“Boys dinner!”she yelled and as if on cue, her husband Mark and little Riley came racing into the kitchen and each grabbed a plate from the pile on the counter.
“Riley eats arugula? And mushrooms?” Ally asked in surprise.
“Oh yes, he’s very adventurous. Grab a plate and dig in.”
She tried to remember the last time she’d eaten a meal that someone else had prepared for her, and sadly couldn’t.
Once everyone had a full plate, they all gathered around the kitchen table to eat together. The lights were low and soft festive tunes played in the background.
It was unbelievable warm and cosy and Ally got a sense of why her friend loved her little family so much.
This was … wonderful.
“Aunt Ally, want to see my trains?” Riley asked when they’d finished eating.
“Sure, I’d love to.”
He grabbed her by the hand and almost yanked her out of her seat in his excitement, leading her to the corner of the living area where there were almost 50 pieces of wooden train tracks on the floor, and dozens magnetic trains.
The warm glow of the fireplace lit up the family room and made it magical. Five stockings hung from the mantel, each awaiting a visit from Santa. Ally could only imagine the excitement the kids would experience on Christmas morning.
Riley sat on the floor and immediately went to work connecting the pieces of the tracks. His eyebrows furrowed as he concentrated on his design.
“Ally would you like some more wine?” Lara, ever the gracious hostess, called out from the kitchen.
“Sure - if you are.”
“Ha! If I drink this late at night I’ll be asleep before anyone else. But don’t let that stop you.”
“No no, I’m busy over here. But thank you.”
In no time, Riley had built a massive circular train track, complete with a bridge and two junctures. He slid his six engine train around the corners, making whistling sounds.
Ally stood a few feet in front straddling the tracks with one leg on each side. “Tunnel!” she teased playfully, causing Riley to look up with a huge smile.
He expertly steered his cars past, ducking to fit under and screamed in delight as he passed.
“Again!” he shouted, still laughing.
This time, Ally got down with her hands and knees on either side of the tracks and just as he cleared her tunnel, she grabbed him from behind in a giant bear hug. “You forgot to pay the toll.”
He erupted with laughter as she lifted him into the air and Charlotte began to giggle too, in the way only a small baby can.
She continued to play with Riley, coming up with at least twenty different tunnel challenges, until Mark announced it was time for bed.
“But Dad …” he whined, not happy the fun was over and Ally had to stop herself from objecting also, not wanting their game to end. She was enjoying herself a lot more than she’d expected.
“Will you be here tomorrow?” Riley asked before heading upstairs.
“I sure will, and we’re going to have so much fun. Tomorrow is the ice maze, right?”
“Yay!”
After, Ally insisted on cleaning up so Lara could rock Charlotte. She couldn’t help but stare at the baby’s sweet face as she nestled close to her mother and closed her eyes.
Lara caressed her baby’s head, and Ally wondered if her wispy blonde hair felt as soft as it looked.
“I’m so glad you decided to come and spend Christmas with us,” her friend said in a soft whisper.
