Page 34 of A DIY Christmas Miracle
“A case for my e-reader!” he shouted happily. “It’s perfect.”
Joy spread through my body like a wildfire. To me, it didn’t matter I’d gone over budget. The smile that lit up his whole being was so worth it.
And the second kiss he planted on my cheek? Yeah, so much more than I’d ever dared dream of.
Chapter 12
Will
The joy on Eli’s face had disappeared again as fast as it’d arisen in the first place. The sparkle in Eli’s eyes had barely survived the rest of the gift exchange before the flame inside him had slowly died down, smothered by a wave of sadness and melancholy.
The others must’ve noticed how off Eli was behaving. That he wasn’t joking around at all, wasn’t laughing, and that the usual bickering between him, Jack, and Cassy was missing a participant.
If it hadn’t been for Cassy and Jack constantly arguing and teasing each other, dinner could’ve almost been described as civilized. But even their jabs had seemed forced, designed purely to get Eli to participate.
Even the delicious dinner we’d spent half the day working on hadn’t cheered him up. He’d sat there, poking listlessly at his food, pushing sweet potato mash from one side of the plate to the other, chewing on one bite of turkey for ages, as if the meat were tough and dry, while in reality, it was so tender and juicy it almost fell apart.
I tried not to be disappointed, but after everything everyone had told me about Christmas with Eli, I’d expected the day to be vastly different. Maybe it’d been foolish to keep imagining what it’d be like over and over again for weeks based solely on what Jack and the others had told me. It wouldn’t be out of character for Jack to blow Eli’s behavior out of proportion. Or, you know, Eli was just having an off day.
Which he was allowed to have.
But Boxing Day wasn’t any better. Eli hadn’t spent half the day in bed, but he’d set up camp on the couch and kept everyone away with his glares and prickly attitude.
From time to time, I’d heard him sigh, and I’d been tempted to ask what was wrong but hadn’t found the courage to do so. Instead, I’d sat down on the other couch and tried reading my book. Every now and then, I’d chatted with Jack or Marc, but my eyes kept wandering to Eli, worry constantly growing inside of me.
“So, are we going to go skiing tomorrow?” Juliet asked for at least the third time.
“Sure, I have to prove to you who’s the fastest skier out there, after all,” Marc said, throwing a challenging grin in Juliet and Linda’s direction. Both of them shook their heads bemusedly.
They’d been a couple for such a long time now, sometimes their movements were completely in sync. It was relationship goals, but a little creepy nonetheless.
“Are you going, too?” Sophie asked me.
“Too?” I asked, looking at her baby bump. “Are you allowed to go skiing while pregnant?”
She laughed, placing a hand protectively on her belly. “Jack and I are going on a date tomorrow. I’m definitely not going down any mountains on wooden planks while the little one is still inside of me.” Sophie shook her head vigorously. “No chance in hell.”
Jack elbowed me and waggled his eyebrows. “Just imagine what’d happen if she fell. With her being all round and stuff, she’d end up rolling down the mountain until she arrives at the foot as a giant snowball.”
Just before Sophie’s fist collided with his arm, Jack jumped up and got out of the danger zone.
“Do you have a death wish?” Sophie purred in a saccharine sweet voice that sent a cold shiver down my spine. “If you carry on like that, I’m happy to help you out.”
Aaaand… I was written off again.
“Anyway.” Or maybe not. “We just wanted to know if you’ll join Josh, Cassy, Marc, Juliet, and Linda. We’re supposed to be on vacation together, and we’d feel awful for leaving you all alone.”
My eyes shifted to the hallway.
Eli was already up in our room, probably fast asleep. He’d said he had a headache, wished us a good night, and disappeared up the stairs.
What about him? What were his plans for tomorrow? I bet he wasn’t going to go skiing.
“Actually, I think I’d rather stay here and… I don’t know, take a walk in the snow, get to know our surroundings a little or… something like that.”
If Fate were kind, I’d be able to spend the day with Eli, and if that happened, it wouldn’t matter what we’d do. If we spent the whole day on the couch together, reading our respective books, I’d still call that day a win.
“Maybe you could ask Eli if he’d like to join you…” Sophie suggested a little hesitantly, giving me a meaningful look. “That way, the two of you won’t end up being all alone.”
