“I hadn’t heard about those.”
His eyes on the road, Matt drove steadily, but he didn’t seem to feel very involved in their outing. Phyllis wondered why. She began to worry that all this service he’d been providing was getting to him, wearing thin.
All the more reason to do something for him.
“I was wondering…,” she said slowly, and then stopped, reconsidering what she’d been about to ask.
“What?” He glanced over at her, and the warmth in those black eyes, visible in the shine of the dash lights, had her up and running again.
“Well, I just thought that since I’m alone and you’re alone, we could have Christmas dinner together and—”
Matt shook his head before she could even get the question completely out. “You don’t have to do that,” he said.
“I want to.”
“It’s not necessary, Phyllis,” he said. “I’m sure half a dozen of your friends have invited you over for their family celebrations.”
“Most everyone’s going to be at Becca and Will’s,” she said.
“Then you should join them.”
He was right. She probably should, but… “I don’t want to join them.”
“Isn’t that what you did last year?”
“Yes.”
“Well, don’t change things on my account.”
Maybe they were already changed. Without her having any say in the matter. “Other than Tory and Cassie, they still don’t know about the baby—babies,” she confessed.
“Do Tory and Cassie know you’re having twins?”
“Tory does. Cassie’s been in Connecticut this past week doing a symposium on pet therapy.”
“How much longer do you think you need to wait before you tell the others?”
Phyllis shrugged, her arms wrapped around her stomach. “I don’t know,” she told him honestly. “I’m just not up to all the questions right now. All their concern. I know they’re going to make me feel so helpless, falling all over themselves to look after me because I’m single.”
“And that’s bad? To have friends who care for you that much?”
“Of course not! I just don’t want their pity.”
Silence fell as they turned away from town and headed out to the tree lot. Matt had worked until after dinnertime that night, and it was already dark. Phyllis watched for the occasional Christmas-tree lights glittering on homes in the distance.
“I really want to make my own Christmas dinner.” She broached the subject again, in spite of the fact that she figured she should leave well enough alone. If Matt wanted to spend Christmas by
himself, who was she to interfere?
Just the woman who loved him…
No! Phyllis jerked her head away from him. She felt an absurd, superstitious fear that if he could see her face, the thought she’d just had would somehow reveal itself to him. She stared out the side window.
“So make it.”
His reply confused her, until she remembered what she’d just said. And why she’d said it.
The reason was still valid. The plan was a good one.