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Luca shrugged indifferently. ‘Do you like it?’
Tia looked at it again and tried to imagine it covered in delicate white lights. ‘It’s gorgeous, but—’
‘Then we have it,’ Luca announced arrogantly, looking around for the man who was helping haul the trees to people’s cars.
Fifteen minutes later they were bumping down the forest track with the tree half hanging out of the boot of the car.
‘I hope we don’t meet a policeman,’ Tia said, glancing back anxiously to check that the tree was still mostly in the boot. ‘Is it going to fit?’
Luca nodded with his usual confidence. ‘It will fit.’
It did. In fact, it was perfect, filling their cosy living room with a musky smell of forest and pine needles.
Tia fingered the needles with awe. ‘This is a dream tree.’
‘No.’ He tucked his fingers under her chin and lifted her face to look at him. ‘It’s not a dream, Tia, it’s real. Remember that.’
He bent his head slowly and brushed a kiss against her mouth and then paused, obviously fighting some internal battle.
She held her breath, wanting him to kiss her properly, but he released her suddenly and gave her a tense smile.
‘Come on. We haven’t started our Christmas shopping yet.’
The town was crowded and they were soon caught up in the excitement of Christmas, smiling at the groups of carol singers gathered on street corners and admiring the decorations in the shop windows.
They stopped at a small café to drink hot chocolate and eat sandwiches, and Tia’s face glowed with excitement.
‘You know something,’ she said, her hands wrapped around her steaming mug of chocolate, ‘this feels like someone else’s Christmas.’
He sat back in his chair and gave her a puzzled frown. ‘Someone else’s?’
‘Yes.’ She broke off, her cheeks flushed, suddenly shy. ‘I was always on the outside looking in at Christmas. It’s one of those times of year that always seems to be perfect for everyone else. I know that it isn’t, of course,’ she said quickly, ‘but it just seems that way when you’re lonely. This is the sort of Christmas that I always envied everyone else for having. You know, the tree, the lights, sharing it with someone you—’
Dear God, she’d almost confessed that she loved him!
Luca was suddenly very still and when he finally spoke his voice was hoarse. ‘Someone that you…?’
Tia’s heart thumped steadily. ‘Enjoy being with,’ she said quickly. ‘Someone you enjoy being with.’
His eyes searched hers for a long moment and suddenly he looked tired. ‘Well, this year it isn’t someone else’s Christmas, Tia. It’s yours and mine.’
As their eyes locked, her heart started to thump.
Suddenly she didn’t care about Luisa or whether or not she’d been part of Luca’s life before she herself had met him. Either way, she was entirely sure that the woman wasn’t a part of his life now.
‘Luca…’ how could she tell him that she wanted to end the no-touching rule?
‘Are you ready to go home?’
She nodded and wrapped her scarf loosely around her neck, dipping her head in its soft folds to hide her blush.
Back at the cottage, they lit a fire and decorated the blue spruce, smiling with satisfaction as they looked at the results of their handiwork.
Tia had found a holly tree at the bottom of the garden and had decorated the hearth with twists of greenery and berries.
‘This is wonderful.’ She smothered a yawn and stretched herself full length on the sofa, relishing the view of the tree. It was a fairy-tale Christmas tree, covered in tiny, delicate white lights and a few tasteful silver decorations. And under it were presents, gaily wrapped and tied with ribbons of various colours. She knew that Luca had put them there and she smiled at him gratefully. ‘Thank you, Luca.’
‘Prego.’ A smile touched his eyes and he knelt down to tend to the fire, throwing on another log and giving it a prod.
