Flawlessly Executed (Dark Horse Guardians Book 3) (27 page)

~ Ben ~

He hadn’t selected a Christmas tree since he could remember…the last time was during his childhood, if you didn’t count the joke ones while he was deployed. Waiting at the airport for William to get off the plane, he wondered how to even set up a Christmas tree. William would help him. He wanted to surprise Lara with a fully decorated tree by the time she got home today. Standing in the crowd waiting for passengers to walk down the long ramp, for a moment he wondered if William had grown.

“Hey, Dad!” Ben heard him before he saw him, but it was William’s voice. The blonde ten-year old emerged from the crowd brushing past him and he felt his son’s arms firmly around his waist.

“Hey, Will, damn it’s good to see you.” Ben hugged him tightly and ran his hand through William’s thick blonde hair. “We have a secret mission to go on before Lara gets home. Can you help me find a Christmas tree?”

“Sure, Dad!” William was filled with energy and excitement. His eyes lit up as he walked with Ben toward the baggage carousel.

“How was the flight?” Ben asked, not knowing how to start a conversation.

“It was okay. I like first class. Hey, there’s my bag!” William exclaimed.

Ben tossed William’s baggage into the pick-up truck and before driving out of the parking lot he turned to William.

“I have a confession to make.” Ben started, “I don’t know where to buy the tree, or how to decorate one, because it’s been a long time…” his voice trailed off.

“I’ll help you, Dad.” William said solemnly. He watched his son tap his iPhone and within minutes he had several options to buy a fresh tree. “Let’s try this place, it’s a farm about five miles from where you live.” Ben laughed but thought:
Why didn’t I think of that? It’s so simple.

“First things first,” Ben glanced at William as he drove to Clearwater Farm, “Have you had anything to eat? Are you thirsty?”

William was animated, “I’m starving and will pretty much eat anything.”

Ben was driving by the ancient hamburger joint with the neon sign that bore the simple word,
Lunch
. “This guy makes a great cheeseburger and they serve hand cut French fries ~ wanna stop?”

“Yes,” William’s voice squeaked.

Ben pulled over and the two of them placed an order at the counter and took a number. They sat at the table in the corner by the window. Examining William’s features, Ben realized how much he’d matured in a year’s time. William was growing and changing taking on the appearance of a young man rather than a small boy. He had his mother’s features and Ben imagined what he’d look like as an adult. Probably handsome.

William’s blue eyes gazed at Ben, “What are you thinking, Dad?”

“Just that it’s good to see you…” Ben said. Their number was called and Ben went to the counter, got the tray filled with food and brought it back to the table. There was a moment of silence as the two of them ate in record time.

“I didn’t realize how hungry I was.” Ben laughed wiping melted cheese from his lips.

“Jeez, Dad, these are awesome!” William managed to say between mouthfuls.

“Wanna stop at that Christmas tree farm?” Ben offered as he put the trash into the container.

“Yes,” William said, and he scrambled into the front seat of Ben’s pick-up eager to go.

At Windy Knolls, the Christmas tree farm, that Ben never knew existed five miles from his house, William picked out a beautiful tree and Ben bought it and loaded it into the bed of the pick-up taking care not to damage it. William also found a unique tree stand, something Ben would have forgotten.

“We have to put it up and let it acclimate to the house before we decorate it.” William informed him.
How did this kid know so much about trees? Ben had no idea.

“Mom is always sick at Christmas, so I am the one that gets the Christmas tree for her. I know a lot about this stuff. You probably noticed.” William uttered matter-of-factly. For a moment, Ben’s heart sank.

He knew William had to make his own Christmas due to Sienna’s failing health and deep depression. It suddenly struck him that William knew a lot about being alone for Christmas, but it was a different type of loneliness. One where you were surrounded by people but they weren’t really participating. William created his own holiday spirit, much like Ben did when deployed. If it wasn’t for the camaraderie of his men and the joking around they did, Christmas would’ve been bleak indeed.

The moment the truck pulled into Clearwater Farm’s long driveway, William squealed, “Oh, Dad, it’s more beautiful than the pictures Lara sent to me!”

“It’s cold and windy now, but you should see it in the summer.” Ben said with a hint of happiness. He loved the place, more than he could have imagined.

After getting the tree into the house and greeting Einstein, the two set the tree into the stand, filled it with water and found the perfect place in the living room.

“While the tree acclimates,” Ben said, “Let’s you and I go to a store to get some decorations. I have no idea where to get this stuff…” Ben watched as his son tapped his iPhone and located a nearby store.

“You want to go here, Dad. It’s expensive, but they have the best stuff. Mom always goes to Nordstrom.” William said with finality.

Ben laughed. “Well, I’m glad I have
you
to help me with this. It would be a disaster, otherwise.”

As William climbed into the truck he said something that melted Ben’s heart, “I understand, Dad. You’re a Navy SEAL. I wouldn’t expect you to know about these things. You are doing more important things, and that’s okay…”

The trip to Nordstrom was eye-opening for Ben. William navigated him through the store and expertly picked everything out, even the star for the top and a special electrical strip to plug the lights into. Ben glanced at the time realizing Lara could be home within the hour. He wanted nothing more than to have the tree decorated and William standing there ready to embrace her when she arrived.

His phone buzzed, and he recognized Lara, “Keegan,” he automatically said, then heard her giggle on the other end.

“Where are you? Has William arrived?” Lara asked.

“I’m just arriving home. And, yes I have him with me.” Ben replied. “When do you expect to be here?”

“I have a quick stop to make on the way home. Say hi to Will for me. I won’t be more than an hour.” Lara said and the phone call ended.

“Good!” Ben looked into William’s eyes with enthusiasm, “We have a whole hour to do this!”

William flashed a perfect smile.

~ Lara ~

She was eager to get home to see Will and spend a quiet evening with her always too busy husband. But there was one little Christmas detail she wanted to attend to before heading home. Chip Alston at the yacht club said he’d be around late afternoon and when she pulled into the boat storage area she saw his truck. A light dusting of snow covered the ground which was not yet frozen. She inhaled the temperate sea air as she walked toward the 40-foot Hinckley sloop wrapped for its winter sleep. Alston, the manager of the boatyard met her just beneath the stern of the vessel.

“God, it looks
huge
out of the water on boat stands!” Lara said.

“Yup. She’s got a big keel. This is one of my favorite sloops. Quality.” Chip muttered. He barely looked at her.

“Thank you for sticking around,” Lara shook his hand as his eyes finally met hers.

He was covered with grease and smelled of diesel fuel. He wore open tipped gloves, a heavy wool jacket and a fleece hat that fit snugly on his head.

“So you want a
big red bow
…that’s what you said on the phone.” Chip said.

“Yes, is that something difficult to do?” Lara whispered.

“Nope, I can do anything. Christmas present?” he asked.

“Yes, I want to surprise him, my husband.” She replied. “He used to be in the Navy.”

“Free of charge.” Chip said suddenly, surprising her.

“Oh, no! I want to pay you for this.” Lara insisted.

“Nope. Navy vet free of charge. I’ll make this look real nice. Put your wallet away.” Chip’s eyes creased when he smiled and he looked her straight in the eye.

“Thank you.” Was all Lara could mutter, stunned.

“I live next door here in a little apartment…I’ll be around Christmas day for you, just text me the time.” Chip offered.

“I’ll do that.” Lara said.

Overwhelmed, Lara shook his hand again, “Thank you. I mean really, thank you so much, sir.”

She stopped at the Town Market to pick up a few of Will’s favorite snacks, even though Ben had gone grocery shopping. She wanted this Christmas to be special for Will in every way. It was all about him and Ben being home for once together.

As she drove home she realized this Christmas would be for her, too. She never had a normal Christmas since her father died. This would be like the old days when she was happy and didn’t know about the pain and suffering of grief and loss. Although she intended to be happy, the thought of Eliot’s death, then Hawk’s surfaced to temper her joy. And, she knew Ben would be thinking about Jake more than he would let on.

Although they would honor the dead, Lara knew this was a time to get on with living. Christmas always filled her with a feeling of rebirth, starting over. She shunned the commercialism and embraced the little things; hot cocoa in front of the fire, reading a good book, spending time with family and friends. Getting snowed in for a day during winter had a way of slowing life down. She looked forward to the change in seasons for that very reason.

~ William ~

Decorating the Christmas tree with his father was a special treat he never expected. William discovered so many things about his father since getting into his truck at the airport. He shared the same love of cheeseburgers and was fun to go shopping with. William was amazed his father hadn’t decorated a Christmas tree since his childhood.
What sort of life had he been living?

Lara came through the door and William ran to her.

“Couldn’t wait to see you!” he hugged her tightly.

“Oh, Will, it’s so good to see you!” Lara felt her throat tighten.

“Look, Dad wanted to surprise you!” William tugged her into the living room.

William smiled as he watched Lara’s face light up. Her eyes stared as she took in the most perfectly formed Christmas tree in the world. William thought it looked like something out of a magazine.

“Wow, you guys did a great job! I love it!” Lara squealed. William beamed.

Then he watched her eyes connect with his dad’s. His dad’s smile was instant. He’d never seen anyone so happy to be together. They kissed. William thought about kissing a girl once but didn’t dare to. He wasn’t sure if she liked him. Guys had to be certain, he decided. One thing was sure, there was love in Lara’s eyes when she looked at his dad. He could tell. Seeing them kiss made William happy. He turned away for a moment and blushed, but he felt joy inside.

Lara brought all sorts of things from the market for him, she remembered everything he liked. He could tell she liked him too. Maybe she loved him. He knew he loved her. She was easy to love. She made him feel welcome and comfortable.

“Hey, Will, have you been through the house yet?” Lara asked.

“Yeah, Dad gave me a tour. I like this house.” William informed her.

“Let’s roast marshmallows in the fireplace tonight?” Lara said.

“Can we make s’mores?” William asked.

“Certainly…” Lara got out the graham crackers and Hershey bars. “I remembered!”

After dinner, dad asked him to take Einstein for a short walk around the neighborhood with him. He wondered what it would be like to walk Einstein everyday with his father. When he looked up at his dad’s face while walking, William wondered if he knew how much he loved him. Even though he wasn’t a constant presence in his life, William reasoned he was a good guy. He meant well. He just had a life that was busy. But his dad seemed to know what he wanted. He had a sense of purpose about him. William hoped one day he could be that sure of himself.

~ Ben ~

Ben observed William as he loosely held Einstein’s leash and let him lead the way. The dog knew the route by heart. Ben wished he knew as much about his son as he did his dog. Even though he hadn’t seen William in quite a while, he had been sending e-mails to him on a regular basis always with a photograph embedded so William would know what he was up to. Silly photos, really. A selfie in a grocery store, or standing on the beach after a run. He even had Lara take a photo of his beat-up Dodge pick-up with him standing next to Einstein.

He wondered if William would love him if he really knew what he did for a living. Killing bad guys seemed so glamorous until you really had to do it. He didn’t want to talk about his profession during William’s visit. He wanted to know much more about William. He just didn’t know where to start. Using his interrogation skills he gently coaxed his son.

“So, what’s your favorite thing to do?” Ben asked.

“I like computer games and hanging out with my friends and playing soccer.” William answered.