AT THE SOUND of Emma’s voice echoing up from the foyer downstairs, Thad turned from where he was working in his study. It was only 6:00 a.m. Emma never got up that early on her days off. Dammit, he wasn’t done with what he was working on yet.
Still, he finished pulling on his Santa suit with Everett’s help, then looked at himself in the mirror.
“Wish me luck,” he said to his old friend. The man was improving every day and could now walk and talk and even carry out most of his butler duties the same as before. But Thad made it a point not to overwork the man anymore. Everett was no longer an employee. He was a treasured member of Thad’s found family and was treated as such.
The older man shook his head as he met Thad’s gaze in the mirror. “None needed. Go get her.”
Nerves on high alert, Thad went downstairs, waiting until he got to the first floor before uttering a somewhat subdued, “Ho, ho, ho!”
He felt ridiculous, but if it made his Emma smile, it was worth it.
“You know my sister’s still sleeping, right?” She eyed him up and down from where she sat in the living room, her arms crossed over her red plaid flannel pj’s and her baby bump showing ever so slightly beneath. “And what are you wearing?”
“I’m Santa,” Thad said, adjusting the velvet bag over his shoulder. “And I’m doing my job. Delivering gifts. And yes, I know Karley’s still asleep.” She’d moved into the town house along with Emma. The sisters were a package deal, he’d learned. Now Karley stayed here whenever she wasn’t at Howard University pursuing her premed degree.
Thad walked past Emma into the living room on the first floor to deposit his presents. Lots and lots of presents. Packages of various shapes and sizes, all brightly wrapped and now overflowing beneath the tree. It had cost him a small fortune to hire personal shoppers to scour the stores of New York to find everything on the list Emma had given him last month, but if you were willing to spend enough, a person could do most anything. And he was counting on her sister staying asleep for a good long while yet.
“Why would you do that?” She stood in the doorway, staring at him and looking befuddled. “You don’t even like Christmas.”
“Maybe I’ve changed my mind.” He scanned the gifts, then frowned as “White Christmas” played on the town house’s sound system for the millionth time. Okay. Perhaps he’d become overzealous when he’d turned on the Christmas tunes. And with the gifts. And the decorations. But hey. He had a lot of time to make up for. Thad straightened then, set his empty bag aside and shrugged. “Women aren’t the only ones allowed to change their minds. Apparently I just needed to be reminded of the real meaning of the holiday.”
“Oh, you needed that all right,” she scoffed, eyeing him suspiciously. “You changed your mind about Christmas, huh? Why?”
“You.”
“Me?” This time she laughed with a great deal of irony. “I changed your mind about Christmas?”
“You changed my mind about everything, Emma. About life. My life. And the life I want with you.”
“Aw. That’s sweet.” She crossed the room to stand next to him, staring at the tree. “But why now?”
“Because now I’m sure I’m ready to move on to the future. With you. And our little one.”
She placed a hand over her stomach and smiled. “That is a pretty good reason.”
He put his arm around her and drew her into his side. “Someone once told me Christmas Day was the most magical day of the year. A day when miracles can happen.” He kissed her temple, then tucked her head beneath his chin. That Christmas magic had surely shone down on him last year. Brought him the gift of a new lease on life, a woman he loved, and a new, found family of his own. A future he never could have imagined before, too. “I love you, Emma. And I plan to spend the rest of my life proving to you how much. You and our baby. Every single day.”
He’d been so miserable before she’d arrived in his life. A fool. He’d pushed everyone away out of fear. Fear of feeling again. Fear of loving and losing. Fear of feeling, because with feeling came the risk of pain.
But you had to overcome those fears, had to risk that pain, had to risk rejection, because the alternative wasn’t acceptable. He took her hand and pulled a small blue box from the pocket of his Santa suit. This one didn’t go beneath the tree, because if all went well, it would end up on her finger.
He got down on one knee and Emma put a trembling hand to her mouth. “What are you doing?”
“I’ve loved you from the first moment I saw you here in my kitchen, looking like an angel, Emma. And I want you by my side for as long as you’ll have me. Please give me the chance to be the man you deserve.” He swallowed hard and opened the box to reveal the sparkling diamond-and-platinum engagement ring. “Will you marry me?”
Tears trickled from her lovely eyes as she nodded. “Yes, Thad. I will marry you. I love you, too.”
He slid the ring onto her finger, then stood to take her into his arms and kiss her soundly.
Emma didn’t think she’d ever seen so many presents in her life.
Sitting on the floor, she picked up a box, shook it prior to carefully unwrapping it to reveal a beautiful aqua-colored baby blanket. He’d bought gifts for their baby. And now she was crying all over again. Running her fingers over the soft fuzzy material. “This is so beautiful.”
“I’m glad you like it.” He handed her another box. They repeated the process until she was surrounded with baby items. Some pink. Some blue. Some a mixture of pastels. They didn’t know what they were having, wanting to be surprised for the first one.
Karley and Everett were in the dining room, playing a spirited game of Scrabble, and Baxter was happily enjoying his new toys in the corner. Their little family was happy and content.
“Wow. You’ve been busy.” Emma bit her lip, taking it all in. “When did you have time to shop?”
“I had help, but don’t hold that against me.” He glanced at the two in the dining room, then gave a crooked grin. “Even Santa utilizes elves.”
“Uh-huh,” she said, knowing her sister and Everett had probably shopped for most of this, given her fiancé’s busy work schedule these days. He was still as in demand as ever, though he’d cut back considerably on his hours, preferring to spend more time at home when he could. Still, it was sweet he’d thought of her and the baby and she loved all the gifts she’d gotten, even if she did feel bigger and more awkward each passing day. “Thank you, sweetie. I love everything.”
Emma met his gaze and her breath caught at the intensity there, the vulnerability in his icy blue eyes. No protective walls. No barriers. Those were gone now, leaving only the man she loved with all her heart.
The music changed to “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” Their song, the one they’d danced to last year at the fundraiser for the first time. Then it had been bittersweet for her. Now it was all goodness and light. Because this year, they would have a merry little Christmas. Together.
Thad held her close as they swayed slowly, his gaze reflecting back to her the same emotions she felt inside—love, gratitude, affection, desire. “I didn’t think I’d ever feel this way about another person, Emma. Sometimes I wondered if I could love someone at all. But I do love you, my darling. More than I could ever say. Always and forever. And I can’t wait to meet our baby.”
“I love you, too.” She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him, pulling back to laugh when their baby kicked hard between them. “I’d say our child shares our sentiments.”
“Agreed.” Thad grinned. “Merry Christmas, wife-to-be.”
“Merry Christmas, husband-to-be,” she said, cuddling into him again as the music switched to “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” Corny, absolutely. But as Andy Williams warbled away in the background, Emma also knew it was true. This holiday was wonderful. The best ever for her. Knowing no matter what the future held, she and Thad and their family would face it together, for the rest of their lives.