Christmas Surprises Read Online Free Page B
Author: Jenn Faulk
raised her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers. "Worried that they'll hate me?"
How could they hate him? She'd put off asking Rachel if she could bring him, waiting until the last minute this morning, before he would be coming by to have breakfast with her like they'd been doing for weeks now, merging their lives into one like they’d been doing.
He knew she'd waited until the last minute because she told him everything. He also knew that she was nervous about finally telling her kids about the two of them because she told him everything. He even knew that she was wrestling over how honest she needed to be...
He knew it all, because she told him everything.
And because he was who he was, he was okay with it. He was so happy and so content in who they were, no matter what anyone else thought, that he was okay with it.
How could anyone hate him?
"Not at all," she said, releasing his hand so she could touch his cheek and trace the lines of his lips as he smiled, the diamonds from her new engagement ring shining back at her.
Oh, surprise, kids. I'm dating again. Well, just one guy. And surprise again. I'm not really just dating him. We're engaged. Surprise, surprise, surprise...
They weren't kids anymore, though. They were adults. Married adults, who knew the value of coming home to someone every night, of having someone to make a home with, someone to understand where you were and where you'd been.
They'd understand.
And if not? Well... who cared? They were grown and raised, and she wasn't living for them anymore.
She was a horrible mother for feeling that way, likely, but the guilt wasn't great enough to stop her from leaning over and kissing his cheek, even as he drove.
Just like she was seventeen... even though she was a grandmother now.
God had been so good to her, in unexpectedly bringing this man right to her.
"They'll love you like I do," she said softly, thinking about how it had all happened.
She'd met him four months ago at her widows' group, of all places. It wasn't just for widows, obviously, although the majority of the group members were women, all in varying stages of their grief.
She had been a widow for several years. The car accident that took Chris from her had been quick, the death he'd experienced almost instantaneous, and it had set the tone for the years that followed. She'd made quick decisions, quick transitions. Like Chris had gone from life to death, she went from one thing to the next, quickly and without much emotion. There was Joy to take care of, Micah to worry about, church to continue serving in, her career to pick back up after a couple of weeks away, and life to go on.
She'd thrown herself into it all, allowing herself grief as she'd allowed herself time. For the most part, though, she'd not been alone with her grief, not until Joy had married and moved out. The days were lonelier, the nights were quieter, and Chris's loss was felt in a way it hadn't been felt before.
She'd been seventeen when she met him. Seventeen. Young love, quickly followed by marriage and so many years together but not nearly enough. Then, widowhood, too young as well. Depression set in, and she had stayed there for a long while.
It had been the grandchildren who had made her see the light. Well, not Mia and Zoe themselves, but Rachel, who after five years of being everything to them at home, announced that she was entering a new season, that she was going back to work now that the girls were in school, and that her life was about more than being just a wife and a mother.
Natalie had listened to this, and in the back of her mind, her own voice had resonated with this, saying, and you?
She was more than Chris's widow, more than Micah and Joy's mother, more than Mia and Zoe's grandmother. Life had ended with Chris. Faith and hope had become less about
How could they hate him? She'd put off asking Rachel if she could bring him, waiting until the last minute this morning, before he would be coming by to have breakfast with her like they'd been doing for weeks now, merging their lives into one like they’d been doing.
He knew she'd waited until the last minute because she told him everything. He also knew that she was nervous about finally telling her kids about the two of them because she told him everything. He even knew that she was wrestling over how honest she needed to be...
He knew it all, because she told him everything.
And because he was who he was, he was okay with it. He was so happy and so content in who they were, no matter what anyone else thought, that he was okay with it.
How could anyone hate him?
"Not at all," she said, releasing his hand so she could touch his cheek and trace the lines of his lips as he smiled, the diamonds from her new engagement ring shining back at her.
Oh, surprise, kids. I'm dating again. Well, just one guy. And surprise again. I'm not really just dating him. We're engaged. Surprise, surprise, surprise...
They weren't kids anymore, though. They were adults. Married adults, who knew the value of coming home to someone every night, of having someone to make a home with, someone to understand where you were and where you'd been.
They'd understand.
And if not? Well... who cared? They were grown and raised, and she wasn't living for them anymore.
She was a horrible mother for feeling that way, likely, but the guilt wasn't great enough to stop her from leaning over and kissing his cheek, even as he drove.
Just like she was seventeen... even though she was a grandmother now.
God had been so good to her, in unexpectedly bringing this man right to her.
"They'll love you like I do," she said softly, thinking about how it had all happened.
She'd met him four months ago at her widows' group, of all places. It wasn't just for widows, obviously, although the majority of the group members were women, all in varying stages of their grief.
She had been a widow for several years. The car accident that took Chris from her had been quick, the death he'd experienced almost instantaneous, and it had set the tone for the years that followed. She'd made quick decisions, quick transitions. Like Chris had gone from life to death, she went from one thing to the next, quickly and without much emotion. There was Joy to take care of, Micah to worry about, church to continue serving in, her career to pick back up after a couple of weeks away, and life to go on.
She'd thrown herself into it all, allowing herself grief as she'd allowed herself time. For the most part, though, she'd not been alone with her grief, not until Joy had married and moved out. The days were lonelier, the nights were quieter, and Chris's loss was felt in a way it hadn't been felt before.
She'd been seventeen when she met him. Seventeen. Young love, quickly followed by marriage and so many years together but not nearly enough. Then, widowhood, too young as well. Depression set in, and she had stayed there for a long while.
It had been the grandchildren who had made her see the light. Well, not Mia and Zoe themselves, but Rachel, who after five years of being everything to them at home, announced that she was entering a new season, that she was going back to work now that the girls were in school, and that her life was about more than being just a wife and a mother.
Natalie had listened to this, and in the back of her mind, her own voice had resonated with this, saying, and you?
She was more than Chris's widow, more than Micah and Joy's mother, more than Mia and Zoe's grandmother. Life had ended with Chris. Faith and hope had become less about
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