a whistle. It seemed Titan wasn’t kidding about the club helping. I showed her the screen and her eyes went wide.
“The Pres had Wizard deposit ten thousand into my account, Little Bit. That means we get everything on their lists, maybe something for the parents too, and even give them some cash to help in the upcoming weeks. And that’s after the expense of the food and all the other things we stuffed into these carts.”
“That’s so amazing!” She smiled and flung her arms around me, giving me a tight hug. “Thank you! I couldn’t have done all this on my own.”
“Anything for you, Little Bit. In fact, we can make this a yearly thing. Each December, we can check in with Reverend Burson and see if he has any families in need. And maybe a few times a year, we can drop off some non-perishable food at his church for anyone who needs it.”
“You’re the best.” She kissed me. It was brief, but it was the sweetest kiss I’d ever had.
“Come on. Pick out some wrapping paper, I’ll grab the tape, and then we can buy the presents for these families.”
We ended up having so much stuff, we had to check out and go back in for more. Seeing her so happy, so carefree, made it all worthwhile. Not only were we going to make someone’s Christmas a little brighter, but helping someone had given MaryAnne the last little push she needed to become whole again. I could see it in her eyes. The shadows were gone, leaving a vibrant, sweet woman I got to call my own.
We dropped everything by the church, along with an envelope of cash for each family, and a few hundred as a donation to Reverend Burson’s church. I wasn’t ready for the day to end just yet. I pulled into a parking spot outside the diner and led MaryAnne inside. It had been hours since we last ate, having missed lunch because of all our shopping, and I knew she had to be starving.
“I know you like their pie,” I said. “Figured we should grab a bite to eat. If you’re as worn out as I am, I know you don’t feel like cooking when we get home.”
“This is perfect.”
We were seated in a booth near the window and given menus. After we placed our drink order, the woman scurried off. As many times as we’d been here, I didn’t really need the menu but I decided to see if there was anything new. This time of year, they usually had some holiday specials.
“I think I want the chicken and stuffing sandwich,” she said. “It looks interesting.”
“Chicken, stuffing, and gravy on toasted bread. Does actually sound pretty damn good. Think I’ll get the same.”
A server rushed to our table with our drinks and set them down, a smile on her face. “My name’s Beth and I’ll be waiting on you today. Do you need more time?”
We told her our order and promised to save room for dessert. Although, I’d have much rather had MaryAnne’s pie or cake than anything the diner had. My woman could bake like no one else. There’d been some burnt disasters along the way, as she taught herself how to follow recipes, but she’d become a pro. In my opinion anyway. And I knew my brothers damn sure liked it when she sent goodies over to the clubhouse for them. They’d devoured everything she’d made the other day.
She hadn’t realized I’d shared with a few of them in the past. If I ate every cookie she baked, I’d be too wide to fit through our front door. So I ate my share and pilfered a few here and there to pass off to someone else. I’d never told her, not wanting to hurt her feelings. If I told her I couldn’t eat them all, she’d probably think I didn’t really like them, which was the furthest thing from the truth.
“Christmas is nearly here. I know we didn’t do much last year. I didn’t want to overwhelm you. Is there anything you’d like to do this year?” I asked.
“The Christmases I spent with my family, we’d go visit our distant relatives on Christmas Eve night, usually at my grandparents’ house and later at an aunt’s home. When we got back to our place, everyone got to open one present. Mine was usually a book and I’d spend the rest of the night reading.” She smiled and leaned forward. “Christmas morning,