Meet Me Under the Mistletoe

Chapter 5- ❄️Green chili and mountain views❄️

Nick has been busy at the brewery, so my mom is watching Avery and Aida to give both a girls a break, very hormonal Bridgette and overly tired Estelle, who then only had to take care of the baby.

Red and I were in the kitchen with them while we were attempting to assemble gingerbread houses.

It's a sugary icing disaster with both little girls stealing most of the decorations for the house to eat it. The icing isn't holding the integrity so it keeps falling down. I could tell Red was getting frustrated that the icing glue wasn't holding, but the girls could care less while they're bouncing eating the colorful sugar covered gumdrops.

I'm trying to hold in my laughter with the girls while we watch Red try so hard to focus on keeping the gingerbread house intact. His face is scrunched, lines frowned his forehead and his tongue darted out the side of his mouth.

"Mister Red," Avery says in her adorable squeaky 4 year old voice.

He looses focus and the walls to the house falls but he sighs, then gives her a wide smile. "Yes miss Avery?"

"Do you have a girlfriend?" She asks and leans her tiny arms over the table.

"Um, I don't know," he says looking at me. "Why do you ask?"

"Our daddies said you need a girlfriend," Avery nods and Aida follows. These little girls are just like their moms.

"Why do they say that?" He asks, trying to focus back to the task in front of him.

"They say you are Lone-e-lee," she tries to say.

"She means lonely," Aida helps her. She has her mother's zest for sure. "Can you be my boyfriend?"

"No me!" Avery yells, and now they're both arguing on who gets to be Red's girlfriend. I slightly want to join with them.

"Hey ladies!" Red speaks over them but his deep voice bellows until they both stops. It's very directive and even, attractive?

"I doubt you're dads want me to be your first boyfriend, maybe someone closer to your age and not the same person. Fighting over the same person never has a good outcome, for an unlucky someone. You girls are best friends, never let someone come in between you."

My heart leaped in my chest as he was trying to explain the real world to these little girls and they were nodding. Having understood they shouldn't have been fighting, they hug their little arms around each other. Avery's curly light brown hair like her moms falls over Aida tiny tanned arms, just like her moms and her long curly dark brown hair. They were mere tiny clones, but they are bound to be lifelong friends like their dads. It's as remarkable to see as also seeing Red's slight confession that I caught. He was soft and careful with the girls, unlike almost the entire time I've know him. My ovaries were contracting and twisting at the thought of Red's paternal side being exposed.

I completely forgot that my mom was in the kitchen watching the scene unfold, the girls fight and make up over Red, all while I'm swooning over him.

"You girls want to walk to the park?" Mom cheers to redirect their small attentions to her. I knew what she was doing. For one, all that sugar needed to get worked off and the girls would run it all out at the park down the street. For two, she winked at me while they all ran through the door to leave which she hints at the previous conversation and she already knows.

Once we're alone, Red grabs my hand, which is shaking in his as he interlocks our fingers and I instantly calm.

"So I got filled in by, well kind of everyone, about your loveless past," he admits with a small chuckle while I'm rolling my eyes at the embarrassment of my family. "But maybe you'd like to know about mine?"