A Christmas Story

The kids were happily playing with their new toys in the living room while Dan and Meg sat at the kitchen table with cups of coffee. There were three unopened envelopes on the table in front of Meg ... the kids had found them in amongst the presents around the tree.

"How did you manage that Dan ... you never left the house without me yesterday and we didn't go near any shop where you could have bought those toys?"

"I have 15 guys and 13 wives who are like family to me Meg. I thought that they were all pretty wonderful before Carrie left me but after she left I discovered just how amazing they all are. I called Kate and she called three of the other wives and they went shopping for toys you kids would love.

"They met up with two of the other wives who wrapped all the presents while Bill went out and found a Christmas tree. Last night, after you had all gone to bed, they came over and you saw what they did."

"They sound like wonderful people Dan ... but what are in these envelopes?" She tapped the envelopes with a fingernail and Dan grimaced. He knew that he was skating on very thin ice here because she would either accept them in the spirit that they were given or throw them back in his face.

"You should open them and see for yourself ... and once you can see what they are I will try and explain ... but perhaps before you do open them I should tell you that I ran the idea of these gifts by Kate and Madonna, and they thought that these gifts were very appropriate."

Meg warily opened the first envelope and pulled out a gift card. Her eyes went wide and she swallowed hard when she saw the value of the card. She put the card down and then opened the second envelope.

This card was for a smaller amount but for a different store while the third one was for the same amount as the second card and could be spent at the same store as the second card.

Dan looked across the table at her and he could see that she waiting for him to say something.

"I am not trying to buy you with these gift cards ... or with a roof over your head ... so please, if you're thinking that maybe I am trying to do that then please stop because I'm not.

"It looks to me that when you left your partner it wasn't planned ... you just ran ... probably for your life ... so you didn't have time to grab any clothes for you or the kids ... you just ran.

"Since then you may have picked up a few things for the kids but probably nothing for yourself so I wanted to change that. You can spend these however you want ... I'm not placing any limitations on how you spend them.

"However, what I thought when I bought them was that this one," he touched the first envelope she opened, "you should spend on clothes and whatever else you might need for yourself."

"These two I thought you might spend on the kids ... one card for each of them.

"And now I see that I've upset you," there were tears streaming down her cheeks, "I am so very sorry."

"Please don't apologise for something so special ... I am just so grateful for what you have done for us."

Christmas lunch was quiet, but it was still the best Christmas lunch Dan had enjoyed in ten years and, while they weren't Dan's kids at the table they were still kids and that seemed to make it even more enjoyable.

Meg's children both fell asleep after lunch and that didn't surprise Dan. He thought that they both looked run down and Henry clearly had a bad cold but Dan knew that it wouldn't be long before they were back to their best.

Meg accepted Dan's offer of a glass of wine and they sat in the two armchairs in the living room facing each other, "I don't want to pry but do I need to know why your wife left you?"

Dan smiled but there was little warmth in the smile, "My wife left me because I cheated on her."

"That's it? That's all there is and that is the justification for her taking the kids and never letting you see them again? How did she find out?"

Dan sighed, "She found out because I told her ... and before you ask me to confirm that let me say it again ... she found out because I told her."

"We had been married about three years when I had a brief affair with an old girlfriend. It was dumb, we were both ashamed of what we did, neither of us wanted to hurt our significant other but it happened.

"Carrie had no idea that anything like that had happened and I decided that what it was best left that way ... but then I started feeling guilty about what had happened.

"And one day, straight out of the blue, while I was distracted doing something, she asked me if I had ever had an affair and without thinking I told her that I had. Things were a bit strained we talked it through and, while things might be tough for a while, I thought that we were strong enough to be able to get through it.

"Then I came home the day before Christmas Eve and found that she had gone and taken April and James ... my kids ... and almost everything else we owned with her. On Christmas Eve I found that she had also taken all our money and I had nothing left to pay the staff or the bills with.

"And it was something that she had been planning for at least two months ... if not longer."

"So she knew about you even though you said that that she didn't?"

"No ... she had some other guy hooked while she was slowly getting rid of me ... and I think that maybe she was feeling a little guilty about what she was doing and she was fishing for some excuse when she asked that question.

"Leaving with that guy wasn't a spur of the moment thing ... they had been getting together regularly for months before she ran off with him. They had it all planned ... right down to the timing to remove the furniture and stuff.

I didn't suspect a thing and only found out about it after she had gone"

"Oh wow ... that is horrible. Did the Police catch up with her? Were you able to recover your money?"

"No, I figured that I would only be taking money from my kids if I did that and they already seemed to be almost brainwashed into believing that I was a bad person so I didn't report it to the police and I never made any attempt to track her down.

"I didn't want to hurt the kids anymore than they already were and I figured that I got what I deserved. Trying to sort out the money mess she had tossed me into kept me so busy that the sharpness of the pain was beginning to wear off by the time I had time to go looking for them and I didn't know where to start.

"I guess I could have hired a PI but I couldn't afford it ... and when I could I figured that it was just too late."

He sat looking at the floor, "It's not how I wanted my life to turn out," he said so softly that she could hardly hear what he had said.

Meg sat quietly for a few moments, "I guess I should tell you about me then."

She took a sip of her wine and got more comfortable in her chair. "I'm 38 and I am a lawyer ... who would believe that a lawyer could possibly be a victim of domestic violence?

"Anyway, I haven't practiced since the kids were born. Tom was my first husband and the father of my children ... he was an engineer and he wanted to take care of his family so he encouraged me not to go back to work ... and now I probably don't have the confidence to be a lawyer anymore.

"Tom was killed two years ago when some scaffolding that he should not have been standing on collapsed. There was no big insurance company payout because he should not have been standing on that piece of scaffolding anyway and I knew that it would be a waste of time and money to fight it."

"Friends kept hassling me move on with my life ... they said that I was too young to stay a mourning widow for long and they started taking me out for drinks and dinner and about a year ago I met Sean.

"He was handsome and charming, good with the kids and I was an easy target ... and about 6 months ago I moved in with him.

"A couple of weeks later the abuse started ... it was the typical story ... he began controlling me and what little money I had was soon under his control. When I asked for some money he beat me ... when he didn't like what I cooked for dinner he beat me ... when the kids were too noisey he beat me.

"I knew that one day he would probably kill me but I was too scared to leave until he started beating Willow and Henry.

"Then I knew that I had to run ... and we did. I had no one I could turn to for help so I pawned some jewellery that Sean didn't know I had and somehow my old car go us as far as here. What little I had left over after paying for fuel went on renting that house we were living in and when I had no money for food I was so desperate that I contacted Craig and begged him to lend me a few dollars.

"He told me that he would put $50 in my account if I would think about coming home ... and I believed him ... but of course he didn't and that's when you and Madonna had to pick me up off the floor at the grocery store."

"So now you have a highly qualified lawyer for a housekeeper ... and I am so grateful for the job and what you have done for me and the kids."

Dan was about to say something when they both heard someone tapping at the front door. It was so light that it could hardly be called a knock.

Meg sprang up, "I'll answer the door ... it's probably part of my job description anyway."

Dan could hear Meg's voice and another soft, feminine voice and he wondered if one of his crews' wives had come calling and he was about to get up and go to the door himself when Meg walked into the room with a strange look on her face.

Behind her was a nervous young woman he was sure he had never seen before ... but there was a nagging doubt that he should now this person.

"Um ... Dan ..." even Meg was looking nervous, "I would like to introduce you to ... umm ... your daughter, April."

Dan sat there with his mouth open and stared at the beautiful young woman who seemed to be trying to hide behind Meg. For a moment he thought that she couldn't possibly be his daughter ... his daughter was just 8 years old ... and then he shook his head and told himself to stop being so stupid.

He could see the eight-year-old in this young woman ... and of course she was his daughter ... she had just grown up ... and now she was standing there waiting for him to say something. But he didn't know what to say because he never believed that this day would ever come.

It was Meg who broke the silence by suggesting that maybe she should leave them alone and head for bed but both of them quickly vetoed that idea. Meg almost smiled ... here she was, almost a complete stranger but both father and daughter needed her to stay ... to be a neutral figure that they could both reach out to if they needed some support.

Chapter 4

"Wow, are you OK?"

Meg had just closed the door behind the most amazing surprise that Dan had ever had in his entire life ... and he still looked rather dazed.

His daughter, who he thought he would never see again, had just spent the last hour with him and she was coming back for lunch the next day to spend more time with him. It had been Meg's idea that Dan and his daughter limit their first meeting in ten years to just one hour because she knew that it would be incredibly stressful for both of them.

But, again at Meg's suggestion, she would be back for lunch and to spend the rest of the day with Dan ... and, if she wasn't a big enough surprise, she said that she would have another surprise for him the next day.

"Meg ... I don't know what to say ... I'm just stunned that April should walk back into my life ten years after she was taken out of it. And I'm so pleased that you were here ... I wouldn't have known what to do," and suddenly he burst into tears.

They were back sitting on the couch so she slid across till she could put her arm around him and held him while he cried. She had been surprised that he hadn't cried when April first arrived, but Meg was beginning to understand that Dan had an inner strength that she wished she could tap into.

When he had no tears left he thanked her and excused himself. Once he was out of earshot Meg quickly made a phone call and made some arrangements.

"Where are you going? I need you here Meg ... April needs you too."

Meg patted his arm, "Don't panic Dan ... Madonna is taking me and the kids shopping. If your daughter is coming for lunch I need some better clothes than what I am wearing now but I promise that I will be back by 11am and Madonna is taking Henry and Willow home with her so they won't be in the way here."

Once Meg and the kids were gone Dan wandered around the house looking for something to do to fill in the morning. For once he wanted time to fly so that he could blink and it would be midday ... the time that April said she would be back.

That hour with her the night before hadn't been long enough ... they had so much to talk about and while they talked non-stop there seemed to be so little detail in what was said. In fact, there were two occasions when she plainly ignored his questions and went on to talk about something else.

Where was James? Where was their mother? Why had April suddenly appeared at his front door? How did April even remember him?

These were questions he had asked and she had avoided. What he did learn however was that she was on a full scholarship to the University of Texas in Austin where she was studying Law and she had come up to Dallas with the intention of finding Dan.

She was staying with an aunt ... one of Carrie's sisters ... while she was in town, and she would be in town for a week before she had to go back. She hadn't come to ask for money ... she had simply come to reconnect with her father.

So many unanswered questions and so many more questions that he wanted to ask ... but Meg's suggestion of limiting the first meeting to just an hour had been a good one. At the end of that hour, he was exhausted both physically and emotionally and he was embarrassed that he had burst in tears and cried on Meg's shoulder.

Meg was back by 11am and when she came out to make lunch she was dressed in a nice skirt and top. She was about to ask Dan what he thought of her new clothes but then decided that was pushing things a little too far.

She had also bought several aprons and her new clothes quickly disappeared behind one of them as she settled down to make a light lunch ... and she made extra because she just had a feeling that more would be needed.

Right on the dot of 12 noon the doorbell rang and Meg held up her hand. Dan got the message and let her go to open the door ... and the moment she did she was glad that she had made extra for lunch.

Dan was standing when April came into the room and she ran and threw herself into his arms, "I wanted to do this yesterday but I wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do," she sobbed.

"Oh daddy ... it feels so good to have your arms around me."

For a moment Dan remembered the phone message but he instantly pushed it out of his mind as he hugged his daughter fiercely.

Meg's slight cough broke through his pleasure at holding his daughter after so many years and when he looked over at Meg he could see that she was smiling.

"Ah ... Dan ... let me introduce you to your son ... James."

Dan stopped and stared at the willowy boy standing beside Meg ... and this time he couldn't save the tears till they had gone ... this time the tears were streaming down his face as stood with one arm around April's shoulders and held the other arm out to his son.

Once again Meg tried to excuse herself from the reunion but this time there were three voices pleading with her to stay ... and so she did.

She ate lunch with them and then sat back and watched Dan reconnect with his children. The man had an incredible heart and she was amazed at the way he dealt with his feelings whenever their discussions turned to his ex-wife ... their mother.

She was still alive and living in Austin with the guy she had run off with. It seemed to Meg that Carrie had taken every opportunity to bad-mouth Dan to the kids for being an adulterer and a liar but she couldn't see that she was just as much at fault as Dan was ... but the kids had seen i

April even admitted that her mother had cheated on the guy she had run off with but still she heaped abuse on Dan. Carrie had done nothing to encourage April and James to find their father but their stepfather had encouraged them and suggested that Dan wasn't really the villain that their mother made them out to be.

Even Carrie's sister had encouraged April and James to spend a few days with her over Christmas to see if they could reconnect with their father. She wouldn't breathe a word of what was happening to Carrie because she knew that as soon as she did Carrie would almost certainly throw the kids out.

While that didn't bother April so much it would be a different story with James and Dan was quick to give James his phone number and a promise that he would always come when James needed him.

They talked on through the afternoon and didn't notice when Meg slipped away to pick up Willow and Henry. She even managed to feed them and set them in front of the television while she cooked dinner for Dan and his children without Dan noticing

By 10pm Dan's kids had gone home and it was as if Dan had suddenly woken up.

"Wow ... Meg ... where has the day gone? Where are your kids? Are they still with Madonna and Bill?"

Meg laughed, "You were so engrossed with April and Henry you didn't notice when slipped away and collected them, brought them back here and fed them before putting then to bed."

She went to the fridge and took out two beers, "Come into the living room with me and tell me how you are feeling?"

Once again they sat at either end of the couch and Meg listened as Dan talked and talked. He might not have noticed what Meg had been doing while his children were there but she knew that he had heard and understood every word that they had uttered.

The man she had met at the grocery store had almost frightened her because it seemed as if he was cold and dead inside ... but the man sitting before her now was the exact opposite ... and she commented on it.

Dan smiled, "I feel alive again too ... it's as if I can wake up in the morning and not have to push myself to grind through the day paying for my sins because now I've paid the price and I can enjoy life again."

Meg smiled, "You certainly seem to be different Dan and I hope you can enjoy life now."

"I'm sure going to try," he chuckled and then he stopped and looked at her, "you look different too ... what have you done?"

"I bought some new clothes for myself with some of the money you gave me."

'What the hell,' she thought as she stood up and slowly turned in front of him. It had been a long time since she had bought herself anything new and she felt good about it.

"Do you like?"

Dan blushed and said quietly, "I do Meg ... you are a very attractive woman and that skirt and top look really good on you."

'A compliment ... MY GOD I CAN'T REMEMBER THE LAST TIME A MAN GAVE ME A COMPLIMENT ...' it was her turn to blush and she quickly sat down and grabbed her beer. She needed to put something between her and Dan ... even if the only thing she could find was a beer can.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly, "I know that wasn't politically correct and I shouldn't have said it ... I really am sorry."

"Dan, what did you say to me ... before that apology?" Dan began to sweat ... he had meant it as a compliment, but Meg had obviously been insulted by it.

"I ... I said that you're a very attractive woman and your new clothes looked good on you," he sounded so miserable that Meg couldn't even pretend to be angry with him.

"Dan, I have not had a compliment from a man in such a long time that I can't remember when it happened last ... and I don't care if your comment was politically correct or not ... I love getting genuine compliments so please, keep them coming."