Elizabeth wasn’t about to be bested, however. “We’ve got to go on the attack,” she muttered to Maria. “You create a diversion and I sneak over there and grab their flag.”
Maria raised a skeptical eyebrow. “You mean like the previous three attempts? Those didn’t exactly go as planned, did they?”
Elizabeth pouted. “Well, you come up with an idea then! It’s not fair—both Sam and Bridget got all of Daddy’s strategy genes—they always find a way to win!”
At the mention of Gabriel, Maria glanced in the direction of his office, and caught her breath when she saw him at the window watching them. He was too far away to see the expression on his face, but there was something almost profoundly lonely about his figure, a solitary quality that reminded her of the first time she saw him at the piano in Boston. And what was understandable in Boston was definitely not the case here—it was so wrong for Gabriel to seem so alone when he was at home, surrounded by his children.
A sudden impulse had Maria calling out, “Time out! I need a potty break!”
She turned to Elizabeth and whispered, “I have an idea, okay? Stay here and I’ll be right back!”
Elizabeth nodded, looking at her curiously but she didn’t say anything. Maria wasn’t sure her idea would work, or that anyone would thank her for interfering, but she couldn’t stand by and not do anything—it literally hurt her heart to see Gabriel so alone. She refused to dwell on why it was so important to her to try to bring this family together—she just knew that she had to try, and she told herself that she’d do the same for anyone.
If only she believed it.
GABRIEL WATCHED MARIA AS SHE trudged through the snow back to the house, fighting her way through drifts that were at least two feet high. The snow had finally slowed after breakfast and the kids had rushed outside as soon they’d done an hour of schoolwork, whooping gleefully and throwing themselves into the drifts, making snow angels. He’d been amused when Maria had dropped into the snow and made an angel as well, and he couldn’t help but think how fitting that was.
They’d been outside for nearly an hour now, and he’d been distracted during his video conference with glimpses he’d had of them laughing and playing in the snow. When the conference call ended he’d moved to his window so he could watch them without interruptions.
He’d chuckled when it became clear that Bridget and Sam were out-maneuvering Elizabeth and Maria, and he’d cheered when Meggie had lobbed a wobbly snowball and managed to hit Maria. He’d been so absorbed in watching he didn’t even notice Matt clearing his throat repeatedly to get his attention until Matt finally gave up being subtle.
“Gabriel, you’ve been watching them for over ten minutes now. Why don’t you just go outside and join them?” Matt asked exasperatedly.
“What?” Gabriel turned and after another lingering look out the window, shook his head and walked back to his desk. “Of course not, Matt. We have a lot of work to do today, despite the snow.”
“Gabriel, the entire Northeast—including Manhattan—is shut down because of the blizzard and you already did the most important thing, the conference call with Burton in Chicago. I don’t think things will go to hell in a handbasket if you take some time off to have fun with your family,” Matt declared.
“Well, you’re wrong, Matt. Now let’s get back to work, shall we?” Gabriel said coldly, and glared at Matt when he opened his mouth to respond.
Finally muttering, “Fine, go ahead and be pigheaded,” Matt returned to his laptop and started pulling up a report for Gabriel to read.
Relieved that Matt was letting it drop, Gabriel looked at his notes from the conference call, but the words blurred together. Matt didn’t understand that Gabriel couldn’t just go outside—not when his children clearly didn’t want him there, and his mere presence would just result in more silent resentment against him.
“Sir, I’ve been authorized by your second in command to tell you that we’re in dire need of reinforcements—if you don’t come out and help at once, both the flag and the fort will be lost!”
Startled, Gabriel looked up at Maria’s dramatic appearance at his office doorway. It was obvious she’d come here straight from the outside—she was still bundled up in her navy blue parka and snow clung to her snow boots. Her face was rosy with the cold, and her gray knit cap hid most of her bright hair, leaving only a little fringe peeking out below the edge.
Her words finally penetrated his surprise and he felt his heart lift and a smile curl his lips. “Are you saying that the children have asked me to come outside and play with them?”
Maria said earnestly, “Elizabeth told me that both Bridget and Sam have inherited your mind for strategy and that we’re being out-matched. I think you should come out and even the odds!”
Gabriel noticed immediately that Maria didn’t answer his question directly, but he was distracted by the mention Elizabeth had made of him—he remembered teaching her chess years ago, and patiently explaining the moves to her and having her burst into tears of frustration at not understanding the game. He’d brushed the tears from her face and given her a big hug, and told her it didn’t matter, if she still wanted to learn, he’d teach her. No matter how many lessons it took, he would always have time for her.
This had been shortly before Elle’s death, and then everything had changed.
He refocused back on Maria and the pleading look on her face. Even if his children hadn’t asked for him directly, Maria was giving him an opportunity that he would be a fool to pass up.
“I think it’s time for Bridget and Sam to be bested at their own game,” he said with a crooked smile.
He was nearly blinded by the brilliance of Maria’s smile and he turned abruptly to Matt, realizing that he should invite him as well, although a part of him didn’t want Matt to go outside with them.
But even as he opened his mouth, Matt said, “Go out and have fun! I’m going to take a coffee break with Mrs. Smith and make sure there’s hot chocolate waiting for everyone once the flag has been captured!”
And he walked out of the office, whistling cheerfully.
Gabriel closed his mouth, gratitude for Matt’s quick understanding welling up inside. He looked at Maria again and smiled. “Let me get my coat and boots and I’ll meet you outside.”
WHAT TOOK YOU SO long?” Elizabeth whispered as Maria joined her again at their fort. “I swear I could hear Bridget telling Sam that they should just attack me while you were away! Even Meggie was agreeing to the plan!”
“I was getting us reinforcements,” Maria murmured, hoping that Elizabeth wouldn’t just shut down when she realized who was joining them.
“What reinforcements?” Elizabeth asked, puzzled. “Did Daddy let Uncle Matt—“
“Uncle Matt is having coffee with Mrs. Smith, so I hope you don’t mind if I join you instead.” Gabriel slid into place next to them.
“Daddy?” Elizabeth gasped, her amazement clear. “You’re going to play with us? Don’t you have to work today?”
Gabriel cursed at himself. It hurt that his children obviously thought that he valued work more than spending time with them. It was his own fault, but no more.
“No, sweetheart, I want to spend time with you all instead. Is that okay?” He smiled at her.
Elizabeth nodded slowly. “Of course, Daddy.” She suddenly grinned and Gabriel caught his breath, for Elizabeth had inherited her mother’s mischievous smile. “You know Sam and Bridget are going to panic when they realize that you’re on my team.”
Gabriel grinned, relief and love a messy tangle in his heart. “Well you know I wanted to even the odds and it really did look like you needed my help the most,” he teased gently.
Elizabeth giggled. “Yeah, even with Maria we couldn’t outfox them. So what should we do?”
As Gabriel looked at both of the eager, shining, happy faces turned to him, he felt a surge of emotion he could barely contain. He cleared his throat to ease the lump lodged there and said, “Here’s my plan…”
I STILL THINK IT'S UNFAIR that you had both Dad and Maria on your team. No wonder you won!” Sam was still complaining as they enjoyed their hot chocolate back in the deliciously warm kitchen, sitting at the large farmhouse table.
Elizabeth stuck out her tongue at her brother, a whipped cream mustache decorating her mouth. “Stop being such a poor loser. It was me who captured the flag!”
“Yeah, but only because both Daddy and Maria came after us and split us up!” Bridget argued. “You took the flag from Meggie—it’s not like she put up much of a fight!”
Maria hid her smile as she took another sip of the rich hot chocolate. The children had been squabbling good-naturedly since the end of the game. She still remembered the looks of surprised delight on the twins’ and Meggie’s faces when they realized who had come out to join their fun. She looked over at Gabriel, who was helping Meggie fish the marshmallows out from her hot chocolate so she could eat them first. “Because,” she’d announced seriously, looking at her father with her big blue eyes, “they taste better that way.”
Gabriel’s hair gleamed wetly in the soft rays of the sun, snow still melting in his hair, a victim of being pelted with snowballs from all of his children as they ganged up on him. Gabriel had laughingly finally called for mercy and surrendered when even little Meggie had managed a hit or two, and then all the kids had toppled him into the snow, climbing on top of him, shrieking with laughter.
He looked up at that moment and met Maria’s gaze, and Maria’s breath caught in her throat at the warm, happy expression in his eyes. He looked relaxed, content and so much younger than he usually did, the lines softened on his face. His happiness seemed to encompass her and Maria felt her heart swell at being included in this family so quickly.
Slowly, the warmth in his eyes started to heat as he continued to stare at her, his eyes dropping to her mouth. Maria unconsciously licked her lips, tasting a bit of chocolate, cinnamon and whipped cream at the corner of her mouth and nearly dropped her mug as the heat in his eyes suddenly flared into an inferno.
She quickly put the mug down on the table and looked down, breaking contact with his eyes. She could feel hot color in her cheeks, but the blush was nothing compared to the molten need now throbbing between her legs. Her mind scrambled for something to take her mind off of the desire burning within her.
“So children, why don’t we make a snowman after lunch? Maybe we can even convince your father to volunteer some of his clothing for the snowman.”
As the children cheered the idea, Gabriel grinned at Maria, a wicked glint in his eyes. “I have no issues with parting with my clothing if the right person asks,” he drawled and laughed when Maria’s face turned even redder.
THE SNOWMAN, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY agreed, was the best snowman in the existence of snowmen.
With their father’s help and Matt calling out hilarious, occasionally snarky suggestions from the sidelines, the snowman was huge, nearly Gabriel’s height. Mrs. Smith had found big black buttons for his eyes and Mrs. Phillips had given them a carrot for his nose. Even Williams had contributed a pipe. Elizabeth and Sam found branches for his arms. At Maria’s urging, Meggie had asked her father for a hat and a tie, and Gabriel had searched his wardrobe until he came up with an old cap and a red tie, which he brandished with triumph.