7. Erik
ERIK
The next morning, Erik headed out to the inn, feeling happier than he ever had before on the day after Christmas. So happy that he found himself humming, his breath fogging in the cold interior of the car.
More than a few of his men and women had pulled him aside at some point yesterday to tell him he was a lucky man, and that Jenny and Gael were amazing. And he couldn’t have agreed more.
“Your gonna have a whole family,” Fallon had said, shaking his hand. “It’s so amazing, man.”
It would be even more amazing if it wasn’t a great big lie.
He tapped his thumbs impatiently on the steering wheel, turning things over in his mind.
Sure, it wasn’t true now. But maybe there was something he could do to make it true.
Tom had sent him a photo he’d taken yesterday. Erik’s own feelings were clearly on display in the picture, but he’d been surprised at the soft look on Jenny’s face as she waited for him to kiss her.
Was it possible that there was something more there?
It certainly felt that way to Erik, but he worried that it was just wishful thinking making him see what he wanted to see.
Another pang of guilt shot through him at the idea that he was even having all these thoughts right now. He’d been engaged to Lydia not even two whole days ago. Shouldn’t he be mourning that actual relationship instead of obsessing over a pretend one?
But his heart had its own ideas, which was clear from the way his pulse pounded as the lake and the gorgeous Victorian inn came into view.
He parked, trying to clear his mind of all his guilt and longing, and focus on showing Gael a good time today.
It was hard not to be curious about the boy and what had transpired in his young life to bring him to Jenny. But of course that was their story, and they would tell Erik if they wanted him to know.
He crunched through the snow and stepped up to the porch.
Jenny and Gael burst out before he could even open the door.
“I spotted you from the window,” Gael said excitedly. “We just finished our breakfast.”
“Great,” Erik told him, clapping the boy on the shoulder. “I’m glad you had some chow. It’s a nice, cold day for exploring the farm, so you need your energy.”
“That’s what my mom said,” Gael told him, laughing. “And last night, she said we need our beauty sleep.”
He was clearly so tickled at the turn of phrase that it made Erik laugh too.
“Are you ready?” he asked Jenny.
She nodded, not really meeting his eye.
He cleared his throat, wondering what was going on, but not wanting to upset Gael.
“Great,” he said brightly. “Let’s head out.”
He opened up the back seat for Gael and then opened Jenny’s door for her, feeling relieved that she hadn’t hurried and gotten in herself.
But she didn’t take his offered hand climbing in, and she still didn’t look him in the eye.
He tried not to let himself panic. Yesterday was a long day, and they had been traveling the day before. Maybe it was just an early morning and she was a little tired. She could have called and cancelled if she really didn’t want to go with him.
“Okay, it’s not far,” he announced as he got in.
The radio came on with the engine. The local station played Christmas music from November through New Year’s Day, so Gael’s holiday mood could be extended another week. Currently, Mariah Carey was belting out “All I Want for Christmas” and Gael started humming along right away.
Erik glanced over at Jenny, who looked like she was trying not to smile.
When their eyes met, she let her lips curve up a little, and he felt a wave of relief so powerful that he wanted to laugh.
Whatever’s going on, she’s not mad at me.
He drove carefully down the driveway again and back out to the main road to get to the farm.
As soon as the song was over, the deejay began talking about the weather and Gael leaned forward between their seats.
“Okay, guys,” he said, his voice filled with excitement. “We should probably use this car ride to get prepared.”
“What do you mean?” Erik asked him. Gael was a city kid. Maybe he had big ideas of what you did on a farm.
“When people ask you guys stuff, you need answers,” Gael said patiently. “Like about your relationship.”
“Oh, I think we did just fine mainly telling the truth,” Jenny said.
“You almost blew it telling Fallon we were from Boston,” Gael countered.
He wasn’t wrong. Erik was surprised the boy had noticed that. He was a sharp one.
“How did he first ask you on a date?” Gael continued. “Do your families get along?”
“Um,” Jenny said, nervously.
“What’s her favorite color?” Gael asked Erik. “Where’s your favorite place to go on a date?”
“Smart,” Erik said, nodding to the boy in the rearview mirror. “We should get our stories straight. I could have been in real trouble just over her name.”
“I’m already kind of in trouble,” Jenny said. “I’m not really on social media. I just had to have an account for work. Apparently, someone posted a photo of us. And now I’m ignoring messages with questions from everyone I’ve ever met.”
“I’m so sorry,” Erik said, realizing this was the reason she had been out of sorts.
“I should have thought about it,” she said, shrugging.
“I’m not really online much either,” Erik said. “But the Center has accounts.”
“Neither of you uses social media?” Gael piped up from the back seat. “That’s like really weird for grownups.”
“I don’t really see a reason for it,” Jenny said shrugging. “I keep up with my friends over text.”
“Same,” Erik said, smiling.
“Well, I guess I’ll just need to figure out what to tell people for now,” Jenny said. “And then what to tell them afterward.”
“If we’re already having a fake wedding, there’s no reason we can’t have a fake annulment,” Erik joked weakly.
He felt bent out of shape all over again at the thought, though he knew he shouldn’t.
“Or a fake death,” Gael offered enthusiastically.
Erik glanced in the mirror and saw that the boy’s eyes were sparkling. There must have been a really good fake death storyline in one of his TV shows.
“I think annulment makes more sense,” Jenny said indulgently. “I don’t want us to have to go into hiding or anything afterward.”
“Oh, yeah,” Gael said, laughing.
“Well, maybe we can sit down later and talk about all this stuff,” Jenny offered. “We can decide exactly what to tell people about us.”
“Okay,” Erik said, unable to hide his smile. “That sounds good.”
He drove on, enjoying hearing Gael’s rundown of everything he saw out the window as they went. The boy pointed out every cow and horse he spotted, and he was especially tickled when he saw a big red barn.
“Here we go,” Erik said at last, gesturing to the big wooden Cassidy Farm sign hand-printed with horses and apples.
“Cool,” Gael said as they pulled into the tree-lined driveway that led to the parking area. “That’s a lot of trees.”
“Those are sycamores,” Erik told him. “They have that pretty mottled bark, and when it’s not winter, they have nice big leaves that give a lot of shade.”
“We have those in the city,” Gael said. “In the park.”
Erik pulled into a spot up at the end of the lot where people waited in line to go on a hayride to pick apples in the fall.
“Whoa, it’s big,” Gael said as he got out. “This whole thing is one farm?”
“The farm stretches out for miles,” Erik told him. “This is just the one corner of it that’s open for visitors.”
“Can we pick apples?” Gael asked, galloping off to the wooden sign across the lane.
Thankfully, the upper parking area was almost empty. Most folks were probably at home relaxing today, or out at the mall on Route One exchanging gifts or taking advantage of sales.
“Please be really careful, Gael,” Jenny said gently. “I know there aren’t other cars, but you never know in a parking lot.”
“Sorry,” Gael said, his face falling. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” she told him right away. “I love that you’re excited about this place. I’m excited too.”
Gael smiled, and Erik’s heart gave a tug. Gael and Jenny were such a good pair.
“The apple picking is only when apples are in season,” Erik explained. “But the nursery should be full of Christmas stuff right now. And there are displays too.”
“Isn’t a nursery for babies?” Gael asked doubtfully.
“It is,” Erik explained. “In this case, baby plants. People buy them for their own homes and gardens. But they also have a bunch of holiday items and decorations.”
“Can we go there?” Gael asked, looking to Jenny.
“Absolutely,” she told him. “If Erik will lead the way.”
“It would be my honor,” Erik said, giving a pretend bow that predictably cracked Gael up.
He spontaneously offered Jenny his hand. He was gratified when she took it and offered her other hand to Gael, who grabbed it eagerly, and then the three of them headed down the row of ancient sycamores toward the nursery together, hand in hand.
They passed a huge display of Christmas characters made by the Cassidy family and put out every year. And in front of the nursery, a couple of helpers were taking down the last of the cut Christmas trees and piling them in a pickup truck.
“No more trees?” Gael asked sadly.
“Well, not a lot of people buy a Christmas tree after Christmas,” Jenny told him. “But I’m sure there’s still plenty of Christmas stuff inside.”
Erik pushed open the door to the nursery and they all stepped in.
“Wow,” Gael murmured, looking around.
Erik turned to Jenny. She was looking around the enormous space too, her expression softening with amazement.
The nursery was wonderful. There was a forest of potted evergreens draped with twinkle lights, and handmade wreaths hung from the walls, filling the whole glassy room with the cozy scent of pine.
There were holiday themed welcome mats, little wood-carved creche scenes, huge displays of ornaments, and great big spools of velvet and satin ribbon. Tables of poinsettias sat under lights, their foil wrapped pots shimmering.
“Wow,” Gael said again, rushing over to a table of miniature Christmas houses that looked like real elves and fairies could live in them. “Are they toys?”
“They’re garden decorations,” Erik said. “You hide them in your garden for kids to find, or fairies.”
“Cool,” Gael enthused. “If I had a garden, I would definitely buy one and hide it.”
Jenny smiled, and Erik wished he could buy her a house with a garden right now.
Easy, tiger, he told himself inwardly.
But of course he was reminded that he had planned to buy a house out here once Lydia joined him, and he actually still needed to cancel their appointment with the real estate agent.
“Where do you live?” Gael asked suddenly, as if he’d read Erik’s mind.
“I just rent an apartment in town,” Erik said. “It’s close to the Center, and that was really important when I first opened up.”
“It’s nice not to worry about maintenance,” Jenny offered.
“Well, I kind of like the idea of fixing up a house,” Erik heard himself admit. “I was planning on looking at a few places this week, but…”
He felt like an idiot for opening his mouth and reminding her that he’d been dumped by his fiancée on Christmas Eve.
“Why not buy a house anyway?” Jenny said, brightening. “You don’t have to be married to pick out a house.”
“She wasn’t married when she picked out a kid,” Gael pointed out, which made Jenny laugh.
Erik found himself chuckling too.
“Whoa,” Gael yelled, darting off to check out a massive sleigh-shaped shelving unit that was covered with Christmas lawn decorations.
“He’s really something,” Erik said fondly.
“He really is,” Jenny said. “And for the record, I didn’t exactly pick him out. That’s not how it works. But I do think the two of us were meant for each other.”
“That’s clear from seeing you together,” Erik said. “You’re both so gentle with each other. I hope that’s not a strange thing to say.”
“We’ve both experienced loss,” she said, nodding. “Gael more than me. But I think it helps us understand each other.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Erik said, his heart aching, though he had suspected as much, at least for Gael.
“I lost my husband not long after we got married,” Jenny said. “He made me promise not to be alone. He knew how much I wanted a family. I didn’t really see myself marrying again, but I think adopting a child counts.”
“Of course it counts,” Erik said, trying not to dwell on her thoughts about marriage.
“Gael’s parents were never in the picture,” Jenny said. “But he was raised by the most wonderful grandmother. When she passed away, I got the call that there was a boy who needed a home.”
“Wow,” Erik said. “Did you decide right away?”
“Yes,” she said, looking up at him with a smile.
“I had been expecting to foster a much younger child or toddler, but the minute I got the call, I just knew I was supposed to say yes. And then I met him, and… well, you see how wonderful he is. I still can’t believe it sometimes, how lucky I am to get to be his mom. ”
Erik nodded, moved.
“Although it’s a bittersweet thing,” she went on softly. “To know that he’s only with me because the sweet woman who raised him is gone. I would do anything to bring her back to him.”
“I’m sure he knows that,” Erik said.
“I try my best to make sure he never forgets her,” she said. “He tells me stories about her, and we try to make her recipes. And of course we’ve kept up with her favorite TV show.”
“Ridley Hospital,” Erik said, nodding.
“Exactly,” Jenny said.
“I didn’t want to say it in front of him,” Erik told her, glancing up to make sure Gael was still focused on the display. “But an actress who used to be on that show lives right here in town. We probably won’t run into her today, but you never know.”
“Who is it?” Jenny asked, her eyes wide.
“We’ll let it be a surprise if it happens,” Erik teased.
She laughed, and he felt it right down to his toes.
He knew exactly what she meant about feeling like she and Gael were meant for each other. He was feeling the same way right now.
Why can’t we all be meant to be a family?