Page 43 of Bragg's Christmas

“You’re not going to catch any snowflakes with your mouth closed.”

She responds by opening her mouth as wide as she can. “I got one! I caught a snowflake!”

Damon throws her in the air to celebrate. “Good job, squirt.”

I notice Skye shiver. She’s not used to the cold. And she’s not dressed for it.

“Who wants hot cocoa?”

I don’t wait for an answer before herding them inside.

“Can we play in the snow?” Skye asks as I bustle around the kitchen.

“In the morning. Once we’ve had a few more hours of sleep.”

“But what if the snow is gone in the morning?”

“Don’t worry. It won’t be.” I wink. “We can make snowmen and snow angels and go sledding.”

I set a small cup of hot cocoa in front of her. “Drink your hot chocolate and then it’s off to bed.”

“Okay, Nanny Love.”

I return to the stove to finish the hot cocoa for me and Damon. When I turn around, Skye is sound asleep with her head on the table. I begin toward her but Damon waves me away.

“I got her.”

He picks her up and she cuddles into him in her sleep. Secure her daddy will always be there for her.

I never imagined being with a man with children. I never actually imagined being with a man long-term. Not since I was labeled a jezebel by the entire town.

Come on, Love. Your behavior after ninth grade didn’t help things.

“Go on to bed,” Damon whispers to me.

“I’m going to sit outside with my hot cocoa and watch the snow.”

“I’ll join you as soon as I get her down.”

“You don’t have to…” He’s gone before I can finish protesting.

I grab my mug and gather an extra blanket from the sofa before returning outside to sit on the porch. There aren’t any rocking chairs on his porch but there’s a bench I can sit on.

I love this time of day. The world is asleep. There aren’t any nasty thoughts or horrible things happening at this magical time at night before day breaks.

The screen door creeks as Damon steps outside.

“Room on that bench for me?”

I scooch over and lift the blanket for him.

“It’s peaceful,” he murmurs.

“It’s my favorite time of the day.”

“Do you often get up at four a.m. to observe the sunrise?”

I chuckle. “No, but my dad always used to wake me at the first snowfall. We’d sit outside and rock on the porch while drinking hot cocoa. It was magical.”

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