a heart-stopping smile. “Thank you for being the most fearless woman I know.”
“What was I supposed to do, fall to the ground and bemoan something that was completely out of my control?” she teased.
“You would never. You have met everything life has given you with poise, dignity, and an inimitable drive to not just survive, but thrive.”
“It is easy with a partner who makes every day worth living—and loving.”
Caroline toddled over to them and held her arms up for Lionel to put her on his lap. He did so without question and dropped a kiss on the top of her blonde head. Most of the children sat in the middle of the floor, playing with toys and chattering about the day. Leah had told them all of her and Jasper’s adventure. Each time she shared the story—and Emmaline had heard it three times now—Jasper’s tumble into the stream grew more dramatic. Rather, her rescue of him did.
“Shall we toast to the most memorable Christmas Eve on record?” West suggested.
“Hear, hear,” David said.
West raised his glass. “To Leah and Jasper, for bringing unnecessary excitement to our Yule log hunt.”
Leah stood and curtsied, which brought laughter from all quarters.
“And to my wife for her courage and, er, stamina.” Lionel kissed her cheek.
Emmaline smiled down at their daughter. “To Natalie, for reminding us all how fortunate we are on this day of all days.”
Everyone lifted their glasses and drank. Before Leah sat back down, she looked to West. “Papa, will you tell a story?”
West had been about to sit down next to Ivy on a wide settee. Instead, he set his glass on a table and rubbed his hands together. “Let me see... Have you all heard the story of the Fairy and the Toadstool?”
The children shook their heads and directed themselves toward him, instantly becoming a rapt audience.
“Once upon a time, there was a fairy who had to spend all of her time watching young fairies.”
“Did they fall in streams?” Leah asked.
West narrowed his eyes at her briefly. “Shh. Don’t interrupt. No, they didn’t fall in streams. They liked to play among the toadstools, which to them were like a forest of trees.”
“Did they choose one to be the Yule log?” Sebastian asked.
West turned to Ivy, who held Julia on her lap. “Notice the only children with ill manners are ours.”
She looked up at him in exaggerated innocence. “I hope that’s not a commentary on my mothering skills. They don’t interrupt me.”
Emmaline clapped her hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter. Lionel grinned before sipping his port.
“No, they do not. You are, without a doubt, and I do apologize to our guests, the best mother.” West looked back at his son and daughter and exhaled. “Pray, children, can you pretend I have at least a modicum of your mother’s authority?”
Leah straightened her spine and elbowed her brother, who sat to her left. “Yes, Papa. We’re sorry. We shan’t interrupt again.”
West wasn’t sure he believed her, but he also wasn’t sure he cared. He really was as soft as they came.
He went back to his story. “Butter—she’s the fairy who had to watch the younger fairies—”
“Sorry, Papa, I have to ask, is the fairy’s name really Butter?”
“Yes.”
“But why?”
Before West could answer, Ivy broke in. “My darling, perhaps if you let Papa tell the story, you’ll find out.”
Sebastian laughed, and Leah pressed her lips together.
West smiled at his daughter and continued. “Butter had soft, yellow hair, like butter.”
Leah grinned then opened her mouth, but then snapped it shut again.
“As I was saying,” West said, “Butter had to watch the younger fairies because it was her job, and she was frightfully in need of money to pay for her room at a boarding house. She had no family or home of her own.”
“Well, that’s sad.” Leah clapped her hand over her mouth.
“One day, a young fairy called Sparrow—and Leah, do not ask me about his name—told Butter there was a fairy trapped in one of the toadstools. Butter had never heard such a thing and assumed Sparrow was telling a tale. She asked where he’d heard such a thing. He answered that his older brother had said so and that it was absolutely, positively true.
“Butter was sure Sparrow’s older brother was playing a jest and resolved to tell him to stop filling his younger brother’s head with lies. When it was time for the fairies to go home, she accompanied young Sparrow, intent on speaking to his brother.
“Sparrow went into his house to fetch