On Christmas morning, Amber found a beautifully wrapped gift under the tree addressed to an unknown woman. Upon confronting her husband, Carl, she learned he’d packed the gift. Who was the unknown woman? And why did Carl buy a gift for her?
This Christmas started as the worst one of my life.
Christmas Eve had been magical. We’d baked cookies, sang carols, and laughed until our sides hurt. My husband, Carl, even danced with our son, Logan, twirling him around like a tiny ballerina.
A boy standing near a Christmas tree | Source: Midjourney
Logan went to bed with the excitement only a five-year-old could muster, dreaming of Santa’s gifts, while Carl and I stayed up sipping cocoa and admiring the twinkling lights on the tree.
By morning, snow dusted the ground like powdered sugar, and everything seemed perfect. Logan and I were already in our festive pajamas, and he was super excited to open the gifts.
“Mom! Can I open this one first?” he squealed, pointing to a brightly wrapped box with his name scrawled across the tag.
Christmas gifts under a tree | Source: Pexels
“Let’s wait for Dad,” I said, glancing toward the kitchen where Carl stood by the counter, sipping his coffee.
He looked unusually tense, his shoulders stiff as he avoided my gaze.
“Carl,” I called out, “Logan’s ready to dig in.”
Carl nodded but didn’t move. His behavior was odd, but I brushed it off because it was Christmas.
A man standing in a kitchen | Source: Midjourney
We settled onto the floor, and Logan ripped through his first gift with all the enthusiasm a five-year-old could manage. He gasped as he uncovered the toy truck he’d been begging for.
“Santa got it right, Mom!” he yelled, holding it up like a trophy.
“That’s so cool!” I chuckled.
But all of my happiness suddenly faded as my gaze landed on a big, glittery box under the tree. I hadn’t seen it the night before.
As I picked it up, I noticed a small note on top of it.