Page 358 of A Merry Mountain Christmas

“Maisie, the house…” Mary said, her head swiveling around to take in the living room.

“I told you I’d made a few changes,” she said. “It’s a work in progress.”

She felt a prickle of defensiveness—did Mary disapprove?—but then she saw the tears in her sister’s eyes.

Molly grinned at her. “This has to be a record. It only took you two minutes to make Mary cry.”

That earned her a swat from their big sister.

“It’s just…I’m so proud of you,” Mary said.

“I’m proud of me too,” she said.

Jack put an arm around her, and she leaned into him, suddenly feeling all of the emotions of having everyone here on the last day of the year, of feeling the new year unfurl before them. Of sensing possibilities rather than fearing the changes the future might bring.

Molly clapped. “I smell pizza, but before we eat or even bring in our bags, I think it’s time for us to show Iris our surprise.”

“What?” Iris said, flinching. She’d been leaning against the banister, and she almost fell. Flushing a little, she stood up straighter. “Why would you do something nice for me? You don’t even know me.”

Molly raised her hands up, palms out. “You underestimate how much our sister tells us. Plus, I only helped in an advisory capacity.”

Iris swiveled to look at Maisie, who couldn’t hold back a grin. She glanced up at Jack, and he gave her a little squeeze with one of those famous arms of his. “What’d you do now, Red?”

She could almost feel Molly and Mary exchanging a look. They’d never heard anyone but their dad call her that. Yeah, they knew she had it bad.

“Guess you’ll all have to come upstairs and see.”

She led the way, Jack behind her—she suspected he’d followed her so he could stare at her butt the whole way up—and then Iris and Molly and Mary. Chaco and Ein, who refused to be left out of the fun, came next.

When she reached the doorway of the spare bedroom, she felt a little prickle of nerves. What if Jack and Iris took her gesture the wrong way? Molly had egged her on, of course, butMary had suggested it would be wise to consult Jack before moving forward. But there’d been too few good surprises in Maisie’s life, and she’d wanted to pull one off for Iris.

Jack shot her a questioning look, and she moved closer to him, wanting to feel him at her side.

“Go on in, Iris.”

“Why do I feel like I’m being set up?” Iris asked with no small amount of suspicion, glancing from face to face.

“Maybe because Molly is literally taking a video,” Maisie said, giving her sister a look.

Molly kept at it. “She’ll thank me later.”

“Go ahead, Iris,” Jack said. Something about his tone, soft yet strong, fatherly yet brotherly, was heartrending. Because Iris might think she only needed a brother in Jack, but that wasn’t totally true.

Iris cracked the door open and walked in, leaving it gaping behind her.

She returned a moment later, her face unreadable in the way she and Jack always looked when they were overloaded with emotion.

Maisie found herself holding her breath. Was this good emotion or bad emotion?

Then Iris threw her arms around Maisie and hugged her, holding on tight.

When she pulled away, Maisie said, “I know Jack’s been spending a lot of time here, and I wanted you to have your own space in the house. Because you belong here just like he does. You can decorate it however you want, but I figured you might prefer updated furniture.”

“I love it. Jack, you’ve got to see this,” Iris said. She glanced around at them all again, then cracked the door wider. “All of you, come in.”

Maisie had spent yesterday afternoon moving the new furniture in, with help from River and Finn. She’d chosen the pieces based on Molly’s advice, although Mary had been adamant about what was needed. Jack and Iris had been held up by Dottie, who was almost frighteningly good at keeping people busy.

“You did this?” Jack asked in wonder. “When?”

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