Page 29 of Single Dad Christmas

“A party?”

“No, three girls at the house of one of her friends whose parents I trust implicitly. There’ll be pizza, probably R-rated scary movies, and way too much lemonade. Normal teen stuff. And for once, she can’t tell me I’m ruining her life because I wouldn’t let her go.”

“Okay, then.” Excitement sparked in Louisa’s stomach. She’d been excited to see Noah’s Bellevue Hill house even before he’d driven them into the clearly prestigious street. She just hadn’t expected it to be quite so incredible. Historic and beautiful, with enormous established trees in the front yard, she couldn’t think of many more idyllic places to live.

But when they walked upstairs from the garage and into the large, open living space, with sweeping views towards the water, her heart skipped a beat. Not only was it architecturally beautiful with an incredible view, but the whole house was decked out for Christmas in a style that would rival a fancy department store.

“It’s all so nice, Noah,” she said.

He lifted his shoulders. “It’s been in the family a long time.”

“Lucky you,” she murmured.

“Says she of the oceanfront palace.”

Louisa poked her tongue out at him as she walked towards the floor-to-ceiling windows. “Just, wow,” she said, with a shake of her head.

“I guess I got used to this view too. Though you’re offering a definite improvement,” he said, and when she turned, she realized that her dress must have been catching the afternoon sun, revealing her figure through the flimsy fabric.

She smiled at him, her whole body dancing as if flames were licking through her. “And the Christmas obsession? You don’tlooklike an elf, but then, I’ve never met one in person.”

He popped the top off a bottle of champagne. “I know, it’s overboard.”

“No, it’s lovely.”

“For the North Pole.”

She slid him a sidelong glance, then gave the decorations more thought. It really was alot.From an enormous tree—at least ten feet tall, in the middle of the bank of brown leather sofas to the garland that ran along every surface—and it wasn’t just this room either. She could see hints of Christmas in every direction, making her wonder if the whole house was similarly decked out.

“I got someone to do it,” he said, as though that explained the fact the house was dripping in festive green. He strode towards Louisa, holding out a long-stemmed glass of champagne. “Taylor used to love Christmas,” he said, with a shrug. “We’d take her to New York every year, a couple of weeks out, to let her choose an ornament from Macy’s and skate at Rockefeller. When she was younger, it was her favourite time of year. She’d ask to have Christmas carols playing all the time,” his expression was nostalgic. “I just thought?—,”

“You wanted to give her that magic again.”

He glanced at her ruefully. “Stupid, right?”

“No.” She put her hands behind his back, careful not to tip her drink. “Sweet. Very, very sweet.”

He looked down at her and something clicked in the region of her heart. He really was a great guy.

“Did she like it?”

“She hasn’t said anything.”

Louisa’s brows stretched up. “Aboutthis?” She angled her face to the side again, then back to him.

“I guess that means she must kind of like it, because the way she is these days, she’d never miss an opportunity to tell me if I did something she hated.”

Sympathy flooded Louisa. “She’ll get through this, Noah. I don’t think anyone ever said parenting was easy.”

They atein a courtyard with views of the Harbour in the distance and Noah’s verdant, established garden in the foreground. A big old Oak had a tree house halfway up, and fairy lights ran from the limbs of the tree to the pergola overhead, giving it all a very Midsummer Night’s Dream feel.

Kristen served their food, and Louisa enjoyed seeing the easy relationship they had. “She’s been incredible,” Noah confided, “in terms of Taylor.”

It was a testament to how much Noah was getting under her skin that Louisa felt a surge of jealousy. “Yeah?”

“She has two daughters, in their twenties, so she’s been through it. Though neither of them ever rebelled quite like this.”

“And yet you still asked my advice?” She couldn’t help prompting.

---