A Merry Little Christmas (3 page)

F
ive. Jeremiah counted them. One, two, three, four, five. Five people on his driveway looking at him with expectant faces, shining eyes, eager smiles—as though he were Santa Claus.

“Oh, and they do have a dog,” Lara Crane said. “Wisdom and Justice found it in a garbage bin and brought it home. It’s just a puppy.”

A
dog.
Jeremiah rubbed his temples. Suddenly he felt like a two-ton weight had dropped on his shoulders. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at his sons. They wore the exact same expression as the Muraya family.

Please, Dad, please.
He could almost hear them pleading. It was like the time they just
had
to have a toy Millennium Falcon from the
Star Wars
collection. Or a trip to Six Flags amusement park. Or a basketball goal mounted on the side of the garage. The desire for any number of things had made his sons act as if their lives depended on getting whatever it was.

But this was no toy or vacation trip. These were human beings. Five of them. And a dog.

He looked at Lara Crane. This was her fault. She had somehow coerced Daniel. Jeremiah’s son—always a sucker for an appeal from a pretty woman—would give away his last dollar if he thought it might help a lady in need. Tall, attractive, with a mop of shoulder-length strawberry blonde curls, the program director looked too young to have an advanced degree. Probably only in her midthirties, the woman would have no realistic idea what she was asking of him. No doubt she had come into her position all starry-eyed and full of goodwill. She probably expected people to fall all over themselves with joy over the privilege of housing her international students.

“I can’t have a dog on the property,” Jeremiah told her. “My landscaping was just redone this summer—”

“With a new fence around the pool and another one around the backyard,” Benjamin spoke up. “It would be cool to have a dog.”

“We’ve always wanted a dog,” Daniel said. The light of pleading in his blue eyes was growing stronger by the minute. “Dad, I didn’t realize there was a whole family when I brought it up to Dr. Crane. But why not?”

“The cottage only has two bedrooms, for one thing.”

“The Murayas have been living in a single motel room for three months.” Lara Crane was insidiously leading Jeremiah’s sons toward the family. “Two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom will feel like a mansion. I’m sure they’ll take good care of your property, Mr. Maddox.”

Jeremiah couldn’t help but follow the group, tagging along behind, hoping he could somehow put a stop to the inevitable meeting. And then it was too late. Benjamin knelt and shook hands with the two little boys. Daniel lifted the baby out of his mother’s arms. Peter Muraya laughed with delight as his sons began to cavort happily around the group. Tabitha covered her mouth with her hand and giggled.

“Dad, look at this baby!” Daniel said, swinging toward his lagging father. “He’s a chunk.”

“Here, give me the cottage keys!” Benjamin swiped the ring from Jeremiah’s hand and beckoned. “Come on, everyone. It’s right back here. You’ll love it. There’s room for everyone, and more!”

“Yeah,” Daniel said. “Here, Dad. Take this little guy.”

Before Jeremiah could protest, Daniel lifted Tobias Muraya into his arms. The warm, slightly damp and unexpectedly heavy bundle emitted the fragrance of talcum powder and baby oil. With Jeremiah’s sons holding the hands of Wisdom and Justice, the young African couple hurried off down the driveway and around the garage.

“The Murayas are from Kenya,” Lara Crane said, pausing long enough for the others to go on ahead.

Jeremiah tried to think where Kenya was situated on the continent of Africa. Then he realized he didn’t care. “I appreciate your work,” he told the woman, “but I really can’t have a whole family living in the guest cottage.”

“Peter Muraya is pursuing his doctorate in civil engineering. He hopes to return to Kenya and help rebuild its sagging infrastructure.”

“That’s great, but five people…” Jeremiah looked down at the blue bundle in his arms. Solemn brown eyes in a small round face stared up at him. Eyes like chocolate bonbons shone, encircled by long, curling black lashes.

I’m holding a baby,
Jeremiah thought. I haven’t done this for eighteen years. I don’t hold babies. I’m an architect. I design buildings.

“Tabitha is a great mother.” Lara Crane’s voice broke into his reverie. “She and Peter spent several years apart while he studied for his graduate degree. She practically raised Wisdom and Justice by herself. Then the family was able to be reunited, and nine months later, along came Tobias. He’s been a great blessing to all the Murayas.”

As if on cue, the baby’s face suddenly broke into a broad grin. That was when Jeremiah saw it. A tooth. One tiny white tooth barely poked through the gum on Tobias’s lower jaw. Instinctively, Jeremiah placed his index finger on the tooth…and sure enough. There it was. The baby’s first tooth. Tobias let out a gurgle and clamped down.

“Ow!” Jerking away his finger, Jeremiah looked up sheepishly at Lara Crane.

“They do bite,” she said.

“I’d forgotten. It’s been a long time.”

“Kids grow up fast. Your sons are great, by the way. I was very impressed with Daniel when he visited my office the other day. I think Wisdom and Justice will enjoy being around older boys. I’m sure it will be a positive influence—both ways.”

Jeremiah regarded Lara. He now saw that she had green eyes and a sprinkling of freckles across her nose. Evidently, she had tried to conceal the freckles with makeup. It hadn’t worked. Despite his determination to resent the woman and her interference in his life, he couldn’t deny the delightful effect of those freckles. Dr. Lara Crane was downright cute.

“So, how many international students live at
your
house?” he asked her.

“The university doesn’t allow the students to live with anyone except their own family members. We do pair those in our program with area residents for fellowship and the benefit of cultural exchange, but we’ve found it doesn’t work well to place students in private homes.”

“This situation wouldn’t be against the rules?”

“Your guest cottage is a separate dwelling.” She turned her shoulder on him and started strolling after the group. “Mr. Maddox, you really won’t need to have much interaction with the family if you’d prefer to keep a distance. If I were you, though, I would welcome the opportunity to introduce my sons to another culture.”

“If you were me, you’d know how hard it is to raise kids without taking on a whole extra family. How many children do you have, Dr. Crane?”

“Please call me Lara. I’m single, but I spent the best two years of my life working for a hunger relief agency in Sudan. It changed my whole perspective.”

“Maybe so, but you can’t possibly understand my situation.” Jeremiah accompanied Lara as she rounded the corner of the garage and headed down a path leading to the cottage. “I’ve had sole custody of my sons for the past ten years, and it hasn’t been easy.”

“Peter Muraya would understand that kind of challenge. The Murayas have been trying to raise their children on two different continents and with a very limited income. Peter is not from a wealthy family in Kenya. His father was able to pay school fees only for his oldest son. Peter has four younger brothers and two sisters. So he is the focus of his parents’ dreams and hopes. He was able to get academic scholarships and grants to pay for his schooling, but he also holds down a job as a janitor at Reynolds. In Kenya, Tabitha crocheted bedspreads for a women’s cooperative. She was able to be home with her children and work at the same time. But here, her visa won’t allow her to have a job.”

“Wait a minute. You’re telling me that a Ph.D. candidate in civil engineering is working as a janitor?” Jeremiah found it hard to imagine. “And supporting a family of five?”

“The Murayas will do whatever it takes to succeed,” she said. “It would be helpful, Mr. Maddox, if you could keep the rent low.”

“But I haven’t agreed to this. I need to think it over.” The baby in his arms began to wriggle. He looked down in time to see the bright brown eyes fill with tears as the little mouth scrunched into an unhappy frown. Jeremiah knew from experience that an ear-piercing scream was about to be loosed. He held Tobias toward Lara.

“Here, you take him. He’s not happy.”

“Jiggle him,” she shot back. “I need to make sure the cottage is suitable.”

She stepped through the guesthouse door just as Tobias Muraya began to howl.
Great,
Jeremiah thought. A board meeting. Two teenagers. A wet, crying baby. An unexpected family. And a puppy.

This was
not
going to happen.

While checking the miniblinds for safety features, Lara peeked through the window at Jeremiah Maddox. He was holding Tobias at an awkward angle while the baby waved his tiny arms and bawled, volume increasing by the second.

She watched with amusement. Such a smart, sophisticated, handsome man. And so superior in his views.
I can’t have a dog on the property. My landscaping was just redone this summer.
Well, la-di-dah. Welcome to the real world, Mr. Jeremiah Maddox.

Tabitha Muraya had scampered out the front door the moment she heard her baby’s cries. Now she was lifting Tobias into her arms, balancing him over her shoulder, patting his back, rearranging the blue blanket. She spoke briefly to Jeremiah before hurrying back into the cottage. He stood in silence, then hung his head and rubbed the back of his neck.

Lara had to give the man credit for raising two fine young men. Daniel and Benjamin clearly had a heart for helping others, and they were getting a huge kick out of playing tag with Wisdom and Justice. This cottage would be perfect for the Murayas. It was clean, dry and roomy enough for the family to manage beautifully. Peter could continue his studies in a much better atmosphere, and his older sons wouldn’t even have to change schools.

Outside, Jeremiah let out a deep breath and looked up into the sky. She wondered if he was praying and hoped so. It would be a shame if a man who had so much going for him kept it all to himself. Lara had learned the hard way that following Christ meant taking on a servant attitude, and she wondered why that was so hard for some people to understand.

God had given Jeremiah a great opportunity to help the Muraya family, she thought as she watched him start toward the cottage. As he stepped through the door, she let the blind fall back into place and gave the couch a pat. Solid. Top-quality furniture, a fully equipped kitchen, two large bedrooms and a bath with a jetted tub. This was considerably better than her own cramped little bungalow.

Jeremiah crossed the room, took Lara’s arm and began to lead her away from the hubbub of the running kids and the fussy baby. As he moved, he lowered his head so it was near her ear and spoke in a muted voice. “Listen, I can’t do this. It’s a worthy cause, and I’ll contribute financially to your program. But I just can’t have a family of five living in my backyard.”

Lara halted and looked into his face. Seeking privacy, Jeremiah had propelled her into an alcove with a bay window that faced the yard and the pool. He stood less than a foot away from her, his presence dominating the small space. It was appropriate and quiet for them to speak there, and yet for some reason, Lara felt totally thrown off balance. Suddenly she couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so close to a man. For what felt like ten years, it was all she could think about. This man in his starched white shirt. His dark hair and blue eyes. A trace of cologne mixed with perspiration from playing basketball with his boys. His warm hand on her arm, cupping her elbow, fingers pressing against her skin.

She tried to breathe and couldn’t get the air to go down. Biting her lower lip, she fought for control. Okay, this was ridiculous. She had just broken off a short-term relationship with a man she’d met at church, and they had certainly been this near each other. She regularly shook hands with her foreign students and sometimes met with them alone in her office. It wasn’t as though she had isolated herself from the male gender.

“Did you hear what I said?” Jeremiah asked. His voice rumbled from somewhere down in his chest. “I don’t believe I can do the family justice.”

“Justice,” she managed, “is five years old. He needs a home. You have an extra house.”

“And I have two kids of my own to look after. Listen, Dr. Crane…Lara…teenagers run around here all the time. They’re in and out of the driveway, the house, the backyard, the pool. I can’t be responsible for protecting these folks. The legal ramifications are immense. It’s just not wise.”

“Wisdom is seven.” She was breathing again, her blood pumping and fire flowing back into her chest. “Tobias is five months old. You have room for them. You cannot say no.”

“Yes, I can. This is my guest cottage. It’s reserved for my visitors. People stay here sometimes.”

“So put your visitors up in your house. I doubt you and your two sons take up every square inch of that monster across the yard.”

“Monster?” He leaned closer, his face coming within an inch of hers. “I designed that house. I built that house. That is
my
house.”