“Time to go, baby.”
“Aby!” Mia squealed as Brando hauled her up, going for the area where we kept the jackets hung up.
Sufficiently bundled for a blizzard, except for Brando, the three of us set out in the snow.
It took us longer than usual.
Mia refused to ride in the sleigh. She wanted us each to take a hand so she could walk, her tiny boots crushing the snow as she attempted to hurry toward all the adventures that awaited her.
It was a big world in her small eyes, and she was eager for it.
Her strong curiosity and verve for life made Brando anxious. She was a fearless little soul. A bit like the pot calling the kettle hot if you asked me, but I refrained from saying it aloud. I doubted most would consider swimming with great white sharkssomething fun to dothe norm.
He did.
Though he’d once said that being in love with me was a scarier prospect. Little wonder. If there was a monster nearby, he or she would find me.
Sometimes it was much broader than that. They’d hunt for me.
The day was too beautiful to waste in the devil’s playground, though, so in between our stops, I decided to enjoy the time with my family.
When we weren’t keeping Mia between us, holding her hands to keep her steady enough to walk, Brando carried her, his free hand holding mine.
I pulled the sleigh to carry all of the baked goods. It also helped to keep people from coming too close. The streets were packed, despite the snow, and the village was busy. Fireworks were set to go off in celebration of the upcoming new year, and people flocked to the mountains to see it.
“Tell me how long you’ve wanted children,” he said out of the blue.
“Me?”
He looked behind. “No, that woman there—” He jutted his chin toward some random woman on the street.
“Smart—man,” I said, catching myself. “I’ve always wanted them.”
He grinned, but I knew it was at my smart—man comment. “When did you know you wanted them with me?”
“Are you being serious right now?”
“Am I grinning?”
“One can never tell,” I muttered. “The eighth wonder of the world.” Then I shook my head at the serious look he gave me. “The night in the snow—the first night we…connected. After I ran home and found your picture in Elliott’s room, Imighthave wondered what our children were going to look like.”
He stopped. I stopped. Small drifts of snow twirled between us, caught in a surge of air.
“What?”
His expression was so like Mia’s when she asked a simple question but gave you a fierce stare with it, I looked between them. It was the exact look when she would askdhat?,wanting us to explain in further detail.
It had innocent anticipation written all over it. I had to bite my lip to keep from exploding with laughter.
I shrugged, feigning nonchalance. “Have you looked in a mirror?”
“What does that have to do with this—” He nodded to Mia.
She gave him a big smile, her nose red from the cold. He smiled back, kissing her cheek.
“At the time—a lot. You’re beyond…fine, and I wanted you. All of you.” I lifted my eyebrows, hoping the gesture communicated the words I couldn’t say in front of Mia.
His lifted his in return, but not on purpose. He’d caught on.
