Christmas With The Houstons (Acceptance #4) by D. Kelly Read Free Book Online Page A

She’s in her last year of college and has been spending a lot of time with me ever since my bachelorette party. She was in junior high when I moved out of my parents’ house and into the dorms. Sophia isn’t close with our older sisters, either. That’s the downfall of having so many kids; we’re just too far apart in age. Don’t get me wrong, I adore them all, but I think my parents could have done better in making us a closer family unit.
    We typically only see each other for the holidays and special occasions. It’s sad and part of the reason I was looking forward to this trip with them. I’m going to have to make a bigger effort to pull them into my life when they return. I want Jaxson to have a close relationship with them all. Oddly enough, out of all of us, I’m the first one to have a child. Maybe I wasn’t the only one affected by coming from such a large family.
    Last time I was out with Sophia, we ran into Marc and Chad. To say she was smitten would be an understatement. At first, I thought she was crushing on Marc, but she later asked me about Chad. When I told her about Chad and Vanessa, she looked crushed. Chad still hasn’t dated anyone that we know of. It’s been almost two years since we lost her, but everyone grieves at their own pace. Chad has so much to offer; I wish he’d let someone in soon. He deserves happiness.
    At first, he wasn’t sure about how much time he was going to spend with Lucas but thankfully, with Kate and Daniel’s prompting, he really is a second father to Lucas. Lucas calls him Uncle Chad, so does Hailey, for that matter… but his relationship with Lucas goes so much deeper than that. They’re doing their very best to honor Vanessa’s wishes, and if it works for them, who am I to judge?’ Sometimes their arrangement seems odd because they defer to Chad on everything—preschool, holidays, immunizations, doctors, et cetera—but it’s their family dynamic and it works for them and that’s truly all that matters.
    When I pull up to Denise Robinson’s house, my eyes are immediately drawn to the house across the street. It looks like Mia’s grandmother was loved a lot in this community. Their porch is filled with flowers, candles, balloons, and photos. At sixty years old, she was fairly young to pass away so soon.
    Sometimes we forget how much of a gift every day we are blessed with is.
    My heart aches for Jake and even though I know he’s in the wrong, I want to make things right between us. My life doesn’t work without him and there’s no way I’m bringing Jaxson into this world with anything less than a happy home filled with both of his parents and love.
    Out of the corner of my eye, Mia appears on the porch of Denise’s house with her head propped in her hands, eyes locked on the display in front of her grandmother’s house. She looks wise beyond her years as she reflects on the scene in front of her.
    As I exit my car, I give her a slight wave and she cracks somewhat of a smile in return.
    “Mind if I have a seat?” I ask, not waiting for a response as I lower myself to the porch.
    “You came to see me just like you said.”
    “Of course I did. I’d never break a promise.”
    “Thank you,” she whispers.
    We sit in silence for a few moments as the sun begins to lower in the sky.
    “April, do you think my grandma is in heaven with my mommy and daddy?”
    “I’m sure she is, Mia, and I’m sure they’re looking down on you right now, wishing they were here.”
    She nods softly. “Can I go home? Hannah has to stay here because she doesn’t have a house, but my house is right there, so can I go home?” she asks, pointing across the street.
    How can I make her understand this?
    “I’m so sorry, Mia, but you can’t. The lawyers are going to figure out what to do with the house when they read your grandma’s will. Do you know what a will is?”
    She shakes her head.
    “A will is a piece of paper where your grandma lists all of her belongings