Page 107 of The Art of Being Merry
A coat of red stains Heidi’s cheeks. “Um, yeah. Thanks. Lenny will be thrilled.”
Willa looks at me. “Might as well make it a party. We’ll take the boys, too. They can stay after dinner.”
“Yes,” I agree immediately. “You don’t have to ask me twice.”
I’m so giddy and can’t wait to tell Dax. Best Christmas present ever. And if there are any issues with them sleeping there, we’re close enough to come get them.
“Shania might feel left out.”
“She’s of course welcome, too. I’ll text her right now.”
Heidi takes Isla off Willa’s lap, setting her down on the floor, and she takes off running. “Leonard, she’s on the run, heading toward the kitchen.”
“Roger, Heidi.”
“I’ll get her,” I hear Atlas call out, followed by Isla’s laughter when she’s “caught.”
“Your boys are precious, Clem. We all love them.”
“Thanks.” I slip off my boots and tuck my feet under my legs. “They love your family. Atlas keeps asking when he can go back to your parents’ house. Your dad mentioned something about an old video game, and my guy is intrigued. I can’t imagine he’ll be impressed with the graphics or controller, but I won’t be the one to rain on his parade.” I blow on the mug, taking a sip of the hot chocolate. “Yum. This is delicious.”
“Thanks. It’s been cooking all day in the slow cooker.”
While we wait for the Nicholas men to return from the parade, Willa, Heidi, and I chat.
“Are the boys excited for tomorrow morning?” Heidi asks. “I’m not sure how much Isla understands at this age, but it will be more than last year. I’m excited for her.” She giggles.
“They’re beyond excited. I’m not sure how I’m going to get them to sleep tonight.”
The front door opens, but I’m blocked from seeing who’s here. At Jace’s, “Daddy!” I freeze. The air drains from my lungs, and I feel my face paling.
It can’t be.
He can’t be here.
How did he know where to find us?
What the hell?
I push to my feet so fast, I nearly trip over the coffee table. I’m in the foyer in a flash, and damn it. Keith’s here, in the flesh, both boys hugging him.
“What are you doing here?” I snap. I’m agitated. How dare he show up here without letting me know he was coming. Would giving me a heads-up have been so hard?
For him, yes.
“It’s Christmas. Had to see my boys.”
Internally, I scoff.His boys?Right. He hasn’t seen them since we left for Winterberry Junction this summer, and he’s barely talked to them. Yet, now he’s here. Showing up on Christmas Eve. For what? Once he canceled having us come to North Carolina, I figured we were in the clear and I wouldn’t have to share the holiday with him. Leave it to him to prove me wrong.
And annoy me on Christmas Eve.
“Hey, everything okay?” Willa stops short when she sees the visitor. “Keith. Hi.”
“Willa.” It’s not complete disdain for my sister, but there’s no love lost between the two of them. Probably because Willa warned me against getting involved with him years ago. She tolerates him because he’s the boys’ father, less so after we found out the truth.
I fist my hands on my hips. “This wasn’t part of our agreement,” I try. I have to toe the line in front of my kids. I can’t let them know their dad’s a piece of shit. They’ll figure it out on their own.
“My lawyer emailed you an updated version. Have you not read it?”
