Page 77 of Deck the Hauls

Once we’d decorated the lower floor, Dad and I went back into the house to get the ladder from the basement. Mom’s and Dana’s voices drifted down the hall. I caught a few words. “Turkey.” “Delicious.” “Best.” It sounded like Dana was complimenting my parents’ cooking. At this rate, they wouldn’t want her to leave either.

By the time we were back in the front yard, Lucia had moved on from the baby reindeer and was tightening a rope around a large blow-up Santa.

“I don’t want a repeat of the time that storm blew Santa all the way down the street and ended up wedged in between the Contis’ living room window and a shrub,” Lucia said.

I chuckled at the memory. Santa’s face had been pressed up against the window and had almost given Mrs. Conti a heart attack when she woke up. I should tell Dana that story.

I was just fastening a bow under the spare-room window when a face appeared behind the glass. I shrieked, gripping the ladder for dear life. I exhaled, my heart still thumping. It was just Dana, smiling. No wonder Mrs. Conti had gotten a scare.

Dana opened the window, and I fought the temptation to lean forward and kiss her.

“Do I have a peeping Tom?” Dana asked, her smile widening.

I threw my hair over my shoulder with a flick of my wrist in mock outrage. “Excuse me! I’m just decorating, not creeping on you. You’re the one who scared the daylights out of me.”

“I was just joking,” Dana said, holding up her hands.

“So...” I leaned in. “How are you feeling now?”

“I’m well rested, fed and caffeinated, so pretty great.”

“It looked like you were hobbling a bit. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a bit stiff from all the digging yesterday. I’m sure I’ll loosen up.”

How much digging had she done?

“Hmm. Isn’t it usually worse the second day?”

Dana grimaced. “I hope not. The trees go on sale tomorrow and there’s a lot to do. I’ll have to head out soon so I can start work.”

I rubbed my hand along the side of the ladder. Should I offer to go back to Sapphire Springs to help her?

Dana was clearly in pain, and it was all because she’d moved mountains of snow to get me home. Offering to help now seemed like the least I could do. Although...it would mean spending more time with her, which was the opposite of what we’d agreed on.

Fuck it.

“Hey, why don’t I come back to the farm with you for the weekend and help you set up?”

Dana’s mouth parted slightly. “Oh. Wow. That’s so generous of you.” Her eyes flickered past me to the lawn where Lucia and Dad were inspecting a string of Christmas lights. “But you should spend the holiday with your family.”

“I’ve got plenty of time to spend with them. I mean, I usually live with them and work at their restaurant. The last two weeks was the longest time I’d spent away from them in a few years. I can definitely manage another couple of days.”

“Don’t you want to hang out with Lucia?”

“We had a really good catch-up this morning,” I said, lowering my voice so Dad wouldn’t hear. “She hasn’t told my parents yet, but she’s moving back home at Christmas, so she’ll be back here permanently in a few weeks. She’s left her husband. So please, let me help you. You’ve done so much for me. Anyway, it’s not like I have anything better to do now that filming is over.” I swallowed. “And I like spending time with you.”

Possibly too much.

Dana ran her hand through her hair. “I like spending time with you too.”

“So, what do you think?”

“That would be lovely.” Dana’s gaze dropped to my lips. “But what about… Will you stay with me?”

Did she want me to stay with her, or was she just being polite? “I could see if the Airbnb is available?”

“I don’t mind if you stay.”