I was shocked by the little green monster that threatened to come out.
“Of course it is,” he boomed. “You know I’m the only one living in these parts.”
“Well, in that case, Ella,” Caroline said, “you’re in safe hands. I’ve known that one since he was hiding behind his mama.”
Oh. Caroline must be older. Now I felt even sillier getting all jealous for no reason.
“I’ll give y’all a call tomorrow when the boys are ‘bout to head over.”
“’Preciate it.”
“Stay warm. Sounds like you’ve got good company.”
“Yeah. I do,” I said, grinning so hard my face ached. I really did.
Because this meant we had another evening tucked away in Axel’s cabin, just the two of us, with nowhere to be and no one expecting us. I wasn’t mad about it. Not at all.
We’d just spent the entire afternoon decorating, dragging out boxes from the very generous storage closet and sorting through tangled lights and mismatched ornaments. His cabin now looked like a bomb of holiday cheer had exploded inside.
Garlands hung from the rafters, twinkling lights wrapped around the beams, and the tree we’d cut down earlier stood proud in the corner, dripping with lights and baubles. There was a stuffed reindeer on the mantel that looked like it had seen better days, and Axel had insisted on putting a Santa hat on the carved bear by the door.
It was excessive. It was perfect.
“You’ve got a heck of a lot of Christmas stuff for a guy who lives alone,” I said, holding up a ceramic elf with a chipped ear. “This guy’s seen some things.”
Axel guffawed, taking the elf from me and setting it gently on the windowsill. “Most of it was my parents’. They were big on holidays. My mom used to start decorating the day after Halloween.”
I glanced over at him, thrown by the sadness in his voice. “They’re gone?”
He nodded, picking out the last item in the box, a big star tree topper. “Yeah. They had me and my sister late in life. They passed a few years ago. They used to live just over the hill. The house is still there, but I don’t go there much now except to maintain it.”
I stepped closer, brushing my hand along his arm. “I’m sorry.”
“They’d have liked you. My mom would’ve tried to feed you until you couldn’t move.”
That made me laugh. “Did you grow up here? Around Darlington, I mean.”
“Mostly. We moved around a bit when I was younger, but this place was always the plan. My sister and I used to spend summers here before it became home full-time.”
“Where’s your sister now?”
“She’s out in the Rockies. Said she moved out there to live her dream life. But I think it’s because she couldn’t live in the house with all the memories. She sends postcards with inspirational quotes and pictures of her dog in sweaters every year.”
“The ones on the fridge,” I said. I’d noticed those earlier and had thought they were memories of an old canine friend.
“Yes. Those ones. She’s happy. That’s what matters.”
After wrangling the final string of lights into submission and leaving only the star topper waiting for its grand finale, Axel stretched with a groan and shot me a look that said if one more ornament came near him, he might start growling at it.
“Dinner?” he asked, already heading toward the kitchen.
“Yes, please,” I said, then coughed. “I think I inhaled some glitter.”
He snorted and reached for me, tugging me close for a quick kiss. “We could go for the frozen shepherd’s pie, but I was thinking we’d bust out those steaks today. I’d rather share them with you now than eat them alone later.”
“Ooh! You’re actually going to cook for me? Yes, please.” My heart did a little thump-thump. No man had actually cooked for me before. “But let me help make something at least.”
“How about the mashed potatoes?” he offered.
