Page 116 of Give Me Forever

Epilogue

Avery

Christmas Day

Christmas Day was handsdown my favorite day of the year, and we were spending it at Sam's parents' house. I felt like a child, surrounded by all the decorations. His mom went all out. She had four Christmas trees in the huge living room. I was taking mental notes for next year. I only had one lonely tree at the loft, and I could do so much better.

The house smelled spectacular. There were garlands with dried slices of orange hanging all around; every room had a delicious natural smell. Kimberly also made mulled wine, and I couldn’t wait to taste it.

Cooking for Christmas in the Maxwell household was a whole-family affair. There were far too many of us to be in the kitchen at the same time, but Lena had worked out a shift system, so to speak. Everyone had something to do, but we all had breaks in between to enjoy ourselves.

"Mom, you're getting better and better at organizing us," Sam said. The two of us were currently at our stations at the kitchen island, chopping the garnish for the main course.

That was another thing Lena had insisted on, and it was genius. We wouldn't serve all the courses at once; instead, we’d spread them throughout the day so there was no pressure to get all the food ready at one time. She’d made roast beef with mashed potatoes for the main meal. Sam and I were making a salad.

“At first, I thought about preparing everything as I had for Thanksgiving and precook most of the food. But I wasn’t too happy with how everything turned out. Some things weren’t hot enough, and, well, I thought I could do better,” she replied.

"It was perfect," I assured her.

Lena smiled at me. "You're a darling to say that.”

“Mom is a perfectionist. She always tries to optimize everything." Sam winked at her.

As soon as we were done with the garnish, Lena instructed us to take it to the table. That was another golden rule: as soon as something's done, put it on a table immediately.

It was almost dinnertime now. We'd had a round of appetizers at lunch and a second round two hours ago. No one was starving, because there were cookies and snacks all around the living room. As soon as I put down the garnish with cilantro, I hurried to Bonnie, who grinned, kissing Rose’s head.

"You're here for another cuddle session?" she asked.

I nodded eagerly, holding my hands out. As soon as she transferred her into my arms, I brought her to my chest. She put her little arms around my neck, kissing my cheek.

"Oh my God, she knows how to do that now," I said, feeling like my heart was about to explode. She was currently my favorite Maxwell right after Sam. She was so cute and smelled like sugar. I didn't have much experience with babies, but I had fallen head over heels for Rose. I'd found an excuse or five to go to Bonnie's place a couple times a week. Most of those excuses included jewelry, but everyone was happy. Bonnie was getting jewelry, and I was getting cuddle time. It was a win-win. But today I had to compete for my snuggles because everyone wanted to hold her whenever they weren't on shift. Kimberly and Reese in particular seemed to fight me for every minute.

I was waiting for one of them to pop up behind me and tell me it was their turn, but this time Lena herself interrupted, announcing that a new course was ready. I loved their tradition of celebrating Christmas all day long.

I was going to do something similar at the loft next year. I'd already decided on that. It was big enough to host all of the Maxwells, plus my mom and Jamie. I really hoped they were going to join us next year.

Lena invited them this year, but Mom had already agreed to go on a cruise with some of her friends, and she didn't want to cancel. I think if I pestered her some more, she might have, but I didn't want her to come out of guilt. I was happy she was healthy and enjoying life. Jamie already had plans with her friends. She told me she was seeing a new guy and things were progressing quickly. I was so happy for her.

"What are you thinking about?" Sam asked as he came up to me. He kissed the baby's hand, and my heart sighed.

"That we could host Christmas next year."

His eyes lit up. "I'm all for it, babe, but... maybe we can ask everyone to bring a dish."

"And if I make a system similar to your mom's, I won't even have to subject everyone to my cooking."

He nodded somberly. "Yeah. I would talk to Mom about keeping you under strict supervision."

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