Page 17 of All I Want for Christmas

“I didn’t bring a lot with me from New York,” she said as she shrugged into her jacket. “Only what I really cared about. I’m filling in with things from antiques shops and flea markets.

“We got a million of them,” he murmured. “It looks good.” And it did—the old, faded rug on the floor, the fussy priscillas at the windows. “Comfortable.”

“Comfortable’s very important to me. Ready?”

“Sure.”

And it wasn’t so hard after all.

He’d asked her to pick the movie, and she’d gone for comedy. It was surprisingly relaxing to sit in the darkened theater and share popcorn and laughter.

He only thought about her as a woman, a very attractive woman, a couple of dozen times.

Going for pizza afterward seemed such a natural progression, he suggested it himself. They competed for a table in the crowded pizzeria with teenagers out on date night.

“So …” Nell stretched out in the booth. “How’s Zeke’s career in spelling coming along?”

“It’s a struggle. He really works at it. It’s funny, Zack can spell almost anything you toss at him first time around, but Zeke has to study the word like a scholar with the Dead Sea Scrolls.”

“He’s good at his arithmetic.”

“Yeah.” Mac wasn’t sure how he felt about her knowing so much about his kids. “They’re both taken with you.”

“It’s mutual.” She skimmed a hand through her hair. “It’s going to sound odd, but …” She hesitated, not quite sure how to word it. “But that first day at rehearsal, when I looked around and saw them? I had this feeling, this—I don’t know, it was like, ‘Oh, there you are. I was wondering when you’d show up.’ It sounds strange, but it was as if I was expecting them. Now, when Kim comes without them, I feel let down.”

“I guess they kind of grow on you.”

It was more than that, but she didn’t know how to explain. And she wasn’t entirely sure Mac would accept the fact that she’d very simply fallen for them. “I get a kick out of them telling me about their school day, showing me their papers.”

“First report cards are almost here.” His grin flashed. “I’m more nervous than they are.”

“People put too much emphasis on grades.”

His brows shot up at the comment. “This from a teacher?”

“Individual ability, application, effort, retention. Those things are a lot more important thanA, BorC. But I can tell you, in confidence, that Kim’s acing advanced chorus and music history.”

“No kidding?” He felt a quick surge of pride. “She never did that well before.Bs mostly.”

“Mr. Striker and I have markedly different approaches.”

“You’re telling me. Word around town is that the chorus is dynamite this year. How’d you pull it off?”

“The kids pull it off,” she told him, sitting up when their pizza was served. “My job is to make them think and sing like a team. Not to slam Mr. Striker,” she added, taking a generous bite. “But I get the impression he was just putting in time, counting the days until he could retire. If you’re going to teach kids, you have to like them, and respect them. There’s a lot of talent there, some of it extremely rough.” When she laughed, the roses in her cheek bloomed deeper. “And some of those kids will do nothing more than sing in the shower for the rest of their lives—for which the world can be grateful.”

“Got some clunkers, huh?”

“Well …” She laughed again. “Yes, I have a few. But they’re enjoying themselves. That’s what counts. And there are a few, like Kim, who are really something special. I’m sending her and two others for auditions to all-state next week. And after the holiday concert I’m going to hold auditions for the spring musical.”

“We haven’t had a musical at the high school in three years.”

“We’re going to have one this year, Buster. And it’s going to be terrific.”

“It’s a lot of work for you.”

“I like it. And it’s what I’m paid for.”

Mac toyed with a second slice. “You really do like it, don’t you? The school, the town, the whole bit?”

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