Her Christmas Prince (Love in the Keys) by Caroline A. Godin

nature
of his life and embrace it? And how would she take the news that he
was actually a prince?

    Callie's
alarm went off at 7 a.m. , and she got out of bed with a grin. It
was Christmas, and she loved this quiet time in the morning before
the family craziness began. She went into the kitchen and made
herself a caffe mocha. While it was cooling off, she grabbed her
Bible and read the Luke 2 and took a moment to reflect on the
Christmas story before starting her day.

    She
reached under her tree and picked up Erin's gift. She sat down and
opened it, and it was a beautiful beaded necklace. It would go
perfectly with the dress that Callie had planned to wear for
Christmas day. Erin knew her taste so well. It was a thoughtful
gift.

    She
finished her coffee and went to shower and change. She left her new
pajamas on the bed. Her mother had always bought new pajamas for
them for Christmas E ve and
she'd kept this tradition herself. T his year's were a Snoopy and
Woodstock print, with the two cartoon buddies doing Christmasy things
like decorating the t ree.
She hadn't been able to resist them when she's seen them.

    She
was dressed and ready when Henry buzzed. Callie had had the
forethought to carry down the two boxes of pies and leave them at the
concierge desk. She could see Henry loading them into the SUV as
she exited the elevator and she smiled. She also had a bag
containing the gifts for Henry and her cousin Rayna, and a big box of
cookies to take to church.

    Henry
took her parcels and placed them in the back seat of the SUVs with
pies. He gently took her face between his hands and kissed her.

    “ Merry
Christmas, lovely.” Callie smiled. She felt warm and glowing
from the kiss.

    “ Merry
Christmas to you, too.”

    They
got into the SUV and Callie directed him to her parents’ home a
few minutes away. They had a rancher, a single level long and wide
bungalow on a large lot overlooking the canal. Her father had
strung the lights and they had a beautiful nativity scene on the
front lawn. For as long as Callie could remember, this was how the
house looked at Christmas.

    “ Very
festive.” Henry admired her father's handiwork. Not overdone,
simple and well thought out. He liked it. It was a far cry from the
crazy displays they'd seen in Key Largo or even on the boats in Key
West the night before. Much more his style.

    Henry
easily carried the boxes of pies to the porch of the house, then came
back to collect his own bag of goodies, which included gifts, the
champagne he'd promised Milly, and a seasonal bouquet of roses,
evergreen and holly.

    He
and Callie walked to the house arm and arm, and stopped at the front
door.

    “ Ready?”
he asked.

    “ I
am if you are.”

    “ Let's
do it.” Callie reached out and knocked on the door loudly
before opening the door and letting them in.

    “ Merry
Christmas, y'all!” A chorus of reciprocal greetings met her.
Her mother and aunts were in the kitchen, while the men were outside
setting up the Big Green Egg in preparation for the turkey. Callie
dropped her parcels and handbag on the hall table, and guided Henry
to the kitchen with the pies.

    “ Calista!
And Henry! Merry Christmas.”

    Henry
presented her mother with the bouquet of flowers and the bottles of
champagne that Callie had carried in for him .
And Milly positively beamed.

    “ Are
those the pies? I'm so glad you had time to make them, you always do
such a nice job.” Callie was surprised by her mother's
praise. Her aunts immediately descended on Henry, who was his usual
charming self. Auntie Jolie, who was her youngest aunt and more a
friend than an auntie, gave her a big thumbs up behind Henry's back
and Callie blushed.

    “ Thanks,
mom. Happy to help. Is there anything I can do?” She took in
the hive of activity in the kitchen.

    “ I
think we're good, honey. We're getting everything ready to go into
the oven. Why don't you introduce Henry around and get ready for
gift opening? We'll be in