Sweet Christmas Kisses by Ginny Baird, Grace Greene, Donna Fasano, Helen Scott Taylor, Beate Boeker, Melinda Curtis, Denise Devine, Raine English, Aileen Fish, Patricia Forsythe, Mona Risk, Roxanne Rustand, Magdalena Scott, Kristin Wallace Read Free Book Online Page B

Christy grinned when she saw the child had done a little dressing up of her own. She’d taken the clear beaded garland off the tree and now had it draped around her throat in a multi-layered necklace, and a squat halo of gold tinsel perched on top of her head. Soft music filled the room, the tree sparkled, a fire crackled in the hearth, the scent of pine mingled with the delectable aroma of the turkey roasting in the oven; the setting couldn’t have been more cozy.
    “Okay,” Izzie said, “I’m making this stuff up so I don’t know how good it will be.”
    Her little hands were trembling with excitement.
    “It’ll be just fine,” Aaron assured her.
    “We’re all together here to celebrate this wedding.” Izzie gazed up at them, her expression uncertain, but that didn’t stop her. “I’m not official or anything like that, and this isn’t a church. We know this is a make-believe wedding, but that doesn’t make it not real. It’s a real, make-believe wedding.”
    She offered them a self-conscious grin. “That was the opening. Now for the vows. I think you’re supposed to face each other when you say them.”
    Dutifully, Christy and Aaron turned toward each other.
    “Do you, Daddy,” Izzie said, “promise to like Christy?” She looked up at her father. “Don’t answer yet. There’s more questions.” Then she ordered, “Look at her, not me.”
    When his gaze connected with Christy’s it was all they could do not to laugh.
    “Will you be there for her in good times and in bad times? Will you promise never to get mad and yell at her? Will you be nice and helpful and happy… and be forever kind of friends with her?”
    Aaron waited a beat to be sure his daughter was finished. Humor twinkled in his eyes as he said, “I do.”
    “Do you, Christy, promise to like my daddy? Will you be with him in good times and in bad times? Will you not…” Izzie frowned. “Will you promise not to…” She signed. “I forgot exactly what I said, but will you promise all the stuff that daddy just promised?”
    The urge to laugh almost got the best of Christy, but she kept her voice steady as she said, “I do.”
    “Where’s the ring?” Izzi asked.
    Aaron and Christy were clearly both caught off-guard. They looked at Izzie, both murmuring apologies.
    The child’s shoulders rounded. “We have to have a ring. It was on the list.” Then she lifted her chin in triumph and tugged the ring from her finger. “Here—“ she thrust the ring at her dad “—use this.”
    When a quick test fitting on Christy’s ring failed, Aaron slipped it onto her pinky finger. Christy took a moment to look at the gold Claddagh ring. She didn’t have any Irish in her family history, but from what she could recall, the ring was a symbol of friendship and loyalty.
    “Now, before I make the big announcement,” Izzie said, “I want you to both stop. Don’t move. Just stand there and look at each other.” Her pause was just long enough for the adults to do as they were bid. “You’re both smiling. You’re both happy. I want you to think about this place, how pretty everything is, how beautiful Christy is, how handsome Daddy looks, and the smell of the turkey, the sound of the Christmas music… and remember this time. Forever.”
    The smile on Aaron’s face began to slip, and Christy felt thick emotion well. However, Izzie quickly came to their rescue without even realizing it.
    “By the power infested in me,” Izzie called out loud enough for the neighbor to hear, “I pronounce you bride and groom.” Immediately, she nudged them both. “You’re supposed to kiss now.”
    “Izzie,” her father said, “You need to work on the romantic bits.”
    “Huh?”
    Almost by instinct it seemed, Aaron tucked a curled finger beneath Christy chin and tilted her face upward. His kiss was warm but chaste, just as a kiss in front of Izzie should be. But that didn’t keep Christy from reacting to it. Not in the least. Her heart