looks. They seemed to be able to communicate without speaking, which amazed him. He wondered if that would have been the case between him and Daisy one day.
“How about a drink?” Daniel suggested after the dinner dishes had been cleared away. “I have a bottle of single-barrel Scotch I’ve been meaning to open.”
A wee dram of Scotch sounded ideal, exactly what Asher needed. Seeing that he’d spent several hours sleeping, he wasn’t sure how well he’d manage that night.
His brother led him into the den and pushed a button that started the gas fireplace and then excused himself. “Give me a few minutes. I’m reading Dickens’s A Christmas Carol to the kids and they’re anxious to hear the next chapter. We’re at the part where the first of the three ghosts appears.”
“Take all the time you need.”
After a while, the French doors to the den opened and Daniel came into the room. “Sorry, that took longer than I thought it would.”
Asher was surprised to realize that his brother had been away nearly forty minutes. Buried deep in his thoughts, mulling over all the might-have-beens, he hadn’t noticed the passage of time. For all the attention he’d paid, Daniel could have been gone five minutes.
Kylie followed behind with the bottle of Scotch and two glasses.
Daniel kissed his wife, wrapping his arms around her trim waist, and whispered in her ear something Asher couldn’t hear. The affection between the two struck a raw nerve, and he was forced to look away.
“We won’t be long,” Daniel assured his wife, taking hold of her hand as she started to leave.
“Take your time, I’ve got gifts to wrap and cookies to bake.”
Kylie left and closed the French doors. Daniel moved behind his massive desk, opened the bottle of Scotch, and poured them each a couple inches before handing a glass to Asher.
They sat in the two leather chairs that faced the fireplace. Asher breathed in the aroma of the Scotch and swore it curled his nose hairs. This was mighty fine Scotch. The best. He was honored his brother chose to share it with him.
Asher took his first sip, closed his eyes, and savored the liquor. For a long moment, he stared into the flickering flames in the fireplace, reviewing what he would say to Daisy when he saw her again.
“I’m driving to Indiana tomorrow,” he told his brother.
“Figured as much.”
Asher stared down at the amber liquid as the doubts beat against the thick wall of his pride. “I’m nervous.”
“I can’t say I blame you.”
Asher held on to the Scotch glass with both hands. “I’ve badly bungled this relationship. I don’t know if Daisy will even talk to me, and frankly, if she doesn’t, I won’t blame her.”
Daniel crossed his legs and leaned back against the leather wing chair. “What if she turns you away?”
Asher looked up and frowned. He’d expected words of encouragement and support from his brother. He had enough doubts of his own without his brother reminding him of what a fool he’d been.
“Do you have a plan B?” Daniel asked.
Asher didn’t. Not really.
“A more important question, Ash: What if Daisy is overjoyed to see you?”
That was his hope.
“Then what?” Daniel pressed. “Do you plan to kiss her, wish her a Merry Christmas, and then head back to Brazil?”
The question shook him. At this point, all he knew was that he needed to see Daisy again; what happened after that was as clear as the murky waters of the Amazon River. His brother was right, though. Other than his heart, none of the circumstances that kept them apart had changed.
“From the blank look you’re giving me, I’d say you haven’t thought that far ahead.”
Asher felt foolish. What was he thinking?
“Are you going to ask her to leave her job and join you in Brazil? If you do that, then you’ll see each other for, what…an hour or two every couple weeks when you return before you start the next cruise?”
“No.” He’d never ask that of Daisy. But where would that leave him? The seriousness of this question pressed heavy against his shoulders.
Daniel wasn’t finished. “Are you willing to move to Chicago in order to be with her?”
That was the very question Asher hadn’t wanted to ask himself. Now it was front and center and required an answer. One of them would need to make a change, and the logical choice was him. Setting aside his Scotch, Asher leaned forward and braced his elbows against his knees while he ran