Three weeks before Christmas, with the holiday season in full swing, Vivian found herself busier than ever. Now in her third trimester, she felt like someone had strapped a giant watermelon onto her body, but thankfully the morning sickness was long behind her and her energy level was at its peak.
Baby G was more active with every day that passed, although he was growing so big he had a lot less room to move within her. She was a little short on sleep because her son apparently believed her rest time was his playtime. Sometimes it felt like he was using her ribs as monkey bars, but she gloried in every movement. She couldn’t wait to meet her sweet little one face-to-face and hold him in her arms.
Not long now. Her due date was only a few weeks away, about a week into the New Year.
In the meantime, she had plenty to keep her mind and hands occupied. She volunteered at the senior center twice a week, keeping the residents happily curled and manicured.
Once she’d passed Thanksgiving, she’d accepted both rationally and emotionally the fact that it was going to take her longer than she’d originally hoped and anticipated to open the spa.
Deciding on a new grand-opening date had been problematic, since she had to take into account that Baby G was soon to make his debut into the world. It would be difficult, but not impossible. She would open her salon, have her baby and take a two-week maternity leave before returning to work.
As for the building itself, things were finally falling into place. The electrical system was correctly rewired, the plumbing issues were fixed, and the inspector would make final rounds with Nick on Wednesday.
All new styling chairs had been installed, as had the massage chairs for pedicures. She had a massage table for use with guests looking for a deep tissue massage.
A beautiful walnut desk and file cabinet now graced her office. She’d hired her staff, two young ladies with recently obtained cosmetology and massage licenses who were excited to begin their careers at Viv’s salon. She was glad she could hire locally and contribute to Serendipity’s economy.
And she’d finally settled on a name for her new business.
Tranquility.
A name that she hoped she could live up to, that she could really offer her clientele. Maybe she’d even eventually find some of that peace for herself.
She prayed she’d be able to have the salon open for at least a week or two before her baby came. She wanted to be there to make sure the grand opening went off as designed and everything in the salon was working smoothly. Still, to be on the safe side, she’d taken the time to create a contingency plan and was confident the two girls could hold down the fort until she could get back to work after the baby was born.
It wasn’t ideal by any means, but with Nick’s help with the remodel and the young cosmetologists ready to take over when the baby was born, it could be done.
It had to be. She couldn’t afford to wait much longer before the salon started bringing in revenue.
Today, though, she would put her apprehensions about the opening of Tranquility aside.
The senior center was throwing its highly anticipated, first annual Christmas party. Decorations, food and fellowship, brought from the townsfolk’s hearts to the beloved elderly population in their care.
Christmas was by far Vivian’s favorite time of year, when everyone’s attention turned toward the infant Jesus, when hearts and minds were filled with an attitude of joy and giving. Peace on earth, goodwill toward man. Evergreen trees and lights on all the houses. Candles lit in the darkened sanctuary of the church for the midnight service. The children’s pageant, which was always adorable and often amusing.
It warmed her heart to think that in just a few years, her son would take part in the pageant—playing the part of a sheep or a donkey, perhaps. He would be the cutest kid in the pageant, whatever his role—and he would have the proudest mama.
She laughed at herself as she entered the senior center facility, her arms laden with rolls of sparkling garland in several colors, with which she would help decorate for the festivities. She was definitely getting ahead of herself. Her son needed to be born before he could participate in the nativity play.
Alexis, Griff, Jo Spencer and a half a dozen others were gathered in the commons area, digging through bins overflowing with glittering ball ornaments, tinsel and strings of colorful lights that had been donated to the senior center. An enormous Virginia pine tree was set up in the middle of the room, waiting to be trimmed.
“Late, as usual,” Alexis teased as Vivian dumped her armful of garland next to the other decorations.
“Better late than later,” she quipped back, knowing even as she said the words that her maxim wasn’t quite right.
Thankfully, Nick wasn’t there to correct her, and everyone else just let it go. The saying, whatever it was, could apply to her salon as well as her habitual lateness, a personal trait she had tried but failed to amend over the years.
“I see you haven’t had any success cleaning Nick up. Are you ready to do my laundry for two months?”
“I’m not out of time yet. The salon’s official grand opening isn’t until next week.”
“I prefer liquid fabric softener in the washing machine as opposed to the dryer sheets you use.”
Vivian made a face at her twin, knowing it was entirely possible that she would be doing double duty on laundry soon. Up until now Nick hadn’t budged on the whole haircut-and-a-shave thing. She doubted she was going to get him to change his mind in the next week.
“Okay, folks,” Jo said, taking charge as usual. “We need a game plan here. The tree needs trimming. Griff and Alexis, why don’t you take care of that task. I need a few of you to deck the halls with garland, tinsel and evergreen wreaths.”
She paused and tapped her chin. “Now, we need a little bit of a North Pole flavor in that corner over there. We’ll have to to get creative and make a sleigh with the trimmings we have here in the bins, but we’ve got a reindeer, thanks to Nick McKenna. Vivian, why don’t you and Nick work on that together.”
“But Nick is—”
“Even later than you are, for once,” Nick said from behind her left shoulder.
Startled by his voice, her heart leaped into her throat. She placed a hand on her pounding chest to even her breathing.
“Your bad habits are rubbing off on me,” he teased.
“I beg your pardon,” she said, whirling on him, only to nearly crash into the life-size, one-dimensional wooden cutout of a reindeer.
“I’ve got Dasher,” he informed her, moving the reindeer up and down to simulate flying. “Dancer, Prancer and the rest of the lot couldn’t make it today.”
“Did you carve that? It’s pretty intricate. I’ve got to say, I’m impressed.”
Nick nodded. “I drew the pattern myself.”
He was clearly pleased with her praise. She thought his chest might have ballooned a bit and he was standing a good inch taller.
“What are we going to do for a sleigh?” Viv asked as they sifted through the decorations in the bins, looking for ideas to create the North Pole.
“What about this?” Nick asked, holding up a large tablecloth, which was a bright red trimmed with green around the edges. “We can push a couple of folding chairs together and drape this over them.”
Vivian caught his enthusiasm. “We can use some gold garland for the reins. And here’s a bag of fake snow. It’ll be a mess to clean up but it’ll definitely give us the ambiance we’re looking for. Oh—and we can wrap red ribbon around that concrete pole over there to make it look like a giant candy cane.”
Nick chuckled. “The North Pole. Nice.”
For the next half hour Vivian and Nick built the scene in the corner of the commons. Nick set up his reindeer and wrapped the pole in red ribbon, while Vivian worked on the sleigh and spread glistening fake snow across the floor around their display.
“We should see if we can find a couple of large, empty boxes,” Vivian suggested as they stood back and examined the scene they’d created. “I’ve got an extra roll of wrapping paper in my car.”
“I like that idea. We can stack the fake presents next to the sleigh.”
Their gazes met and Vivian smiled up at him. “Now all we need is Santa.”
Nick shifted his gaze away from her to where Alexis was trimming the tree. “It looks like your sister is about finished.”
“The tree is beautiful. I love the twinkling lights. They bring such peace to my heart.”
“Hey, Nick, can I get your help over here?” Alexis asked, waving him over.
“Sure. The tree looks great, by the way. What do you need me to do?”
“Put the angel on. I’m not tall enough to reach the top of the tree and Jo shanghaied Griff into helping decorate the cafeteria.”
“Not a problem,” he said, picking up the angel—a sweet, smiling figure robed in white with gold trim. But then, with a wink and a smile, he immediately turned to Vivian and placed the angel in her hands.
That made less than no sense. If Alexis couldn’t reach the top of the tree, then Vivian would fare no better. They were identical twins, after all.
“Up we go,” Nick said, hoisting her into the air before she even knew what he was going to do.
“Nick, you can’t—” she started to protest, but then realized it would do no good. He could, apparently, and he did. He’d quite literally swept her off her feet on more than one occasion.
Of course, now she was over eight months pregnant, so it was a little bit awkward.
“Are you going to make me stand here holding you all day or are you going to put the angel on the top of the tree?” Nick asked.
She put the angel on the top of the tree.
“There, now,” he said, gently setting her back on her feet and holding her waist firmly until he was certain she was stable. “My family has an old Christmas tradition. Prettiest girl gets to top the tree.”
Vivian rolled her eyes and pointed out the obvious weakness in his statement. “You have two brothers.”
He grinned. “Okay, you got me. Our tradition is that the youngest member of the family tops the tree. It was Brody this year, since Jax’s twins aren’t quite old enough to grasp the concept of Christmas. Or trees. Still, all things being even, I like my idea better.”
“You do realize that my identical twin is standing right here next to me.”
“So I’m surrounded by two beautiful women. It’s a really tough situation for a guy to be in, but I’ll try to bear it. And I’m standing firm on what I said. The prettiest girl got to top the tree.”
Vivian’s face grew warm. Alexis was beaming at her, clearly not at all offended by Nick’s declaration. Her eyes were glittering with amusement.
Nick looked like the cat who caught the parakeet.
“Besides,” Nick added, “technically, the youngest person did top the tree. You had Baby G’s help, didn’t you?”
She couldn’t help but laugh.
“Festivities are about to begin, people,” Jo declared, clapping her hands to get everyone’s attention. “Let’s get these bins put away so we can all join the p-a-r-t-y. Party!”
What a card Jo was, parading around in her green T-shirt that proclaimed Elfette and her matching green hat that contrasted with the brassy red curls of her hair.
Vivian grabbed one of the bins and followed the others to the storage closet, where they neatly stacked everything away out of sight. She’d thought Nick was right behind her, but when she turned to speak to him about wrapping some empty boxes, she discovered he wasn’t there. Strange. Maybe he’d been held back in the commons area for some reason.
She decided she’d have to see to the fake presents herself. She found a couple of empty boxes in the storage closet and made a quick detour to her car, where she wrapped them in foiled paper.
By the time she returned to the commons area, it was filled with senior residents and their families, along with a smattering of nurses. She looked around for Nick but he was nowhere to be seen.
She also didn’t see his uncle. Maybe Nick had gone to fetch James and accompany him to the party.
She stacked the presents next to the sleigh and then made her way over to the punch bowl. She sipped at a cup of hot apple cider, content for the moment just to watch folks interacting with each other. The nurses that had relocated to the area to accompany some of the frailer residents moving in from surrounding towns were welcomed like family. The folks in Serendipity were like that.
Vivian’s heart warmed. She felt blessed to live here, to be back home again where she belonged. Whatever happened in the future, she had this.
What more could a woman want?
She didn’t want to answer that. Not today.
She set her empty mug on a nearby tray and was just about to start mingling when Jo caught her by the elbow and shoved a black point-and-click camera into her hand.
“We’re about to start, dear. Would you mind taking pictures?”
Start?
Vivian thought the party had started a while ago. Was Jo talking about something else? But what else was there?
The buzz of conversation dissipated as everyone turned their attention to the corner where Vivian and Nick had set up their display.
She couldn’t really see what was happening through the crowd of people, and from this vantage point, she definitely wouldn’t be able to take any pictures of whatever was going on.
She was making her way through the crowd and had just reached the beribboned North Pole when she heard Nick’s deep, rich voice, loud and clear.
“Ho, ho, ho. Merry Christmas!”
* * *
Nick caught one glimpse of Vivian’s startled face and knew it had been worth whatever discomfort he was feeling from wearing this thick, itchy red suit. He didn’t have much time to enjoy her reaction before she raised the camera she’d been holding and the flash went off, temporarily blinding him.
He should have expected that. It was actually his camera that Nick had given Jo, telling her to pass it on to Vivian. It wasn’t so much that he wanted to be able to see a picture of himself in the Santa getup as it was making sure Viv was there when he made his entrance.
He knew she’d be amused by the prospect, probably even more than his brothers, but he had to admit he kind of liked it when she teased him.
How he had been talked into playing this role in the first place he would never understand. He was the last man on the planet anyone would expect to dress up as Santa Claus. Yet one day when Nick was visiting his uncle, the center’s facility manager approached him and told him Jo had suggested asking him if he’d mind playing Old Saint Nick for the seniors at the center.
Mind?
Of course he minded. He might have the right name, but that was the only thing he had in common with the jolly old elf.
Christmas spirit wasn’t exactly his forte.
But then he’d thought about Vivian, who regularly and selflessly offered her services to the residents of the care center. He knew the elderly here would revel in a visit from Santa.
And so he had said yes.
Everyone’s eyes were turned on him, making his skin prickle. The red suit was itchy, the pillow he’d stuffed down the front of his coat kept shifting awkwardly and when he went to sit down on the makeshift sleigh, the chairs beneath him shifted apart and the reindeer he’d spent countless hours constructing nearly capsized.
Carefully adjusting his weight so his “sleigh” would remain stable and he wouldn’t slip between the chairs, he set down his pack filled with gifts for the residents and wondered what he was supposed to do next. He hadn’t been given a script, and it wasn’t like the elderly were going to come sit on his lap and tell him what they wanted for Christmas.
Were they?
The thought made him chuckle, which he quickly masked as the loud, hearty laugh of the character he was supposed to be playing.
Deciding there was no reason to linger any longer than strictly necessary, it appeared the obvious thing to do would be to pass out the gifts. He was anxious to wrap this up and get out of the torturous Santa suit. Anything he could do to move things along would be a blessing.
He reached for the bag, but before he could pull out the first gift, he was stopped by his brother Jax, who slid one of his infant girls—Nick’s niece—into Nick’s arm and a family-sized black leather Bible, its pages gilded with gold trim, into the other hand.
Nick raised his white-powdered brow. “What, exactly, am I supposed to do with these?” he whispered raggedly.
Jax scoffed and shook his head. “I should think that would be obvious. I have the Bible bookmarked to the second chapter of Luke. Read the gospel story about the nativity of our Lord. And Violet here,” Jax said with a grin, “is your special effects team. Don’t worry. She’s my mellow baby.”
“I can’t read aloud to a crowd of people.” Nick was panicking and almost started to hyperventilate. He’d always been a poor reader and struggled with dyslexia. He would never be able to do a Bible story justice, especially one as holy as the birth of Christ.
Jax clapped his shoulder. “I believe in you, bro.”
“Let me help you with this.” Nick was so focused on trying to drag a breath through his closed throat that he hadn’t even noticed Vivian approaching.
She took the Bible from him and relief rippled through his tense muscles. With her outgoing personality, he was sure Vivian excelled in front of crowds. He was certain she would do a bang-up job reading the Christmas story.
She opened the Holy Scriptures and removed the ribbon bookmark, and then promptly handed it back to Nick with a sunny smile.
“There you are. I figured the Bible would be difficult to open, seeing as you have a baby in your other arm.”
“Opening the Bible wasn’t my big concern,” he muttered, but she was already crouched before him, watching him intently, waiting for him to start reading.
Way to force the issue. Folks had settled down in chairs or on the floor and the room was filled with silent expectation. Even baby Violet appeared to be staring up at Nick in anticipation of the story.
Santa suit. Seniors. Bible. Baby.
He couldn’t get out of it now.
He cleared his throat and concentrated on the words before him.
“In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus…”
The first few sentences were a little rough, but then he fell into his role and got caught up in the story. He must have heard it a hundred times over the years, but it never grew old, remembering the story of God coming to earth as Man. Nick all gussied up as Santa Claus as he read the story represented it in a whole new way. Kind of choked him up.
“That was beautiful,” Vivian breathed when the last word was spoken.
“Indeed,” said Jo, who added applause for his efforts to her comment. “Well done!” The rest of the crowd joined in the applause.
He nodded, acknowledging the residents and their families. With a tender touch, Jax gently transferred Violet back into his own arms. Nick winked at his brother. Jax had certainly taken to fatherhood well, especially considering the fact that his twins had been literally dumped on his doorstep five months ago.
“Good job, bro,” Jax said. “I’m proud of you.”
“Back at ya,” Nick said, refusing to acknowledge the swell in his chest. He wasn’t usually so emotional.
“Are we ready for some gift giving?” Jo announced in a voice loud enough to penetrate the room.
Nick handed the Bible to Vivian and she set it aside.
“I’m as ready as a man can be,” he whispered, for Viv’s ears only. “I am so itching to get out of this ridiculous suit.”
She giggled and patted the pillow on his stomach. “I think you look cute.”
Cute?
Heat flooded to his face. It was a good thing Santa Claus was supposed to have rosy cheeks, because he knew his were flaming.
Without him having to ask, Vivian positioned herself next to the sack of gifts and handed carefully wrapped gifts to him one at a time, allowing him to have the fun of passing them out to the seniors.
“That’s a lot of wrapping,” he commented to Viv as he pressed a package into an old woman’s hands.
“You’re telling me,” Vivian said with a laugh. “It took Alexis and me an entire day to get them all done.”
“You and Alexis wrapped all these gifts?”
She sniffed. “Don’t sound so surprised. I am capable of wrapping Christmas presents, you know.”
“I didn’t mean it that way. I just meant that it’s incredible that you put that much effort into it.”
She smiled softly. “It’s worth it. Look at all these happy faces.”
And there were. The seniors were reveling in their visit from Santa and the small gifts each of them had been given.
When a nurse helped Uncle James approach the sleigh to receive his gift, Nick got a little choked up at how frail the old man had become. James hadn’t recognized Nick the last couple of times he’d visited, but now he looked Nick right in the eye, his gaze sparkling with recognition.
“You are Saint Nick,” he said with a solemn nod.
Nick reached for his uncle’s feeble hands. “It’s Santa to my friends.”
When all of the gifts had been given out, Nick posed for a few pictures, all taken by his helper elf Vivian.
He was relieved when she took his hand and announced that Santa had other places he needed to visit. He smiled and waved and ho, ho, ho’d until he was completely clear of the commons room, and then he blew out a big breath that made his snowy-white beard lift right off his chin. His shoulders sagged with relief.
He was thoroughly exhausted, not only physically but mentally and emotionally, as well. Playing one of the world’s most recognized characters took a lot out of a guy.
Vivian turned and beamed up at him. “You were absolutely wonderful out there.”
“Please don’t ever let me agree to do anything like that again,” he begged, scratching at a particularly itchy spot on his right shoulder. “I’m more of a behind-the-scenes kind of guy.”
“Well, I think it was nice that you did it, especially because I know it wasn’t easy for you. It was a true loving sacrifice, and I don’t think you’ll ever know how many people you touched today.”
“Really?”
She nodded fervently. “Really. I know I personally got a little teary-eyed when you read the nativity story.”
He scoffed softly, not knowing what to do with the compliment. “Flakes of that fake snow probably got in your eyes.”
“I’m serious,” she countered. “And what’s more, I think you deserve a reward for all your hard work.”
“A reward?” he echoed.
She just smiled and pointed up.
He tilted his head.
Mistletoe.
They were standing directly under a sprig of mistletoe. Had she maneuvered him here on purpose?
Before he could react, she reached up on tiptoe and brushed a soft kiss across his white-bearded cheek.
“Oh,” she murmured, clapping a hand over her mouth. “I—I can’t believe I did that.”
Without another word, she darted off down the hall and then ducked back into the commons area. She knew he couldn’t follow her there. Not while he was still dressed in the silly red suit. Clearly she didn’t want to be alone with him.
And yet, she’d just kissed him.
He covered his cheek, as if trying to imprint the feel of her lips against his skin. Even if her lips had technically never touched his skin.
Was she sorry she’d kissed him?
He wasn’t.
He wanted to kiss her again, a real, lips-on-lips kiss this time.
He mentally poked at the tentative feeling. He’d failed so many times before in his attempts at a relationship. He didn’t want to make the same mistakes with Vivian.
He couldn’t. It wasn’t only his heart he had to consider—or even Vivian’s. It was her baby’s.
If he were to become invested in Vivian’s life—and that was a big if—he had to do it right, and he had to mean it. Or not do it at all.
But first he needed to get out of this itchy Santa suit and find the woman.