Page 156 of One Good Puck
When he opens it, he grins wider than I’ve ever seen. He holds up a tie that Emma bedazzled in blue rhinestones.
Sophie and Xander’s mom go, “Aww!” Xander chuckles.
Gavin looks at Emma. “You bedazzled a tie for me?”
She grins excitedly. “Yup!”
“I love it. I’ll wear it during our next game. Thanks, kiddo.”
“You’re welcome,” Emma says.
Gavin hops up to grab more tea for Jeannette. Xander’s phone buzzes with a text.
“Yikes,” he says when he looks at the screen.
“Everything okay?” I ask.
“I guess Ryker’s first meeting with the new skating coach didn’t go well yesterday,” Xander says. “They had an argument.”
Sophie looks concerned. “Really? Why though? Madeline’s an Olympic athlete. She was one of the most skilled figure skaters in the world. She knows what she’s doing.”
Xander shrugs.
“He’s gonna have to figure out a way to get along with her,” Gavin says.
I think about Ryker recovering from his injury, how stressful and difficult that must be for him at his age. I hope he’s having a nice Christmas Day at least.
I step over to the tree and grab the present for Jeannette.
“Oh Abby, you didn’t need to get me anything,” she says when I hand her the large, flat, gift-wrapped box.
“It’s just a little something. It’s from both me and Xander, actually.”
“Mostly Abby though,” Xander says before winking at me.
When she opens the box and sees the oil pastel painting, she gasps. She’s quiet for a handful of seconds.
“Do you like it, Mom?” Xander asks.
Her eyes are teary, and her smile wobbles as she stares at the oil pastel painting I did of an old photo of Xander,Jeannette, and Xander’s dad. The two of them are sitting on a blanket in the grass, smiling and holding a toddler-aged Xander between them.
Xander asked me a few weeks ago if I’d be willing to create a painting from a family photo for his mom, and I was excited to say yes. I thought it was such a thoughtful idea for a gift.
“Oh, sweetie, I love it,” she says to Xander before hugging him. Then she holds up her arms to me, happy tears in her eyes. “This is the most precious gift I could have imagined. Come and give me a hug.”
I stand up and walk over to her. She wraps her arms around me tight. “You are so very talented, Abby.”
“She is, isn’t she?” Gavin says. I softly bump his shoulder, my cheeks heating.
“I’m glad you like it, Mom. And I’m glad Abby was the one who painted it because if I had to paint a picture for you, it would have been horrifyingly bad,” Xander says.
We all laugh. Gavin crouches down, swipes a small box from under the tree, and gives it to Sophie.
He kisses the top of her head. “Merry Christmas, honey.”
She tilts her head at him. “Dad, I told you that you didn’t have to get me a gift. You’re paying for most of our wedding. That’s gift enough.”
“I know, honey. But I wanted to get you a little something to open.” He sits back down on the couch.
