Free Beginnings of the Heart by J. J. Nite Page B

possibly the county.
    Mrs. Tompkins should have been recruited by the CIA because no one could ever get anything by her. Not just because she spent the majority of her day sitting in her front window watching the residents of Centerville, reporting back, and receiving important information from her fellow compatriots. No one could get anything by her because all she had to do was look at you with her glasses perched on her nose and her hands folded in front of her just so with her head slightly tilted to the side, ask you her question, and some compulsion would make you spill your guts to her. It was as if she could reach inside of your mind, root around for the information she wanted, and it would just fall out of your mouth.
    At least Mrs. Tompkins was selective with her gossip. She never spread anything not absolutely true. A gossip with a strict code of ethics, if you will. Seeing her always made me a little nervous, but tonight it was worse because I actually had something gossip worthy to hide from her.
    I turned to lead Cole to another room, and I could feel her eyes boring into me from behind. I tried to suppress a shiver, but it still ran through me. Cole noticed and started rubbing his hand up and down my back as if to warm me up or soothe me. His movement so natural I doubted he even knew he was doing it.
    â€œAre you okay?” Cole asked, quietly near my ear.
    â€œYeah. Mrs. Tompkins always makes me nervous, and it was like I could feel her eyes probing my brain in there.” I replied just as quietly while casually looking around the dining room.
    There were several people here who noticed us, and we were soon caught up in conversations. I didn’t notice time passing as I fell in with the holiday cheer and gave myself over to it all.
    Too soon Cole had to leave and I walked with him to the front porch.
    â€œYou should have stayed inside, you know.” He scolded gently.
    â€œI know, but there are still a lot of eyes and ears in there. I wanted a few minutes to us.”
    He wrapped his arms around me and bent his head to my ear. “There is nothing I would like better than to be here with you all night and have Christmas with just the two of us. Try to remember I love you, Morgan, and I love this baby.” He kissed my cheek.
    â€œI love you more, you know. Drive safe and call me tomorrow when you can.”
    â€œI will. Now, get inside before you freeze.” Cole called from the curb.
    After one more smile and wave I did return to the warmth of my house. I pushed the door closed and turned to go back into the living room and once again felt the sharp eyes of Mrs. Tompkins.
    She was seated on the end of the couch closest to the tree. Her hawk-like eyes were raking over me, and I had to suppress another shiver. I gave her a small, nervous smile and retreated to the kitchen as soon as I could. Something about the way she was looking at me made me wonder if she suspected anything.
    I gave myself a mental shake and told myself she was just being her normal self. Looking for the next piece of gossip before someone else did.
    I made it through the rest of the night on autopilot. By the time the last guest left and I was able to escape to my room, I had worked myself up to the point of not being able to sleep. I lay in my bed, stared out the window, and let my eyes unfocus. The night was beautiful. The Christmas lights from our house and others glowed through darkened windows and reflected on the snow, making everything appear brighter in the dark night.
    My mind wandered, and I found myself remembering Christmases past. The excitement, my eyes flashing open in the morning, and not remembering the moment sleep had crept up on me. Tearing into the presents spread around the tree while my parents sat smiling on the couch oohing and aahhing in the appropriate places were fond memories.
    I began to think about how Christmas changes as you grow up and then when you become a parent, you relive the