Now it looks a lot like a grand gesture.
I tuck it back in the bottom of my suitcase, things will have to wait until we get through the holiday.
After I finish putting things away, I dress and go downstairs. During the morning, they transformed the house into a Christmas wonderland. Festive statues and knickknacks adorn every surface, felted holly garland wraps around the stair railing, and the aroma of turkey and freshly baked cookies fills the air.
I find Penny in the kitchen with her sister Violet and her two sons, Micah and Riley, standing in front of a sheet of sugar cookies on the center island, ready to be decorated.
“Hey,” Penny smiles and crosses the room to place a single kiss on my cheek, “I might have told Violet about your holiday tradition.”
“We weren’t sure if you liked gingerbread, so we went with the safe option.” Violet says.
I told her about the tradition less than 24 hours ago, and she found a way to make it happen so I wouldn’t feel left out of her family’s Christmas traditions. No one has done this for me.
“These are perfect,” I say, leaning down to Penny, “I want to warn you. I kind of suck at decorating, so don’t expect much.”
“That’s okay.” Penny wraps her arms around my middle and squeezes, “It’s not a competition.”
There’s a moment of silence, and both me and Violet reply, “Now it’s definitely a competition.”
Beside me, Penny carefully lines her snowman cookie with white icing while switching to another color for its scarf, using the less is more option for its face and the chocolate buttons. I coat my Christmas tree cookie with a thick coating of green icing, sprinkling tiny candy-covered chocolates over top and finishing it with a blob of yellow for the star.
By the time we’re done, we call it a draw. It’s clear we used up all of our creative energy on the first few cookies while hastily decorating the rest. Some trees are lacking their stars, the snowmen without their buttons, and some have lopsided faces.
It reminds me of home, of those holidays when I was younger. For a couple of moments, I actually forgot we are playing a part and that after all of this is over, we might end up going our separate ways.
“I’m sure someone has already asked you this, but how did you two meet?” Violet asks, looking up from where she’s helping Riley, her youngest, decorate his cookie.
Penny looks up at me and opens her mouth to speak, I can almost hear the cogs spinning double time trying to remember the story we agreed upon.
“We met at Plot Twist, actually.” I give her a smile, “I came in looking for a birthday present for my mom, and Penny was busy dealing with the release of a romantasy. I forgot the title. Do you remember? It looked like a huge deal.”
“Shadowsong Court.” She adds, “One of the managers ignored the street date, so everyone within a 20-mile radius rushed to get their copy. We were swamped.”
“You were stocking a box of books, passing them out like candy. I waited until the crowd thinned and asked you about picking up a cozy mystery for my mom’s birthday.” I glance down at her, “You shot me a look that could flay a man alive, then turned on your heel and walked away.”
Penny mutters, “Asher?—”
“But you came right back and handed me ‘Banana Bread and Betrayal’. My mother really loved it, by the way. She picked up the rest of the series.”
Violet laughs, “That is adorable. What happened next?”
“We met formally a few days later when I helped her move some furniture.” I run my hand down Penny’s back, “My only regret is it took me so long to gain the courage to ask her out.”
Penny stares up at me like she’s trying to decipher a puzzle, then her mother’s voice cuts through the silence.
“I was looking all over for you kids.” Heather taps her watch, “The party is going to start around two. I was thinking we could get ready and take the family photos just to get them out of the way. Meet in the living room in about twenty minutes?”
Violet dusts off her hands, “C’mon, boys, let’s go get dressed.” She gives us a smile and herds her kids out of the kitchen.
Penny waits until her mother leaves the room and touches my shoulder, “Asher, why didn’t you ever tell me about Plot Twist?”
“I thought you remembered me, but Iwaswearing a hat.” I shrug.
Her eyes widen, “The one with the dice. Asher, that was over a year ago.”
“I know.” I say, “We should go get ready.”
Penny blinks away her shock and nods, “You’re right. I guess it’s showtime.”
