Silent Night

Ercylie Cordero

Passed to: Ms. Sherylon Agbay

Oakley
I woke earlier than usual – at six in the morning –
but I couldn’t help smiling. Today was Christmas,
and it wouldn’t be long before Everleigh woke and
would be up and bouncing off the walls.
She hadn’t changed since she was a baby – full
of life, eager to explore and learn, and extra loud.
This year was also special because it was baby
Bentley’s first Christmas. He was only six months
old and wouldn’t have a clue what was going on.
But I was sure he’d enjoy the lights, new toys to
chew on, and having attention from all of his family
at once. Beside me my husband, Cole, slept
peacefully beside me.
Like every morning when I was the first one up I
took a minute to drink him in. I would never ever
get over how lucky I am to have him. Cole was
impossibly beautiful with shining blue eyes and
dark hair. If I didn’t have children and a million
things to achieve each day I would just stare at
him all day.
The affect he had on me never lessened. Cole
forgave me for leaving him for four years when we
were teenagers. He was the most incredible man,
and I was honoured to call him my husband. Of
course he said the exact same thing about me
because he was a delusional fool. I brushed his
hair, letting my fingers glide to the back of his
head. Slowly, two perfect blue eyes opened and
stared back at me.
“Good morning,” he whispered, pulling me closer.
“Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas.”
We curled around each other, and I closed my
eyes. I’d loved Cole for a very long time now, but
he still made my heart soar.
“How long do you think we have?” he asked,
sliding his hand down my naked back.
“Probably about thirty seconds.” Everleigh was five
and an early riser.
I didn’t mind because being woken by my little girl
jumping all over me was the best way to get up.
Bentley was a lazy baby and usually only woke
when he heard his big sister.
“Damn, what I had planned would definitely take
longer than thirty seconds. Although I can
probably work something in with that.”
Laughing, I snuggled closer and pressed my face
against his hard muscles and soft skin. He smelt
incredible. Letting him do whatever he had
planned sounded very tempting, but too many
times he’d got me all worked up then we had to
stop because a little voice was calling us.
Spending Christmas sexually frustrated didn’t
sound appealing. Groaning, I said,
“We can do that tonight. A lot.”
After everything I’d been through as a child I never
expected to want anyone to touch me but when I
was with Cole he made every touch special. He
made me feel safe, loved, and like the woman I
never thought I’d get to be.
He gave me back what I thought they’d robbed
forever.
“I love you, Cole,” I murmured against his skin.
The words weren’t nearly enough for what I felt for
him.
“I love you too, baby.”
“Mummy,” Everleigh called, waking Bentley at the
same time.
His baby babble was the sweetest thing and
never failed to make my heart swell. Sighing softly,
I kissed Cole’s chest and got up.
“We didn’t even get thirty seconds.”
Cole rolled onto his back, put his hands behind his
head and raised his eyebrow as he watched me
get dressed.
“Later.” Definitely later.
“I’m coming, Everleigh,” I said, giving Cole one last
longing look.
I grinned as I left our room and set eyes on our
perfect daughter. Her big blue eyes lit up when
she saw me. Bouncy blonde ringlets fell down her
back. She jumped up and down on her bed,
pointing to the full stocking hanging on her wall.
“He’s been! He’s been, Mummy!”
“I can see, sweetie. Merry Christmas,” I said,
opening my arms for a hug.
 She bound off the bed and tackled my legs. I
managed to get one quick kiss to the top of her
head before she squirmed away.
“I’m just going to get Bentley up. Why don’t you go
and see Daddy.”
“Okay!” she shouted and took off.
“Bentley,” I whispered as I left her room and
pushed his door open. He always had a big smile
whenever he saw Cole or me. Or his grandparents
and Uncle Jasper.
He’d pulled himself up, so he was sitting in his cot,
gripping the wooden bars. Reaching over I picked
him up and kissed his head.
“Happy first Christmas, baby boy. Let’s go see
Daddy and your big sister,” I said, taking him back
to our room.
He babbled and tugged on my hair as I kissed his
rosy cheek. I couldn’t help laughing as I saw
Everleigh jumping on our bed with her legs either
side of Cole. He’d tensed up in case she fell onto
an area he really wouldn’t want to be hit. Yeah, we
needed to all get up before she landed in the area
he really didn’t want her to hit.
“How about I change Bentley, then go downstairs
and get ready?” I said.
“Yes!” Everleigh shrieked.
I thought that would get her seal of approval.
“Merry Christmas, Bentley.”
“First Christmas,” Cole added.
“Everleigh, let me up so I can pee before we go
down.”
“Don’t wanna, Daddy,” she replied, waving her
arms up and down as she jumped. I left them to it,
smiling to myself and changed Bentley so we
could get our Christmas started. He watched me,
cooing as I changed his nappy and popped his elf-
themed baby grow back up.
“Are you ready to open your presents?” I asked,
kissing his button nose. He smiled in return, not
having a single clue what I was talking about. Two
tiny little teeth were just about visible from his
bottom gum. I picked him back up and perched
him on my hip.
“We’re going down now. I’ll call you in a minute,” I
called along the hall. Everleigh squealed in
response, but Cole replied,
“Okay, babe.” Bentley slapped me in the face at
least five times as we walked downstairs as he
waved his arms around.
“Look, Bentley, presents!” I pointed to the piles
and piles of gifts in the living room. Of course he
wasn’t at all interested. I put him in his Jumperoo
and flicked the tree lights on.
That was when he took notice. He kicked with his
legs, making himself bounce and grinned so wide
he almost looked shocked. Our decorations were
all the colours of the rainbow because when you
have a five year old sticking to one or two colours
just isn’t an option.
“That’s all you’re going to be excited about this
year, huh?” I said, bending down and kissing his
check. Turning my head so I wouldn’t deafen him,
I shouted,
“Okay, we’re ready for you!”
Everleigh’s footsteps thudded down the stairs, and
I heard Cole laughing as he came down after her.
Those two were so adorable.
“Wow!” she screamed, eyes popping as she
looked around in awe.
Bentley bounced harder, arms flailing. She always
got him worked up. It was cute until it happened
close to bedtime.
“I think she’s excited,” Cole said dryly, leaning
against the doorframe in just a pair of joggers.
Merry Christmas to me. I made no attempt to hide
my ogling of my husband’s toned, muscular chest.
He lifted an eyebrow and smirked. I shrugged one
shoulder.
I’d never be embarrassed for perving on him
anymore. Cole walked over, gave me a kiss and
bent down to see Bentley.
“I’ll make hot chocolates and Bentley’s milk, and
then we can get unwrapping,” I said, leaving Cole
and Everleigh to pull funny faces at Bentley.
God I loved them. I dashed into the kitchen, filled
the kettle up and switched it on. Our whole house
was decorated in hundreds of fairy lights. It felt so
cosy I wanted to leave them up all year round, but
Cole was dead against the idea.
As the kettle boiled, I looked over in the mirror that
stretched the entire length of the wall on the dining
area side. Since I’d spoken up and told the truth
about what had happened to me, I looked so much
more alive. Even I noticed the colour in my cheeks
and spark in my eyes. Everything changed from
that day. Warmth hugged me, squeezing my heart.
The feeling of complete bliss wasn’t constant, I still
had bad days where I cried and reflected on what
I’d been through, however the good days
outweighed the bad. It was a battle that I knew I
was going to continue winning, and my family was
the best prize. I made the hot chocolate and milk
and carried them in on a Santa-themed tray.
“Here we go,” I said, laughing at Cole ruffling the
kids’ hair. Bentley didn’t have much after he’d
rubbed it all off, but it was so soft and wispy and
as blonde as mine and Everleigh’s. Cole stood up,
taking the tray and putting it down on the end
table.
“Everleigh, yours are the ones in the purple
paper,” he said while he got Bentley out of the
Jumperoo and gave him his bottle.
“Can I open them now?” she asked.
“Of course,” he replied,
holding his hand out for me. I lowered myself to
the carpet and snuggled to Cole’s side.
“Which one do you want to open first?” I asked
her.
She flopped to the floor and looked around,
overwhelmed.
“Um… I don’t know. Which is the best one?”
“Everleigh…”
“I know, I know, they’re all best. The big one!” She
grabbed hold of it and grinned up at us.
“Go ahead,” Cole said.
I picked my hot chocolate up as she ripped her
presents open and Bentley drained his bottle. Cole
watched with the biggest smile. As soon as she
was finished she’d want her drink too. Everleigh’s
love of hot – warm – chocolate was as inevitable
as her love of ice cream. Those were the two
things I’d grown up on. Cole used to take me to a
diner nearby when we were teenagers to eat as
much ice cream as we could before we felt ill. The
diner was refurbished while I was living in
Australia, after I’d told the truth and moved away,
and Cole had bought our booth.
It was so sweet and still brought tears to my eyes
when I thought about it. Even though I’d left him
he still wanted that booth. I flicked the TV on to set
it to a Christmas songs channel to make the
morning extra festive. Once Bentley was done with
his milk Cole sat him between his legs and handed
him a green wrapped present.
“Think he’ll just chew on that?” he asked just as
Bentley’s mouth opened and the edge
disappeared.
Laughing, I took it out and replied,
“Yep. Let me help you, buddy.”
Cole and I watched Everleigh open everything she
had, stopping between each gift to play with it and
take a sip of her drink.
“We could be here for a while,” Cole said, nodding
as she started playing with the Elsa doll that took
one week and fifty miles to track down.
“I think so. We should’ve saved that one for last.”
“Put Bentley down so I can give you your
presents,” he said.
“I like the sound of that,” I replied, sitting him in the
inflatable ring so he could sit and play with his toys
too.
“Here,” Cole said, handing me a sack of presents
when I sat back down with his pile of gifts.
“Thank you. We open at the same time, right?” He
nodded,
staring into my eyes like it was the first time he’d
seen me – again.
“Right.”
The kids were happily playing with all their toys, so
we had a few minutes to ourselves to open ours in
as much peace as you can get with two little ones.
We’d gotten each other the usual little bits we’d
asked for. Clothes, my favourite perfume, a
voucher for the local tattoo parlour so Cole could
get Everleigh and Bentley’s name inked into his
skin, and a few other bits. I unwrapped a
particularly revealing underwear set, careful not to
let Everleigh see it.
Raising my eyebrow at Cole, I ran my hand over
the soft, white lace.
“For later,” he said,
and I’d never seen a more hopeful look on his
face.
“This a present for me or for you?” I asked
teasingly.
“You,” he replied, faking hurt.
“Okay, both of us.” Sighing, he added,
“Me. I got it for me.” Laughing, I nudged his
shoulder and put the lid back on the box.
“Well, maybe I will put it on tonight.” His eyebrows.
“Yeah?” I nodded, biting my lip, and his eyes
darkened.
As much as I was looking forward to a big family
Christmas I was also very much looking forward to
getting my husband naked. Groaning, he said,
“We have hours, let’s not do this. You shouldn’t
have said anything.”
“You’re terrible,” I said, reaching over and
dragging his main present towards us.
“Now this one.”
Cole didn’t take much downtime for himself,
always making sure we were looked after and the
kids were entertained, so I’d bought him
something that I knew he’d want but would never
buy himself.
“Oakley…” he said,
his bright blue eyes visibly lighting up as he stared
at the PlayStation 4 box. He’d not played video
games for years.
“No arguments!” I raised my eyebrow and pointed
at him.
Laughing, he leant over and kissed me. His lips
were perfectly soft, and I wanted to deepen the
kiss but we both knew we had to keep it reserved
and not scar Everleigh for life.
“I love you. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” I replied.
“There might be one more for you,” he said.
“Everleigh, can you pass me that present in the
tree, please?”
“What present in the tree?” she asked, not even
looking up.
“Well, if you’ll glance over there you’ll see it.”
Sighing because she would have to leave the
Frozen characters that she’d been role-playing
with, she got up.
“Where, Daddy?”
“Near the bottom. Red paper.”
“Oh! Here it is,” she said, pulling it out.
“Who’s it for?”
“Mummy,” he replied. Everleigh negotiated the
maze made by wrapping paper and handed me
the present.
“Thank you, baby,” I said when she handed it to
me.
With a fleeting smile, she went back to her game.
I shook it, narrowing my eyes at Cole. It rattled
quietly.
“Hey, no cheating, just open,” he said, tucking my
hair behind my ear. I tore into the paper and found
a black velvet box.
Glancing up briefly to see him smile, I opened the
lid and gasped. He’d bought me a white gold
necklace and earring set. The stones were blue
topaz and matched the ones in my engagement
and wedding rings. Apparently they reminded him
of my eyes. They reminded me of our children’s
too.
“Cole… It’s beautiful.”
“I was hoping you’d say that.”
“Thank you.” I leant in and kissed him, lingering for
a little longer than we usually did in front of the
kids.
My heart beat wildly and my body heated in all the
right places. Now is so not the time.
“Merry Christmas,” I whispered against his lips.
Bentley started fussing, ending our moment. One
of them usually did, but neither of us ever minded.
Cole reached over and picked him up while I put
my jewellery on. My rings sparkled with the
twinkling lights on the tree.
“We should eat breakfast and get ready to go.”
“Nanna’s!” Everleigh shouted, hopping up. “Let’s
go now. Will Leona be there yet? Will Uncle
Jasper be there yet?”
I held my hands up.
“Whoa, calm down. Nanna and Grandad will
probably still be asleep. Leona will be opening her
presents with Mia and Jasper… Well, he’ll be
playing with Sophia’s toys but at his house.” Cole
took them upstairs to get dressed in the clothes I’d
already picked out, or nothing would match. While
they were getting ready, I packed the presents for
everyone into large gift bags and went to brush my
teeth.
 *** Everleigh’s excitement was infectious. I never
wanted that to end for her, and I couldn’t wait for it
to start for Bentley too. I could remember before
the abuse started where I was as vocal about
Christmas as her, but after I was locked in a prison
of silence. It made me work extra hard to give my
children the most magical childhood I could. She
bounced up and down on my mum’s doorstep.
“Uncle Jasper! Uncle Jasper!”
My brother was probably her favourite person in
the world; he had a lot of time for her and they got
along so well – probably because they both had
the same mental age. Mum opened the door and
bent straight down to give Everleigh a hug. A
chorus of ‘Merry Christmas’ flowed through the
house as we made our way to the kitchen where
everyone was. My mum and her husband, Cole’s
parents, sister and niece, my brother, his girlfriend
and their daughter were drinking, playing and
chatting. Everleigh ran off to tackle her Jasper.
The people in this room were the only ones I
trusted my children with, and they all meant so
much to me.
We were welcomed with drinks and soon settled in
the living room to exchange presents while the
turkey cooked to perfection. Mum’s husband,
Miles, was lighting a fire. The house looked like
Santa’s grotto, it was beautifully decorated. There
were plenty of seats for us all, but we still sat on
the floor. I lost Bentley to my mum and Cole’s
mum, and Sophia was also taken from Holly’s
arms as they cooed over the littlest ones. When
we were here, I could relax with Cole because we
knew Everleigh would be off with her cousin,
Leona, and Bentley would be passed around to be
cuddled. I sat right up against my husband’s side
while we passed presents around.
“No one can open mine until the girls are in bed,”
Jasper announced, smirking. His girlfriend, Holly,
slapped his arm playfully.
“I have real presents for everyone. I don’t even
know what he’s bought, so please don’t blame
me,” she said.
“Oh, no one would blame you,” I replied, glaring at
my brother.
His idea of a present was a sex toy. The more
outrageous the better. Last year he gave Mum and
Miles a strap-on. She couldn’t look him in the eye
for a week after, bless her. I didn’t even want to
open mine and Cole’s.
“Oh, Jasper!” Mum chastised.
“I don’t know why you feel the need to buy those
things.” His response was a huge, cheesy smile
that made him look like a naughty schoolboy.
“Well, I think Jasper’s presents are funny,” Mia,
Cole’s older sister, said. Jasper bowed his head.
“Don’t worry, love, I’ve sorted you out with the
latest rabbit.” “A bunny!” Leona said, suddenly
stopping her unwrapping to look at her mum with
pure hope in her innocent eyes. Mia glared at
Jasper.
“Yes, looks like we’re getting a bunny rabbit,
sweetie.”
“Jasper will buy you one, Leona,” Holly said,
shaking her head at him. Holly really had her work
cut out for her taking my brother on.
“Let’s make a pact,” Cole whispered in my ear.
“Whatever it is, we use it.”
“Sure. If we use it on you.” His eyebrows shot up
and he tipped his head to the side.
“Come on now...”
“So it’s good enough for me but not you?”
“I don’t have certain places where things can go
in,” he replied in my ear.
Even though the conversation was not a turn on,
his low, seductive voice and breath on my neck
was.
“You have one place where things can go in…”
“So that’s settled, we’re throwing the present out,”
he said and sat back.
“Thought you might say that.”
When the presents had been opened, leaving
behind a mountain of wrapping paper in the middle
of the room that Everleigh had to jump on between
playing with her new toys, Cole and Jasper were
entertaining Bentley and Sophia, Holly and I
followed Mum into the kitchen.
“Are you having a good day?” Mum asked us,
peering into the oven to see how the turkey was
doing. Holly nodded, leaning on the worktop. Later
tonight, Holly, Jasper and Sophia were all heading
to her parents and having another Christmas day
tomorrow.
“Yeah, Everleigh loves it and Bentley is, well,
loving the lights. It’s really nice to be together.”
“I know,” she replied.
“I’m glad Jenna, David, Mia and Leona could
come.” Of course, they came.
Cole’s family was our family too, and had been
since we were all young. I grew up with Cole and
Mia as well as Jasper. We’d always been close,
and not even four years and thousands of miles
could get in the way of our bond.
“Can I do anything?” Jenna asked,
setting her glass of wine on the granite worktop.
Mia followed her, looking back over her shoulder
and laughing at something going on in the living
room.
“We need to get the roast potatoes and stuffing on
soon,” Mum said.
“There are jobs for everyone but first…” She
reached into the fridge and pulled out a bottle of
wine.
Thank goodness there were plenty of snacks and
chocolate out, or everyone would be drunk. I sat at
the large island beside Mia and looked at the
garlands fairy lights and other Christmas
decorations in the kitchen. Mum always made the
house shine and sparkle at Christmas and since
Everleigh was born she went that extra mile. While
we worked on dinner, I glanced out of the window.
Cole thought the PlayStation was his big surprise
this year, but I had something that topped that in
store for him. Mum handed me the alcohol-free
wine.
“Next year when you’re not still breastfeeding,”
she said,
doing her best to look sad for me.
“Thanks. It’s fine. Someone has to remain sober to
look after the little ones.”
I poured a glass and took a sip. It tasted okay and
at least I didn’t feel like a child with a coke when
everyone else was enjoying a proper drink. The
noise level in the house was high.
Everleigh and Leona couldn’t stick to one room
and flitted between them all; running, shouting and
laughing everywhere they went. The babies gave
the odd cry between food, bottles and naps. It was
chaotic but perfect. The colourful light danced
above our heads, wrapped around and stuck to
every possible surface.
“New Years resolutions!” Jenna said,
stirring the gravy as we put the finishing touches to
dinner.
“Mine is to find Mia a decent man.”
“Hey, Mum!” Mia said, then thought about it and
shrugged.
“Yeah, alright. That’s mine too.”
“Mine is to get a big, fat rock on my finger,” Holly
said,
laughing when Mum’s eyes lit up. That big rock
was coming sooner than the New Year…
“He does need to pull his finger out, doesn’t he,”
Mum said.
“Why do I get the feeling this is about me?” Jasper
asked as he passed the doorway, holding
Sophia’s little hands so she could walk.
“Because it is! When are you going to marry this
girl?” Mum demanded.
Most people would be embarrassed, but Holly
laughed and blew him a kiss. Jasper took hold of
Sophia, stood up, turned on his heel and walked
away, leaving a room full of cackling women. I
joined in, pretending to laugh at his ‘discomfort’.
He really only left because he didn’t want to give
anything away. I was so excited for them both I
almost squealed. If anyone looked at me now, I’d
probably give it away.
“Mum, what’s your resolution?” I asked, trying to
steer the conversation away from proposals.
“Mine is to spend one day a week taking my
grandchildren somewhere. Doesn’t have to be
anywhere special, even just the park or the soft
play centre.”
“That’s a nice one,” I said.
“And, yes, you can steal them for one day every
week.”
Since I had Bentley, I’d lowered my working days
to two a week but if Mum wanted to take them I
could always go back up to three. It’d give me a
chance to build the business.
“Yours, honey?” she asked.
“Mine is probably to focus on Everleigh’s
gymnastics.”
She was better than me when I was younger and
since her love of throwing herself about had only
grown it was probably time to get a bit more
serious about it.
“She’ll love that,” Jenna said.
“Yeah, I think so.”
I’d always been very cautious not to push her, but
she loved her classes and wanted to do more. It
had to be her decision, and I was following what
she wanted to do. Part of me was really happy
though; my passion for the sport had never died.
“Oooh, I can’t wait to watch her in the Olympics!”
Mum squealed.
“I was thinking of starting with some small contests
and seeing how she likes it but at least you’re
dreaming big for her. Now, what can I do?”
I was sent with Holly to lay the table, setting
crackers out and serving dishes that were piled
high with food. She had definitely cooked too
much.
“Is she trying to fatten us all up?” Holly joked.
“Looks that way.” I still had a few extra pounds
from my pregnancy with Bentley that was going to
be impossible to shift now.
“Think Jasper will want a Disney cracker or a
normal one?” she teased.
“I heard that!” he shouted from the living room,
making me and Holly laugh. Mum, Jenna and Mia
came into the room, each holding two more dishes
in their hands. The dining room filled with the
smells of Christmas and my stomach begged for
the roasties.
“Dinner, everyone,” Mum called.
The men and kids’ footsteps sounded like a
stampede as they made their way into the room,
gazing longingly at the food.
“Take a seat anywhere, but before you take a bite
I want to see hats on,” she added.
Cole sat Bentley in the highchair next to me and
then took his seat on the other side, taking my
hand.
“Has he been okay?”
“He’s been great,” he replied,
leaning over and giving me a kiss. I looked at my
family around the extended dining table that was
piled high with a traditional Christmas turkey with
all the trimmings and felt so much love, it forced
out the shadows of the awful things I’d been
through. With them at my side I knew that even
one of my worst days wouldn’t be too bad.
“Pull this with me!” Everleigh said,
holding her cracker out to Leona. They were next
to each other at the end of the table, looking very
smug that they were head of the table. I put a few
soft carrot sticks on Bentley’s plate and grabbed
my cracker. Hats first had always been the rule.
Cole and I helped each other, pulling both
crackers at the same time. Bentley didn’t bat an
eyelid at the noise.
He held a carrot stick in his chubby little hand and
chewed on it.
“Here,” Cole said,
handing over his yellow hat and taking my red
one.
It was a small gesture, but those were the things I
loved so much. He always thought of the little
things. We dug in, and before I knew it, my plate
was piled high. Mum had cooked so many dishes,
but they all looked and smelt incredible. I gave
Bentley a little mashed potato and watched him
bash his hand into it more than eat it. I was so full.
Mum had done an amazing job with dinner, and I
wouldn’t need to eat for at least another week.
Everyone looked the same as I felt – so stuffed it
hurt but so satisfied it didn’t matter.
“I’ll be back in a minute,” I said,
getting up from the table. There was one last thing
I needed to do for Cole, so I snuck outside when
everyone went back to chatting. The air was
bitterly cold, and I knew I had to work fast.
Breaking off a branch from one of the many trees
Mum had in the garden, I split it into smaller
lengths and went around the side to where
Everleigh had built her snowman family.
My hands shivered and seized up as I poked them
into place in the snow. But it would be worth it.
When I’d finished and looked back, I was
overcome with warmth. Dashing back before
anyone questioned why I’d been too long for the
toilet, I joined everyone back at the table. Mum
had Bentley falling asleep in her arms, and Holly
had Sophia bouncing on her legs, babbling ‘da da
da’ which put a huge smile on Jasper’s face.
“She’s not saying ‘dad’, Jasper,” Holly said.
“Of course she is,” he replied.
Most babies started with that sound; it was easy to
make but Jasper was absolutely claiming it as
‘dad’. She rolled her lightly lined eyes.
“She could say mum and you’d still argue it was
dad.”
“Don’t hate just because I’m the favourite,” he
said,
grinning as he leant over to kiss her.
“I’m sure the next one will say…well, dad first too,
actually.”
Holly raised her light eyebrow.
“Keep talking like that and you won’t get another
one.” I loved their banter.
It was so good to see him blissfully happy. He
never had that with his ex-wife, Abby, but he knew
that Holly would never hurt him. She loved him as
much as he loved her. They were amazing
together, especially given the short space of time
that they’d actually been a couple.
“You’ll give me more, woman. You want a whole
football team too.”
“You can keep wishing for that one. I said maybe
we’ll have one more.” He shrugged.
“They’ll have my genes so that two-man footie
team would smash the World Cup.” She shook her
head, discouraged, but still smiling.
“You’re an idiot, Jasper.”
“You’ve only just realised that?” Cole said, soon
finding himself on the receiving end of a napkin
ball hit.
“Shall we discuss how you’re the most whipped
man on earth?” Jasper quipped, smirking at Cole.
“Oh, please, Holly only has to flutter her eyelashes
and you jump.” While they were arguing, Mum,
Miles, Jenna, David and Mia took the kids into the
living room.
“No, I don’t.”
“Oh, good comeback,” Cole said,
laughing as he dodged another napkin ball.
“You two do realise that Everleigh, Leona and the
babies sat nicer than you at the table, don’t you?” I
said.
“Yeah, and Sophia spent most of the time
smearing her food across her face and throwing
mashed potato,” Holly added. Jasper frowned.
“Cole called me an idiot.” Holly shook her head.
“No, I called you that, he just agreed.”
“Shouldn’t I get a break from all the shit since it’s
Christmas?”
“Now where would be the fun in that?” Cole said.
Jasper sat back in the seat and crossed his arms.
“I hate you all.” He looked to Holly.
“You should be on my side.”
“Now where would be the fun in that,” she sang,
borrowing Cole’s words. He grunted.
“And to think I was going to propose to you
tomorrow.”
“Jasper!” I hissed.
What a complete idiot. I knew, of course. He’d
summoned me to help pick out the perfect ring
and told me his romantic plan of proposing on
Boxing Day when they went to Holly’s parents.
They lived near a natural park, which was
decorated beautifully over the holiday season. He
was going to take her for a walk and propose
there. It was a much better idea than blurting it out
over dinner. Holly’s eyes widened, and Jasper
winced.
“You what?” she whispered.
“Smooth,” Cole muttered.
“There is no way you weren’t dropped on your
head as a child,” I said.
Cole took my hand and stood up.
“Let’s go in the living room.”
“What? Why?”
Was he serious? This was just getting good! He
raised his eyebrow, tilting his head to say ‘you
know why’. I did, of course, but I really wanted to
witness this. Cole pulled me up and removed me
from the room.
“Why did you do that?” Laughing, he wrapped his
arms around my waist and kissed my shoulder.
I turned us around so I could still see into the
kitchen and hugged him back.
“You’re a bad sister,” he whispered in my ear.
“Shh,” I replied waving my hand at him, making
him laugh.
“What do you mean you were going to propose
tomorrow?” Holly asked. Jasper cleared his throat.
“Tomorrow I planned to propose we move house.”
I closed my eyes. Why does he even bother
opening his mouth at all?
“Oh, Jesus,” Cole whispered in my ear.
“Jasper,” Holly said.
“Propose we have another child.”
“Jasper.”
“Propose we do that thing?” His voice got a little
too high at the end of his sentence.
I turned my nose up and hoped I would never find
out what ‘that thing’ was.
“Jasper!” She sounded like she’d lost all patience
with him, and I couldn’t blame her.
“Fine. Damn it, I’m so stupid,” he muttered.
That he was.
“The ring is packed, so this isn’t going to be at all
romantic.” He shook his head.
“Screw it! Holly, will you marry me?” My smile was
as big as hers.
I squeezed Cole’s arms around mine. They’d
better hurry up and set a date soon. I loved
wedding preparations. Mum would too. And
Everleigh.
“I don’t care about big, romantic gestures, and of
course I’ll marry you.” Cole chuckled and kissed
my shoulder.
“Good luck, Holly.”
“She’s good for him. Helps that she has the
patience of a saint.”
“Mum!” Jasper shouted.
“Holly and I just got engaged!” Cole just managed
to pull us both to the side before everyone came
rushing through to congratulate them.
“Where’s the ring?” I heard Mum ask.
She’d given Bentley over to Miles, who had him
sleeping in one arm and Sophia sitting in the
other. Miles may not be related to them by blood,
but he was the best grandad I could have hoped
for, along with Cole’s dad.
“I haven’t got it. This wasn’t supposed to happen
until tomorrow but apparently I can’t keep my big
mouth shut,” Jasper explained.
He then had to explain exactly what that meant.
“This is the best Christmas yet,” Jenna said, giving
them both a hug.
That reminded me.
“Hey, in a little while we need to go and see
Everleigh’s snowman family.”
“Yeah,” he replied.
“Shall we go see the happy couple first?”
“Definitely.”
The second I stepped into the kitchen Jasper pried
Mum’s hands off him and made his way over.
Though he drove me crazy, we were incredibly
close. When we left for Australia, he’d been my
rock and helped me to heal.
“Congratulations, you utter moron,” I said, giving
him a hug.
He squeezed. “At least I don’t have to spend
tomorrow night freezing my balls off in a park.” I
rolled my eyes.
“You better still do that for her.” Pulling back, he
frowned.
“She said yes.”
“I know that, but you haven’t given her the ring…”
He groaned.
“I should do it again tomorrow.”
“Uh huh! She’s an incredible woman, and she’s
taken you on, she deserves a medal and a
romantic proposal.”
“You always make me feel so warm and fuzzy
inside,” he said sarcastically.
“I’m so happy for you both.”
“Me too. Now we can get on with making more
babies, she wanted to wait until we were married
before more. Cole is always on about how much
more of a man he is having two already.”
“Jasper…” My mouth fell open.
I knew they joked about it, but I bloody hoped it
was just a joke. Laughing, he replied,
“As ever, you’re fun to tease.” He slapped me on
the back and went back to his fiancée, grabbing
Sophia as she put her arms out for him on the
way.
Everleigh climbed on Jasper’s lap, sitting beside
Sophia on his knee.
“Uncle Jasper, can I be a bridesmaid?” He looked
to Holly, and she tilted her head.
“Do you really need to ask?” she said to him.
Shrugging, he looked back into Everleigh’s hopeful
eyes.
“Of course you’re going to be a bridesmaid!”
We managed to get the kids to settle down after
the wedding excitement. Holly and Jasper stayed
in the dining room, and I hung back while Cole and
Miles went into the living room with Bentley. Part
of me wanted to wait to surprise Cole now that
Holly and Jasper had got engaged tonight, but I
knew they wouldn’t want that. In fact, Jasper
would be pissed off with me if he thought I’d
waited because of him. I poured myself another
glass of alcohol-free wine and made myself drink it
before I took him outside. Cole I was stuffed.
Sarah had cooked for about thirty people rather
than twelve. On reflection, having a who’s-got-the-
bigger-balls eating contest with Jasper was a bad
idea. But he did look as uncomfortable as I felt.
Mia sat down beside me, watching Leona and
Everleigh make Loom Band bracelets on the floor.
“How’re you doing?” I asked. Two months ago
she’d broken up with a guy she’d been seeing for
about four months prior.
“I’m doing really well. Thinking about taking Leona
to Disneyland in March. We both really want to
go.”
“She’ll love that.”
“She will, and I think we both deserve it.”
“Heard anything from him?” I asked.
“He tried calling but I didn’t pick up. He’s a nice
guy, but I’m not wasting time on someone that I
don’t see a future with. I like that it’s just me and
Leona at the minute.”
Mia was happy to focus on herself, Leona, and her
career. She didn’t need anyone, and I really
admired her for that. If Oakley left me I’d probably
stop existing.
“I’m so proud of you, Mia. You’re an amazing
mum.” Her eyes welled up and she slapped my
arm.
“You utter bastard!” What the fuck was that about?
“Alright, sorry. You’re a terrible mother, sis.”
Rolling her eyes,
she said, “Shut up. I don’t really care about a lot of
things in life, like material things, having the high-
power career, but being a good mum to my little
girl…”
“At the risk of getting hit again, just don’t change
anything because you’re already there.” She held
her hands up.
“Okay, I’m changing the subject before I cry. I
need to pry my nephew off Mum. She’s not put
him down since Miles handed him over. I want my
Bentley snuggle time too.”
“Good luck.”
Even I found it hard to get him back, and he’s my
son.
“Sophia coming through,” Jasper said,
walking awkwardly across the room holding
Soph’s hands. With assistance, she could walk,
and she liked to walk a lot. Everleigh and Leona
gently tickled her belly as she strolled past them.
She was also quick on her feet. You had to
expertly power-walk whilst crouching down and
making sure there was nothing in her way. She
walked with help from her dad over to the sofa
where I was sitting with Mia and stopped at the
edge. She pulled her hands out of his and gripped
Mia’s knees. My sister soon picked her up, happy
to have a baby to cuddle.
“Cole, kitchen,” Jasper said.
“Jasper, why?” He deadpanned.
“Do you need to question everything?”
“With you, yeah.”
“Oh, will you just get up!” I stood.
“Happy?”
“Never been happier.” He nodded to the kitchen,
and I followed.
I wouldn’t admit that I was intrigued because we
could be going in there for absolutely any reason.
You never knew what was coming when he was
involved.
“Well?” I asked when nothing was out of order.
There were no broken appliances or water pouring
out of a pipe in the wall. All things he’d done in his
own place.
“Oh, look, your wife is outside,” he said and
walked back into the living room.
What? I didn’t give his oddness much thought
when I saw Oakley through the window. She
shivered and waved at me to go out.
“What’re you doing?” I asked, opening the patio
doors.
“Oakley, you’re going to freeze.” Holly laughed
from beside her, squeezed Oakley’s hand and
walked inside.
“Come here,” she replied, holding her hand out.
There weren’t many times that I wouldn’t follow my
wife, despite the below freezing temperature
stabbing my bare arms.
“What’re we doing?” My body tensed, and I rubbed
my hands together for warmth.
“Jesus, Oakley, it’s so cold out here my balls have
retreated,”
I hissed. Even though it wasn’t snowing we still
had a white Christmas. The snowfall from a few
days ago had lingered, and the freezing
temperatures would probably keep it here for a
few more.
“I know, but you love the snow,” she said.
“And Everleigh is excited to show us the snowmen
she built yesterday.”
While we wrapped presents yesterday, Everleigh
spent the morning with Sarah and Miles. Miles had
wrapped them both up warm and spent an hour in
the garden building a snowman family. I laughed.
“Yeah, but she’s too cold to come out now.”
“She’s too busy playing with her toys. I had a
feeling she’d do that.” Sarah and Miles were also
Christmas light crazy.
Every tree in their garden had lights wrapped
around them. We walked around to the side of the
house where the two trees that Leona and
Everleigh had tyres hanging from were covered in
twinkling lights. Oakley squealed and pulled my
hand.
“There they are!”
Along the wall were three snowmen and in the
arms of which one was obviously me was baby
Bentley.
“What’s on yours?” I asked,
noticing something on the body of Oakley’s
snowman. She squealed again and laughed,
pushing me forwards so I could get a better look.
My eyes widened when I saw exactly what it was.
“Oakley…?” Oh my God.
“This is what I was doing when I snuck away from
the table earlier,” she said.
I was stunned. Completely and utterly stunned. On
the snowman’s belly, written in twigs was: #3
“I found out last week. I wanted to tell you but I
wanted to do it in a fun way. Are you excited? I
know it’s soon after Bentley but–”
I couldn’t let her ramble on anymore. I needed to
kiss her. Grabbing her thick coat I hauled her
against me, gripped the back of her head and
glued my lips to hers. My wife is fucking pregnant!
She smiled through the kiss and flattened her
body against mine. Her lips were cold from the
temperature but as urgent and needy as my own. I
moaned, bringing my hand around to cup her jaw.
Her skin was so soft. Every inch of her was perfect
to me.
“I love you,” I breathed into the kiss.
“I can’t believe we’re going to be new parents
again.” She pulled away just far enough so that we
could talk properly.
But she was still very close and at that lips-almost-
touching distance I had a hard time remembering
my own name let alone discussing our third, and
total surprise, child.
“I love you too. It’s crazy, I know. The doctor said
that although you’re less likely to get pregnant
when you’re breastfeeding it can happen. We
obviously didn’t when I breastfed Everleigh so I
never even thought about it. Well…this time…”
She gestured to her stomach.
“I think maybe it happened because we started
substituting some feeds with formula. I don’t
know,”
she rambled and bit her bottom lip.
“It doesn’t matter how or why it happened. I’m
fucking over the moon here,” I said, laughing.
“How far along? When can we see our baby?”
With Everleigh and Bentley I’d probably been the
most excited expectant father on the planet, and I
felt that same level of excitement and impatience
that I did the first two times. She looked so content
as she gazed up at me.
“It’s still really early days. I’m about seven weeks.
The midwife is arranging a scan for the first few
weeks in the New Year.”
“Shit, I can’t wait.”
I could count on one hand the number of times I’d
cried: when Oakley left, when she came back, and
the birth of our two children. I felt like blubbering
again. We hadn’t planned to have more children
so this was the best surprise. Everleigh and
Bentley were more than enough for me but deep
down I would’ve liked to have more. I didn’t think it
would happen since Oakley wanted to stop at two,
and I respected that, she was the one that had to
give birth after all. She shook her head, glowing.
“Me neither.”
“Boy,” I said.
“I think it’s another boy.” She leant into me,
laughing.
“Oh, you do?”
“Yeah. I don’t care either way, but I think Everleigh
will be the only daughter we have. Be easier not to
have to worry myself sick about penis’ chasing two
of my babies.”
“You never know…” she said raising her eyebrow.
“Hell, I don’t care about that. If Bentley or the new
baby is gay that’s fine with me, but I won’t worry
because boys can’t get boys pregnant.” She rolled
her eyes.
“You’re ridiculous.”
“You love me.”
“More than you could ever imagine.” She stole my
breath.
I’d never get over the way she made me feel. It
had only ever been her. All I needed was her and
our kids.
“Oakley…” I closed my eyes.
She made me feel invincible. When I looked at her
again she had a tear rolling down her cheek. I
didn’t wipe it away like usual because I knew it
wasn’t through sadness.
“I know, Cole,” she whispered, her voice thick.
“Want to go and tell our families there will be
another addition next year?”
“Hell yeah, I do. Plus, it’ll make Jasper feel less of
a guy for being two down. You know I’m always up
for that.” Taking my hand, she looked at me in
discouragement.
“You’re a man-child.” I shrugged.
“You married it, baby.”
“Lucky me,” she said sarcastically and
absentmindedly bit her lip. No, lucky me!