Page 12 of All I Want for Christmas

I couldn’t lose Jed. I just couldn’t. I’d finally gotten the family I’d yearned for. I couldn’t lose it all now.

So, I was desperate to keep Rose with me as long as possible, because ever since she and Joe had gotten here, I hadn’t been so scared. Like everything was going to be okay.

She gave me a strange look as we got in line for our photos. She knew I was off today and I’d all but confirmed it earlier, so I offered her a weak smile, then turned to Daisy, who was back in Jed’s arms. I told Daisy she was gonna get her photo taken with Rudolph, and then with Santa, and wasn’t she excited? She cooed in response, and I grabbed her tiny hand in mine and thanked God for the billionth time for letting me have the blessing and honor of being her mommy.

What if Jed went to prison and I became a single mother, just like my own mother had been? Would I turn out like her too?

A sharp spike of fear shot through me and my body literally jerked.

Jed’s forehead creased as worry filled his eyes. “I know I’ve asked a million times today, NK, but are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” I lied, hating that I was lying, then I added, “I just have a headache.” Which was true. It felt like tiny elves were pounding away in a workshop in my head.

“Do you want to go sit down?” Jed asked, pointing to the other side of the lane. “You can sit on that bench by the hot chocolate stand over there, then come back over when it’s our turn.”

“I’m fine,” I said with a small laugh. “It’s nothin’. I’d rather be here with you guys. Besides, we’re next in line.”

I had to admit that the teenage boy taking the photos with a digital camera seemed to be taking his time helping the people in front of us get set up for their shoot.

The family consisted of a man and a woman and three kids who looked like they were between the ages of two and six. The father tried to set the smallest kid on the back of the reindeer, and the photographer’s eyes widened.

“Don’t do that, sir!” he shouted, as the middle of the reindeer began to sag even more.

The father jumped back as though a monster was going to crash out of the plastic decoration, and in his haste, he left his child on the reindeer’s back.

The mother had been sitting on a hay bale with the middle child on her lap, but she jumped to her feet, flinging the child onto the ground as she reached over to grab the toddler. The child on the ground began to cry, so now two of the three children were wailing. The oldest child stood behind the hay bale looking bored, making me wonder if this was a frequent happening in their household, although, I had to admit I hadn’t seen this reindeer at the hardware store or Walmart.

“What were youthinkin’, Ron?” the woman screeched, not that I blamed her for being irate. He had abandoned his child in fear of his own safety.

“I … uh …” Ron stammered.

“That’s the problem, you don’tthink, now, do ya?” She turned her ire to the photographer who was staring at them, looking stunned. “What areyoulookin’ at?”

The teenager grimaced as his face turned the color of a ripe tomato. “Sorry, ma’am, but I have to look at you to take the photo.”

“Do we look like we’re ready to take our photo?” she demanded.

“No, ma’am.” Then the teenager rushed over to help the middle child who was still on her hands and knees in the fake snow scattered around the bale.

“Don’t worry, Daisy,” Jed murmured under his breath. “I’dnever let anything happen to you.”

“He better not callNeely Katema’am,” Rose said, also under her breath.

Jed let out a snicker, but I ignored them both. Sure, I was known to get a little heated when called ma’am, but the family in front of us was causing enough drama on their own.

The photographer hurriedly got the family situated and didn’t even bother to wait for the kids to stop crying. He just snapped a few photos then turned to us with pleading eyes. “Next!”

Jed and I moved over to the hay bale, and the photographer had Jed sit down with Daisy on his lap and me stand behind them and to the side, next to the reindeer that looked like a pinata that was only a couple of swings from busting open and spilling its contents onto the stuffing-covered ground.

The photographer still looked frazzled from the previous family, but he still spent several seconds trying to get Daisy to smile. I wasn’t surprised she wasn’t smiling. She was typically wary of strangers, but Rose moved next to him, calling Daisy’s name. Daisy looked up at her and Rose began to make silly faces. Seconds later, Daisy giggled and the photographer got several photos.

“Next!” he called out, sounding weary. “Y’all can move to your left.”

“Oh,” I said, motioning to Rose. “We’re gonna stay and have our friend join us.”

Rose grimaced. “You don’t have to do that. We don’t need one.”

“Come on. Jed, you get up and stand behind the bale, and Rose and I will sit with the babies.”

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