Page 108 of Stay this Christmas
Why dobabies smell so good?
I’d held my cousin Wade’s baby, Maisie, at least ten times today, and every time, she smelled better than the last. I couldn’t help pressing my nose to the soft little fuzz on her head, her round little cheeks, her adorable button nose. I loved this kid.
Conveniently, she’d saved her diaper blowout for when Jed had been holding her. I liked to think that meant she loved me, too.
“I guess she’s pretty cute.” Sam shot me a crooked smile while I cooed over the little bundle in my arms.
“Say it louder and Wade will march you outside,” I dared.
He pulled a worried face but smiled at her right along with me.
My uncle Clint came over, arms outstretched. “Mind if I hold my granddaughter?”
I passed her off, letting him and Marilyn take over baby duties. Everyone in the room had taken a turn a time or two while her mother, Annie, napped in Eden’s old bedroom. Apparently, Wade and Annie’s sons, Dylan and Beau, had woken up at three a.m., ready to rip open presents and eat their weight in sugar cookies.
They weren’t the only ones who’d had an early morning.
“How are you holding up?” I asked Sam. “Need to sneak into my old bedroom for a while?”
His grin lit up my chest like a sparkler. “Can’t get enough of me, can you, Harps?”
I rolled my eyes, blushing away. “I meant to ask if you’re sleepy, but I admit that came out all wrong.”
“A likely story.”
He’d spent the night at his dad’s so he could get the full Christmas experience with the littles. I’d joined them for breakfast, and by the time I got there at nine, the living room was two feet deep in wrapping paper, the house echoing with the noise of Finn’s video games.
“The pre-dawn Santa excitement didn’t wear me out,” he finally said. “Seeing Willa’s face when she got her look-alike doll was worth it. Besides, I don’t want to miss a minute of this.”
My parents’ house had never been so full. Couples as far as the eye could see: sisters, cousins, uncle, and friends. Eden and Booker had made their pregnancy announcement, and the resulting cheers had shaken the floors. Eliza and Dean were practically glued at the hip, and burly Ty acted like if he took his eyes off June for a minute, he might stop breathing.
No surprise, their paired-off bliss was a lot easier to take when I had a match of my own. Now my arms were baby-free, I wrapped them around Sam, ready to nudge him beneath the mistletoe hanging in the dining room. It’d been a popular spot today.
Jed walked by, shooting me anI told you solook. Fine, yes. I’d intended to keep him company as the only other single loner of the family, and instead, I’d spent my time tangled up with my boyfriend. I would feel bad about it later. Or never.
“Is it too much for you?” I asked softly. “All of this Christmasy stuff?”
Sam splayed his hands across my back, pulling me close. “I don’t mind the Christmasy stuff so much anymore.”
“What finally won you over?”
He looked up to the ceiling, pretending to contemplate. Or maybe he was just gauging our distance from the mistletoe. “I think it was the ghost romance.”
I laughed against him, ready to lean in for a quick, family-appropriate kiss, when the doorbell rang. Jed was closest, so he pulled it open, revealing Callie standing on the porch. She wore a red sweater with a red plaid blanket scarf, and her light-up Christmas necklace. She also balanced half a dozen plastic containers in her arms. They started to wobble, but Jed grabbed the top layer before they wound up on the floor.
“Thank you,” she said, blowing her hair away from her eyes. “I probably should have made two trips but one seemed totally workable, but then I got up here, and nope, not workable.”
I rushed over since Jed seemed in no hurry to welcome her in. “Callie, hi, I’m glad you made it.”
“Thanks for inviting me.”
“Jed, this is my friend, Callie.”
He nodded her way. “I’d shake your hand, but…” He lifted the boxes he’d rescued. “What is all this, anyway?”
“Oh, my Granny always says not to go to a place empty-handed, but I wasn’t sure what to bring. So I made four kinds of cookies and two kinds of brownies.” She grinned at us, out of breath and eager to please. “Hope you like chocolate.”
Jed raised his eyebrows and shot me a look like he hoped I knew what I was doing.
