The two weeks before Christmas had been crazy. Jamie had re-decorated and Re-furnished the house, the boys had finished exams, and everyone had spent a week shopping all day and partying all night.
Jamie and Aaron were extremely happy together and sickeningly cute. They were always holding hands or sharing a drink or sneaking in a kiss while no one was watching.
Reid had been with a new girl every night. Eight girls in nine days was a record, even for him. But every time he would kiss one of those girls, he could only think of Jamie. Why couldn't he get her out of his head?
All Jamie could think about was spending Christmas with Tyler and her dad. Reid and Pogue and Caleb, and Aaron, and Kate, and Sarah were coming over for Christmas Eve—the day Jamie and Tyler's dad promised to be home—and Tyler was spending Christmas morning with Jamie and their dad but was staying with his mom for dinner. Tyler had invited Jamie over to his mom's house for dinner. She had declined the offer because it had been three years since she had seen her dad last and she was excited that they would get to spend the whole night catching up—just the two of them.
Jamie waited on her dad all day. She convinced everyone to wait dinner on him. But at nine that night, when everyone was hungry and there was still no word from Glenn Sims, they ate without him. Tyler left numerous voicemail messages on his father's cell phone on his sister's behalf. But Glenn never called back. Jamie pretended like she was okay, like she understood why her dad couldn't spend Christmas with her the same month that her mom walked out on her. Jamie was too proud to admit that she was hurt. But Jamie's heart did hurt, and everyone could tell.