A Gansett Island Christmas #5
Ned sat at the other end of the table, holding hands with Francine like the newlyweds they still were.
“We need a toast,” Linda said.
“I’m on it.” Big Mac stood, cleared his throat.
“Oh no,” Mac said, groaning. “Here we go.”
“Hush,” Big Mac said to his oldest son. “I’d like to propose a toast to family—the best gift any of us can get on Christmas.”
The others raised their glasses in support of that.
“And to Ned, our cab driver extraordinaire, who made it possible for us to be together today.”
“To Ned!” everyone said.
Ned’s face turned bright red. “Aww shucks,” he said, waving off the praise. “Twas no big deal.”
“Twas the biggest of big deals,” Big Mac said. “To all of us. Thank you again for coming up with a way to save Christmas.”
“My pleasure,” Ned said, smiling widely.
The front door slammed shut and boots landed on the floor with a loud thump. In came Gansett Island Police Chief Blaine Taylor, hands on hips, hair standing on end. “What in the name of god is wrong with you people?”
“So many things,” Quinn said, earning an elbow to the ribs from his beloved.
“What part of ‘stay off the roads’ wasn’t clear to you?”
Tiffany got up to greet her husband with a kiss. “You’re just in time for dinner, honey.”
“Don’t try to kiss your way out of this, Mrs. Taylor. You took our babies out in a blizzard!”
“They were perfectly safe. Ned knows these roads better than anyone, even you.”
Blaine glowered at her.
“Maddie, can you please watch Addie for a minute while I have a word with my husband?” Tiffany asked.
“I’ve got her,” Maddie said.
Tiffany took Blaine by the hand and dragged him along behind her, pushing him into the half bath in the hallway.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Blaine asked.
“This,” Tiffany said, pinning him against the sink to kiss him, “is a much better use of your mouth than scolding everyone.”
His fingers dug into her hips. “Everyone heeded my instructions except my own family. What does that say for my authority?”
“If you drop it for now, I’ll let you spank me when we get home.” She rubbed against him shamelessly. “If you want to, that is.”
The low, tense growl that came from deep inside him nearly made her laugh.
“Do we have a deal?”
“How soon can we leave to go home?”
“My husband, the police chief, said no one should be on the roads tonight, so we might have to stay here.”
“If you’re offering a spanking, we’re going home.”
“We’ll see about that. If it’s not safe, I’m not taking my babies out in the storm.”
His eyes bugged. “But you were fine with taking them out earlier in a freaking sleigh?”
“In a sleigh during the daylight with Ned, the most qualified driver on Gansett? Yes, I was fine with that.”
The scowl that overtook his handsome face made her laugh. “You don’t scare me.”
“Good,” he said, wrapping his arms around her. “Even when you’re working me shamelessly, I’d never want you to be afraid of me.”
“I’m so happy you’re here. Wasn’t the same without you.”
“I couldn’t believe it when I got your text that you were here. Leave it to Ned.”
“We’ve been saying that all day. Ashleigh loved the sleigh ride.”
“I’ll bet she did. What did my little Addie think of it?”
“She slept right through it.”
“I need to see my girls, but I can’t go out there in this condition.” He looked down at his hard cock, which stood out in prominent detail under his jeans.
“I could take care of that for you,” she said, tugging his button and unzipping him. Before he could form a reply, she had her hand wrapped around the steely length of his erection and was stroking him.
“Fucking hell, Tiff,” he said, gasping.
She stopped the movement of her hand. “Are you saying no?”
“Fuck no, I’m not saying no.”
She smiled. So predictable. And she loved him madly.
His hands framed her face, and he kissed her senseless as she stroked him. He broke the kiss to suck in a deep breath before he came in her hand. While he continued to breathe hard, she reached around him to wash her hands. Then she tucked him back into his pants and patted his chest.
“You should be nice and relaxed now.”
“I have no idea what I ever did to deserve a wife like you,” he said, kissing her softly.
“You loved me—and my daughter—like no one else ever has. That’s what you did.”
“Loving you two and Addie is as easy for me as breathing.”
“That makes us very, very lucky.” She kissed him again. “Merry Christmas, love.”
“Merry Christmas, my disobedient sweetheart.”
After the guys handled kitchen cleanup, Mac got out the Twister game and taught the kids how to play with Adam and Evan’s assistance.
As often happened on holidays at the McCarthy’s house, the game descended into a wrestling match that pitted Adam against Evan with Thomas and Ashleigh “helping” by jumping on top of them.
“If they knock my tree down, I’ll kill them,” Linda said, as she always did.
“Boys, if you knock your mother’s tree over, she’ll kill you,” Big Mac said.
“How old are they again?” Quinn asked.
“Old enough to know better,” Janey said. “But that’s never stopped them.”
“Get him, Thomas!” Mac said to his son, who had Evan in a headlock.
“No fair,” Evan gasped. “I’m being double-teamed.”
“Throw an elbow,” Grace said.
“Hey,” Abby said, laughing. “Don’t hurt my husband. I need him.” Just as she said that, Ashleigh’s foot connected with Adam’s groin, and he went down in a boneless pile, moaning.
The others howled with laughter, especially after Abby offered to kiss it better.
“Taken down by a widdle, widdle girl,” Evan said, rubbing his eyes dramatically. “Poor baby.”
“We beat him, Uncle Evan,” Thomas said.
“With Ashleigh’s help.” Evan high-fived Ashleigh.
“That’s the only way you can win,” Adam croaked. “With the help of toddlers.”
“We aren’t toddlers,” Thomas said. “Hailey is a toddler.”
“My apologies,” Adam said.
“When can we play naked boy, naked girl?” Mac asked.
His wife let out a scream. “Mac!”
“We’re not allowed to play that anymore,” Thomas said solemnly. “But Mommy still gets to play it with Daddy cuz they’re married.”
“My mommy plays naked boy, naked girl with Blaine all the time,” Ashleigh said.
After a heartbeat of complete silence, Grace snorted with laughter that took down everyone in the room.
As darkness fell over the salt pond, Ned wandered to the big windows to check the weather. The snow continued to fall unabated, with easily two feet accumulated on Big Mac’s deck.
Linda joined him, curling her hands around his arm and resting her head on his shoulder. “I can’t thank you enough for organizing us today. You gave us all a priceless gift.”
“Ahh, doll, think about all the years I had no one but you and yer family and how welcome ya made me here. Twas the least I could do fer ya.”
“We love you.”
“Love ya, too, gal, but I hope ya still love me when I tell ya yer gonna be puttin’ up twenty-five of us tonight.”
“We’ve got plenty of room, and if it means having everyone home for Christmas, then so be it.” She turned to face the gathering. “Listen up, everyone! You’re all staying put tonight, so here’s what we’re going to do. Mac, Janey, Tiffany and Mallory—you get the four bedrooms upstairs.”
“Why do they get bedrooms?” Evan asked, pouting.
“Because three of them have babies and the other has a fiancé who is still new to this family. Since we’d like to keep him around until the wedding, they get a bedroom.” Linda ensured her tone left no room for negotiation.
“Thank you, Jesus,” Quinn said, grinning.
Mallory stuck her tongue out at Evan.
Linda loved to see her fitting right in with the siblings she’d discovered later in life.
“Thomas, Ashleigh and Hailey can have the kid’s room,” she said, referring to the bedroom she’d turned into a room for her grandchildren. “Ned and Francine, you get the pull-out sofa in the den. The rest of you get air mattresses and sleeping bags down here.”
“We’re being discriminated against for not having kids,” Grant said.
“Yeah,” Adam said. “No fair.”
“That means no naked boy, naked girl for us,” Grant said.
“Shut up, Grant,” Stephanie said, putting her hand over his mouth.
“Honestly,” Linda said. “When are you all going to grow up?”
“Not today,” Evan said, accepting a high five from Grant.
They got busy settling little ones, blowing up air mattresses and making beds.
“We can use dresser drawers for the babies,” Linda said.
“That’s freaking brilliant,” Tiffany said.
“No kidding,” Maddie said. “She must be an expert on babies or something.”
“Believe it or not, this is not my first circus,” Linda said.
“That’s a good word to describe this day,” Quinn said, making everyone laugh.
It took an hour, but they got Thomas, Ashleigh, Hailey and P.J. bathed and into pajamas. They were tucked into Linda and Big Mac’s bed for a story read to them by Big Mac before their moms came to collect them and put the sleepy kids to bed.
Babies were deposited into towel-lined dresser drawers in the rooms assigned to their parents who snuck downstairs for a nightcap before calling it a night.
“Spiked eggnog for everyone,” Janey declared.
“You’re breastfeeding,” Joe said.
“Oh my God,” Evan said, making retching noises. “Do not talk about her breasts in front of us.”
“Seriously,” Grant said. “So gross.”
“Nothing gross about it, boys,” Joe said, grinning. “Your sister has one hell of a rack.”
“Joseph!” Big Mac’s bellow rang across the living room from his perch in front of the fireplace where he added more wood.
“Oh shit. Didn’t see you there. Sir.”
Mac and his brothers lost it laughing.
Smiling, Janey stood so Joe could sit and then climbed into his lap.
He wrapped his arms around her.
“Thank you for defending my ta-tas,” she said, laying a hot kiss on him while her brothers groaned and threw pillows at them.
“Your ta-tas are well worth defending, babe.”
“Mom!” Grant said on a long whine. “Make her stop.”
“Jane Elizabeth, stop disgusting your brothers.”
“Why would I stop now when I’m so good at it?”
“Let’s go to bed,” Joe said, waggling his brows suggestively.