Say my name

Chapter 16

Christmas Day woke up bright and sunny. After two days the snow finally stopped, and the sky was the brightest blue imaginable. Anabella laid in a warm bed looking through the window. The lovely little crib stood by the wall. It can't get better than this. White Christmas, a man that is crazy about me and we will have a baby. The bad luck is finally over. She smiled to herself, stretched her arms and a cough escaped her throat. Anabella did not hear any sounds from the rest of the house, she did not smell freshly brewed coffee. She guessed that everybody let themselves sleep in on Christmas morning or she woke up too early. Anabella got up and tiptoed to the bathroom. Maxim slept soundly on the sofa. She smiled as she passed him, he looks like a little boy when he sleeps. Just as Anabella was closing the bathroom door, she saw through a crack that Aleksey's bedroom door opened and he himself tiptoed towards his cot in the kitchen.

You old rascal, Anabella laughed inwardly and closed the door without making a noise. After she dressed, Anabella began setting up the table for breakfast, while everybody else was getting ready. She looked at Maxim getting up from the sofa and stretching his arms wide. He was shirtless and she could see every muscle on his back bulging during the stretch. Maxim turned around and grinned when he noticed her staring. He looks so cute with his hair messed up in the morning, she smiled to him, and wagged her finger calling him over. "Merry Christmas gorgeous," Maxim said with the biggest smile, "Let me brush my teeth and then I will give you your best ever Christmas kiss."

"Please do," Anabella chuckled and added in a hushed voice, "Guess who I saw early in the morning?"

"Santa Claus?" Maxim raised his eyebrows.

"Silly. Guess who I saw sneaking out from his own bedroom?"

"Well, it wasn't me," he said bitterly.

Anabella mouthed silently, "Aleksey," and raised her eyebrows playfully. It took him a moment to understand.

"Nooo!"

"Yes," Anabella muffled a giggle.

"This old sly fox. I guess the propriety doesn't apply to him," Maxim looked annoyed at first but then laughed, "He got me good." He waived his hand and went to the bathroom. Stretching and yawning the rest of the family finally sat down to breakfast.

"I heard you coughing last night diewushka, are you feeling ok?" Aleksey asked Anabella when they began eating.

"Yeah, I am good. I just had a little tickle in my throat, but I feel fine," Anabella replied carefree.

"I'm glad, I was worrying," Aleksey observed her closely.

"I'm fine, really," she reassured him. "I had a cold right after Thanksgiving, but it passed. Now I have a small lingering cough. That's it."

"Too bad the snow is so deep," said Sergey, "It would be fun to go for a sleigh ride."

"We need to wait a day or two; the snow will harden a little and we can show Anabella a real sleigh ride," Maxim added spreading butter on a chunk of crusty bread.

"That would be awesome. I've never done it before. I was only sledding down a small hill, when I was younger," Anabella was excited.

"Today we can still relax, but tomorrow you boys have to help me plow the road," Aleksey looked at his sons.

"No problem Dad," Maxim replied.

"Is it ok though to go outside for a short time? I feel like I need some fresh air," Anabella gazed at people around the table.

"Well... I guess we could go out later," Aleksey pondered, "Although there is only small area where we can walk through. Everywhere else there is snow up to your thighs. The wood is set up in the court, we could have a bonfire, that would keep us warmer." Aleksey pouted his lips thoughtfully, "Yes, not a bad idea. We can do it. Though it's frigid today." After breakfast Anabella asked Aleksey to use his phone again. She wanted to call Jessica and her parents. Anabella plopped herself comfortably on her bed and dialed Jessica's number first.