped like a beer stein. “You really shouldn’t,” she scolded, but it was half-hearted.

  “If you’re going to have a charm bracelet you have to have charms to go on it,” he said.

  Sound reasoning. She looked to where Athena stood with Sierra, checking out a booth displaying all manner of honey and beeswax products. Hopefully, Athena would approve of her father buying Catherine yet another gift now that she knew Catherine wasn’t a threat.

  Rudy followed her gaze. “Don’t worry. I got my daughter one also. I would never want her to feel left out.”

  “Were you concerned about that?” Catherine asked.

  “I guess maybe I have been. She’d been acting a little, well...” He stopped, obviously not wanting to say anything bad about his daughter.

  “Not jealous, I assure you,” Catherine said in case he’d been thinking that was the case. “I think she just wants to look out for her daddy.”

  He smiled ruefully. “I know she does. She’s a good daughter. And I have to admit, I’ve given her cause for worry in the past. My second wife was...a mistake.”

  “We all make mistakes,” Catherine said.

  “Some of us make dumber ones than others.” He shrugged. “But water under the bridge, as they say.”

  Athena and Sierra returned to them, both bearing little gift bags. “We each got beeswax lotion bars,” Athena said. “They’re supposed to be great for dry skin. I think Aunt Millie will really like this,” she said to her father. “She’s always having trouble with cracked heels.”

  “So’s my mom,” Sierra said. “This will make a nice Christmas present for her.”

  “Did you girls get anything for yourselves?” Rudy asked.

  “This is all about Christmas shopping,” Sierra said, then added, “Now,” and her smile lost its shine.

  “Hey, we’re going to make the most of it,” Athena said to her, and Catherine wondered if Sierra had confided some of her troubles to the other woman. They’d been spending a lot of time together that day.

  Maybe the two of them would become friends. California wasn’t that far from Washington, and these days it was a small world thanks to social media. She quickly veered away from applying that to her and Rudy. In the moment, in the moment.

  How she wished the moment could last forever.

  Denise, Charlie and Arnold came into sight as Catherine was finishing up buying some spiced almonds for her son at another booth. Denise was looking elegant in her formfitting black parka, leggings and boots, the red scarf Charlie had bought her around her neck. She was carrying a little bag.

  “What’s in there?” Catherine asked her as they all gathered in front of the booth.

  “A little gift from Arnold,” she said, smiling at him, and making Charlie frown. Then she transferred her smile to Charlie. “And Charlie bought me the most beautiful earrings, which I intend to wear tonight.”

  Oh, yes, Denise certainly was enjoying herself.

  “You really are a stinker, leading both those men on,” Catherine told her once they were in their room, showing each other their new acquisitions.

  “I’m not leading them on. I like them both. We’re pals.”

  “They’re probably both hoping you want to be more.”

  “You know, maybe I do. I’m getting pretty darned fond of Charlie. But never mind me. What about you and Rudy? That’s the third charm he’s bought you.”

  “I know,” Catherine said, and suddenly felt sad.

 
“Hey, why the long face? You’ve got a treasure of a man interested in you, and even his daughter seems to be coming around.”

  “Only because she knows this isn’t going anywhere.”

  “Why not? He’s single. You’re single.” Denise narrowed her eyes. “I hope this isn’t about Bill. He’d want you to be happy.”

  “I can’t commit to anyone when I have no idea what the future holds.”

  “Who does?” Denise argued. “You’d let a little thing like that stop you from enjoying a relationship with someone? Forget the oncologist. You need a shrink.”

  “It wouldn’t be fair to Rudy,” Catherine said.

  “Maybe you should let him make that decision. Have you told him?”

  “No.” She needed to. She would. Soon. But not yet.

  First she intended to enjoy the taste-of-Germany dinner buffet in the dining room. After a quick nap.

  The quick nap stretched into two hours and Catherine barely got freshened up and to the lounge in time to hear their cruise director, Elsa, talk about the next day’s activities. Her group had claimed their usual spot and she saw that Rudy had saved her a place. She tried not to feel conspicuous as she threaded her way through the various groups of people already settled and listening to Elsa, who had been telling them about the next day’s off-ship adventure option.

  “So I hope you will all enjoy your excursion to beautiful Baden-Baden. I’m sure you will want to do the walking tour so you can burn off enough calories to enjoy our final port of call the following day where we will take you into the Black Forest with its beautiful mountain landscape and rolling meadows. There you will see a cuckoo clock–making demonstration and learn how to make the popular Black Forest cherry cake. Once you try the cake you will understand why I encourage you all to take tomorrow’s walking tour,” Elsa concluded.

  “Black Forest cherry cake. Be still my taste buds,” cracked Charlie.

  “My mouth is already watering,” Denise said. “At the rate I’m going none of my clothes are going to fit by the time we get off this ship. I’ll have to walk down the gangplank in a beer barrel.”