Once Upon a Holidate, page 22
Cade shook his head. “Honey, you don’t even finish a glass of wine.”
“I know, but I could if I wanted.”
Wynn and Garrick placed their drink orders.
“Should we take bets on how long you’ll last?” Garrick asked with a grin.
“We’re staying for the whole first round,” Cade announced firmly. “Maybe.”
“Who’s home with Addison?” Wynn asked.
“My mother,” Cade said.
Wynn tried not to wince. Libby Saunders was a stern woman who frightened most people in town, but she loved her son and adored her granddaughter.
“I think she’s trying to get in as much time as she can now,” he added. “In case Bethany’s folks decide to fly in for the holidays.”
“They’re not going to just show up,” Bethany said.
“You sure about that?”
Bethany hesitated. “Not really.”
Wynn laughed. “The king and queen do like to make an entrance.”
“My dad likes to make an entrance,” Bethany corrected. “My mom just wants to see me and Addison.” She glanced at Cade. “And you, of course.”
“Of course,” he echoed. “I’m the favorite son-in-law. And the only son-in-law.”
Bethany laughed. “They love you.”
“Your dad told me he’d cut off my head if I ever disappointed you. Not that he would do it himself. I’m sure there’s a royal head-cutter-offer somewhere in the palace.”
The server appeared with their drinks. Garrick passed them out to the table.
“A royal father-in-law would be tough,” he said. “It adds a whole extra layer of pressure.”
Cade nodded. “Plus they go crazy with the presents. She’s still a baby. She doesn’t need a pony.”
“They’re not giving her a pony,” Bethany told him. “They’ll wait until she’s six.”
Wynn smiled at Garrick. “Did you get Joylyn a pony this year?”
“She and Chandler are still in the Marines. They don’t have anywhere to put it.” He picked up his beer. “He’ll have some leave when he gets home. I got them a week at a cabin in Lake Tahoe. They can take the baby and get away for a few days to be a family together.”
“That’s a great gift,” she said. “I’m sure she’ll love it.”
“I hope so.” He glanced at her. “How hard is it to throw a baby shower?”
“You’re thinking for Joylyn?”
“Uh-huh. The baby’s due on the twenty-fifth. Between her friend’s wedding, Chandler coming home and the holidays, I don’t think she’s going to have one. Doesn’t she need a baby shower?”
“It’s a tradition for sure,” Bethany said. “I wonder why her friends haven’t pulled one together.”
Wynn thought about the young women who had shown up over Thanksgiving weekend. “Most of her friends are still in college. I doubt it occurred to them. Her other group of friends are Marine wives. While they might want to put one on, she’s here and they’re in San Diego.”
Joylyn might have shown up in Happily Inc crabby and sad, but she’d changed in the short period of time she’d been here. She and Garrick had reconnected, and she was great with Hunter. The young mother-to-be deserved a baby shower.
“The only dates that make sense are this weekend,” she said. “I’m not sure we can pull it off so quickly, but if you want to try, I’ll help.”
“Let me text Alisha and see what she thinks. She’s the mom, after all.”
He excused himself and went outside. The second he was gone, Bethany leaned close to Wynn.
“You were holding hands! I saw! Tell me everything.”
“Not everything,” Cade added quickly, his expression pained. “Garrick and I are friends. There are things I don’t want to know.”
Wynn grinned at him. “I’ll only share the G-rated version.”
Bethany clapped her hands. “There’s another version? So you’re dating. When did this happen? You guys look great together, by the way. So tell me, tell me!”
“I’ve noticed him for a while,” Wynn admitted. “I guess he’d noticed me, as well. Things started happening when he found out his daughter was coming to stay and he asked for my help to get the house ready. Since then we’ve been hanging out a lot and getting to know each other.”
“And the sex part?”
“No,” Cade said. “Just no. Please?”
“But she has to tell me now. Joylyn is coming to lunch tomorrow, and I can’t ask in front of his daughter.”
“Text her later. Just don’t talk about it now. Please?”
Garrick returned to the table.
“And?” Wynn asked.
“The shower is on, but Alisha started crying when she realized she’d totally forgotten to give her only daughter a baby shower.”
Wynn squeezed his hand. “That’s not your fault.”
“I still feel guilty. I don’t like making women cry.”
“But if you can bring a guy to tears?” Cade asked.
Garrick grinned. “That’s different. It shouldn’t be but it is. Anyway, I’m going to talk to Joylyn when I get home and ask her if she wants the shower. If she does, Alisha will contact her friends and get it all going.”
He looked at Wynn. “It’s going to be at my house, and I’ll need help pulling it all together.”
“I’d love to help.” She smiled at Bethany. “With all my friends popping out babies, I’m something of an expert.”
“You’ll need a theme,” Bethany told him. “Once you have that, it helps with all the other decisions.”
“Do you know how she wants to decorate the baby’s room?” Wynn asked him.
“Light blue and yellow with a lot of Winnie the Pooh.”
“There you go,” she said. “We have a theme. We’ll go online and get some ideas. We can pull it together.”
His gaze locked with hers. She felt the connection flow between them and immediately wished they were alone. But they weren’t, and this was their first date and she should enjoy it instead of thinking about how much she wanted to make love with him.
The servers walked around, handing out Trivial Pursuit games to every table. As they set up the board, Wynn felt Garrick’s leg press against hers. She looked at him and he smiled. She smiled back, ignoring the not-very-subtle aching in her heart.
He got to her in ways she hadn’t expected, and she liked how they were together. She had a feeling that while they’d been busy living their lives, she’d been slowly, quietly, falling in love with him. Which meant there was no escaping her feelings. She could only ride them out and hope that he was falling for her, as well.
* * *
Wynn left work at eleven thirty. She needed to swing by her place and pick up the Christmas cookies she’d made for the girlfriend lunch. She was also going to get Joylyn, who would be joining her.
She pulled into the driveway and stopped the car. Before she’d even climbed out, Joylyn was locking the front door to Garrick’s house and heading her way.
“I’m excited,” she said with a sheepish smile. “I didn’t want to wait for you to come get me.”
Wynn laughed. “Not a problem. We appreciate enthusiasm. I just need to grab the cookies I made for lunch today. Oh, Natalie made enchiladas. Did you take an antacid?”
“Yes. About forty minutes ago. Thanks for the warning. I’m ready for the feast.”
Wynn left her car open and hurried into the house. She’d already packed up the cookies in a container. She returned to the car to find Joylyn in the passenger seat.
“Thank you for inviting me to hang out with your friends,” Joylyn said earnestly. “It’s really thoughtful.”
“We’re happy to have you join us. You already know me, Silver and Renee. Everyone else is very friendly.” She backed out of the driveway. “Usually we have kids running around, but today everyone agreed to leave them at home, so it’s just going to be a lot of girl talk.”
“I’ve missed having that in my life,” Joylyn said. “Thanks for taking me under your wing and making my stay here so great. My dad’s lucky to have you in his life.”
“I’ve been happy to get to know you,” Wynn said automatically, trying not to react to the unexpected comment. Nor was she comfortable asking what Joylyn meant. Have her in his life? As in they were dating? Had Joylyn figured that out? Had she known all along—although technically they hadn’t started “dating” until last night. And if Joylyn knew, had she talked about it to Hunter? Should Wynn discuss the situation with him? Not that she knew what she was going to say. Not really. She’d never had a man in her life before—not like this.
She was going to have to think it all through, but not now, she told herself.
“Oh, and thank you for helping my dad with the baby shower,” Joylyn added, drawing Wynn back to the present.
“I’m looking forward to it.”
Joylyn glanced at her. “I know there isn’t much time to pull everything together. Don’t worry about everything not being perfect. I’m just happy to have one. Oh, my college friends are all coming.” She wrinkled her nose. “They’re sorry about what happened the last time they visited and swear this will be different.”
“We’re not serving alcohol at the party, if that helps.”
Joylyn grinned. “I think it might.”
“I love your theme. Winnie the Pooh is perfect, and the colors will be so pretty in the baby’s room. Plus little Howard won’t need a change in decor for several years.”
“Howard! We’re not calling the baby Howard.”
“You won’t tell me what names are on the list, so I’m guessing.”
Joylyn laughed. “Howard is not on the list.”
“It’s a perfectly respectable name.”
“Still not using it.”
Wynn grinned at her, thinking the happy young woman sitting next to her was so different from the one who had arrived a few short weeks ago.
They parked by the Willow Gallery and got out.
“This is beautiful,” Joylyn said, taking the grocery bag.
“Natalie used to be the office manager here, along with one of their artists. Now she’s doing well enough that she can focus exclusively on her art. The gallery also shows work by the Mitchell brothers. Ronan is Natalie’s husband. Pallas is married to Nick, and Carol is married to Mathias. You met Silver and Drew at Thanksgiving.”
“I did.”
They walked into the gallery. Everyone else was already there. Wynn made introductions.
“We finally get to meet,” Pallas said. “Renee’s told me all about Holly’s wedding. I’m so excited. Everything is coming together.”
“Thanks to Renee and the town,” Joylyn said happily. “Holly is still stunned by everyone’s generosity. I am, too.”
“It’s fun for us,” Pallas said.
Joylyn nodded, then sniffed. “I’m trying not to cry at everything, but it’s hard. Thank you again.”
Wynn gave her a hug. “No thanks required. Think of the wedding as our way of really celebrating the season. We’re excited to help Holly with her wedding, and we’re happy to have you here with us today.”
* * *
Joylyn stood in line with everyone else to fill her plate for lunch. The big table in the center of the gallery was covered with a festive holiday tablecloth. In addition to the enchiladas, bean dip and chips, there were two green salads, a fruit salad and Christmas cookies. Holiday music played in the background.
All the women were so welcoming, she thought. Her friends were nice, but she wasn’t sure they would have been so gracious to someone they didn’t really know.
“How’s it going with Hunter?” Carol asked Wynn as they served each other enchiladas.
“Okay. I think he understands the gravity of what he did. As soon as school’s out, he’s going to get started on the deck.”
“He’ll be a busy guy,” Carol said. “He’s been in touch with me about helping at the animal preserve.”
“Make sure he does the grunt work,” Wynn said. “It’s not supposed to be fun.”
“He’ll be cleaning out the barns every morning for a week,” Carol told her. “And on weekends until he gets his hours in.” She smiled. “It’s a lot of poop to deal with. I doubt he’ll think it’s fun.”
Everyone laughed and headed for their seats. Joylyn found herself sitting between Renee and Natalie.
“In the end, Hunter did the right thing,” Pallas said. “That has to make you happy.”
“I’m cautiously optimistic,” Wynn admitted. “We’ll see what happens over the holiday break.”
“Do you think he’s going to apply to JROTC again?” Bethany asked.
“I hope so, but that’s up to him.”
Joylyn thought Wynn had handled the situation with her son really well. She wasn’t sure she could have gotten over being mad to act so responsibly. She rested her hand on her belly as she reminded herself that in a few short weeks, she was going to be a parent. At least she wouldn’t be alone—Chandler would be with her. They would figure it out together.
Conversation shifted to what was going on in each of their lives. Bethany was still wondering what her parents were going to do over Christmas.
“Like Wynn, I’m cautiously optimistic,” she said with a laugh. “I think we have a good chance of getting through Christmas without the royal family descending.”
“When does the king’s private jet arrive to whisk you all to El Bahar for New Year’s?” Silver asked, her voice teasing.
“On the twenty-seventh.” Bethany sighed. “When she gets older, my daughter is going to have a very rude adjustment to normal life.”
“You mean like flying commercial?” Carol laughed.
“That among other things. Of course if there’s ever a discussion about what everyone’s grandparents do, she’s going to have a really interesting story.”
“The other kids won’t believe her,” Renee said.
Joylyn listened a lot more than she spoke. She was content to let the words wash over her. She didn’t know the details of each life they discussed, but that was fine. Some situations were universal.
She missed this, she thought. Having good friends she could count on. For the hundredth time, she told herself she should have stayed on base where she had support. But this time, instead of feeling sorry for herself, she vowed that she would learn from her mistake and do better next time. She would make sure she had friends she could count on, not ones who showed up drunk and mocked her for not partying when she was nine months pregnant. In return, she saw she had to be a better friend.
A good life lesson, she told herself. One she would hang on to.
* * *
“You sure that’s not too heavy?” Garrick asked, as Wynn helped him carry the first of five large folding tables through the house.
Wynn, gorgeous as always, in jeans and a T-shirt, her holiday pinecone charm glinting against her chest, rolled her eyes. “I’m fine. I doubt the table weighs fifteen pounds.”
“I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
“I’m not infirmed.”
“Still.”
They reached the patio area by the pool and set down the folding table. He immediately pulled her close and kissed her.
“I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you,” he told her.
“I appreciate the concern but again, not fragile.”
“I agree, but you are special.”
Her gaze softened. “You are such a guy.”
“That should be good news.”
She laughed. “Fine. It’s good news and you’re very sweet to worry, but please, don’t ask me if I’m okay for the twenty minutes it’s going to take to unload your truck.”
“I’ll be quiet if you give me a kiss.”
She leaned in and pressed her mouth to his. “No bargaining required for that,” she told him.
“I like knowing that.”
The light kiss was enough to get him thinking about his bed and them together. He enjoyed the fantasy for about two seconds, then firmly pushed it to the back of his mind. Getting ready for Joylyn’s baby shower was the more pressing concern, but maybe later . . .
Renee and Pallas had loaned him folding tables and chairs for the weekend. The tables he was using were rectangular, and apparently the weddings planned for the weekend were using round tables. Renee had given him more detail than that, but he’d tuned it out. All he’d wanted to know was if he could borrow a few tables or not.
He and Wynn made quick work of unloading the rest of the tables and the chairs.
“Let me show you what I’ve got so far,” he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her into the house.
They went into his office where he’d stacked boxes and shopping bags.
“You are serious about this,” she said, looking around.
“It’s Joylyn’s shower. Of course I’m serious. I went online to figure out what to do and ordered as much as I could.”
He pulled out a pad of paper from his desk. “The menu is simple. I checked with all the caterers in town and no one could squeeze in a full meal, so we’re doing a high tea. Finger sandwiches from one of the caterers. Different kinds of scones and little petit fours from the bakery. Renee came through with a bunch of teapots, and Silver is going to swing by and drop off a big serving container and ingredients for punch.” He looked at Wynn. “Does that sound okay?”
“It sounds great. I’m still pretty impressed you’re doing all this.”
“I’m getting a lot of help.”
“Still, it’s a baby shower. That has to be scary.”
“I’m a big manly man. I don’t get scared.”
As he’d expected, she laughed. “Yes, my liege. I bow to your manly man-ness.”
He went over his notes. “The colors are light blue and pale yellow. I have yellow tablecloths for the tables. Renee gave me a bunch of white plates to use. I’m picking those up in the morning. Oh, I gave the bakery twenty-four terra-cotta pots. Little ones. They’ll bake cupcakes in them. So an edible party favor.”
“You know about party favors from your research?”
