Marty leaned forward and tweaked Emily’s belly through her thick, red woolen coat. “Hey, Emmy, remember me?”
Emily continued to stare at her for a moment, then her face crumpled and she turned to bury her head against Mason’s leg.
“She’s like her mommy—shy,” Mason assured Marty as he picked up the little girl and unzipped her coat and tugged off her hat. “She’ll loosen up in a bit.”
Emily might or might not have had her mother’s personality, but there was no question that she had her mother’s looks. The little girl looked like an angel, with a riot of blond curls, blue, blue eyes and plump, rosy cheeks.
“So how did you get away?” Mason asked, as he headed over to Ellie and handed Emily to her. “Ellie said you were doing, like, three fashion shows over the holidays.”
“I just decided to pull out of them,” Marty said casually. She didn’t feel the need to mention that she pulled out without notifying her agent or the shows’ organizers. But as soon as they all realized, she was going to have some explaining to do.
“You can do that?” Abby asked. “So close to the show dates?”
Marty nodded. She could do it. People were going to be very, very angry, but she could do it.
“Well, that’s great. You’re going to stay with us, right?” Mason asked, and Marty knew her brother-in-law’s invitation was sincere.
Marty still couldn’t believe the way Mason had changed since he married Ellie. He was happy and friendly, not the hardened guy she’d first met. And Ellie was happier than Marty had ever seen her. They were a wonderful couple.
Mason leaned down and kissed his daughter’s head, then his wife’s.
And they were crazy in love. Love might happen to some people, but Marty was pretty sure she wasn’t one of them. She obviously put out a vibe or pheromone or something that attracted the worst of the opposite sex.
“I actually think I’ll stay at the house,” Marty said slowly, knowing the idea was going to be met with resistance.
Ellie looked up from murmuring to Emily. “Why?”
Marty couldn’t explain that not only did she want time with her family, but she also needed time to herself. They’d ask her why. She wasn’t ready for those questions.
“I’ve been homesick lately, I guess. I just want to stay there. But I’ll come see you every day,” Marty cooed at Emily.
Emily hid her face in Ellie’s shoulder.
“Whether you want me to or not,” Marty added wryly.
“She’s tired,” Ellie said, stroking her daughter’s blond curls. “It’s past your bedtime, isn’t it, sleepyhead?”
Ellie started to rise, but Mason reached for Emily. “I’ll put her down. You visit.”
Ellie smiled. “Okay.” She gave her baby a kiss good night, and daddy and daughter disappeared out of the kitchen.
“I can’t believe you drove up here in that storm,” Abby said, reaching for another saltine. “You really should have waited a day.”
“It was pretty wild,” Marty admitted.
“I know you won’t appreciate this,” Ellie said hesitantly, “but I’m actually glad Nate was with you last night. If the power went out or the furnace, it was probably good he was there.”
Marty bristled a little. Did Ellie think she needed a man to rescue her? Although she couldn’t really be angry with her sister. Ellie had found her knight in shining armor and, as the acknowledged romantic of the family, she liked the idea that Marty would one day find hers. But Marty knew she wasn’t going to find any type of knight, shiny armor or not. Especially not in Nathaniel Peck.
“Yeah, you’re right, I don’t appreciate that,” she said dryly, but tempered the comment with a slight smile. “I think I’d rather freeze to death.”
“Nate has changed,” Ellie told her. “He—”
A knock sounded at the back door and stopped Ellie.
Chase, Abby’s tall, dark, and gorgeous husband, pushed open the door. He kicked the snow from his boots and stepped inside.
“There you are,” Abby said. “I was getting worried.”
Chase smiled. “Sorry. I ended up running into Nate and going out to his place to try and get the snow cleared out of his road.”
Marty frowned. Not again! She was starting to feel like she was in the cult of Nathaniel Peck. People couldn’t seem to go more than five minutes without mentioning him.
“Hey, Marty!” Chase said with his usual easygoing, lopsided grin. “I didn’t know you were coming for Christmas. You are staying for Christmas?”
Marty nodded.
“Good.” He went over to Abby and touched her cheek. “Are you feeling okay?”
Abby smiled, and although she still looked wan, she also looked very happy. “Fine.”
Chase leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips, and for a moment, they seemed to forget anyone else was in the room. When they parted, Abby’s pale cheeks were tinged with pink.
“Well, there’s a way to get her color back,” Marty teased.
Abby blushed more.
“Baby girl is out like a light,” Mason announced, entering the kitchen. “Hey, Chase, you’re here. I was beginning to think you were going to miss the tip-off.”
“Yeah, I got hung up trying to help Nate with his road. We got it halfway done, then had to quit. Tommy Leavitt was there with his small plow, but it didn’t quite do the trick.”
“You should have called me, I could have at least helped shovel,” Mason said as he opened the fridge and grabbed a can of diet soda. He held it up. “Want one?”
“Sure,” Chase replied, and Mason leaned back in the refrigerator to get another one.
Marty was impressed with not only Mason for his very successful recovery from alcoholism, but also Chase for his support. She knew Chase would normally have a beer when watching the game. And although she didn’t think Mason would mind if he did, Chase wouldn’t even consider bringing liquor into his friend’s house. He had too much respect for Mason’s struggle.
“All right, ladies, can you do without our company?” Mason asked, and both men looked at them like eager children.
“I think we’ll be fine,” Ellie said, her dimples appearing with her amusement. Mason gave her a quick kiss and the two men disappeared out of the kitchen.
Marty heard Chase say to Mason as they walked down the hall, “Nate is really doing way too much on that knee.”
“He is pushing himself too hard,” Mason agreed.
Again, Marty wondered what happened to Nathaniel. And why people who had just tolerated him before the “accident” were suddenly rallying around him.
“You should have Chase take the baby swing tonight,” Ellie was saying to Abby. “Emily loved it.”
Abby laughed. “We have months before we need it.”
“Well, you can have it whenever you need it.”
“What happened to Nathaniel Peck’s knee?”
Both heads snapped toward Marty, her sisters obviously surprised by the sudden question. She was, too. Here she’d been wishing they could talk about something other than Nathaniel, and she was the one reintroducing him back into the conversation.
“He