Jasmine giggled as though picturing her dad chasing Melissa around the room. “Daddy says mistletoe has magic powers. How?”
Melissa wracked her brain for the best way to explain it simply. Jasmine wouldn’t care about the history of the tradition. “I think kissing under the mistletoe brings good luck.”
“But why do people want to kiss? It’s gross.”
“When you’re older, it won’t be gross, I promise you.”
“Kissing is definitely not gross.”
They spun around at the same time to see Chris standing in the doorway to the kitchen in nothing other than striped pajama pants. Melissa’s pulse pounded in her ears. When had he developed a six pack? Or was that just a trick of the light? She flicked him another look. Definitely a six pack. Wow. Her heart started galloping and she had to look away to stop herself from being caught staring.
Seeing him in his sleepwear was doing something funny to her insides as her mind pictured lazy mornings in bed with him. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She couldn’t let them go in that direction just yet.
They were taking their relationship slowly for Jasmine’s sake and she was trying not to be frustrated with how deliberately Chris was moving – after all, she’d waited long enough, what were another few weeks or even months before they took things further?
“Good morning, ladies.” He approached them and handed Melissa a mug of steaming coffee. “Thought you might need this.” He kissed her gently on the cheek and she shivered at his whiskery touch.
She reached up to touch the spot on her cheek and smiled at him. “Thanks. The milk didn’t quite cut it.”
“I’m not surprised. At this time in the morning the only thing that’s going to keep us going is coffee. I can’t believe how early she’s up.”
Jasmine scampered over and he scooped her into a hug. “Good morning, princess. Merry Christmas.” He rained kisses all over her face until she giggled and pleaded for mercy.
“Daddy!” she squealed.
“I can’t stop,” he said, spinning her around so fast it made Melissa’s own head feel dizzy. “I can’t help it, blame it on the magic mistletoe.”
He carried her through the doorway and kissed her again. Jasmine giggled even harder.
Eventually he put her down, grabbed Melissa, dragged her into the doorway and kissed her. This time, Jasmine didn’t bat an eyelid.
Chapter 14
The front doorbell chimed just before midday. Before anyone could answer it, the door was flung open and two of Chris’s brothers, Luke and Mike, and their families burst into the room carrying a flurry of snowflakes with them. Suddenly the peace was broken as everyone hugged and greeted one another. Cousins compared presents before dragging Jasmine off to another room to play.
“Good to see you again, Mel,” Mike said, greeting her with a hug. “Saw you two kissing under the mistletoe at church last night.” He winked. “You know what that means.” He began humming the wedding march.
Louise, his wife, nudged him out of the way with her hip. “Go and make yourself useful,” she said, “and take this to your mom.” She gave Melissa a hug. “Glad you could join the family again this year. It hasn’t been the same without you.”
The next half hour was more of the same. Everyone greeted Melissa like she was the prodigal daughter. The entire Nicholls clan seemed more excited to have her join them again than they were about having Chris home for the first time in years.
After lunch, the kids disappeared and the adults dozed or chatted quietly in different corners of the large room.
At three o’clock Rob announced it was time for the kids to open their presents. Because the family was so large, the adults didn’t exchange gifts. Chaos reigned as the cousins opened their gifts from their aunts and uncles and grandparents. An hour later, the room was strewn with wrapping paper and ribbons. Linda started cleaning up while Rob offered to make everyone coffee.
Chris hauled her up from her position on the carpet and drew her into an alcove near the large windows overlooking the lake. It was still noisy, but the window seat provided some privacy. The wind had died down outside, but it was overcast and the thermometer hanging at the back door showed that the temperature had dropped markedly.
“Merry Christmas, Mel,” he said, handing her a flat package and a smaller box before kissing her on the cheek.
Blood rose to her cheeks when Luke wolf whistled and the others cheered. So much for privacy. Looked like they had a full audience.
“Two presents? Aren’t I spoiled? I thought we weren’t supposed to be exchanging presents.”
“You deserve it. Jaz has something little for you too but I’m not sure where she’s gone.”
“Which one should I open first?”
“The big one.”
She untied the ribbon and laid it aside, then carefully undid the wrapping. Inside was a large scrapbook photo album. Her eyes widened. “Is this what I think it is?”
He nodded. “Open it.”
She opened the front page and promptly burst into tears. It was the photo of the two of them at their prom. As she turned page after page, the tears turned into silent sobs. Chris had chronicled every major event in her life from her first day of school to her last. All the photos she’d lost in the fire – the ones that mattered – the ones of the two of them together – had been replaced.
“Where did you find these?” she asked, sniffing and blowing her nose.
“Some from Mom, some I found lying around in a box at the top of my closet.”
“You kept all the photos of us,” she said, stroking the smooth pages of the album.
“They were important to me. They’re our history.” He handed her the smaller box. “And this is our future.”
Melissa’s skin tingled. Lifting off the lid, she gasped when she saw the gold eternity charm lying inside the velvet-lined box. It was more elaborate and clearly far more expensive than the one she’d received years earlier for her birthday.
“Oh Chris, it’s beautiful. Thank you.”
He pulled it from the box, undid the clasp and waited for her to pull her hair away from her neck.
Tears threatened to spill. All the years they’d been “just friends” and then all those years apart. If only they hadn’t wasted them on other people, but at least now they were together. Chris’s announcement around the dinner table that he was moving home had been met with cheers of delight and tears of joy.
“Don’t cry,” he said, stroking her cheek. “I know what you’re thinking. At least we have each other now.”
She touched the charm at the base of her throat.
A smile lingered on his lips and she leaned over and kissed him, not caring who saw. They all knew the truth anyway. She and Chris Nicholls were meant for one another.
*
“Has anyone seen Jasmine?” Chris asked half an hour later.
Linda laughed. “She’ll be somewhere. This house is huge and there are that many people here it’s not difficult to miss someone.”
Chris removed his glasses and rubbed a hand over his face. “True, but I haven’t seen her for hours.”
“Perhaps she’s taken herself off to her room for some peace and quiet away from all her rowdy cousins and she’s fallen asleep?” Linda said. “I wouldn’t worry. She’ll be safe.”
“I’ll go and check upstairs,” Melissa said, seeing Chris’s concerned look. “Why don’t you call everyone together and do a headcount?”
Five minutes later Melissa came back downstairs shaking her head. The lounge room was filled. Adults were questioning the kids over who had seen Jasmine last.
“There’s no sign of her in any of the rooms. I even checked under the beds,” she said.
Chris noticeably blanched. “She wouldn’t have gone outside, would she?”
“Not in this weather,” Rob said. “If she even tried to open the back door she’d be blown away. Let’s split up and look for her. She’s probably fast asleep in a c
loset.”
Ten minutes later they gathered back in the lounge room. Anxious faces looked at one another. They had searched the entire house from top to bottom – even the dark corners in the basement – and still there was no sign of Jasmine.
Melissa wrung her hands together. “I thought she was okay this morning. Did anything happen? Did anyone say anything to upset her?”
One of the eldest of the children ducked her head. “I asked Jasmine if she was excited about you being her new mom.”
“Oh Lizzie, really? Why did you say that?” Louise asked.
“Well everyone knows Chris and Melissa have been in love for like forever,” the teenager said with a tearful pout. “It’s obvious they’re going to get married.”
Chris exhaled heavily.
“Sorry, Uncle Chris.”
Rob turned to Chris. “We need to look outside.”
The men sprang into action, grabbing warm clothes and torches, and headed out into the dark night. Melissa chewed on a nail while she peered out the window, watching the beams from the flashlights scour the yard. The men appeared to be following tracks in the snow but the snow was falling so fast and the gusts of wind were so strong that even from her vantage point inside Melissa could see the snow was being blown everywhere, almost obliterating the tracks. For all they knew, they could have been made by a deer or some other animal, not Jasmine’s little feet. She shivered and looked heavenward, breathing a little prayer for Jasmine’s safety.
She watched the men until they went out of view on the other side of the house and then went into the kitchen where the women had gathered.
“They’ll find her,” Linda said, giving Melissa a quick hug. Everyone nodded their agreement, but the way they spoke softly and deflected the questions from the kids told a different story.
After ten minutes Melissa couldn’t sit still any longer. Slipping quietly from the room, she grabbed her jacket, hat, scarf and mittens and stepped outside. Within seconds, icy fingers somehow reached inside the layers of her clothing and grabbed her tight. She shuddered, but ignored the cold and headed around the side of the house in the direction she’d last seen the men.
A sudden thought hit from nowhere and she stopped dead. If she wasn’t so scared, she might have smiled. She knew exactly where Jasmine would be hiding. Changing direction, she headed as fast as she could straight down to the boathouse on the lake’s edge.
Two days earlier she and Chris had shown Jasmine the tiny boathouse crammed with water skis, fishing rods, orange life jackets, canoes, a rowing scull and an odd assortment of paddles and oars. Jasmine had stared out the little window at the ice-covered lake, barely believing her dad when he explained that in summer she’d have the chance to try all sorts of water sports on the lake.
But what had truly captivated Jasmine was the tiny loft with its dormer window in the roof overlooking the lake. Chris had helped her climb the ladder and she’d announced that when she grew up she wanted the little space to be her very own little house. They’d dragged her away with promises that in summer she could spend as much time as she liked at the boathouse as long as she always had an adult with her.
Melissa plowed on, adrenalin and hope flooding her body with each step.
“Jasmine!” she shouted.
All she heard was the wind and the sound of her own voice bouncing back to her ears. Ignoring the voice in her head that reminded her the wind chill took the temperature lower than it already was, she pressed on. She thought she saw tracks in the snow, but it was so difficult to see. The wind whipped her hair around her face, the snow stung her skin and tears blinded her eyes but she kept trudging through the almost knee-deep snow. The wind howled and buffeted her body and it was almost impossible to walk in some places. She could barely see a foot in front of her and only instinct told her she was still headed in the right direction. Sure enough, the shape of the boathouse came into view and she breathed a sigh of relief.
She reached for the door as another gust of wind gave a furious howl and threatened to push her over. Using her gloved hand she yanked open the door and stepped into the murky darkness. The wind slammed the door shut behind her and she waited for her eyes to adjust to the murky light. It was freezing inside but at least there was no wind.
“Jasmine? Are you in here?”
“Mel,” a little voice cried out. “I’m so s-s-scared and c-c-cold and my arm hurts.”
“Where are you?”
Melissa reached for the light switch and flicked it on, but the power was out, probably because of the storm. She waited for her eyes to adjust to the dim light before scanning the shadowy space but she saw nothing at first until a little head slowly bobbed up from the old couch. She rushed to Jasmine’s side and pulled her tight.
Jasmine screamed in pain. “My arm.”
Melissa’s heart lurched as she stared at the odd angle of Jasmine’s arm. It looked like she’d dislocated her elbow. There was no way she could walk back up the hill to the house in this weather. They’d have to wait and Melissa would have to hope Chris would guess where they were. She kicked herself for being stupid enough not to tell someone where she was going. She’d potentially put both of them in harm’s way. For the second time that night she found herself praying again.
“What happened?” she asked.
“I tried to climb up into the loft because I thought it would be warmer up there and I fell off the ladder.”
Jasmine’s teeth were chattering and her face was white. Melissa tore off her jacket and wrapped it around Jasmine as carefully as she could without disturbing her arm.
“Are we going to d-die?” Jasmine asked.
“No, sweetheart. It’s all okay now.”
“Is my arm really bad?”
“I’ve seen worse.”
“Is that because you’re a nurse?”
“That’s right.”
While Jasmine kept asking panicked questions, Melissa explored the shed, looking for anything to keep Jasmine warm. When she spotted a phone on the wall relief ripped through her. Growing up there had never been a phone in the boathouse even though Linda had pleaded with Rob for years go put one there so she could let the boys know when dinner was ready. Looked like Linda had finally gotten her way.
Melissa picked up the receiver and crossed her fingers, hoping the storm hadn’t taken down the phone lines too. As soon as she heard the dial tone she felt her legs turn to jelly. They would be okay. She hastily punched in the number to the house. Linda answered immediately.
Melissa quickly explained where she was and that Jasmine was safe, but needed some medical attention. Instead of berating Melissa for going off on her own, Linda congratulated her on guessing where Jasmine would be.
“Daddy is going to be so mad,” Jasmine said through tears.
Melissa smoothed her hair back from her face. “Daddy is worried, but that’s what comes with being a father. More than that, he’s going to be happy that you’re okay, not mad, I promise.”
“Can he fix my arm?”
“I know he can.”
Ten minutes later Chris still hadn’t arrived. Melissa peered through the window, silently begging him to hurry. Jasmine was drowsy and still shivering, both from the cold and the shock of her sore arm. After what seemed like an eternity she finally heard another sound over the whine of the wind. Through the swirling snow she saw beams of light cutting through the inky darkness. She flung open the door and cried at the sight. Chris rode one snowmobile, Rob another.
“Is she okay?” Chris said as he raced to the door. His voice was surprisingly calm.
“She’s okay but I think she’s dislocated her elbow. It’s at an odd angle.”
He swung a backpack off his shoulder as he strode into the room. “Can you distract her while I hold her arm and see if I can reduce it?”
Melissa nodded and pushed fear aside. She’d seen the procedure done countless times and had assisted on multiple occasions, but doing it on Chris’s daughter without a
ny form of anesthetic or nitrous oxide was a hundred times more daunting.
Moments later, Jasmine screamed loudly before her cry changed as Chris swiftly realigned her bones. He scooped her to his chest and carried her outside to the snowmobile without a word. Melissa followed and climbed onto the other vehicle behind Rob.
Conversation and explanations could wait. At least Jasmine was safe.
Chapter 15
After Jasmine’s snowy escapade on Christmas Day, she stayed indoors for much of the week. Chris took her to the hospital for x-rays to make sure there was nothing broken and was pleased it had been a simple dislocation and nothing more serious.
Ever since, Jasmine was clingy around Melissa, turning to her for comfort. She seemed to think that because Melissa was the one who had found her, it meant Melissa must really love her. Whatever her rationale, neither Melissa nor Chris were complaining. The turnaround in Jasmine’s behavior and attitude was a complete one-eighty.
The clock had ticked over to midnight half an hour earlier, signaling the start of the New Year. They’d enjoyed a quiet night celebrating the end of the year: eating and laughing themselves silly in a game of charades. After Melissa had tucked Jasmine into bed a little after nine and Rob and Linda had made their excuses of needing sleep, Chris and Melissa decided to stay up longer and watch a movie.
Melissa was nearly asleep now, snuggled under blankets on the loveseat with Chris. Outside the window snow flurries fell in a mesmerizing haze and inside, soft classical music played through the iPod speakers. She couldn’t remember ever feeling so at peace.
At her side, Chris stirred and sat up. The blanket slipped off her shoulders and she grumbled at him for disturbing her. She tugged it back up to her chin to keep warm.
“What do you think, Mel? Is it time?”
She pulled her gaze from the snow-covered trees outside the window and stared at him. He winked at her and grinned, his eyes glowing with affection and something else she didn’t recognize.
Her mind raced in all directions and her mouth went dry. Time for what? Time to go to bed? Time to take things further? She almost dared not ask.
Operation Mistletoe Magic Page 8
