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“I LOVE IT,” ROMAN DECLARED, hoping Mia would agree.
She set her hands on her hips and tilted her head. “Are Christmas trees supposed to be that blue?”
Roman pushed down his exasperation. They’d switched out the white lights for the blue lights, then added on the silver and white ornaments again. He wasn’t even sure what looked good anymore. All he saw was green pine needles and glittery ornaments running together like spilled paint.
“Let’s check the picture on Pinterest,” he suggested.
Mia snatched her iPad from the couch and opened up the app. She held up the iPad against the tree.
Roman’s heart sank. Whatever they’d done, it didn’t look like the Pinterest picture. How had he failed yet again?
“The colors are the same,” Mia said. “It looks messy, though. I wish Mommy was here.”
Me too, sweetie, me too,Roman thought. At least for this event. Maybe not to return to his marital problems with Liz. Not that he’d ever share that with his daughter. Liz and Roman had decided they wouldn’t say anything to Mia until they’d worked things out—in their divorce settlement.
Thankfully, it had all been kept from the media. Lila and Thayne knew, of course, and a few other staff members.
“Maybe we need tinsel,” Mia said, cutting into his thoughts. “To make it more sparkly. And the white lights.”
“There’s not any tinsel in the photo.” Roman could only imagine the mess that would make. Besides, the snowstorm was still in full effect, so no more trips to the store tonight.
Mia stepped up to the tree and began to pull off the ornaments.
“Wait, what are you doing?”
“The blue lights don’t look Christmasy enough.”
Roman stared hopelessly as his daughter began to undo what they’d been working on for the past hour.
“It’s called Christmas Twilight,” a woman’s voice said.
Both Roman and his daughter turned. Cara Prosper stood at the edge of the front room. She’d shed several of her layers, although she still wore a thick cardigan over a turtleneck, complete with jeans and what looked to be thick slipper socks. Her blue eyes gleamed in the soft light of the front room, and her lips were a perfect pink.
Cara glanced at him, then focused on Mia. “Here, let me see the photo.”
Mia’s mouth opened, but instead of speaking, she seemed awed. She handed Cara the iPad.
Cara took it and spent a good minute walking around the tree. “Just as I thought,” she said in a soft voice.
Mia practically bounced on her heels. “What is it?”
“This is the perfect tree to be considered a Christmas Twilight tree.” Cara touched a blue light. “This blue is perfect, too. How did you find the right color?”
Mia beamed. “They were the only ones left at the store.”
Cara nodded as if this was excellent news. “There’s only one adjustment that needs to be made, and I might be able to help you with it.”
Mia’s eyes widened. “Do you know how to decorate Christmas trees like my mommy?”
Roman’s breath left his chest. He’d been fascinated by this exchange, but now . . . what would Cara do?
She reached for Mia’s hand. “I don’t know if I can do anything as well as your mom, but I’ll show you how we decorate where I come from. Christmas trees are a big deal because we don’t have snow in Texas. So we have to make up for that in other ways.”
Mia gave a slow nod. “All right. You can help us.”
Cara’s smile was sweet. Really sweet.
Roman couldn’t help smiling, too.
