Page 5 of All I Want for Christmas

“Shhh!” he said, glancing around. “Don’t go ruinin’ my badass reputation.”

I laughed, just like he expected me to, but he’d said what he had to say and gave me what comfort he could. The rest was up to me and Jed now.

I stood and he stood with me. “Thank you,” I said, my voice breaking.

“Ah, Neely Kate.” He tapped the underside of my chin. “Chin up. Get a badass attorney nearly as good as me, and you’ll both be okay.”

“You sayin’ I shouldn’t find one better or equal to you?” I teased, surprised I had it in me given the news I’d just heard.

“There’s no one equal to me, let alone better,” he scoffed.

“Humility was always a good look on you, Carter.”

“I just call it as I see it.” He walked over to the rack and grabbed a red flannel shirt with black plaid stripes, then handed it to me. “Here, this’ll be tight on Jed’s arms, but you’ll appreciate the view.”

“Who said I was lookin’ for a shirt for Jed?”

He grinned. “Who else would you be buyin’ a men’s shirt for?” I started to tell him I could have been buying a Christmas gift for my brother, but he’d already turned and headed for the exit. I hadn’t even had a chance to thank him. Which, I suspected, was how he preferred it.

It wasn’t lost on me that he hadn’t bought anything. And it also wasn’t lost on me that he’d likely followed me here, so we’d be alone when he shared his dreadful news.

Now I had to go home and tell Jed.

No, not yet.

I didn’t want to spoil the weekend. Carter said the Feds would be calling after the first of the year, which meant I had time to tell him later.

CHAPTER THREE

ROSE

Joe was in the living room with Hope on his lap when Muffy and I walked in through the front door, and Joe’s face lit up when he saw me. Muffy made a beeline for the sofa and jumped up, taking turns covering first Joe’s then Hope’s faces in kisses. Hope burst into giggles and put her arm around Muffy’s neck.

“We missed you too, Muffy,” Joe said, then rubbed her ear for several seconds before he stood, holding Hope’s back to his front, his arm around her chest and tucked under her armpit. He closed the distance and leaned in to give me a quick kiss.

“Want to trade?” he asked, reaching for the pizza box.

I let him take the pizza and scooped Hope into my arms. She smiled at me and babbled as her hand patted my face.

“There’s my sweet baby.” I kissed her forehead and held her close. My heart swelled when she leaned into me and patted my chest.

Joe gave Muffy one more head rub before he headed into the kitchen.

I followed, and Muffy jumped off the sofa and trotted behind me.

“Has Hope eaten yet?”

“Nope,” he said. “We were waiting for you. I knew you’d probably want to feed her.”

As he put the pizza box on the table, I noticed a jar of baby food carrots and a small spoon on the highchair tray. A couple of plates were already on the table along with a small stack of napkins.

I gave Hope another kiss, then set her in her highchair and put her bib over her clothes. I twisted the lid off the baby food jar as Joe opened the box and put a slice of pizza on a plate, then set it in front of me.

Muffy settled into her dog bed underneath the window looking over the barn and field behind the house.

The house felt quiet and unsettling without Ashley and Mikey there, but I stuffed the thought down and focused on my baby.

I gave Hope a spoonful of carrots, some of which got smeared on her lips. “How did the Ferrimen job go?” Since most people didn’t need landscaping done in November and December, Bruce Wayne had come up with the idea to install Christmas lights, and since Joe was working for Bruce Wayne, he installed them too.

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