A Dad for Christmas (Christmas Holiday Extravaganza) Read online

  “It is impressive.” Reed attempted to elaborate but with his mind whirling with possibilities, he couldn’t think of anything else to add. He looked for more telltale signs that she might be ill. With her cheeks now flushed she didn’t look as pale as she had at first. Was he overreacting?

  Emma ran hands over white quartz countertops. “Nice. Did you install these yourself?”

  He nodded.

  “You are quite the handy man. I could get used to having you around.”

  “I would like that,” Reed said and meant it more than she knew. “I hope you and Luke will be here a long time.”

  “We should be. We love Shenandoah Valley. The scenery is beautiful and the people are pleasant.” She unloaded cookie ingredients onto the counter: Flour. Sugar. Eggs. Milk. Chocolate chips. Peanut butter. Vanilla.

  Luke sneaked a couple of chocolate chips from the bag and popped them into his mouth. “These are yummy. Want some, Mr. Reed?”

  Not with his stomach tied in knots. “We’d better save them for the cookies.”

  “OK.” Luke spun around in circles with arms spread wide. “You have a really big kitchen. We can make lots of cookies in here.” His gaze landed on something behind Reed and he stilled. “My snowman picture! You put it on your fridge.” At first a wide smile crossed Luke’s features and then his gaze shifted and his expression transformed into confusion. “And my letter, too? I wrotted that letter for God. I left it at the post office so it would be sent to heaven. Why do you have it?”

  “What letter?” Emma tilted her head. Her gaze trailed to the fridge.

  Reed’s gut twisted. If only he’d realized sooner that the letter was Luke’s he would’ve had time to think it over, to absorb the possible ramifications. He could’ve asked Emma privately if she was seriously ill. He couldn’t do that in front of Luke just in case it was true.

  “I brought it home from the post office.”

  “But if my letter didn’t to go heaven, then God didn’t get to read it.” Luke took in a deep, shaky breath and tears streamed down his face. “That means God didn’t send you to be my dad.” He turned and ran out of the kitchen, through the living room, and to the front door where he crumpled into a ball, sobs shaking his little shoulders.

  Emotions tumbled. Reed’s heart ached for Luke, but at the same time a sharp thrill coursed through his veins. Luke wanted him to be his dad. He took a step toward Luke.

  “What is he talking about?”

  Reed stilled.

  Emma abandoned the cookie ingredients and snatched the letter from the fridge. As she read the words, her skin turned ashen. “Luke thought I might be dying?” her voice cracked. She looked at Reed. “Y-you read this and thought…?” She squeezed her eyes shut, took a breath and then looked at him again. “When I asked you why you were helping us, you said you had something at home to show me that would help you explain. Were you talking about this letter?” She lifted the paper.

  “Yes, but—”

  “You were right. This letter explains everything. It explains why you suddenly took an interest in us the same day we visited the post office. Why you offered to set up our Christmas tree. Why you fixed the sink. It explains why you offered to help me with anything I might need.” Emma lifted her chin and straightened her shoulders. “Just so you know I am not dying. I don’t need your pity.” Her breathing became ragged. “And I don’t need you.”

  Pain sliced through him like a knife in the chest. “Em…it’s not what you think.”

  Tears spilled over her cheeks as she dropped the letter and rushed past him. She grabbed coats, scooped Luke into her arms and awkwardly flung open the front door. Cold air rushed in as they rushed out, leaving Reed staring in shock at the empty space where they had been.

  15

  Confusion spiraled through Emma as she carried Luke home. She’d questioned Reed’s motives from the start. She never would have guessed he thought she might be dying. But, if Reed had acted only on sympathy then why did he look so stricken when she told him she didn’t need him? Wouldn’t he be relieved to be released from whatever responsibility he felt for her?

  She couldn’t sort through her own emotions right now. Not with Luke still in her arms crying. Her heart broke a little more with each sob that came out of him. The temperatures had dropped, and the air had turned frigid. By the time she managed to unlock the front door they were both shivering.

  Once inside, Emma dropped their coats in the foyer and took Luke to the kitchen. “How about we make some hot chocolate with marshmallows to help us get warm?” She set him on a chair and wiped away his tears. She needed to get him to calm a little before getting to the bottom of this.

  He sullenly nodded his head. “Can I have extra marshmallows, please?”

  “Of course.” Emma poured milk into a saucepan and added the cocoa mixture. As she stirred, she used the quiet time to reflect on all that had transpired. When she’d visited the post office with Luke, she had no indication that Luke had brought a letter with him. He must’ve carried it in his pocket and slipped it to Mable somehow when she wasn’t looking. But, how did Reed get a hold of the letter? And why?

  Luke’s crying eased as she finished making the hot chocolate and poured it into mugs, set out the bag of marshmallows and slipped into a chair at the table. “Are you ready to tell me about the letter?”

  Luke nodded and added marshmallows to his mug. “When daddy got really sick, he told me that he wasn’t going to worry about me when he went to heaven. He said that he knew you would take good care of me, so he was going to go have lots of fun with Jesus.” Luke lowered his head. “When you got sick I wanted to make sure you wouldn’t worry about me if you went to heaven, too. So I wrote the letter asking God to send a dad to take care of me just in case.”

  “Oh, honey.” Emma eyes filled with tears as pieces of the puzzle fell into place. “Writing that letter was a very thoughtful thing to do. But God doesn’t need to read words to know what’s in your heart. He created you. He knows you better than anyone else. Even me.”

  Luke stilled. “You mean he knows what I’m thinking?”

  “Yes. But He wants us to pray, too. He wants a relationship with us. It’s easy to talk to Him. All you have to do is pray and He will listen. And He knows what we’re going to need before we do and he makes plans for us. Good plans.”

  “So God alweady knew I wanted a dad?” He took a sip of hot chocolate and then looked up at her with hopeful eyes. “Then maybe God sent Mr. Reed to us after all.” A smile lit his face, erasing all traces of distress. “Can we go back over to his house and make cookies?” He popped up from his chair. “We need to make things better with him. He looked sad when we left.”

  Luke rebounded so fast it made Emma dizzy. So upset one minute and then so excited the next. Oh, if only life were as simple as seen through a six-year-old’s eyes. Then again, maybe she could learn something from Luke. Maybe she made things more complicated than they needed to be. Reed had said he could explain. What if she had jumped to conclusions?

  “I’m not sure he would want us to come back so soon. Not after the way we left him,” Emma said.

  “Nobody should be alone on Christmas Eve. Can we go back, please?” Luke blinked his cute little eyes.

  If they went back they risked being rejected. But if they didn’t go back Emma would stay awake all night wondering why Reed had the letter and how it had impacted his relationship with her. Heart thundering in her chest, Emma smoothed Luke’s hair back from his forehead. “You know what? I think we owe Reed a chance to explain how he got that letter. Let’s go back and see if he wants to talk.”

  16

  Reed paced across his living room. He couldn’t leave this situation in turmoil. Emma and Luke had become too important to him. A phone call wouldn’t suffice. This had to be done face to face. He strode to his foyer and picked up his coat, shrugged into it. Father, please let Emma be willing to listen. He prayed as he twisted the doorknob and opened the
door. He took one step outside and nearly ran into Luke. Emma stood behind her son bundled in her white coat and wearing a hesitant smile on her face.

  “You came back,” Reed breathed the words on a sigh of relief. “I was just on my way over.”

  Luke looked up at him. “Mommy said we need to give you a chance to expwain what happened. But only if you want to. She said you might not want to talk to us right now. But if you were coming over then that means you want to talk, right?”

  “Yes I want to talk. I’m so glad you’re here. Come on in.” He stepped aside so Luke could get past him.

  Luke ran inside and headed toward the kitchen.

  Emma hesitated in the threshold. “You were really on your way over to see us?”

  “I didn’t want tonight to end like this.” He motioned her inside. “Please, come in and get warmed up.”

  She stepped into the foyer. He shut the door, blocking out the freezing night air, and then eased her coat from her shoulders. He hung it on a coat rack in the foyer before removing his coat and placing it next to hers.

  “Let’s go to the kitchen with Luke. I want him to hear this, too.” Reed led the way.

  Luke had already climbed onto one of three barstools positioned at the kitchen counter.

  Reed waited for Emma to sit next to Luke before walking around the counter to face them. His nerves kicked in. With his future balancing on a precipice, he chose his words carefully. “When I was at the post office mailing presents I saw a bin full of letters written by children. As I was leaving, a gust of wind came in through the door, and one of the letters fell to the floor at my feet. While most of the letters were written to Santa, that particular one was written to God, so it caught my attention.”

  Luke sat straighter. “Yeah, some kids think Santa knows if we’ve been bad or good, but it’s really God Who knows everything. And he’s the One to ask for stuff.” His hand crept toward the bag of chocolate chips sitting on the counter. He pinched one chocolate chip between his fingers and looked at Emma, silently asking permission.

  She nodded her approval and then met Reed’s gaze. “The letter grabbed your attention so you took it with you?”

  “I hadn’t intended to. I asked Mable what they do with the letters. She said that if it’s addressed to God her husband usually prays for what the kids want, but he was overwhelmed with letters this year. She asked me to bring it home and pray for the child who wrote it. I figured I could help out, so I agreed. There was no name on it. I didn’t know the letter was Luke’s until just before you came over to make cookies.”

  “How did you find out it was his?” Emma leaned forward.

  “I had a feeling something was familiar about the letter, but I couldn’t place what it was until I remembered that Luke’s snowman picture had similar handwriting on it. I compared the two papers and the handwriting matched.”

  Emma’s brow furrowed. “If you didn’t know it was Luke’s letter until today, then why were you so interested in helping us before?”

  “After I prayed about the letter, I felt a strong sense that even if I couldn’t directly help the child who wrote it, I should find someone that I could help. That someone turned out to be you, but it wasn’t long before I looked for excuses to spend time with you, regardless of whether you needed my assistance.” He lowered his voice. “I stuck around because I wanted to.”

  Emma’s caramel colored gaze warmed, softening her beautiful features.

  Reed shifted his gaze to Luke. “God made sure I got the letter. He led me to you and your mom.”

  “So God really did send you to us,” Luke said with awe. “I know what that’s called. I learned it at Sunday school. It’s called de-vine interventive.”

  Emma’s wide smile soothed Reed’s soul. “You mean divine intervention.”

  “Yeah. God made it happen. Can we make cookies now?” Luke asked Reed with hope shining in his eyes.

  “I guess that’s up to your mom.” Reed met and held her gaze. The moment of truth had come. Would she trust that God had brought them together? “Are you ready to do this?”

  Emma eased from the barstool and walked to Reed’s side. “Yes. I am so ready. I thought I needed to be completely independent, but I’ve learned that I don’t have to be. I can rely on God to provide what I need. And, what I need right now is you, Reed Mason. God brought you into my life and I intend to keep you.”

  Overwhelming joy washed over Reed and he wrapped arms around Emma and pulled her close. “Consider me yours,” he whispered. His gaze dipped to her lips and he slowly lowered his head, anticipation mounting…

  “Wait,” Luke piped up. “Is this the kissy part of a date, Mr. Reed? Cuz if you’re really gonna be my dad I need to know something first.”

  Reed stilled, looked at Luke. “What do you need to know?”

  “Do you like puppies?”

  Thank you

  We appreciate you reading this White Rose Publishing title. For other inspirational stories, please visit our on-line bookstore at www.pelicanbookgroup.com.

  For questions or more information, contact us at [email protected].

  White Rose Publishing

  Where Faith is the Cornerstone of Love™

  an imprint of Pelican Book Group

  www.PelicanBookGroup.com

  Connect with Us

  www.facebook.com/Pelicanbookgroup

  www.twitter.com/pelicanbookgrp

  To receive news and specials, subscribe to our bulletin

  http://pelink.us/bulletin_

  May God’s glory shine through

  this inspirational work of fiction.

  AMDG

  You Can Help!

  At Pelican Book Group it is our mission to entertain readers with fiction that uplifts the Gospel. It is our privilege to spend time with you awhile as you read our stories.

  We believe you can help us to bring Christ into the lives of people across the globe. And you don’t have to open your wallet or even leave your house!

  Here are 3 simple things you can do to help us bring illuminating fiction™ to people everywhere.

  1) If you enjoyed this book, write a positive review. Post it at online retailers and websites where readers gather. And share your review with us at [email protected] (this does give us permission to reprint your review in whole or in part.)

  2) If you enjoyed this book, recommend it to a friend in person, at a book club or on social media.

  3) If you have suggestions on how we can improve or expand our selection, let us know. We value your opinion. Use the contact form on our website or e-mail us at [email protected]

  God Can Help!

  Are you in need? The Almighty can do great things for you. Holy is His Name! He has mercy in every generation. He can lift up the lowly and accomplish all things. Reach out today.

  Do not fear: I am with you; do not be anxious: I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.

  ~Isaiah 41:10 (NAB)

  We pray daily, and we especially pray for everyone connected to Pelican Book Group—that includes you! If you have a specific need, we welcome the opportunity to pray for you. Share your needs or praise reports at http://pelink.us/pray4us

  Free Book Offer

  We’re looking for booklovers like you to partner with us! Join our team of influencers today and periodically receive free eBooks and exclusive offers.

  For more information

  Visit http://pelicanbookgroup.com/booklovers

 

 

 
er: grayscale(100%); " class="sharethis-inline-share-buttons">share