Page 27 of A Little Christmas: Rivi
I picked it up and opened it, squealing to see they were glitter crayons. Perfect to color Christmas trees.
“Thank you.”
“We are watchingElf.” Ozzy pointed a green crayon toward the TV. “I've seen it more than ten times. I can recite the lines before they come.”
I laughed. “Me, too.”
“Me, two,” Maddy echoed.
We all broke out into giggles, then immediately started to say the lines of the movie as we colored.
I had set my drink and my Santa doll on the table in front of my coloring book. Ozzy kept staring at the Santa.
“You can hold him.”
He picked up the toy reverently, then rocked him against his chest. “I love it. So soft.”
At that moment, Maddy stood up and ran to Colin. In a loud high-pitched voice he said, “Daddy, can I go change into my pajamas too? Please?”
Ozzy turned. “Me, too, Daddy.”
Colin spread his legs and hugged Maddy to him, placing a kiss on his forehead. “Go on, then. You should be comfortable on Christmas Eve, don't you think?”
“Thank you,”
Uncle Trent spoke. “That's fine, Ozzy.”
Both boys cried out “Hooray!” And together they ran from the room.
Quietly, I smiled to myself. Now I wouldn't feel so alone. Maybe they had pajamas with feet in them, too. We could all three lie side by side on the hearth watching movies and wiggling our covered feet and laughing.
I put my Santa doll back in place in front of my book and continued to color. I hoped Briar was watching me. I had my side to him, so I didn't want to be obvious and look to see if he was. But a boy could dream.
12
Briar
The littles were all in their pajamas now. They couldn't have been more adorable. All that morning I could barely take my eyes off Rivi. The more I watched him, the more I realized I was falling under his spell. It wasn't that he was new to all of this. Honestly, I'd preferred experienced partners in my past. No. It was his extreme innocence and wonder at this perfect and magical time of year.
It enthralled me.
And it vexed Trent.
We had cold cut sandwiches for lunch. Rivi chose to sit next to me on the couch with his plate. Nothing I could do about that. Trent was just going to have to live with it because this boy was latching on to me and I had zero plans to stop him.
Not caring if Trent overheard me, I said to Rivi, “I love your Michael jammies. Just so you know, Little Pan.”
He grinned up at me, his dark eyes squinting behind his glasses. “You remembered.”
“Of course.”
He leaned in and whispered. “Little Pan. I like that a lot.” His eyes flashed behind his lenses.
This boy. I wanted to hold him in my lap and never let go. If Trent knew what I was thinking, he was either going to kick me out of this house or kill me. So be it.
Early in the afternoon, it started snowing. We all went to the windows to look out and admire the beauty.
The littles continued to watch movies and giggle a lot. The room was warm and cozy, with beautiful artwork of men on the walls. Most were abstract nudes. Not necessarily erotic but more romantic. I found an easy chair and studied each one before taking a short nap.
