A Callahan Carol Read Online Free Page B

too. You did a great job, Daddy.”
    “Do you think so?”
    “I do. I want one more Christmas, too. I can’t wait to see what you come up with for your proof.”
    He shrugged. He’d need to think of something fun. Get the older boys involved somehow. Make it a family project.
    He pressed a firm, quick kiss against his wife’s mouth, then said, “It makes me sad. John is our youngest. Our last to believe in Santa Claus. They’re growing up, darlin’. Growing up way too fast.”
    “I know.”
    “I just love this part of our lives.”
    “Me, too,” she agreed. “We went so long without being blessed with children and they’ve filled our world with joy.”
    “We’re within sniffing distance of the teenage years. I know those years will bring their own joys, but I’ll miss having little kids. I’ll miss having Santa Claus on Christmas morning.”
    “I know. But growing up, growing old, is part of life. It’s okay to be a little bittersweet about what’s gone before, but there’s a better way to look at it. A way you and I especially should look at it.”
    “What’s that?”
    She cupped his face in her hands and smiled up at him, her gorgeous green eyes warm and loving as she said, “To quote John’s favorite philosopher Dr. Seuss: ‘Don’t cry because it’s over.
    Smile because it happened.’”
    Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.
    As the echo of the Dr. Seuss quote rang in Branch’s head, the vision before him turned misty. “No!” he cried out, reaching for it, trying desperately to grab hold of it and preserve it, even as the images evaporated. Loss pierced his heart, the agonizing pain as fresh as it had been the day his precious Margaret died, fresh as the instant when he’d learned his John had been taken from him.
    Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.
    The white-leather-clad woman on the Gold Wing eyed him and said, “Well, Mr. Grinch? ‘What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.’”
    His emotions churning, he shot her an angry glare. “Would you please keep your fiction straight? Is this Dr. Seuss or is it Charles Dickens?”
    The blasted woman laughed aloud, gunned her engine, and in an instant, Branch found himself back astride her motorcycle.
    As they sped off down the street and across time, the echo of his wife’s words remained with him.
    Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.
    A heartbeat later, the scenery changed. Branch recognized the surroundings. They were out at Possum Kingdom Lake approaching the marina where Luke and Maddie kept their new cruiser, the Miss Behavin’ III.
    The world was back in order, with buildings, trees and everything the way he remembered them when he visited last August. The Miss Behavin’ III floated in her slip and to his surprise, the cabin lights glowed. Strange. Why would anyone be aboard this time of night, this time of year? It wasn’t exactly boating weather. Fishing, either. But when he looked closer, he saw the shadowy figure at the stern casting a line into the water.
    “That’s Luke,” he said.
    “Maddie is with him.” Celeste switched off the engine and they both dismounted.
    “The question is what are we doing here?”
    “We’re here to observe.”
    Branch took a step backward as another thought occurred to him. “My son sometimes uses his boat as a romantic get-away spot. I don’t think we should intrude.”
    Celeste flashed another smile and again warmth washed through Branch. Wow. That smile of hers is better than a shot of Kentucky sour mash.
    “Unfortunately for them, Luke and Maddie aren’t indulging in love play tonight,” Celeste said. “Come, Branch. Listen.”
    At that, Branch found himself seated on the deck railing aboard the Miss Behavin’ III, Celeste Blessing perched beside him.
    Luke stood three feet away, but showed no sign of noticing that his old man had come to