“I haven’t had a cup of homemade cocoa in years,” he mulled, “in fact, not since I was a kid. Think we can make some to go with those cookies?”
“You bet - and speaking of cookies, here comes your little Jenny now,” she laughed again, the child running into Skyler’s open arms.
Joe watched her drop a kiss onto his little girl’s cheek, deciding that he had never seen anything so beautiful in his entire life. The fact that Skyler and Jenny had so much in common wrenched at his heart.
As a father, he held the common feeling that he never wanted to let Jenny go. And now, for the first time in his life, he felt the same about a woman - about Skyler, a perfect stranger more or less. And on top of these disturbing feelings, he wanted to protect her.
It was all crazy, he decided as he continued to watch the two interact. No doubt, Skyler was the most genuine woman he’d ever met. Who else would have agreed to such a kooky scheme? And she wasn’t doing it solely for him, rather for Jenny too. She understood his daughter perfectly. So much for the overpaid counselor.
Skyler held Jenny from her and nodded towards the Christmas tree, one that appeared as if it had been decorated by a child.
“Should we open gifts first?” she asked.
“No - let’s do the cookies! Please?” Jenny begged, Skyler unable to refuse her. "Besides, I already got everything that I wanted for Christmas."
She sent a grateful smile to Joe who worked to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat.
“Okay - and perhaps some Christmas lunch. We’re almost there,” Skyler decided.
As the day progressed, for the first time since Joe could remember, he felt human. He’d smiled so much that he was certain that tomorrow his face would be sore. But he couldn’t help himself. Fact was, Skyler was a delight - a total delight and he couldn’t help smiling when he was around her.
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