Jonny saw his eldest steal a look at Rayah who gave him a quick smile.
“It’s for you. It isn’t much. But I thought you’d like it.” The last sentence was clarification, because he knew Charlie needed to say it. Rayah’s coaching.
Jonny opened the paper carefully, glad for Charlie that Sadie and Harry were preoccupied with another present. Rayah was sitting quietly next to them, watching.
It was a slim package and Jonny figured out what it was before it was fully unwrapped.
“Thank you,” he kept his words low, just for Charlie. “You know how I am with these.” It was a pen, fountain, one that needed cartridges, the sort he used to write notes for the kids or whoever was babysitting them. Or the birthday cards he did for the kids’ friends, or invites for Sadie’s parties.
And his eldest son had noticed that.
“I wish it could’ve been more.” Charlie’s voice contained a quality that Jonny didn’t want it to have.
“I don’t. You couldn’t have got me any more.” He’d explain later, when they were on their own. Plus, there was a very badly wrapped package in Charlie’s hands. “Who’s that for?”
“Rayah.”
Jonny watched Rayah’s expression as she took the gift. Surprise, awe, a little hesitation. He guessed she’d helped Charlie wrap the pen, but this she didn’t know about.
Her slim fingers undid the paper, fingers that had covered his skin last night. He still felt the pressure of her touch, how her flesh had felt against his.
“I didn’t expect anything, Charlie,” she said.
“It’s really nothing.”
She paused her wrapping and shook her head at him. “We talked about this.”
His eldest boy smiled, a genuine grin and then curled smaller, looking embarrassed as Rayah revealed a mug with sachets of hot chocolate inside and a bag of marshmallows.
“It’s for when you stay here.” Charlie was watching her reaction desperately.
Rayah’s face broke out into a huge smile. “It’s perfect and very thoughtful. Thank you.”
Jonny caught her eye and she gave him a different smile, one that told him he was bringing up a good man as his son.
“Here’s a gift for you.” He passed her a present from near Sadie’s feet, feet that now had blue pen all over them. The Maynards had always bought gifts for the kids, but he’d never reciprocated, it hadn’t been expected except for Rayah as a thank you. Just a thank you? He wasn’t sure, not after last night.
“Thank you.” She accepted it with a smile and brought it up to her ear to shake, although he knew there would be no sound. Then she started to put on a show and squish and feel the gift, capturing the attention of all three kids. “Who chose this?”
“We all did.” Harry edged a little bit closer to Rayah. He had a thing for helping people unwrap their presents once he had done with his, which meant trouble for Charlie who liked to save all his ‘til last.
Rayah was wise to him though, and unwrapped it quickly. He watched her face as she saw what was in there, her laughter affecting him in more ways than he’d predicted.
“Pyjamas!” She lifted them out and looked at them, feeling the material.
He’d picked them, diverting the kids away from ones with bears and ponies on and Sadie’s choice of a set that came with a hood with ears. These were white cotton, soft to the touch and fresh, not gimmicky or novelty ones. They were thick enough material so that they wouldn’t be see through, because he had thought about that when he was paying for them.
Her eyes met his and she bit her lips, swallowing a smile.
“Thank you. They’re so much nicer than I would’ve bought myself. If I didn’t have to go to the farm for dinner I’d change into these now and keep them on all day.” She began to fold them up neatly on her lap, the small pile of presents she’d brought to open next to her.
Jonny remembered a Christmas day they’d shared together years before. He was around fifteen, so she’d have been eleven, twelve, just a bit older than Charlie. It had snowed heavily that year so after they’d opened their presents they’d all gone outside and had a massive snowball fight. She’d ambushed him, having climbed a tree in the garden at the farm, chucked a load of snow straight on him head and then dived on top of him, making him sink face first in the snow.
She’d been laughing that hard afterwards that he’d wrestled her below him and started to bury her in the snow, until their fight had continued and they’d ended up with teeth chattering and soaking wet through their clothes.
Back then she’d been pretty and she’d always matched Jake for charisma. People looked at Rayah and they’d seen her smile. He’d always known that, but he’d never seen it for himself until now, because in his living room, surrounded by his kids and a ton of Christmas presents, even without any make up or even having brushed her hair, she was the most gorgeous woman he knew.
And she was his best friends’ sister, one of his best friends herself.
