Page 31 of A Christmas Duet

Hailey had written four verses, and by the time she reached the chorus for the third verse, the crowd joined in, singing along with her. Jay was right.

Have a very merry Christmas

A very merry Christmas

A very merry Christmas

this year

When she finished, she received thunderous applause.

Thelma joined them onstage and slapped Hailey hardacross the back, hard enough to cause her to nearly fall forward. “Thank you, Hailey. That was a darn good song.”

Jay leaned close and whispered, “That’s Mom’s way of saying she approves of you.”

“My goodness,” Thelma said, and placed her hand around her ear. “Is that sleigh bells I hear? Could it be Santa?”

The children cheered and the audience cleared a path for Santa’s arrival.

“Are you mad about me bringing you up onstage?” Jay asked, smiling down at her.

Surprisingly, she wasn’t. Instead, she was walking on air. “That was…the best.”

“The crowd loved it. Didn’t I tell you it was a great song?”

“You did,” she agreed, and impulsively threw her arms around his neck and hugged him.

Jay hugged her back.

“Thank you for one of the best Winter Festivals of my life.”

“It was one of my favorites, too.” He took Hailey by surprise, bending her back and over his arm as he soundly kissed her. And this time it wasn’t done on impulse. He let her know the kiss was as intentional as it could get.

Hailey’s only thought was how perfect it felt to be inJay’s arms, as if this was where she was always meant to be. There was no urgency, no rush or demand. Put simply, it told Hailey that Jay was as attracted to her as she was to him. It also said how pleased he was that she’d set aside her fears and sung her song in public. Before an audience. For her, their kiss was validation of all she felt toward Jay.

As they strolled back to where he’d parked the truck, Hailey noticed families with young children leaving, their toddlers asleep in their arms, their small heads resting against their fathers’ shoulders. It was such a heartwarming sight to watch these exhausted little ones who’d enjoyed the festival and time with Santa.

Pulling out her phone to go through the photos she’d taken, Hailey noticed several unread text messages. It wasn’t unexpected, since she had only briefly turned on her phone since she’d arrived. She most often communicated with family and friends via text messages. The majority of those listed were from her mother. Hailey debated if it was a good idea to read them or not.

She must have audibly groaned, because Jay glanced at her with a quizzical look. “Is something wrong?”

“No…Yes,” she said, and rolled her eyes, convinced she already knew what her mother had to say. “My mother is texting me, and that’s not a good sign.”

He cast her a sympathetic glance.

Once inside the truck with her seat belt fastened, Hailey continued to stare at her phone, internally questioning if she should read and respond or play it safe and ignore the messages.

Jay sat next to her and urged her. “Do it,” he advised. “If they don’t hear from you, they’re bound to worry.”

He was right. She’d hesitated because she knew her mother all too well and the woman was Nolan Ryan when it came to pitching guilt. Turning her mother down for anything had always been difficult, and more often than not, Hailey gave in. Not this time, though. Her mother had stepped over the line, inviting Zach to spend Christmas with them without talking to Hailey first.

She opened the first text and immediately wished she hadn’t.

I cannot believe that my daughter, whose father and I have raised with tenderness and love, would abandon her own family at Christmas. You said you needed to get away. At Christmas, Hailey? Really? For the love of heaven tell me where you have disappeared to for my own peace of mind.

“Oh dear,” Hailey muttered.

“Bad?” Jay asked.

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