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Sam showed the phone to Tansy. “It’s for you.”
“What?”
Sam held up the phone for everyone to see. “It’s a Tansy phone magnet.”
Tansy grinned at her. “You made me a program?”
Tessa nodded. “It can be an app, but I thought this would be more fun.”
Sam handed Tansy the phone and pressed the link Tessa had sent.
A voice came from the phone.Eight meters north-west.
Everyone laughed as Tansy moved across the room and into the hall. Every time she pressed the link, the voice updated the location.
Tansy returned moments later with her phone. “It even acts like a compass and points me in the direction. This is amazing, Tessa.”
Tansy came around and hugged her. Sam followed suit. “I think this gift is as much for me as Tansy. Thanks.”
“You can program it to find other things as well. All you need is a locator on the object.”
As the gift-giving moved on, Flynn kissed her head. “That was perfect.”
The gifts ranged from silly to serious. When it got to Sam, he grinned and stood up. “Mine’s for you, Walker.”
He walked around the table and dropped a worn silver star on the table in front of Flynn. Flynn’s eyes widened and he picked it up reverently.
“We think it’s an old deputy’s star. Tansy found it in the basement one day in a bucket with a bunch of other stuff she won’t let me throw away. Got someone to make it into one of those belt buckles you like.”
The words Midnight Security had been etched into the star and Flynn’s eyes were a little glossy when he turned it over and over. “This is amazing, Sam. Thank you.”
Flynn was next up and he’d picked Josie’s name. He passed her a small notebook. “I’m not sure if you like to cook or not, but these are my mom’s family recipes. Some of my dad’s family too. A bunch of family members got together one day and collected all the handwritten recipes they could find. Mom compiled them and got them made up into a book. She printed off a dozen for each of us.”
Josie’s eyes glittered. “This is fabulous. I don’t have any family recipes of my own, so I’m going to treasure this. Thank you.”
Tessa didn’t know Josie’s story, but it was easy to see that Flynn had chosen exactly right.
Josie smiled. “And that leaves me with the final gift. For you, Tessa. Although it’s a little bit for Flynn as well.”
She handed over a beautiful frame that looked to be as old as the house around them. Her words confirmed it. “I found the frame in the basement and Tansy’s okay with me using it.”
Tessa flipped over the frame and gasped. Inside was a charcoal sketch of her and Flynn. They were standing on the dock with the lake in the background. Flynn was tucking her hair behind her ear and she was holding Ginger.
The sketch captured the love she felt in her heart and for a long moment she couldn’t even find the words. “This is amazing Josie. It couldn’t be more perfect. I love it. Thank you.”
Then she hugged her new friend and wished she could do something to take away the pain she’d seen in her eyes.
Graham stood up. “Enough of the sappy stuff. Great job on the gifts everyone. Now, we got a fresh snowfall last night. Snowman building contest on now. Work in teams. Go.”
Much later, Flynn squeezed Tessa’s hand at the bottom of the stairs. “It’s been a long day. May I offer you a lift?”
“It’s been a wonderful day. Maybe the best day ever.”
Her smile was full of wonder and delight. After the gift exchange, they’d made snowmen, had a snowball fight that included the dogs, and gone snowshoeing. After another family meal full of laughter and fun, they’d sung Christmas carols karaoke style and shared Christmas memories while the evening moved along.
Tessa’s legs had to be worn out from the activities. They’d spaced everything out and she hadn’t backed down at all, but he knew she had to be exhausted. He wanted to take care of her.
He waited and when Tessa nodded, he scooped her up and moved up the stairs to their room. The cat followed and once she was safely inside; he kicked the door closed and moved to the bathroom.
