Page 95 of The Twelve Months of Christmas
“Say, great ideas, Reggie,”
“You’re pulling my leg,” she scoffed.
“I’m not, and I’ll prove to you that I really have a boat. How about I take you and the girls out on it for the Bremerton Bridge Blast the end of the month to watch the fireworks off the Manette Bridge?”
“We have our Christmas-in-June party that day.”
Even the ghost of the smile vanished. “Oh.” But he rallied. “Well, we can’t miss that. I hope I’m invited?”
“Of course, you are. It’s going to be a picnic.”
“A picnic, you say. So, it’s during the day?”
She saw where he was going. “Which means we would be free in the evening. And Paisley would love going out on a boat.”
Actually, so would Molly. Ava would probably keel over in shock.
They finished their burgers, then went back to her house to watch a TV series they’d gotten hooked on. Reggie didn’t leave without continuing his marriage sales pitch with some amazing kisses that left her practically panting.
“Just to remind you that we’re now officially serious,” he said with that big grin of his right before he headed home.
“We are officially serious,” she agreed. “But that’s all.”
Her heart had already committed, but her brain was demanding she go slowly. She wasn’t ready to quit her job. There’d be time for them down the road.
Time for them. The idea of spending the rest of her life with Reggie made her feel so lighthearted she wasn’t sure if even her toes were touching the floor as she made her way to bed. Christmas all year, that was what it would feel like to be with him.
She could picture them making a good life together, maybe even spending winter in Playa del Carmen after she retired. Ava and Paisley could come down and visit.
Ava. When and how was she ever going to tell Ava?
19
“When we have our Christmas-in-June party at my place you’ll all have to hold down the fort come evening,” Molly announced to her friends as they met at Horse and Cow to talk Christmas.
“Why is that?” asked Sunny. It wasn’t like Molly to duck out on a party.
“Because I am going to be out on Reggie’s boat that night, along with Ava and Paisley, watching the Bridge Blast on the Manette Bridge.”
“Boat?” Sunny repeated. “What kind of boat does he have, a rowboat?”
“I think it’s more than that,” Molly said.
“Don’t tell me he’s got money.” Somehow Sunny couldn’t picture Reggie being rich. Where were the brand name britches and fancy shirts? He looked like he shopped at Goodwill and not at Nordstrom.
“Actually, he does,” Molly said.
“No way!” Sunny exclaimed. “That kind of thing happens in real life?”
“I mean, I don’t know how much, but he has enough to live comfortably.”
“If you can call the car he drives comfortable,” Sunny said.
“Have you seen his house yet?” Arianna asked.
A little red showed on Molly’s cheeks. “Well, no, actually he always comes to my place.”
“Wait a minute. Maybe he’s a scammer. Maybe he doesn’t even own a house,” Sunny said.
