"Yup."
Again, he turned to look at me. "So you're gonna eat this?"
"Me?" I laughed. "No. But technically, I could." My stomach roiled at the thought. "In theory, anyway."
Bryce leaned over the table for a closer look. He gave the multi-colored blob a tentative sniff. "Licorice.Blacklicorice."
"So that's your guess? That it's licorice?"
He leaned slightly closer. "It doesn't look like any licoriceIever saw."
I stifled a shudder. "Trust me, it doesn'ttastelike it either."
He straightened and turned to look at me. "How doyouknow?"
In a voice filled with doom, I replied, "The hard way."
He looked surprised. "So you've eaten one of those things?"
"No, but I took a nibble once."
"Once?" He studied my face. "How many of these have you gotten?"
"Counting the ones delivered to my parents? At least twenty."
"Dotheyeat them?"
"Not if they can help it." And then, at Bryce's perplexed expression, I explained, "If Aunt Matilda delivers it in person, you've almost got to."
As the memories came flooding back, I felt a silly smile spread across my face. "But the truth is, she's really fabulous. She taught me how to play poker when I was still in grade school." I winced. "She's not a terrific cook though."
Bryce looked toward the item in question. "So shemadethat?"
"Yup, with her own two hands." Finally, I decided that he'd been tortured enough. "It's a fruitcake. She makes us one every year."
Bryce eyed the blob. "I don't see any fruit." His forehead creased. "And I don't see a cake either. Aren't they supposed to be round? Or square?"
"Yeah, well…she's got this panless thing going on, so they always look more like blobs than cakes." I perked up. "But you know what?"
"What?"
"I still love to get them."
He smiled. "Oh, yeah? Why's that?"
"Because even though it's not my cup of tea, it's her way of saying that she loves us. And while I'd probably never eat it, it always makes me smile when it arrives. It's the same for Lexie, too."
He glanced toward the box. "So, what are you gonna do with it?"
"Probably I'll take it to Aunt Celia's place and put it in the fridge so we can enjoy it until Christmas."
He gave me a skeptical look. "Enjoy it?"
"Yeah, enjoy looking at it." I grinned. "Admit it. It makes you want to smile."
"Yeah, but I wasalreadysmiling."
It was true.He'd greeted me at the door with a smile so warm, it had made me feel nice and toasty right down to my toes.
