#marnold

"Mama, can we open one now?" Emily asked, reaching for a gift. Margaret pushed the gift out of her reach. "Aw." 

"No, Emily. Tomorrow. It's only a few hours away." She kissed the top of her head. "Tonight, we will make a cake. A nice gingerbread cake with frosting. You and Teddy can draw the pictures on it. Would you like that?"

"Yes," Teddy replied. "That sounds fun!" 

There was a swift knock at the door, and Margaret got to her feet. 

"Is it Santa?" Emily asked excitedly. Margaret laughed. 

"No, sweetheart. Santa won't arrive until tomorrow. But, perhaps it's christmas carolers." She went to answer the door. "Mr. Rothstein," she said when she saw that the man was standing outside her door, his hat and coat spattered with snowflakes. 

Emily frowned. "We thought you were carolers."

"I'm sorry to disappoint," he said, "but, I can be a caroler if you'd like. I'll need some help though. Would you help?" He asked Emily, who grinned and nodded. "Let's start, then." Arnold cleared his throat and sang, "We wish you a merry Christmas." Margaret was surprised at how smooth his voice was. It made her heart jump. 

"We wish you a merry Christmas!" Emily chimed. 

"We wish you a merry Christmas, and a happy new year," Arnold and Emily sang together. She giggled. 

"I'm sorry for arriving unexpectedly," Arnold said to Margaret once Emily went back to Teddy's side near the fireplace. He took off his hat and entered the apartment. 

"I figured you'd be spending Christmas Eve with your wife," she admitted. 

He looked visibly uncomfortable, something that Margaret never really saw. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Mrs. Rothstein and I... we're a bit on edge right now." 

"Oh. I'm sorry." She couldn't help but feel this was her fault. Even though she and Arnold had a purely professional relationship, is it possible his wife thought otherwise? Is it possible his wife knew of Margaret's developing feelings for him?

"It's not your fault, Miss Rohan," he said as if he was reading her mind. "We'll work it out. Oh, wait, I left something." Arnold stepped out for a moment to pick up a stack of presents he left near the door. "Couldn't very well come over on Christmas Eve without gifts, right?" 

Emily's and Teddy's faces lit up at the word. "Gifts?" They both said, scrambling over to the doorway. 

Margaret felt herself flush. "Mr. Rothstein, you didn't have to..."

"Nonsense," he interrupted. "One for Emily. And one for Teddy." He handed them the neatly wrapped boxes. Margaret raised her eyebrows at them, knowing they both wanted to open their gifts right then and there. At the sight of their mother, they stuck the boxes under the tree. "Not going to open them?" 

"Mama says tomorrow," Teddy told Arnold. 

"Well, I probably won't be here tomorrow. So, I don't see any harm in opening them tonight? Miss Rohan?" 

Margaret looked at her children's pleading eyes, and gave in at once. It was just this once. No harm in it, as Arnold said. "Alright." 

The four of them sat near the Christmas Tree, and Emily eagerly ripped into the wrapping paper of the gift Arnold gave her. 

She grinned at the sight of the doll she found inside. It was a curly brown haired doll with pink lips and a frilly pink dress. 

"She looks like me!" Emily cheered. "I'm going to name her Jenny! Thank you!" 

"Beautiful name," Arnold agreed. "Teddy, go ahead and open yours." 

Teddy ripped the paper off his box and opened it. Inside was a collection of army toys. "Thank you, Mr. Rothstein." He took two of the soldiers out and started playing with them on the floor, making gunshot noises. 

Margaret smiled at her children, playing with their new toys. "Thank you, Mr. Rothstein."

"We're not done, you know." He handed her a box. "For you, Miss Rohan." 

She looked down at the box, flushing. "I can't." 

"It's Christmas," Arnold reminded her. "If you can't accept my gift, then I'm afraid I can't accept that box over there." He pointed to the box underneath the tree that had a gift tag with his name on it. 

"Oh, alright." She gently pulled the paper off, unlike Emily and Teddy. The paper was beautiful that she wanted to savor every moment of it. Margaret gingerly opened the box and gasped at what was inside. She pulled a beautiful green dress out and pressed it against her body. It was emblazoned with sparkles, and had 3/4 sleeves. "Mr. Rothstein," she said breathless. "It's lovely, thank you." 

He smiled. "I knew you would like it. When I saw it, I immediately thought of you." Again, Margaret's face betrayed her by burning. She was the first person to come to his mind when he saw this dress. "You're blushing again." 

"Am I? I was just thinking… I was the first person you thought of? Not your wife?" 

"You make it sound as if I'm a bad husband. Carolyn never liked green that much. She was partial to lighter colors. Does it matter?" Margaret was taken aback by the sharpness that suddenly appeared in his voice. He seemed to have noticed himself because he became embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Miss Rohan. My wife is a sensitive subject, really." 

"Forgive me, then. This is for you." She gave him his gift. 

"Thank you," he replied, taking out an elegantly deep blue knitted scarf. He ran his fingers over the material, a wisp of a smile appearing on his lips. "I love it." 

"There is more," she pointed out. 

"Is there? The scarf is enough," he said as he went looking for the rest of her gift. Hidden underneath a piece of tissue paper was a matching bow tie decorated with white polkadots. He laughed. "Thank you again." Arnold paused for a moment before untying the red bow tie he was wearing. He took his new bow tie and tied it. "How does it look?" 

"Charming," Margaret replied with a laugh. "Children, we still have other gifts, you know." 

"Oh, yeah!" Teddy laughed, setting aside his soldiers to open the gift from his mother, which turned out to be a new collar shirt and tie. "Thank you, Mama."

"Thank you, Mama!" Emily cried out when she saw that Margaret had bought her a new blue dress. "It's so pretty! Teddy, let's give Mama her gift." 

"Okay." 

"For me?" Margaret said, taking an envelope from their hands. She opened it carefully to find a beautifully decorated card. It read "To Mama, we love you!" with pictures of smiley faces, glitter, and flowers made from tissue paper. "I love it!" She gathered her children in her arms and kissed their faces. "Now, that all the presents are opened, maybe we can work on that cake?" 

"Cake?" Arnold asked. "I'd love to lend my hand."

The four of them went into the kitchen, Emily holding her new doll tight in her arms. 

While Arnold, Teddy, and Emily gathered near the counter, Margaret took it upon herself to retrieve all the ingredients needed for their cake. 

She mixed in the dry ingredients, and handed the bowl to Arnold so he could add the wet ones. Once the two were combined, Emily was given the bowl to mix. 

"Lookie!" she exclaimed. 

"Very nice," Arnold commented, "but, it is still a bit dry, right there." He put his hand over hers and helped her mix. "There we go." 

"Teddy, would you like to put the batter in the bowl?" Margaret asked, taking the bowl once everything was mixed. 

Teddy nodded, and poured the batter into the serving pan very carefully. He knew his mother didn't like it when he made a mess. 

"And now, we'll just pop this into the oven," Margaret announced, taking the serving pan. Arnold went to her side to open the oven for her. "Oh, thank you." 

"Not at all." As Margaret bent to slide the pan into the oven, Arnold felt a rush of heat fill his cheeks. He'd certainly thought about her in more ways than one, but his thoughts never made him feel like this. Being next to her was another thing entirely. He averted his eyes from her backside by glancing at the ceiling, hoping the children took no notice. When he turned his attention back to them, Teddy and Emily were sticking too busy sticking their fingers in the remaining batter and licking them clean. He chuckled at the sight. "How long does the cake take?" he asked. 

"It should be about fifteen minutes or so," Margaret replied. , wiping her hands clean of flour. "Meanwhile, we may work on the frosting. It takes a few minutes to set, so it's best to work on it now. Children, what color should the frosting be?"

"Green!" Teddy yelled. 

"Red!" Emily shouted. 

They pouted at each other. 

"It's fortunate you chose those colors," Arnold said. "It is Christmas, and red and green are the official colors. We can make two bowls. Teddy and I can work on the green, and you and Emily can work on the red," he suggested to Margaret, who took his suggestion with a smile. 

Arnold poured in the ingredients for Teddy, and watched as Teddy mixed it together. 

"A hint of food coloring," Arnold said, pouring two drops of green. While Teddy was mixing the green in, Arnold stole a glance at Margaret and Emily, who were laughing as they mixed their frosting. Margaret stuck her finger in the frosting and wiped it on Emily's nose. 

"Hey, Mama!" Emily giggled. She retaliated by putting frosting on her mother's cheeks. 

Arnold couldn't help but smile. Margaret was his key to getting his revenge on Mr. Bennett, and he took full advantage of that. Soon, however, he found himself being drawn to her. It was no wonder Nucky found her extremely charming, the way she held herself, the way she was with her children. He and Carolyn never had children of their own, so he never got to experience his wife's motherly skills. He wasn't even sure if she had any. 

If anything happened between him and Margaret, Arnold knew he would never put through the things Nucky did. Sure, she was set for life with Nucky, but a wonderful woman like her deserved more than the nice things. She confided in him her relationship with her first husband, and he knew at once that Margaret was not the woman who needed material objects, even though these things really helped her family. She was a woman who needed someone to care for her, not toss her aside for some showgirl. 

"Mr. Rothstein?" Margaret's voice brought him out of his stupor. "The cake is finished." 

"Oh, how lovely. Allow me to get it out of the oven." Any excuse not to have any more impure thoughts about his business partner. 

Setting the cake on the counter, he pulled off the oven mitts. Emily reached out to touch the cake, but Arnold caught her wrist before she could. "Are you crazy?" he snapped. "Do you have any idea how hot that is? You'd burn your hand." 

Emily pulled away, tears forming in her eyes that Arnold had snapped at her. He looked at Margaret expecting her to scold him for chastising her daughter, but she said nothing. 

"Hey," he said softly, placing his fingers underneath her chin to meet her eyes. "I didn't mean to make you cry, Emily. I just didn't want you to hurt yourself. We're still friends?" He smiled softly, and Emily smiled back and nodded. 

Sometimes it felt like he was a father, and if he didn't say that scared him to death, he was lying. 

"Let's frost this cake, then?" Margaret. 

"Half of it should be red, and the other half should be green," Teddy spoke up. "Emily can draw pictures with green frosting on red, and I can draw with red frosting on green." 

"I think that's a wonderful idea," Margaret said fondly. "Would you help me frost the cake, Mr. Rothstein?" 

"Of course." 

They worked in silence as Arnold took over the red part of the cake, while Margaret did the green part. Once everything was to their satisfaction, Teddy and Emily started drawing pictures. 

They drew Christmas trees, lights, snowmen, kitties, and smiley faces. When they finished their drawings, the two of them licked their fingers clean of frosting, smiling. 

Margaret placed a slice on each of the four plates, and poured cool milk into each glass. Arnold picked his glass up, smiling gratefully. She knew him so well. 

Emily licked her lips free of frosting every time she took a bite. Both of the children seemed to be enjoying themselves. They washed down their cake with their milk. 

"Thank you, Miss Rohan," Arnold said. "Everything is lovely." 

Margaret nodded, but stayed silent. She still felt bad for bringing up the subject of Arnold's wife. She should've known that he would prefer to stray away from that subject, but she stupidly brought it up. 

"Something on your mind?" 

"No." 

"I think I can read you far better than you may think." 

She pursed her lips. It wouldn't do any good to lie to him. "I want to apologize," she said. "About your wife." 

"Oh." 

Margaret wished she didn't say anything. "I'm sorry." 

"No, no, don't apologize. Carolyn and I will be fine," he said. "I promise." Except, he didn't quite know that, and if his feelings for Margaret were becoming stronger, what chance did he and Carolyn have?  He moved cake around with his fork, not sure if he wanted to eat anymore. "Thank you." He put the half-eaten cake on the counter and went to the living room. 

Margaret sighed, finding that her appetite had failed her as well. She followed his actions, and she found him sitting on the sofa, his legs crossed, and a pensive expression his face. 

"You don't have to say you're sorry," he said before she had a chance to open her mouth. He slowly turned to face her. He sighed. "I'm sorry. I've been putting a damper on the festivities. Oh, look, it's snowing." 

"Snowing?" Margaret asked, crossing over to look out the window nearest the sofa. True enough, small snowflakes were falling from the sky. A smile played on her lips. "It's lovely." 

Arnold was glad that the snow had taken Margaret's attention. It was Christmas Eve, after all, and he would prefer it if no one was uncomfortable. 

He got up from the sofa and crossed to Margaret's side. He gently put his chin against her shoulder. "Why don't we go out and enjoy it?" 

"Yes. Children," she called. "It's snowing outside. Let's go out and have some fun." 

Arnold and Margaret stood together, watching as Teddy and Emily played in the snow. Emily grabbed a snowball and tossed it at her brother, who took it as a challenge, and a snowball fight broke out. 

"Be careful," Margaret warned them. "Snow can be painful." She noticed Arnold was not wearing the scarf she made him, and her heart sank. Perhaps he didn't like it. Or… perhaps he merely forgot it. She ran into the apartment and came out with the scarf in her hands. She snuck up behind Arnold and wrapped it around his neck. 

A faint blush ran across his cheeks. "T-thank you," he said. "It seems we've been thanking each other a lot tonight." 

Margaret laughed. "We have much to be thankful for." 

He offered her his arm. "A stroll through the snow?" 

She took his arm, and together, they walked through the white snow, which crunched underneath their feet. 

Arnold recalled his earlier conversation with Charlie when he came to visit only week ago. Charlie was right about his feelings for Margaret, and as they walked, he felt the feeling growing deeper. 

He stopped suddenly underneath a large tree. He spun around, facing Margaret. Her cheeks were flushed, and he wasn't sure if it was the cold or not. He certainly knew his blush was not because of that.

"Look up."

She did, and the blush deepened. Mistletoe was hanging over the branch. The local children must've decorated the trees. 

Arnold's hand to her shoulder, and she shied away from him. "Of course, only with your permission, Miss Rohan. I'm not like him," he emphasized. "I can promise you that."  

"Y-you… you promised you and Mrs. Rothstein would be fine," she said shakily. 

So, that's why she stepped back. She wasn't fearing he would treat her the way Nucky did. She wanted Arnold and Carolyn to reconcile, and somehow, that made him want to kiss her more. 

"I… how can we be, when you're standing right in front of me, looking so gorgeous underneath the falling snow?" 

Margaret's lip parted, her breath showing in the cold winter air. 

"I may be a criminal, Miss Rohan, but I am not a machine. My steps towards bankruptcy, my issues with my wife, they have taken their toll on me. What happiness do I have? And you… it was only supposed to be a partnership. But, every time I'm with you, with the children, I find myself smiling. Actually smiling. Actual happiness." His voice had started to fail him, and his cheeks were burning as he realized he had said too much. His eyes flickered to her lips before flickering back to her face. Arnold's hand went to her cheek, gently stroking it beneath his gloved hands, and Margaret's eyes fluttered shut at his touch. 

"Mr. Rothstein," she muttered, and it wasn't a tone of warning. Her voice was soft and tender, telling him everything he needed to know. 

Arnold leaned in closer, half expecting her to pull away, to demand that he go back to Carolyn and try his damnedest to fix their relationship, but she did no such thing. His words made her heart race, and against her better judgement, she stood still, wanting this as much as he did. 

Arnold's lips tentatively pressed against hers, and Margaret's lips parted underneath his, allowing him to deepen their kiss. He moaned softly against her mouth as the taste of her filled his being. 

The kiss was interrupted when a snowball smashed into the back of Arnold's head. The snowball was unexpected, and it toppled him and Margaret onto the snow. 

He flushed at the sight of her underneath him, but soon he began to laugh. He helped her to her feet and brushed the snow from her dress. 

"Alright, who's the one who threw that?" Arnold asked in a fake angry voice. 

Teddy and Emily pointed at each other, grinning innocently. 

Arnold grabbed a handful of snow and threw it at the children, who screamed excitedly and ran around. 

Margaret joined in on the fun, sneaking up on Emily and dropping snow on the top of her head. She hugged her daughter around her middle. 

She laughed and caught Arnold's eyes. "Merry Christmas, Mr. Rothstein."