“You have a present, Mommy. It’s got your name on it.” Jacob beamed at her as she walked back in. She’d told him that Santa only brought gifts for little children.

“I know. It’s exciting isn’t it?” She gave him the box. “This is for you.”

His mouth dropped open and he looked at her like a shocked fish. “For me?”

“For you.”

He examined the gift tag. “Can I open it?”

“Of course you can,” said Savannah, picking up the phone. She called Kay as she settled back down on her sofa. When her cousin answered, it sounded as though she was at a circus from the raucous laughter that screeched out of the phone.

“Thank you for the presents,” she said, raising her voice.

“What presents? Hang on.” She heard some static and then the background noise dimmed. “That’s better. What presents?”

“The Christmas gift basket and Jacob’s present,” replied Savannah.

“I didn’t send you anything.”

“You didn’t?” Savannah got up and walked back into the kitchen to double-check. The gift tag bore only her name and there was no other information indicating who the sender was. She cast her eyes over the chutney jars, cheeses, meats and boxes of crackers and chocolates.

“Look, Mommy!” Jacob whispered excitedly, knowing she was on the phone but unable to contain his delight. He’d unwrapped but hadn’t opened the box which he was trying to hold while still also clutching two superhero figures in his chubby hands. The box contained an Iron Man figurine with an aircraft.

More Iron Man.

“You didn’t?” asked Savannah, doubly confused.

“I wish I had sent you something, now that you mention it.” Kay sounded a little tipsy. Savannah tried to think. Would Briony have sent this? It didn’t seem likely. She and Briony weren’t friendly enough to be exchanging gifts and she was certain that Briony didn’t even know what her son was named let alone what toys he liked best.

“Someone sent you a gift basket?” Kay shrieked.

“Where are you?” Savannah asked as Jacob looked excitedly at her. Surely his eyes could open no wider? He mouthed a ‘Can I open it?’ but she shook her head and put her finger to her lips. He nodded then placed the box on the floor and continued to play with his other toys.

“In a restaurant. With…with…uh. I forgot his name.”

Savannah shook her head. She knew her cousin well. Kay was all for having a good time. She worked hard, but she played even harder. Good-time Kay, her friends called her, and the name didn’t come without a reason.

“Merry Christmas,” she said, trying hard to think who else might be the mysterious benefactor.

“Stop it!” She heard her cousin’s coquettish voice. “I’m on the phone…”

“It sounds busy where you are. Who were you talking to?” Savannah scratched her eyebrow. The suspense of finding out who her gift donor was made her antsy.

“Dessert.”

“Dessert?”

Kay giggled and Savannah could have sworn she heard Kay ask, “Your place or mine?”

“You got to the third course and you don’t remember his name?”

Kay squealed and Savannah heard her tell someone to go. “Sorry,” said Kay, her voice loud on the phone again.

“Are you talking to me now, or having a conversation with Dessert?” Savannah asked her.

“I’m talking to you.”

“I’m afraid to ask where you are and what you’re up to,” Savannah confessed.

“We’re at a restaurant that is serving Christmas dinner. Except that it’s like a dating kind of thing. We change seats with every course.” Pride rang out from her voice, as if she’d scaled a high mountain.

Savannah gasped, horrified by the prospect of such an event. She didn’t mind being single, in fact she loved not having anyone to answer to. Yet she knew that Kay found it tough and took every opportunity to get hooked up. This Christmas day dating event sounded like a nightmare and Savannah shook her head in despair at her cousin’s never-ending quest to find a partner.

“Didn’t you consider having dinner at home with friends?”

“This is dinner with friends, or at least some of them will become friends. It’s mostly expats. I’m trying to settle in, Sav. It’s not easy. Everyone here just works all the time and I’m lonely, you know what it’s like.”

“Horny, more like,” said Savannah.

“That, too,” sniggered Kay. “Don’t you ever get lonely?”

No. She was never lonely, but then she had Jacob. She’d been so relieved when her divorce had come through that the idea of having a relationship was so far from her mind so as to be nonexistent.

“I’m going to have to go soon, it looks like my next course is being served,” Kay announced, and Savannah didn’t know if she was referring to food or eye candy. “Isn’t there a card on the gifts to say who they’re from?” Kay asked, as the noise in the background turned louder.

“No,” replied Savannah. “And nobody aside from you, your mom and my parents know that I’m living here.”

“Maybe it’s a secret admirer.”

“I don’t have a secret admirer.”

“It sounds as if you do,” Kay insisted, emphasizing her words with a sexy voice.

Savannah ignored her. “I was worried that Colt might have found us.”

Kay hooted with cruel laughter. “As if that loser would ever spend a dime on you and Jacob. A sorry but true fact.”

“I know,” said Savannah quietly.

“I’m excited for you, Sav!” Kay giggled as the noise in the background turned louder. “Promise you’ll call and tell me as soon as you find out.”

“I will.”

“Merry Christmas and give my love to Jacob.”

“Thanks, I will. Merry Christmas.”

“It sure is looking that way,” laughed Kay. As soon as she hung up, Jacob raced into the kitchen. “I know who sent this!” he cried.

“Who?”

Happiness streamed from his face. “Mr. Stone!”

Savannah sprang back in surprise.

Tobias Stone?

“How do you know?”

“That day when we went to the toy store, he told me to pick something.”

“Did you?”

Jacob shook his head. “He asked me what I wanted and I told him coloring books but I was playing with this.” He stared down at the box in his hands.

Tobias Stone had sent this?

But why would he? What possible reason could there have been?

Anything to help. Those had been his very words to her a few days ago. He’d obviously taken more pity on her. She stared at the Christmas gift basket which contained enough food to feed an army.

“Aw, Mommy. He’s so nice, and he gave you a present too.”

“Tobias Stone,” she murmured. Of all the people she thought might have sent this, it made perfect sense that Stone would be the main contender. Well, she couldn’t accept this. Definitely not. And then she remembered that she’d already opened the gift basket and had given Arnold a few items from it.

“Jacob, honey,” she hesitated, knowing that he hadn’t rushed to open his gift, that on some level her son could sense her own hesitation.

“Can I open it?” His green eyes sparkled with hope and she gulped, torn between letting him have it, and giving in to Tobias Stone, or holding onto her dignity and making her son suffer. “I’m not sure we should accept this, Jacob.”

“Why not?”

“Because Santa already bought you lots of gifts and I think he sent this to the wrong address.”

“But it isn’t from Santa. It’s from Mr. Stone and it has my name on it!” She’d forgotten what a bright spark her son was and it killed her to refuse him when he was so obviously desperate to play with his gift.

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