“Save it for your husband and tone it down a little.”
Mia released a delicate snort. “Oh, so you’re going to carry the conversation? You’re doing reallygreatso far.”
Her best friend wasn’t wrong, and this didn’t make Natalie feel any better about her natural lack of sparkle. “Whatever. I’m only here to get a tree, not a date.”
Mia looked at her with a spark of amused suspicion. “Why would you bring up dating? Do you also like his…hat?”
“No! I—Knock it off. You know my rule about local guys.”
Mia laughed at her fluster. “This is Apple Hill, not Placerville. Does it still count as local?”
Mason soon returned with a lightweight, battery-operated saw and a large yellow Labrador he introduced as Bentley, his father’s farm dog. Bentley greeted each of the women but became more focused on sniffing the tops of Mia’s Converse sneakers.
“So, what kind of tree do you like?” Mason asked.
Bentley barked at a nearby bird before sprinting toward a dirt path, disappearing among trees. Natalie and Mia followed Mason toward the same path.
Natalie hadn’t thought about trees at all and now understood why Mason had panicked picking a drink at Pony Expresso, because her brain scrambled to come up with something. “Oh, um, I guess if I have to get a tree, I prefer the ones with the metal pole running down the center that are pre-lit. So if we can go directly to the spot where you grow those, this can be over pretty quickly and we don’t have to take up too much of your time.”
A glint appeared in those hazel eyes, telling her he had a sense of humor and wasn’t insulted by her pedestrian Christmas tree opinion. “Got it. You like Christmas trees of the fake kind.” He stopped, his neck stretching as though he was searching for something, and he even did a few hops as though trying to see over the tops of trees. “Yeah, I don’t think we’ve grown any of those this year, but maybe I can convince you of the benefits of a real tree.”
She ran her hand along a nearby branch, the needles soft and pliable against her fingertips. This resulted in a stronger scent of fresh pine in the air as she passed through. Natalie tried not to dreamily sigh it into her lungs. Instead, she crossed her arms, demonstrating how hard it would be to convince her of anything. “You can do your best. I’ve heard all the talking points from Big Christmas before, and it hasn’t swayed me yet.”
Mason barked a laugh, and it was a pleasant, deep rumble. He set the lightweight saw to his shoulder, carrying it like a lumberjack with an ax, as if he’d never been more comfortable than when he was working among the trees. He was different than he was in the coffee shop. More at ease with himself. For whatever reason, this left her nervous, as though she needed to guard herself more or she might start considering Apple Hill an acceptable distance away from Placerville to be considered “not local.”
“Big Christmas?”
“Mm-hmm. A very powerful lobby. I believe they follow G.I.F.T. Growers…uh, Implode…Fake Trees, or something.”
“Implode? Are we farmers and anarchists?”
“Definitely the worst combination of professions,” Natalie said, exaggerating her level of dismay. She didn’t want to admit it, but maybe her day at the tree farm wasn’t the worst chore she ever had to force herself to go through. It was turning out to be more entertaining than grocery shopping at least.
“Why isn’t it Growers Against Fake Trees?” he asked seriously, as if her Christmas tree conspiracy theories were to be taken sincerely and were not the most outrageous thing he’d ever heard.
“Because that spells G.A.F.T. and I don’t think that’s a real word.”
“But being against fake trees is something I can actually get behind. I wouldn’t even know how to implode a tree unless it involves a black hole or something.”
“Ha!And Iknewyou were prejudiced against fake Christmas trees. I can see it written all over you.” She waved a hand over his torso to indicate what she considered all of him.
He shrugged, but the glint of amusement was still there. “I wasn’t trying to hide it. I want that sweet Christmas tree cash and someday this farm will be mine. But I can see that I have my work cut out for me as you appear to be a customer of discerning plastic taste. Luckily, I’m a Christmas tree expert so you just tell me what you like about a fake tree and I’ll see what I can do to make sure you’re just as happy with one of ours.”
While she did her best to maintain her poker face, he intrigued her in spite of everything. “Okay, fine. Fake trees are more economical. I don’t have to buy them every year.”
“I don’t think you’re getting more economical than this year, because I’m giving you any tree you want. For free.”
“Hmm. I guess you’re right. Okay, fake trees are more environmentally friendly, because you don’t have to cut a tree down just for the sake of decorating the inside of your house for a few weeks out of the year.”
“We practice eco-friendly harvesting, which means we utilize stump culturing. So, when we cut a tree, it’s never at ground level but above some of the lower branches. This keeps the tree alive and allows it to grow another top. Do you know if the energy and resources going into creating yourfaketree are environmentally friendly?”
Natalie slid a glance at Mia whose only response was to raise a single eyebrow, which meant her friend was impressed with the man. She had to work to keep her own jaw from jarring apart. Okay, he didn’t come to play, and, despite herself, she liked it.
She considered going with the argument that putting away fake trees was easier. Natalie hardly gave two thoughts about packing away an item in which she hadn’t allowed herself to become emotionally invested in the first place. Except, she had a suspicion this might reveal something sad about herself.
Instead, she blurted, “Fake trees don’t stink.” Natalie didn’t actually have a problem with the natural scent of Christmas trees, but she committed to this line of argument and had no choice but to proceed full steam ahead. “If I wanted to feel like I was living inside of a forest, I would exchange my apartment for a tent.”
“You don’t like the smell of Christmas trees?” His face reflected utter confusion. Even Mia gave her an odd look.
