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Not long after the siren’s wail had faded, Cooper saw Trevor and Maggie coming through the ranch gate. Glory shot off the front porch and went bounding out to greet them, all wags and happy little yips.
“Back so soon?” Cooper asked as they came inside.
It was Maggie who answered. “When we heard the siren, Skip said he had to go home and be with his mom. He took his sisters and left. Abner needed a nap, so we stopped working and came home.”
“Wait. Did you say Skip was there?”
Maggie nodded. She was still slightly out of breath. “He and his little sisters needed a place to stay because his stepdad was drinking. He wanted to help with the sleigh, so we let him.”
Cooper’s gaze turned to Trevor. “So Skip is your friend now?”
Trevor shrugged. “I guess so. I was still mad at first, but after he apologized about Halloween, I forgave him.”
“What about Cody?”
“He moved away. So Skip doesn’t have a friend either now. Maybe we could have him over to hang out sometime. Things are pretty rough at his house.”
“Maybe. We’ll see.” Cooper would need time to get used to the idea.
“Uncle Cooper, may I use your phone?” Maggie asked. “I need to let my mom know I’m here so she can come and get me.”
“I’ve got a better idea,” Jess said. “Why don’t you stay for dinner? Then later, one of us can drive you home.”
“I’ll ask my mom if it’s all right.” Maggie skipped over to the phone, made a brief call, and turned around with a happy grin on her face. “She said yes!”
“Great,” Jess said. “I’m making chow mein. If you want to help, I’ll show you how it’s done. Let me get set up in the kitchen. Then I’ll call you. Okay?”
“You bet.” Maggie glanced around the living room. “Uncle Cooper, you don’t have any Christmas decorations up.”
“No, I guess I don’t.” Cooper had lived without Christmas decorations since his divorce. On the holidays when he’d had Trevor, they’d usually taken a trip somewhere, like Hawaii. “I figure Christmas will come whether we have decorations or not.”
A dismayed look crossed Maggie’s face. “But at least you’ve got to have a tree. We’ve already got our tree up at home. My first mom—my birth mom—loved Christmas. We put all her special ornaments on our tree to remember her.”
“That’s nice for you, I guess. But I’ve never been that big on celebrating Christmas.”
“You’re a Scrooge, Uncle Cooper! Do you know who Scrooge was?”
“I do, and I’d say he had the right idea.” Cooper was teasing her now, only half serious. “Bah! Humbug!”
“Well, maybeyoudon’t need a Christmas tree. But Trevor deserves to have one—don’t you, Trevor?”
“I guess it would be okay.” Trevor had just emerged from the hall, where he’d gone to wash up in the bathroom.
“See, he doesn’t even care,” Cooper said.
“Care about what?” Jess stepped out of the kitchen, drying her hands on a towel.
“Uncle Cooper doesn’t want to get a Christmas tree! That’s just plain wrong. Tell him, Jess.”
Jess’s eyes met Cooper’s—a flicker of challenge in their dark depths. “Heavens, Maggie’s right. What’s Christmas without a tree? I’ll tell you what. After dinner, when we go to town to take Maggie home, we can stop at the tree lot and get one. My treat.”
Maggie grinned, showing her missing front teeth.
“No way,” Cooper protested. “If we’re going to have a tree, I’ll pay for it myself.”
“Have it your way.” She gave the little girl a victory wink. “Come on, Maggie, let’s make dinner.”
* * *
