by Kimi Flores
“No, you just caught me off guard.” He was beyond swoon worthy. Now that she thought about it, she would willingly spend the rest of her life fighting off any other women that would want him.
After a slight lull in their conversation, Caleb switched topics. “So you haven’t told me about your dad. Have you given any thought about finding him? I have some connections and can help you.” She’d forgotten that on the way home from the observatory, they’d talked about her looking for her dad.
Not wanting to sound like she didn’t appreciate his concern, she replied “No I haven’t and honestly I’m not interested in it. He made his choice and I’ve been in Santa Barbara my entire life, so he can find me if he wants to. I’m not hiding anywhere.”
“How would you feel if he came looking for you?”
“I don’t know. It would be difficult seeing him, but I wouldn’t shut him out.” She didn’t hate her father but was still hurt that he left them, and besides the money he’d left for her college fund, he never made contact.
“Okay well just let me know if you decide to. I’m here for you, whatever you want.” Loving the fact that he was genuinely concerned about her, she would do anything to be able to snuggle up to him right then.
“Thanks, but I don’t see me changing my mind.” A little chilly, she shivered lightly and pulled one of the throw comforters from the back of the couch around her body.
“You didn’t tell me about your Thanksgiving. How was it?”
“Full of drama as well.” She continued to tuck herself into the blanket carefully pushing the soft material around her feet.
“Do tell. I haven’t had enough of my own.”
Not really wanting to relive her evening, yet accepting any excuse to keep him on the phone, she shared what had happened. “Well there was some great news. Leah’s mom and her boyfriend announced their engagement and the possibility of moving away when Elena freaked, caused a scene, then got kicked out of the house. Oh and she choked on her food, so Dani had to save her life.”
“Oh. My. Gosh.” Caleb full on laughed. “I’m happy for Leah’s mom, but what was up with Elena?”
“She’s always like that. She can’t stand to see other people happy. She gave me dirty looks as a matter of fact when she found out we were dating.”
“So you were talking about me huh?”
Abby couldn’t help but smile. “Well, Leah told her mom, and then she asked me about you, so yeah, I guess I was talking about you.”
“Good because I talked about you too.”
“To your parents?”
“Yeah but mostly to Stefen and Bri. Stefen likes to give me a hard time but Bri validated that you are quite the catch so he went easy on me. Julianne was really happy to hear about you and can’t wait to meet you.”
“Julianne?” Who the heck was Julianne?
“Yeah my nanny.”
“Oh, you hadn’t told me her name.” Relief filled her.
“Were you just jealous?” His teasing voice did crazy things to her tingling body.
“No.” She lied. “It’s just funny for me to hear a grown man refer to her as though she was still your nanny.”
“She will always be my nanny. She treats me like a son, chastising and all.”
“Did you misbehave and need a scolding?”
His husky voice lowered, “I always need a good disciplining Abby.” Crap there he went again.
Once they returned from the Thanksgiving break, Madison and a few other students were switched from one class to another but parents continued to complain daily. After a week of hearing those protests, Principal Hanson decided that the best course of action included transferring Abby to the fifth grade class. It worked out well for the school because when winter break was up, the teacher in that grade was going out on maternity leave. Abby was devastated, but didn’t have any fight left in her. Fifth graders were not her favorite age group. They were in-between that stage of being children and teenagers. In general, she found them to be a pretty disrespectful group of kids. The stinky prepubescent teenagers hadn’t learned the importance of deodorant yet either and she really did not know how to best teach them.
It broke her heart to think that she would no longer be with her sweet kindergarteners because of politics and snotty moms. There was no denying her relationship with Caleb though. One of those damn moms, Pam Steller, asked her right in front of all the other parents at pick up time if she was dating him. Pam was one of the more aggressive divorcees that were after Caleb. Proudly, Abby admitted that she and he were, in fact, together. The sourpuss look on Pam’s face was well worth the risk. Looking back, she should have been fearful of the ramifications the admission would bring, instead she felt ecstatic like she was announcing to the popular girls that the school quarterback chose her over them. The best feeling EVER.
Driving to the Christmas tree lot, Abby sat in the passenger seat next to her boyfriend. She loved thinking about that. Her boyfriend. Her tummy fluttered at the thought. Being an independent woman, she prided herself on having the ability to do things on her own, but there was just something about having a guy help you bring your Christmas tree in for you. Feeling the smile spread across her face, she placed her hand on top of his then looked at Madison who sat behind Caleb’s driver’s seat. The little girl wore a smile similar to her own. This felt so right and natural, as though they were all supposed to be together. Abby would do anything to have them as her family.
Pulling up to the lot then getting out of the car, the threesome walked hand in hand to where the glorious smell of pine infused with the cool air. Abby filled her lungs with the aroma she loved so much. She was an eco-friendly gal but there was nothing like a fresh cut Christmas tree. Using a fake tree when she’d first became eco-aware helped her realize that some things were too special and not worth changing.
There were so many fond childhood memories attached to the smell and feel of a real Christmas tree sitting in her home; even if she was the only person to smell and see it. The artificial tree now sat in her garage, providing a home for an entire family of spiders and she was not about to take it away from them. She imagined they would plot her demise by attacking in the middle of the night. They could have it.
Madison ran to a huge Douglas fir that was well over eight feet tall. “Daddy, I like this one. Can we get this big fat tree?” She stood and flashed him her big brown eyes. Hmmm, girlfriend knows how to get to her daddy’s soft spot.
Caleb approached the monstrous tree, ran his fingers through the branches, smelled the pine sap left on his fingers and then walked around the entire enormous tree. With a huge grin, he agreed. “I like it. Let’s take it.”
“Miss Abby, time to find yours now.” Madison started to skip away toward the other end of the lot when Caleb pulled her back.
“Honey you can’t just skip away, you have to stay with us. There are too many people here and you can get lost.”
“Okay Daddy, I’m sorry. I just got ascited.” This little girl really knew how to pull on Caleb’s heart strings and Abby was starting to catch every time she worked her magic.
“It’s okay Pumpkin but stay with us please. We have to get someone to take this tree and put it aside, then we can look for Miss Abby’s.” Abby loved watching this man play his daddy role. Not only did it warm her heart but quite honestly it was downright sexy.
Catching her ogling him, Caleb pulled the side of his lip into a smirk, moved in close and whispered in her ear. “You see something you like?” She shook her head up and down right before his lips pressed just under her ear. A tingle went down her spine and she could care less where they were or who was around.
“Why are you kissing here? Go kiss over there under the mistletoe.” Both adults whipped their heads in the direction of the little girl’s voice and pulled apart from each other. Innocently, Madison pointed to the bundle of leaves held together with a red ribbon, hanging a couple of feet away from them. They had both gotten caught up in the
moment, forgetting Madison was with them.
An attendant approached Caleb to offer his help before Abby said, “I think I’m going to check the ones back here. Meet me in a few?” Her boyfriend winked at her. Doesn’t he understand what that does to her?
Strolling through the trees unable to resist running her hands along them as she went, Abby continued to inhale the air. The sun poked through the branches and the cool breeze tickled her face. Abby stood and closed her eyes for a moment taking it in. She’d never been so happy in her life. Everything was working out and she was in love with a beautiful man and his daughter.
Whirling around while opening her eyes, she ran smack dab into a sweater covered chest. Flustered, she looked up at the owner of the soft material. “Hey Abs?”
Backing away from the familiar voice, she tried not to show her instant irritation by offering a quick polite greeting. “Hello, Peter.” He was alone. Abby looked around to see if she could spot any of his family members then saw the fiancé his sister so tactfully introduced Abby to at the Chowder Festival. The woman Abby knew as Janice appeared to be searching for something. Or SOMEONE.
“I think your girl is looking for you over there.” She pointed her finger to the female who appeared to be helpless. Abby felt for her. Janice probably had no idea what she’d agreed to when she decided to marry Peter and moved back to his hometown.
“She’s fine, but we need to talk.” He looked unsure but spoke anyway. “Abby, I want to know where my child is.” His tone was tender, as though he truly did long to find his child. This threw Abby for a loop. She didn’t know if she should feel hate or sorrow for him.
“I’m not going to talk to you about this here, Peter.”
“Then meet me somewhere. I want to know what happened.”
“You were there. You know what happened.” Now she was getting pissed. A sense of calm suddenly came over her rigid body, Caleb was near. Leisurely, he drew Abby to his side, kissing her temple. “You remember my boyfriend Caleb, right?” That felt damn good to say to the guy who had caused so much pain in her life. Plus, Caleb was way hotter than Peter. It was childish, but she couldn’t help mentally sticking her tongue out to her ex-boyfriend, broadcasting a big fat Neener-neener.
“Nice to see you again.” Peter did the guy nod of acknowledgment which Caleb returned. “I heard it was official but kind of guessed it already was when we saw you at the festival.” The jerk had the nerve to smile as though he knew a secret before anyone else did.
“Daddy, who is this?” Madison pointed to Peter. Abby watched her ex doing the math in his head like he was calculating Madison’s age. When he seemed satisfied with the number he came up with and knew this was not his child, he appeared to relax a bit.
“This is someone I went to school with, Sweetie.” Abby chimed in to answer her innocent question. She was not about to give Peter credit for being anything more than a classmate.
“Okay. Can we go look for your tree now Miss Abby?” Thank God for impatient little girls.
“Works for me.” Casually starting to stroll away with Madison, Abby glimpsed over her shoulder and waved. “See you later.” Caleb stood there like he didn’t know what he was supposed to do until Abby pulled his hand breaking the awkward stance he and Peter held.
After dropping Abby’s tree off at her house and dragging the other one into Caleb’s living room, the ringing sound of a cell phone filled the area. “It’s my mom. Do you mind if I take this?” Abby held up her phone.
“Of course not.” Watching her walk into the open kitchen with her phone, then sitting at one of the barstools, did something to Caleb. She was comfortable in his space and he really liked that. Smiling to himself, he grabbed the tree stand and set it up.
Memories of Rene overtook his concentration. When they’d decided to look for a house in Santa Barbara, she had one requirement. It had to have the perfect Christmas tree spot. They rejected several homes before finding this one. None of them had that perfect space, but once they walked into this place, and he saw her expression, Caleb knew this was their home.
It was different to think about Rene now. He had so many fond memories of her and now that he had Abby, it didn’t hurt like it used to. Abby said she was fine with him talking about Rene but he still wondered if she ever got uncomfortable without telling him.
Madison came running into the living room, throwing her little body onto the couch. “Daddy, can we decorate now?” She whined a bit. He’d noticed she started doing this more and more lately.
“No, let’s allow it to sit here a bit and get settled. After we have some lunch, we need to get ready for the Festival of Lights. Remember, we told Grammy we’d meet them later.”
“I forgot about the festabal. I love the lights on the boats.” He loved the way she enunciated words. It was going to be a sad when Madison finally started to pronounce all of her words correctly.
“We can decorate tomorrow morning. Why don’t you go upstairs and play for now though?”
“Can I go check on my plant right now?” She’d been tending to the lima bean plant for months now and was so proud of how much it had grown. He imagined that pods would appear by the spring.
“Of course, Sweetie.”
She bounced through the kitchen and out through the sliding glass door. She seemed to always be bouncing or skipping. He loved that she was such a happy child.
Abby came into the living room and plopped herself next to Caleb then snuggled into his chest. “Everything okay with your mom?”
“Yeah, she was just telling me about her next planned cruise during Christmas. I’m surprised they haven’t bought their own boat and moved in.” She was pouting. When he watched his daughter do this, she held his heart. When he witnessed this sexy woman do it, she had his soul.
“Your mom has worked hard her entire life, Babe. She deserves this.” She may hold his soul, but he wasn’t going to let her feel sorry for herself.
Lifting her head to look him in the eyes, Abby grumbled. “I know but it’s hard not having her around sometimes.” She pursed her lips, so naturally his eyes darted to them. “Am I being selfish?”
Moving his eyes back to hers, he said, “Not at all. You should spend some more time with her though, you are her only daughter.” He couldn’t imagine Madison not spending a lot of time with him when she grew up.
“She has Dave now. She doesn’t need me.” A whiney voice came out of her mouth that sounded just like the one Madison had used on him a few moments ago.
“How can you say that? Every mother needs her daughter no matter how old either of them is.”
“Maybe, I don’t know. It seems like I spend more time and get along better with Grace. My mother is a completely different person than the one I grew up with. She’s got her own life now and it doesn’t always include me.” Oh, she was hurt. That’s why she was pouting about this.
Trying to comfort her, he began rubbing circles on her back before speaking. “You have to understand things from her perspective though, Love. She was a single mother for so long then you left for college and she became an empty nester overnight. I’m sure she was lonely.” Noticing these words were not comforting her, he continued. “Now she has Dave as her companion. As her husband, he is her life partner so she should be spending her time with him. That doesn’t have to leave you out though. He is an addition to your family, not someone who took her from you.” Caleb was a firm believer that there could be a great balance between parents, spouses and children. Everyone had a place in the equation.
“I guess you are right. It still stinks that she doesn’t want to spend Christmas with me though. She was already gone for Thanksgiving.” And there was the real hurt. She wanted her mother’s time and attention during the holidays. Well he would make sure she didn’t have a moment to even think about it this year.
Snuggling back into his chest, she opened up. “When I was growing up, my mom used to sing that song, ‘You and Me Against The World’ by Helen R
eddy every night before I went to sleep.” She peeked up through her long eyelashes at him. “It was our thing, but you’re right, she has her things now, and I have mine.” Caleb felt her wicked smile penetrate deep into his primitive, hungry core.
Clearing his throat and moving her body to a sitting position before he acted on his feelings, he continued the conversation. “It’s a normal evolution of life, Sweetie. One day our kids will grow up and have their own lives separate from us, and we will need to be here together as partners through it all.” Just as he’d hoped, her skin began to flush. He missed that. Now that they were officially together, she didn’t blush for him as much anymore. He meant every word he’d said. There was no need to word things any other way. A smile hit his lips while he looked into her surprised face. “You heard me.”
Tilting down to kiss her on the forehead, he took the opportunity to move on to another matter. “Now, we need to discuss something else. Today at the tree lot it was extremely awkward with Peter and...”
Interrupting him, Abby blurted out, “I know, I’m so sorry you’ve been subjected to that two times now.”
Patiently, he answered. “What I was going to say was that it doesn’t have to be awkward. You need to deal with this. You have to figure out a way to work through this with him for your wellbeing, Love.”
“I don’t need to think about him Caleb. I’m with you.” She seemed so sure of that answer, but Caleb wasn’t giving up. He had no interest in running into this guy all over town and have this weird cloud follow.
Moving a calming hand up and down her back, he explained. “Yes, you are with me, but you really can’t be completely happy until you forgive those that you feel have wronged you. You are going to keep hauling that same heavy load of junk around until you get this over with.” Pulling her into a strong embrace with the arm that was around her, he wanted her to know that he was being supportive by bringing it up, not attacking her.
