Reunited At Christmas

Liam ducked his head and laughed.

“What’s so funny?” she asked.

“You always were partial to Jasper. He was like the grandfather you never had. Or so you said,” Liam answered. “You always took his side against me.”

“Sorry about that,” Ruby said in a light voice.

“It’s okay,” Liam conceded. “Watching the two of you getting along like a house on fire was always enjoyable.”

Ruby shrugged. “I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but I don’t remember that...or Jasper. Although—” Ruby frowned.

“What is it?” Liam asked. Had more flashes of memory occurred?

“Ever since I’ve been back I’ve felt this overwhelming sense of familiarity. I can’t put my finger on anything in particular—but it’s there, right under the surface.”

Liam felt his heart pound like crazy inside his chest. His feelings about Ruby’s memories were so conflicted. He desperately wanted her to get her remembrances back, but at the same time he dreaded what she might remember about the state of their marriage. It was a selfish thought, he realized, considering all Aidan stood to gain if Ruby was whole again.

“Where are you staying tonight? If you like, I can put you in our guest room,” Liam offered.

“I have a reservation at the B and B on Jarvis Street.” She twiddled her fingers and looked down. “I’ll only be staying there for two nights, Liam. Then I’ve got to catch my flight back home.”

Home? What was Ruby talking about? Love, Alaska, was her home, whether she realized it or not yet. He believed that with a deep certainty, despite his doubts about his relationship with his wife.

“Why don’t you let me cancel your reservation?” he suggested. “Stay here with us. You’ll be able to spend more quality time with Aidan in his element.”

Ruby regarded him solemnly and then nodded her agreement. “I know that I only just met him, but he’s everything you said he was.” She glanced over at their son. “I don’t need my memory back to tell me that he’s the best thing I’ve ever done in this world.”

“I feel the same way,” he said as a feeling of pride swept over him.

Aidan patted the seat next to him then beckoned Ruby with his other hand. “Come sit with me,” he called out, clearly wanting to be near and dear with his mother.

As he watched her settle next to Aidan at the table, Liam’s thoughts were focused on his son’s quality of life. Aidan needed his mother. His son’s world would be so much richer with her in it. How many times had Aidan cried himself to sleep because he didn’t have a mother? Or asked him dozens of questions about Ruby? There were so many things that only a woman could provide for a young boy. A tender touch. A lullaby to put him to sleep. A soft place to fall when he needed it.

This was all about Aidan. For the moment Liam wasn’t even putting himself in the equation. His own heart had been a little bit broken when Ruby had taken off her rings and headed to Colorado on the rescue mission. And even though he was ecstatic about her return, he still felt as if he was walking on a tightrope. What if Ruby remembered that she had asked for a separation? What if he did what he had always done with Ruby and followed his heart, only to have it smashed to pieces again?

No, he wasn’t going down that road. His one and only goal would be to give his son his most fervent Christmas wish. The best gift God could ever bestow on him. A mother of his own.

Chapter Four

Ruby woke the next morning with the smell of bacon wafting under her nose. She sat up in bed and cast a quick glance around her. She had been so exhausted last night after all the Prescotts had left the house that she’d barely had time to take in her surroundings.

The guest bedroom had a quaint, cozy vibe. An oil painting of the Alaskan tundra hung from the wall. A big, fluffy, eiderdown comforter had kept her warm and cozy all night. The bed frame was made of cedar wood. She had no idea how she recognized the wood, but she did. She reached out and touched its smooth surface as a feeling of familiarity ran through her. Someone had made this for them! A man. One she dearly loved. A face flashed before her eyes—warm brown eyes and a cocoa complexion. An endearing smile and a hearty laugh. Her brother?

Before she had turned in, Aidan had peeked into her room and wished her good-night. He had been a little shy but filled with curiosity about her. She was so worried about disappointing him. Ruby fretted that in his mind she was a super hero. That would be a tough act to follow.

She quickly got dressed and checked her appearance in the mirror above the dresser. In her baby blue sweater and jeans, she appeared casual and not half as serious as she felt. A slight case of nerves overtook her. For all intents and purposes, she was a stranger in her own home. Aidan and Liam were blank slates for her. Yet every time she looked at her son she felt a tugging sensation in the region of her heart. Try as she might to convince herself that he was a stranger to her, he made her feel things she hadn’t ever felt before. Or at least not since she’d woken up as an amnesiac.

Once she left the bedroom, the delectable aromas of breakfast food emanating from the kitchen were even more enticing. Before she had even managed to take a step, Aidan stood from his spot on the floor outside her door. Right next to him was a fire engine set he’d been playing with as he’d waited. He sent her a smile that made her heart do flip-flops.

“Daddy said I should let you sleep.”

“That was mighty nice of him,” Ruby said, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jeans.

Big brown eyes that looked a lot like her own gazed up at her. “Are you hungry? We’re having bacon and flapjacks.”

She rubbed her tummy and let out a contented sigh. “Bacon. I love bacon.”

“Me, too,” he said, his voice ripe with enthusiasm.

She winked at her son. “And flapjacks ain’t so bad, either.”

“Daddy made them specially for you. And I helped stir the batter.”

“That’s wonderful. I always say it’s all in the stirring.” She smiled at him, noticing the way he was staring at her with a hopeful expression on his face. She felt a burst of sympathy for him. He was so little. Way too young to wrap his head around his mother unceremoniously showing up in his life after having been presumed dead for two years. She wished there was a manual for how to deal with this situation with grace and wisdom. As it was, she felt scared to death about saying or doing the wrong thing.

She bent at the waist and peered into his perfect little face. “Is there anything you want to ask me?”

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