Page 58 of Daycare Santa

“We’re on target, so let’s finish this up,” she said, squeezing his bicep.

“Gladly.” He rubbed her shoulder as he said, “This Christmas is way different for me, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Awww.” She kissed his chin and hugged him tight. “I can’t wait for tomorrow. So happy we’re spending Christmas with you.”

“My folks can’t wait to meet you.”

His words gave her a moment’s anxiety, but she chided herself for being foolish and led the way to the kitchen.

After they finished packing up, she had to make several stops on the way home. The streets would be impossible to navigate, but come what may, she had to make this special effort for Zack.

***

“Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way, hey! Oh, what fun it is to ride on a one-horse open sleigh.” Luca looked away from the television to ask, “What’s a one-horse open sleigh, Mommy?”

While Gina explained with a picture she googled on her phone, Zack set up the pieces on the checkerboard for the game Luca challenged him to play. Zack had declined, but Lizette and her parents agreed to join him, which was good enough for Luca.

Now that dinner was over and the dishes taken care of by Zack, Eli, and Lizette, they all moved to the patio and were ready to challenge each other against the backdrop of Christmas carols they’d been listening to throughout the afternoon.

Anthony and Icilda extended a warm welcome to Gina, and Jamila’s presence made her more relaxed, knowing she wasn’t the only guest in their home. Zack and Eli wore matching Santa hats they only removed for dinner, at their mother’s insistence.

“Mommy made me leave my hat,” Luca said, throwing Gina a reproachful look but he’d quickly forgotten her offense to fawn over Eli.

The men had assisted with handing out gifts earlier in the day at a children’s home. According to them, twin Santa Clauses had been a hit. Luca couldn’t stop peering at Eli and was even more convinced one of them had been playing Santa that day at the mall. For a while, he amused himself by trying to tell the difference between the two brothers.

The dog that caused her so much anxiety stuck close to Luca’s side since they arrived. He also didn’t seem to realize Gina was wary of his presence, and wasn’t shy about prodding her to pet him. She hadn’t given in as yet.

“He’s friendly,” Zack murmured. “Not to mention tame ... for a street dog.”

When she cut her eyes at him, Zack chuckled and set the hanging love seat in motion.

“You’re never going to let me forget that, are you?”

“Not right now,” he said, lacing their fingers together.

“He really likes Luca.”

“Who likes him back.” After Champ trotted to Luca’s side and sat with his eyes closed while he scratched his neck, Zack said, “Every boy should have a dog.”

“That’s a want, not a need,” Gina replied.

“Says a mom who doesn’t understand how that relationship works.”

She shifted to see Zack better and moved her feet back and forth on the grass. “I take it you had one?”

“Yes, Eli and I. Until Dad realized he was the one caring for Rufus.”

Mr. Winters glanced at Zack from the patio. “And that’s when I threatened to give him to another family who would actually care for him. That set them straight.”

Lizette grinned at Eli, who had his arm around Jamila. The two of them had claimed the other love seat in the garden. “D’you remember the time you and Zack brought home that frog in your lunch box and—”

“Nearly gave your mother a heart attack.” Anthony Winters let out a hearty laugh that trickled off when his wife glared at him.

“But honey, it’s true.”

Mrs. Winters puckered her lips and gave him a quelling look. “And that’s the reason I forbade Elijah and Isaac from bringing any living thing home with them, unless it had two feet.”

Luca stopped craning his neck at the television and claimed a seat at the table. He hid his face in the crook of his elbow to hide his laughter, then asked, “How come you have a street dog for a pet?”

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