A Family This Christmas by Sue MacKay

feet, managing to slosh wine down the front of his trousers. Great, now he had a kitchen and trousers to clean up. Not to mention the stirrings of arousal.
    ‘Go change and bring me those pants. I do know something about removing stains. They won’t end up looking like that chasseur, I promise.’ Her smile turned to a cheeky grin. ‘And watch where you’re going this time.’
    He spun around, took long, fast steps away from her. If she saw the bulge at the front of his pants she’d call the harassment police. Since when did his lack of a sex life matter so much? Why had his body leapt to life over Jenny?
    Because she’s beautiful and sexy, and pulls me in with those amazing eyes.
    Note to self:
stay away from that enticing smile. It’s too distracting. Stay away from those eyes. They’re dangerous.
    And as he headed inside he saw the boys sprawled across the floor in front of the TV.
    Second note to self:
make those blasted appointments for haircuts.
    * * *
    Jenny worked the stain out and rinsed the trousers. Hard not to envisage the way this fabric had sat over that firm butt just minutes ago. Thankfully Cam had disappeared inside to remove them. Actually getting an eyeful of his rear view, or the front one, for that matter, if he’d shucked the trousers off outside might’ve given her palpitations.
    Hobbling outside, she hung them on the line. The temperature hovered around twenty so with a bit of luck they’d be dry by the morning.
    Her gaze cruised the yard. Cam didn’t have much of a garden. Guess he didn’t have the time. Or maybe he didn’t have the inclination.
    There was something she’d learned from Mum: how to grow flowers. Nothing more rewarding than seeing beds of brightly coloured freesias, daisies, roses, peonies springing to life over the warm months. To pick a handful of flowers she’d grown and place it in a vase on the table had always made her happy.
    Cam’s talent seemed to be in mowing the lawn in a circle, starting at the outside and working his way into the centre, by the looks of it. Lines from the last cut were still apparent. She could picture him striding out fast, aiming to get the job done before tackling the next chore. He never seemed to stop, always had more than enough to do. Though tonight he had sat down with a wine. Yeah, look how that had quickly turned to a mess.
    At the end of the lawn a swing set looked neglected and unused. She shuffled onto the seat and with her good foot pushed back. When had been the last time she’d been on a swing? With Alison at the park in Surfers Paradise when Mum and Dad had taken them there for a holiday as teenagers. They’d been trying to impress some guys who’d been hanging around and Alison had reckoned they’d look cute on the swings. It had been a big fail.
    Another Alison memory and she wasn’t shaking with despair. Must be something in the Havelock air for her to be feeling more relaxed about everything that had happened. Would she ever come to terms with her grief? No, that would be expecting too much. Take one small step at a time. ‘You lost your mojo in a big way. Don’t rush trying to find it again.’
    ‘Where did you lose your mojo?’ asked one of the twins from behind her.
    ‘What’s a mojo?’ asked the other.
    ‘Can we help you find it?’
    Stopping the swing, she turned to look at the boys. She hadn’t realised she’d been talking out loud until they’d spoken up. ‘Mojo is me, who I am, where I came from and where I’m going. The drive that keeps me going.’
    Two blank faces stared at her.
    ‘I lost it a year ago and now I want to find it so I can be happy again.’ Would they understand that better?
    ‘We can help you.’
    They already were. The boys, along with Cam, treated her so normally that she had started coming alive again. ‘Thank you.’
    ‘If we help you—’
    ‘Will you help us find something?’ Andrew finished the question Marcus had started.
    ‘Sure. What have you lost?’ She