She feared, though, that all the parts might not fit back together the way they were before she met Cullen and the kids.
Then again, she wasn’t the same person she was before meeting them.
“Who wants to play Santa?” she asked in her cheeriest voice. All four kids raised their hands. “How about this? How about if each one of you gets to deliver a round of presents?”
Megan stood. “And I get to go first because I’m the oldest.”
Cullen set down his mug of coffee. “Actually before going by age, I think I’m the oldest. So I’ll go first.”
Megan groaned, but she sat back down with her brother and sisters.
Lily was glad that Cullen was giving out presents first.
If he hadn’t gotten her anything, it would be less awkward for her to give him his present later.
She didn’t give presents to get them. But they were in such flux right now that she wasn’t sure what she should do. She loved giving gifts. Actually she liked giving them even more than she enjoyed receiving them. So she had purchased the decanter and she’d wrapped it with the same love and care that she’d wrapped the other packages.
Really, it was fine if he hadn’t gotten her anything.
“I have a special present for everyone,” he said. “And I mean everyone.”
The kids clapped their hands, giddy with anticipation.
“How about if we start with Franklin?”
“Huh?” George couldn’t hide his surprise. “Even Franklin gets a present?”
The dog, who was lying next to Hannah, lifted his shaggy head at the sound of his name.
“Yes,” said Cullen. “Even Franklin. His is outside in the backyard. Shall we go see it?”
The kids, who were clad in their flannel Christmas pajamas—another gift from Lily—got to their feet and ran toward the back door.
“Put your shoes and coats on,” Lily insisted. “It’s cold outside.”
“Yes,” Cullen agreed. “Listen to Lily, please. It’s cold out there.”
He even managed a nervous-looking smile.
Good. The elephant wouldn’t be in the way today.
That would be the best Christmas present.
Once everyone had donned their coats, scarves and shoes, Cullen led the way out into the backyard, where a doghouse with a big red bow on it sat in the side yard.
“Look what you got, Franklin,” cried Hannah. “It’s a house just for you.”
It was nice, but it was an odd gift given the circumstances. But if Cullen had been able to transport it from the pet store or wherever he’d gotten it, then the kids would be able to transport it to their new home so Franklin could use it wherever they ended up.
The thought made Lily sad, but she reframed her thoughts and decided that maybe it would be as though they were taking a piece of this home with them to their new home.
“Okay, who should be next?” he asked, tapping his finger on his chin, pretending to put a lot of thought into the decision.
The kids loved it. They jumped up and down, raising their hands and shouting, “Me! Me! Me!”
“All of you can all go next,” he said. “But you have to follow me.”
He marched them around to the other side of the house, where a large blue tarp covered a surprise.
“And now if my lovely assistant, Lily, would be so gracious as to help me with the unveiling?”
Lovely?
At least he was playing nice. More than nice, actually. He was treating the kids quite wonderfully, and her heart swelled as it had gotten into the habit of doing whenever Cullen simply acted like himself.
If he could only see himself through her eyes, he would see what a great father he would be.
Once again, she reframed her thoughts. “I would be happy to help you, good sir.”
The kids laughed at her exaggerated assistant impression.
She went to the other end of the tarp and lifted the edge, just as Cullen was doing on his end.
“On the count of three, please,” he said. “One, two, three!”
Together they lifted the tarp with as much flourish as they could manage and revealed the six bicycles, complete with helmets, hidden underneath.
Bicycles? He’d gotten them bicycles.
And he’d gotten one for himself and her, too?
There was more hooting and hollering from the kids as they scrambled over to choose their bikes.