A/N: Thanks for your reviews!

Chapter 10

"Do you want to talk about it?" Kate asked; breaking the silence that had fallen between her and Alexis.

"I'll wait until Dad gets here so it can all be done at once," Alexis replied. She wasn't going to take the chance that Kate would try and change her mind…that she'd talk her down from the annoyance and anger that was flickering inside of her.

"Are you sure?" her step-mother asked.

"Yeah…but don't worry; you'll know, I'm not going to ask you to leave the room. I have a feeling you're out of the loop about this one anyway."

"Is this about Christmas?" Kate asked.

"It's about more than that," Alexis replied as McKenzie fussed for her sister's attention. "What's wrong with McKenzie today?"

"She's got a tooth coming in. She's been fussy all day…and she probably wants you to hold her like you usually do."

"I'll hold her later," Alexis replied, allowing her sister to grip her fingers. She didn't like to shun her by disregarding her need to be cuddled but the aggravation in her veins didn't make her feel up to playing with McKenzie today. Her father's text had sparked her ire and it had grown steadily as she made her way to the loft to confront him. He just had no concept of boundaries. He did what he wanted regardless of how it affected anyone else. Well this time he was going too far.

The door of the loft swung open and Castle stepped inside carrying a box of diapers and a few grocery bags. "It's always nice to come home and see three of my favorite women in residence," he said lightly as he glimpsed the back of Alexis's head.

McKenzie whined from her walker, pulling his gaze toward her as her mother and sister ignored his comment. "Still not feeling good, jellybean? Daddy bought more teething tablets."

"I told you I don't want her having those!" Kate exclaimed.

"Well I don't agree and since she's my child too, I'll give her one to ease her suffering."

"I said no," Kate said firmly. "I told you I don't like them, they make her too sleepy and she's not taking them!"

"That's what he does, Kate," Alexis stated. "He ignores what anyone says in favor of what he wants."

Castle heard the layer of ice in his daughter's tone and he left the bags in the kitchen, making his way into the room with them. "That's not true, Alexis."

"Yeah, it is," she said. "You've always been that way…and apparently you always will be."

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"You tell me," Alexis replied as she pulled her phone from her pocket and showed him his text. "What the hell is this?"

"That's my text telling you that everything is set for us to spend Christmas in Vermont," he replied.

Anger snapped in Alexis's blue eyes as she surged to her feet. "Why are you going to Vermont?"

Castle chose his words carefully. "Because we want to have a nice family Christmas…we want McKenzie's first Christmas to be a white one and we thought we could do a little skiing."

Alexis shook her head. "This isn't about McKenzie and it's not about skiing. Your sudden need to go to Vermont is so you can follow me and stick your nose in my business!"

"I'm not following you," he replied.

"Really? Then why are we going to be in the same town at the same time, Dad?"

"Alexis," he sighed.

"No," she said firmly. "I told you when we had lunch Friday that I was going to Vermont with Max and his family for Christmas; you didn't say a word about already having plans to go skiing so I'm not buying that this is some big coincidence! You hurried up and made plans to go too because you want to follow me like I'm thirteen and need a damn chaperone!"

"Alexis, that isn't true. You know I enjoy having a white Christmas and I wanted that for McKenzie's first Christmas…and if having you near for the holiday was possible, then Vermont seemed like a good option. You want to be a part of your sister's first Christmas, don't you?"

"This isn't about McKenzie; it's about you!" his daughter exclaimed. "I love my sister and I have gifts for her but no, I'm not overly concerned with it being her first Christmas. We'll have other Christmases together."

"First Christmases are important," he replied.

"Yeah; so is having Christmas with the person you love," Alexis shot back. "I told you I'm going with Max and his family."

"You belong with your own family, Alexis," Castle stated. "It's Christmas; we're going to be together as a family should be even if that means going to Vermont."

Her blue eyes shot his an angry look. "I told you that Max and his family invited me to spend Christmas with them and that's what I'm doing. His parents are renting us our own cabin so we can have privacy and not have them and his siblings constantly in our business; you're not coming! I'm not going to have you hovering over me the whole time I'm there and if you think for a minute that I'm not already imagining all the 'can you babysit so we can go out' phone calls I'd get, you're wrong. This trip is for Max and I; for me to get to know his family…not for you to poke your nose in and not for me to spend half of my vacation babysitting my sister! You're not going to Vermont!"

"I can go to Vermont if I want to," he retorted.

"Yeah, you can…go to a part I'm not in!"

"Alexis; there's no reason why you can't stop by our suite at the lodge to spend some time with us on Christmas," Castle remarked; taking note of the fact that his wife was saying nothing, her expression betraying nothing as well.

"Yeah, there is! I want to be with Max…and I don't need you tagging along and sticking your nose in it! I'm a grown woman; I don't need to spend every holiday with my daddy."

"We're your family," he said tartly. "Max is just a boyfriend who will probably be gone from your life by this time next year…and you really want to spend Christmas with a boyfriend and his family instead of your own!?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "I'm a grown woman, Dad; I'm allowed to have a life! I love Max and I want to spend Christmas with him without you hovering in the background. His family invited me to Thanksgiving and I told you about it and you said I should be here, it was my sister's first holiday and on and on until I gave in and came here. I brought Max with me and you treated him the same way you treated Pi; like he didn't pass your test and qualify as good enough. Well I'm going with him for Christmas. I'm not saying no this time and who do you think you are judging my relationship? You don't know how long my relationship is going to last; Max and I have been together for a year."

"Yes, a whole year," he replied. "But let's not forget you two already split up once before and then Pi was the love of your life and now it's back to Max. So yeah; I'm not seeing this lasting forever, Alexis; that's how it is at your age. Relationships come and go."

"Do you really want to go there, Dad?" Alexis asked. "Because let's talk about you and your relationships; my mother cheated on you and yet you still hooked up with her anytime she was in town. You divorced Gina and then dated her again and broke up with her again. You've had more flings than I care to remember and now you're on your third wife so do you really want to act like my relationships are so bad when you've yet to make it past the five year mark of a marriage? Who's to say you and Kate are going to stay together? Because let's face it, your relationships seem to come and go at any age, not just when you were my age."

"That's uncalled for!" Castle exclaimed.

"Is it? You think my relationship is doomed but I haven't seen you have a successful track record. So before you go talking about me and acting like I'm some stupid little girl, why don't you take a look at your past! I don't owe you every holiday anymore. I love Max and I'm spending Christmas with him and I don't want you there; and if that makes me a terrible person, than I'm just going to have to be one this time," she said, her voice cracking.

Castle breathed deeply. "Okay, I upset you; I get that…and maybe I'll be completely wrong and you and Max will be together for awhile…but that doesn't mean we can't make this work in Vermont. We won't invade your privacy, Alexis. We won't ask you to babysit. But it is Christmas and on Christmas Day you can come to our suite and be with us like family should be. Your grandmother already bailed in favor of Ben…but since we're going to be at the same place, you should spend at least part of the day with us."

"No," she said firmly even as her tone shook. "I don't owe you my presence every holiday, Dad. You can be in Vermont all you want but I won't come to your door."

Anger snapped in Castle's gaze. "Alexis; you're being unreasonable. I'm your father; we've always spent Christmas together; that's what families do."

Alexis gave a short laugh. "Well then why don't you preach that to your wife? Kate's never with her parents on the holidays. She's always with you…I don't even think she calls them half the time on the holidays. Shouldn't you be telling her to spend a portion of the day with her parents?"

"That's different," he snapped.

"No, it isn't," she retorted. "I'm supposed to owe you every holiday but you didn't mind me not seeing my mother on holidays…"

"I always invited your mother here to spend Christmas with you, Alexis," Castle retorted. "I couldn't force her to come…her latest role was always more important."

"Yeah, I know…but the point remains. I mean some people might say you could've just taken me out to California so I could see both of my parents for the holiday."

"You never had a problem with the way things were, Alexis; so why are you dredging that up?" he asked.

"Because you have double standards, Dad. You want me to always be with you on Christmas because you're my father…but you weren't bothered by me not seeing my mother on the holidays. You don't preach at Kate to get over the past and spend holidays with her parents. You didn't even invite her parents to Thanksgiving."

"Because they've declined the last two years," Castle replied. "They prefer their own Thanksgiving."

"Yeah…and they've invited us to it but you always say no."

Castle nodded. "Yes, I do; because we have our own traditions and holidays are a painful reminder for Kate when it comes to her parents."

"Maybe it wouldn't be painful if she made new memories with them," Alexis shot back. "After all, it is McKenzie's first Christmas; shouldn't she be near her grandparents for that? I already know all about Gram going to Arizona with Ben so Kate's parents are the only grandparents that McKenzie could see on Christmas…is she supposed to never see them on the holiday?"

"Johanna and Jim have gone to their home in the mountains so that point is moot. They always go there."

"Maybe they wouldn't if they had a reason to stay…but they don't have one because Kate always chooses you."

"That's enough, Alexis," he said angrily. "This isn't about Kate. It's about you! You're my daughter; I want my kids with me for Christmas. I don't think that's too much to ask."

"Well maybe this year it is," Alexis said, angry tears laying her eyes. "I love you, Dad; but I'm also very angry right now…because you have no right to take my plans and make them yours. I chose Max this time…and I want you to respect that. I do not want you there. I'm supposed to be getting to know Max's family better and I can't do that with you hanging over my shoulder the whole time and making everything about you. So I'm asking you to please, don't do this…because if you do…I'm going to be even angrier."

Kate rose from the sofa, lifting McKenzie out of the walker as she did so. "Alexis; I had no idea that you were the reason for your father's sudden need for a ski trip to Vermont. He did mention that you wanted to go there with friends and I should've paid more attention to that but I didn't. It all makes sense now though. I assure you that we won't be there, so please don't worry. We're not going. You go with Max and you have a wonderful time. If I had known his real reason for going was to horn in on your holiday with Max, I wouldn't have allowed it to get this far. I'm sorry."

"No, we're not sorry," Castle remarked. "We are her family; she should be with us; not some boyfriend and his family."

"Yeah, my parents have felt that way too in the past and yet I always chose you," Kate replied. "And this Christmas, Alexis is choosing Max and she has a right to do so. She loves him, he loves her…his family invited her. You had no right to act like you wanted to go to Vermont so McKenzie's first Christmas would be a white one and so we could have a vacation. You want to go to be nosy like she said. You have to let her go a little, Castle; she's not a little girl anymore."

"Yeah, well remember this one day when McKenzie wants to pull this stunt," he said sharply.

"It's not a stunt," Kate retorted. "It's called growing up and moving on in life. Will it hurt me when McKenzie one day chooses to spend a holiday with her boyfriend over me, yeah, it will; but it's a part of life…and you won't do to her what you tried to do to Alexis this year. Now you cancel those reservations because we're not going and you apologize to Alexis."

"I don't feel I did anything wrong by wanting to have my family together. She's never around as it is…and now I'm not supposed to have Christmas with her either?"

"It's one Christmas, Dad," Alexis replied. "I've spent every Christmas of my life with you…I think you can survive having one away from me. It doesn't mean I love you any less…it just means that there's someone in my life besides you, Gram, McKenzie and Kate."

"Fine," he told her. "If you don't want to spend Christmas with us, you don't have to. Apparently family Christmases are an old fashioned trend of the past; so go, have your wonderful trip with Max and his family and don't worry about your own family who will be missing you on Christmas Day."

Alexis rolled her eyes. "I'll call you on Christmas."

"Don't bother, I wouldn't want it to take away from your time with Max," he stated.

"Castle," Kate chastened.

"Go ahead and take her side, Kate; you always do."

"She's not doing anything wrong! And we're not going to be doing anything wrong because we're not going to Vermont and invade her privacy."

"Fine," he said as he stormed away into his office. "I'll just call Sheila and tell her to cancel everything she spent her time getting for us which means I'll be paying her fees for nothing."

"That's on you, Rick."

He slammed the office door shut behind him and Kate turned to Alexis. "I am sorry, Alexis; I really didn't know that you were the main reason for going to Vermont."

"I figured that," her step-daughter replied. "I know that if he had told you about my trip with Max that you wouldn't have gone along with this."

"No, I wouldn't have."

Alexis breathed deeply and met her eye. "Just so you know; I wasn't trying to hurt you by bringing up that you don't spend the holidays with your parents. I was just trying to make a point."

Kate gave her a small smile. "I know…and you weren't wrong. I have spent Thanksgiving with my father at various times through the years…but I haven't spent it with my mother and I haven't spent Christmas with either one of them since 1998…so you're not wrong. I haven't been with them…every holiday that's come along since my mother came home, I've been here. I know you didn't bring it up to hurt me and you didn't…but it does put it in an even sharper focus than it has been the last few days."

The redhead shifted on her feet for a moment. "Do you ever want to spend Christmas with them?"

"For a long time I didn't," she replied. "But I don't think I'm going to feel that way all the time…especially now with McKenzie here."

"Maybe you should go see them this year," Alexis murmured.

"I'm thinking about it."

"Kate…"

"Yeah?" she said, meeting her step-daughter's gaze.

"I didn't mean for it to sound like I don't care about McKenzie."

She smiled. "I know you love her; don't worry," she said as pulled her into a hug. McKenzie squealed happily as her sister's arm came around her and she wiggled, trying to put her face close to Alexis's; making them laugh despite the seriousness that hung in the air.

"You better hold her," Kate said, shifting McKenzie into her arms.

Alexis cuddled her baby sister close, kissing her cheek. "You know, when I told him Friday that I was going away with Max; I expected him to…well…not be happy about it. I fully expected that and was prepared for it. But then he seemed to take it okay and I thought I had been silly for dreading the moment I had to tell him because it went better than I expected. Then I got that text and saw that he had made these plans to go along too and I just…I got so angry."

"I'd be angry too if I thought my father was following me on a trip with my boyfriend," she replied. "It's okay for you to get mad at each other once in awhile, Alexis; it's just how it is between fathers and daughters…and mothers and daughters for that matter too."

"I know…but you know we had that falling out during the Pi debacle and I thought we were better. I thought he finally respected that I was a grown woman and that I'm not always going to do things the way he thinks I should; that I'm not always going to do things he likes. Today just felt like a slap in the face…a reminder that he doesn't always accept boundaries when he thinks he knows what's best."

Kate nodded. "I know…sometimes it's hard to figure out how to keep that good relationship with your parents when you're an adult and they still see you as a kid at times. God knows I've struggled with it enough…for me I don't think it's so much that they were still seeing me as a kid…it was them worrying that they'd get pushed out of my life completely…and me doing a lot of pushing when I didn't always mean to. I don't think it's exactly the same way between you and your father…I don't think you push him away but he does. I think that's part of his problem lately…you're not home as much as you used to be and I do my best to remind him that it's the way it's supposed to be, that you're in a relationship and you have school and activities on campus…but he doesn't see it like I do. He was in the wrong with this thing about Vermont and you have every right to be mad…but maybe when things quiet down, you two can get together and have a talk and you can assure him that he hasn't lost his place in your life."

"He could never lose his place in my life," Alexis replied. "I've tried to let him know that…it just doesn't always seem to get through."

"Just keep trying," she told her; "And don't let him make you feel bad for wanting to go with Max for Christmas, okay? You should enjoy it and have fun. He'll be okay."

"He does have another daughter," Alexis said, a touch of lightness in her tone despite the layer of tears and frustration in her eyes.

"Yes, he does; and I told him that he has plenty of time to be the only man in her life."

Alexis gave Kate a smile. "McKenzie will probably be going through this in about twenty years."

"God, I hope not," Kate sighed. "If so, you can find me in my mother's guest room because I'll probably have to run away."

Her stepdaughter laughed softly. "I'll make sure I have a guest room too…in case McKenzie needs it."

"Good idea; if we're both hiding in different places he'll have more time to cool off while he's looking for us. See, you went through this and I know it's painful for you but now I have a plan for your sister if she should need it; so see, you're doing everyone a favor," Kate said, giving her shoulder a squeeze. "You're breaking in your father for this issue and I'm forming the escape plan, and she'll have guest rooms to hide in. Silver lining."

Alexis leaned into her, soaking up the comfort as McKenzie gently tugged at her earlobe. "Thanks, Kate."

"No problem," she said, pressing a soft kiss against her temple.

"Just so you know," Alexis said; "I don't have an issue babysitting McKenzie for a few hours once in awhile. I don't want you to think I never want to babysit her, I do…just not on my vacation."

She laughed. "I understood what you meant, Alexis; I wasn't offended and I don't blame you. No one wants to babysit when they can be cozy in a cabin with their boyfriend. I'm not out touch with reality yet."

"I know you're not; I just didn't want you to take any of it the wrong way."

"I haven't."

"Can I spend a little time with McKenzie while I'm here? Before Dad's text, I had planned to come over tonight with the gifts because I leave tomorrow…and I need some things that I don't have at Max's place; but I think maybe it would be best to do the gift thing after I'm back in the city. Maybe things won't feel so tense then."

"That's fine and of course you can spend time with your sister; she's always happy to see you. Take her upstairs and play with her…check her diaper if you don't mind; she might be wet by now."

"I'll change her," Alexis promised. "And I don't blame you on the teething tablet issue. In one of my classes we studied the differences between medications regulated by the FDA and those that aren't; in the infant section of that study, teething tablets were one of the things we looked at…and they're not regulated and there are a lot of cases where babies have gotten sick from them. I know it's not my place…but please don't give them to my sister; I know she's probably crabby and her gums hurt but it doesn't seem worth the risk."

"You're allowed to voice a concern for your sister and I assure you that she's not taking them; she'll get Tylenol like the doctor said. If you have time before you leave though, forward the information on the tablets from your class to your father please."

"I will; I know he sometimes thinks that if you buy it at a drugstore, it's not something that can harm you if you follow the directions but that's not always the case."

"Every bottle of them he brings home I throw out," Kate assured. "You might want to grab her elephant rattle if you're going to take her upstairs so you two can have some play time; she's been clinging to her elephant all day…she likes chewing on his ears."

Alexis grabbed the rattle from the tray of the walker. "Let's go get you changed," she told her sister. "Then we'll read a story and play, okay?"

McKenzie babbled at her, pressing kisses to her face, making Alexis laugh softly. "I'm going to go have a word with my husband," Kate said. "If you need me, yell."

"I will but we'll be fine," Alexis replied as she headed to the stairs with McKenzie on her hip.

Kate watched them until they were out of sight and then she made her way to her husband's office. "Did she leave?" Castle asked as he met his wife's gaze.

"No, she's upstairs spending some time with her sister."

"That's a surprise; I mean you'd think she'd have to rush back to Max's side and get ready for their trip," he said sarcastically.

"She's allowed to love someone other than us, Castle. Did you cancel the reservations?"

"No. Alexis doesn't own the state of Vermont. We can still go and McKenzie will be fine in daycare when we want to ski."

"No; we are not going to Vermont," Kate said firmly.

"I don't see why not."

"Really?" she asked; forcing her voice not to rise. "Let's start with how you lied to me about what this trip was really about. It's not about McKenzie having a white Christmas. It's not about you and I having a vacation. It's about you wanting to follow Alexis and force her to spend Christmas with us instead of with the person she chose."

"I didn't lie to you; I do want McKenzie to have a white Christmas. I do want us to have a vacation. I do want a family Christmas and Alexis is part of our family…so if we have to go to Vermont to have a family Christmas then I didn't see any harm in making the trip."

"And yet you didn't tell me about Alexis's plans when you sprung this Vermont idea on me," Kate replied. "You kept that to yourself…because you knew if you told me that Alexis planned to go with her boyfriend and his family, I would've said no about us going. So you lied."

"I didn't lie…I just withheld certain details because they didn't matter."

"Oh but they do matter," she retorted. "You acted like this whole thing was about McKenzie and giving her a wonderful first Christmas and the whole time it was really about Alexis…you were using one daughter as an excuse to tag along after the other one. It was wrong and we're not going."

"Kate; I'm going to feel like a fool calling Sheila back and telling her to cancel!"

"Good; remember that feeling; then you won't do something like this again," she remarked. "Alexis loves you, Rick; but you have to accept that she's not always going to be here every time you want her to be."

"I do accept it."

"I don't think you do; now cancel the reservations."

"I don't see why we still can't go; I won't bother Alexis while we're there."

Kate placed her hands on the desk and leaned forward. "We are not going," she said firmly. "You know how you didn't want to go on a trip that was my father's idea? Well I don't want to go on a trip that you thought up for the sole purpose of being up your daughter's ass when she doesn't want you there."

"Fine, Kate; I'll cancel the damn trip and send back the SUV," Castle stated.

"No, hang on that SUV; we're going to need it."

"For what?" he asked.

"Because we're going to my parents for Christmas," Kate said, her eyes on his and her tone serious.

Castle shook his head. "I am not going to your parents for Christmas."

"Well then you'll be spending Christmas alone because McKenzie and I are going."

"No, you and McKenzie will be with me for Christmas. You're my wife and she's my daughter."

"We're aware of the family tree, Rick. You said you wanted McKenzie to have a family Christmas…well her sister won't be with her and neither will your mother. One of the best things about Christmas when I was growing up was the time spent in my grandparents homes on that day and I'm not going to have McKenzie spend her first Christmas without any of her grandparents around. You want snow for Christmas; there will be snow up at the cabin. You wanted a family Christmas; my parents are family. We're going to my parents."

"I do not want to spend Christmas with them, Kate. They don't celebrate it with joy like normal people do."

"At the rate you're going, we're not going to be celebrating it with joy. My parents will do just fine for McKenzie's sake; I have no doubt about that."

"Well I do."

"I don't care…just like you didn't care how Alexis would feel with us tagging along to Vermont."

"You only want to go to your parents because Alexis brought it up," Castle stated. "You haven't wanted to spend Christmas with them in all this time so why change now, Kate?"

"Maybe because things are different now, Castle; did you ever think about that. I don't want McKenzie to grow up and realize that she never shared Christmas with her grandparents. I don't want my parents excluded every time Christmas rolls around…and maybe I feel like it's time. I haven't spent Christmas with them since 1998…that's a long time…and the past few Christmases, I've chosen you over them…and I cherish every memory we've made on those Christmases but I could've made room for them too. So the way you feel right now about Alexis is how my parents have felt the last three years. It hurt them…and in the long run I'm hurting myself too because I threw away opportunities to have better memories with them…memories that could push out the years we had to spend apart. Now I'm a mother myself…and I want my baby to share holidays with my family too. I want to see my parents on Christmas…and this year, I'm going to and so is McKenzie."

"Even though I don't want to go?" Castle asked.

"Yeah; because you know what, every time I brought up a doubt about going to Vermont, you said we were going anyway. So McKenzie and I are going to my parents…we would love for you to go with us; if not, then I guess you'll be spending Christmas here alone. I don't want you to be alone on Christmas; you belong with us…"

"Then stay here and the three of us will have Christmas together," her husband replied. "Call your parents and tell them to come back to the city because our plans have changed; that way they can stay in their house and we can be in ours."

"You don't mind spending Christmas in a ski lodge but you don't want to spend it under my parents roof?"

"No, I don't; I think I've made that clear, Kate."

"What do you think they're going to do to you, Castle? Tie you up and throw you in the basement?"

"No; I just…don't care to spend more time than necessary in their home."

"I think for your wife and baby you can survive it for a few days…you might even like it; it'll be like a hotel, my mother will provide the meals and cleaning and you won't have to tip her."

"Kate," he sighed. "I just don't want to…I would honestly rather have Christmas here with no one else but you and McKenzie than drive up to the mountains to be with your parents."

"So you don't care that I want to see my family on Christmas? It's your way of celebrating or no way, right?"

"At least we have a way; they don't."

"You don't know what they do to celebrate up there. They say they decorate, Mom cooks a holiday meal. It doesn't have to be an overblown production, Castle. You wanted a family Christmas and whether you like it or not; my parents are family."

"I know, you keep telling me."

"Because you make me feel like I have to," she replied. "Why don't you just admit it, you don't like my parents."

Castle breathed deeply. "I like your parents fine…I just don't like to spend an overabundance of time with them."

"Well you better get over it because we're going," Kate said. "We already packed, we've got an SUV and we were invited. McKenzie and I are leaving tomorrow…you can either be in the car with us or you can stay here and pout alone. Your choice…make the right one, Castle; because if you don't, you won't be having a happy new year, I can assure you of that."

With that said; she turned on her heel and stormed out of his office, slamming his door behind her. He breathed deeply and sank back into his chair; suddenly this holiday was a huge pain in the ass. He could have Christmas alone or he could spend Christmas with the Becketts…neither one was appealing in the slightest. What he wouldn't give to fast forward all the way into the new year so this mess could be behind him.

Jim had a feeling of contentment as he swallowed the last sip of coffee in his mug as he and Johanna sat at the kitchen table that evening. She had made his mother's family famous seasoned pork chops and potatoes that were baked in the oven. He always liked when she pulled out one of his mother's best recipes for a meal but he liked it even more when she cooked something of Elizabeth Beckett's when they were at the cabin. It made it feel like she was still a part of things…like he could feel a bit of her spirit there in the kitchen where she had made that same meal many decades ago when he was growing up and they were at the cabin on vacation. He breathed in the lingering scent of the meal, allowing it to remind him of his mother and times that had been spent there with her and his father and siblings.

He knew his oldest brother had been unhappy that their father had left the cabin to him but he was glad for it; after all he felt like he was the one who had loved the place as much as his father had. He liked to come here and be in the home his father built with his own two hands…liked that while he and Johanna had made some changes over the years to make the place theirs, they had also left many things the same to keep Robert and Elizabeth alive in the essence of the home. They had kept their antique bedroom suite; his father's desk and his mother's favorite painting in the den. The family pictures his mother had hung on the walls were still there along with the photos they had added over the years; his grandmother's piano was there in the living room…his father's favorite leather chair was still in the den as well. Some of their belongings were in the attic…his father's fishing rod still in the basement where he had hung it the last time he had put it away. He could feel them there; could remember happy times with them…happy times with Johanna and Katie; sometimes just the three of them…sometimes there with his parents and a collection of some of his siblings and their children. It was a good place to be; a place to find peace, to find happiness, to put yourself back together…and now it was the place where he and Johanna were learning how to have Christmas again.

"You're thinking pretty hard over there," Johanna said after she ate the last bite of her pork chop. "Was the dinner okay?"

Jim gave her a smile. "Of course, sweetheart; it was perfect. I always like when you make Mom's pork chops and potatoes."

"They're my favorite thing that Liz made; besides her soups, she did make the best soups. But I always loved her pork chops best…I remember that one time when I was pregnant and I had a craving for them, I begged you to call and ask her to make them. I thought you'd pretend it was for you and you told her I was the one who wanted them," she laughed.

He chuckled with her. "She made them though…wouldn't even let me have seconds until you had gotten all you wanted. She said her grandchild's needs came before mine."

"I remember that," she laughed. "I was a little surprised she did it though; you know we were still touch and go at times."

"I know; but I think she was pleased that you liked this meal so much that you craved it."

"I always tried to let her know how much I liked it when she made this meal."

"I know; and she knew it too…that's why she taught you how to make it after a few years."

"I'm glad she did," Johanna replied. "Because now I can make it for you and you can still have something that she made for you when you were a kid."

"That's what I like best too; thank you for making it tonight. It makes it feel like a part of her is here with us."

"No problem," she said warmly. "They're always with us; don't doubt that."

"I don't. Did you get all your secret gifts wrapped?" he asked. When they had gotten home from the movie, she had gotten the pork chops and potatoes ready to go into the oven and then she had locked herself in the bedroom to wrap the gifts she had bought the day before while he had watched a bit of a basketball game on TV.

"Yes, I did. When are you going to wrap your secret gifts?" Johanna asked.

"Oh, I figure I'll get up early tomorrow and do it while you sleep in," he teased. "That way I know you won't be thinking up reasons to walk into the room while I'm doing it."

Her eyes sparkled in amusement. "You shouldn't be mean like that; you know I did set through that damn Star Wars movie today."

"And you only said you hated it three times while it was still playing," he said lightly.

"That's a lot less than the first time I sat through one of those movies."

"That's probably true," he said with a nod. "I do thank you for darkening your phone screen and turning your apps to dark mode when you got bored and needed to amuse yourself."

"Anything for you, babe," she said with a smile, her tone carrying a note of sass as she picked up her plate and rose from the table.

Jim laughed as he picked up his plate and followed her to the sink. "Any dessert tonight?"

"I haven't had time to bake anything yet," Johanna replied; "But we do have some ice cream in the freezer; we could have some of that after I finish cleaning up."

"Sounds good," he said as he helped her gather up the dishes. "We can watch a movie while we have our ice cream."

"It's a date, handsome," she quipped, stealing a quick kiss.

Jim smiled as he tugged her into his arms. "What do you want to do tomorrow?"

Johanna thought about it for a moment as she wrapped her arms around him. "Tomorrow I think I want to just stay in…cuddle up with you on the couch, be lazy, eat junk food and have a marathon of one of our favorite old shows we brought with us."

"That sounds perfect," he replied, catching her lips in a kiss. "I think this is turning out to be a pretty nice vacation."

"It is," Johanna agreed. "We've been having a nice time, we've been out a good bit…and tomorrow we'll have our cozy just you and me day inside…and it might go so well that we have a repeat the next day."

"It just keeps getting better," he said warmly. "While you start the dishes, I'll turn on the tree and the other Christmas lights and then I'll find us a movie to watch; no Sci-Fi, I promise. I'll find something we both like…and then I'll help you finish up in here so you'll be done sooner and we can settle in."

"Okay; I'll get started," she told him, her arms releasing him so he could go complete his tasks while she tended to hers. She was so glad they were there, she thought to herself as she turned to the sink. It was so peaceful and relaxing and she loved having so much time with him; no visitors, no phone calls…just the two of them in a warm little bubble of contentment. It was perfect…and it felt like the best Christmas gift she could've gotten even if she hadn't realized it when they had started out but now she wouldn't change it for the world.