An Almost Perfect Christmas
Hours later,
Christy came into the living room, carrying a tray filled with Izzie’s teapot,
cups, saucers, and a plate of Christmas cookies. The three of them had just
finished watching Miracle on
“How about that tea
party we talked about, Izzie?” she said.
Izzie set her dad’s
iPad on the sofa cushion beside her. “That would be fun.”
Aaron, who’d been
reading a book, got up to clear off the coffee table. He glanced at the iPad
and asked, “What are you looking at there, Izzie?”
“Wedding dresses.”
Aaron caught
Christy’s eye and she offered a little shrug to let him know she was as
clueless as he over Izzie’s choice of iPad entertainment.
Izzie snatched up a
cookie that had red sprinkles on top. “These are pretty, Christy. Are these the
sour cookies?”
“Southern Sour
Cream Cookies, yes.” Christy picked up the pot and poured tea into three cups.
“Mmmm.” Izzie
smacked her lips. “They’re soft and sweet. Not sour at all.”
Christy chuckled.
“I’m glad you like them.”
Aaron picked up the
small teacup between his index finger and thumb. “So… why are you looking at
wedding gowns.”
Izzie looked at the
iPad and then up at her dad. “I’ve been thinking.”
This child has been
doing a lot of that today. “About weddings?” Christy asked.
“Yeah, and other
stuff,” she admitted.
Aaron took two
cookies from the plate and sat down in the easy chair. Until this moment,
Christy would never have thought that a man could sip tea from a child-sized
teacup and retain his masculinity. He was doing a fine job of it.
He caught her
pressing her lips together at the sight of him and he gave her a quick wink.
Warm tendrils curled in the pit of her belly.
“I wish I had a
pony,” Izzie said. “I was looking at pictures of horses. They’re so pretty.
And… and I wish I had a puppy. Did you know there are about a zillion kinds of
dogs? And I wish I had a boat. Wouldn’t it be fun to ride a boat whenever you
want to?” Then her words came a little faster. “I was thinking about weddings
‘cause brides are so beautiful. I’ve never been to a wedding. I’ve never seen a
real bride up close.” Then she lifted both shoulders. “Or a groom, either.”
Aaron chewed a bite
of cookie then swallowed. “So all of this thinking that you’re doing… does this
mean you’re adding to your wish list?”
Christy could
almost hear Aaron’s thoughts. How do I buy this child of mine a pony? A dog? A
boat? A wedding?
“No, not really.” Izzie
shook her head. “We’d need a farm for a pony. And a puppy would be lonely at
home if I have to go to the hospital. And I’m too little to drive a boat.”
Relief lightened
Aaron’s chuckle. “Yes, all those things are true.”
Izzie turned her
head and stared at the white, lacy gown on the iPad. “But we could have a
wedding. It would be pretend, of course. We just need a bride and a groom. A
pretty dress. Big and poofy, like Princess Belle would wear. Some flowers. A
ring.” She gazed across the room at her father, blinking. “We could do it.”
Aaron’s moment of
relief vanished and he looked like a deer caught in headlights. Funny how talk
of frilly dresses and flowers and rings did that to a man. Christy decided to
save him.
“I’m sure I could
find something around here that could serve as your wedding gown. A white
sheet, maybe? And I could dress it up with something fancy…” The rest of her
sentence trailed as she thought about making a dress.
“I… yeah, I could
be the groom.” Aaron nodded.
Christy was pleased
that he recovered so quickly.
“Ew! Daddy!”
Izzie’s face squished at the idea. “That would be too weird.”
“Oh.” He actually
looked disappointed.
But Izzie
brightened. “But you could be the groom. If Christy was the bride.”
Izzie looked to be
holding her breath as she awaited Christy response.
Now it was
Christy’s turn to suffer a momentary bout of muteness. Then she saw Aaron
offering her an I’m-game-if-you-are grin. There was nothing else for Christy to
do but lift her hands and say, “Okay.”
~ ~ ~
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