An Emerald Cove Christmas by Lilly Mirren

Author:Lilly Mirren [Mirren, Lilly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Black Lab Press

Chapter 15

Cindy

The music was turned up too high. Cindy could barely hear herself think. She wiped a stray strand of hair from her eyes and smeared flour across her cheek. It wafted down to the bench top and made her sneeze. She covered the sneeze with her arm, turning away from the bench, then studied the slab of dough with dismay. She’d sneezed close to the bread dough. She was making a twisted fruit bread for Christmas breakfast and now she should probably toss the entire thing out.

With a sigh, she wiped her cheek again and, wide-eyed in horror at herself, shuffled from the kitchen to sneeze in the living room. Anxiety twisted in her gut. There was far too much to do in too short a time. Why had she offered to host Christmas at the last moment? She’d been unwell and, even though she felt much better now, she shouldn’t have taken on so much. But Sarah needed her, and whenever her children were sinking, she was the first to dive in to rescue them from turgid waters, no matter if it cost her.

“What was I thinking?” she asked Athol, who stood poised over the mantle on a ladder, a wreath in his hands and a nail between his lips.

He set down the wreath and climbed from the ladder to fetch a hammer from the coffee table. “You’ll have to be more specific, I’m afraid my love.”

She pressed her hands to her hips. “We weren’t even supposed to be in town for the holidays, so I hadn’t prepared. Now, I’ve got to get everything ready at the last moment. The house is a disaster, the food isn’t cooked, and I just sneezed on the twisted fruit loaf.” She wanted to cry, her throat ached, and her head felt a little dizzy from the new medication she was taking.

Athol walked to her and took her in his arms. She pressed against his chest, as his arms enveloped her with warmth. “Never mind all that. The kids are coming to see us. Not a clean house. And whatever we serve will be fine. Don’t get worked up — we know what matters and so does the family.”

She relaxed in his arms. He was right. For so many years she’d striven for the perfect Christmas decorations and meals. Her imperfect marriage had caused her so much sorrow, she’d tried to hide her shame under a layer of perfection. But now she knew those things didn’t matter, since she had Athol and her children, even little Leo this year. And that was what mattered. She shouldn’t let anything interrupt her peace and the joy of the holiday season.

With a smile, she pulled away from Athol to look into his deep brown eyes. “When did you get so wise?”

“It comes with the grey hair,” he replied, tugging at his locks.

She laughed. “Mine’s not so grey yet, so maybe it’ll come to me as well.”

“I don’t know. You don’t wear glasses either, and I think they’re part of the equation.

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