“Then Old Man Clemmons would see what I’m doing. He’s as blind as a bat at night. Which is why …” I pause to adjust the part of the Christmas scene that I’ve affixed to the room into the right place, “he won’t know what I’ve got comin’.”
“You and this competition. It better not get you killed. Or I will?—”
“You’ll what?” I ask, looking down at her.
Her mouth opens and closes a few times. “Pay attention to what you’re doing!”
“I am, darlin’. I— Oh shit!” I call out when my foot twists the wrong way and I have to grab onto the ladder.
“Joel!”
The alarm in Ellyn’s voice makes my heart race more than the near miss. I’m fine, but I know that’s the closest I want to come to worrying her.
“Comin’ down now,” I say even as I’m halfway down the ladder.
The instant my foot hits the ground, I pull Ellyn into me. A quick peck on her lips aids in settling my nerves.
“That’s all done,” I tell her. “Now, we can get to the fun portion of decorating.”
Her eyes sparkle. “The tree?”
I nod.
We’ve already decorated most of the inside and the front yard. I always leave the tree last because it’s my favorite.
Ellyn’s excitement increases mine, and I’m already excited as hell to finish what I always considered to be the crowning jewel of any Christmas setting.
“This corner is perfect for a tree,” she says, as I drag the box with the massive Christmas tree inside to the area of the living room opposite the fireplace.
We’ve already hung the garland along the fireplace and over the doorway frames. I’ve replaced the statues and other piecesthat typically sit on the shelves and the top of the fireplace with ornamental items.
“That thing is massive,” Ellyn says as I open the huge box.
“Hell, yeah,” I say, looking up at her, grinning. “It’s an eight footer.”
“I don’t think I’ve had anything over seven feet and that was only for one year.”
“Used to get nine footers,” I grunt out while hauling the base of the artificial tree out of the box. “With ten-foot ceilings, I wanted to make sure the tree always stood out.”
“How long have you had this one? Please don’t tell me you change your tree out every year.” She sounds incredulous. “Artificial trees are meant to last for years.”
“Used to get the real thing,” I grunt out before handing her the white cloth dress that’s used to cover the tree’s base.
“About five years ago, Lonzie was on a kick about saving the planet and whatnot.” I pause my movement to look up at Ellyn.
“Actually, he’s still on that kick. He wants to be some sort of environmental scientist,” I say about Micah and Jodi’s oldest son.
“Anyway, he came in one year on a tangent about the harm of cutting down real trees to celebrate a holiday. Even when I told his little butt that there were special farms where these trees were grown for the purpose of being cut down for Christmas.”
“He wouldn’t hear it, huh?” Ellyn interjects.
“The problem with all of my boys, their wives, and especially my grandkids?” I pause. “They’re all stubborn as hell.”
She smirks. “I wonder where they get it from.”
I rise to my feet and shrug with a frown. “Hell if I know.”
Ellyn blinks at me in astonishment.
