Epilogue

EPILOGUE

O ne year later…on Christmas Eve.

Theo chased little Joshua around the house, trying to keep him from pulling the ornaments down off the tree or opening the presents underneath too early. Now that the boy had found his footing, he seemed to want to run everywhere. It's a good thing his strides were so short, or Theo feared he'd have trouble keeping up with the toddler. Then the child tripped over something and fell forward, landing on his hands and knees. Little Joshua paused for a moment as though trying to decide whether he was hurt or not and then he threw himself on his bottom and began to wail.

"Easy now, Joshua," Theo said as he took hold of the boy and picked him up, hugging him to his chest. "Hush now. You're not hurt."

"Mommy!" Joshua cried, struggling in Theo's arms as though he wanted to be put down.

"Coming!" Serena called out, wiping her hands on her apron before spreading them out toward the child who already had his arms reaching for her. Then she pulled him close to her.

"Kissy blow," he said pointing at the palm of his hand where he had the smallest red scrape and bruise forming. "Kissy blow."

At his command, Serena kissed his palm and then blew on. "There you go. All better."

He nodded and smiled even though tears still made his eyes glisten. Then he wiggled so she put him back down again. Immediately the boy started running around the tree once more.

Serena rested her hands on the front of her apron and the belly that had been forming the last few months, since she was expecting. "Sorry that you'll need to be the one chasing him."

"No need to apologize," Theo said looking up at the love of his life with a smile. "I love doing it."

And then he spent the rest of the evening occupying young Joshua until he tired enough to sit quietly on Theo's lap so that he could read him a story before putting the boy off to bed. Once things were quiet and settled, He and Serena had supper together, alone, as they did every night. Mrs. Collins took her meals in her room, to give them privacy, since she was now well enough to do all the things that she'd done before she'd collapsed a year before.

In the quiet candlelight of their dinner together, Theo was feeling wistful and asked, "Is there anything you'd wish for Christmas, dear?"

She shrugged and said quietly, "Snow."

Last year, they didn't have the white Christmas that Serena had hoped for, so she seemed to be asking for it again. With a smile, Theo answered the same as he had before. "I'll see what I can do."

This time she rolled her eyes at him and shook her head. "You'll talk to the One who can control the weather?"

"That's the plan," he said, but remembering how the clouds were looking outside when he'd come in from the barn, he added, "Though I'm pretty sure that I won't even need to ask."

She blinked at him, surprised, and set down her fork. "You think we'll have snow?"

He nodded as he took another bite of his roast. "We might."

Excited, she stood and grabbed her shawl off the back of the chair. Smiling, he stood with her and offered his elbow.

"Should we go check and see if it might come early?"

She nodded, took his elbow and giggled in response. Together they made their way to the front door and then out onto the porch. Flurries of snow were dancing around in the wind, providing a light dusting in the corners of the yard. Laughing again, she said, "Well, would you look at that."

"It might not be much, but at least it's something."

"And just in time for Christmas," she said a little breathlessly. They stood and watched the snow for a few moments before she looked up at him and asked, "What about you? Is there anything you'd wish for Christmas?"

He pulled her closer and kissed her on the forehead. "It would be too greedy to ask for anything more than what I've already been given."

Everything about this moment was the fulfillment of a wish for Theo that he didn't even know that he'd made. The warmth of his wife in his arms and the future that he couldn't have planned but needed were all that he could have ever wanted. And for now, all he could do was breathe it in and send up a prayer of thanks.

THE END