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We get all bundled up. Sarah looks like she is being swallowed up by my clothes but at least she will be warm when we go outside. I get the axe from the garage then open the back door. Harley runs ahead of us creating a trail for us to walk in. I look behind me and see Sarah struggling with the large boots I put on her feet. I laugh out loud at her. The death glare she shoots my way make my balls shrivel up into my body.
I grab her hand and pull her close to me. “How about a piggy back ride? Jump on.” She laughs but does as I say. Harley is having the time of her life running and jumping all around us. She loves this time of year. I trudge through the snow to the trees at the end of my property. Once we get there, Sarah jumps down.
“Alright, here we are. Now, your job is to pick the perfect tree,” I tell her. She beams up at me then looks around at all the trees she has to pick from.
“Hmm, how about that one?” She points to one in the corner, it has the perfect shape we are looking for.
“We need to make sure the branches are sturdy enough to hold lights and ornaments. Sarah takes a step in that direction and falls flat on her face in a huge pile of snow. She squeals and sits up with her face covered inwhite powder. I can’t help but to laugh.
“Oh, is that funny? How about this?” She gets up and runs toward me then jumps up on me and we both go down laughing the whole way.
She rolls over on her back and we look up at the sky where more snow is falling down on us. It feels like a magical moment. I reach for her hand and take it in mine, squeezing it once then she squeezes back.
“My dad would do that with me when I was younger. He would squeeze my hand once and it meant ‘I love you’. It was our thing until he passed away,” Sarah mentions as she continues to look up at the falling snow.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring that memory back for you.” I begin to let her hand go but she holds on tighter.
“No. I liked it. I like remembering the good times with him.” She looks over at me and smiles. I grasp her hand tighter not wanting to let go. “I think we need to cut down this tree and get back inside before we get snowed over,” she jokes.
“I agree.” I stand and then pull her up, our hands staying connected. “Are we sure this is the one?” I ask before I begin chopping it down.
“Yes, it’s perfect. Do you have a stand to put it in? I didn’t even think to ask you before.”
“Actually, I do. It’s in the garage. I suppose it was waiting for this Christmas to make itself useful.” I pick up the axe that I dropped and let go of Sarah’s hand so I can cut downthe tree she chose. My hand feels bare without hers in it.
It doesn’t take long for me to cut it down, then we getback in the house. We shake it as much as we can to get the extra snow off before we bring it in with towels. As I attach the base, Sarah begins bringing down the decorations from the hallway. I situate the tree off to the side of the fireplace, right in front of the windows to the back porch.
“Oh, it’s perfect Travis!” Sarah smiles the brightest of smiles at me.
“I’m glad. Now, it’s time to decorate it. What do we do first?” I ask.
“Lights always go first.” She digs through the bins and pulls out several boxes of white Christmas lights. “These are perfect.” She hands me a box and we both take them out and begin unraveling them. Sarah takes her strand behind the tree then plugs them in. “So, we start at the bottom and go to the top.” She goes around the tree back and forth until she can no longer reach. Then I take over for her and emulate the way she was putting them into the tree. She stands back squinting her eyes.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“This is how you tell if you missed any big spots. You just concentrate on looking at the lights and it shows you bare places. I think we got it right the first time. You aren’t so bad at this.” She holds her hand up for me to slap.
“I didn’t say I was bad at it. I just never took the time to decorate.” I return her high-five.
“Alright then, well, grab some ornaments and start putting them on there while I make some bows with this ribbon. Make sure you space them out.” She smirks at me.
After a couple hours, the Christmas tree is done and Sarah and I are on the couch enjoying the view. “I haveto admit my place was missing some holiday cheer. Thank you, Sarah, for bringing it here.” I take her hand in mine and bring it to my lips pressing small kisses to her fingers.
“Thank you for chopping down one of your trees for me. It may not be a real Christmas tree but it's my favorite that I’ve ever decorated.” We snuggle in closer as we take in the decorations. It’s getting darker outside and I hear Sarah’s stomach rumble. I guess we worked through lunch.
“What would you like for dinner? I told you I would teach you how to cook.” I remind her.
“Something easy. How about pasta?” she asks.
“Sure, come on. Pasta it is.” We make our way to the kitchen and spend the next hour making the most delicious Alfredo. We are a great team and I can’t help but to be in awe of this beautiful creature that fell into my lap. Literally.
Chapter 15
3 days til Christmas…
Sarah
I wake to Travis sliding in and out of me slowly, his hot breath coating my skin. I could get used to waking up like this every morning. My breathing picks up and my heart accelerates as he picks up his pace.
