Chapter 25
SOMEONE SPECIAL TO HIM
“Alana,” Becca yelled and charged his girlfriend at the door the next morning.
After troubled thoughts and frantic conversations, Brennan asked Alana to come over before Becca’s nap on Christmas Eve day.
He desperately wanted to tell his daughter that Alana was more than her friend, that she was someone special to him also.
But how do you say that to a three-year-old who was more focused on a chubby, white bearded man bearing gifts that was going to arrive in their house with no chimney access?
He was creative. Santa had magical powers and could walk through walls where a chimney should be.
Becca bought that and he was going with it.
“Hi, Becca,” Alana said, putting a bag down and lifting his daughter.
He saw a few gifts in there and was thrilled he’d done the same thing for Alana. One from him and one from Becca.
Not that he knew whether there was anything in that bag of loot for him, but he didn’t care.
“Santa is coming later. I’ve got to be good for just one more day.”
His jaw hit the floor. “Not just one more day. All year long. It’s cumulative.”
Becca’s little blue eyes crinkled at the sides. Probably not the best word to use. “What does that mean?” his daughter asked.
Alana tapped Becca on the nose. “It means you have to be good every day of the year and it all adds up.”
Becca pushed her bottom lip out and crossed her arms. “But it’s fun to be bad.”
“Oh boy,” she said her eyes wide. “Good luck there, Brennan.”
“Thanks.” As much as he was dreading those teenage years, he had hoped he wouldn’t be alone for them.
Alana put Becca on the floor, toed off her shoes. She took her jacket off and hung it up and then picked up her bag.
“Do you have gifts for me?” Becca asked. He wanted to chastise his daughter for being rude but told himself to dial it back. She was three. Christmas was tomorrow.
“I do,” she said.
“Can I open them now? My mom came to visit and she brought me gifts and I got to open them early.”
“That was nice of her,” Alana said. She looked at him and caught his forced grin over the visit. No reason for his daughter to know Rene’s appearance wasn’t fun and games.
“I got more coloring books and paints. I painted you a picture and drew you one too.”
“You did?” she asked.
He saw Alana blink a few times, her bottom lip came out with it. A genuine tender look full of emotions from someone who cared what his daughter did.
“It’s supposed to be a surprise,” he said to Becca.
“Oops,” Becca said. “I’m just so excited.”
“If Daddy doesn’t mind, then why don’t you open your gifts?”
“I don’t,” he said.
They moved to the couch and he reached over to grab the two gifts under the tree for Alana.
Alana handed Becca the first of three boxes, then pushed one over to him shyly.
His daughter was tearing into the box like an octopus on crack.
“It’s a Bluey drum set!” Becca squealed.
“You didn’t,” he said, his eyes narrowing.
“Sorry. It’s the only Bluey thing they had and she loves music.”
“She does, but this is next level painful.”
He couldn’t fault her though, with how happy Becca was. It was the kind of joy he hoped his daughter had with the gifts he got her.
Brennan supposed he could always hide it or take the batteries out until Alana was around.
“I’ll make it up to you,” she breathed when she handed another box over.
He nudged her thigh with his, then leaned closer. “I look forward to that.”
Becca’s arms were flying again and this time it was a box full of activity books and crayons. That was more like it and there was wiggling and squealing over that gift too.
“She is excitable,” she said.
“She is,” He couldn’t ask for anything more. And he knew damn well his daughter could have had more of her mother’s selfish personality, but he hadn’t seen a touch of it once.
“That means you’re doing a wonderful job. Last one, Becca. It’s not as much fun as the others.”
She pushed the last gift over, his daughter showing the same enthusiasm to get to the contents. “Daddy. It’s a princess dress and boa. Pink and white. Like the one you ruined.”
Becca was up and pulling the dress out of the box and holding it in front of her, then wrapped the boa around her neck.
“That’s war,” he said, narrowing his eyes.
Alana giggled. A sound he hadn’t heard from her once. He never thought she’d be someone to make that noise either.
Most times she was too serious.
That was wrong.
She was serious at work but never outside of it. Not around him.
Not the woman who danced with his daughter and wore sexy outfits to turn him on.
She was a person he never expected her to be.
Was that a bad thing?
He wasn’t so sure he expected Rene would have done what she had, but looking back, he should have.
He didn’t want to think Alana had a mean or manipulative bone in her body, but it was hard to come back from what he’d experienced at the hands of his ex.
His heart might be falling, but he kept his trust locked up, unwilling to give it away so freely.
“You need to open my gift,” Becca said. “Daddy got you one too because he said you’re friends too.”
“That was nice of Daddy,” she said.
Becca picked up her gift, or tried to, but ended up pushing it over, both hands on it, her butt in the air as her feet did all the work.
It wasn’t heavy, but awkward for a three-year-old to lift.
“Go on,” he said. “Open it.”
Alana flicked the tape with her nail, then lifted it so that it pulled away in one sheet, unlike the hundreds of pieces of paper all over his living room floor from Becca.
“It’s a frame,” she said.
On the top of one frame it said: New Friends. It was empty. He was going to take a picture of his daughter and Alana together and have it printed for her to put in. On the other side it said: New Beginnings. His daughter’s artwork filled that side.
“It’s the three of us dancing,” Becca said. “That first day. See the boas and my tutu?”
“I do see it,” she said, her arms opening. “Can I get a hug? This is the best gift ever.”
Becca launched herself into Alana’s arms and held on tight. Alana was looking over his daughter’s head at him though, blinking the tears in her eyes.
He saw the depths of many emotions there and was positive his were mirroring it.
Becca stood back and went to the tree for the last gift. One that was much smaller. He hoped it wasn’t too much, but he fell in love with it and the meaning behind it.
He took the gift out of Becca’s hand and gave it to Alana.
“Daddy says you’re his new friend too. Different from my friend because adults are like that.”
It was the best he could do to get it started. His daughter hadn’t questioned it either and he decided not to push more.
Alana opened the gift with the same care as she would dissecting a bomb. He wasn’t sure why she was almost hesitating and unauthorized thoughts crowded his brain telling him to yank it back and toss it in the yard and run.
He wouldn’t. Then he’d look like a fool. Or more of a fool than he had in front of her already.
She pulled the lid off and the light blue stones were staring back at her. Almost rough cut, but not harsh against the skin. They were all held together in a bracelet by sterling silver with a clasp on the end.
“It’s beautiful,” she said. She was looking at Becca almost in a panic and he was clueless as to the cause.
“Becca,” he said. “You haven’t been potty in a while. Why don’t you go do that and then I’ll get lunch ready?”
“Okay,” Becca said, running out of the room.
“Is it too much?” he asked. “You can tell me.”
“It’s not. I just didn’t want to cry in front of her and it was hard to hold back doing this.”
She launched herself into his arms like his daughter had done to his girlfriend earlier.
“I take it you like it,” he said, relief galloping to his extremities.
“I love it,” she said. “I know stones have meanings. I’m guessing you know what this means and that is why you picked it out?”
“It’s aquamarine and it means happiness, hope, and calmness. All the things I feel around you.”
She sniffled some. “This makes my gift seem lame.”
He laughed. “Don’t worry about that. You didn’t even have to get me anything.”
“Yeah,” she said. “I did. Because all the things you’re feeling, so am I.”
He gave her a kiss on the lips and pulled back the minute they heard the bathroom door open.
“Who is that for?” Becca asked of the lone gift by Alana’s feet.
“That’s for your daddy from me,” Alana said.
She pushed it over and he picked it up and ripped it open. Not as impatient as his daughter had her gifts, but brisker than what Alana had done.
It was a frame, he took it out of the box, and thought it signified something deep they both had the same thought.
His frame said: Daddy’s shadow. There were several shapes and sizes to put different pictures in. Two filled already. Pictures she must have snuck of his daughter when he hadn’t realized and had them printed.
“This is awesome,” he said. “I love pictures grouped like this together and never think to buy a frame to do it.”
“You don’t have to think of it if I do,” she said. She held his stare when she’d said those words.
The thought of partners and family working together clamored in his head.
“That’s me,” Becca said, climbing between them on the couch and pointing.
“It is,” she said, pulling Becca onto her lap. “I have one more thing too, but I couldn’t bring it in just yet. It would have distracted you.”
“What?” he asked.
“Cookies,” she said. “They are in my car. My mother and I made Christmas cookies on Saturday and I’ve got a little plate of them.”
“I love cookies,” Becca said, jumping up. “Can we have them now? Daddy and I are going to make them later to leave for Santa.”
“You are?” she asked.
“Chocolate chip out of one of those tubes,” he said. “It’s the best I can do and we can’t leave Santa hungry.”
Becca stood up and pulled Alana’s hand for her to get up. “Get them now, please.”
“I guess I know what I need to do,” she said.
“You do that and I’ll get lunch ready. Go wash your hands, Becca.”
His daughter took off toward the half bath, one arm up, a finger pointed in the air. “I’ll be back in a flash.”
He yanked Alana close and put his lips to hers. “Once she’s napping we can give each other our real gifts.”
She laughed and smacked her lips to his. “I was hoping you’d say that!”