“I guess books are going to be a way of life from now on,” Landry observed.
Kaylee and Mallory stayed in their pajamas for a long time, playing with Mallory’s new iPad, reading, lounging, talking. For a while in the late morning Kaylee noticed that Mallory became a little quiet and morose. So they talked about her mother, about missing both their mothers, and it was just the two of them remembering and wishing things could have been just a bit different.
But for Kaylee, this Christmas was very special. The Christmas she had hoped would never come was magical and filled with love, filled with people who had never been in her life before. She was in love with a man she could not have even hoped for, he was so wonderful. She had a little girl who depended on her, a little girl she had quickly grown to love and hoped would be with her forever. And there was a prodigal father who had found a way back into her heart.
Mel called. “Merry Christmas! How’s it going?” she asked.
“It’s lovely. And thank you for the pajamas.”
“Pajamas?” Mel asked.
“Mel, it had to be you! Red matching pajamas for me and Mallory? I told you my mother gave me wonderful pajamas every Christmas! There were two boxes leaning up against the door when we got home last night!”
“Kaylee, I was in town. At the tree. I didn’t leave any gifts. I bet it was Landry.”
But he said no when she asked him. He swore he wasn’t lying. “I’m telling the truth. There was a note, wasn’t there?”
“But it was printed,” she said.
“I think you should accept the fact that you have a guardian angel. And she might be walking the earth or maybe not. But there is one thing I noticed that you didn’t.”
“What’s that?”
“You didn’t fall apart at 11:04.”
She hadn’t. She had glided right through the time and when she noticed a while later, it made her smile. It was as if Christmas had been given back to her. Times ten.
Epilogue
One year later
KAYLEE WAS THRILLED to be back. She couldn’t imagine spending Christmas anywhere but Virgin River. They’d spent a couple of weeks in Newport Beach early in the year, long enough to check out the house, the towns, the galleries and the beaches. Then they moved back in the fall so that Mallory could start school there. Kaylee arranged to have a small studio erected behind the house in the backyard, just on the other side of the small pool. It was big enough for Landry to use as his studio when they were there.
Mallory was now eleven and had friends in Newport as well as friends in Virgin River. The majority of their time was spent in Newport Beach where the house was larger and the winters milder. And there was a more convenient airport for the traveling they wanted to do. Landry was updating his Virgin River studio, but leaving everything else the same. They had become one of those very fortunate families with a summer home. Their plan was to live in Newport Beach for the school year and spend summers and Christmas in Virgin River. Luckily Tux, Otis and Lady didn’t mind long car rides.
Landry liked Newport and there were many opportunities for him in the shops and galleries around Southern California. And Mallory took to the town and the ocean very quickly. She also took to the idea of being part of the family she’d helped to create.
Kaylee was now officially a certified foster parent. The county had found a couple of distant relatives of Mallory’s, her mother’s second cousins living in Seattle. They hoped to meet them soon, but Mallory was very happy with Landry and Kaylee and had no interest in finding other guardians.
It was as if the three of them came together at exactly the right time. Landry had been lonely, Kaylee had been bereaved and Mallory had been in need of a family to help her with the rest of her growing up.
Kaylee and Landry balanced their work and family life like synchronized swimmers. There were times Landry had to visit stores and galleries to sell his art just as there were writers’ conferences and promotional trips Kaylee was anxious to return to.
In the new year Kaylee and Landry were planning to get married.
But they were back in Virgin River for their first Christmas as an official family. They had seen the raising and decorating of the tree, and Kaylee had spent days working with the volunteers who put together food baskets and bought Christmas gifts for residents in need. There were many social gatherings, and Howard was invited to stay with them for the holidays.
The anonymous Christmas fairies again delivered gifts to Kaylee’s porch. Sometimes it was obvious where they came from—winter crops from Jillian, canned delicacies from Kelly, handmade fishing flies from Jack, baked goods from Paige and many others who just appreciated all that Kaylee and Landry did for the town. This time Kaylee reciprocated with her own gifts of signed books and baked goods, scattering them around the mountain village.