Santa's Secret by JA Armstrong

Author:JA Armstrong [Armstrong, JA]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bumbling Bard Creations
Published: 2023-12-13T16:00:00+00:00

THURSDAY EVENING

“Tired?” Rowan asked.

“Should I answer that honestly?” Charlotte enjoyed kayaking with Rowan. Rowan was mesmerized by the scenery, excited to explain how the glaciers formed and how the island came to be. But it had been years since Charlotte spent that much time paddling.

“Charlotte, if you want me to head home so you can rest, all you need to do is say so.”

“I don’t.”

“Missing Magda?”

“I will confess there are moments when I enjoy a little time to myself, but that feeling never lasts long. It doesn’t feel right in the house without her here. I’m glad she’ll be back on Monday.”

“She’s a terrific kid,” Rowan said.

“Yes. She is,” Charlotte agreed. “I always thought I’d have a house full.”

“A house full?”

“Of kids.”

Rowan reclined on the sofa and sipped her wine.

“Does that surprise you?” Charlotte wondered.

“It doesn’t surprise me that you wanted more children. I don’t want to pry.”

“But why didn’t I have more kids?”

“You don’t need to tell me anything,” Rowan said.

“I seem to tell you everything.” Except one thing.

Rowan smiled. “You can tell me anything.”

Charlotte had heard that promise before. You can tell me anything. That never guaranteed her disclosure would be met with understanding, much less acceptance. She never shared her feelings about having more children with anyone.

“Hey,” Rowan said. “It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about this.”

“It’s not that.”

“I’m a pretty good listener,” Rowan said.

Charlotte smiled. “Things changed when I moved back here. Everything changed.”

“I’ll go out on a limb and guess the biggest thing was your relationship with Fiona.”

“Good guess. We met during our freshman year at college but didn’t get together until I was in my graduate studies. She was brilliant and full of life. Fiona loved adventure. That’s the reason I thought we could make moving here work.” Charlotte sighed. “I didn’t expect my parents to ask me to return until Magda was older.”

“Until you had a chance to have more children,” Rowan said.

Charlotte nodded and traced the rim of her wineglass with a fingertip. “You haven’t met my parents yet. They’re wonderful, Rowan. I think I was the luckiest kid on the planet. They are loving and supportive—kind. I wouldn’t call them textbook parents.” Charlotte giggled. “But they’re the type of people every child deserves to have as parents.”

Rowan smiled. She intended to listen to Charlotte without making any comments or asking questions.

“They were young when they got married. My dad was twenty-two, and my mom was only eighteen. They had me two years later. And then they struggled to have another baby. My mom doesn’t talk about it much. This isn’t exactly a hub for fertility clinics. And it wasn’t a time when that type of medicine was easily accessible in most places.” Charlotte grinned at the unspoken question twinkling in Rowan’s eyes. “It’s a little strange. We’ve never talked about our ages.”

“Age isn’t important to me,” Rowan said.

“So, you’re not afraid to ask how old I am?”

“No. Are you afraid to ask me?”

“I’d guess we’re about ten years apart. I just had my forty-sixth birthday,” Charlotte said.

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.