His Frontier Christmas Family

by Regina Scott

  Callie straightened to go help him take down the stocking more carefully. Both boys followed her to the table, where Sutter placed the stocking in front of the baby. Mica patted it, smiling at them all.

  “You got to open it,” Frisco told her. “Here, I’ll show you.”

  “Let me,” Sutter protested, reaching for it, as well.

  “I’ll open it,” Callie said, suiting word to action. Inside was a wooden rattle and a rag doll with a sew-on face that smiled as broadly as Mica did.

  “Baby stuff,” Frisco said with a sniff.

  Sutter frowned. “What did you expect? She’s a baby.”

  Mica seemed happy enough with her gifts. She took up the rattle and shook it, giggling at the noise. Then she bonked it down on the rag doll.

  Callie picked up the doll. “Maybe we’ll save this for later.”

  Levi pushed through the door just then. “I told you Father Christmas was all mixed up. Look what he left by the woodpile.”

  He held out a sled. The center panel was painted red with gilt outlining a winter scene, the runners made of metal. It was far prettier than the sturdy variety she’d seen prospectors and their mules pull up north.

  Sutter and Frisco ran to him as Levi winked at her.

  “That must be for me,” Frisco said, holding out his hands.

  Sutter elbowed him. “No, me.”

  “I’m fairly sure it was meant for all of us,” Levi said. “It’s plenty long to hold you two and Mica. Maybe even Callie.”

  Callie moved closer, eyeing the sled. “I’m not getting on that. I’ve seen them tip over too many times.”

  “Not this one,” Levi assured her. “See boys, how the runners curve at the front and back? That’s for stability and speed.”

  Frisco laid hold of it. “Let’s try it now.”

  Sutter nodded, fairly dancing on his feet.

  Someone needed to remember what was important. “We should start dinner first,” Callie reminded them.

  Her brothers turned on her. “But Callie!” they chorused.

  Levi gave her a pleading look. “But Callie.”

  How was she to answer that? They were mad, the lot of them. It was cold. It was getting dark. There were chores to be done. They would only come back wet and worn.

  But the sled did look like it would go really fast. How fast? Only one way to find out.

  “All right,” she said, setting them all to grinning. “But only until the light fades. Now, go bundle up.”

  Her brothers ran to comply.

  Levi closed the distance between them. “Thank you.”

  She jerked her head toward the hearth. “You haven’t looked in your stocking.”

  He chuckled. “Very likely it’s coal.”

  “You haven’t been that naughty,” Callie said with a smile.

  He raised a brow as if he wasn’t too sure about that, but he leaned the sled against the wall and crossed to the hearth. She could hardly stand still as he pulled out the harmonica.

  “What’s this?” he asked, face splitting in a grin.

  Arms still only half in their coats, Frisco and Sutter skidded across the floor to his side.

  “Father Christmas sure got mixed up,” Frisco said. “That was probably meant to be mine.”

  “No, mine,” Sutter said, eyes shining.

  Callie crossed to Levi. “No, it’s Levi’s,” she told them firmly. “He had one when he was a boy, and he lost it. Father Christmas just brought it back.”

  Frisco and Sutter deflated.

  Levi had been fingering the silver filigree on the instrument. Now he lifted it to his lips. Music, low and mournful, weaved through the room. It brought back memories of huddling around a fire, knowing she was safe with her mother and father, even as the wolves called from the wood. Once more gooseflesh pimpled her arms.

  When he finished, Mica clapped her hands and wiggled as if asking for more. Callie knew just how she felt. She would have requested another tune, but Levi slid the harmonica into his pocket.

  “I’ll have to thank Father Christmas when I see him,” he said, glancing at Callie with a smile.

  She returned his smile, warm inside.

  “Can we go?” Frisco demanded, shrugging into his coat and heading for the door.

  Sutter glanced at the hearth. “But Callie hasn’t looked in her stocking.”

  Now, that probably did contain coal given how she’d behaved when she’d first arrived at Wallin Landing. “It can wait,” Callie said.

  “Nonsense,” Levi said. “We can wait.” His look to her brothers defied them to say otherwise.

  “Why don’t you get Mica ready?” Callie told the twins. “That way we won’t be delayed further.”

  They hurried to find Mica’s wrap.

  Callie approached the stocking. She knew Father Christmas hadn’t filled it. Very likely Levi or one of his brothers had. That must be why they’d kept leaving the hall, to fill all the stockings. Levi’s brothers wouldn’t give her coal, no matter how she’d vexed them. But what would they think to give her?

  She took the stocking down carefully and peered inside. Like her brothers, she’d received an orange and a handkerchief with her initials embroidered on one corner. Beth’s work, most likely. But something else pressed against the stocking. She put her hand in and drew out a tiny brass key.

  “You find it fits this,” Levi murmured. He went to the cupboard and pulled a box from behind the flour sack. Made of polished wood, it was about the size of her hand. Levi took the key and inserted it in the opening on the front, then twisted it round and round. She could hear something grinding inside with each movement.

  Her brothers wandered closer. “What is it?” Sutter asked.

  “Open the lid,” Levi told Callie.

  A tingle running through her, she did as he asked.

  Inside lay a brass cylinder next to a fine-toothed steel comb, all covered with glass. Immediately the cylinder started rotating, and high tinkling music flowed. Callie stared at it in wonder.

  “The song is called ‘The Blue Danube,’” Levi told her. “It will keep playing as long as you wind up the box.”

  Sutter stuck out his lip as if impressed. Frisco shook his head. “More music?”

  As if there could ever be enough! Callie touched the smooth wood, feeling as if the melody was writing itself on her heart.

  “Do you like it?” Levi asked.

  Callie tore her gaze away. “Like it? I love it! I’ve never heard of anything more marvelous. Don’t you see, Levi? Father Christmas gave me my very own orchestra!”

  * * *

  The day might have been cold, but Levi felt warm inside as he, Callie, Mica and the boys took the sled for its first run. He wasn’t sure why he was so relieved his presents had been well received. The boys had seemed pleased with the fishhooks, but the way Callie had lit up to the sound of the music box made him want to puff out his chest.

  Now he led her and her family to the edge of the hill, where the path sloped down to the main clearing. As Callie held a squirming Mica, he positioned the sled, then nodded to Frisco and Sutter to climb on. Once the boys had scrambled into place, he pulled back slightly.

  “One, two,” he started.

  “Three!” Frisco shouted, and Levi pushed.

  They shot down the hill. He had barely straightened before they had reached the bottom and spun to a stop. Leaping off the sled, they looked up at him expectantly.

  Levi motioned with his gloved hand. “Well, bring it back up. You ride it, you carry it back. Those are the rules.”

  They each grabbed a curved end of a runner to drag the sled back up.

  Callie shook her head. “They’re going to wear themselves out.”

  Levi shot
her a grin. “We should be so fortunate.”

  Her chuckle made him feel even warmer.

  But while he enjoyed having her beside him, watching the boys’ excitement, he wanted to try something else.

  “Care for a turn?” he asked Callie as he positioned the sled for another run.

  She shook her head, stepping back. “I’m not putting Mica on that.”

  Levi nodded to Frisco and Sutter, who climbed back aboard, then he shoved them to start. Their delighted squeals echoed back up the hill.

  Levi straightened. “I wasn’t asking about Mica. I was asking about you.”

  Callie eyed her brothers, who were hurrying back up with the sled. “I don’t know. What if it tips over?”

  “Then we’ll fall in the snow,” Levi said with a shrug.

  She raised a brow. “We?”

  “Did you think I was going to wait much longer for a turn?” he teased.

  Callie handed Mica to Sutter as he came abreast. “Hold her. I’m going down with Levi.”

  Sutter’s eyes widened.

  Frisco held the sled in place as Levi helped Callie settle near the front. Then he climbed on behind her, legs straddling hers, chest pressed against her back, arms braced beside her. Her body was tense, but he hoped that meant she was as excited as he was to give it a try.

  “Push,” he told Frisco, rocking forward to help the boy.

  Frisco shoved, and the sled was away.

  Wind whipped past Levi’s cheeks as they flew down the hill. The trees, the snow, everything became a blur, until it was only him and Callie, dashing through the snow. Her laughter tickled his chest as she shouted against the air. He wrapped his arms around her and hung on.

  The sled spun to a stop at the bottom of the hill. For a moment, he just held her, resting his cheek against the top of her head. His chest was heaving, but not from any exertion. He didn’t want to move.

  But she shifted against him, and he knew he had to get up. Climbing off, he offered her his hand to rise. She scrambled up, eyes shining, cheeks red. There was nothing for it. He pulled her close and kissed her.

  And all at once the sled seemed tame. Even the thrill of finding a nugget in the stream was nothing compared to the feel of Callie in his arms. This was what he’d been seeking all his life, this exhilaration, this joy.

  Callie pulled back to stare at him, and he couldn’t tell whether she was shocked or delighted.

  “Hey!” Frisco’s call echoed down the hill. “You got to bring it back. Those are the rules.”

  The rules. The rules said Levi was a minister; Callie was his ward. The rules said he was to treat her like a sister. But there was nothing brotherly about the emotions singing through him. He was only glad his back was turned to the twins so they most likely didn’t know what he and Callie were doing.

  “We should go,” he murmured, gathering up the sled.

  She didn’t argue with him as he started up the hill. But she didn’t suggest going down the hill again, either. In fact, a short while later, she took Mica and returned to the house. He could only hope he hadn’t offended her.

  The boys wanted to keep sledding, and it seemed to Levi to be the wisest course of action. Certainly he needed some time for his blood to cool. He stayed out with the boys until they could barely see each other in the twilight. Sutter heaved a happy sigh as they headed for the parsonage at last.

  “Father Christmas sure knows what to get a boy,” Callie’s brother said as he entered the house.

  Frisco caught Levi’s arm to keep him from following. His face in the light from the door was troubled.

  “Do you think Father Christmas might have gotten mixed up on the sled, Uncle Levi?” he murmured. “Davy told me he wanted one real bad. Maybe this was supposed to be his instead of mine and Sutter’s.”

  Levi was fairly sure each of his brothers had purchased a sled for their families, with the possible exception of John, who was capable of making his own when Peter was old enough. “You’ll have to ask Davy tomorrow to be certain,” he told the boy, “but I think this was meant for you.”

  “Really?” Hope kindled in Frisco’s blue-gray eyes. “Me and Sutter never had anything so nice. I thought maybe it was a mistake.”

  “No mistake,” Levi assured him, throat tightening. “Take the sled around back for safekeeping. I’ll be in in a moment.”

  Frisco hefted the sled and carried it through the breezeway.

  Levi straightened and walked out into the twilight.

  Is that the lesson You’ve been trying to teach me, Lord? Do I believe deep down I don’t deserve anything nice? Have I felt empty so long I can’t accept it’s possible to be full again?

  The moon was rising, plump and nearly round. The silver light glowed on the snow, brightening everything. Callie had brightened his world. Like Frisco, he hadn’t expected anything and had been given a priceless gift. He wouldn’t take it for granted.

  And that meant he would have to tell her the truth, even if it cost him everything.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Christmas morning passed in a haze for Callie. She gave Frisco, Sutter and Mica the caps Nora had helped her make. Mica kept trying to tug the wool off her hair. Her brothers ducked their heads as if embarrassed, but they wore the caps when they all went out sledding, where they discovered that Davy and the other Wallin children also had sleds to race against. Beth brought over the red-and-green plaid dress Nora had made for Callie, and she wore it to church, feeling as if she fit in with the festivities. She and Simon played “We Three Kings” together, as it was the only Christmas song she knew well enough, and the whole congregation sang along.

  But every time she had a moment to think, she thought of Levi.

  His smile when she’d listened to the wonderful music box for the first time.

  His delight in watching her brothers sled.

  The feel of him behind and around her as they’d sped down the slope.

  The sweet pressure of his lips against hers.

  She’d been afraid of falling off the sled. Instead, she was falling in love, with a preacher no less!

  She still did her best not to show it. He had enough on his hands what with leading worship, dealing with her overly excited brothers and supporting his family. Besides, she didn’t want to give Beth any ammunition.

  Levi’s sister was clearly the chief instigator of Christmas. She gathered up everyone and made sure they arrived for worship on time, then chivied them all to the main house afterward for a Christmas dinner. Callie had never seen such food. But Beth wasn’t done yet. She organized games for the children, activities for the adults. She was like a bee, buzzing through clover.

  And Callie was fairly certain she was behind the hat Frisco and Sutter presented her for Christmas. The little oval was made of stiffened black velvet and trimmed with mallard feathers that turned iridescent when they caught the light. It looked rather fetching on her hair, even if it was the most impractical thing she’d ever seen for keeping the rain off.

  But Beth’s crowning achievement by far was the kissing bough.

  They all repaired to the hall after dinner, and Beth handed each of her brothers a taper so they could light the candles on the Christmas tree, to oohs and aahs of appreciation. Then she had Drew hang the bough near the top of the room with similar fanfare. The bundle of fir branches was entwined with white satin ribbons and dotted with red apples. Beth swiftly stationed each of the married couples under it for a kiss, and she kept eyeing Levi as if calculating how she could maneuver him to the right spot. Callie stayed as far from the device as possible. The last time Levi had kissed her, she’d nearly swooned from the delight. She wasn’t about to go into raptures in front of his whole family.

  She was helping Beth lay cloths on makeshift tables for the food at the
dance that night, waiting her turn on a game, Mica safe in Catherine’s arms, when the door of the hall opened and a man stepped inside. He shook snow off his shoulders as he removed his broad-brimmed black hat. Callie recognized the lawman who had questioned her in Seattle.

  Levi strode to meet him. “Deputy McCormick. Merry Christmas.”

  Beth set about rearranging the linens stacked on the table, back to the door. Callie was more interested in what had brought the deputy out this way.

  “Pastor,” he drawled to Levi. Then he nodded about the room. “Wallin family all. Sorry to interrupt.”

  Levi clapped him on the shoulder. “No interruption. You’re welcome to join us.”

  Some of the others called their support.

  The lawman’s smile was tight. “Just wanted a word with you and Miss Murphy.”

  Her? Callie startled, and Beth looked at her askance.

  “Excuse me,” Callie murmured before hurrying to Levi’s side.

  “Is something wrong, Hart?” Levi asked, taking Callie’s hand as she drew near. His touch sent a shiver through her, but she didn’t think Levi noticed as the deputy glanced between them, eyes the color of a well-used shotgun.

  “I’ve ridden out Columbia way several times now, looking for those men you spotted. Never came across them.”

  “Then they must have had business elsewhere,” Levi said.

  Callie nodded her agreement, shoulders relaxing. It had been nearly a month, after all.

  “Maybe,” the deputy allowed. “But yesterday I rode as far as the Murphy cabin. Found it all tore up.”

  Callie stiffened. “What! It’s still ours until the state hears about Adam’s death.”

  Levi’s eyes were narrowed. “Animals?”

  “Not that I could tell,” Deputy McCormick said. “No scat and no scratch marks. Whoever was inside was looking for something. The table was overturned, floorboards pried up and loose rocks in the hearth pulled out.”

  Callie made a face. “That was stupid. We never had much. We sure wouldn’t have left it behind.”

  “Just thought you should know, ma’am,” he said with a nod. “I’ll leave you two to celebrate the season.”