Special Delivery Winter - Aria Grace Page 0,45

like this? And if we had more children, the place would be teeming with friends and extended family. With plenty of room for my dads to stay when they visited.

And coming back to where they’d grown up had David, Mac and Sarah acting like kids. While their parents said they had no regrets selling up and moving to the countryside, their memories had flooded back after we signed the papers as they wandered through the home where they’d brought up their family.

“Look, this is where David bumped his head?” Viv pointed to a chip in the wooden stair railing.

“Not bumped,” David maintained. “Pushed. Mac and Sarah joined forces against me and tripped me.” He took Gracie from me and put her over his shoulder.

“Fiddlesticks,” Mac replied.

Hearing the house ring with the siblings arguing must have been how it was when they were growing up. As I admired the ceilings and crown moldings, I thought back to the journey from the night of the blizzard when David had turned up on my doorstep, to him getting pregnant and us beginning the trek to get to where we were now.

Learning to trust him, along with us getting to know one another and allowing love to blossom took most of the pregnancy. But we’d put in the work, made mistakes, learned a lot and as David’s belly expanded, our love grew.

“Who’s up for a game of monopoly?” Mac asked.

A chorus of “Me,” “Me,” and “Me.” filled the air.

“You’ll help me beat them, won’t you, Gracie?” I had no hope against the siblings, though Sarah didn’t take it as seriously as her brothers.

“There’s something we have to do first,” David announced.

“What’s that?” Rob asked.

“Time capsules. You didn’t forget, did you?”

“No. But Mom and Dad have theirs at the new house,” Sarah remarked.

“Makes no difference. They’re allowed to have more than one,” David told her.

“Do we bury everyone’s time capsule together or separately,” Mac asked.

“Together,” everyone said at once.

With the rest of the family, David and I kneeled on the ground, damp from this morning’s rain. Gracie gurgled as she peered into the space we’d dug. In our capsule, we’d put the car rental papers from that first Christmas, his jeans Gertie had taken a bite out of, a bon bon, a photo of Gertie, along with Gracie’s hospital bracelet from when she was born.

“To the future,” David said as we filled in the hole with dirt.

I kissed him, and he hugged me and our daughter. “The best is yet to come.”

Keep in Touch with Colbie Dunbar

If you would like to subscribe to my newsletter, get updates on new releases and promotions, and receive a 6,000-word short story, Ring In The New Year, please visit my website here

Mistletoe Wishes

Leyla Hunt

1. Parker

When did this town become so busy? When I’d left three years ago, Kingston was a sleepy little town on the shores of Lake Kingston with a slow pace and lazy traffic. Now, everyone was in a rush somewhere and although the townsfolk were still a polite bunch, there was no mistaking the impatience in the air, that feeling of ‘you’ve got to be somewhere else now.’

My breath came out in a thick fog as I hurried down the sidewalk on my way to Mom’s favorite bakery for her favorite cheesecake. It was my first time visiting since I’d left, and I wanted to bring her something she’d love. The bottle of wine I got for Dad at the liquor store down the street was tucked away safely in my Audi's trunk. I should have visited more often, but with my crazy work schedule in Manhattan, it had proved impossible. There was no way I could have become a senior manager within the audit department of a major bank if I had taken all my vacation time every year.

This holiday season, though, I had decided enough was enough. I missed my family, and I missed my home. I was tired of making excuses for never coming by, and they were tired of listening to them.

I spotted the familiar sign of the bakery down the street and quickened my pace. The most appetizing aroma hit me in the face as soon as I swung the door open. Yes, this was the right place. It was a bit busy for a Saturday morning, this cheesecake was worth the wait.

“Hi, can I help you?” asked the redheaded girl at the counter. She had a sweet smile, which wasn’t something you saw every day in New York City, at