‘But you trusted me tonight. You told me your terrible secret.’
‘Aye … I already knew how wrong I’d been. Even before I knew who Jack was.’ It was Adam’s turn to move closer. Close enough to touch. To cup Emma’s face and make sure she knew how much every word meant. ‘I’ve been wrong about a lot of things but there’s one thing I can never be wrong about. I love you. I want you to stay. With me. With the children. For as long as we’ve got.’
He saw a whole range of expressions flicker over the face of this woman he loved. Shock as she probably guessed what he’d thought when he’d seen her with another man. Forgiveness as he admitted his error. The birth of joy as he confessed his love.
And then she smiled.
‘It might be a very long time. I haven’t got the final results of my bone-marrow test but so far everything’s looking as good as it possibly could.’
‘It could never be long enough.’ Adam put his arms around Emma and drew her close. His kiss was slow and tender. A promise of what he intended to show her properly, very soon.
‘Let’s get these bairns safely into their own beds.’
‘Aye …’ Emma’s smile was one of pure joy. ‘And then we can get to ours?’
‘Aye …’
With their arms still around each other, they went back into the stable.
Poppy stirred as her father lifted her into his arms. ‘Daddy …’ Her eyes opened and she turned her head. ‘Emma … you’re back. You’ve come home.’
‘I have, sweetheart.’
Oliver had woken up, too. ‘I told you she wasn’t going away for ever,’ he told his sister.
‘But I saw you leave,’ Poppy said. ‘I saw you talking to Daddy and you took your kit-ar and … and I was sad.’
‘You don’t need to be sad any more,’ Adam said. ‘Emma’s not going anywhere.’
‘You didn’t see our play,’ Oliver said. ‘We went outside to find you and saw Jemima going home. We tried to catch her and then we got lost.’
‘She’s got a friend now.’ Poppy smiled at Emma. ‘She’s got Dougal.’
‘Dougal likes me,’ Oliver said. ‘He let me ride him and Poppy rode Jemima and she took us home.’
‘I was scared, Daddy.’
‘So was I, poppet. So was I.’
‘But everything’s all right now.’ Emma’s eyes were bright with tears as she held out her hand to Oliver. ‘Let’s go inside and get you two into your nice warm beds.’
Poppy was almost asleep again in her father’s arms.
‘Emma came back,’ she murmured. ‘I love Emma.’
‘So do I, pet.’ Adam’s whisper was loud enough for them all to hear. ‘So do I.’
Emma, with Oliver’s hand in hers, came close enough to lean against Adam’s arm as she returned his tender smile. He could feel the connection of her body against his and he could see a far deeper connection in her eyes. Here they were—the four of them—all connected.
His family. And they were together. And safe. And very, very soon they would celebrate their first Christmas together. A new and wonderful joy misted his vision.
He knew that it would be the first of many, many Christmases.
EPILOGUE
A year later …
NO CHRISTMAS COULD ever be as wonderful as this one.
Even the joy of being present for Holly’s birth in Canada last year was completely outshone by this day, as far as Catherine McAllister was concerned.
They should have used the table in the big dining room to host a Christmas feast for so many people but the inhabitants of this house had been adamant that they wanted to eat in the kitchen. Like they always did.
Adam was at one end and his gorgeous wife of six months at the other. Darling Emma. Catherine had known as soon as she’d set eyes on the lass that magic was going to happen but she’d never have guessed at quite how much.
At the sides of the table it had been a fair squeeze to fit everybody in. Marion and Ian on one side, with baby Holly in her highchair beside her gran. On the other side was Emma’s best friend Sharon, whom they’d all come to love when she’d come over from America to be the bridesmaid for a summer wedding in the Braeburn village church. This time she’d brought her husband Andy as well, and they were flanked by Poppy and Ollie.
There was so much laughter. Like when Adam had been telling the story of how disastrous last year’s Christmas dinner had been.
‘Neither of us had any idea what to do with that turkey. It wasn’t till after we took it out of the stove that we realised there was a plastic bag inside it.’
Sharon needed a pat on the back so that her amusement didn’t choke her. ‘I could have told you Emma didn’t know how to cook,’ she said finally.
‘I’m learning,’ Emma protested. ‘I have the best mother-in-law in the world.’
The real truth was that Catherine was lucky enough to have the most amazing daughter-in-law in the world but she didn’t say anything aloud. She just shared a fond glance with Emma and then smiled at how quickly Adam defended her.
‘My wife has talents that are far more important than cooking.’
‘What’s a talent?’ Oliver asked.
‘It means you’re really good at something. Like Emma is with playing her guitar and singing.’
Oliver’s nod was solemn. ‘Mummy’s going to be famous, isn’t she?’
‘You bet she is, buddy.’ Marion had come back from Canada with new expressions. ‘I’m not surprised a record company’s signed you. That song you wrote for Sharon is just beautiful. No, Holly, don’t blow raspberries. Oh … I’ve got custard all over my new dress.’
Poppy giggled. ‘That’s really icky.’
The delicious sound of the child’s laughter and that odd word took Catherine straight back to the day she’d met Emma. To that interview for a position that Adam had clearly intended not to give her. He’d been so closed away back then.
Had he had any idea of how unhappy he’d been?
Things couldn’t be more different now. Her son was not only happy again, he was happier than he’d ever been. And Emma looked better than she ever had. It had been such a shock to learn she’d been so sick but she’d just had her twelve-month check a couple of weeks ago and the news had been brilliant. Her doctor had told her she had beaten that dreadful disease and he didn’t even want to see her again for at least two years.
No wonder Adam was fair glowing with happiness now. She was loving the grin on Adam’s face as he listened to Ian’s incredulous query.
‘Is it really true that Jemima’s pregnant? You’re going to have three donkeys?’
Adam smiled at Emma as he responded. ‘The more the merrier.’
Catherine remembered that smile later as she shooed everyone out of the kitchen to deal with the final clearing up. She put some turkey scraps into the dog bowls, wiped the last crumbs of plum pudding from the table and bent to pick up a scrap of paper left over from the crackers that had been pulled.
Had there been something significant in that shared look and smile? Maybe they were waiting for her to join them before making an announcement? Ducking her head beneath a paper chain that was drooping lower than the others and trying not to get her hopes up, Catherine headed for the door.
In the hallway, she had to smile at the wreath of mistletoe crowning the grandfather clock and the big tartan bows on the banister rails. She could hear a guitar being strummed but obviously not by Emma. The enthusiastic but inexpert performance had to be from Ollie, who would probably be taking his treasured Christmas gift to bed with him. Sure enough, as Catherine entered the living room she saw her grandson sitting at Emma’s feet as she showed him where to put his fingers to make a chord.
Adam was right beside her on the couch, with his arm around his beloved wife. Poppy was tucked under his other arm and she was holding her favourite gift as well—fluffy drumsticks that she intended to learn to twirl so that one day she could join a real pipe band. The kind her daddy was
playing in once again. The dogs weren’t far away either as they lay on the rug in front of the fire.
The other sofa and chairs were taken up with the rest of her family and the special friends who’d been invited to celebrate with them. With the backdrop of the enormous Christmas tree and the screwed-up wrapping paper that Holly seemed to think was her special gift, it all added up to being the picture of a perfect Christmas.
How could life get any better than this?
And then Adam spoke and Catherine realised that life could get even better.
‘We have something to tell you all,’ he said. ‘This summer we’re going to have a baby.’
‘I know,’ Poppy squeaked. ‘Jemima’s baby.’
Adam and Emma exchanged a look that brought a lump to Catherine’s throat. Had two people ever been so much in love?
‘No, pet.’ Adam smiled. ‘A real baby. Emma’s going to be a mummy.’
The shriek of excitement from Marion and Sharon faded as they all noticed Oliver’s frown.
‘Emma’s already a mummy,’ he growled. ‘She’s our mummy.’
Emma leaned down to kiss the small boy. ‘I am,’ she agreed. ‘But you won’t mind having a little brother or sister, will you?’
‘No-o-o …’ But Oliver hugged his guitar more tightly.
‘I won’t,’ Poppy said firmly. ‘I love babies.’
* * * * *
ISBN: 978-1-472-04580-5
A LITTLE CHRISTMAS MAGIC
© 2014 Alison Roberts
Published in Great Britain 2014
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of Harlequin (UK) Limited
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