~ ~ ~
Much later, after crying herself back to sleep, Calli was pulled once again from a half-sleeping state. She didn’t check the caller this time, just swiped right. “Yeah?”
“Merry Christmas, darling,” her mother said tentatively. “What are you doing today?”
“Hi, Mother. Merry Christmas to you too.” Calli pinched her eyes shut, then opened them wide, searching for the clock. Twelve-thirty. Damn, she’d slept the day away. “You know, a little of this and a little of that. Just trying to keep busy with the boys away.”
“I really wish you would have come down to Lindleyi Manor.”
Calli rolled her eyes at the name dropping. It was rarely just home to her mom but always carried some prestige in her mind that compelled her need to refer to it formally. Calli could have gone home, but she simply wasn’t up for watching Cat’s happy family or Jon and Meg so happily doting over the pregnancy. “I know, but I have to work, and it’s just not the same without Jax and Kent.”
“I understand that. When you kids left, your father and I walked around the house, looking at each other and feeling simply lost. I’m sure that’s how you feel now.”
“Yeah, sure.” No, Mom. Not really. You did your job and you had eighteen good uninterrupted years with each of us. But Calli didn’t voice her thoughts. “What’s Dad up to today?” she asked instead.
“He’s down at the greenhouse. You know him . . . simply obsessed. Though I can’t complain. He keeps my home decorated and smelling orchid-sweet.”
“I knew Cat and Trey and Jon and Meg were coming, but did Alder make it home?” Calli rubbed her swollen eyes. Crying herself to sleep hadn’t been a good idea. She hated the feeling the next day.
“Alder’s here, and Jon was this morning. He and Meg had to get back to the Cities to do her family Christmas. I guess her family’s superexcited that she’s pregnant. It’ll be their first grandbaby. I remember when Cat had little Liam; it was one of the best days of our lives. I thought becoming a parent was wonderful, but it just doesn’t compare to being a grandparent.”
Calli marveled over how her mother made everything about herself. She knew how selfish she was being by simply wanting to curl back up in her bed, but she should get up. She tossed back the covers as her mother went on about one thing or another. She looked at the screen and muted it to use the restroom. When she was done, she unmuted and interrupted. “Mom . . . M-Mom. I have a couple of things I need to get done this afternoon. Can I call you back?”
“Oh, that’s not necessary. I just wanted to let you know that your dad and I are planning to come to the Cities the third weekend in January. He has another speaking engagement, so we’re making a vacation out of it. I’d love to have dinner with you and the boys on Saturday night while we’re there.”
“Okay. That sounds great, Mom. I love you. Give Dad a kiss for me and tell him Merry Christmas.”
“I love you, too, darling. Let us know if you or the boys need anything. We’re only a couple of hours away, and I worry about you without Bennett.”
Calli rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her hair. “I know, Mom. I appreciate it, but I’m adjusting okay. I’ll talk to you soon.” She pressed the red button before her mother could say more. Then she flipped to her calendar. Damn, she was supposed to go to the Orpheum that night with Dom. Well, she’d have to deal with that later. Maybe they could do dinner on Friday instead of Saturday.
She dropped her phone on the counter in her bathroom and threw on some sweats and ran a brush through her hair before going downstairs. She glanced at the phone one more time and left it on the counter. In the kitchen, she popped in a K-Cup and waited for the coffee. Though it wasn’t morning, it still was to her.
Coffee in hand, she went back to the cozy couch in her den. The third of the Mortal Instruments series waited on the table. She sat down and opened City of Glass.
“Let’s see what Clary and Jace are up to today,” she said to the empty room.
Chapter 28
Dom
Dom climbed the steps at Calli’s house, excited for their day together. He’d spent Christmas yesterday with Joe, Betsy, and their tiny baby boy, Daniel. The baby was good, his cry didn’t pierce, and his best friend told him that he’d only ever woken once per night. Dom held Daniel once, but only for what he felt was long enough to look sufficiently interested. He would never admit it to his best friend, but he’d kept thinking that Daniel both looked and sounded like a little old man. One thing Dom had known all his life, or at least since his parents had passed and he’d ended up in a group home with abandoned children of all ages squealing, screaming, and crying through every hour of the day, kids were not for him.
But that was yesterday, and while he enjoyed Joe’s company, the warm home, and a nice after-dinner scotch and cigar—a treat Betsy only allowed once a year—today was what he’d been looking forward to. Today was his Christmas celebration. He tucked the small wrapped box into his inside coat pocket and raised his hand to knock, but the door swung inward before his knuckles connected.
Radiant, Calli stood in the open door wearing a white trench coat with a matching hat and mittens, and her dark-brown curls flowing over her shoulders. He slicked back a strand of hair that had fallen into his eyes, then welcomed her as she stepped into his arms. Over the last several weeks, he’d felt them growing more comfortable together, and the wordless hug was proof that she felt the same.
Not stepping out of his arms, she turned her head and looked up at him with her big, deep browns—eyes he could lose himself in for hours if it weren’t for the pull of her lips. He leaned in and kissed her softly. “Merry Christmas.”
“Buon Natale,” answered Calli.
Dom raised a brow. “Joyeux Nöel.”
“Feliz Navidad.”
“Fröhliche Weihnachten.”
Calli chewed the inside of her lip and looked around, searching with her eyes. A light went on. “Felicem natalem Christi.”
Dom dropped back his head and laughed. Coming back face-to-face, he asked, “Latin?”
“What can I say, four years in high school and two in college. Oh, I have one more. Feliz Natal.”
“Ah, yes. Portuguese. I only know two more, so you almost had me. God jul?” He phrased as a question to see if she could guess.
She pressed her lips together and shook her head.
“Norwegian. Come on, living in Minnesota, you never learned that one?”
“Nope, sorry.”
“And . . . Glædelig Jul, Danish.”
“I guess you win.”
“But you have the romance languages, hands down. Speaking of . . . ” He brushed her hair away from her neck, inhaled her floral-vanilla scent, and kissed under her ear.
“Dom.” She tucked her head to the side, pushing his lips farther from that beautiful line. “Don’t we have an appointment?”
Damn, she was right. They were scheduled for a sleigh ride before lunch. Maybe he should have planned for them to be somewhere private for the first part of the day . . . and the last part . . . hell, all day would have been good.