He shook his head. “Not everyone is cut out to be a parent.” His cell phone rang. He answered it. “Yes. No, that would be fine.” He disconnected. “You ready to go down to the police station? This is not the way I imagined us spending Christmas Eve but...”
Charlie nodded. “I just want this over.”
“It won’t be over until they catch Lacey,” he said, as if he had to remind her.
* * *
HOURS LATER, CHARLIE climbed into bed completely exhausted. She’d been asked a million questions. In the end, she knew that the chance of Lacey being caught was slim. Even if she was, the woman hadn’t done anything really threatening, just as the officer had said. Lacey was wanted in Brazil so she would be extradited if found. But even a stalking charge would be hard to make stick in this country since Charlie had only seen Lacey a few times even with the destroyed doll as evidence. If Charlie saw her again, she was to call.
She felt deflated and was sure Shep felt the same. He’d been angry, hoping the police could do more. As it was, they couldn’t even confirm her and Shep’s stories because they hadn’t been able to reach Kat. Her husband had no idea where she’d gone, but she’d taken their daughter, Cara. History repeating itself, Charlie thought.
She hoped for sleep, but as she lay in bed, all she could think about was Lacey and how she must have felt when she learned about her twin and what her mother had done. She had to be the one who had tormented Charlie in high school. The one who’d played those awful tricks on her. Had Lindy been innocent all along? And yet she was the one to end up murdered behind the house.
She could hear Shep tossing and turning on the couch in the living room. Like her, he was having trouble getting to sleep. She thought about the present under the tree from him.
Tears filled her eyes. What if he was he right? What if she had trusted him after boot camp? Could they have been together all these years? The thought made her chest ache. She would never know what she might have cost them. Was it too late? Could Shep ever trust her again? Why did that mean so much to her?
Finally, too exhausted to keep her eyes open, she drifted off into a troubled sleep filled with monsters all wearing Lindy’s and Lacey’s faces.
* * *
CHRISTMAS MORNING, Shep got up and turned on the Christmas tree lights before seeing to the coffee. It all felt so normal, being here with Charlie, he thought as he went to get her newspaper outside her apartment door.
He could feel the holiday slipping away. It wasn’t that many days before he would have to return to Stevensville and his classroom. The thought made him hurt. How could he leave if Lacey hadn’t been found yet? He couldn’t.
At the sound of Charlie’s bedroom door opening, he put the paper on the table and poured her a cup of coffee. Glancing at her as she came into the kitchen wrapped in a thick white robe, he wondered if she felt anything like he did. The way she reached for the mug of coffee, he suspected she hadn’t slept well either. He’d had a terrible time getting to sleep last night only to have nightmares, something he hadn’t had since he was a kid.
He watched her flip to the horoscopes and read. He’d already looked.
Problems? Put your personal life on hold for a few days to deal with them. The good news is that you are finally getting the recognition you deserve. Enjoy it.
She groaned as she tossed the paper aside, then took a gulp of her coffee and glanced toward the window. “It looks freezing outside. Everything is frosted.”
“It’s December in Montana,” he pointed out as he joined her at the table. “Of course it’s freezing. It’s what everyone hopes for, right? A white Christmas. By the way, Merry Christmas.” He smiled at her from across the table.
Charlie met his gaze and gave him a slow smile. “Oh my gosh, it is Christmas Day.” Her smiled broadened. “Merry Christmas, Shep.”
He felt that pull at his heart as he looked at her and had to swallow the lump that rose in his throat. He’d never dreamed they would ever be sharing this holiday together and yet here they were. Destiny? Not something he believed in and yet as he looked at her, he could only hope.
“Do you want your present now or after breakfast?” he asked. “I know how you are about presents.”
“Shep—”
“It’s not a big deal,” he said quickly. “Just something I saw and I thought of you.”
* * *
CHARLIE USUALLY DID little on Christmas other than go to a midnight service on Christmas Eve. She had no family, and friends were with their families the night before Christmas. Tara had given her the small tree in her kitchen, which she kept out all year long.
There was nothing more lonely than a Christmas tree with no presents under it. And she wasn’t about to buy presents for herself to put under a tree. That was too pathetic.
In truth, she’d been excited about the present Daniel had said he’d gotten her for Christmas. But at the same time, she hadn’t had a clue what to get him. The other day, when she was shopping for a present for Tara’s new baby, she’d thought about what she could get Shep, since he’d gotten her something. What would mean something to him?
Now, looking into his blue eyes filled with excitement because of the gift he wanted to give her, she knew she couldn’t deny him this.
“Okay, presents before breakfast.”
He grinned and jumped up. “Stay right there.”
She watched him rush into the other room to retrieve the package he’d left under the tree.
When he carried it into the kitchen, he seemed to hesitate before he handed it to her. “I hope you like it.”
Charlie took her time unwrapping the rather large box, making him sigh and shake his head. He’d only given her one other present and she’d been so surprised that she’d torn into it, paper flying. But she’d been sixteen and madly in love.
Now at almost thirty, she was still in love, she realized. Still madly. But also afraid that she was about to get her heart broken. It had been hard enough to heal at sixteen. She feared she never would at thirty.
“Charlie, come on. Open it. I promise it won’t bite you,” Shep said from across the table.
She smiled at him and, shoving away the paper, opened the box and then froze.
“It’s not exactly like the one from your mom and dad, but it’s as close as I could find.”
She couldn’t speak, could barely breathe. Tears filled her eyes as she looked at the soft, new, leather-bound photo album. He’d remembered. The album had been the only thing she’d grabbed that day before the policeman had turned her over to social services. It was all she had left—photos growing up with her mother and father.