Page 43 of Deck the Halls with Cowboys
“Are you ready to open presents?” he asked, bouncing her on his skinny hip. “Are you ready?”
I rolled my eyes athisbaby voice and headed to her closet. There were a lot of moms who dressed their daughters up in poofy dresses every holiday, but my daughter…Denver Langston’s child? She didn’t do poofy dresses. The last time I tried to put one on her, she threw the biggest fit recorded in Hallow Ranch history (according to Jigs). So our princess would be wearing highly fashionable blue jeans and a pink Christmas Grinch shirt today.
As I pulled those out, I heard my husband’s heavy footfalls coming down the hallway.
“There’s my family,” he rumbled as I turned around. His eyes connected with mine, warming as a rare but magnificent smile stretched across his face. The shadow that had been looming over him since December first was no longer present. In fact, there was a light about him now. It was unlike anything I’d ever seen.
It was magical.
“Merry Christmas, baby,” he said, his voice just as warm as the smile he wore.
My lips parted, a wave of emotion slamming into me.
My cowboy just said Merry Christmas to me…for the first time.
Every year before this, whenever I said it to him, he would just kiss my forehead and move on.
I struggled to find the words, my body frozen. “I—”
Caleb, my amazing stepson, found the words for me…though his delivery was a bit…unexpected. “What the hell did you just say, Dad?”
Denver, my dark, grumpy cowboy, looked at his son for a split second before he tossed his head back and laughed.
Laughed.
The sound, another gift. Precious and everlasting. Especially on a day like today.
His laughter rumbled up from his wide chest and bounced off NJ’s walls, a room her grandmother, Jane, once used as her dark room. I could feel her presence every time I came in here, but right now, in this moment, her light was all I could feel as she drenched her son in it.
“Smoke,” I croaked, hugging NJ’s outfit to my chest.
Denver rolled his neck, his laughter slowly dying, shoulders still shaking. “I know I’ve been a bit of a Grinch, son, but fucking hell, I didn’t expect you to be so shocked.”
Caleb shot me a look. “Did you drug him or something?”
Shaking my head, I shrugged. “I have nothing to do with this.”
Denver stepped into the room, his face serious. “Valerie, you have everything to do with it.” He lookedat Caleb and NJ. “All of you, actually.” He paused, gathering his thoughts, and Caleb and I waited. God, but we waited, holding on to a hope that had been slowly dying, year after year. “When my mother died, my Christmas spirit died along with her,” he finally said. He glanced at me before focusing on our children. “Your grandma loved Christmas, bud. I remember when Mase and I came home from school for winter break and this entire house would be drenched in red and green. She used to tie red ribbon around the kitchen cabinet doors to make them look like presents. Every year she would make her famous snickerdoodle cookies for Santa, but Mase and I…” He trailed off, chuckling a bit. “One year, we stole the entire plate, ran up to her dark room,” he gestured around, “and ate all twenty of them.”
Caleb smiled. “Bet she hated that.”
“Nah, bud. She loved it.” All of us turned to find Mason leaning in the doorframe, head bent, eyes on his boots.
My bottom lip began to tremble, knowing the last time the Langston brothers were in this room together, a deep, healing conversation was had.
Oh, the sweet, sweet irony of it all.
“What are you doing here?” Den asked, ticking his head to the side.
Mase looked up and cleared his throat. “Came up to put the ham on and no one was downstairs. Figured everyone was sleeping in and came to wake y’all.”
NJ started clamping her hand, trying to wiggle out of Caleb’s hold, her eyes set on her uncle. “Mas, Mas!” she called.
My brother-in-law pulled his gaze from Denver and smiled at her. “Good morning, nugget,” he greeted before looking at me. “Sorry for barging in.”
I waved him off. “Mase, this was your house before it was mine.”
He gave me a thin smile as Caleb passed NJ to him. He sighed and held her close, pressing his lips to the top of her head before throwing his arm around Caleb’s shoulders. “Merry Christmas, bud.”
