Tears pricked the back of Amy’s lids as she gazed at the picture Mary had drawn. The cottage. A smiling sun. And two stick figures with a crooked heart between them. “Surely your mama would like to keep this.”
“You keep it,” Clarice said simply.
Amy bent to gave Mary a heartfelt hug. “I’ll treasure it always.”
Thank you, Clarice mouthed with a smile. “Will you come in and share some Christmas cake?”
“I could use some sustenance,” Colin declared, and they all laughed.
SIXTY-SIX
BACK IN THEIR carriage on the way to the castle, Amy leaned across to take Colin’s hands. “Wasn’t that wonderful?”
“Yes, it was delicious. I was famished.”
“You and your stomach.” Giggling, she tried to pull her hands back, but he held them tight. “I meant Mary, and how happy she is.”
“Oh,” he said with an innocent grin. He squeezed her fingers and arched one dark brow. “I’m hoping we’ll have a little girl just like Mary someday.”
She looked pointedly as his dark head, then freed one of her hands to lift a hank of her own ebony hair. “I think not, no matter how hard we tried.”
Colin laughed. “I didn’t mean blond; I meant sweet. Surely we can make a sweet daughter? We’ll have to work on it more often.”
“Haven’t we been?” Amy mused with a secretive smile.
As they pulled through the gatehouse and onto Cainewood’s private road, he grumbled under his breath, “So much for working on it.”
“Pardon me?”
He reached to take Amy’s hand and pull her onto his lap. “Our days of solitude are over—not to mention our nights.”
Amy laughed. “It’s not so bad as all that! Surely we’ll have time alone together. And the family…”
Amy was very much looking forward to spending time with her new family.
“The family. The loud, boisterous, meddlesome, teasing…” He swept the hair off the nape of her neck and bent his head to kiss her there with each word. “Argumentative, childish, outspoken, pigheaded—”
Amy turned on his lap. She touched her mouth to his, just barely, so he could feel her lips move. “Affectionate, generous, enthusiastic.” She kissed him lightly. “Playful, thoughtful, alive.” Another kiss, more forceful. “Intelligent, lovable—”
Colin pulled back in mock surprise. “Good heavens, are we as wonderful as all that?”
“Well, they are. I’m not so sure about you.” The carriage wheels clattered over the drawbridge, and Amy leaned back to part the curtains as they passed through the barbican and into the quadrangle. “Oh, Colin, look.”
All around the quadrangle, garlands of ivy graced the ancient walls. A large red bow hung over each door and window, the swagged ends wound with holly and laurel.
“It’s beautiful!”
“Wait till you see inside,” Colin promised drolly. “Kendra quite outdoes herself this time of year.” But he was smiling, clearly caught up in the Christmas spirit despite himself.
Indoors, the monotone, cream-hued stone hall was asplash with red and green. Winter foliage and red ribbon twisted around the gray handrail, marching up the stairs and across the balcony at the top. Hundreds of beeswax candles sat at intervals, waiting to be lit when darkness fell. Cloth of gold swagged lavishly between the columns, held in place with enormous red bows.
Amy paused on the threshold, aghast at the splendor, and Colin seized the opportunity to kiss her, reaching overhead to pull a berry off the mistletoe afterward.
“Ah, our bride and groom,” Kendra called, coming down the stairs. “Thank heavens you’ve arrived. Our mistletoe’s been sadly neglected this season.”
“We can remedy that situation.” Colin gave Amy another light kiss and removed another berry.
Moments later, the brothers appeared. They both had resounding kisses for Amy, and the mistletoe was relieved of two more berries. Then Kendra claimed a kiss from Colin, albeit a mite more sisterly, and another berry was plucked.
“That’s more like it.” Kendra grinned, looking up. “At this rate, it’ll be bare before evening!”
SIXTY-SEVEN
“HEY, DOWN here!”
Amy looked down from the wall walk to see Kendra waving frantically and Jason and Ford toting a large saw between them. Colin laughed at the question in her eyes. “Come, love, we’re going to cut the Yule Log,” he said as he beckoned her to follow him down.
Spirits high, the five of them trudged outside the castle walls and into the bordering forest. Much good-natured arguing followed, as each claimed to have discovered the largest tree trunk. Teasing laughter pealed through the fragrant woods until Jason, as usual the peacemaker, swept off his cloak and shivered stoically while they used it as a crude measuring device.
Amy’s tree was the winner. Her cheeks bright with the flush of victory, she watched the Chase brothers struggle manfully to cut it down. At last it fell, with a resounding crash and a great cheer from all. They cut a long chunk from the thickest part, which Amy eyed incredulously, considering they’d brought no cart or horse.
“How will we get it back to Cainewood?” she asked Jason.
“We’ll manage.” Beneath their cloaks, Jason and Ford both had lengths of rope coiled about their waists, which they unwound and tied around the colossal log, creating six long looped handles to pull it by. “Can you and Kendra handle the saw?”
“Of course, but must the log be so big?”
“Tradition says it will be a good year if we can keep it smoldering through Twelfth Night.” Ford made a small grunt as he tugged a knot tight. “The bigger, the better.”
“But that couldn’t possibly fit in the fireplace.”
Colin’s laughter rang through the trees. “Don’t be such a worrywart, love. We’ve done this a time or two.”
“Hmmph.” Tilting her nose in the air, she moved to help Kendra with the heavy saw. “You’re the one who has to carry it, not me.”
Kendra hurried Amy ahead while the boys struggled behind. “Everything is all set,” she whispered. “When it’s time, a maid will come to your room and escort you to a chamber downstairs, where several footmen will be on
