Page 36 of A Little Christmas Jericho
And somehow, even though the world still felt shaky and too loud, the weight of those words steadied me.
Chapter 22
The days after everything felt strange. Like I was moving through someone else's life. The police had come that night, taken my statement and promised to follow up with Oscar. They couldn't promise that they'd be able to do much, because other than grabbing hold of my arm, he technically hadn't done anything wrong, and they couldn't prove that he was the one phoning me, or the one that broke into my place.
Colter had stayed beside me the whole time, his arm around my shoulders while I gave my statement. I wasn't very hopeful, but Colter had squeezed me and told me not to be too despondent.
Turned out, Daddy was always right.
The next day the cops had picked up Oscar, wandering near the bus station with a poorly packed bag, copious notebooks filled with worrisome entries about me and ranting about how I'd stolen his life from him. When they took him in for questioning, he was adamant that he'd only wanted to talk to me and that I'd completely overreacted.
Thankfully, the bruises left on my arm, along with a neighbour's testimony and the scary notebooks, were enough for me to get a restraining order against him. If he contacted me again, or came anywhere close to me, they would be able to lock him up.
That's also how we'd found out the rest of the story.
It turned out he'd been fired weeks ago. His lease was up, and he had no chance of renewing it because he was perilously close to being evicted. Everything he'd built had been crumbling, and somehow, in that twisted logic of his, he'd decided I was the thing that had ruined it all. That if I'd just given up my pets and gone back to him, he could have fixed it.
Hearing it all made me sick to my stomach. But it also made something else settle inside me. I was finally feeling a quiet anger instead of the worry that I'd messed up somehow. This wasn't my fault. Oscar was either crazy, or just a regular old jerk. Either way, it wasn't on me. It was him.
It also meant I wasn't terrified of him anymore. Oh, of course I'd be careful. I wasn't stupid enough to believe that a piece of paper and a court order would keep him away from me, but now I knew I could handle it. And him. And if he messed up, then he'd be going away.
Other than that, over the last few days we'd also made an effort to get all of my stuff moved into Colter's house. It didn't take much, and I was crazy excited to be fully moved inbeforeChristmas.
***
Christmas morning dawned. I woke to the smell of coffee and something sweet baking in the oven. In the last couple of days with Colter it became clear my Daddy enjoyed baking.
For a moment, I lay still, just breathing. Murphy was curled up at my feet, Daisy sprawled halfway across the bed. I couldn't see either of my cats but I knew they would make their presence known whenever they were ready. And not a moment sooner.
And Daddy? Well, Daddy was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching me with that look that made everything inside me go quiet.
"Merry Christmas, baby boy," he said softly.
I smiled sleepily, rubbing at my eyes. "Merry Christmas, Doctor Daddy."
He brushed his thumb across my cheek. "How's my boy feeling today?"
"It's Christmas, Daddy. It's the best day of the year. Even better than birthdays!"
His smile deepened as he chuckled before leaning in to kiss me. It was slow, warm and full of promise. When he pulled back, his voice was a rumble against my lips. "That's a good answer, little one," he murmured. "You ready for presents, baby boy?"
I blinked, perking up immediately. "Presents?"
He laughed, that deep rich sound that always made me melt a bit. "Yeah, baby. You didn't think I'd let Christmas morning go by without spoiling my boy, did you?"
I sat up straighter, the blanket still tangled around me, and tried to look composed. "I mean, I might have thought me moving in was enough," I said, my grin wide on my face.
Colter shook his head, feigning disbelief. "No Christmas gifts for the best boy ever? You wound me, buddy." He reached down beside the bed and pulled up a small, neatly wrapped box with a shiny red bow. "Here. This one's for you.There are a few more for the fur brigade under the tree."
My heart did a funny little skip. I took it carefully, the paper crinkling under my fingers. "Can I—?"
"Go ahead, baby. Tear it open."
I didn't need to be told twice. I tore the wrapping off with probably a little too much enthusiasm and opened the box. Inside, resting on soft black tissue paper, was a brand new teddy bear wearing a fedora. It was a deep brown, and extra fluffy.
It waseverything!
My breath caught. "Daddy... it's perfect."
