The Christmas Gift. Darlene Gardner

wrinkles creased his face.

      “Krista?” His thick gray brows drew together. “What are you doing here?”

      Krista swallowed, aware those were the first words he’d spoken to her in years. The few times he’d answered the phone when she called, he immediately handed her off to her mother. She tried not to let it hurt that he didn’t seem glad to see her. “I thought mom was sick.”

      “Ellie called Krista from the hospital and told her she was dying,” her grandmother said.

      “That’s not so, Joe!” her mother cried. “I told her I was bleeding.”

      Krista’s father set his mouth in a tight line. “You shouldn’t have done that.”

      “Why not?” her mother demanded. “Don’t you think it’s past time our daughter came home?”

      “Our daughter can—” her father began.

      “Ho, ho, ho. Merry Christmas!” The greeting was loud enough to drown out all sound.

      A stranger about her father’s age came into the kitchen wearing a Santa hat, a fake white beard and red suspenders that were visible through his open overcoat. He was about five-nine with a wiry build, lessening the effect.

      “Welcome home from the hospital, Eleanor,” the stranger said to Krista’s mother. “You look fantastic!”

      “Thank you, Milo,” Ellie said. “You look great, too. I never get tired of seeing you in that get-up.”

      “One of the fringe benefits of being a mall Santa.” Milo snapped the suspenders, then turned his attention to Krista. “And who is this pretty young lady?”

      “Our daughter Krista. She’s the interpreter who lives in Europe,” her mother said. “Krista, this is our next-door neighbor, Milo Costas.”

      Costas? Krista didn’t remember anybody named Costas living next door. She only knew one person with that surname, an unusual one for central Pennsylvania. Was this a relation?

      “Nice to meet you, Mr. Costas.” Krista tried to convince herself she must be wrong. Not everybody named Costas was connected to each other.

      “It’s my pleasure, young lady.” Milo Costas commented at the same time another male voice—a familiar male voice—called out, “Where is everybody?”

      “In the kitchen,” Krista’s father yelled, his scowl vanishing.

      Alex Costas strode into the kitchen, a bottle of red wine in his right hand, a bottle of sparkling apple cider in his left. A good five or six inches taller than Milo, Alex had thick black hair, an athlete’s build and strong, classic features. The first time Krista had seen him, she’d sworn her heart had skipped a beat. Right now it sped up.

      “Did you know there’s a ca—” Alex’s voice trailed off midquestion, his dark gaze swinging to Krista.

      Attraction rocketed through Krista, as hot and intense as when they’d been in bed together eight years ago and she’d told him about accepting a job in the Czech Republic.

      He’d driven her home and told her he thought it was best if they ended things cold turkey, and she hadn’t seen him again until this moment. She took a deep breath and plastered on a smile.

      “Hello, Alex,” she said. “Fancy meeting you here.”

      ALEX COMPOSED HIS FEATURES to mask the jolt of sexual energy he felt. He’d known Krista would walk through her parents’ door one day but he hadn’t expected it to be today. Neither could he have predicted the way his body would react to her.

      “Hello, Krista,” he said.

      Eleanor Novak tilted her head, her eyebrows drawing together. “You two know each other?”

      Alex and his father owned a landscaping business and had been buying plants and supplies from Novaks’ Nursery for years. They hadn’t become close friends with the Novaks, however, until Krista had already left home.

      “You could say that,” Krista said. “We met before I moved to Europe.”

      Eleanor’s gaze swung to Alex. She talked about Krista semiregularly, mostly to complain that her daughter never visited. “You never mentioned that, Alex!”

      Alex’s father was watching him with interest. Alex had never brought up Krista to him, either.

      “Wasn’t much to tell.” Alex shifted his weight from foot to foot.

      “Where did you meet her?” Eleanor asked.

      Alex zeroed in on Krista’s golden-brown eyes and recalled he could never tell what she was thinking. He didn’t see any way to dodge the question. “At the nursery.”

      “The nursery! Oh, wait! I remember that day!” Krista’s grandmother had a wonderful memory, although Alex hoped it would fail her now. “The poinsettia incident!”

      Nope. His elderly neighbor’s memory was working just fine.

      “Alex came into the nursery for the first time,” Grandma Novak continued. “He was already working with his father in the landscaping business and wanted to buy two dozen poinsettias.”

      “I think it was one dozen,” Alex murmured.

      “No, two dozen.” Grandma Novak smiled so sweetly, it felt like she’d agreed with him. “Anyway, Alex was wheeling the poinsettias to his pickup when the cart overturned.”

      “How does Krista enter into this?” Eleanor asked.

      Krista’s eyes were still locked on Alex. “I was dropping by to say hey to Grandma when it happened.”

      So she did remember.

      Alex would never forget. Krista had been wearing black boots and a winter coat, much the same as the one she had on now, except the coat had been black instead of red. She’d flipped her long, brown wind-blown hair back from a face that was rosy from the cold. Then she’d spotted him and smiled.

      That was when the wheels of Alex’s cart had bumped over a curb and the plants had slid off.

      “That’s right, Krista,” Grandma Novak said. “You’d just gotten back from college for winter break. Dirt and poinsettia leaves went everywhere.”

      Alex had insisted on cleaning up, and Krista had helped. By the time they were through sweeping up the debris, Alex had Krista’s phone number and a date for the next day.

      “Why didn’t I hear about this before?” Eleanor asked.

      Because Krista thought her mother was too involved in her life. Funny that Alex could remember the reason after all these years.

      “You can’t know everything about everything, Ellie,” Grandma Novak said with a laugh.

      “I like to be kept informed,” Eleanor muttered. “Alex, what were you about to tell us when you got here?”

      The strange sight had completely slipped Alex’s mind. He snapped his fingers. “There’s a taxi driver outside singing Christmas carols.”

      “Oh, I forgot!” Krista jumped up from her chair. Her hair was several inches shorter but otherwise the physical changes were negligible. Years ago Krista had told him she considered her looks average. She thought her nose was too long and her mouth too wide. Alex disagreed. Taken alone, none of her features were exceptional; together they were dazzling. “I better go pay him.”

      Alex had to force himself not to turn and watch her hurry from the kitchen. He set down the bottles on the kitchen counter and shrugged out of his winter jacket while his father did the same.

      “I’m surprised nobody mentioned Krista was coming home.” Alex’s father put into words what Alex was thinking.

      “I didn’t know it myself until she walked in,” Joe said.

      “So