Twelve:
Christmastide (pt 3)
Jamie, Kelly, and Siobhan, of course, had the lion's share of gifts beneath (and around) the tree. Being very young, it was important that they felt like they were treated well and not ill. Ben was too young to know what was going on, but there were lots of presents for him as well.
Ruth had resigned herself to not getting anything, what with all they'd spent on the children, so she was surprised when Malcolm passed an envelope across from where it had been perched on the tree. "Ruth and Harry," he said with a mild smile.
"You open it," Harry said.
The outer envelope was pristine, but the inner envelope had already been opened. Ruth pulled out an invitation to the Queen's New Year's celebration. Her mouth formed a small 'o' of surprise, and she looked at Harry. "Have we already accepted?" she asked.
"Ah, yes, a week or two ago," Harry admitted, blushing a little around the ears. "You'll need a gown, though –"
"Good thing tomorrow's Boxing Day," Ruth said softly. "Oh, Harry… thank you."
He smiled. "You're very welcome, Lady Pearce."
Siobhan got up and rushed over. "Did you pick this?" she asked Ruth, holding up a silver chain with a delicate snowflake pendant on it. "Papa wouldn't pick this – did you?"
Ruth smiled and said, "I did."
Siobhan threw her arms around Ruth and hugged her tightly. "It's perfect," she whispered. "I love it."
"I'm so glad, Siobhan," Ruth whispered.
"Call me Vonnie like everybody else does, okay?" Siobhan said with a smile. "Can I call you Nana?"
Ruth almost started to cry, but she nodded and smiled. "I'd like that, Vonnie," she murmured.
"Will you help me put it on, Nana?" Siobhan asked, holding out the necklace. "I dunno how it works."
Ruth helped her with the tricky clasp and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Be careful with it," she said softly. "It's your first adult jewelry, and your Papa and I don't want you to lose it."
"I won't," Siobhan promised emphatically. She threw her arms around Harry and said, "Thank you, Papa."
"You're welcome, Vonnie," Harry said with a smile. "I'm glad you like what Nana picked for you."
She gave him a kiss and went scampering back to her pile of gifts. Harry squeezed Ruth's hand and smiled, and she twined her fingers with his, content to see everyone else be happy for once.
Jamie came over with a book in his hands. "Mummy, will you read to me?" he asked.
"Don't you want to finish opening your presents?" she asked gently.
"Yes, but this one is special," he said. "This one is about New York."
Ruth understood; he was homesick. Just as she'd spent all her time in New York longing to be home in London, he was spending his time in London longing for New York – the only home he'd really known. "Come here, love," she murmured, helping him up onto her lap. He got comfortable, snuggling up against her, and she read aloud from his new book. He could do it for himself, but she knew the comforting sound of her voice as she read would help dispel a bit of his sadness. Once she was finished, she murmured, "Now, why don't you take this into the library, and put it on your bookcase, love?"
Jamie's eyes got very wide. "I have a bookcase?" he breathed.
Harry grinned at him. "You do," he said simply. "All of your books are on it already."
"I get my own bookcase?" Jamie said, his breath coming in little excited puffs through his nose.
"You do," Ruth said with a chuckle. "Do you want daddy to go show you?"
Jamie nodded and hopped down, clutching his book. "Daddy, please?" he said, barely reining in his excitement. "Pretty please?"
Harry got up and took his son's hand. "Let's go have a look," he said.
When they came back a couple of minutes later, Jamie's eyes were shining and his grin was enormous. "Mummy, mummy, I have a bookcase! And so many books!" he cried.
Ruth hugged him tightly and gave him a big kiss. This was her baby, the last one she would ever have, and she loved him dearly with all her heart. Spoiling him rotten was easy; just as it was easy to spoil his older sisters, as well.
Speaking of, Rose gasped as she opened the boxes from her parents. "Oh!"
Harry looked up from Jamie and said, "Are they the ones you wanted for school?"
Rose nodded, speechless, as she clutched the box with a new laptop and another smaller box with an iPod. "I – dad – mum – you didn't have to –"
"Silly girl," Harry said gruffy. "Of course we didn't have to. We wanted to." He wasn't going to tell her that he'd bought them months before, long before he knew Ruth would be home, and neither would Ruth, though she knew.
"And you need them for your classes," Ruth added. "I modified the iPod so you can record lectures."
"Is that above board, mum?" Rose asked, smiling a little.
"Absolutely not," Ruth replied with a grin. "Don't ask silly questions you already know the answers to, love."
"Thank you," Rose murmured. "So much, thank you –"
Daisy squealed as she opened a box to reveal a new dress that she'd been wanting during the summer. Harry had, of course, sent Ros round to pick it up in an appropriate size, and it had been hidden away. He could be very sweet when he wanted to be; that's why Ruth was head over heels in love with him, even though he could also be an anal-retentive know-it-all with OCD tendencies and a propensity for being a grumpy jackass.
"Daddy, you remembered!" Daisy cried.
"Of course I did," Harry said simply.
Graham opened an envelope and looked bowled over, his hands shaking as he pulled what looked like a photograph out of the envelope. "Oh my god," he breathed. He looked at his wife, eyes wide. "Really?"
Jenny grinned at him. "Really," she said. "Do you know how hard it's been to hide for the last month that I'm pregnant?"
Graham finally blinked and said, "I'm going to be a dad again?"
"Yes, you daft pain in the rear," Jenny said. "You're going to be a dad. Happy Christmas." She leaned over and kissed him on the lips; it was clear he was still shell-shocked, because he barely reacted.
"Congratulations," Ruth said with a smile. "It sounds like you've been trying for a while –"
"We've been trying since Vonnie was a year old," Jenny admitted.
"Well, I'm very glad for you," Ruth said. "All of you." She was happy, really; it just seemed surreal that she was going to be a grandmother again, when she'd only known for a few hours that she was a grandmother at all.
Jamie cried out in glee and smiled widely. "Mummy, mummy, I got a new Harry Bear! From Uncle Malcolm!" He held it up and bounced over to give Malcolm as enormous of a hug as he could manage. Malcolm merely smiled and hugged him back. After the original Harry Bear had met with an unfortunate accident (Scarlett had mistaken him for one of her toys and had ripped him to shreds), Jamie had been inconsolable.
Thank you, Ruth mouthed at Malcolm, who merely winked in reply.
"Thank you, Uncle Malcolm," Jamie said. "Thank you."
"You're very welcome, Jamie," Malcolm replied. "I'm glad you like him."
"His name is Harry, like daddy," Jamie announced to everyone. "Harry Bear is with me when daddy can't be."
"Who's you daddy?" Kelly asked Jamie.
Jamie pointed at Harry and said, "That's my daddy, Kelly."
"That's my Papa!" Kelly said sharply, clutching her new doll tightly. "He can't be you daddy. He's my Papa!"
"Kelly, none of that," Catherine said. "Jamie's daddy is my daddy, too."
"But Jamie's frwee," Kelly said with a consternated look. "How can you daddy be his daddy?"
Ruth laughed. "Because I'm much younger than your Papa is," she said gently. "Come here and sit with me, Kelly, and show me your new dolly. Do you like her?" Kelly nodded and awkwardly climbed up onto Ruth's lap. "Oh, she looks just like you," Ruth said with a smile. "How did Father Christmas know what to get you?"
"Mummy hewlped me wite a wetter," Kelly said. "Cause I dunno how."
Ruth gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Would you like me to teach you how?"
"I'm not too widdle?" Kelly asked, looking up at Ruth with big eyes.
"You're not too little," Ruth murmured. "After dinner, we'll sit down and learn, okay?"
Kelly smiled and nodded eagerly. "Yes, pwease, Nana."
Ruth gave her another kiss, then cuddled her close. "You know, I've never been a Nana before," Ruth whispered conspiratorially. "I've only ever been a mummy. You'll have to tell me if I'm doing a good job or not."
"You're a really good Nana," Kelly whispered back. "An' you smell good."
Ruth smiled, and glanced at Harry, who was smiling and near tears. "Oh, Harry, don't cry," Ruth scoffed. "We've both done enough of that lately."
"I'm just happy," he said. "That you're home; that… that we're a family again."
"Oh, shush and open your present," Ruth said. "You daft old sod," she added sweetly.
He rolled his eyes and opened the large flat box that Daisy passed over. His eyes lit up. "Ruth, this is –"
"That is because you needed a new suit," she said pointedly. "The tie was purely self-indulgent, though. I love the way you look in blue." Ruth winked at him.
Kelly said, "Papa got a new suit? For work?"
"Yes, Kelly, Papa got a new suit for work," Ruth murmured.
"That's not a good pwesent," Kelly sighed. "Papa works too hard."
Harry laughed. "What do you think a good present for me would be, then, Kelly?"
Kelly smiled over at him and said, "I gotted you a toy for your desk, Papa."
Catherine burst out laughing and Kelly gave her mother a wounded look. "Sorry, dad, but – yeah," Catherine said, passing over a small, oddly shaped package. It turned out to be a cheap toy sunflower with a solar panel attached. When light hit the panel, the leaves of the plant bobbed up and down.
"Oh, that's a really good present," Harry said with a smile. "I'll put it right next to your picture, Kelly."
Ruth looked up to see Malcolm holding her mother's hands, speaking lowly and earnestly to her. A small box – a ring box – was balanced on Elizabeth's thigh, and Ruth held her breath, just watching. Elizabeth nodded and squeezed Malcolm's hand before he slid a ring onto her finger.
She hadn't realized that it was serious – that serious, anyway. Not that she thought her mother was capable of playing Malcolm about or being a bitch about throwing him over for the next new thing. But she hadn't understood until she saw them kiss, saw the exchange of a ring, saw that he made her mother happy… And Ruth was happy for them. If they had half of what she and Harry had, she couldn't find fault with their relationship.
"Mummy, this has your name on it," Jamie said, bringing over a wrapped box, about twelve inches square and about three inches deep. "It says it's from…"
"A daft old sod," Ruth read, giving Harry a fond, yet slightly dirty, look. "Harry, really, you didn't have to –"
"There was no have to about it," Harry said firmly. "No way is my wife forgoing Christmas presents. Now, open it."
Ruth rolled her eyes and opened the box. "Oh – Harry…"
"Before you say anything barmy like that I shouldn't have spent all that money, let me tell you that the only money I spent was on petrol to retrieve these from their safekeeping at Buckingham Palace," Harry said gently.
"Harry –"
"My great-grandmother was in service to Queen Alexandra, and my grandmother to Queen Mary," Harry said softly. "I inherited a few pieces of jewelry, but I left them at the Palace in trust of Her Majesty until I decided what to do with them. I'd almost forgotten about them, to be honest. But I want you to wear them, Ruth."
She was still staring at the necklace, unable to believe that he'd wrapped it up in gaudy paper with Christmas ornaments all over it. "Harry…"
"You don't like it?" he asked, sounding worried.
"I've never seen anything like it," she breathed.
"Ten strands of perfectly matched pearls," Harry said softly. "It was a gift from Queen Alexandra to my great-grandmother for her devoted service. The clasp is platinum and diamonds –"
"It must be worth a fortune," Ruth breathed.
"Enough so that it will be going into the safe deposit box day after tomorrow," Harry said cautiously.
"How much?" Ruth asked.
"About three million, give or take a couple hundred thousand?" he mumbled.
"HARRY!" Her eyes were wide and she didn't even want to touch the necklace for fear of ruining it. "Bloody hell!"
"This is for you, too, mummy," Jamie said. "I think it's from daddy."
Ruth blinked at him. "More?" she asked weakly.
Harry looked uncomfortable. "Ruth, please don't be cross –"
"I'm not cross, I just –"
He blinked at her and said, "Will you wear them to the New Year's Ball?"
She hesitated, then said, "Oh, Harry… of course I will. I just – you didn't have to –"
He gave her a gentle kiss. "Open the next one," he said.
She complied, finding a matching bracelet. And the third, and final, of the set was a diamond and sapphire brooch in the shape of a peacock. Ruth was near tears, then Kelly piped up and said, "Nana, they's sparkly."
"They're shiny," Jamie added.
Ruth swallowed hard and looked at Harry, hoping he could see that she didn't need fancy royal heirloom jewelry to be happy with him. She didn't care about money, or a title, or any of it; she only needed him. She knew that their bank balance was very healthy, thanks to his investments and his inheritance, as well as shrewd spending and indulging when it made sense…
Daisy gasped and breathed, "Oh my god. Mum, dad – is this for real?"
Ruth glanced over at Daisy and smiled. "Very real," she said.
Daisy held up two plane tickets and squeaked, "I'm going to Paris on spring term break to see the Louvre?"
"You are," Harry said. "Your mum agreed to go with you."
Daisy all but threw herself across the room, into her mother's arms, crying. "Oh, mum, I – I - I'm so excited!" They hugged tight, almost squishing Kelly in the process. Kelly slid out from between them and went to sit with Jamie by the Christmas tree. "Really? We're really going to Paris?"
"We are," Ruth said with a smile. "Your father and I already booked the hotel, and the flights."
"But I – I thought you'd think I need –"
"You're my artist," Ruth murmured. "Jamie is my poet, Rose is my wordsmith, and you are my artist. No better place to experience art, my love, than the Louvre."
"Have you been before?"
"I have," Ruth said, "but you haven't and I'd like you to."
Everyone was reaching the bottom of their gift piles, and Daisy went back to finish hers. Harry leaned over and whispered, "I know we missed our anniversary… but I have something for you, my love."
"Harry, I don't need –"
He gave her a dour, annoyed look. "Oh, shut up, mule," Harry muttered, "and give me your hand." She did as he asked, and he removed her wedding band and engagement ring, replacing them with a simple platinum circlet inlaid with baguette diamonds. "Do you like it?"
"Harry, I don't need it," she murmured.
"Do you like it?"
"Looks like my hand is about to lift off," she commented wryly. "You're just bound and determined to make me the center of attention –"
"Ruth," he said softly, "that was my mum's ring. She made me promise to give it to the woman I love. I didn't give it to Jane – I saved it for you."
Jamie came over and said, "Mummy, that's pretty. Daddy gived you lots of pretty things."
"Yes, he did," Ruth said softly.
"Mummy, I gotted you a present," Jamie said.
"You did?" Ruth asked with a smile.
He nodded and climbed up on her lap. When he thought she was ready, he leaned in and gave her a big, sloppy kiss. "Do you like it?" Jamie asked with a grin.
"Oh, that was the best present I got all day," Ruth said with a chuckle. "The very best."
Harry pouted. "Even better than diamonds?" he asked, pretending to be injured.
Ruth just rolled her eyes and sighed. "Harry, don't pretend to be a martyr. It's Christmas."
Siobhan said, "We should play a game now!"
"Oh no," Elise said. "Your nana, her mum, and I need to start dinner. The rest of you can play games or watch telly or whatever – we've got cooking to do."
"Mummy, we can have the cookies!" Jamie cried excitedly.
"There are biscuits?" Rose piped up.
Harry took the jewelry boxes from Ruth and said, "Now we've gone and done it –"
Ruth just smiled and leaned over to give him a kiss. "I wouldn't have today any other way," she whispered. "Not ever. Biscuits and squabbling and all."
END PART TWELVE