“I can be both,” Landon said from the doorway. “I kind of like being y’all’s Lan-Lan.”
Heat flooded Dixie’s face so fast that she didn’t have time to even attempt to control the blush. “Trouble is that tomorrow it might be that we’re arguing over whose baby doll or whose mama is hers.”
“That’s all right,” Landon said. “Tonight, right now at this moment, I get to be her Lan-Lan and I like it.”
Sally reached up and flashed a bright smile. “Lan-Lan hold?”
“Yes, I will soon as your mama dries you off and gets you ready for bed. I get to read to you tonight too. Isn’t that great?” Landon said.
He didn’t say that he had to read to her, but that he got to read to her. His tone and his sparkling eyes left no doubt that it was a privilege, not a chore to rush through. Dixie’s heart swelled with happiness and sucking on a lemon couldn’t have wiped the smile off her face. She could really get used to this kind of arrangement.
Every night while Dixie brushed the tangles from Sally’s blond hair and put sweet-smelling baby lotion on her body, she gave thanks for all her blessings. That night when she put pink pajamas on her daughter, Landon Griffin was on the top of that list. When she finished getting the baby dressed and carried her out of the bedroom into the shop, Sally reached out to Landon and said, “My Lan-Lan.”
“That’s right, princess.” He took her from Dixie and went straight to the rocking chair. “I’ve picked out four books. Which one do you want me to read first?”
Sally pointed at the one with a squirrel on the front of it and settled down with her head on his chest. Before he had finished reading half the book, her eyes fluttered shut, and she was asleep.
“That didn’t take nearly long enough,” he whispered. “Does she always fall right to sleep like that?”
“She’s had a really big evening.” Dixie left the table where she had just finished making the star for the top of the tree. “Slip her over into my arms and I will…”
“No need for that,” Landon said. “Just lead the way, and I’ll put her in her crib.”
Ever so gently, he stood up with the toddler still in his arms and followed Dixie down the hallway. He noticed a door to the left that led into a room with a huge machine. That had to be where they made their quilts. Then she turned right into a bedroom with a crib only a few feet from a big four-poster bed. He laid the baby down on her back, and Dixie covered her with a blanket that looked like it had seen better days.
“It’s her favorite, and she’ll fret if she doesn’t have it next to her face,” Dixie explained in a soft voice.
Landon bent forward and kissed Sally on the forehead. “Sleep tight, princess. Dream of squirrels and Santa Claus and puppies.”
“Why puppies?” Dixie headed out of the room.
“Because that’s what I dreamed about my whole life. I asked Santa every year for a yellow puppy, and I also asked my mama for the same thing. I would have traded all the toys I ever got, and even the fancy bike with the special wheels, for a dog, but Mama said that she wasn’t having an animal in or around the house,” he explained as he followed her back to the shop part of the house. “If I ever have the privilege of being a father, the first thing I’m getting my child is a puppy.”
“So, you think fatherhood is a privilege?” Dixie asked.
“Just one of the greatest in the whole world,” Landon answered. “One of my favorite memories of my dad is the time he took me to the rodeo. I wasn’t much more than five, and I wanted to be a real cowboy when I grew up. The only sporting event my dad liked was golf, and he hated anything to do with animals. Looking back now, I can see that was a really big sacrifice for him to take me.”
If only. Dixie stopped her thoughts right there. She wouldn’t live in the past.
Landon bent and kissed Dixie on the forehead. “Thank you for a wonderful evening. I’ll be by tomorrow right after work to build a snowman out in the backyard if that’s all right with you.”
“You ever lived in a place where you could build a snowman?” she asked.
He shook his head. “How about you?”
“Nope, but I think it would be fun.” She grinned. “Oh, and don’t eat supper before you come over.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice. Can I bring anything?” he asked.
“Just a healthy appetite.” She walked him to the door.
“Will you wait to put the star on the tree until I get here?” he asked. “I want a picture of Sally’s face when we first put it on the top.”
“Sounds good.” She didn’t want him to go. What she wanted was another kiss or two, maybe even a little south of her forehead.
When he’d closed the door behind him, she slumped down in the rocking chair and touched her forehead to see if it was as hot as it felt. Surprisingly enough, it was cool.
“I can’t go there,” she muttered. “I can’t afford to get my heart broken twice. That was just a friendly kiss, not a romantic one, and I won’t make it into something more, no matter how much I want to do just that.”
She pushed up out of the chair and went to the cutting table where she deftly cut a green tree from a remnant of fabric and appliqued it to a twelve-inch quilt square. When she finished, she cut out a tiny little gold star and carefully stitched it to the top of the tree. After that, she created a red square with a snowflake in the middle and carried both appliqued squares to her bedroom.
“Day one,” she said as she tucked them away in a dresser drawer.
She took a quick shower and was in bed by eleven o’clock but tossed and turned until midnight. When she finally fell asleep she dreamed of a yellow puppy, with a red bow around its neck, chasing a squirrel across the yard toward a tree all decorated with cloth ornaments.
Chapter Four
Good mornin’.” Sarah threw her coat and gloves on a rocking chair when she entered the shop. “How’s my girl? Oh. My. Goodness. When did you get a tree?”
“Lan-Lan!” Sally said proudly.
“Landon says we need the whole Christmas experience,” Dixie said. “So, we cut down the tree and made ornaments last night, and tonight we’re going to build a snowman. Then we’re going to go see the Christmas lights and make cookies.”
“That’s wonderful,” Sarah said. “You should talk him into staying in this part of the world. Cade says he’s the best hired help he’s ever had, and that he could be a foreman of the Longhorn Canyon within a couple of years if he stuck around.”
“Not me.” Dixie shook her head. “What if he stayed and then resented me after a while?”
“Miracles happen during Christmas.” Sarah cocked her head to one side and then the other. “That is one ugly-ass tree. We’ve got an extra one at our house you could use.”
“Sally picked it out,” Dixie explained.
“Then it’s the right tree even if it isn’t the prettiest,” Sarah said with a smile. “Patsy threw a fit about me driving down here in the snow, but I told her that I used to ride a four-wheeler to gather up the cattle in worse weather than this. Besides, I want to play with Sally and eat some cookies right out of the oven. I smell cinnamon. Are you making snickerdoodles this morning?”