CHAPTER 12
Madison and Adam had been inseparable several weeknights and the following weekend. Betsy’s grandmother had been thrilled to babysit and often brought food over for the two of them or “cooked” with Betsy while Madison enjoyed delicious candlelit dinners with Adam at the Redbud Canyon Hotel. Soon, the employees knew her name. She felt as though she were living someone else’s life.
Over dinner the prior evening, Madison had approached Adam about meeting Betsy. Overjoyed to finally be included in her life, too, he suggested they make the introductions at a Christmas tree farm.
Madison rushed home to tell her daughter she was going to meet someone special while they picked out a Christmas tree.
The following afternoon, Madison’s nerves were shot. She wondered how Betsy and Adam would get along and worried about his reaction to seeing her crappy house. She busied herself with finding holiday decorations as she dug through the red and green box she had tucked away on a garage shelf.
As she examined her Christmas décor, her face fell. They were sparse, old, and worn. And those were the good ornaments. She had picked up several at garage sales or during after-Christmas sales. Then, she spotted the cherished white snowflake ornaments her mother had crocheted. We can hang these in the front.
As she sorted through the box, she held her two prized ornaments in the air. They always made her heart swell. Betsy had made reindeer ornaments in preschool using two Popsicle sticks for antlers. Digging through the container, she retrieved a cardboard poster made with imprints of Betsy’s palms. She had drawn faces on the palms and her tiny fingers formed the antlers. She grinned. It looks like we have a reindeer theme.
Tired of bending over, Madison placed the box on the kitchen counter and rummaged through the contents until she found her sparkly gold and silver ornaments. Some were cracked or faded. Still, it was all she had. She laid the ornaments out so Betsy could help hang them later.
Betsy ran into the room. “Mommy, when can we go?”
Madison stared at her daughter’s baggy sweats and striped tee. “As soon as you change. Let me help.” She dressed her daughter in a white snowman sweater, pink leggings, and her favorite, albeit worn, white sneakers that lit up with each step. She stared at her daughter’s shoes. “Those are beginning to look ratty, Betsy.”
“I wuv them, Mommy.”
Sighing, Madison said, “Okay, okay. Put your coat on. Let’s go get a Christmas tree.”
Betsy clapped her tiny hands together and jumped up and down. “Cwismas tree. Cwismas tree.”
“That’s right. We’re getting a Christmas tree.” Madison bent down to be eye level with her daughter. “Betsy, I’m going to introduce you to a nice man I met recently.”
“Daddy?”
“No, honey, not daddy. His name is Adam.”
Betsy danced around the room chanting, ‘Cwismas tree,’ seemingly oblivious to this important moment in her little life.
As they got into the Camry, Madison’s phone rang. It was Adam. “Can you meet me at Target in the holiday aisle? I figured you could use some new decorations for the tree.”
Is this man telepathic? Madison’s heart skipped.“You must have a crystal ball or something. My decorations are, um, in pretty bad shape.” She put her phone on speaker and backed out of the garage.
Adam continued. “We’ll let Betsy pick them out.”
Madison glanced at her daughter who bounced in the seat to the song, Let It Snow. Let it Snow. Let it Snow. “You might be sorry.”
“Christmas is for kids, right?” Adam said.
“Betsy will love choosing the decorations. Good thinking. See you in the Christmas aisle soon.” Madison focused on the heavy traffic. I’m falling for this man—and fast. She attempted to keep her feelings in check because she always waited for the other bough to drop. But she had yet to see a crack in their relationship, not even half a crack. Still, cautious might as well have been her middle name.
After she parked, she spotted a smiling Adam near the entrance. He wore jeans and a subtle red and green plaid shirt. She knew he had made an extra attempt to appear Christmas-y because of Betsy. Tears pricked Madison’s eyes. Happy tears. She held Betsy’s hand as they passed harried shoppers and strode toward Adam.
When they were a foot apart, he addressed Betsy first by bending down and extending his hand. “You must be the beautiful little girl your mom has told me all about.”
“I’m Betsy. Who are you?”
Still holding Betsy’s hand, he said, “My name is Adam. You can call me ‘Adam.’”
Betsy giggled. “You’re funny, Adam.”
Madison stood there perplexed. She wasn’t used to this-this, whatever it was. Happiness, maybe. “Betsy, Adam is the nice man I told you about.”
Betsy twirled on the sidewalk. “Are we going to buy toys?”
Madison shook her head. “Not tonight. Christmas is soon. You’ll get toys then. We’re going to get decorations and then buy a Christmas tree, remember?”
Betsy clapped her tiny hands. “Cwismas tree!”
“This is what Cwismas is all about.” Adam chuckled in an obvious attempt to pronounce the word exactly as Betsy had. Motioning to the left, he said, “I think the decorations are over there.” He reached for Madison’s hand.
She held her breath as they stepped into the throng of customers. There was going to be an outburst. Betsy would have one of her rare tantrums. Something had to go wrong. Her life wasn’t like this.