Christmas Down Under (Single Wide Female: Happily Ever After #1) Read online

“Yes! I can’t wait to build. I’m going to make a big sand surfboard.”

  “Great idea.” Max sat down beside me.

  As Abby set to work on her surfboard, Max draped his arm around me. “Looks like we’re not going to be seeing that cover-up again.”

  “I keep waiting to see if it will wash ashore, but I haven’t seen it.”

  “You don’t need it, you know.” He trailed his fingertips along the curve of my arm. “I know you weren’t wearing it for sun protection. You look gorgeous in your bathing suit.”

  “Thank you. I guess I am feeling a little insecure.”

  “That’s a red flag, huh? Something’s got you anxious?”

  “I think so, I’m just not sure what.”

  “Well, it is the first time we’ve taken a totally work-free trip.”

  “I didn’t think about that. I guess maybe I’m expecting to have to run off and do a book signing. I’ll probably update the blog later.”

  “This is a chance for us to be together as a family.”

  “You know what’s amazing, Max?’

  “What?”

  “Just in the short time we’ve been here, I’ve learned so much about Abby that I didn’t know.”‘

  “Really?”

  “I’ve noticed that she really is high-energy—that she seems to need to be moving all the time. She’s insatiably curious and perceptive. Plus she knows her body so well, she can surf on the first try. Not to mention—look.” I gestured to the surfboard she’d carved out in the sand. It was a bit square and long and skinny. “She loves to create sand sculptures. She loves to build. I didn’t even know that.”

  “You’re right.” Max nodded as he studied Abby. “I didn’t know any of those things either. I mean, I knew she was curious, but the questions she asks are so much deeper than I’d expect.”

  “I feel like even though I’ve worked from home and been with her all her life, I’m just getting to know her again.”

  “She’s growing so fast and changing so much.”

  “Do you think it’s just that?” I smiled as she pointed out some details of her surfboard. “Or do you think we’re just too busy to notice?”

  “We’re not that busy.”

  “Okay, maybe we’re just not taking the time to notice? Her routine is pretty packed. Getting ready for school in the morning, coming home and doing homework, dinner, then a little time together before bed.”

  “That doesn’t leave much time to explore or investigate.”

  “No, it doesn’t. So what are we going to do today?”

  “I thought we could walk across the Harbour Bridge.”

  “Good idea. I bet Abby will love that. She’ll be able to see so much.”

  “Hi there!” A woman further down the beach waved to us.

  It took me a minute to recognize her as Cheryl, the woman we’d met the night before.

  “Good morning, Cheryl.” I smiled as I stood up and brushed the sand from my bathing suit. Only then did I remember that I didn’t have anything covering me.

  “Morning, so glad to see you again. I like to take a walk along the beach in the morning—a bit of exercise.” She smiled and patted her stomach. “Have to keep my girlish figure.”

  “I know the feeling.” I grinned.

  “You do?” She looked at me. “I doubt that.”

  “Are you kidding? I’ve struggled with my weight for a long time.”

  “Well, you look fantastic now!” She smiled. “Anyway, I don’t think too much about it. Are you going to be in Sydney for Boxing Day?”

  “What’s that?” Abby bounced up beside me.

  “It’s like an extra day of Christmas. People here usually have barbecues on the beach. We’re having one and would like to invite you.”

  “Well, we are planning to travel to Melbourne.” Max stood up as well. “I’m not sure we’ll be returning to Sydney.”

  “Well, if you do, the offer stands.” She smiled. “It’s the day after Christmas.”

  “We’re supposed to leave the next day. Thanks for the offer, though.”

  “You’re welcome. Here, just in case you decide to head back this way.”

  She handed over a business card. “Good luck with your travels!”

  “Thank you, you too.” I smiled at her as she walked away. “She’s so nice. I wish we could come back for the barbecue.”

  “We could always stay a bit longer.” Max shrugged.

  “You know we can’t, Max. Abby’s winter break will be over.”

  “Oh right.” He nodded. “Well, let’s get showered up and head for the bridge.”

  Chapter 11

  When I took my suit off and prepared to get in the shower, I paused in front of the mirror. Being seen through Cheryl’s eyes made me recognize that perhaps I was still stuck in some old ideas of how I looked. There were plenty of soft places, more than a few months before, but my body was still much healthier than it had been years before. I’d made the change, but my mind didn’t really recognize it.

  After a few more minutes of inspection, I took a deep breath and promised myself that I would be more focused on positive thoughts about my body. My body was perfect, Cheryl’s body was perfect, and I didn’t want to be caught up in the self-doubt any more.

  As warm water rushed over me, I heard the bathroom door open and close.

  “Abby’s taking a nap.” Max leaned back against the sink. “Mind if I join you?”

  “I don’t know, Max, what if she wakes up?”

  “She’s old enough to knock on the door, right?” He pulled the shower curtain back and peeked in at me. “I’ll behave. Shower only.”

  “Yeah, right.” I laughed as he shed his swim trunks and stepped in before I could give an answer.

  “You don’t trust me?” He smiled and kissed me under the rushing water. “I loved surfing with you today.”

  “You surfed, I splashed.”

  “You’ll get it. I think maybe your were nervous.” He met my eyes with a knowing smirk.

  “Nervous about being eaten by a shark? Yes.”

  “I don’t think that was it.” He handed me the shampoo.

  “What else would I be nervous about?” I lathered up my hair.

  “Oh, I don’t know. Nick?” He took the shampoo from me and lathered up his own hair.

  “Nick? The instructor?”

  “Yes, Nick, the instructor.”

  “Why would he make me nervous?” I ducked my head under the shower to rinse my hair.

  As the water rushed over me, Max combed his fingers through my hair to help get all the soap out. The sensation of subtle tugging relaxed me and I leaned back into his arms.

  “I don’t know, perhaps it was his rock-hard abs or his boyish good looks?”

  “Max!”

  “What?” He grinned and tilted his head to look at me. “You think I didn’t notice?”

  “Stop it. He’s just a kid.”

  “He’s in his twenties.”

  “He’s barely twenty.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “So what?” I pulled away from him and turned to look at him as he doused his own hair with water. “Are you jealous?”

  “No.” He wiped some water from his face. “I guess I should be, but I’m not. I trust you. It’s okay to look. I just think it’s funny that he got you so flustered. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you all giddy.”

  “Giddy?” I splashed some water at him. “I was not giddy.”

  “You were absolutely giddy! Oh, Nick, I can’t stay on this surfboard, you’ll have to help me.” He made kissing noises at me.

  “You’re crazy!” I laughed.

  “Crazy about you.” He caught me around the waist and pulled me close.

  That one gesture shifted my mood from amused to amorous.

  “I’m crazy about you too, Max. Only you.”

  “I know that.” He smiled and kissed me.

  The kissing began to lead to other things until
there was a sharp knock on the door.

  “Mommy, Daddy? Hellooo?”

  “Ugh.” Max rested his forehead against mine.

  “We’ll be right out, Abby!”

  “Or we could just stay right here.” Max pulled me close again.

  “Nope, sorry, Max.” I kissed his cheek, patted his chest and stepped out of the shower.

  “You’re a cruel, cruel woman.”

  “If we tire her out real well today, we’ll have plenty of time tonight.”

  “I sure hope so.” He sighed.

  “You’ll survive.” I laughed and tossed him a towel.

  I joined Abby in the living room. She already had her shoes on and jumped up and down the moment she saw me.

  “Let’s go! Let’s go!”

  “Hold on, we have to wait for Daddy.”

  “You two are so slow.” She moaned and threw herself down on the couch in a dramatic faint.

  “Oh, this from the girl that takes twenty minutes to tie her shoes in the morning.”

  “That’s because I don’t want to go. Now I do!”

  “Oh, you say you don’t want to go, but once you get to school you have fun.”

  “I guess.” She kicked her feet back and forth. “Can we go yet?”

  “Sure.” Max walked into the living room and grabbed his phone and wallet. “Did you call for a car?”

  “Yes, there’s one out front.”

  “Yay! We can finally go!” Abby grinned and jumped up from the couch.

  “Oh yes, and we’re going to have a lot of fun today. A lot.” He locked eyes with Abby. “Right, Sammy?” He glanced up at me and smiled.

  “Right. Let’s go!”

  In the car on the way to the bridge Abby pointed out everything she saw through the window. Max and I did our best to explain what she saw, and had to do some research of our own to give her some answers.

  I realized that, in the short trip to the bridge, Abby learned quite a bit about Sydney’s plant life, history, and architecture.

  Chapter 12

  The car dropped us off at the beginning of the bridge and we climbed out. Max grabbed the camera and a few other things from the car while I led Abby to the foot of the bridge.

  “Why are we walking?” She tugged at my hand and looked up at me. “It’s so far.”

  “It’s not that far, and we’ll get to see a lot of things. There’s so much we miss when we are too busy driving.”

  “But I don’t want to walk that far!” She sighed. “I’ll be tired.”

  Max and I exchanged a look over the top of her head.

  “Just walk as far as you can. If you get tired, we can always take a break. It’s good for your body to have exercise. It helps get oxygen into your blood.”

  “Ew! Blood!” She groaned.

  “Alright, ready?” Max took her other hand. “We’re off on an adventure!”

  As we walked along the bridge Abby forgot all about being tired. She gasped at the sights and waved to every person we passed. I paused several times to take pictures and let Abby take some of her own. When we reached the point that we had a clear view of the Opera House I stopped to take a picture.

  “Can I take one too?” Abby pleaded.

  “Sure.” I held out the camera to her.

  “Sammy, did you see that bird?” Max pointed in the other direction.

  I looked for the bird, but all I saw was clear blue sky. Then I heard a splash.

  “Uh-oh.” Abby gulped.

  “What’s wrong, honey?” I turned to see her face bright red.

  “I’m sorry, Mommy!”

  “Sorry for what?” I smiled at her. “There’s nothing to be sorry for.”

  “I just wanted to get a good picture, but the camera was heavy and—”

  “Abby, where’s the camera?”

  “What happened?” Max turned his attention to us.

  “It fell!” She began to cry and pointed at the water far below the bridge.

  “Oh no!” I slapped my hands against the railing of the bridge. “Why would you hold it over the railing, Abby?”

  “I’m sorry!” She wailed and covered her face with her hands.

  “Abby! That was a very expensive camera and all our pictures are on it and—”

  “Sammy, it’s alright.” Max placed his hand on my shoulder. “It was an accident.”

  “No, it’s not alright! She should be more careful.” I growled my words and looked over at Abby.

  She’d scrunched up her shoulders and her whole body shook with sobs.

  Several people noticed and stopped to stare.

  All at once I realized how irrational I was being. She was five. I’d given her an expensive, heavy camera, then looked away. Was it really her fault?”

  “Sammy, we can take more pictures, and there’s no reason that we can’t get another camera. Just try to calm down. It was a mistake.”

  “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” Abby shrieked through her hands.

  “Me too, sweetie. I’m sorry too.” I crouched down and hugged her close to me. “I shouldn’t have gotten so angry. I should have been paying attention to the camera myself.”

  She lowered her hands and looked at me. “You don’t hate me?”

  “Of course I don’t hate you. Accidents happen. I lost my shirt today in the ocean, and you would not believe the amount of mistakes I’ve made in my life. It’s important to be careful with things, especially if they belong to other people, but accidents happen.”

  As I spoke to her I noticed a glimmer just below the railing. To my surprise, I noticed that the camera hung from one of the metal bars that jutted out a few feet down from the edge of the bridge.

  “It must have been the cap that hit the water! Look, Max, the camera is right there!”

  “Oh wow, let me see if I can reach it.” He stretched out on his stomach and stuck his arm through the railing. As he reached for it, he pushed his arm further and further through the railing.

  “Max, be careful. Don’t hurt yourself.”

  “I’ve almost got it!” He pushed his feet against the bridge and reached even further. “I’ve got it!” He twisted his head to grin up at me. “I’ve got the strap!”

  “My hero!” I smiled and hugged Abby. “See? Daddy saved the day.”

  “Uh.” Max looked up at me.

  “Let’s go, Max. Here, give me the camera.” I reached out my hand.

  “Uh.” His eyes widened.

  “What’s wrong?” I saw him try to pull his arm back through the railing.

  “I’m stuck.” He wiggled his arm back and forth and tried to pull it back through the railing, but it didn’t budge. “I’m really stuck.”

  “Oh no! What if you try turning your arm?”

  “I’ve tried it! I’m really stuck, Sammy. I can’t get my arm out.”

  “Daddy! Are you going to be stuck there forever?” Abby wailed.

  A larger crowd gathered.

  “No, no. We’ll find someone to help. Max, we’ll be right back.”

  “It’s not like I’m going anywhere.” He laughed, but I could see the panic in his eyes. “Hurry—I don’t know how long I can hold on to the camera.”

  I grabbed Abby’s hand ,and rushed through the crowd to a police officer who walked toward us. “Please, can you help us? My husband’s arm is stuck in the railing.”

  “Stuck in the railing? Your husband? We hear about that with kids sometimes, but how did that happen to a grown man?”

  “It’s a long story.”

  “I’ll call someone to help.” He walked back toward Max with us. “Here, let’s see if I can get you out of there.” He grabbed Max under the arm and around the chest. Then he pulled back as hard as he could.

  “Ow, ow, ow—not working!” Max groaned.

  “Okay, just try to stay calm, sir; we’ll have you out in no time.”

  Two hours and three fire trucks later, Max looked at me and smiled.

  The large crowd around us cheered and b
egan to disperse.

  Max held up the camera. “Look, I still have the camera.” He held it up to me as the scene was cleaned up.

  “You’re still my hero.” I snapped a picture of him beside the railing.

  Chapter 13

  After making a generous donation to the fire department and police force, we tried to pick up our day where we’d left off.

  I slung the camera around my neck and we finished our walk across the bridge. On the other side I noticed a pancake restaurant.

  “How about some pancakes for lunch?” I smiled. “We didn’t have much of a breakfast this morning.”

  “Yum!” Abby bolted for the door.

  I caught her just before she barreled into a couple who were stepping out of the restaurant. “Abby, slow down. Pay attention to where you’re going.”

  “I’m sorry.” She smiled at the couple, who smiled back at her.

  Once we were inside, I perused the menu as my stomach growled. I was far hungrier than I’d realized.

  “I think I’m going to get a whole stack of pancakes.” I rubbed my stomach. “That just might fill me up. What do you think, Abby?”

  “I think you need to eat more veggies.” She pointed to a picture on the menu of a vegetable omelette. “That would be a better choice, don’t you think?”

  “Oh, so now I know you really do listen to me when I tell you to eat your veggies?”

  “Sometimes.” She giggled.

  “Alright, I’ll get the omelet. It really is the better choice.”

  “Maybe if we all choose something healthy for lunch, we can get some ice cream after.” Max winked at Abby.

  Abby picked a veggie omelet as well, but she picked most of her vegetables out and left them on her plate.

  “Well, I’m sure some of the nutrition leaked into the eggs, right?” I grinned at Max.

  “We can only hope.” He chuckled.

  We left the restaurant with Abby’s mind fixated on ice cream.

  Although I spotted an ice cream shop right away, I steered Abby away from it. We did a few laps up and down the street to peek in shops and explore, but mainly to make sure she was getting worn out. I felt a little guilty for it, but when I met Max’s eyes as I stepped out of one of the shops, the guilt disappeared. Max and I needed our time together too.