Saxon frowns. “One more?”
She crawls under the tree like a tiny determined raccoon and emerges with a small wrapped box—red paper, white ribbon, and a tag. She squints dramatically as she reads it.
“To: Saxon From: Santa”
Her eyes go wide. “Santa brought you a present!”
Saxon shifts, confused. “I didn’t—I didn’t put anything under there for me.”
Junie thrusts the box into his lap. “You have to open it!”
I watch him. My pulse thrums steadily in my ears.
He looks at the box like it’s suspicious—like it might explode. “Why does Santa have your handwriting?”
I shrug innocently into my coffee mug. He narrows his eyes.
“Open it!” Junie begs.
He sighs, undoing the bow with the same careful precision he uses on hoses and rescue lines. He peels back the wrapping paper, opens the small box—and freezes exactly the way he did when Junie asked if he would be her dad.
Inside is a tiny fireman’s onesie. Black fabric. Silver reflective stripes. A little patch that says “Firefighter in Training.”
He stares at it like his brain can’t compute what his eyes are seeing. Then he lifts the sleeve. And beneath it—the pregnancy test. Positive. Bright. Unmistakable. Life-changing.
Time stops.
Saxon doesn’t speak.
Doesn’t breathe.
Doesn’t even blink.
“Is that a baby shirt?” Junie asks, leaning dangerously close to the test.
Saxon’s throat works once. “Briar…”
I set my coffee down carefully—my hands shaking too much to trust my grip—and slide closer, touching his knee. “Yeah.”
He lifts the onesie again, staring at it, then at the test, then at me.
“You’re—” His voice breaks.
“I am.”
He swallows hard, jaw trembling once before he clamps it down so tight I can feel the strain of it. For a full ten seconds, he’s silent. Then he drops the onesie and pulls me straight into his arms. He holds me like he’s been drowning for years and only just found air. His face presses to my neck. His breath shakes against my skin. His hands grip my back, palms spreading wide like he’s trying to feel all of me at once.
“You’re pregnant?” he croaks.
“Yeah,” I whisper. “About six weeks.”
Another breath punches out of him.
“When did you?—?”
“Found out yesterday morning. I wanted to tell you after the fundraiser but then…” I glance at Junie. “Everything happened.”
He leans back, eyes burning, hands cupping my face. “You—you gave me a baby for Christmas?”
