Run, Girl (If You Can)

Aaron mentioned before that his parents held parties on Christmas but she never imagined how austere it would be until she was forced to participate herself. Their first Christmas as a couple was nothing like she expected.

Admittedly, he did indulge her by going to see the tree and window displays together but he refused to help her decorate sugar cookies or watch movies or do anything else that smacked of holiday cheer.

He claimed to be busy with work but she could sense his disdain. She wasn't too put off; some people were less holly jolly than others. His traditions were different than hers and she could respect that.

Christmas morning the chef prepared cinnamon rolls at Keeley's request since that was a treat her mother always made for the special occasion. The Halls would rifle through their stockings before breakfast but weren't allowed to open any other presents until after everybody ate to try and spread things out.

They stayed in their special Christmas pajamas—a present they opened the night before—all day and relaxed, played games, or watched movies together while snacking on all the cookies Monica had baked throughout the month and stored in the freezer.

Aaron flatly refused to participate in such trifles. The twelve foot tree located in their high-ceilinged living room was decorated with expensive baubles from stores on Fifth Avenue by a professional in case they had to entertain at their house.

Keeley wasn't allowed to decorate the house at all, which pushed her buttons. She had argued with her husband about it and lost.

Literally the only thing she was able to do on her own was wrap her gifts to Aaron and make some cookies with the promise that she wouldn't serve them to any important guests. Any visitors were fed by the chef.

She tried to tell herself that this was what Aaron was used to and she could convince him to bend her way over time as they established new traditions together with their little family as it grew.

That didn't happen. The last eight Christmases of her life were all roughly the same.

Christmas morning she blearily rubbed her eyes as she came downstairs and was a bit disappointed to see that Aaron hadn't filled her stocking since she made one for him.

When she asked him about it, he apologized and said the thought didn't even occur to him. Of course it didn't. All of Keeley's gifts were expensive—clothes, jewelry, and shoes—but not one of them was something she would have bought for herself.

At least her gifts for Aaron were thoughtful. She got him a watch from his favorite brand with their wedding date, August 8th, 2010, engraved on the back and some ties to go with his ever present business suits.

She had learned the hard way while they were dating that he was very picky about his ties and would only wear certain styles and brands but she got it right this time because he seemed pleased.

He sat around doing nothing for most of the day while Keeley watched classic Claymation movies like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

The party included dinner and was being held in a banquet hall downtown so she knew she would have to dress up nice. She was used to wearing pajamas all day rather than a cocktail dress but knew her role as Mrs. Hale was to show up and look pretty.

Keeley curled her hair, applied an elegant amount of eye shadow and red lipstick, and put on the outfit Aaron bought her for the occasion.

It consisted of an off-shoulder red and black floral dress that flowed partway down her calves and black heeled sandals with so many straps that it took her five minutes to figure out how to put them on.

Appraising herself in the mirror, she decided to add a little festive fun and wear her dangly earrings that looked like tiny red bulbs that would go on a Christmas tree.

"What on earth are you wearing?" he demanded when she came down the stairs. "You can't go out like that."

"Come on, they're hidden behind my hair! Hardly anyone is going to notice—"

"The daughter-in-law of the Hale family cannot be seen wearing earrings that cost $5.99! If you truly want Christmas-themed earrings, I'll commission some to be made for you next year. Change them," Aaron said with an air of finality.

Keeley sighed. Being Mrs. Hale was hard. She had to get rid of almost all of her old clothes because if she was spotted wearing something unbefitting her status outside the house there would be hell to pay.

She trudged back upstairs mutinously and exchanged her fun earrings for a pair of ruby drop ones.

"Happy now?" she asked grumpily when she came back down.

Aaron patted her head. "You look lovely. Let's go."

When they arrived, at least two dozen people were already milling around holding glasses of champagne while a string quartet played Christmas music.

Keeley had never experienced a Christmas party like this in her life. He slipped his hand into hers and led her around the room to greet the guests.

"Keeley, darling, I simply adore your earrings. Wherever did you get them?" an acquaintance of theirs asked while Aaron conversed with her fiancé about the stock market.

Turned out people noticed her earrings after all. Her anger fizzled a little.

"Angola Jeweler's. It's a newer boutique but they have a large variety of gemstones. I got them last month shopping with my mother-in-law."

"I've heard Roslyn Hale has exquisite taste. You'll have to invite me next time."

"Of course," Keeley agreed.

Shopping was the single most important aspect of the women in this circle's social lives. You didn't go out with just anyone. The smaller and more exclusive the group, the better.

Everyone invited Keeley to go when her engagement was first announced because they wanted to assess the new meat and try to get on the future Mrs. Hale's good side, even if they didn't respect where she came from.

It was how she ended up with most of her current wardrobe. The prices at the places her companions wanted to shop at were staggering but Aaron didn't care.

It wasn't like he was on a budget plus he wanted her to fit in with these people so she kept her feelings of inadequacy to herself.

She chatted with the socialite a while longer before it was time for dinner to begin. She and Aaron, as members of the family, were seated next to the hosts and a few other prominent families like the Knightons.

Lacy wasn't happy to see them together and tried to subtly put Keeley down the entire meal. It was a really good thing she didn't wear those Christmas earrings.