Page 100 of A Whim and a Prayer

“Cari Lee Barton, and she works at The Herald, so apparently she’s had her eye on him for quite a while.”

Winnie battled a gulp. “Does he like her?”

“More than anyone else, he said”—Abby gave her a wink—“except for you, of course. Sooo … I guess the month hiatus is over, eh?” She glanced at her wristwatch. “Because he’s coming at four, right?”

Winnie jumped up, gathering the peppermint wrappers as she ignored Abby’s question. “We better get downstairs to help with getting dinner on.”

Abby rose to halt her. “It is over, isn’t it, Win? Your pause on your relationship with Beck? I mean you’ll start spending time with him again, right?”

“Sure. But the whole dating condition is over, at least for me, Abs, because the last thing I want to do right now is date anyone.” She fought off a shiver, grateful Abby hadn’t pressed for any details of that night.

“I can understand that, but what about Beck? You gonna set him free to continue dating, too, if he wants?”

“Sure.” Winnie shot a quick glance in the mirror, raking her fingers through her hair to tame some of the curl before she headed for the door. She turned to give Abby a sad smile as she fisted the knob. “Completely and totally free, Abs, to find the love of his life.”

Chapter Sixty-Eight

For what had to be the thousandth time in his life, Beck stood on the Dennehys’ front porch ringing the bell, a rush of adrenaline warming his body despite the freezing temperatures of an icy Christmas day. He turned down the lambswool collar of his bomber jacket and completely unzipped it to cool down, swearing that the house radiated heat, reverberating as if it were alive.

The rumble of children’s footsteps up and down the stairs merged with a wild cacophony of shouts, shrieks, and endless laughter that always ensued at a Clan O’Connor holiday function. The pine scent of the gargantuan angel wreath on the door buoyed his spirits, heralding a new birth, both of the Christ child depicted in the massive nativity display on the lawn and in Beck’s life.

Or, in his case, a rebirth of a friendship he’d missed far too much.

Nobody answered, so he rang again, not a bit surprised if nobody heard as he patiently bobbled Winnie’s small present in hand. He’d already delivered his presents for Mr. and Mrs. Dennehy and Julia on Christmas Eve as usual—but he’d saved Winnie’s for last because he wanted to see her face when she opened it.

His smile tipped off-center. Who was he kidding? He just wanted to see her face! But more than anything, he wanted to talk to her, to find out how she was doing, to give his best friend a long-lost hug.

And to set her free … to be the friend she so desperately wanted to be.

“Maybe it’s best if you and she remain friends for now.”

He hadn’t called once since Mrs. D had delivered the fateful message that Beck had dreaded to hear. But he had heard it—loud and clear—that his dream to love Winnie as a soulmate was not meant to be, and in the accepting of those fateful words, he had suddenly realized that it was time for him to be set free too.

It wouldn’t be easy, he knew, but living without Winnie would be harder, so he’d made up his mind to give her the best Christmas present he could, and in that final acceptance, he felt his burden shift.

From loving her as a woman ...

Back to loving her as a friend.

“Coming!” someone shouted as footsteps pounded toward the door, and he grinned, expecting Julia as usual.

“Beck!” Abby jerked him inside before he could even say hello, not a bit shy about attempting to rip off his coat. “You’re just in time to be my partner in spades!”

Chuckling, he hooked an arm to Abby’s waist to give her a side hug, wishing Winnie would be as happy to see him as her cousin. “And Merry Christmas to you too, Abs,” he said as he dropped Winnie’s present into the pocket of his bomber jacket before tossing the coat on one of four coatracks Mrs. D placed by the door, “but give me a minute to catch my breath, will ya?”

And, oh, what a breath it was! If the house seemed alive from the outside, it was electric on the inside, pulsing with the scents of pine, cinnamon, and gingerbread that wrapped around him like the endless strands of popcorn and cranberries around the tree. A roar of laughter burst from the dining room down a hallway strewn with pine and candy canes, evidence that yet another O’Connor sibling game was in progress.

“Sorry, Beck,” she said in a rush, all but dragging him into the living room, but I need you to put Winnie in her place …”

He buried a grunt. Oh, that I could!

In my arms, he thought as he admired Mrs. D’s living room shimmering with life. From bubble lights and tinsel on a majestic eight-foot tree, to people of all ages scurrying in and out and up and down the pine-looped steps, it was a quivering buzz of activity. Games of chess, cards, and duck-duck-goose were all in play, the latter by Winnie’s grandmother surrounded by a circle of youngsters while she held a baby in her arms.

All but pushing him toward the game tables at the far end of the room, Abby continued with a deadly gleam in her eye. “She’s bragging that she and Teddy will have me begging for mercy since she always wins at spades.”

His smile took a swerve. “Yeah, she’s good at that unfortunately,” he muttered, “and not just in spades.”

“But with your brains and my strategy, we’re gonna make her eat those words, okay?”