scoots his chair back.
“I’ll be
right back.”
I wonder
who it could be? Surely not work on Thanksgiving. I shrug it off and finish my
dinner, and then help clear the table and clean the kitchen. With all of us
chipping in, the chores are done quickly and we all settle in with glasses of
wine or coffee to chat and recover from the delicious Thanksgiving meal.
Finally,
Isaac returns from his phone call, a frown on his handsome face. “Who was
that?”
“It was
nothing.” He shakes his head and walks to the kitchen to pull a beer out of the
fridge before sitting next to me on the couch.
“It was
some one ,” I respond.
He shakes
his head again and takes a pull from his beer. “Don’t worry about it.”
I frown up
at him. This is new. It’s not that we have to share every little detail about
who we talk to, but we usually do. He’s never been evasive before.
Before I
can argue with him, he takes my hand in his and links our fingers, bringing
them up to his lips. “Just drop it.”
He grins
down at me and winks, then strikes up a conversation with Will about his
football season with the Seahawks, effectively closing the subject. With a full
belly, and a warm fire blazing not far away, I settle in next to my firm
husband, rest my head on his muscular shoulder, and watch the activity around
me.
“Stacy,
here are the photos we took last week of Sophie,” Natalie hands me a thumb
drive. “I think you’ll like them.”
“Oh, I
know I’ll love them! Thanks again for doing it. I’ll order Christmas cards next
week.” I grin at her as she takes a seat across from me with Jules.
Jules and
Nat have their heads together, as usual, cooing over a sleeping Sophie. I smile
at the three of them. Three beautiful girls. I pull my phone out of my pocket
and snap a photo of them.
Sam sits
next to them and kisses Sophie’s head, and I snap another photo.
All of our
parents are settled around the dining room table with coffee, chatting about
grandkids and Christmas plans.
Will and
Isaac ramble on about football, with Matt, their other brother, and Luke
chiming in here and there. Mark saunters in from the kitchen, passes Luke
another beer and joins them. The only one missing is Caleb, who is off on some
SEAL mission.
I hope
he’ll be home for Christmas.
“You
okay?” Isaac whispers.
“Mmm.”
He grins
down at me and kisses my hair. My eyes are heavy. I let my eyelids fall and
listen to the conversations around me.
“I’ll be
back in a minute.” Isaac catches my chin in his fingers and kisses me softly. I
never get tired of his lips. My man can kiss. He moves away from me and lowers
me onto the couch so my head is on the armrest and I feel him walk away from
me.
Will, Luke
and Mark are enthralled in football talk, passionately arguing about the
offensive line.
Suddenly,
my eyes blink open and I wonder how long I’ve slept. I didn’t mean to drift
off.
Our moms
have left their husbands at the table and joined the rest of us girls in the
living room. My mom cradles Sophie in her arms, earning a frown from Jules.
“I never
get to hold her. Between Natalie and you guys, I never get her.”
“Don’t
whine,” Natalie mutters.
“Shut up,”
Jules responds, and I giggle. They are so funny, even when they bicker.
“Stace,
I’m glad the blog is going well,” Luke’s mom Lucy says with a smile.
“Thanks,
me too. I just need something to do while I’m home with Sophie. Don’t get me
wrong, I’m not bored, but I just…” How do I explain that I need something, just
for me, without sounding selfish?
“I get
it,” Lucy responds.
“So, let’s
talk strategy, girls.” Jules rubs her hands together and perches at the edge of
the couch with a large stack of newspaper ads. “Black Friday.” She grins
excitedly and bounces on the cushion, her pretty blonde hair bouncing with her,
licks her finger and grabs the ad on top, flipping through it.
“I’m not
going at 4:00 am this time,” Natalie
“I’ll be
right back.”
I wonder
who it could be? Surely not work on Thanksgiving. I shrug it off and finish my
dinner, and then help clear the table and clean the kitchen. With all of us
chipping in, the chores are done quickly and we all settle in with glasses of
wine or coffee to chat and recover from the delicious Thanksgiving meal.
Finally,
Isaac returns from his phone call, a frown on his handsome face. “Who was
that?”
“It was
nothing.” He shakes his head and walks to the kitchen to pull a beer out of the
fridge before sitting next to me on the couch.
“It was
some one ,” I respond.
He shakes
his head again and takes a pull from his beer. “Don’t worry about it.”
I frown up
at him. This is new. It’s not that we have to share every little detail about
who we talk to, but we usually do. He’s never been evasive before.
Before I
can argue with him, he takes my hand in his and links our fingers, bringing
them up to his lips. “Just drop it.”
He grins
down at me and winks, then strikes up a conversation with Will about his
football season with the Seahawks, effectively closing the subject. With a full
belly, and a warm fire blazing not far away, I settle in next to my firm
husband, rest my head on his muscular shoulder, and watch the activity around
me.
“Stacy,
here are the photos we took last week of Sophie,” Natalie hands me a thumb
drive. “I think you’ll like them.”
“Oh, I
know I’ll love them! Thanks again for doing it. I’ll order Christmas cards next
week.” I grin at her as she takes a seat across from me with Jules.
Jules and
Nat have their heads together, as usual, cooing over a sleeping Sophie. I smile
at the three of them. Three beautiful girls. I pull my phone out of my pocket
and snap a photo of them.
Sam sits
next to them and kisses Sophie’s head, and I snap another photo.
All of our
parents are settled around the dining room table with coffee, chatting about
grandkids and Christmas plans.
Will and
Isaac ramble on about football, with Matt, their other brother, and Luke
chiming in here and there. Mark saunters in from the kitchen, passes Luke
another beer and joins them. The only one missing is Caleb, who is off on some
SEAL mission.
I hope
he’ll be home for Christmas.
“You
okay?” Isaac whispers.
“Mmm.”
He grins
down at me and kisses my hair. My eyes are heavy. I let my eyelids fall and
listen to the conversations around me.
“I’ll be
back in a minute.” Isaac catches my chin in his fingers and kisses me softly. I
never get tired of his lips. My man can kiss. He moves away from me and lowers
me onto the couch so my head is on the armrest and I feel him walk away from
me.
Will, Luke
and Mark are enthralled in football talk, passionately arguing about the
offensive line.
Suddenly,
my eyes blink open and I wonder how long I’ve slept. I didn’t mean to drift
off.
Our moms
have left their husbands at the table and joined the rest of us girls in the
living room. My mom cradles Sophie in her arms, earning a frown from Jules.
“I never
get to hold her. Between Natalie and you guys, I never get her.”
“Don’t
whine,” Natalie mutters.
“Shut up,”
Jules responds, and I giggle. They are so funny, even when they bicker.
“Stace,
I’m glad the blog is going well,” Luke’s mom Lucy says with a smile.
“Thanks,
me too. I just need something to do while I’m home with Sophie. Don’t get me
wrong, I’m not bored, but I just…” How do I explain that I need something, just
for me, without sounding selfish?
“I get
it,” Lucy responds.
“So, let’s
talk strategy, girls.” Jules rubs her hands together and perches at the edge of
the couch with a large stack of newspaper ads. “Black Friday.” She grins
excitedly and bounces on the cushion, her pretty blonde hair bouncing with her,
licks her finger and grabs the ad on top, flipping through it.
“I’m not
going at 4:00 am this time,” Natalie
Similar Books
