Free Forever Santa by Leeanna Morgan Page A

Gracie. For now.
    She wondered if some of Jordan’s broken heart had more to do with not seeing what was happening. He had a sixth sense that usually kept him out of the worst kind of trouble, but it hadn’t worked this time. The breakup with Tracey had rocked his confidence and his heart.
    “Is everything all right?”
    Gracie slipped the parcel into her pocket. “I’m fine. Just thinking about tonight.”
    “Did you have a good time?” Trent leaned against the door frame, watching her face so closely that she started fidgeting. “What happened, Gracie?”
    She took a deep breath and reached for Trent’s hand, taking him with her into the living room. “We had a great time. I think Jordan would sooner forget the last ten minutes. Tracey turned up with her boyfriend. He saw them dancing together.”
    Trent turned the television off. “What did he say?”
    “Not much,” Gracie sighed. “Even on the way home he wouldn’t talk about it.”
    “His heart’s been trampled, Gracie. He’s a guy. We don’t go around telling people how we feel.”
    “But it might make it easier to deal with.”
    Trent sat on the sofa and pulled Gracie beside him. “Nothing will do that except time. Tracey doesn’t love him anymore. It’s hard for him to accept.”
    Gracie leaned her head against Trent’s shoulder. “I suppose you’re right.” She watched the lights in the Christmas tree sparkle against the decorations they’d hung.
    She thought about the tree that had stood in the corner of her mom’s home. Each year her mom had wrapped the tree in lights before Gracie arrived home for Christmas. They’d hung the decorations together, laughing as they remembered the story behind most of the baubles.
    After her mom died she’d bought a fiber optic tree. She’d hung the decorations on her own, pretending her mom was with her. But it hadn’t helped ease the bone-deep loneliness inside her. Until last Christmas she hadn’t realized how much she’d missed a real tree, the smell and the look, and everything it meant.
    She slid her hand into her pocket and put the small parcel on Trent’s leg. “I bought you something.”
    “It’s not Christmas day.”
    Gracie sat up and brushed her hair off her face. She looked down at the parcel, then pushed it a little further up Trent’s thigh.
    He frowned, then picked up the purple box, gently shaking it close to his ear. Gracie’s mouth felt dry. She licked her lips, watched him try to work out what was inside.
    “It’s not going to explode is it?”
    Gracie shook her head and tried to smile. Except her lips wobbled and she felt dangerously close to crying.
    “What’s wrong, Gracie?”
    “Nothing. It’s just…” She looked at the parcel in Trent’s hand, then up into his eyes. “I wanted to tell you, but I didn’t know how. So I…”
    Trent ripped open the box and stared at the bubble wrap. “It’s a decoration for the tree?”
    Gracie nodded. She waited while he pulled the Scotch tape off the bubble wrap.
    “It’s a cradle. With a baby in it.”
    The confusion on his face made Gracie’s pulse beat fast. She started doubting herself. It hadn’t been a good idea. She should have blurted out her news, just told him straight out instead of giving him the decoration. He didn’t get it, didn’t understand what she was trying to tell him.
    He read the little plaque attached to the end of the cradle. “Baby’s first Christmas? But it’s got next year’s date on it. I don’t…” He looked down at Gracie and his jaw dropped. “ You’re pregnant? We’re having a baby?”
    Gracie nodded and before she could say anything, Trent wrapped her in a tight hug, pulling her onto his lap. “Oh, Gracie. That’s wonderful. I never thought we’d have a baby.” He hugged her again, holding her close. “A baby,” he whispered against her hair. “How long have you known?”
    “A few days. Doc Johnson’s booked a scan for next Monday. We’re somewhere between three