A Christmas Duet

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-one

“My son-in-law?” Hailey’s mother repeated. “He wants to marry our Daisy?” Her hands flew to her mouth and then to her heart. “Welcome, welcome. Oh my goodness, I don’t even know your name.”

With his arm around Daisy’s waist, Charles nodded politely and said, “I’m Charles, Mrs. Morgan. Charles Moody.”

“I’m Julia, and that’s my husband, Rich,” her mother said, nodding toward where Hailey’s father stood, directly behind Julia.

“We couldn’t be more pleased. Daisy, Daisy, my sweet Daisy.” Her mother hugged Daisy and sniffled with tears of joy. “This is the most wonderful Christmas present of my life.”

“Young man,” Rich said, stepping forward. “Do you love our daughter?”

“Rich,” Julia protested, hanging on to her husband’s arm as if to pull him away before he ruined everything. “Charles proposed, didn’t he? Clearly he loves Daisy.”

“Charles?” Rich insisted. “I’d like to hear it from you.”

“I love Daisy more than words could express. She’s the sun around which my world rotates. The woman I would never be worthy enough to have as my wife. That she returns my feelings makes me weak with gratitude.”

“That’s beautiful,” Julia said, as she wiped the tears from her eyes. “Just beautiful.”

Satisfied, Rich nodded. “Then you have my blessing to marry Daisy.”

Charles reached out his hand and the two exchanged hearty handshakes.

Hailey was overjoyed for her sister. Seeing Daisy this happy thrilled her. Charles: solid, mature, and intelligent, like Mensa smart, was the perfect complement to her sister’s eccentricity. The two balanced each other out beautifully.

“We must start planning the wedding,” her mother cried, as if the thought had only now occurred to her. She sounded panicked. “The first thing we need to do is choose the date. No, no, we need to find the venue first. We might be too late for anything this summer. I suppose we can wait until next fall or even winter if we must. A Christmas wedding would be perfect. I know an excellent photographer. She did the photos for—”

“Mom,” Daisy cut in, sharing a look with her fiancé. “Charles and I would like to get married without a lot of fuss.”

“Okay. We’ll limit the guest list to three hundred.”

“Mom,” Daisy said and groaned, exasperated. She seemed helplessly lost and looked to Hailey for help.

“Let’s decide all these details after Christmas, when Daisy and Charles have had a chance to make these sorts of decisions,” Hailey suggested.

“Yes, please,” Daisy reiterated.

Their mother sighed and then nodded. “Of course, if you insist.”

From her tone, Hailey could see their mother was keen on setting every detail about the wedding into place that very day.

Then she added, as though she felt it was necessary that the couple understand the situation, “Just as long as you realize the choices of dates may be limited with the delay. Booking the right venue is key to the perfect wedding.”

Hailey couldn’t believe their mother was determined to get the ball rolling even before Charles had the opportunity to slip the engagement ring on her sister’s finger. She shouldn’t be surprised. This was the moment her mother had lived for—well, other than bragging about her grandchildren.

Despite her promise, their mother continued talking about the wedding plans throughout the remainder of the day. It was the main topic of conversation over dinner. Charles and Daisy barely seemed to hear, as they only had eyes for each other.

—

Hailey spent another sleepless night reviewing the details from the day. She missed Jay, and her heart hurt knowing he wasn’t returning to Podunk. Her world was in a tailspin. Jay made it clear he expected her to sign with Stamper. As na?ve as she was about contracts and the business side of the music industry overall, she didn’t feel confident signing anything, no matter what Jay advised. He was the expert and, most important, someone she trusted. She needed his advice. It didn’t surprise her that he insisted she take the opportunity given her. At the same time, she wondered if Jay had been thinking clearly. It discouraged her how willing he was to pass her along to someone else, as if their relationship, their ability to work together, meant little to nothing. If he felt he was being noble, then he was wrong. Jay had gotten hit with bad news and Hailey was convinced he’d made a hasty decision. He hadn’t considered the advantages of them working together as a team, which would be a dream come true for her.

Her trust and faith was in Jay. Not some stranger she briefly met on a fluke.

“That’s impossible,” Hailey heard her mother moaning from the upstairs hallway. Julia continued with her complaint as she came down the staircase. Hailey’s dad followed behind her.

“Rich, be reasonable. We couldn’t possibly do a proper wedding for a measly ten thousand dollars.”

“Ten thousand dollars for the wedding dinner? Are you out of your mind?”

Hailey’s mother continued to argue. “Rich, please. You’re being completely unreasonable.”

“ I’m the one being unreasonable?” he cried while scratching his head. “In the name of heaven, what are you intending to feed these people? Gold-plated Alaskan king crab legs?”

Needing to escape before she got caught up in the argument, Hailey reached for her coat and headed outside. A walk would do her a world of good and help her clear her head. More than once, she pulled Daniel Stamper’s business card from her pocket and examined it again. This was the opportunity of a lifetime and not one that would likely be repeated. Jay had insisted that if she passed up this opportunity, she’d regret it for the rest of her life. Hailey had to admit she was tempted to take Jay’s advice. At the same time, she felt a sense of loss that she wouldn’t be working with Jay. It was as if they could read each other’s minds.

Signing with Stamper simply didn’t feel right, no matter how many times she reviewed her options. This supposed overnight success had happened because of Jay. He was the one who’d basically discovered and encouraged her. As for the Christmas song, he’d helped her compose the bridge between the verses. Everything that had happened was a result of having met him.

And yet he’d urged her to sign with a company that he thought would be far more advantageous to her. He’d gone so far as to claim that her loyalty to him was misguided. Maybe it was. Perhaps he was right and she should go with a bigger, established producer.

The decision weighed heavily on her heart.

Her mother was on the porch waiting for her when Hailey returned from her walk. “Is everything all right?” she asked, and linked her arm around Hailey’s elbow. “You’ve been preoccupied and quiet ever since you returned from town.”

Hailey was surprised her mother had noticed, especially with Daisy and Charles’s wedding on her mind. It was all she’d talked about from the moment she heard the news of the engagement.

Hailey offered her a smile, unwilling to bring her family in on this decision. This was one she needed to make on her own.

“Everything is good, Mom. I promise.”

“You’re sure?”

“Positive,” Hailey assured her, and forced a smile.

“You’re happy for Daisy, right?”

Hailey nearly laughed. “Mom, I’m ecstatic for Daisy. Charles is perfect for her. Just perfect.”

“I’m happy, too,” her mother said with a delighted lift to her voice. “Knowing my daughter has found her soulmate is the best possible Christmas gift I could ever receive.”

Hailey placed her hand over her mother’s. From the first time she’d sat down with Jay and played a duet, she’d felt like she’d found her own soulmate.

The easy way he’d handed her off to someone else made her wonder if he’d felt any of that special connection she had.