Chapter Twenty-One
“Are you comfortable? Can I get you another pillow? Is the fire too hot?”
“Brian, everything’s perfect.” Cait ran her fingers through Sierra’s fluffy mane and propped her feet up on the ottoman. “Come, sit with me.”
She and Brian were back in her parents’ cabin after picking up the two dogs from Linx. After successfully negotiating with her family to let her and Brian have some alone time up in the mountains, Cait was ready for a quiet and possibly romantic evening.
Her family had prepared everything: stacked firewood, stocked the refrigerator, mopped and dusted, and fluffed the pillows and down comforters.
They were on their way to get a Christmas tree when Cait pulled her sister Jenna aside and suggested that it would be more heroic if they could let Brian chop down the tree and drag it into the cabin while she gathered pine cones, boughs, and holly berries to prepare garlands and wreaths.
After that pronouncement, her family did a one-eighty and disappeared.
“Brian, come and sit with me,” Cait repeated as her husband stoked the fire with Melia at his side.
His shoulders stiffened, but he kept poking at the fire.
“Brian, did you hear me?” Cait gave Sierra a pat and pushed her toward Brian.
The large dog waddled over and slumped herself in front of the fire.
“I heard you,” Brian said, pushing himself from the fireplace. “I still have a number of assignments to do before I can sit with you.”
“What assignments?” Cait patted the cushion next to her.
“Set up a Christmas tree, cook dinner, light candles, feed and brush the dogs, clear the gutters, and…”
“All that can wait.” Cait held her hands out, entreating him. “I want to talk.”
“Was afraid of that,” he muttered under his breath.
“Okay, then we don’t talk. But no more busywork. My family let me stay here because I told them it’ll help me heal from my concussion. You running around like a hyperactive robot will overload my nerves and well, you’re driving me crazy.”
He turned toward her, running his fingers through his thick red hair. “I don’t know how to be alone with you.”
“We’re not alone. We have Sierra and Melia.”
At the sound of her name, Melia padded over to Cait and placed her bear-like head on Cait’s knees.
“I’m nervous.” Brian rubbed his hands and clasped his fingers. “I feel different. I can’t explain it. Like there’s this big test I didn’t study for.”
“This is not a test.” Cait let her fingers glide through Melia’s silky coat. “We’ve been married twelve years. It’s the first time we get to spend Christmas together.”
“But, won’t you miss your family?” Brian stuttered. “What if we run out of things to talk about?”
“We don’t have to talk. It’s still light outside, and we can go for a walk.” She reached up for Brian and he pulled her up from the couch. “I’m sure the dogs will love it.”
They’d picked up the dogs shortly after Cait left the hospital, and they were due for a walk.
“If we see a tree you like on the property, tag it, and I’ll cut it down for you,” Brian said. He opened the door and let Sierra and Melia out without their leashes. The Hart property sat on two acres of hilly terrain populated by pines, firs, and a stand of sequoias.
Once outside, Brian seemed more relaxed as he offered an arm to Cait. They ambled down a path padded with pine needles toward a small creek. The air was crisp and clear. Slanted rays of the sun shimmered through the trees and made the tumbling water sparkle.
Sierra stayed close to Cait and Brian, but little Melia dashed about and plunged into the creek.
“Won’t she get cold?” Cait wondered. The creek wasn’t frozen, but the temperature was dropping, and snow was in the forecast. Perhaps they’d have a white Christmas. Anything was better than freezing rain.
Brian put his arm around her. “She’s got a fur coat, and I’m sure she’s well adapted to cold weather.”
