Page 7 of All I Want for Christmas

“I already tried, Rose,” he said quietly. “Mike’s dad hung up on me.”

My heart sunk. “Why do they have to be so nasty? They’re just hurtin’ the kids.”

“I think they’re scared Mike’s gonna go to prison and the judge is gonna give them to us.”

“Holdin’ onto them like this isn’t gonna help their case.”

“You and I both know that. Too bad their attorney isn’t tryin’ to drive that point home.” Our attorney had told us that the more amenable we were, the better our chances would be to get full custody. She said the judge we’d been assigned placed a lot of weight on flexibility and accountability.

“At least we have them for Christmas Eve and Christmas morning,” Joe said. “You know they’ll love havin’ everyone here for Christmas Eve dinner.”

Bruce Wayne and Anna didn’t have any family, and Maeve was planning to drive up to her son’s house in Little Rock on Christmas Day. Jonah Pruitt, my friend and the pastor of the New Living Hope Revival Church, and his girlfriend were coming over after we all attended Christmas Eve service. Neely Kate and Jed had been invited to a big gathering at her granny’s, but when Jed had heard one of her aunts was bringing roasted raccoons for the main course, he suggested they skip the family dinner, eat with us, then go over later.

“Theyareexcited about it.” I hesitated. “Are you still okay with hostin’ this dinner? We can always cancel if it’s too much.” It was a lot of people, and it suddenly occurred to me that maybe he’d just agreed to it because I’d been so excited about it. He was a lot like Jed in giving me pretty much anything I wanted, and I tried my best not to take advantage of it. Still, sometimes I wasn’t entirely sure he was as happy about my plans as I was.

“I’m lookin’ forward to it too, Rose,” he assured me. “We’ll have Christmas morning with the kids until Mike’s parents pick them up at noon, and then we’ll go over to Jed and Neely Kate’s for dinner.” He winked. “AlthoughI was thinkin’ about tryin’to score an invite to Granny Rivers’s Christmas Eve dinner. I’ve never had roasted raccoon before.”

“If you’re lucky, they might have leftovers, and Jed can bring you some.”

He licked his top lip. “Lucky me.” Only the way he was looking at me made me think he wasn’t thinking of roasted raccoon. “What do you say after Hope goes to bed, we Netflix and chill? If we’re gonna be kid-free, we might as well take advantage of it.”

I laughed. “I suspect that doesn’t mean what you think it does.”

His eyes danced with mischief. “I know exactly what it means.”

CHAPTER FOUR

ROSE

Neely Kate and Jed were already at Ned’s X-mas Tree Farmpozium when we pulled into the lot, not that I was surprised. I suspected they had arrived at least fifteen minutes early due to Neely Kate’s excitement. They were pointing out an animatronic reindeer to Daisy who was in Jed’s arms.

“That reindeer’s new,” Joe said. “A whole lot of this stuff is new.”

I hadn’t seen the tree farm in a few weeks, but Joe was right. Ned had put a lot more effort into making it more Christmasy. There had been a portable shed on the property, but now there was a food cart off to the side with a few people standing in line in front of it. Christmas lights had been strung from tall poles, giving the place a cozy vibe, and multiple inflatable Santas, reindeer, and elves were scattered around the lot, along with multiple animatronics. A tractor with an attached wagon was pulling up to the shed. Several people were sitting on hay bales in the back of the wagon and when it came to a stop, a guy pulled a Christmas tree out of the back.

“I know most of this stuff wasn’t here a couple of weeks ago,” I said. “One of my clients told me how boring this place was, not that it dissuaded Neely Kate.”

“Maybe Ned had a lot of people sayin’ that, so he spruced up the place,” Joe said as he pulled into a parking space, then he shot me a cheesy grin. “Get it? Christmas tree lot. Spruce?”

I groaned good-naturedly. “Don’t you think you’re too young for dad jokes?”

He laughed. “Iama dad, though.” His gaze softened as he glanced in the backseat in the direction of Hope’s car seat. “Sometimes I can’t believe this is my life. You and Hope …” His voice tightened as his eyes turned shiny. “A year ago, I never thought this was possible.”

I reached over and snagged his hand. “I love you, Joe. I wouldn’t have it any other way.” But even as I said the words, part of me felt like a traitor. Joe wasn’t Hope’s biological father—that man was sitting in a federal prison in eastern Arkansas waiting for his trial. He’d given up a plea deal to save me and Hope last spring, and some days my guilt was overwhelming.

Joe studied my face, recognizing what I was thinking. “Skeeter Malcolm wanted that, Rose. He chose it for you and Hope.”

Tears filled my eyes. “But?—”

“No but,” he said gently. “Besides, he’s guilty of everything he’s been charged with, and you know it.”

He was right, but it still didn’t feel right. I swiped a tear from my cheek.

“I always thought he was a selfish bastard,” Joe said, but there was no malice in his voice, “especially how he treated you after you told him you were pregnant, but then he proved he really does care about the both of you.” The corners of his lips lifted in a sad smile. “He gave up his life for yours and Hope’s,and while I still don’t like the asshole, I respect the hell out of him for it.”

Joe had only seen the bad parts of James, but James had shown me that, deep down, he was a man trapped by his circumstances. I’d brought out the softer side of him, the part he hadn’t known he was capable of, and I couldn’t help feeling guilty about that too. The man I met several years ago wouldn’t have given up his freedom for anyone, possibly not even Jed, his previous right-hand man and ex-best friend. Yet, he’d done it for me and a baby he’d claimed he wanted no part of. “I can’t help thinking if I hadn’t gotten involved with him, he wouldn’t be where he is now.”

“By your own admission, he was an asshole when you met him. The way I see it, he redeemed his soul. He would have never done that without your influence.”

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