Page 181 of Holiday Hire

I chuckle and tousle his hair. "You have a lot to learn about women, son."

"Dad, go ask her now," Ace orders.

I shake my head. "These things have to be done in the right way."

They stare at me.

"So you boys will keep this a secret, right?" I ask.

They both nod their agreement.

Ace says, "Your secret's safe with us."

"I'll make sure he doesn't spill it," Wilder adds.

Ace smacks him across the shoulder. "I wouldn't spill the beans."

Wilder gives him his cocky Jagger grin. "Yeah, yeah, yeah."

"Okay, so the secret's just between the three of us," I tell them.

Ace asks, "Who else knows?"

"No one. Well, the jeweler knows. That's it. So it's just the three of us. No other Cartwright knows," I repeat.

Wilder grins, as does Ace.

"But, Dad, ask her soon," Ace orders.

"Yeah, before Christmas, so it's not cheesy. Because you got her a different gift, right? That shouldn't be her Christmas gift too," Wilder declares.

"Why does that matter?" Ace questions.

"Duh. Because then she gets more gifts and will want to stay," Wilder claims.

"Mmm, I don't think Phoebe's going to decide to stay or go based on the number of gifts she receives," I assert.

"I would," Wilder says.

I shake my head and sigh. "That's not right, and someday when you grow up, you'll realize that."

He shrugs.

"Alright. I'm taking you back to Evelyn's, but mum's the word. Okay?"

They agree, and I drop them back off. I don't go inside. The rest of the day, I try to figure out when I'll ask Phoebe. I think about all the special things I could do and try to make happen, but I can't do most of them before Christmas.

Also, I know my time is running out. The clock is ticking. I don't know when Phoebe will leave for Alaska. But if she accepts a teaching job, my guess is she'll have to be there come the new year.

All day, I stress over how to ask her. When dinnertime comes, everyone is in the dining room.

The entire meal, I stare at Phoebe, but she continues to avoid me, blinking hard several times.

I know she's hurting, and it kills me. When the table is cleared and dessert is brought out, I rise and clear my throat. "Can everyone take a break for a minute?"

Everyone stares at me.

I move over so I'm in front of Phoebe, and hold out my hand. "Stand up for a minute, Pheebs."

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