Author note:

Here's my Christmas chapter. I really hope you enjoy it. Merry Christmas to those of you that celebrate and see you in the New Year!

CH 104-From the Heart

Emma sat in the library between classes on her last day before the end of the Semester and the Christmas break. She had just one exam left and had turned in all of her papers and projects. She was feeling good about the holidays. She and Clay had put the tree up and decorated the rest of the apartment. Presents were wrapped and she would have time to bake this upcoming weekend. Her Grandma would be handling the dinner at her dad's house, so she only had to concentrate on Christmas Eve dinner for herself and Clay.

There were only two clouds on the horizon. The first was that Bravo was on rotation, so they could get called in at any time and miss Christmas entirely. The second was that she still hadn't heard anything back from the gentleman she contacted about Clay's Grandparents.

It wouldn't be a disappointment to him, he knew nothing about her efforts. But it was to her. She really wanted to do this for him. To give him back some remembrance of his past and the people that were so instrumental in shaping him into the man he was today. She had purchased another gift for him, but it wasn't the same. She was still holding out hope as she logged into her laptop to see if there were any new DMs or messages for her. As she opened her Facebook page, she tried not to get her hopes up. Just as she feared, there were no new notifications. She knew it was a long shot, but she still felt let down.

She scrolled through her feed getting caught up on the latest posts. Just as she was about to shut down to go take her exam, a small red dot appeared in the upper, right-hand corner of her screen. She clicked on it and read the incoming message.

Ms. Hayes,

I am responding to your message on behalf of my Father, Abraham Glisson. Unfortunately, my father passed away a year ago. I did, however, help him with the dissolution of the Peace for the Children Mission. I went back through our records and found some information that might be helpful to you. Please contact me at the number below at your earliest convenience.

Best Regards,

Joseph Glisson

Emma's emotions ran the gamut, from anticipation to despair, and back to hope. She wrote down the phone number and logged off. With all the possibilities running through her mind, she hoped she would be able to concentrate on her Statistics final.

After her exam, Emma drove directly back to their apartment. There was still plenty of time before Clay was due to be home. She took Koda on his walk, cleaned up the kitchen, and then sat down, phone in hand on the couch.

Her hand shook as she pressed the numbers into her phone. She half expected for her call to go to voice mail, but after a few rings there was an answer.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Glisson? This is Emma Hayes."

"Yes, Ms. Hayes. You were the one inquiring about Mr. and Mrs. Robertson. Are you family?"

"No, not exactly. You see, my boyfriend, Clay Spenser is their Grandson. Clay actually lived with them for a time at the Mission's location in Liberia. I'm trying to see if you might have any photos or other remembrances of his Grandparents."

"Well, as I indicated. I was not directly involved in the organization, and my father died about a year ago."

Emma sighed in disappointment. But he continued.

"However, when I saw your inquiry I went back through the records. I did find a file on Mr. and Mrs. Robertson. It includes a few pictures that I am happy to send to you if you like."

"Yes! Th…that would be great! Thank you so much!"

"There is another thing. As I dug deeper, I found something else interesting."

Emma waited with bated breath for him to continue.

"It seems that when Mr. and Mrs. Robertson passed some of their personal possessions got mixed up with items from the Mission. The error wasn't discovered until I was going through the paperwork with my father. Their instructions were for their belongings to go to their grandson, Clay Spenser."

Her heart was thundering in her chest and she had to take a deep breath to calm herself.

"By that time, we had no forwarding address for Mr. Spenser. I guess my father must have felt very badly about it because he tucked a letter into the file saying that they held onto it."

Emma almost couldn't speak.

"The funny thing is…we're still cleaning out the storage unit with my parents' things and none of us could figure out why they had a wooden chest with the name 'Clay' carved into it."

"You…you're kidding. You have it?"

"Oh yes. We still have it. I did open it to see if we could figure out who this 'Clay' was. It has photos and drawings, as well as some toys and school papers. It appears that they kept several mementos from his childhood. I can arrange to have them shipped to you, after some sort of proof of identity, of course."

"Yes…y-yes of course," she stammered in a shaky voice. "It is a surprise for Clay, but I can get a hold of his ID and send you a photo, if that will work."

"I think that will be fine. I can get the chest sent as soon as you send me the address and info."

"I…I don't know what to say, Mr. Glisson. This is more than I hoped for."

"It's my pleasure. My parents would be so happy that it's finally be returned to its rightful owner."

"I'll be in touch as soon as I can. And…thank you again!"

"Of course. Bye now."

"Goodbye."

Even after the call ended, Emma sat with her phone in hand, staring into space. She was still trying to process what she'd heard. This was more than she ever could have hoped for. It was like her very own Christmas miracle.

Clay smiled as he approached the door to their apartment. He could hear music before he even got his key in the lock. He opened the door as quietly as he could, giving Koda the command to stay and be quiet. He spied Emma in the kitchen. She had on her apron overtop of leggings and one of his sweatshirts, and was dancing around, using a spoon as a microphone, and belting out. "All I want for Christmas is You." He held in his laughter and whipped out his phone. He just had to get this on video. She had her hair up in a ponytail and icing on her cheek as she bopped around the room. It was almost a full thirty seconds before she noticed his presence, jumping back and gasping in surprise as she saw him. He expected her to stop and fuss at him about taking a video. Instead, she continued her 'performance', playing to the camera. She spun and wiggled her hips and then pointed directly at him while singing the chorus. He couldn't help but laugh outright. Her joy and energy were contagious. When the song ended, she turned off the music and flung herself at him. He barely had time to stop filming and put down his phone before catching her.

Emma wrapped her legs around Clay's waist and looped her arms behind his neck loosely. She knew she was secure with his hold on her backside. Peppering kisses all over his face, and finally on his lips she continued humming the tune before speaking.

"Welcome home. Babe!"

"Wow! You're in a good mood."

"I am," she beamed at him. "It's just a week until Christmas. You're here, Grandma and Mike will get in tomorrow, and…I'm finished with classes until the New Year."

Of course, omitting the biggest reason for her demeanor.

She gave him another smacking kiss as he moved and sat her on the counter.

"Well…those are all great reasons."

"Mmhmm, I thought so. And" she motioned to the cookies sitting across from them, "I felt like baking."

He kissed her cheek and slipped his tongue out to lick at the swipe of red frosting that stretched from her chin almost up to her ear.

"I can tell."

They both laughed as the oven timer sounded and he stepped back so she could jump down and get the next batch out. Once she had them out and on the cooling rack, he bent to give her a peck on the lips.

"I'm going to jump in the shower, okay?"

"Okay. We can talk about dinner when you're done."

"Sounds good."

Emma turned the music back on and began singing along to "Jingle Bell Rock" as he walked to the bedroom.

The music was still going when he walked back into the kitchen after his shower. He found Emma, still apron clad, with the fixings for dinner out on the counter.

"What can I do to help, honey?"

She turned off the music and answered.

"I felt like burgers tonight. I know it's cold out, but I was wondering if you would mind throwing these on the grill?"

She indicated the patties she was shaping and laying on a clean plate.

"Of course not. Let me go get the grill fired up and I'll be back in to help."

Clay was back in minutes and started putting together a salad from the ingredients she laid out. Soon their dinner was on the table and they sat down to eat.

"So, Em…are we all ready for Christmas?"

"I think so. We're going to Dad's for Christmas day. Grandma said she has that all under control. I said I'd bring some cookies over. I have everything wrapped that I need to. What about you? I didn't notice any packages under the tree with my name on them."

She tilted her head and gave him a pouty face.

"I got a gift bag to put it in today on my way home. So, I'm all set," he answered, winking at her.

"Oh! We need to get some things for a certain good boy's s-t-o-c-k-i-n-g," she spelled out while jerking her head toward Koda.

"I can grab some treats and stuff tomorrow for us to put in his stocking."

Emma gasped and shushed him.

"Shhh! You know Santa fills the stockings."

Clay laughed at her response and wide eyes. He glanced over at the dog who was currently fast asleep in his kennel.

"Right, right. I must have forgotten."

"Ok. The only thing left then is Christmas Eve dinner. I was going to make lasagna. Is it okay if we have the same thing as last year?"

"First," he started, reaching for her hand. "You know I love your lasagna. And second, I like that we have a tradition for Christmas."

She smiled back and squeezed his hand.

"It's my second-favorite one."

She bit her lip and blushed slightly, knowing that he was referring to making love to her by their tree, like he had last year, and several nights this year since they put it up.

They got up, cleared the table, and got the dishes into the dishwasher. Clay took Koda on a walk and Emma had hot-chocolate and some of her cookies waiting when he returned. They snuggled on the couch, watching their favorite Christmas movies.

A few days went by, and true to Clay's word, a red and green stripped bag with her name on it, appeared under the tree. It joined the leather, bomber jacket she'd bought him, the new harness for Koda, and the packages for the rest of their family.

She had managed to get his ID for a picture and send it to Mr. Glisson. He responded and let her know that the trunk was in the mail and, according to UPS should arrive before Christmas. Everything was going perfectly. Two days before Christmas, the package arrived from Joseph Glisson. Emma wrestled it inside and managed to hide it in the closet, piling some spare blankets on top. She had just finished with her task when she heard the front door, and then Clay calling her.

"Em, babe?"

She hurried out to the living room.

"I'm here. Why are you home…"

She could see it in his expression, Bravo had caught a spin.

"I'm...I'm so sorry baby. We're wheels up in a couple hours."

Emma knew this was a possibility. This wasn't the first time that plans needed to be postponed, and it wouldn't be the last. She didn't want to make him feel guilty. She knew this wasn't his choice, it was his duty. Plastering a smile on her face she went to embrace him.

"It's okay. Everything will keep. It just means we get to extend our Christmas celebrations this year."

She swallowed back her tears and lifted her head to smile at him.

He could see her fighting back her disappointment and doing her best to put on a brave face. He crushed her against him and buried his face in her hair.

"I love you Em.

"Love you too."

He didn't know how long they would be gone. He sat down and cuddled her onto his lap, holding her close.

"You and Linda and Mike should go ahead and have Christmas, babe."

"But…" she tried to interrupt but he laid a finger over her lips.

"Please, Em. I'm sure Jace would want the same thing. We don't want this to ruin your holiday."

"You're not ruining it. And it won't be Christmas until you and Dad and the boys are home, safe. So…go on and do what you need to do and get home, okay?"

They stood and walked to the door. He looked into her big, blue eyes with their earnest expression and promised to return as quickly as he could. After a prolonged kiss, he forced himself to let her go and left.

Emma didn't realize that she was still standing quietly, staring at the door until Koda came and nudged his nose under her hand, whining slightly. She tangled her fingers in his fur as she spoke to him.

"Yea, boy…I'll miss him too. He'll be back though. He'll be back and then we can have Christmas."

Clay met the guys as they all trooped on the plane. No one was very talkative. This was the life they signed up for, but this was the part they hated. Leaving behind their loved ones, especially on the holidays. They got together to plan for their Op. At best, it looked like they would make it back late into the night on the 26th.

Emma spoke with her grandmother and brother. They all agreed that no matter what her dad and Clay told them, they wanted to wait to have their festivities until the team returned. They just couldn't think of celebrating without them.

The days dragged out and Christmas day finally, Bravo got their man. They were all back in their makeshift quarters after securing their prisoner and filling out their AARs. You could have heard a pin drop as each man was absorbed with their own thoughts of home, and what they should be doing right now. They packed up as quickly as they could and got back on the plane and headed for home. Normally, after a successful Op he and the guys would indulge in a few beers, and recount the moments of their mission, trash talking each other and joking. This time though, the C-17 was quiet as everyone was thinking of, yet another holiday missed. Clay thought about home and how he and Emma should have spent the previous night together celebrating. She had been so happy a few days ago, full of her plans for the day. He hated that he'd had to ruin that for her. Remembering her mood, he pulled up the video he'd gotten of her singing and dancing around their kitchen. He smiled fondly, recalling her sheer joy and happiness. He couldn't wait to get home to her.

As anticipated, the transport touched down late into the night. The guys said their goodbyes and hurried home to family and loved ones. Clay got home and Koda greeted him as soon as he was in the door. Clay patted the dog hoped he would stay quiet and not wake Emma. He put his bag down as he entered the bedroom and could see Emma curled up, hugging his pillow. Clay slipped off his shoes and socks and pulled his shirt over his head. Then, after shucking his pants, he lifted the blankets and moved to slip in next to her. She woke the moment he wrapped his arms around her.

"You're home," she mumbled contentedly as snuggled back against his chest.

"I'm home honey. We all are."

"Everyone's good?"

"Yea, babe, everyone is fine. Shhh," he kissed her head. "Go back to sleep."

He joined her in slumber, happy to be back where he belonged.

Clay woke the next morning with Emma curled around him like a vine. Even though it was two days late, he bent to place a kiss on her sweet lips and whispered in her ear.

"Merry Christmas, Baby."

"Mmmm…" she stretched and returned his kiss. "Merry Christmas."

He held her as she fought for full consciousness. Once he was sure she was awake, he spoke again.

"How was Christmas honey? I missed you."

"I missed you too. We haven't had Christmas yet."

Clay looked confused.

"But…I thought that you guys would…"

She silenced him with another kiss.

"No. We wanted to wait. It wouldn't be Christmas without you and Dad."

"Well then, how about I take Koda out and then go make us some omelets and then we can open presents?"

"That sounds perfect."

He gave her one more lingering kiss before rolling out of bed, pulling on some clothes, and whistling for Koda.

By the time he returned, Emma had the coffee on and was chopping up some veggies to go in their omelets. Breakfast was ready quickly and they sat down to enjoy their meal.

"We can call Dad later today. We decided that as soon as you guys were back, we would get together for Christmas. But, since you got in so late, Grandma might want to wait until tomorrow."

"Sounds good. I know you all decided to wait, but please tell me you didn't spend the day all alone."

"No, I did go over to Dad's. We ordered pizza and watched Christmas movies together. We had fun. And we took some flowers out to Mom."

He reached across and took her hand in his.

"I'm happy you got to go. I wanted to take you to see her. I'm sorry, Em."

"You couldn't help it. I understand."

He flashed her a grateful smile and they finished up their food. They went in and sat next to the tree.

"Ok, who goes first?"

"I think Koda should open his first," she answered.

"Ok. Come on boy."

Koda trotted over to them and Emma helped him open his gift. He sniffed at the new harness and wagged.

"I think he likes it."

"Good. But I want to see what you think of your gift," Clay said as he passed her the gift bag.

She removed the tissue paper and pulled put a beautiful Coach purse she had been eyeing.

"Honey, thank you! It's perfect."

He didn't answer, just grinned smugly as she unzipped the main compartment to look further. Inside she found a plain envelope with her name written on it in Clay's firm script.

"What's this?"

He just shrugged and gestured with his hand.

"Open it."

She carefully opened it and pulled out a single piece of paper. It looked like an account summary from a bank. As she glanced at the total, she noticed there was a decent balance. It looked like there had been regular, monthly deposits for a while now.

"I… I don't. What is this?"

He reached for her hand as he answered.

"It's a savings account. I started an account for us…to save up for a house."

She started to tear up.

"Clay…"

"It's in both our names so we can both contribute. I thought if we started now, in a few years, maybe…"

"It's perfect. Absolutely perfect."

She pressed an enthusiastic kiss on his lips in thanks.

"Now, you open yours."

He tore open the paper on the large box and opened the lid.

"Em, this is great! I've been wanting one just like this," he exclaimed as he pulled the jacket out of the box.

"I opted for brown leather; you can exchange for black if you want."

"No, no. I like the brown. Thanks honey!"

He leaned in for a kiss.

"Why don't you try that on while I go get the rest of your gift."

"There's more?"

"Yea. Stay there. I'll be right back."

Emma uncovered the trunk and started to pull it out to the other room. As she tugged it along, she started to get nervous. What if this brought up bad memories for him? What if he was upset with her for digging into his past? Well, it was too late now.

Clay could hear Emma wrestling something heavy into the room and turned to see what was going on. When she got it through the doorway, she turned it around and stepped back. He saw the wooden chest and froze.

"Em…"

"Do you recognize this?"

"I…" he swallowed convulsively. "Is that what…how…where did you get it?"

She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Are you okay?"

He nodded silently. Clay moved in slow motion, kneeling down, running his hands over the wood, and tracing his finger carefully along the lettering of his name. A thousand images came flooding back. Emma could see tears just at the surface, ready to spill from his eyes.

"Gramps made this for me. He showed me," he took in a shuddering breath. "He showed me how to carve the letters for my name."

He glanced back at her, and she could see him flashing back to those days so long past.

"How did you find this?"

"I did some research and found the name of the man who ran the Mission. He's passed now, but his son contacted me. I guess somehow, when your grandparents died, this got mixed up with the things from the mission. They never stopped trying to find you, so he still had it in storage."

Clay reached for her hand and pulled her down next to him, burying his face in her neck and crushing her in his arms.

"I…I hope this is okay. I didn't mean to upset you."

He sat back up and wiped the tears from his face.

"You didn't babe. This is…this is amazing. I never even dreamed…"

"It never sat right with me that you didn't have anything to remember your grandparents."

"I can't believe you did this. And that someone actually had this all these years."

He was still running his hands reverently over the wooden slats.

"Do you want to open it?"

He blew out a long breath and squeezed her hand. Tentatively, he flipped the metal catch open and pulled up the lid. There was an immediate musty smell in the air. Emma noticed Clay close his eyes and breath in deep. Underneath the years of dust and moisture, he could detect the faint, lingering aromas of cooking spices and his grandmother's rose water perfume.

Right on top were the pictures Mr. Glisson promised. One photo was of Clay's grandparents when they were a younger couple. It must have been from when they first started their work at the Mission. The next was of an older pair, gray and wrinkled with age, but eyes full of the same love and commitment. Clay picked up the photos and couldn't stop the tears from coming. Emma pulled him to rest against her and could feel the salty drops soak through her top. He spoke in almost a whisper as he handed her the pictures.

"This is them; this is Grams and Gramps."

Emma studied the images. She could see glimpses of Clay in each of them.

"They look like very sweet people."

"They were the best."

"I can't wait to learn more about them."

She handed the pictures back to him. He held them to his chest and swallowed over and over. Then he laid them aside.

"We'll get frames for those as soon as we can," she assured.

Clay sat up and pulled her into his lap and lowered his lips to hers. She could feel the dampness on his cheeks as he kissed her, conveying his gratitude.

His hands were still shaking as he moved to pull the next item from the trunk.

"We don't have to do this all today, if it's too much for you."

He nodded as his fingers hovered over the papers inside. He was so grateful that she understood how intensely emotional this was for him.

"Yea, I might…I think I'd like to take my time, if you don't mind."

"You do whatever you need to do. This isn't going anywhere. It's yours now."

"I don't know how you did this, Em. But I can't thank you enough."

She leaned and kissed his cheek.

"I wanted to give you your memories back."

Clay looked at her in amazement. She'd done that and so much more. She was his present and his future, and now she'd given him back his past.