12

Stan spent the carol service on tenterhooks. Carly hadn’t given him an answer. She’d kissed his cheek, thanked him for asking and said she’d tell him later. Was that a ‘no’? If it was, he’d rather she gave him a flat out, not-if-you-were-the-last-man-on-the-face-of-the-planet-would-I-marry-you no. Maybe she didn’t trust his motives. Perhaps she was under the impression he was marrying her purely because she was Haley-Jo’s mother.

Which he wasn’t.

The Lord knew how much he wasn’t. Yes, he’d do anything to keep Haley-Jo, but that would just be low and underhanded.

Halfway through the sermon, Carly passed him her phone. He glanced down at the screen. We need to talk to Haley-Jo before I give you an answer. This affects her, too.

You mean talk to her or tell her the truth. He typed and handed back the phone.

Carly studied the message and replied. Both. She has to know, and I don’t want her accepting me only to find in 10 yrs time we’ve both been lying to her.

Stan sighed. OK. He looked down at his hands.

Haley-Jo nudged him. “Stop passing notes in church,” she whispered. “You’ll go to hell.”

“Shh…” He scrunched his nose up at her, not sure where she got those weird notions.

He rose to sing the last carol, but not even the rousing rendition of “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” with organ, orchestra, drums, and cymbals, could calm his nerves. He slid his hand into Carly’s ignoring the look Haley-Jo shot him. Carly completed him. And if she said no, he didn’t know what he’d do. So much was riding on this.

As they sat, he glanced at his daughter. “Haley-Jo, come and sit between us.” Instead, she sat on his lap and leaned against him. “OK, that works. Right, do you remember what you asked Father Christmas for?”

“A mummy,” she responded instantly.

Stan nodded. “Well, I think I may have found one. It’d mean me marrying her.”

Haley-Jo’s face fell. “Oh…”

Stan and Carly exchanged a long look. “Don’t you want to know who?” he asked.

She shook her head. “Don’t like her.”

Carly stood, her eyes glistening and devastation written on her face. “I’ll go, let you talk.”

Stan grabbed her hand, desperate to get to the bottom of this one way or the other. “Wait.”

“You heard what she said. This isn’t going to work.”

“Carly, please, just sit.” He waited until she’d sat down, then looked at Haley-Jo. “Sweetheart, who don’t you like?”

“That Sophie woman. She raved about you the whole flight.”

“I’m not talking about Sophie. I’m talking about Carly.”

“This Carly?”

“How many Carly’s do we know?” Stan rolled his eyes. “How would you like Carly to be your mummy?”

She tilted her head. “For real? Are you going to marry her?”

“I’ve asked her, and she hasn’t replied yet, but…”

“What do you think, Haley-Jo?” Carly said quietly.

Haley-Jo scrunched up her nose and giggled. “I don’t wanna marry him. He snores.”

“Thanks,” Stan muttered.

“But there’s something else you need to know first.” Carly laid a hand on Stan’s arm.

“All you have to do is say yes, right?” Haley-Jo looked from Carly to Stan and back again.

“I told you my mam gave away something of mine, right? Well, eight years ago I had a baby. A little girl. But I was very sick, and the doctors said I would die and because Mam was ill she couldn’t look after her. So, another couple got to look after the baby and raise her as their own.”

“She was adopted like me?”

Carly nodded. “She was born eight years ago on September tenth and adopted on December twentieth.”

Something flickered in Haley-Jo’s eyes as she heard the dates. “Same as me. What was her name?”

Carly’s eyes filled with tears. “I never got to hold her or give her a name.”

Stan gripped Carly’s hand. “She did have a name, but her new parents gave her another so she had two. She uses both, her adopted name first and her mummy’s name second. She was named after her mummy.”

Carly’s gaze met his, shock filling them.

“Remember when you found your name on the bottom of the donkey? Carly Jo…Haley-Jo.”

“I don’t get it,” Haley-Jo said. “Are you saying that Carly is my real mummy? You told me she was dead.”

Stan hugged her. “Sweetheart, we were told that your birth mother was dead, and I only just found out the other day that she wasn’t.”

Carly wiped the tears away. “And I only found out at the same time who you were.”

Haley-Jo sat there. “For real?”

Carly nodded.

“You’re my really real mummy?”

“I am.”

Haley-Jo scrambled onto her lap and flung her arms around Carly’s neck.

Carly hugged her tightly.

Stan rose and walked out. These two needed some space. His future was riding on one word, but he wasn’t going to get it just yet. He needed fresh air. He walked from the church to stand on the front steps, shoving his hands into his coat pockets. His breath hung on the cold air and a light snow began to fall again.

Around him the streets glittered. Lights streamed from windows and he allowed hope to creep into his heart.

Footsteps echoed beside him. “Stan? Is everything all right?”

He looked up at Pastor Kenny and shook his head. “I have a lot going on.”

“Then let’s just sit for a few.” Pastor Kenny indicated the wall. “You don’t have to talk, but I’ll pray, because I find that always helps.”

~*~

Carly hugged Haley-Jo, holding her as she cried. This was something she’d never imagined would happen in a million years. Tears fell down her face, but this time they were tears of joy. She gave the child an edited version of the story. “So, your father was killed, and I was badly hurt. I didn’t want to give you up.”

“But if you hadn’t, then Daddy would be alone now, and you and Daddy wouldn’t have met. God wanted me here.”

“I guess He did.”

Haley-Jo glanced around. “Where is Daddy?”

“Maybe he went to get coffee, or went outside. Let’s find him.” She stood up, her heart jumping for joy as Haley-Jo took her hand.

They exited the church, and her heart leapt again at the sight of Stan sitting on the wall next to the pastor.

Stan’s eyes lit up as she and Haley-Jo walked over to them. “You found me.”

Haley-Jo nodded. “You’re rubbish at hide and seek. Hello, Pastor Kenny.”

Pastor Kenny smiled. “Hello, Haley-Jo. We were just talking about you.”

She smiled. “Pastor Kenny. This is Carly. She’s my Mummy, and she and Daddy are getting married.”

Carly and Stan looked at each other. She saw the hope flicker in his eyes.

“How about you and I go and find some hot chocolate and see if there are any biscuits left?” Pastor Kenny said. “Let your dad and Carly talk for a few.”

“OK.” Haley-Jo went with him happily.

Carly stood in front of Stan and cupped his face in her hands. “You’re cold.”

“A little.”

“Thank you.”

Stan blinked, confusion in his eyes. “What for?”

“Looking after my baby when I couldn’t. Raising her into the cute, intelligent, funny child she is now. Allowing me to be a part of her life and asking me to join your family. No one has ever given me a gift like that before.”

“Other than God.”

“Well, yeah.” She paused, trying to calm her racing heart and not succeeding. “What I’m trying to stay, Stan Fuller, is yes, I’d love to marry you.”

Stan wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. She responded and his arms tightened as he deepened the kiss. When he finally pulled back, she knew in an instant he was her soulmate. She’d never reacted to being kissed like that before.

She managed a smile. “We should go and find your daughter before she eats all the biscuits.”

“Our daughter,” Stan corrected. He took firm hold of her hand, walking with her.

Carly was sure her feet were off the ground. Actually, she wasn’t sure she’d ever find solid ground again, but at that point didn’t care. She’d found her daughter and a man who loved and wanted her.

Haley-Jo was sitting with Pastor Kenny.

Stan smiled. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yes. Can Carly move in now you’re getting married?”

Stan rolled his eyes, trying to ignore Carly’s laugh and the way Pastor Kenny raised his eyebrows. “Not until after the wedding.”

“When’s that?”

“Give us a chance. It’ll be at least four weeks from when we get the license depending when the church is free.”

“You can get that tomorrow, Daddy. Pastor Kenny says the church is free every Saturday for the next five weeks.”

Pastor Kenny chuckled. “Leave me out of it. Give me a call, Stan.”

“I will. Thank you.” Stan took his daughter’s hand.

“Can she at least move in for Christmas?”

Carly shook her head. “Maybe I’ll sleep in the spare room on Christmas Eve, and we can spend Christmas together. How does that sound?”

“But why can’t you get married now?”

“Because this isn’t a movie,” Stan told her. “You’ve been watching Miracle on 34th Street way too much. This is real life and things happen a little differently.”

Carly took her other hand as they walked to the car. “So, is there anything else you want for Christmas?”

Haley-Jo grinned. “A baby sister.”

Stan snorted. “Don’t push your luck. I already got you a mummy. A baby sister just isn’t happening.”

Carly looked at him over Haley-Jo’s head. “Well, not this year.”

Stan held her gaze. “I love you,” he mouthed.

“Love you, too.”

Haley-Jo pulled a face. “Stop with the lovey-dovey stuff.”

Stan ignored her and grinned. “How about we go home and set up the nativity under the tree. Start a new family tradition?” He paused. “And then tomorrow we’ll go to the Christmas shop and pick out a new ornament for the tree. One to symbolize our new family.”

“Sounds great.” Haley-Jo looked up at Carly. “So long as Mummy agrees.”

Tears filled Carly’s eyes. “I think it’s a great idea, sweetheart.”