Then an idea dawned on him, and he suddenly moved back. “I’ve got it!” he said. “I know what the gift is! You’re going to skate!”
“What gift? Skate? Andrew, what are you talking about?”
Andrew grabbed her by the hand and pulled her with him. “Come on, you’re skating! Don’t you see! It’s what you’ve always wanted! It’s your secret wish!”
“Secret wish? But, Andrew, the rink’s closed. It’s too late.”
Andrew grabbed a pair of skates from the rental rack, handed them to her. “It’s never too late,” he said. “Here. Put these on!”
“Andrew, no. We’ll come back tomorrow.”
“No! There is no tomorrow! Please, Beth. Just put them on. I’ll be right back!”
Andrew vaulted over the railing and slipped and slid his way across the ice toward the Zamboni.
“Excuse me, sir! Could I speak with you for a moment?”
Andrew darted in front of the big machine to block its path, and the burly driver hit the brakes and yanked off his headphones. “Bub, you need to move off the ice. Rink’s closed.”
“I’m sorry, sir, but I can’t do that. You see my wife over there?” Andrew gestured to Beth, who gave the man a little smile and wave. The driver instinctively waved back and then caught himself.
“This is her Christmas gift. Do you have a wife?” Andrew read the name sewn on the surly driver’s shirt. “Dino?”
Dino glared at him. “Ex-wife.”
“Great!” Andrew said. “Then you understand. You see, I forgot to get her a Christmas gift, and I’m really in hot water. She told me that if I could figure out a way for her to skate at Rockefeller Center, all by herself, then all would be forgiven. She doesn’t think I can do it. Can you believe that? Kind of like the Giants last Sunday, eh? Down by four, with thirty-six seconds to play. Manning drops back, throws—touchdown! Can you help me get into the end zone, Dino?”
Dino the Zamboni driver scowled. Andrew figured he’d miscalculated. With his luck, the guy was probably a Jets fan.
“Please,” Andrew said. “Just five minutes. I’ll pay you.” Andrew pulled out his wallet and started peeling off cash. “Here. You can have it all. There’s a couple hundred bucks here.”
Dino scowled down at him. “Keep your money. You got five minutes.”
“Thank you, Dino! Thank you so much!”
Dino shifted the Zamboni into gear to move it off the ice. “Five minutes. Clock’s running, buddy.”
Watching from the railing, Andrew thought how beautiful and happy Beth looked as she cut slow circles across the lonely rink. She seemed to be swept up in the moment; her eyes were closed and a contented smile played on her lips.
Andrew heaved a sigh of relief. He could breathe again. He’d figured it out, solved the cosmic riddle. He’d found the one gift that would free him from fate’s cruel spell. This was much more than a music box; this was a gift for the soul. Everything was going to be all right. The dreaded 11:58 would come and go, and Beth would be none the wiser. She wouldn’t die tonight, or the next night, or for many years to come.
Little did Beth know that he’d given her more than a few minutes’ skating time. He had given her back her future. Their future. Children. Grandchildren. Thousands of wonderful memories yet to make.
Andrew smiled as he watched her graceful glide. The lights from the mighty Christmas tree cast her in soft amber light, making her look almost like an—
“Angel.”
Andrew turned to see that the Zamboni driver had silently eased up beside him at the railing. “She looks like an angel,” Dino said.
Andrew nodded. “Yeah.”
The burly driver was holding a cup of hot coffee. Andrew could see the logo on the side, a large golden key. He shook his head. “I guess you’d know all about angels. I never would have figured.”
Dino chuckled. “Angels come in all shapes and sizes, you know.”
“And apparently temperaments too,” Andrew said.
Dino laughed out loud at this. “Nice you still got your sense of humor, Farmer. Considering you’re almost out of time.”
Andrew shot him a look. “Think again, bub. This is what she wanted. This is the gift.”
Dino took a sip of coffee. “If only it were that easy.”
Andrew squared off with him. “What do you mean? I got her the perfect gift. I did it! She knows how much I love her. I did everything I was asked!”
Dino looked at Beth gliding effortlessly across the ice. “This is a lovely gesture, but unfortunately, it’s not the particular gift we were referring to.”
“Particular gift?” Andrew said. “Now it’s a particular gift? ‘Put some thought into it,’ you said. I did, and here we are. Exactly what Beth wanted. This is her dream, for crying out loud! You can’t go changing the rules at the eleventh hour. I beat you!”
Dino found Andrew’s outburst amusing. “Buddy, I’ll tell you what—you got spunk.” The angel gave Andrew a condescending pat on the back. “Give it some more thought. But don’t think too long. The clock’s ticking.”
The big man winked at Andrew, then turned and walked away. Andrew could barely breathe.
A stone’s throw away, the bells of St. Patrick’s began to toll the hour of nine.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Beth hooked her arm through Andrew’s as they strolled the three blocks from the 86th Street subway station back to their Carnegie Hill apartment. She was beaming and still keyed up from her time on the ice.
“Thank you for my Christmas present,” she said. “Thanks for making me skate.”
Andrew stopped abruptly, turned her to him. “That wasn’t your present,” he said. “I’m going to get you another present. The real present. You just have to tell me what you want.”
“Don’t be silly. I don’t want anything else.”
“Sure you do. Think. I have to—I mean, I want to prove to you that I love you.”
Beth shook her head. “Andrew, buying me something won’t prove that you love me.”
“Sure it will. I mean, it couldn’t hurt, right? Just tell me. What is it you really want for Christmas? If you could have anything in the world.”
“Well, I know a Christmas present we both got.” Beth took his hands in hers. “I’m pregnant.”
Andrew stared at her. The news was so sudden, so jolting and unexpected, that for a moment it didn’t even register.
“What? When? How long have you known?” he said.
“About six weeks.”
Andrew felt her watching him, searching his eyes for a sign, any kind of indication of how he felt about the sudden news.
“Sorry to just blurt it out like this on the street,” she said. “But I kept waiting for the perfect moment to tell you, and now seems—well, as perfect as it’s going to get.”
Andrew felt frozen, hypnotized, as if he’d slipped into some carnival gypsy’s trance. How could fate be so horribly void of compassion, so unthinkably cruel? When Beth was killed that night, she was keeping this secret. She had died carrying their child, and in a few short hours, unless he could figure out some way to stop it, she would die again. On this terrible night, he wasn’t just losing his wife, his lifelong love and best friend. He was losing his child. Their child.
Beth’s smile vanished. “This isn’t exactly the reaction I was hoping for.”
Then, at the moment when things could have gone from bad to irretrievably worse, Andrew Farmer made the save. He broke into a wide grin, clutched Beth in his arms, and pulled her to him.
“Oh, Beth! This is . . . the most amazingly perfect Christmas present ever!”
“Really, Andrew? You’re really happy?”
Andrew’s agent training was paying dividends. He could lie with the best of them. “Are you kidding?” he said. “There’s nothing on earth I want more.” Andrew took Beth’s face in his hands and gave her a slow, sweet kiss. He whispered into her ear, “This is my dream.”
“Can you belie
ve it?” Beth said. “We’re going to have a baby! We’re going to be parents!” She wrapped her arms around his waist in a blissful embrace.
There on that cold, snowy Manhattan sidewalk on Christmas Eve, Andrew Farmer held his joyful wife and tried to navigate the swell of conflicting emotions swirling around in his head.
If only she knew.
If only she knew the dreadful secret he was keeping.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Careful. Watch the branches!”
Beth directed Andrew as he navigated their puny last-minute Christmas tree up the apartment stairwell. Déjà vu, he thought, careful not to crack the same branch he cracked the last time.
Beth fished the apartment key out of her coat pocket. “Can you believe they were still open?” she said. “Guess we aren’t the only ones who wait till the last minute.”
A branch poked Andrew in the cheek. “Ow! This tree doesn’t like me much. That is, if you can call this oversized branch a tree.”
“Hey!” Beth said. “I love Piney.”
Andrew grinned. “Piney? You named this twig Piney?”
“Yes. He’s family now.”
Andrew placed the pathetic little tree in the same spot it sat the last time he lived the moment, then went to the CD player and popped in Beth’s favorite Christmas album. The crooning voice of Andy Williams drifted through the apartment, and she smiled.
Together they trimmed the little tree, Beth singing along with the CD, lending her sweet voice to such classics as “White Christmas,” “The Christmas Song,” and “The First Noel.”
Meanwhile, Andrew feigned calm as he struggled to control the knot of throbbing fear in his stomach. It was past ten o’clock. Less than two hours to go. He wondered how it would all play out and determined that he wouldn’t go down without a battle. When the crucial moment came, he was going to make a stand. He was going to put up his dukes and fight back against Lady Fate or go down swinging.
He wondered if Lionel was watching him, if the angel could read his thoughts at that very moment. He glanced again at the clock: 10:39 p.m.
“There. Perfect,” Beth said. She stepped back from the tree and smiled at their handiwork. “We don’t want to overdecorate. Then it just gets gaudy.”
“Gaudy,” Andrew said. “Great word.”
Beth kissed him on the cheek. “Hold on. There’s one gift you get to open early.” Beth went to the couch, reached underneath, and pulled out a thin gift-wrapped package.
“So that’s where you hide them.”
Beth handed him the present. “One of the places,” she said. “Go ahead. Open it.”
Andrew tore off the paper to reveal a book. He read the title out loud. “She’s Having a Baby—and I’m Having a Breakdown. What Every Man Needs to Know—and Do—When the Woman He Loves Is Pregnant.” He smiled at Beth. “Perfect.”
“I thought so,” Beth said. “Oh, Andrew. I’m so excited! Just think, a year from tonight this apartment will be littered with toys!”
Andrew looked away. “Sounds wonderful,” he said.
Beth moved in front of him and gave him an impish smile. “So, Mr. Farmer. Do you want to know? Do want to know if we’re having a boy or a girl?”
Andrew brushed a stray hair back from her cheek and shook his head. “No.”
“Me neither,” Beth said. “One of life’s great remaining mysteries.” She kissed him and moved to the fireplace. “Picture it, Andrew. Next Christmas Eve there’ll be three stockings on the mantel.”
Andrew stepped over to her and wrapped his arms around her from behind. “There’s nothing I want more,” he said.
Beth turned to him. “You know what I want?” she said.
Andrew smiled as she led him by the hand back to the bedroom.
“Sooooo,” Beth said with a twinkle. “Any name ideas yet?” They were curled up beneath the sheets in bed, her head on his chest. Andrew had one nervous eye on the digital clock on the bedside table. It was now 11:41 p.m. He felt a surge of hope. All he had to do was hold on to his wife for another seventeen minutes, and it would all be over. He would have managed to outmaneuver Providence. Life would go on. They’d have a future together, a family. And all this would seem like a bad dream.
“Andrew? Hello?” Beth gave him a playful pinch to see if he was awake.
“Oh, well, I don’t know. Whatever name you want,” Andrew said.
“No!” Beth said. “We have to decide together. I want to do everything together. We’re a team, right?”
“Right. Beth, is that clock accurate?”
Beth looked from the clock to her anxious husband. “Why the clock watching? Am I boring you?”
“Of course not. I just want to make sure we don’t miss Christmas.”
“Miss Christmas? Andrew, what are you talking about?”
“Nothing, it’s just—never mind.”
Beth smiled at him. “Don’t take this the wrong way . . .”
“Uh-oh,” Andrew said. “Nothing good ever starts with ‘Don’t take this the wrong way.’ ”
Beth smacked him on the arm. “Oh, stop it! I just wanted to thank you for helping me realize something about myself.”
“Oh?” Andrew said. “What?”
“Well, when we first moved to New York, I was totally dependent on you. I thought that without you I wouldn’t be able to survive. I used to cry when you left the apartment in the morning. I missed River Falls so much.”
“Really?”
“Uh-huh. But now I know that coming to New York changed my life in a way I never could have imagined. A good way. I found myself here, my identity. I started my own business, made my own way. I grew up.”
Andrew stroked her hair. “I know,” he said. “And I’m so proud of you.”
Beth snuggled close and breathed a contented sigh. “I love you, Andrew.”
“I love you too.” He softly caressed her hair and watched the clock switch to 11:46.
Twelve minutes to go. He thought about Lionel. Maybe he’d given up. Maybe he’d decided that Andrew had done enough, been through enough. Maybe he was needed elsewhere, assigned to some other poor sap at the other end of the universe. Andrew looked down at his wife. Her eyes were closed, her breathing restful. Asleep. He allowed himself a smile. It was all over but the touchdown dance. Everything was going to be all right.
She rolled over, popped open one eye. “I’m starving,” she said. She started to roll out of bed, but Andrew jumped up.
“No!” he said. “Stay in bed. I’ll get you something.”
Beth frowned at him. “Are you okay?”
“Yes! I just—you stay here. Rest. I’ll go find something.”
“It’s okay, honey.” Before Andrew could protest, Beth was up and reaching for her robe. “I’d rather look for myself.”
“Beth, please. I can make a list of what we have and read it to you.”
Beth laughed. “Honey, the baby’s still a long way off. I don’t need to take it that easy, not just yet.” She threw on her robe. “Besides, you don’t know where anything is. Relax. I’ll be right back.”
Andrew grabbed his jeans from the floor. “I’ll go with you.”
Beth held up a hand. “Andrew, chill. I’m just going to the refrigerator.” She left the room and Andrew sat back down on the edge of the bed, tried taking a few calming breaths and again looked at the bedside clock: 11:48. It’s okay, he told himself. We’re almost there. Just ten more minutes.
Beth called from the kitchen, “Hey, how about some ice cream?”
Andrew called back, “No, thank you.” As nervous as he was, he knew he couldn’t hold down so much as a cracker. “Just come back in here.”
“Yeah, it’s too cold for ice cream,” Beth said. “How about a bagel?”
“No. I’m fine. Beth, please come back to bed.”
He could hear Beth continue her rummaging.
“Or we have this weirdly shaped fruitcake from Aunt Vera in Boca Raton,” she said. “Eww. Maybe not
. I think it might be alive.”
“I’m not hungry, Beth. I’d really like it if you just came back to—”
The phone rang.
“I’ll get it!” Andrew shouted loudly enough to be heard in the next building. He jumped up from the bed and started yanking back blankets looking for the phone. It rang again. “Where is that stupid phone?” he said.
“Hello?” He heard Beth pick up in the kitchen and froze. He listened intently, one eye on the clock: 11:49. He could tell from Beth’s tone that she knew the caller.
“Of course,” she said. “Don’t worry about it. I’m on the case.” Andrew heard the sound of the phone being plopped back on the counter.
A moment later Beth breezed back into the bedroom and made a beeline for the walk-in closet. “Minor crisis,” she said. She hurriedly slipped on a pair of jeans and a pullover sweater. “That was Mrs. Applebee. Lulu got out again.”
“I’ll go.” Andrew started frantically yanking on his pants.
“Honey, it’s fine,” Beth said. “She never gets far. I’ll just be a minute.”
“No, you can’t—” Andrew’s pants bunched up; he lost his balance and fell to the floor. Beth laughed; he was sure he looked ridiculous as he struggled to his feet. “Let her look!” he said. “It’s her dog. She should be more careful.”
Beth chuckled. “Be more careful? Andrew, she’s over ninety years old.”
“The fresh air will be good for her circulation,” Andrew said. He was finally able to stand up and get his pants on, then began a frantic search for his shirt, lost somewhere in the blankets.
Beth laughed as she zipped up her jeans and slipped into a pair of tennis shoes. “Andrew, go back to bed. I’ll just be a minute.”
“Nope. I’m going with you.”
Andrew finally found his T-shirt. As Beth headed out of the room, he stumbled after her, hopping on one foot as he tried to walk and put on shoes at the same time.
By the time he was able to actually accomplish this, Beth was at the front door putting on her woolen jacket and scarf.
“I’ll do it,” Andrew said.
“Andrew, you know Lulu hates you,” Beth said. “All dogs do.”
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