Unlikely Santa Read online

  “Paper trail? You don’t think he’d try to hurt me or the kids, do you?”

  “He wants you and he knows he can’t have you, yet he’s still trying. There have been obsessed ex-boyfriends who have done a lot worse.” He glanced toward Aiden’s booth again to make sure he was still seated. “Do you own a gun?”

  She swallowed. “A gun? I don’t…” She shook her head. “Wesley…”

  “It’s better to be safe than sorry. You’re at least ten minutes away from the police station.”

  “I don’t want to have a gun with the kids in the house. I’ve known Aiden for years. We went to school together. I just don’t think he’d do anything like that. Wesley, I think you’re overreacting.”

  “I hope I am, because I would never want anything to happen to you or the kids.” He cupped her cheek. “Listen, I need to let you work and I’ve got to get to work too. Construction job. Call me if you need anything, okay?”

  She nodded.

  He took a deep breath, and walked out of the restaurant and toward his truck. But he wasn’t about to leave. Not until Aiden did. He’d circle the block, then park somewhere across the street out of view so he wouldn’t look conspicuous.

  He didn’t trust Aiden, even now more than ever. If his father was a cop… God, I need Your guidance here.

  Not ten minutes later, Aiden stepped out of the restaurant and drove off. Wesley was tempted to follow him, but he wouldn’t. He needed to get to work.

  God, please keep Shannon and the children safe.

  TWENTY-FOUR

  Jaycee had come home from school on Thursday talking about how all his friends really did believe him about Santa now, and they wanted to meet him too. Poor Christopher. Jaycee was turning the Amish man into a local celebrity. Well, among the five-year-old population, at least. Sooner or later, she’d need to sit him down for a serious talk.

  Shannon hadn’t told the children where they’d be going Saturday, because she’d wanted it to be a surprise. Jaycee was already jazzed enough about everything else going on. It brought a smile to her face just knowing how much the children’s spirits had lifted since Wesley and the Stoltz family had come into their lives.

  “Are you going to tell us where we’re going yet?” Jaycee sang from the backseat of Wesley’s truck.

  Wesley tapped his fingers on the steering wheel and looked at Shannon. “Do you think we should tell them?”

  “How about after we cross over the bridge into Kentucky?” she suggested.

  “We’re going all the way to Kentucky?” Jaycee’s excitement turned up another notch. “We get to go over a bridge?”

  “Yep.” Wesley smiled at Shannon.

  “Jaycee, Kentucky’s not that far away. We’ve been there before.” Brighton informed him.

  “When?” Jaycee challenged.

  “Remember the pizza place with all the games?” Wesley asked.

  “We’re going to the pizza place again?” Jaycee bounced.

  “No, we’re not getting pizza,” Shannon said. “Wesley just asked if you remember it. Listen to people’s words before you answer, please.”

  “I remember it.” Jaycee nodded.

  “Well, the pizza place was in Kentucky,” Wesley informed him.

  “It was?”

  Wesley confirmed with a nod.

  “Then I like Kentucky!” Jaycee grinned.

  “Tucky!” Melanie added her two cents.

  Shannon reached back and tickled her tummy. “Oh, you like Kentucky too, huh?”

  “You’ll like it even better after tonight,” Wesley said. “Here comes the bridge!”

  They drove over the bridge as the children all bellowed, “River, river, river, river!”

  Shannon laughed when Wesley looked at her strangely. She shook her head. “Don’t ask.”

  “Family tradition?” His brow rose.

  “Something like that. I think my mom came up with that.”

  Wesley laughed. “We used to lift our hands and say ‘Praise the Lord!’ when we drove over railroad tracks.”

  “Really? So we’re not the only weird family then.” She smiled.

  “Apparently not.”

  “You have to tell us now!” Jaycee said.

  Wesley looked at Shannon, his tone teasing. “We have to tell them something? What are we supposed to tell them again?”

  Shannon tapped her chin and played along. “Hmm…I don’t know if I can remember what we’re supposed to tell them.”

  Jaycee giggled at their foolishness. “Where we’re going, silly!”

  “We’re going silly? I thought we were already silly.” Wesley made a funny face at Shannon and the kids.

  Jaycee huffed in exasperation.

  “Okay, okay.” Wesley stalled and looked at Shannon. “Should you tell them or should I?”

  Shannon smiled and shook her head at Wesley’s teasing. “We’re going to the Creation Museum!”

  “A museum?” Brighton didn’t look too enthused. “It sounds boring.”

  “Boring? Now, would Wesley take you to some place boring?” Wesley acted offended.

  Brighton shrugged.

  “Well, I guess it might be boring.” Wesley’s shoulders moved. “I mean, if you don’t like Christmas lights. And dinosaurs. And planets and stars. And zip lines. And Baby Jesus.” He glanced back at little Melanie when he said that.

  “Baby Jesus!” Melanie squealed. She’d brought her ornament along with her. It hadn’t moved out of her sight since she’d opened it the other night.

  “Dinosaurs? For reals?” Jaycee jumped up and down. It was amazing his seat belt stayed fastened. Maybe Shannon should give the company a five-star review online, because if it could contain Jaycee, it could contain just about anything.

  “You will love the planetarium,” Wesley assured. “I hope it’s open tonight. If not, we’ll have to come back another time.”

  “What’s a planetarium?” Brighton asked.

  “It’s like a theater, where you recline back in chairs, and they show a video on the ceiling telling you all about the universe. It’s pretty impressive.”

  The children’s chatter had settled down to a low hum in the backseat as Brighton and Jaycee discussed the Creation Museum between themselves.

  Shannon’s heart soared with love for this man beside her. There was nothing about him she didn’t love. He was thoughtful. Caring. Imaginative. And he apparently loved her siblings just as much as she did. She couldn’t imagine him not being in their lives now.

  But loving meant losing, right? If she got too close to Wesley, one day she’d have to let him go. Just like Mom and Dad. And she couldn’t bear the thought of ever losing Wesley. Her heart throbbed at just the possibility.

  Wesley reached over and rubbed her upper arm. “What are you thinking?”

  She shook her head. “I’ll tell you later.”

  “You sure?”

  She nodded.

  TWENTY-FIVE

  Wesley turned into the parking lot of the Creation Museum and paid the small fee to the attendant. The Christmas Town light display was free, but parking was five dollars. Not bad for a night of entertainment for the whole family. And if the kiddos wanted to participate in the things he’d mentioned, he’d happily fork over the money for those activities as well.

  This little family had their share of pain and heartache. Since this was their first Christmas without their parents, he wanted to make it as enjoyable as possible.

  “I see the Christmas lights!” Jaycee hollered.

  Wesley shared a smile with Shannon. There was never a dull moment with Jaycee around.

  “Wow, there are a lot of people here,” Brighton remarked.

  As he pulled the truck into a parking space, Shannon turned around and addressed the children. “These are the rules. We need to stay together. If you need to use the restroom or want to see something special, you need to be with either me or Wesley. There’s no going off by yourselves. And don’t talk to strangers. Got
it?”

  The children agreed.

  Shannon turned to Wesley. “We need to get Mel’s stroller out of the back.” Then she looked at the boys. “Don’t forget your jackets, scarves, and hats. It looks like it’s cold out there.”

  “We ready?” Wesley was anxious for them to discover everything the Creation Museum had to offer.

  “Let’s do this.” Shannon rubbed her hands together and opened the door before he had a chance to jog around the truck and open it for her. He let the boys out of the back instead.

  A few moments later, they walked toward the entrance. Shannon pushed the stroller containing Melanie, while Wesley walked alongside the boys.

  “Whoa-ho-ho-ho! Check out that dinosaur, Brighton!” Jaycee ran straight to the large sculpture and examined it from the ground up. It must’ve been huge to the little guy. “That’s super cool! You were right, Wesley. It’s not boring at all.”

  He got a kick out of seeing things through Jaycee’s eyes. He couldn’t even remember when everything was new and exciting. Except for meeting Shannon maybe. He glanced over at her as she squatted down next to the stroller and pointed the dinosaur out to Melanie. Her entire countenance glowed. She was truly beautiful inside and out. Yeah, she was exciting alright.

  “You ready to go see the lights?” Wesley prompted.

  “Lights!” Melanie clapped her mitten-clad hands, still clinging to her ornament.

  During the next hour, they explored the lights, listened as the shepherds proclaimed the Saviour’s birth and the scribes talked about how the promised Messiah had come, according to the prophecies and the rumors on the streets. Melanie’s favorite part was Baby Jesus. She’d wanted to get out of her stroller to go give Him kisses.

  “Okay, does anyone need to use the restroom before we head back home?” Shannon asked the boys.

  Wesley suspected they would, since they’d indulged in hot cocoa.

  “I do,” Jaycee said.

  “We’ll need to walk back inside the building.” Wesley instructed. He pulled the keys from his pocket. “If no one else needs to use the restroom, you can head to the truck. I know the little one is getting tired. She’ll likely be asleep before we exit the parking lot.”

  “Okay.” She looked at Brighton.

  “I’ll go with you,” he told her.

  Wesley watched as they walked toward the truck. When they were out of sight, he and Jaycee headed toward the restroom. Wesley waited outside the door, since the bathroom seemed quite populated. “I’ll just be right here, okay?”

  “Okay,” Jaycee hurried inside.

  A few minutes later, Wesley and Jaycee headed to the truck to meet the others.

  As soon as they were all fastened into the truck, Jaycee exclaimed, “Guess what? I saw Aiden!”

  Wesley looked at Shannon. “Where?”

  “He was in the bathroom.”

  “Did you talk to him?” Shannon asked.

  “Of course. He’s not a stranger.”

  “What did he say?” Wesley frowned.

  “He asked me who I was here with. And he asked me if I liked him or Wesley better.” His grin widened. “I told him Wesley.”

  Wesley chuckled. “I bet he loved that answer,” he mumbled.

  “Did he ask you anything else?” Shannon asked.

  “He asked how long we’d been there and what we were going to do.”

  Shannon shook her head.

  “Sounds like I should have gone in with him.” Wesley chided himself.

  “You didn’t know Aiden was going to be there.” Shannon’s hand on his was comforting.

  “No, he’s the last person I expected to see here.”

  “He said he was going home now too,” Jaycee volunteered.

  Wesley looked at Shannon and frowned. Had Aiden been following them? His eyes scanned the parking lot for any trace of Aiden. He turned the ignition over and backed out of the parking space.

  ~

  Shannon watched the lights of the car behind them in her rearview side mirror. She couldn’t make out what model of vehicle it was, but they seemed to be trailing awfully close. The children had all fallen asleep, but soft Christmas music played in the background of the truck’s cab.

  “I think we’re being followed.” She whispered to Wesley, not wanting to wake or worry the kids.

  “I know. I’m pretty sure it’s Aiden.” He grimaced. “He’s been behind us the whole time.”

  “He has? What do you think he wants?”

  “You. He wants you, Shannon.” His tone evidenced frustration. “Maybe we should have filed that restraining order already.”

  “Do you think he’ll follow us all the way home?”

  “I don’t know. But if he does, I’m not leaving you and the kids alone.”

  “Do you think he’s been drinking again?”

  “He sure does drive like it. But he might just be trying to intimidate me.”

  She smiled. “He must not know you very well.”

  “I don’t like him putting you and the kids in danger. He needs to be put in his place.” His grip on the steering wheel tightened.

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m tempted to call the police.”

  “But if Aiden’s dad works there…”

  “Yeah. My thoughts exactly.” He pulled into her driveway, but the car behind them drove past. “Good. I hope he doesn’t come back.”

  Wesley jogged around and quickly opened Shannon’s door. “Let’s get the kids inside.”

  They loosed the children from their car seats and headed to the house.

  “Okay.” She pulled out her keys and fumbled with the lock. She didn’t know why she was nervous. It was just Aiden. But he had been acting weird lately. And Wesley’s serious tone concerned her. Did he see something she hadn’t?

  “I’m not leaving. Are you fine with that?” He carried a sleeping Jaycee in his arms. The boy was out like a lantern that had burned all its oil. He hadn’t budged.

  “I’d feel better if you stayed.” She was grateful for his presence. She finally got the door open and Wesley locked the deadbolt behind them. Brighton went straight to his bed without being told. She carried little Melanie to her room, while Wesley tucked Jaycee in.

  A moment later, the two of them met back in the living room. Wesley opened his arms and she melted into his protective cocoon, the tension automatically leaving her body as his hands gently massaged her shoulders. She leaned back a little and lifted her chin, conveying with her eyes that she desired Wesley’s kiss. He willingly obliged. His lips met hers, moving slowly and surely, as they always did. One of his hands loosely cradled the back of her head while the other caressed her neck just below her ear. She’d come to enjoy the way Wesley kissed. He took delight in every nanosecond they touched, as though each movement brought him immense pleasure. She felt cherished in his arms.

  The doorbell rang, startling both of them.

  “It’s Aiden.” She groaned. “Maybe if we ignore him, he’ll go away.”

  “Call the cops, will you? That way we can at least document that he followed us home.” The seriousness in his eyes returned.

  The doorbell rang several more times in a row. If Aiden didn’t stop, he’d awaken the kids.

  Wesley walked toward the door. “I’ll deal with him. You stay here, okay?”

  “Wesley…be careful.”

  He turned to her before opening the door, caressing her cheek. “I just plan to talk to him,” he reassured her.

  As soon as Wesley stepped out the door, she picked up her cell phone.

  TWENTY-SIX

  Wesley stepped out the door, but not before turning the inside lock. Aiden refused to back up, so Wesley moved to the side. He was getting really fed up with Aiden’s games.

  “What do you want?” Wesley frowned.

  “I want to see my girl.”

  “She’s not your girl. And you need to leave. You’re disturbing the peace.”

  Aiden sne
ered.

  “I’m serious. We’ve already called the police.”

  “Yeah, right.” Aiden’s annoying laugh filled the air. He truly believed he was above the law. Or at least untouchable. “Like I told you before, Lesley, this is a free country.”

  “Your freedom ends where another person’s begins. You happen to be standing on private property. Uninvited and unwelcomed. I suggest you leave before the cops show up and escort you off the property.”

  “So I’m guessing Shannon didn’t tell you what we did the other night when I slept over.”

  Did this guy really think he’d believe his foolhardy words? “You need to leave. Right now.”

  “I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Fine. Then stand out here in the cold until the cops come get you. I’m going inside where it’s warm.” He turned, poised to knock on the door, but stopped short when something slammed against his upper back and his head, the force knocking him off his feet. His head throbbed and pain shot through his back. He glanced up in time to see Aiden standing over him, wielding a wooden bat aimed at his face. Wesley raised his arm to lessen the blow. He quickly rolled away from Aiden, although his body ached. He managed to get to his feet, but Aiden’s bat caught his stomach, knocking the wind out of him, and then slammed his back again.

  Did this guy intend to kill him?

  He struggled to catch his breath, barely dodging the next blow. Blessed sirens sounded in the distance. Aiden threw the bat toward the bushes, then took off running.

  Wesley groaned, then collapsed on the ground.

  ~

  Shannon pressed her face to the window, but couldn’t see anything from her vantage point. Where had Wesley and Aiden gone? She cupped her hand to her ear and tried to listen through the crack in the door. She heard nothing but sirens in the distance, so she slowly opened the door.

  She glanced down and her face paled. Oh no!

  “Wesley!” she shrieked.

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  Wesley grimaced as he attempted to turn over on his bed. Every inch of his body ached from head to toe. Had it been three days already since Aiden mistook him for a baseball? He couldn’t imagine that being run over by a truck would feel much worse. Shannon’s ex must really hate him. And if he admitted it to himself, he didn’t exactly have warm fuzzy feelings for Aiden either. Especially after this.