John tried not to let his discomfort show as he stared at an overly enthusiastic Eva. Her wide smile and giddy fidgeting told him that she was expecting him to be a lot more excited than he was. The gaudy Christmas pajamas that she picked out for him were still in the box that he tried not to look down at.
"And, I've already washed them, so you can change into them tonight when we get back from midnight mass." Eva pulled them out of the box and held them up for him to see. The pattern on his was identical to the pattern on the set she picked out for herself. "We'll be twins." She ripped open her present and pulled out her matching set. "Tada!"
He could barely muster a smile. Did she know him at all? Why would she pick out something so terrible? "Thank…you." He spoke out measure words.
She gave him a quick kiss still oblivious to the fact that he was not filled with joy like she was. "Well that's all the fun I had planned for Christmas Eve, so we'll have to figure out something fun to do until we head out this evening."
That was John's cue to change the subject. If he was careful, he'd be able to spill something on the offensive pajamas and avoid wearing them altogether. He pushed the box aside gently and pulled her into his lap. "Well, I can maybe think of something we can do to keep ourselves busy."
"If you say, 'Let's watch A Charlie Brown Christmas' I'm probably going to die and go to heaven." She turned and looked at him over her shoulder. Last Christmas, she was alone and avoiding calls from family. It was magical and exciting to be spending it with someone she really cared about.
John read the excitement on her face and was stunned. She had this sweet innocence about her that was driving him crazy. He was obviously hinting that they have sex, but she had again missed his cue. They had been dating for just shy of thirty days, and they still hadn't had sex. It was a fun chase for John on the first couple of dates. Days had turned into weeks and he was at his tipping point. "Maybe we can do that a little later."
He shifted slightly so that he could lay her down on the blanket in front of the fireplace. "You are so beautiful to me." He kissed her softly and laid down on top of her pressing his body into hers. He tried to settle himself between her legs, but she shifted so that he came down on the floor beside her. He groaned softly, "What's wrong?" They hadn't talked about sex before. If she was holding out for some reason, he wanted to know so that he could reassure her.
"Nothing's wrong." She leaned over and kissed him. She knew it was sex that he wanted. Evangeline might have been comfortable leading with sex early on, but she wasn't. "It's just," she paused as the doorbell rang out and interrupted them. "I bet that's the delivery guy. I've been waiting on one last present."
John sighed at the missed opportunity as she leapt to her feet. He noticed that the fire was starting to get low. Now was the perfect time to step outside and grab a few more logs. "I'm going to go get some more wood for the fire." He discreetly adjusted himself in his pants and smiled at her before rushing off.
Eva smiled back at him and watched him as he walked away. She wondered if he was going to be all over her again once she got rid of her well-timed visitor. If so, they were headed for an uncomfortable conversation that she just wanted to avoid.
The doorbell rang out again and brought her back to reality. "I'm coming." She grabbed her wallet from her purse. Any other day of the year, the package would have just been tossed on her porch for her to find later. It was the holiday season, so many were expecting holiday tips. She would oblige whoever it was for that reason alone. She fished out a twenty and tossed her wallet toward the sofa. She pulled open the front door and was greeted by the cold wind and the warm smiling faces of Evangeline's closest family.
"Surprise! Merry Christmas!" Lisa and Layla shouted in unison.
Eva stared at them blankly. The money was still in her hand and pressed against the door. The cold felt very real, but she couldn't believe they were actually here. She looked around and saw Cris unloading luggage and peering occasionally into the backseat to check on the baby. This was no dream. This was no dream come true. It was a nightmare.
"Can we come in?" Lisa was starting to catch a chill. She hadn't bothered to put on her heavy coat since they were so close to the house.
"Huh, oh yeah…yes." Eva stepped out of the way and ushered them inside.
Cris came in and greeted her briefly. He set the baby carrier down on the sofa and Layla went immediately over to check on her baby. Eva could only watch as the horror unfolded. Cris was back and forth a few times as he carried in their luggage. On the final trip, he closed the door behind and shed his lightweight coat. "Merry Christmas, Evangeline!" He reached out to pat her shoulder but she stepped away quickly. Her repulsion wounded him. He walked over to the fireplace to warm up. It was up to Lisa and Layla to brighten her mood.
"This ought to last us for a while." John called out as he entered the room.
Eva looked over to see him carrying a stack of wood logs. Despite her constant nagging, he'd gone out again without bundling up. His cheeks were slightly rosy from the cold. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.
John who was insanely perceptive and constantly aware of his surroundings quickly surveyed the room. The angry glares of Lisa and Layla were directed at him. This was an unexpected turn of events. As he turned his head to make a complete sweep of the room, something in his peripheral vision caused him to go into defensive mode.
What started as a nightmare unfolded into a violent reality. Cris lunged at John with and angry cry and started to attack. Layla and Lisa were shocked and called out for him to stop. In a blinding rage, he was beyond hearing their voices. Eva watched as John chose to defend himself instead of taking offensive actions.
Eva reacted instinctively. She went to the closet where she stored her shotgun and loaded it with practiced effort. "Stop." Her voice came out small and weak as she leveled the gun a Cristian. Her finger was itching to rest on the trigger, but she remembered her training. He didn't hear her or ignored her. His attack on John continued. "I said stop!" This time Eva shouted.
Lisa and Layla heard her first. They gasped in unison. Layla's first instinct was to protect the baby and Lisa's instinct was to protect Layla. They watched in horror as Eva inched closer to John and Cristian. "Don't kill him! Cristian, please."
Everyone's shouting had woken up the baby. It was the distressed cries from his baby that broke Cristian's trance. He turned to go to her when he saw Eva with the gun. He froze. Eva had shown nothing but disdain for him since she'd recovered from her coma. There was no doubt in his mind that she would pull the trigger if he stepped further out of line. He raised his hands slowly to show that he wasn't a threat.
John recovered unharmed. Cris had landed a few painful body shots, but he'd experienced worse. He swiped the hair away from his eyes and the scene that was revealed to him broke his heart. Eva nervously kept the gun trained on Cris as she looked between him and John. "Whoa, whoa." John immediately sprung into action and put himself between Eva and Cris. "It's okay. It's okay. I'm okay." He approached her carefully with his arm outstretched. When he was in arm's reach, he angled the barrel of the gun down toward the floor. "It's okay."
He finally reached Eva and pulled her into his arms. There was a collective sigh of relief once John had the gun. "I'm okay. I'm okay." John kept reassuring her. He didn't want to even think about what could have happened.
"Oh god, baby are you okay?" Layla rushed over to Cris and threw her arms around him. He was still breathing hard from the adrenaline.
"Is he okay?" Eva pushed out of John's arms. "Are you fucking kidding me?!" Eva shouted and the baby that Lisa managed to silence was now crying again.
"Hey, look at me." John directed her attention back to him. "Just take a deep breath." Eva was dynamite and all of the unexpected visitors were lit matches. He was the only one who could stop a tragedy from unfolding.
"No, no." Eva fought against him, but John held her still. She looked past John and glared at Cris and Layla. If only looks could kill…She saw the questioning stares on both of their faces. "You have no right to be here!"
John hugged her. Things had been going so well. Of course, they would show up now. John's phone rang out and he reached down and immediately silenced it in his pocket. A moment later the phone rang again.
"Answer it. It could be important." Eva wanted him distracted. He was stopping her from losing her cool, and that was the opposite of what she wanted.
"You are important. You are all that matters to me." John cupped her face and kissed her forehead. His phone rang again, and he was starting to believe that there was some emergency that he needed to address. He kissed her again and pulled out his phone. "What?!" He snapped at the caller. "What kind of emergency?...This is something that can't wait? I'm in the middle of something." John stroked her hair to further calm her. For some reason, a sheriff's deputy was calling him about some emergency at the bar. Whatever was going on there was surely a trivial matter compared to what was going on here. "Fine. Fine, damnit. I'll be there shortly." He pressed his head against Eva's as he hung up the phone. "There's some emergency at the bar." He had generously given the staff Christmas Eve off as well as the day after Christmas off. There wasn't anyone that he was going to call into work now.
"It's okay. Go." She hugged him back. The thought of him leaving unsettled her. Being left alone with Evangeline's family wasn't so bad, but Cristian's presence was something that she just couldn't tolerate.
"Everything is going to be okay when I'm gone?" He glanced at Lisa, Layla and Cristian for confirmation. It was a silent warning to just leave things alone. "I promise I'll be back as soon as I can." He tried to hug her, but Eva pushed him away.
"I want him gone before you leave." She angled her head in Cristian's direction.
"He's my husband," Layla quickly interjected. "He's not going anywhere."
"He's a violent thug that attacked someone in my home. One call to the cops and he'll be spending Christmas in lockup." Eva challenged Layla to say another word.
"Eva," John started.
"No, she's right. I think it's best if I go and cool my head." He kissed Layla on the cheek and grabbed his coat before she could object. Wherever John was going, he would follow. They still had unfinished business to settle and he would not let that slide.
Eva held John in place until Cris was out the door. She knew John could take care of himself, but he'd let Cris go off on him. "I want you to be careful." She pulled at his arm to get his attention. "Be careful." She wasn't dumb enough to think that Cris would let go of his anger so quickly. It was her hope that this time John would put him in place.
"Don't worry about me. Just take care of things here, okay? It's Christmas Eve and there's a lot to be excited about." He hinted at the appearance of the family that she wasn't excited to see. "I'll see you soon." He kissed her one final time and he was on his way.
Eva could only watch as her heart walked away from her. Now she was left with the family who had rudely intruded on her plans. She looked over at both of them warily. They were all in shock over what Cristian had done, but there were no words.
"Excuse me." Eva brushed past Layla as she walked out of the room. She rushed to her bedroom and locked the door behind her. The anger that she now controlled was now dangerously close to the surface. Tears streamed down her face and her body shook uncontrollably as she stifled her cries. She was in hell and now she had to find a way out.
John frowned as he pulled into the parking lot of the bar. There wasn't anything there that indicated that there was any kind of emergency. He parked his car out front and hurried inside. Cris was right on his heels, but he didn't notice.
"You have a lot of nerve, McBain." Cris shouted after him.
John spun around surprised. He didn't have time for Cris's games, but if he didn't make the time now things would be worse later on. "You have no idea what's going on."
Cris rushed him and grabbed him roughly by the collar. "I think I do. You've got Evangeline out here all alone and your filling her head with lies! How could you stoop so low to steal a play out of Todd Manning's book?"
"Unhand my son," the authoritative tone of a woman rang out from behind them.
Cris looked over at the face that he couldn't place. The older woman with red hair had to be John's mother if she was calling him son. "Maybe you should ask your son what he's been up to." Cris released him by shoving him away.
John looked at his mother confused before focusing his attention back to Cris. His mother appearing out of the blue at the same time that Evangeline's family showed up out of the blue was too much of a coincidence. He would question her later, but for now he needed to set the record straight.
"Todd kept Marty locked away from her family and friends and lied to her with some sick fantasy life. I have never once lied to Eva. You know what happened between us in Llanview! I was just as surprised as she was when I got here. All you need to know is that she is free to make her own decisions. She chose me and there ain't a damn thing you can do about it."
"She has amnesia, John. She doesn't know who the hell she is or what she wants. Your involvement with her period is a problem. This seems to be a thing for you. You like getting involved with women who don't know enough about you to know that you're really just a piece of crap." Cris stuffed his hands down into his pockets. That was the easiest way to stop himself from attacking John.
Eve had heard more than enough, but she knew better than to fight her sons' battles. The man seemed unstable, so she would stay only to make sure her son was okay. Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she ignored it.
"No more than you like sleeping with sisters." John hit below the belt because he was in no mood for Cris's poor characterization of his dating habits. "You're still mad about what happened with Natalie? You're married now with a kid. I thought you'd be over that."
Cris grew angry at John's retort. "Evangeline is my family. You mess with her. You mess with me."
"Don't give me that family crap, Cris. You attacked me with your baby there. This could have ended up way worse for everyone. You risked everything to take a shot at me. Was it worth it?" John watched as his words started to settle in. Cris had always been a hothead, just like his brother Antonio. It often got them in trouble, and this time was no exception. "She's scared of you and you wonder why. You're no good to her this way. If you really care about her, you need to go back there and get on your hands and knees to beg for forgiveness."
"We are not done." Cris pointed an angry finger at him before turning to walk away.
Eve was still holding her breath when John turned to look at her. She walked over to him and hugged him. "John, Merry Christmas." Her heart broke for her son. She started to wonder if he would ever find peace and happiness.
"This is quite the surprise." John guess that this was the emergency that he was getting called about. He took Eve's hands and led her to her luggage. "I have to ask. Why now?"
"Gunner. He kept encouraging me to come out and surprise you. Since it's the holidays, I recruited Marcie and Michael. I wanted us all to be together again." She saw the wheels turning in John's head as he tried to put the pieces together. "Marcie knows someone else who was also missing a family member. I don't think anyone knew what was going to happen, but she was encouraging her friend to also make a surprise Christmas visit."
John laughed bitterly. No one had worse luck than he did. "Then this is all just some damn coincidence?!" He wanted to climb over the bar and drown himself in a bottle of whiskey. Somehow, he had to make it back to Eva and tell her that this was more his fault than anyone else's.
"I'm afraid so, John." She touched his hand to calm him down. "I asked Michael and Marcie to give us some time alone, but they are here and they're excited to see you."
"This is great…just great." John grabbed his mother's luggage and walked off with her in tow. This was going to be a memorable Christmas for all the wrong reasons. He only hoped they all survived.