I'll Be Right Beside You

The remainder of the day flew by, and soon all of us girls were in the kitchen preparing Christmas dinner while the boys took Parker, Levi and Michael out tobogganing. The house seemed oddly quiet without the eight Staal males in the house, so we turned on the old tape player and put in a Christmas tape. We were all singing along and goofing around as we made dinner, and before we knew it we heard chuckling coming from the hall. Lindsay and I had been doing an over-dramatic little dance and singing at the top of our lungs to ‘Leroy the Redneck Reindeer’, and stopped dead in our tracks at the noise. We spun around and saw Marc and Jordan with Marc’s iPhone out, and they both looked wary when they realized that they’d been caught, probably videotaping it. We shared a look before dropping the utensils we were holding and bolting for them, and we were almost at them before they began to run, Marc nearly dropping his phone in the process.

“MARC STAAL YOU ARE A DEAD MAN!” Lindsay hollered as we chased them down to the basement. I had a leg up on Lindsay, being in NHL shape, and easily launched myself at Jordan’s back, wrapping my legs around his hips and causing him to topple over.

“GO ON WITHOUT ME!” he yelled to his brother, although it took about a second for Marc to realize they’d all but ran into a corner. I wrapped Jordan in a headlock and gave him a nougie.

“I’m sorry!” he pleaded, and finally I let up, content to watch Lindsay playfully ‘beating up’ up on her husband, pinching and tickling at his sides, something that he couldn’t stand, because he couldn’t ever stop laughing once you got him started.

“Um sweetheart?” Jordan finally piped up, and I looked down at the back of his blonde head.

“Yes dear?”

“Do you think you could sit beside me or something?” he asked politely, and I chuckled.

“Is that a fat joke Staalsy?” I teased, and he tensed immediately.

“No! Of course not!” I slowly slid onto the floor beside him, and he sat up, stretching gently.

“I love you baby – we just couldn’t resist how adorable you two looked,” he told me, and I patted his cheek gently before kissing him.

“Thanks, I think,” I responded, and he chuckled before leaning in for a deeper kiss, until Marc loudly cleared his throat. I looked over and saw that Lindsay had finally stopped tickling him and he’d caught his breath.

“Don’t even start with me Marc,” Jordan warned, and Lindsay rolled her eyes before offering me a hand so we could go back upstairs and help to finish up with dinner.

“Aww, come on,” Jordan and Marc whined together, and we both had to grin.

“You want to get fed, don’t you?” I asked, and looking like a pair of five year olds they nodded, looking putout.

“All right, so we’re going to go and help finish making dinner, okay?” Lindsay said slowly, and again they nodded before forlornly following us up the stairs. They went to the living room and sat down, while we went back to the kitchen.

“So…?” Tanya asked, a smirk playing at her lips. We shrugged before I started stirring the gravy as it was thickening and Lindsay went to helping Linda put together the salad.

“We got them back,” we replied in unison, and Linda let out a laugh.

“Sounds about right for the two of you,” was all she would say, and we left it at that. Before long dinner was ready, and Linda called her sons to come and set the table for her, which they all rushed to do.

We all got seated at the table before Henry said grace, and then we started dishing up our plates. The mood was light and it was loud in the dining room as we all talked and ate. Our meal lasted for two hours, everybody content to sit at the table and visit long after everyone’s stomachs were full. Jordan’s hand was resting softly on my knee, his way of letting me know his mind was still on me while we visited with his family. I leaned into him slightly, placing my hand over top of his and softly stroking the back of his hand with my thumb.

Eventually Parker asked to be excused from the table, his new toys too alluring to remain in the kitchen. Levi looked at his parents expectantly, and Eric nodded, excusing him as well. Michael began to squirm and whine a little bit, before Marc helped him out of the high chair and let him barrel after his cousins. It didn’t take long for the rest of us to move toward the living room and softer seats, and I found myself sitting on the floor between Jordan’s knees as he sat on the couch, holding Michael in my lap while he played with two of his new stuffed animals. I felt Jordan’s hands finger through my hair, and I leaned back slightly, enjoying the sensation as he continued the motions.

We soon settled in to watch a cartoon of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, a cartoon version from when we were kids, which I guess was a tradition in the Staal home. Jordan slipped off of the couch to sit on the floor with me, wrapping his arms around me and resting his chin on top of my head.

I let my mind wander, replaying the half-hour long Skype session that Jordan and I had had with my Mom and Uncle Rob. I was relieved that she wasn’t by herself, and it sounded like they’d had a good Christmas with Grandpa at Uncle Rob’s house. We’d chatted about whatever came to mind, and mom had nearly burst into tears when Parker launched himself into my lap, wondering who “Aunty Cam” was talking to on the computer. Jordan had laughed and ruffled his hair before Levi was wanting up, and we continued our conversation with the two boys seated on our knees. I hadn’t missed the almost choked up look my mom had on her face, or the fact that my Grandpa outright grilled Jordan, before declaring that he approved and that we better get on having great-grandkids for him. We’d both turned tomato red at the statement, and it got worse when Parker excitedly crowed that he couldn’t wait for more little cousins.

I chuckled then as I ran my fingers through Jordan’s hair, unable to keep myself from picturing him as a father. He was so good with kids and he loved them, so it wasn’t hard to do. I sighed then, leaning more heavily on him as I wished that hockey wasn’t the sport I’d fallen in love with – because otherwise our relationship wouldn’t have been so ass-backwards and who knows where we would have been by now. And more than that, I wanted to have kids, with Jordan, but I also wanted to wait until I’d had an actual, legitimate career.

Jordan noticed my change in demeanor and softly kissed the top of my head, rubbing my back gently before he nuzzled my neck, immediately bringing a small smile to my face.

“Thanks babe,” I whispered, pecking his cheek.

“I love you Cam,” he replied, before we settled in to watching the movie once more.