“For what?”
Devin was speechless when Adria opened the door to reveal more snow than he’d ever seen. “I don’t think we’ve ever hadthismuch snow, ever. Wow, we're going to be snowed in for a while.”
She quickly closed the door. Devin watched her walk, admiring how graceful she moved, and how lovely her hair seemed to float around her back as she headed for the sandwich she’d been eating on the counter. “I think I’m just going to crash on the couch now. It’s so late, I couldn’t sleep, anyway.”
Devin watched her settle in with a comfy pillow and some blankets while she finished her sandwich. “Well, I’m headed back to bed.” As he made his way up the stairs, he debated going back down and staying with her like he wanted to do, but thought better of it.
He walked the open hallway to his bedroom, forever mindful with his eyes innocently scanning the room to make sure she was safe. He paused for a moment at his bedroom door and leaned over the railing.
Adria must have sensed him because she lifted her face to his, a soft smile on her face as she chewed her sandwich. “Good night.”
Devin nodded. Back in his room, he wanted to kick himself for not saying good night. He knew the last thing he should be doing was looking at any woman for a relationship of any kind beyond friendship.
His marriage had been everything to him until it wasn’t and he ended up on the outside looking in. He’d suffered much as did his ex-wife, and the damage was probably done, but he was hopeful one day he could find love again. Sadly, now was probably not the time.
As he stared into the darkness, Adria’s image kept popping up in his head. Seeing her beautiful face, knowing she was just downstairs made him happy. He would see her in the morning, and at least be friends and enjoy some time with her and Becca.
Four
With her stomach full, Adria was able to find some modicum of peace and sleep. She knew she’d chosen a bad spot the moment her eyes drifted closed, but then opened again in what seemed like seconds when she heard someone whistling.
She blinked her eyes open and rolled over, dusting the crumbs off her face and sat up. Liam stood at the coffeemaker, making coffee. He turned and smiled. “Good morning. Sorry, it’s early.”
Disgruntled, she threw herself back and rolled over. “You said you wouldn’t bother us. I consider this bothering.” She tried in vain to go back to sleep, and got nowhere, with the smell of brewing coffee and the sound of his continued whistling and the memory of the snowfall.
Adria didn't get up because Liam stood in front of her holding a cup. “Here, it chases away the fog.”
She sat up. “Thank you. That is very kind of you.”
He smiled and sat down where her feet had been after she sat up to drink his coffee. They sat in companionable silence like that for a while and Adria felt content. It surprised her. “You know, forgive me for saying this, but you're really easy, comforting almost. You have this presence about you. At first, I couldn’t pick up on it, but now I can. It's relaxing being around you. You don’t get flustered easily, do you?”
“Not really, life’s too short to let the small stuff get to you. I’ve had a challenging life but not as challenging as some, so why complain? My coffee tastes good, I’m breathing, and alive. I can paint and do it really well. I’m really blessed.”
Adria smiled, continuing to sip her coffee. “You're absolutely right. That’s how I am too. Sometimes it's hard to remember that, but I like the fact that I can be around you so far and just be.”
“Same. You have that same quality, just so you know.”
His words caught Adria off guard and she became thoughtful for a moment. “Do I really?”
“Absolutely, probably more so than me. Sure, I see you like to tease people and be yourself, but you're just as comfortable in your skin as me. But you have that way about you too. It's just that you spend too much time with animals to have it given back to you.”
Adria leaned her head against the couch. “I guess.” Then she looked up again. “Hey, did you see the snow?”
“No.”
Adria took Liam’s hand and tugged him to get up. “Come on, you don’t want to miss this!” She stood at the door to the back and opened it. The snow had stopped and the sun was shining, but about four and a half feet of snow had fallen.
“Wow.”
Adria couldn’t help but laugh at him. “Yeah, I don’t think you're going to be fixing that truck today.”
He smiled. “No, but I think I can make cookies instead whenever you're ready.”
Her mind started racing. “Never mind that. First, we need to get this place decorated and since you and Devin are here, you can help. I can’t make one cookie without Christmas decorations.”
“What about a tree, we can’t go out and get one now?”
Adria was on a mission to go to the attic and find the boxes of decorations. “We use a fake one. If we wanted to decorate a tree outside, our mother used to run an extension cord and let us light one up.”
