“We had an accident.”
“I didn’t see anything on my way up.”
“It was at a home. Some guy ran into the pole in front of his house. We should be up and running in fifteen minutes or so.”
“Thanks, man.” They said goodbye and hung up. He looked at Valerie, noting how close she stood to him. She wasn’t in his space but reachable. Was it because she was cold or because she felt the pull between them, too? He definitely felt drawn to her, and the desire to wrap her in his arms to keep her warm was stronger than it should be for a stranger.
Before he knew what he was doing, he touched her arm. “This isn’t your fault.”
Her forehead wrinkled. “Really?”
He explained the accident and then dropped his hand as casually as possible. He hadn’t meant to touch her, and once he did, he wasn’t sure how long he should hold on. His heart rate was higher than usual, too, and his fingers were all buzzy, like his hands weren’t attached to his body. The whole experience made him feel self-conscious and like he didn’t know what to do with himself.
“I don’t feel good about leaving you up here until I know the power is back on, though, so if you don’t mind, I’ll just–” he cut off, unsure what he was going to do for the next fifteen minutes. “Uh… I … do you have any playing cards?”
She snorted a laugh. “Why? Do you want to play Go Fish?”
He mentally rolled his eyes at himself. “My family played games when the power went out. We’d light candles and then sit around for hours on end.”
“Is that why you became an electrician?” she asked.
He wrinkled his forehead. “I never thought of it. I liked the schooling. I like flexible days so I can take care of Collin, and I’m horrible at office work.” He was blathering on, trying to keep the conversation going. He didn’t want her to send him away.
“I don’t have cards,” she apologized as she glanced down. “Maybe we should go back to the Christmas Room.”
“That’s not a problem. It was just an idea,” he said quickly as he shut the door to the utility room behind him.
The walk back was awkward as heck, and he wished he hadn’t invited himself to stick around.
She went through the living room and then up the two steps to the kitchen, where she rummaged through the cupboards. “Popcorn?” she asked, pulling out a bag of pre-popped aged white cheddar popcorn.
He stood on the other side of the counter from her. “That’s the best kind.”
“You seemed like a man with refined taste.” She grinned and poured some into a bowl which she slid across the counter to him.
He scoffed and then paused. “I do smoke a gourmet brisket every now and again.”
“Do tell.” She poured herself a bowl and waited for his story.
“My parents bought me a smoker several years back. I think they were worried that I was raising Collin on McDonald's.”
She arched a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at him. “Were you?”
He blushed and ducked his head. “Maybe a little.” His cheeks hadn’t burned in ages. What was it about Valerie that had him feeling sheepish and bashful?
She laughed lightly. “He didn’t seem to be too worse for wear.”
“I’ve gotten better. Veggies at every meal now.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Breakfast?”
He coughed on a kernel of popcorn. “Omelets. We eat a lot of those.” He coughed again, unable to clear his throat.
Valerie grabbed a soda from the fridge and twisted off the top, handing it to him. He smiled, his eyes watering from holding back the cough. After a long drink, he felt like he could talk again. “Thanks.”
She nodded. “What in the world?” Valerie yelled as she darted to a screen mounted on the wall. Suddenly, the lights came on overhead, the fairy lights came to life, and Christmas music blared through the speakers. The music cut off, and the house noises filled in. The heater kicked on, and electricity hummed into the appliances.
Ethan let out a low whistle. “That’s a lot of Christmas.” He pointed to the boxes pushed up against the fireplace, into the corner, covering the couch, and all over the coffee table.
