MAYA BROOKE
Christmas Day is in full swing.
Skye was up before all of us, and I took her downstairs early to look at the Christmas tree. All of the presents that lay under it, along with our stockings that are filled to the brim. I take a moment to myself and show gratitude for being included.
“Merry Christmas, Maya,” Andrea says brightly from behind me. “Merry Christmas, Skye.”
She walks towards me and offers me a hug before kissing Skye on the forehead.
“Merry Christmas, Andrea,” I say.
Once everyone is up and we’ve eaten breakfast, we head to the living room to open presents. I watch as James starts to dish out the stockings, and when I’m handed mine, I thank him with sincerity.
Skye is in Ivy’s lap as she helps her look through what presents she’s got. I can’t take my eyes off them as Skye’s face lights up with a toothless smile.
Finn nudges me gently. “You're not going to open yours?”
“Sure.” I slide my hand into the stocking to find the softest pair of checkered pyjamas that look like heaven to sleep in—apparently, we all got matching ones to change into tonight. An eye mask, a wax melt set, and expensive chocolate.
“Thank you,” I say to Andrea and James.
Andrea waves her hand at me. “Don’t be so silly. It’s tradition. Everyone gets a stocking, no matter how old you are.”
When we move onto the big presents, I curl up in the corner of the sofa with a hot cup of coffee between my hands. Skye is happily with Finn as he opens his first present from his parents.
“Maya,” Ivy says as she shifts on her knees and hands me an envelope. “This is for you, from all of us.”
I stare down at the white card and blink. “Oh, thank you.”
Once I open it up and slide out the card, my mouth falls open. A day pass at a spa that includes three treatments and access to all the facilities, including the sauna, steam room, and the swimming pool.
“Oh my god,” I whisper as I meet Ivy’s eyes, then Andrea’s. “I can’t accept this.”
“What? Of course you can. I know how hard it is to be a mother, and sometimes we need some time off,” Andrea says with a generous smile. “You deserve it.”
My face crumbles as I look back down at the card. “That’s very kind of you. Thank you.”
“What is it?” Finn asks. I show him the card, and he whistles. “Wow, you’re right, Maya deserves this.”
“This one is for Skye,” James says as he holds up a box.
Andrea waves her hands. “Ooh, come here, Skye. We can open it together.”
Finn hands Skye over to his mum, and I don’t think she’s ever looked so happy.
“Here,” Finn says as he hands me a small box. “This is from me.”
My mouth twitches as I look at the delicate box. “Finn, I—”
“I don’t care what you say about presents.” He shakes his head adamantly. “I couldn’t bring you home without giving you a gift.”
“Okay.”
My fingers slide open the box, and I stare down at the most beautiful silver bracelet I’ve ever seen. The pattern is similar to my pendant that I still wear every single day. I pick it up and twist it around to find Skye’s name engraved into the back of it.
“Finn, this—”
“Want me to put it on you?”
I nod desperately as he plucks it from my fingers and takes my wrist in his hands delicately. It takes him three seconds to hook the latch onto the chain as I study the way it rests against my skin.
I’m choked up with emotion because it’s sentimental. It’s everything.
“Thank you.” I sniffle. “I love it. It’s beautiful.”
Finn’s green eyes soften. “Yeah? I’m glad, sunshine.”
Before I know what I’m doing, I’ve lunged forward and wrapped my arms around his neck, unable to stop myself. I release a shuddering breath once our skin comes into contact, and it makes me want to cry, but I hold it in.
I pull away and wipe my face as I reach for Finn’s presents. “Uh, here.” I force a smile. “They’re not as good as your present. So be warned.”
Finn scoffs. “Oh, please. Any gift from you, I’ll love.”
I hold my breath as he starts to peel open the wrapping paper. The first one is something I’ve been working on in my free time—it’s for both of us, but there are moments of Skye’s life Finn hasn’t seen.
I watch him as he flicks open the first page of the book, and Finn’s eyes immediately start to water. He takes in the details of my ultrasound, a picture I know he’s never seen before.
Then he flicks to the next page and the next until he meets my eyes.
“I wanted to give you something that could represent the first months of her life,” I whisper. “So it can make you feel included.”
“Maya.” His voice cracks, and appreciation is evident in his irises. “Oh my god. Thank you.”
He takes my cheeks in his palms and kisses my forehead.
“I love it so much,” he murmurs into my skin.
My eyes close at the warmth it gives me. “You’re welcome. There’s still another present.”
Finn carefully places the book onto the arm of the sofa before taking the next gift and ripping open the wrapping paper. It’s a silly present, but one I know will have Finn grinning for days.
He unpeels the T-shirt to reveal the words ‘The World’s Greatest Dad’.
A hiccup comes from him as he analyses it, and his eyes glisten. Slowly, he turns around to face me. “You really think I’m a good dad?”
“The best.” And I mean it with my whole heart.
Finn’s mouth parts as he watches me. “You have outdone yourself, Maya Brooke.”
I smile at his response. “I didn’t have lots of money to play with, so I’m sorry.”
“Sorry? You’ve nothing to be sorry for. I’d rather these gifts than anything expensive. This means everything to me.”
“You’re welcome.”
After presents and getting dressed for the day, I go downstairs to find Finn holding Skye in his new T-shirt, and my heart melts. Skye is beaming at him as she holds his finger.
“Who loves you so much, hmm? I do. Yes, I do.”
Then he kisses her neck over and over as she releases a soft noise, somewhere between a laugh and a squeal. I could watch them all day and never get bored.
As I approach, Finn turns towards me. “Hey.”
“Hey,” he says brightly. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m great.”
“Good Christmas so far?”
I release a breath. “Best Christmas I think I’ve ever had.”
Finn’s face drops a little as he takes in my words. “That means Christmases are only going to get better. I’m excited for the day we do all the Father Christmas stuff and all the silly games and assembling toys for hours on end.”
My eyes stay glued on his face as he speaks with such enthusiasm it makes me want to sob. It’s all I’ve wanted for our daughter, to have a family around her who cares, and she, without a doubt, has the best dad in the world.
The T-shirt proves it.
“Yeah,” I say with watery eyes. “Me too.”
When Finn and Ivy sit with Skye and play with her new toys, I greet Andrea in the kitchen, who is preparing our feast.
“Can I help at all?”
Andrea shakes her head. “No, go chill out. We’ve got everything.”
“I’m really grateful that you invited me,” I murmur. “I know I’ve said it a thousand times, but I need to keep saying it.”
“You’re family, Maya.” Andrea places down the knife. “And you always will be.”
I swallow back the lump in my throat.
“I’m just really glad Finn has you in his life,” she continues. “I was really worried about him going back to university after this summer, but when I found out that he had you and Skye, it made things a lot easier for me.”
“He’s changed,” I murmur.
Andrea hums. “He was a little lost. But he’s found his purpose again, and I know how much he loves you both. I’m just really happy that he finally looks happy, you know? I haven’t seen him like this in years.”
The ball in my throat returns within seconds. “I’m really proud of him.”
“You and me both,” Andrea says sincerely. “Thank you for spending Christmas with us.”
I release an awkward chuckle. “No one else wanted us, so yeah.”
Andrea’s mouth falls open before she recovers quickly. “Wanted you? Oh, I don’t believe that for a second.”
“I’ve always had a difficult relationship with my mum,” I confess. “When I fell pregnant, she wasn’t very supportive, and she never comes round to see Skye or ask how I am. I’d honestly rather spend Christmas alone than be with her and her new partner.”
I watch as Andrea’s face warps into sympathy, but I don’t want anyone’s sympathy, it makes me feel some type of way.
“I’m sorry, Maya,” she says. “I don’t know how any mother could act like that.”
“It’s fine.” I shrug. “I’m just glad I can be here where I feel wanted and included, especially Skye. I never wanted her growing up thinking she was a burden because that’s all I got from my mother.”
Andrea steps forward and places a hand on my shoulder. “You’re always welcome here, Maya. No matter what. You and Skye.”
“I’m starting to see that now.”
Before I know what’s happening, Andrea wraps me up in a tight hug, and I latch onto her cardigan. It’s warm and motherly, and everything I’ve ever wanted from my own mum, but have never received. I don’t remember the last time she even hugged me.
My eyes squeeze shut at the thought, and I try to push it away. She’s irrelevant. If she doesn’t want to see her own family, then why should I bother anymore? I’m done chasing her, waiting for her to change her mind about me.
Andrea pulls away after a few moments and holds me at arm’s length. “I think I needed that.” I sniffle before wiping my eyes.
She flicks her eyes between mine slowly. “Oh, sweetheart.”
“Everything okay in here?” Finn asks as he approaches, a brow curled at the position we’re in.
Andrea drops her arm from me. “Just saying how lucky we are to have Maya and Skye with us for Christmas.”
Finn’s eyes gravitate to mine within seconds. “Oh, the luckiest. But you can’t have them, they’re mine.” He winks at me, and I bite down on my lip to stop myself from grinning like a fool, despite the butterflies going crazy in my stomach. “Need help, mum?”
“No, I’m all good. Your father will be down in a second to help. You guys go play with Skye, catch up, whatever it is you youngsters do these days that isn’t getting into trouble.”
The sound of Finn’s laugh makes me feel lighter. “How times have changed, Mum.”
“And I’m glad to hear it.”
Finn wraps his arm around my shoulder and guides me out of the kitchen as I watch Ivy playing with Skye. My heart swells to the size of a balloon, and I realise that this is what family is about; I’ve just never had the chance to experience it.