Lucas to have as traditional of a holiday as possible, but what if a mission comes up? What about all my work at the clinic? Things don’t stop just because a date on the calendar says to.”
Their conversation turned away from Roman and back to shopping and planning. Melody showed Emersyn the Christmas wrap she’d recently picked out, and they joked about getting all the members of the Force to dress in matching holiday pajamas for a cute photo.
That part of the conversation made her mind immediately drift back to Roman, wondering what might have gone differently if they’d met some other way. What if he’d walked in and was just introduced as Amar’s friend? Would they have found a way to talk at the drinks table or near the tree, getting to know each other while feeling that distinctive connection? Or would he have just been another person she met for a brief moment before he had to return to Wyoming, never to be thought of or seen again? Was there some element of destiny in the way they’d met? Melody shook her head. She’d had too much eggnog to begin with. She just needed to wind down and forget about it until she could think rationally.
“Okay. I’m not even going to look at the total of my online cart, so I’m checking out and heading to bed.” Emersyn shut her computer and glanced up. “You all right?”
“Hm? Oh, yeah. Just tired. And a little hungry, surprisingly. I snacked a whole lot, but I didn’t really eat a meal.” Having made very little progress with her own shopping, she turned off her tablet and set it on her nightstand. “I think I’ll head downstairs and raid the fridge.”
Emersyn stood and stretched, bracing her feet on the floor and arching into the air like the pantheress she was at heart. Melody had often thought one of the reasons they were so compatible was because they were both felines. “I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the others are doing the same. Everyone seems to eat at midnight around here.”
“It’s not exactly a normal work schedule,” Melody agreed. “What about you? You hungry?”
“Nah. I’m heading to bed.” She tucked her laptop under her arm.
“I’ll be doing the same soon.” Melody shoved her feet into her favorite slippers. “I’ll check on Lucas before I go to bed.”
Emersyn had been heading for the bedroom door, but she turned around and leaned on the frame. “You really are amazing, Melody. You treat my son like he’s your own, and no matter how much he interferes with your work, you just roll right along like everything is peachy. Seriously, I don’t know how this place would function without you.” She padded down the hall to the room she shared with Gabe.
Yeah, but I don’t want to think about that right now, Melody thought.
As she descended the stairs, Melody was overcome with the homey feeling of Christmas. The white lights she’d strung along the banister, around the Christmas tree, across the mantle, and on several shelves were the only lighting in the main living area of the house, and they cast a warm, cozy glow that was instantly reflected in her chest as she stepped off the last stair. She hesitated on the last step, just standing there and taking it all in. She slowly moved toward the kitchen, trailing her fingers over the garland on the sofa table. A scrap of something on the carpet caught her eye, and she stooped to pick it up: a piece of wrapping paper from Lucas’s gift. It was just a piece of trash now, but it’d brought him so much joy just a few hours ago. Her heart ached for just one more hug from the little boy, but it would have to wait until morning.
Melody didn’t bother turning on the light in the kitchen. She knew this place like the back of her hand, and the miniature silver Christmas tree she’d put smack in the middle of the counter gave off plenty of light. It was early in the season, but her favorite Christmas song popped into her head as she opened the fridge, and she couldn’t help but sing along. “Santa, baby…”
There’d been tons of food for the party, and she slowly scanned each shelf as she tried to decide what she wanted to eat. Her mouth watered just from the thought of it, and once again, her mind circled back to Roman. “Been an angel