50. Madison
50
MADISON
I smooth my hands down the front of my dress for what feels like the hundredth time, my heart racing with excitement and nerves. Christmas Eve dinner—it feels like so much more than just a holiday meal tonight. It feels like the start of something new.
Ethan and I are a couple, and we have been officially for almost two weeks now. But…it’s one thing to know you are a couple and another for people to see it. Surprisingly, Aurora is coming. Wesley is too, but that isn’t such a surprise.
I glance around the dining room at Ethan’s house, the soft glow of candlelight reflecting off the plates and silverware. The table looks perfect, just the way I imagined it, and the smell of Ethan’s turkey wafts in from the kitchen.
If I close my eyes for a moment, it feels like I might be walking around in a dream—a perfect dream. The smell of turkey and stuffing makes it feel like it might be a delicious dream.
The surf school still has a lot of work that needs to be done before I open it up, but I have a few months to get that done. I’ve been impressed with just the different atmosphere that a coat of paint can make. I can’t wait to show it off to my friends and family.
The doorbell rings, and I jump. Nerves start running through my body as I realize that this is it. This is either Wesley or Aurora.
Ethan appears in the doorway between the kitchen and dining room and runs a hand through his short salt-and-pepper hair. “Do you want me to get it?”
“I… I can… I mean, it’s your house, but you’re cooking. I can answer the door.”
Ethan blows me a kiss, then disappears back into the kitchen. I unsteadily approach the front door, but then, I see Wesley’s outline through the beveled glass and instantly feel a bit better.
I answer the door, and Wesley grins at me. “This is a step up above your usual.” He glances behind me. “You didn’t bring Samson over?”
“He has to babysit the other dogs I’m taking care of.”
Wesley shakes his head. “How’s he doing? Stitches healing okay?”
“He acts like he was never injured. He thinks I’m a big baby for looking out for him and still applying the anti-infection cream. Come on in.”
Wesley steps in and embraces me tightly before looking around the house. “So, this is the guy, huh? The father of…” he glances pointedly at my stomach.
“Yeah.”
“Never would have guessed. But hey, I’m happy for you.”
That’s Wesley. Completely non-judgmental and happy with whatever way life goes. “But if I need a loan, you’ll hand over some cash, right?” Wesley stage whispers.
I laugh harder than necessary. Because that’s how it all started, me approaching Ethan for a loan .
Ethan appears in the doorway wearing a black apron, and he smiles at Wesley. They shake hands, and Wesley starts making jokes about me. I don’t mind being the brunt of their jokes. At least Wesley isn’t acting awkward.
In fact, he’s almost acting normal. Well, normal for him.
“Let’s go sit in the living room,” I suggest. I feel exhausted even though Ethan is the one who’s been getting everything ready. All I did was set the table.
Wesley selects an armchair across from me, and I lounge on the couch. “Give me a second to check on the turkey,” Ethan says, heading out of the room.
I make eye contact with Wesley again, and he just shakes his head. He suddenly looks alarmed when he fixes his gaze on the Christmas tree that has wrapped packages underneath. “Was I supposed to bring gifts? For this guy?”
“No, and I think half of those packages are fake. They just appeared one day under the tree, and they’re not heavy.”
“How old are you, Madison? Crawling under the tree and shaking the packages.”
“I wasn’t crawling ?—”
Ethan suddenly appears again in the doorway, and I stop immediately with what I am saying and turn to him with a sweet smile.
“How’s everything looking?”
“Great. You guys have a great dinner in store if I can say that about my own cooking.”
“Perfect.” Ethan comes over and squeezes my shoulder, and we feel incredibly like a couple. “I just hope tonight goes smoothly with…Aurora.” My eyes slide to Wesley.
“It will be fine,” Ethan says.
At the same time, Wesley says, “Don’t worry about it. ”
I nod, leaning into him, and letting his hand comfort me.
Then, the doorbell rings, and my heart jumps into my throat.
It’s Aurora.
Ethan squeezes my hand, a silent reassurance, before heading to the door. I take a deep breath and follow. Staying in the living room with Wesley feels like I’ll be drawing enemy lines between the Taylors and the Thomases.
As he opens the door, I see Aurora standing there, bundled up in a coat. She glances at me then turns back to her dad. Is she going to ignore me? That would make tonight very awkward. She looks…hesitant, but there’s no anger in her eyes. That feels like a win already.
“Hey, Dad.” She steps inside and hugs her dad. I clasp my hands behind my back and try to find somewhere else to look.
“Hey, sweetheart. I’m so glad you came.”
I force myself to smile when Aurora looks at me again. I feel like there is a lot of pressure on my shoulders, but I can’t let it weigh down. I have to act like her friend if I want her to do the same in return.
“Hi, Aurora, “I’m really happy you’re here.”
She nods, her gaze flicking between Ethan and me again before she finally speaks. “Yeah, me too. I… I want to try.”
My heart swells at those words. It’s not a full reconciliation, not yet, but it’s a start. A chance. Why do I feel like crying all the time? I blink back tears. Aurora doesn’t hug me, but she steps inside and closes the door behind herself.
Wesley has appeared at the entrance to the living room. He has a beer in his hand. Did he get that from the fridge himself? He really likes to make himself at home. He lifts it in a silent greeting to Aurora .
Aurora gives him a small smile. “Hey, Wesley.”
“Let’s go in the living room and have a drink. The turkey is out of the oven, but it needs to cool off some before I serve it.”
We all follow Ethan’s instructions and find seats for ourselves around the room. This time, Wesley sits next to me, and Aurora takes the armchair where he was earlier.
None of us speaks for a moment, and I feel extremely awkward. I look at my shoes. Aurora is the one missing piece of this puzzle. I have my surf school, my man, and now, a baby. Even though I wasn’t sure if I wanted a baby at first, it now seems like the perfect addition to my life.
I’m just missing Aurora.
I finally clear my throat. “How have things been?”
“Fine.” Aurora’s voice sounds strangely odd.
Ethan reappears. “Fine? That’s it? No stories of clients?”
Aurora smiles, and it seems genuine. “Not today. What about you three? Wesley, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve even seen you.”
Wesley steps easily into the spotlight, grinning. “I’m just living a pretty boring existence. No new relationships or pets to speak of. Just working and surfing.”
“You surf too?” Ethan asks.
“Yeah, Madison is actually the one who got me into it. She picked it up in middle school maybe, and then, I was like, I can’t let my little sister be good at something if I’m not. So, I started. And yeah…it’s been fun. I’m not as serious about it as she is though.”
“I haven’t been serious about it lately,” I mumble, thinking about how long it’s been since I’ve actually been surfing. There was a while where I surfed every morning no matter the weather.
But now, it’s probably been since before I was pregnant that I surfed. I need to go out there and surf. It would probably help me relax. I peek at Aurora to see how she’s taking the conversation. She’s examining her nails with an “I’m above this” look, but she’s not interrupting or being rude. I guess that’s a start.
Ethan looks at me with a pointed look. “Are you going to tell them?”
I frown, not sure what he’s hinting at. “Tell them what?”
They both know I’m pregnant and that we’re dating. I can’t think of any more big reveals I have. Ethan mouths the words “surf school,” and a smile fills my face.
I don’t want to tell them the details because I’m sure Aurora will have a fit if she realizes that her dad wouldn’t give me a loan, but he would happily outright buy the place I’m going to have the school.
Aurora and Wesley look at me curiously. “Oh yeah, I’m starting my surf school this spring.”
Wesley high-fives me, and Aurora nods in approval. I add a few more details. “I’ve got a couple of months to get the place ready, but it’s right on the beachfront, and once I finally decide on a name, any way you can spread the word would help.”
“Congrats, Sis! Maybe I’ll come take a lesson with you. You know, all it takes is people seeing you doing lessons with someone. They won’t want to miss out.”
“How are you going to do that if you’re having a baby?” Aurora asks with cold calculation.
“Well, the baby is due in August, so I’d have all summer. And I’ll probably try to hire another instructor too. I’m not sure about the logistics yet, but I’ll figure them out.”
Aurora nods. There is a moment of awkward silence, and then Ethan hops up. “Food should be cooled down now. Let’s go sit in the dining room and have this Christmas Eve dinner.”
I follow Wesley into the dining room. Aurora sits across the table from us, and I sit next to the head of the table where I’m sure Ethan will sit. Wesley is on my other side.
There are already a couple of dishes on the table. Ethan brings out two more then takes his place at the head of the table smiling happily.
We start serving ourselves and passing the dishes around, and no one speaks for a minute as the sound of clinking dishes fills the room.
I suddenly look up and see Aurora watching me. I set down the basket of rolls. I feel the need to apologize even though I’ve done nothing wrong.
“Aurora, I know this is a lot, and I understand if you’re still upset. I just… I want us to figure things out. I want you to be a part of everything.”
She meets my gaze, and for a moment, I’m terrified that she’s going to shut me out again. But then, to my surprise, she smiles. It’s tight around the corners, but it’s still a smile.
“It’s fine. I mean, it’s weird, but…it’s fine. You and Dad can be together. As long as I get to babysit my little half-sister.”
I blink, the words taking a second to sink in. Then I break into a laugh. “Or brother, ” I remind her. “But yes, I would love that.”
“If we’re getting babysitting dibs, I’d like to say that I’m going to be the funnest uncle this kid has so I should definitely get to take care of it.”
“Maybe once it’s walking and talking and there are no diapers involved.”
“I like that.”
Ethan and I share a smile as I realize that this evening is turning out better than I hoped. Then, once everyone has been served, and we are beginning to eat, Ethan reaches out and grabs my hand before I can pick up my fork.
“I have one more thing I’d like to say.” My stomach tightens. He mentioned something about a Christmas Eve surprise, but with everything going on, I haven’t thought of it.
Everyone looks at him. I search his face, trying to figure out what’s going on before he says it out loud.
“Madison, now that we are going to have a family together, I think it’s only right if you move in with me. Would you like to live here with me? Make a nursery for our baby down the hall?”
His words fill me with excitement, but it’s immediately tempered by nerves as to how Aurora is going to feel about this little arrangement. She looks down at her lap but doesn’t say anything. That’s all the encouragement I need.
I lean toward Ethan and give him a quick peck on the lips. “I would love that. As long as…”
Everyone looks up, wanting to hear my condition.
“… Samson is invited too.”
“Of course he’s invited. I just don’t promise the other dogs are welcome. But Samson is welcome any time he wants.”
I smile and squeeze Ethan’s hand. This is the best Christmas Eve yet, and suddenly, the idea of moving in with Ethan makes the future unfold in front of me. I love all the happy thoughts filling my head as I share the specially cooked Christmas Eve dinner with my loved ones. There are only good things ahead of us now.