Epilogue
EPILOGUE
NINE MONTHS LATER
“ K nock, knock!”
Faith shouldered open the door, her arms weighed down with an enormous platter of what looked to be at least two hundred Christmas cookies in every imaginable variety: thumbprints and peanut blossoms, lady locks and gingerbread men. No, gingerbread babies , Natalie noted with glee, waddling over to Faith and lifting the platter from her hands.
“Do you like them?” Faith asked, grinning down at the icing bonnets adorning the gingerbread babies. “Holly thought I was nuts when I made the request, but she came around… especially when I reminded her that she would be the baby’s favorite aunt. ”
“And what will you be?” Gabe asked from his perch atop a ladder. He had spent the past two hours hanging baby Santa Claus, reindeer, and elf decorations from the doorways, in addition to the food he had prepared and the fresh pine tree he had cut down just that morning. Despite Natalie’s protests that he was working too hard, he assured her that he didn’t mind—that he’d waited years for this time in his life, and now that it was here, he was going to soak up every second of it.
“I’ll be the baby’s fairy godmother, of course,” Faith said, wandering around the cabin, nodding in approval as she took in the decorations. “Spoiling her rotten at every available opportunity.” A Christmas-themed baby shower had been Faith’s idea, and Natalie had happily agreed. None of the guests who were attending the event seemed to care that the holidays were still several months away; they had been thrilled to learn that Natalie and Gabe were expecting their firstborn on Christmas day.
“I have a better idea,” Gabe said, stepping down from the ladder and crossing the room to kiss Faith on the cheek. He and Natalie shared a smile over her shoulder, Natalie’s hand automatically resting on her growing belly, protecting the precious life inside. “We’ve talked about it,” he said, gesturing between himself and his wife, “and we thought, if you’re up for it… we thought you might like to be her honorary grandmother.”
Faith stared at him for a long moment, speechless, and then her eyes welled up with tears. “Look at me, crying like a baby before the actual baby’s even born,” she said with a laugh, dabbing at her cheeks with the hem of her shirt. Then she turned to embrace both Gabe and Natalie in turn. “It would be the honor of my life,” she whispered, her voice catching. She leaned back, brushing her fingers against Natalie’s cheek. “I’ll do your mother proud.”
Natalie caught her hand and squeezed it. “I don’t doubt that you will.” Then she gave the older woman a sly grin. “And I even have your first grandmotherly task, because yes, this role does come with homework.”
“More homework than planning you a baby shower?” Faith grumbled good-naturedly, unable to keep the grin from her face. Then, more seriously, “How can I help you, honey?”
“You can help me,” Natalie said, plopping onto the sofa with an oof and a wince, “by going through these baby name books with me. I’ve read through each of them at least half a dozen times, and for the life of me, I can’t make a decision.” She gestured toward a stack of books on the coffee table, each featuring an adorable baby on the cover, and groaned. “I’m about to spin right off the planet.”
“I can most definitely help with that.” Faith took a seat beside Natalie on the sofa, gingerly, so as not to jostle her around too much… which was impossible, Natalie thought, because even now, at six months pregnant, she had reached roughly the size and weight of a baby whale. The older woman removed the topmost book from the stack and began to flip through it, her eyes scanning the endless list of names and their meanings.
“Oh, Gabe,” she called out a few seconds later, “I’ve been meaning to tell you, we’re having the first planning meeting for this year’s Santa’s Wonderland next Tuesday. Can Walter and I count on you to help with the decorations again?”
“You bet,” he replied in a muffled voice, his nose half-buried in the tree he was now stringing with garland fashioned out of rolled-up diapers—another of Faith’s creations. “Just name the date and time, and I’ll be there.”
“And you’d better hope your friend Jeannie doesn’t come down with the flu again,” Natalie chimed in, glancing up from the baby name book she’d been perusing. “Because there’s no way I’m fitting into that elf costume this year, or standing on my feet for so long. I already had to cut back on my hours at Miller Farm, and the baby isn’t due for months yet.”
Several beats of silence followed, and then Gabe and Faith shared a look before the two of them burst out laughing. Natalie glanced back and forth between her husband and her friend, nonplussed. “I don’t get it. What’s so funny?”
“Oh, honey,” Faith said, laying a hand on Natalie’s shoulder, her eyes still bright with laughter. “Didn’t I ever tell you? There’s no Jeannie in this town. I made her up.”
“Why?” Natalie asked, gaping at the older woman. “What made you do that?”
Faith’s expression turned solemn. “Because when you landed on my doorstep, I took one look at you and knew you needed some joy in your life. And that one over there?” She nodded toward Gabe, who was grinning sheepishly. Faith shrugged. “He took one look at you… and he knew you needed to stay.”
Natalie was quiet for a moment, her mind wandering over the events of the past nine months—the fears, the insecurities, the grief. The loneliness, the heartache. And then that first spark of hope that led to a future more beautiful than she could have ever imagined.
And now…
Faith was looking at her hesitantly, chewing on her bottom lip with worry. “Oh, honey, you’re not mad, are you?”
“Mad?” Natalie asked in disbelief. “How could I be mad?” She wrapped her arms around the older woman. “You helped make every one of my dreams come true, Faith. And now, you’ve helped me come up with the perfect name for our daughter.” She met Gabe’s eyes from across the room, and he nodded, his gaze soft, adoring. He was a wonderful husband, and would be an even more wonderful father, Natalie knew.
With tears in her eyes, she rested her hand on her belly once more. “You finally have a name, sweet girl,” she murmured. “Everyone, I’d like you to meet Jeannie.” She grinned at Gabe, her heart glowing with happiness, the familiar butterflies in her stomach taking flight. “Jeannie Noelle Archer, our very own Christmas miracle.”