Christmas Surprises (7 page)

"This one is Andrew, right?," she asked, staring back at the toddler.

"No, that's Ben," Gracie said, grinning.  "These two are --"

"Andrew and Lydia!" 

There was Rachel, with Micah close behind her, going down on her knees to catch the two small children.  "Look at you guys!," she squealed.  "So big!"

"You already looking for something to eat?," Micah asked his cousin, the two of them hugging in that cool guy, partial hug that only men do.

"You know it," Jacob grinned.  "Grant was telling me that --"

"Rachel," Gracie began, "I was just telling Maddie --"

And everyone was talking at once, moving into the house, leaving Maddie alone in the entryway... just as the bell rang again.

"I'll get it," she said to no one in particular.  Huck, maybe, she thought with a small grin.

The grin stayed there, even as she opened the door, wondering at the couple that stood on the other side, one of whom she'd only briefly met a handful of times.

"Mrs. Johnson," she said a moment later.  "Merry Christmas."

"It's Natalie," the woman said, smiling brightly.  "So good to see you, Madison."

"Well, come in," Maddie said, standing aside.  "And I've not met you yet," she said, holding her hand out to the man who, even now, was holding Micah's mother's hand in his own.

"Oh," Natalie said, visibly flustered, "this is Brian Kirkland."

And before Brian or Maddie could say anything or make further introductions, they all heard Micah's voice coming from the entryway where he stood, obvious surprise on his face as he looked them all over.

"Brian Kirkland," he said simply.  "Who are you?"

CHAPTER two

Rachel

Her mother-in-law had brought a man to Christmas Eve dinner.

A man she was clearly involved with as Rachel had watched him lean down and whisper something in her ear as they'd moved from the entryway to the dining room earlier, after Jacob had mercifully dragged a shocked Micah back to the kitchen. 

Yes, he leaned down to whisper something to her, and she'd closed her eyes and smiled in that way that said a whole lot more than any "surprise, I have a boyfriend!" could have.

Boyfriend.  Well, manfriend at her age.

Her mother-in-law had a manfriend.

Well, good for her.

Joy obviously shared Rachel's thoughts as she'd spent the majority of the meal beaming at Brian, who'd done an excellent job of asking her and Taylor all the right questions about their jobs, about the center, about their holiday plans, and telling them the same things about himself.

Rachel wondered if Joy had caught the subtle things Brian hadn't said, things that had been clearly communicated, though, as he'd talked about how Natalie was going to go with him in another week to visit his oldest daughter in Oklahoma, how his grandsons there were more excited about seeing her again than they were about seeing him, given how much they'd missed her in the weeks since she'd last seen them over Thanksgiving.

He'd introduced her to his children already.  Rachel got that and could easily guess why Natalie hadn't done the same in introducing him to her children until now, given the way Micah stared at the guest, animosity in his gaze.

Seriously, Micah?
  Rachel had thought back to the first few times he'd been around Taylor, about how irritable he'd been back then about anyone else coming into his small family, how it had taken weeks for him to get over it and stop being a giant stick in the mud. 

Even as she thought about it, her mind went to another Christmas, long after those rough early days with Taylor, where Micah had gotten his brother-in-law an Xbox, and the two had literally stayed up all night glued to the screen together, alternately screaming and laughing as Rachel and Joy had rolled their eyes at one another. 

Taylor had concluded that Christmas with a hug for Micah, telling him that with this Xbox in their lives now, it was like they had a "bromance."  And Micah had frowned and said, "I have no idea what that even means, Taylor... but I'll expect you back here on New Year's Eve for round two."

From animosity to friendship.  Or a bromance, if you will.  But those days at the beginning had been unpleasant for them all.

More of the same now, likely, except worse as Rachel couldn't recall Micah having ever shot a death glare to Taylor the way he was shooting them at Brian as they dug into Grant's impressive feast.

Merry Christmas, Brian.  Welcome to the family.

Because it was clearly heading that direction.  It had only taken Rachel a few minutes of watching Natalie and her beau before she snuck a glance to her mother-in-law's left hand, expecting to find an engagement ring there.  No ring, but Natalie had seen her glance.  The blush on her face -- good grief, her daughters'
grandmother
was blushing like a schoolgirl -- further confirmed it.

Brian wasn't going to be scared off easily.

But Micah was going to try his best.

"So, Brian," he said, just as Grant was coming back in with another platter of food, "you're a pastor."

"I am," Brian answered.  "Thanks, Grant."

"No problem," Grant answered, smiling, already looking back to the kitchen.

That was another problem.  Grant and Maddie were both acting strange.  True, neither of them had ever been particularly normal anyway with Grant's constant preoccupation and obsession with his restaurant and Maddie always living like there was a better conversation going on in her head ("always writing," she'd told Rachel once to explain her distraction), but they'd been even weirder than normal since arriving that morning.  They'd not spoken more than two words to one another in Rachel's presence, and Maddie kept shooting looks at her husband's back.  Probably would have shot them to his face had Grant ever stopped moving around the kitchen, working like he was.

Best Christmas ever.  Your brother is a workaholic, his wife is on another planet, your mother-in-law is acting like a seventeen year old girl, your husband is being rude to your guest, and you have a demon dog likely tearing up the east wing of your house.

Fix it, Rachel.  Fix it!

"Grant, let me get the rest," she protested... refraining from adding
go sit with your wife, who's been over there all alone at the end of the table with the kids, looking like she's in another world...

"I've got it," he said. "And there are still a few surprises in the oven."

"I like the sound of that," Jacob said, still shoveling his helpings into his mouth.

"You've been at the same church for a while?," Micah asked, his eyes having never left Brian in the meantime.

"Just two years," he said.  "New enough that they don't want to get rid of me just yet."

Polite laughter all around, even as Micah opened his mouth, probably to say something about getting rid of him --

"My dad's a pastor," Gracie said, mercifully interrupting him.  "Jacob's dad is, too.  They've both been pastoring their churches for decades now.  And they've been friends that long, too!  Probably because they both dated Jacob's mom, very nearly at the same time."

"True story," Jacob smiled.

"Well, that sounds like a great story," Brian smiled.

"Is this church your first one?," Rachel asked.

"No, I've been a pastor my whole career.  My church before this one was a longer pastorate," Brian said.  "My girls finished high school while I was there.  It was home."

"Why the move?," Rachel asked, wondering at this.

"My wife... well, she passed on in my last year there.  Ovarian cancer.  It was a long, exhausting season in our lives.  For me and for the church.  And once she was gone, the memories there and all that we'd been through..."  He took a moment then smiled up at her.  "Well, a change was the best thing for all of us."

At that, Natalie reached over and took his hand.

They all noticed that, even Joy, who wiped at her eyes with her napkin. 

"My dad died, too," she said.  "It's so hard when people die."

Brian smiled gently at her.  "I'm sorry to hear that, Joy.  It's so hard.  And there just aren't enough comforting words to make it better sometimes.  But we know that Jesus is going to restore everything one day, and there won't be any more tears or dying either one." 

Well, that was just about perfect.  No wonder Natalie was looking at him like that, like he was just as good and right as he certainly seemed.

Micah was, as expected, totally and completely unimpressed.

"So, you've been a widower for two years," he said.  "Just two years."

Rachel could tell this was headed in a bad direction.

"Yes," Brian nodded.

"Don't you think you're moving kind of fast, then?," he asked, looking pointedly at his mother.

Oh, Micah.  Shut up, sweetheart.  Please, for the love of all that is good and right in the world, just shut up, because this was going to be the best Christmas ever and
--

Thankfully, Grant came in with another platter to distract everyone. 

"One of Maddie's favorites," he murmured.

Rachel watched as Maddie looked up hopefully at her husband... but he was already looking back towards the kitchen.  Again.

These people!  Could they not get it together without her help?!

"Then, sit down and enjoy it with her, Grant," Rachel chided him.  "Seriously, let me --"

"Two more dishes to come," he said, leaving.

"So, Brian," Micah began again.  "What --"

"Why are you being such a buttface, man?," Jacob asked, echoing everyone else's thoughts.

"Daddy said butt!," Andrew yelled. 

"He said butt!," Mia and Zoe echoed.

"Butt!," Taylor yelled.

"Language," Gracie chided, biting back her smile.  "Little ears and all."

Then, they heard barking.

Oh, great.  The demon dog.

"Daddy... bark?," Lydia asked, looking up from her plate.

"No, sweetheart, that wasn't me," Jacob said, looking over at his cousin.  "You barking at me now, Micah?"

"Not me," he said, still glaring at Brian.

Determined that there was enough going on here at this table to ruin the best Christmas ever without the demon dog getting involved, Rachel turned to Taylor.

"Taylor, can you go check on that
thing
we were looking at earlier..."  She raised her eyebrows at him meaningfully.

"What?," he asked.  Then, as Joy poked him.  "Oh!  That
thing
!  Sure thing, Rachel."

And as he left the table, Ben threw his sippy cup across the room and yelled, "Butt!,"  all while laughing uproariously.

"Now, you've done it," Gracie said, going over and taking him out of the high chair.  "We'll be hearing that word for the next two months."

"Well, I was just wondering what Micah's problem was and all," Jacob shrugged.  "I mean, no stress and all, living the good life --"

"I've got stress," Micah interrupted.  "Have to keep an entire office running, long hours at work," then looking over at his mother, "family drama --"

"Yeah," Jacob said, "but you've got a place to live, at least.  Not like us.  Gracie and I've been looking for months now, literally, trying to find a place to rent before we build a house like this, and no one will do a short-term lease.  We're going to end up living with my parents.  And you know how small their place is."

And for the first time during the meal, Micah took his attention off of his mother and her guest and looked at his cousin.  "You know you're all welcome to stay here," he said.  "I've told you that."

"And we appreciate it," Jacob said.  "But it's going to take a while."

"No, Rachel and I've talked about it," he said, glancing over at her for the confirmation that she'd already given, enthusiastically and adamantly.  "We want you staying here.  Six months.  More, less.  Whatever.  We have the room."

Rachel watched him as he made the offer, as the rest of the table gasped.  This is who he was.  Generous and kind.  This is who she'd fallen in love with, not the angry man who was uncomfortable with his mother's happiness.

She loved him a little more watching him as he nodded off Jacob's protests.

"Are you sure?," Gracie asked, tears in her eyes.  "I've been worried that we won't have a place to bring the baby home to."

Rachel's eyes traveled over to Maddie, her mind on the small apartment over Grant's restaurant --

"Bring the baby home to our house," Micah said.  "We have plenty of room.  We want you guys here."