Just to See You Smile by Sally John

Author:Sally John
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780736920933
Publisher: Harvest House Publishers, Inc.

Twenty-Five

Anne stood on the landing of their staircase and rubbed sleep from her eyes. She was never the last one to wake up. How in heaven’s name had she managed to do so on Christmas morning? She could hear Alec and the kids in the living room. The girls were reading gift tags and distributing the presents into separate piles. Their family traditions had started without her!

Despite her dismay, she was still groggy. Instead of continuing down the open staircase toward the living room, she turned and went down the enclosed back way to the kitchen. She needed coffee.

She remembered last night. When she went to bed, the kitchen was in a typical postcelebration shape: a mess. At the bottom of the steps, hand on the door that opened into it, she paused and reminded herself to lower her expectations about entering a spotless kitchen. Alec was not a detail person when it came to housework. The room was not going to look the same as it would if she had cleaned it.

She mustered up a Pollyanna take on the day. Okay. It was all right if the kitchen did not meet her standards. The point was Alec had asked what he could do, she had told him, he had offered, and then, last night, she had taken him up on the offer by going straight upstairs after closing the door on the Eatons. She hadn’t looked in the kitchen, and she hadn’t even heard Alec come to bed. He had tried, and that was what counted. Today everyone was on their own for breakfast. She only needed to prepare two dishes to take to her parents’ house later. That would require a little counter space, a cutting board, a knife, a clean bowl, and access to the refrigerator.

She opened the door, peeked around the corner, and studied the kitchen. There was not one inch of uncluttered countertop. Closing her eyes, she leaned against the doorjamb and whispered a prayer, “Lord, if it’s as bad as it looks, please give me the grace to show him mercy.” Lower, Anne, she admonished herself, lower those expectations a little more. Alec does not see things the way you see things.

Tightening her robe belt, she entered the room. Her slippers didn’t stick to the floor. The good china was stacked. Clean, but stacked there rather than on the dining table or put away in the hutch. A few cookie platters were out…uncovered. Two casserole dishes sat atop the stove, their crusted stains soaking in water.

Her breath returned, and she noticed the coffeemaker. Fresh coffee was dripping into the pot. Alec must have heard her moving about upstairs and started it. She wiped a tear threatening to slide down her cheek and sniffed.

“Merry Christmas, sweetheart!” Alec’s voice came from behind her.

She hurriedly sniffed again.

He put his arms around her waist and nuzzled the back of her head. “It’s not too bad, is it?”

“Is that coffee for me?”

“Yes. So, what do you think?”

“It’s…fine.”

“I know it’s not perfect.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.