A Love Inspired Christmas Bundle: In the Spirit of...Christmas / The Christmas Groom / One Golden Christmas

Using her best imitation of an English lady, Lindsey said, “Shall we prepare tea and dine?”

Jade giggled. “Can we dress up too? And you can be the princess and I’ll be the queen?”

“Lovely idea, my queen. Right this way, please.” Nose in the air as befit royalty, she led the way to the huge plastic storage bin in her bedroom closet where she kept a variety of thrift-shop and novelty-store play clothes. Jade, getting into the spirit of the game, followed suit. She fell upon the container, carefully lifting out one garment after another, exclaiming over each one as if the clothes came from Rodeo Drive.

In no time, she’d chosen outfits for both of them and they traipsed on plastic high heels, boas trailing, into the kitchen to prepare the Oklahoma version of high tea.

“Let’s make fancy sandwiches first. Later, we’ll do cookies.”

“Do you have Christmas cookie cutters?” Jade shoved at her sun hat, repositioning the monstrosity on her head. Bedecked with more flowers than Monet had ever painted, the hat tied with a wide scarf under the child’s chin. Lindsey thought she looked adorable.

“A bunch of them. We can use them on the sandwiches if you want to.”

“Cool. Do you gots sprinkles too?”

“Oh, yeah. I have tons of sprinkles. All colors. But let’s not put those on the sandwiches.”

Jade giggled. “For the cookies, silly. I want to make Daddy a big red cookie.” Her face fell. “I wish my daddy would come. I’ll bet he’s getting hungry.”

“He’ll be here soon,” Lindsey said with more confidence than she felt as she spread the sandwich fixings on the table. “Tell you what. Let’s say a little prayer asking Jesus to take care of him and bring him safely home.”

She hardly noticed that she’d referred to her own house as home for Jesse and Jade. Semantics didn’t matter right now.

“Okay.” To Lindsey’s surprise, Jade closed her eyes and folded her little hands beneath her chin. Even though Jesse shied away at the mention of God, someone had taught this child to pray.

Closing her own eyes, Lindsey said a short but heart-felt prayer.

“Amen.”

Jade’s shoulders relaxed. “Jesus will take care of Daddy, won’t He?”

“Yes, He will. And He’ll take care of you too.” She smeared mayo on a slice of bread, handing it to Jade to layer on the meat and cheese. “Did you know you have a guardian angel who is always with you?”

Shaking her head, Jade licked the mayo off one finger.

“Well, you do. Everybody does. But God has very special guardian angels that take care of children. Jesus loves you so much He tells your very own angel to keep watch over you day and night.”

“Even when I’m asleep?”

“Yes.” She chose an angel from the pile of cookie cutters. “That’s why you don’t need to be afraid of anything—ever. Your angel is always here, looking after you.”

Jade took the metal angel, studied it, and then pressed the shape into a sandwich. “Does Daddy have a guarding angel?”

Lindsey smiled at the mispronunciation. “He sure does.”

“Can I save this angel sandwich for my daddy?”

“Of course you can. We’ll make enough of everything so he can eat, too, when he gets here.”

That seemed to satisfy Jade, and Lindsey wished she were as easily comforted. Where was Jesse? Leaving Jade alone was so uncharacteristic of him. Had something happened? In the weeks of their acquaintance she’d grown fond of him, fonder than was comfortable, and the thought of something happening to him was unspeakable.

Agitated and filled with self-recriminations, Jesse stormed across Lindsey’s yard, hoping with everything in him that Jade was here. He couldn’t believe he’d gotten so busy, so deeply enmeshed in the stacks of court records that the time had slipped away and he’d forgotten to pick Jade up from school until she was long gone. What kind of lousy father was he anyway?

Sushi bounded out to meet him, a good sign. His spirits lifted somewhat, though he’d feel better if the German shepherd bit him. He deserved to be punished. For all his searching, he hadn’t found a bit of useful information; not one single reference to any transaction between Charles Mitchell and Les Finch.

The day as gray as his mood, Jesse mounted the porch—and heard singing. A husky adult voice that sent an unexpected shiver of pleasure dancing along his nerve endings blended sweetly with a higher, childish melody.

Relief flooded him. Jade was here. Pausing at the open door, he could see the two through the glass. They were in the kitchen at the table, their backs turned, singing “Mary Had a Little Lamb” while they worked at something.

He squinted, leaning closer. What kind of get-ups were they wearing?

With an inner smile, he waited until they finished their song before pecking lightly on the door. Two heads swiveled in his direction.

“Daddy!” Jade dropped something onto the table and clambered off her chair. She ran toward him, nearly tripping over a long, white dress that looked suspiciously like a well-used wedding gown. Taking a moment to hike the yards of wrinkled satin and lace into one hand, she stumbled onward, lime-green high heels clunking against the wooden floor.

Mood elevating with every step his baby took, Jesse opened the door and stepped inside the living room.

“My, don’t you look beautiful,” he said.

But Jade was having none of his compliments. She got right to the point. “The teacher made me ride the bus ’cause you didn’t come.”

“I’m sorry I was late, Butterbean. Your teacher did the right thing sending you to Lindsey where you would be safe and happy.”

“Where were you? I got scared. I thought you were dead like Mommy.”

A searing pain cut off Jesse’s windpipe. Of course, she’d think that. That’s why he always made a point of being exactly where she expected—to allay her well-founded fears.

Lindsey appeared in the living room. “Your daddy is here now, Jade, and he’s just fine.”

“Jesus took care of him the way you said.”

A serene smile lit Lindsey’s eyes. “Yes, He did.”

Jesse didn’t know what was going on with their talk of Jesus and decided not to ask. He looked to Lindsey, grateful for her care of Jade, but not wanting to tell her where he’d been. Wearing a hat with peacock feathers sticking out the top, and a rather bedraggled fake fur stole over someone’s old red prom dress, she looked ridiculously cute. If he hadn’t felt so guilty, he would have laughed.

“I’m sorry for putting you out this way.”

“Jade is no problem. But we were a little concerned about you.”

Exactly what he didn’t need—Lindsey’s concern, although he knew it was there, felt it day in and day out as she carefully avoided subjects she’d discovered were painful or taboo. Always, that gentle aura of peace and inner joy reached out to him.

“I had some personal business to handle which took much longer than I’d planned. Somehow the time got away from me, and by the time I rushed over to the school…” He lifted his hands and let them fall.

“Well, you’re here now.” Lindsey smiled that sweet, tranquil smile that changed her face to a thing of beauty. Jesse tried, but failed, to resist the pleasure that one motion gave him.

And then she made things worse by asking, “Are you hungry?”

An unbidden rush of warmth filled him from the inside out. Coming to this house and this woman was starting to feel far too natural and way too good.