“Christmas in two days!” Austin bounced out of my car. He was out of control with giddiness. I was glad that he had made a full recovery from his illness. Sure enough, it was some sort of virus that only rest could solve. Luckily, we had stayed inside all weekend, watching lots of cartoons and snuggling in bed.

“Grandma!” Austin burst into my mom’s house. He raced toward my mom, nearly knocking her over. She embraced him and laughed.

“Someone is feeling better,” she said, kissing his forehead. He looked up at her and nodded.

“I am feeling great,” he said, dashing toward her living room. My mom smiled and looked toward me.

“I’m so glad he’s feeling better,” she said. “The rest must have made a world of difference, huh?”

I nodded.

“I’m so happy, too,” I said. “It was awful seeing him so sick. I was really hoping he would get better by Christmas.”

“Are you looking forward to going back to work?” my mom asked me. I nodded. I wasn’t necessarily happy to go to work, but I was happy to see Tiffany again. I’d texted with her on and off over the weekend, but with Austin not feeling great, we weren’t able to meet up with each other.

“It will be nice to wrap up some things for the holidays,” I told her. “I’m only staying for a half day today, so I’ll be here to pick up Austin earlier than normal.”

“Great,” my mom said. “I need to finish up some Christmas shopping this afternoon. Speaking of Christmas, you are planning on coming to the tree lighting ceremony tomorrow night, right?”

“Of course,” I said. It was a tradition that we had done for years. On Christmas Eve, Miami held a small celebration and lit a Christmas tree in the center of town. It was a simple ceremony, but beautiful. Austin was looking forward to it as well.

“I was thinking, it would be nice if you invited that girl from work,” my mom said. To be honest, I hadn’t even thought about inviting Tiffany, but it was a great idea.

“That would be nice,” I said. “I know that she doesn’t have a close family and she doesn’t have any Christmas plans. It will just be low-key, right? You won’t make things weird?”

My mom laughed and playfully swatted at me.

“Me? Make things weird?” she laughed. “But in all seriousness, I promise I won’t embarrass you.”

“Thanks, Mom,” I said sarcastically, but turned serious. “I’m just a little nervous about introducing her to Austin.”

“Why?” my mom asked. “She sounds like a great girl and I’m sure Austin will warm up to her in no time. I don’t know anyone that Austin has met that he hasn’t liked.”

My mom was right. Austin liked everyone he met. He never had an issue with teachers or his friends’ parents. He would be welcoming to Tiffany.

“It’s just important to me that they like each other,” I explained. “I can’t date a woman that doesn’t like kids. It just won’t work.”

My mom nodded.

“I get that,” she said. “She knows about Austin, though, right? And Layla?”

“Yes,” I responded. “She knows about everything. She seemed fine with everything, too. Actually, I feel like telling her about Layla brought us even closer.”

My mom smiled. I could tell that she was happy that I was moving on. She had wanted me to be happy, but never pushed me to get into a relationship. She always told me that things would happen when they were meant to happen, and I believed her.

“It just feels weird,” I admitted. “I feel like I’m doing a disservice to Layla. I know she would be happy to see me moving on and to see Austin happy with a mom-figure, but I still feel guilty.”

My mom walked toward me and put her hand on my shoulder.

“I know it’s rough, Cayden, but she would want you to move on. You’re far too young to not fall in love again. You deserve to be happy.”

She was right. I was too young to call it quits on love. Layla would want me to be happy, but I would still always hold a place for her in my heart.

“Thanks, Mom,” I said.

“I can’t wait to meet her,” my mom said. “What’s she like?”

“Amazing,” I told her. “She really is. She is smart and driven and beautiful. She’s funny, too. She really is everything that I look for in a girl. I thought it would be weird dating a co-worker, but it actually makes it better because we have work in common.”

My mom nodded. I knew she understood, because her and my father had met at work a long time ago. They were the picture-perfect couple, something that I’d aspired to be with Layla. Even in their sixties, they still held hands and went on dates. My dad always opened her door. It was rare for relationships to last that long.

“I hope she comes,” my mom said. “Will you let me know if we should expect her?”

I nodded. My mom was a planner. She liked to know everything in advance.

“I’ll ask her this morning at work,” I told my mom. “Don’t tell Austin until I know for sure.”

My mom shook her head.

“I won’t tell him,” she said. “I’ll let you do that.”

She was right. I needed to tell Austin. It was a conversation that I was both nervous and excited about. Truthfully, Austin probably wouldn’t even care. He was so consumed by Christmas thoughts that he wouldn’t care if I brought a “friend” to the Christmas lighting ceremony.

“I’ll see you in a couple of hours,” I told my mom. She gave me a kiss on the cheek as I left.

“Bye, buddy!” I called out, but he didn’t respond. I was sure he was engrossed in the television already. I left the house with a pep in my step. I was suddenly even more excited to see Tiffany. I would ask her to the tree lighting ceremony. It would be a great opportunity for Tiffany to meet Austin and the rest of the family. I wanted to see how Tiffany and Austin interacted, although I’d a feeling it would go well.

I walked into work full of Christmas cheer. Holiday music filled the halls and some of my co-workers wore festive Christmas apparel.

“Meeting in two minutes!” I announced loudly. They had no idea that we would be leaving early. They would all be excited, but I’d to make it clear that they needed to work hard to wrap things up before we left at noon. I noticed Tiffany down the hallway. She wasn’t dressed festively, but still looked great. She had on a black, form-fitting dress with black heels. I wanted to call out to her, but I didn’t want to make a scene. I would see her after the meeting.

I walked into the conference room and my co-workers followed in. They were buzzing with excitement, similar to how Austin had been. Everyone was in the Christmas mood. I’d hoped that Tiffany was in a good mood, as well, despite her family issues. Tiffany finally walked in and took a seat. I made eye contact with her and smiled.

“Good morning,” I greeted the room. They quieted down as soon as I began to speak.

“I have some good news,” I told them. “We will be leaving here at noon today and will not be returning until next Monday.”

The room erupted into cheers. As expected, they were happy. I was, too. Even though I’d spent the weekend relaxing with Austin, I was looking forward to having a week off work. I was excited about Christmas festivities and hopefully spending extra time with Tiffany. If her and Austin hit it off, it would be easier to see her. We could do things together with Austin, like go out to dinner.

“But, listen,” I told the group. “If you want to leave early, we all need to be super productive. We need to use these next few hours and wrap up articles, photoshoots, whatever. Let’s get this done and start celebrating!”

The group erupted into applause. I felt like I was on top of the world, until I looked across the room at Tiffany. While everyone else was excited and smiling, she had a blank stare on her face. Something was still bothering her, even though she told me it was nothing. I didn’t believe her, but I couldn’t ask her any more about it. I’d to take her word for it, even though I knew something was off.

As the employees began to leave the room, I called out for Tiffany. She turned around and walked toward me.

“Hi,” I said, as she approached me. She smiled, which made me feel a bit better.

“Hello,” she said. I wanted to grab her and kiss her, but I refrained, especially since people were still walking out of the room.

“It’s a nice surprise to be leaving early today,” she said. “That was nice of you.”

I shrugged. We both knew that it wasn’t my decision. Tim wasn’t at work today, but he had told me that I could let everyone go early. I didn’t mind looking like the hero.

“I wanted to ask you something,” I whispered to her. She moved closer to me.

“Yes?” she asked. As she moved closer, I could smell her perfume and it immediately turned me on. I’d images of us having sex dancing through my head. I shook my head, making myself come back to reality. I couldn’t get distracted this morning.

“Would you like to go the Christmas tree lighting ceremony with me tomorrow night? My mom, dad, and Austin will be there. I would love it if you could go.”

She looked at me and I could tell that she was surprised. She probably wasn’t expecting to meet my family so soon, but it was a perfect opportunity.

“Tomorrow night?” she asked. She was stalling. I knew that she didn’t have any plans.

“It’s not a big thing,” I told her. I didn’t want to scare her away. “It’s just a simple Christmas tree lighting ceremony. I thought it would be a nice, stress-free way to meet Austin.”

She nodded, taking in what I’d just proposed. I pleaded to her with my eyes. I really wanted her to come and meet my family. Plus, the whole lighting ceremony was romantic. It was a great opportunity for everyone.

“Sure,” she said. “I’ll go with you.”

My heart pounded in my chest with excitement. She had said yes! She was going to meet my parents and the most important person in my life, Austin.

“Great,” I said. “I’ll text you later with more details.”

“Sounds good,” she said. She turned to leave, but I stopped her. I couldn’t help but question her one last time about her recent sullen mood. I put my hand on her shoulder.

“Are you sure that you’re okay?” I asked her. “We can talk about whatever is on your mind. I know it’s a hard time of year for you, but I’m a great listener.”

She shook her head.

“I’m fine,” she said, faking a smile. “I’ve just had a crazy couple of weeks and then you add the Christmas stress and the bullshit with my mom. It’s just a lot. It will be over in a couple of days and I’ll be back to normal, I promise.”

“Good,” I said. I decided to drop the conversation. There was no reason to keep pushing her. I’d to take her word for it. I would try to make sure tomorrow night was a great experience for her. Maybe I could be the one to change Christmas for her.