Christmas Tempest (Holiday Heartwarmers #12)

Chapter Eighteen

It was decided that Dillon would stay with Sara while Jasmin drove Dex to Margot’s house to pick up Dillon’s things. But not before they’d had time to relax in Sara’s lovely apartment and fill up on a scrumptious breakfast.

Of course, she and Dex called everyone involved to let them know the boy had been found safe… safe but sorry for worrying them all.

Jasmin’s father had been thankful about them finding Dillon, but her mother had come on the other line, questioning about when they could expect Jasmin home. Satisfied with her daughter’s answer of ‘as soon as possible’, she continued, “Do Dex and Dillon have family to be with over Christmas?”

“As far as I know, Dex recently bought a house for them but he hasn’t had much time to set it up.”

“Yes. Your dad knew about it and drove by there yesterday. It looks deserted. Honey, you know tomorrow is Christmas Eve, right? Why not just bring everyone here with you. They can stay with us for the next couple of days until Dex has a chance to get everything squared away.”

Hearing the tone in her mother’s voice had her questioning, “What’s happened?”

Her father cut in to explain. “Honey, we’ve had a power outage for the last fifteen hours. Chances are… his food isn’t safe to eat, and the house will be cold and damp.”

“Right. And you have the solar panels, so you didn’t have any shutdowns.”

“Yep. Knew they’d come in handy.” She heard his bragging tone and had to smile. “Look, your mom has a point, honey. Bring those boys over here for her to spoil, and I’ll give Dexter a hand to get his place ready before they move in there.”

Jasmin laughed. “You’re getting as bad as Mom; you know that right?”

Lester’s chuckles let her know he’d gotten the dig and enjoyed the joke. “Just at Christmas, Jassy. Just at this time of the year. After all these decades together, I guess her holiday spirit’s finally softened this old heart of mine.”

“Actually, it is a good idea. I’ll speak to Dex and let you know. I believe our plans are to leave here just after lunch, so unless something comes up, you can expect a call from me once we reach the turnoff on the highway to the Grove. That way you can gauge how long it should take us.”

“I’ll be waiting and watching for you.”

Barbara piped up, “Me too, honey. I’ve lots of Christmas baking ready, and we defrosted a big ole ham to cook today in honor of your return. I know it’s one of your favorite meals.”

“Yummy. Can’t wait to see you two. Love you guys. Bye for now.”

Feeling cherished in the same way her parents always managed to instil in her, she joined the others in Sara’s kitchen in time to see Dex frying the bacon. The spitting grease caught his hand, and he grouched a whispered cuss word and sucked his fingers before glancing at the others to see them hiding their grins. His defensive words and funny face made then laugh, and he admitted, “I’m not too good in the kitchen.” Then he asked, “Dillon, can you cook?”

“Ahh… just a few things. Sara started teaching me just before the accident. I can make toast and fry an egg. Oh, and grilled cheese sandwiches too. What else, Sara?”

“Well there, Dillon, you were coming along pretty good at mixing scones and cookie dough. We’d only just begun the lessons.”

Dillon leaned against the stout body of his best ally, and Jasmin watched Sara’s arm bring him in for a hug without a second of hesitation, just the way it should be.

Poor boy, losing his parents was bad enough, but having to give up the one person he’d always had in his world, the one person he relied on to keep him safe, must have been horrendous. No wonder his heart had broken. Then to find himself stuck with Misery; anyone in his position might have run away.

She looked over at Dex to see him smiling at Dillon and Sara and wondered if he thought the same thing.

During their happy meal of burnt bacon, scrambled eggs, piles of toast, scones and a wonderful selection of homemade jams, they shared stories. Dex singled out Sara. “It’s been over a month now since your world blew up. Are you working for another family yet?”

“No. Just couldn’t seem to get myself organized to look for another job. With the money you gave me from your brother, I was able to rent this place and take some time for myself. It’s only been a few weeks since I moved in. Thank goodness it’s furnished so I just needed to bring my personal belongings from the old house.”

Money Dex’s brother left her… hmm . She’d have to ask Dex about that. Her suspicions were that Dex likely provided that bonus from his own big heart.

Looking around, Jasmin had noticed the faded colored pictures attached by magnets to the fridge and the photos of Dillon spread around, spying the largest in Sara’s bedroom next to her bed.

Though Sara had brightened the place with colorful pillows and a few nice paintings of flowers, it still spoke of loneliness, as if the woman didn’t have a real home without her boy nearby.

She watched Dex look around too and wondered if he saw the same as she did… a woman with no one. She hoped Sara would find another family who’d need her as much as Max and Doreen had. After all, when one looked at the bond between the middle-aged sweetheart and Dillon, no one could say she’d failed at being a good nanny… the best, if Dillon’s affections were any indication.

Soon, Jasmin was helping Dex into the elevator and to the car parked in the lot next door. “I meant to ask before. What did Margot say when you called her?”

“Not a lot. In fact, she said she might be out when we got there, but she’d leave his things by the front door.”

“Seriously? He had so little,” she questioned, not able to hide her shock. “I would have thought by the way you talked of your family, that Dillon would have had scads of belongings, certainly more than one could leave by the door.”

“Oh, he does. But Margot refused to – using finger quotes, and a whiny, croaky voice, he added – to mess up my house. We weren’t allowed to bring Dillon a lot of his things, just clothes and essentials. I stored the rest at my place.”

“You know what? I really hope she isn’t there or I’ll be tempted to give that silly old woman a piece of my mind, treating her own grandson so horribly. Serves her right if she dies alone with no one to care. She’s choosing that end by behaving so awful.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself. I guess something in her life must have soured her.”

Feeling bad over her outburst, Jasmin asked, “Is she sick? Maybe dementia or depression. I’ve heard that can turn folks weird.”

“Maybe. But we’ll never know, will we? Unless she reaches out, and from what I’ve seen, I doubt it’ll happen.”

“Did Doreen ever say anything about her mom, about why she was like she is?”

“Only that she didn’t used to be so cranky when her father was alive. Guess time and old age has done a number on her.”

“Hmm… I’d love to know about Margot’s earlier background… about her parents and their treatment of her when she was young.”

“So you’re a believer that what comes around goes around.”

“Aren’t you? I mean, look at all the stories you hear about people who were abused becoming the next generation to behave the same way.”

“I agree. But I also believe that folks have a choice. That it’s their responsibility to choose their own path forward. They can do as they’ve been shown, or they can opt to do better… be better.”

“You got me. Can’t argue with the truth.” Her deep sigh helped clear away the sadness from inside. Then she remembered some good news. “Speaking of better, my folks have invited you and Dillon to spend the next few nights at the house with us. Seems the Grove has gone through a long period with no electricity. They’re worried about what you might find at your place.”

Dex’s soft swearword confirmed it was shocking news. “Man oh man, I just can’t catch a break. I bet the food I brought in is spoiled.” Then he banged his fist on his forehead in a childish way. “Blasted hell. I left the turkey to thaw on the counter, thinking I’d only be gone a day. It’ll be ruined.”

“Not necessarily. Not if the house stayed cold.”

Dex’s groan made her hide a grin. “It snowed a lot, but the temperature didn’t fall that much.”

“That’s true. Sorry.”

He shrugged her way and added, “Don’t know how to cook it anyway, figured Google would be my sous chef.”

“You’re unbelievable, you know that? “Jasmin laughed, thinking of what a turkey dinner entailed, and the man who couldn’t even cook bacon. “What were you thinking?”

“I wanted to give Dillon a taste of home, like he had with Max and Doreen. Don’t know where my brain was. I can’t cook, nor do I know the first thing about taking care of a kid. Figured I’d wing it.” He grinned sheepishly. “We’d be happy to accept the invitation.”

“Dad said he’ll give you a hand to get your house ready too.”

“And I’ll gladly take him up on his offer.”

“Good, I’ll text Mom. Relax, you’ve made her happy. She’ll be thrilled to have visitors at this time of the year.

He suddenly pointed. “There’s Margot’s house. Not a Christmas decoration to be seen. And yep, she’s left the boxes out front. I’m surprised she didn’t worry about them getting stolen.”

“She wouldn’t. I just saw the curtains move. She’s watching. Are you going to talk with her?”

“Nope. She made it clear, and I got the message. Pick up the stuff and leave. And it’s exactly what we’ll do.”

In a few minutes, they had everything hauled to the SUV and with Dex helping as much as he could, Jasmin stored the boxes in the trunk area, leaving the back seats with enough room for a boy and a dog.

When they were both back in the SUV ready to leave, Jasmin scanned the window to see a face peeking out. She waved, and her response was the curtain being rudely flung back into place. The words ‘poor, silly old woman’ popped into her head before she forced the thought away.

She turned Dex’s way and could tell by the annoyance in his expression that he’d been aware of Margot’s rejection too. His next words let her know his position on the subject. “We’re finished here.” He reached over to place a kiss on her lips, and moments later, after her response triggered them both, he groaned, then in a husky voice suggested, “Let’s pick up Dillon and hit the road.”