Speedy was standing in the kitchen, chuckling and holding out a cup of coffee along with two ibuprofen. She took the cup and pills, glaring at Speedy over the cup.
His laughter swelled, the sound hurting her ears.
“You’re an evil man, taking joy in my predicament,” Violet growled.
“I’m not. I’m remembering how cute you were last night, saying goodbye to your friends as they dropped you off. You kind of reminded me of when Oprah used to give those big gift parties. Instead ofand you get a gift, you were alland I love you and I love you,” Speedy said, grinning.
Violet sat down at the table. “I do really like them,” she whispered.
“I’m glad you do and that you had fun. Do you remember we’re picking up a tree and decorating the house today?” he asked.
Violet stared at him in horror. She had to function today. The daycare was closed, so she’d thought she and Deacon could have a movie day, build a fort, and generally lay around. She’d forgotten Speedy had said he wanted them all to decorate for Christmas.
Violet was tired but also excited because her mom had never decorated. Violet just wished she felt a little better.
“How about you go shower and get ready? I’ll have breakfast ready for all of us when you’re done,” he said.
Violet nodded. Maybe a hot shower would help her get through today. She really shouldn’t have had that third or fourth PixieCider when she never drank.
She got her clothes from the bedroom and headed toward the shower.
“Lettie, did you hear? We’re getting a tree and decorations. Yay!” Deacon yelled.
Was it too late to crawl back into bed?
Speedy glanced around the SUV he’d borrowed from Locks and wondered what type of vehicle he’d need to get. He’d pretty much ridden his bike since he’d come to Bluff Creek. His dad and mom had a sedan that he needed to do something with, but now that he had kids, he needed to figure out a vehicle that was safe and could carry all the items they’d need.
He turned into the parking lot and found a space.
“Deacon, there are going to be a lot of people in the store. I want you either holding my hand or Violet’s when we’re looking at stuff. We’ll pick out a tree and some decorations,” Speedy said, waiting for Deacon’s okay before getting out and trudging into the store with his family.
The more time he spent getting to know Violet, the less he viewed her as the nanny. And the age gap didn’t seem to be so insurmountable when he saw her smile or hug Deacon.
He couldn’t change their ages. If he kept them apart because of it, he wasn’t sure how he’d handle seeing her fall in love with someone else.
Watching his son get excited about picking out a tree and decorations had him grinning ear to ear. Tessie was asleep in her carrier on the cart. Violet had her phone out and was snapping pictures of Deacon and him together selecting items for the tree.
Speedy bit his lip and tried not to laugh. Their tree wouldn’t be one of those coordinated trees with balls and matching ribbon. He’d told Deacon he could pick out some decorations. Deacon had three different superhero ornaments, a couple of animal ornaments, and he was now tossing in some ornaments he’d found that were snack items.
“Deacon, if you want, we could make some ornaments for the tree too,” Violet suggested.
Deacon nodded. “Yes, David and Grant have ones they made. I want some of those too. Can we get glitter?” he asked.
Violet bent down close. “Yes, and I saw one where we put paint on your hand and make a reindeer.”
Deacon grabbed onto Speedy’s jeans. “Can we, Daddy?” he asked.
“Of course, we have the tree with lights and some ornaments. Should we get anything like a wreath for the front door and what about stockings?” Speedy asked.
“We need stockings,” Deacon said, his eyes wide.
Speedy was glad that they had brought an SUV because he was guessing they might as well stock up.
“Let’s get some wrapping paper and tape, and then we can head to the craft aisle and go to the food aisles last. Violet, toss in anything you think we need or want for kids, crafts, or the house,” Speedy said.
Speedy wondered if the other dads had this feeling of joy all the time. Having his kid smile up at him as Deacon tossed a cute reindeer ornament in the cart made this Christmas very special.
He could go on holding onto his anger about all he’d missed with Deacon but the only person it was hurting was himself. Sure, he could still be angry at Anita, but she’d done the right thing in the end. He had two beautiful children. He’d always long for Deacon’s early years that he missed, but it made Speedy just more determined to make every moment with the kids count.
