Luke took one of the sleds from Bob and Derek grabbed the other one so the older couple could walk through the snow together.
“For being an idiot. For not being able to do that.” He jabbed in the direction of the girls. “Jody is not weirded out by this at all. She’s a better person than me.”
“If I agree with you, are you going to punch me?”
Derek shook his head. “I’ll admit watching you kiss Tara brought out some inner caveman in me for a second, but it’s completely irrational. I don’t feel the way I used to about her, and I know I killed any love she had for me.”
“I think the fact that you can admit that out loud means we’re going to be fine. But let’s not talk about it anymore. I’m not at the Jody level of Zen either. See you.” Luke took off through the snow, knowing he needed to make the most of his two second lead before Derek realized they were racing up the hill.
***
“Are we wrapping this up?” Sarah asked, looking around at all of them, cold and tired and rosy-cheeked. Hallie was half-asleep in Heston’s arms, but she sat back up and whined in protest at the thought of going home.
“I’m ready.” Tara had already had her fill of sledding and was content to lean against Luke and sip warm cider. And they deserved a break after taking an hour-long turn running up and down the hill with the kids so their parents could rest for a bit.
Aunt Sandy pulled Tara aside as everyone was gathering up their things from the top of the hill for the final trek down and over to the cars. “Bob drove here with Luke. Any chance you want to let me drive your car home and do a passenger swap?”
“Aunt Sandy, are you sure? Did you ask him if he wanted to do that?”
“Bob suggested it.” Aunt Sandy’s eyebrows wriggled up and down, but at Tara’s quelling look she slapped at Tara’s coat. “Don’t be such a ninny. We’re all headed the same direction. Bob and I want to listen to some old records from his collection and play chess at his house. That will give you and Luke some time together next door, and then you and I will drive on home. Deal? Unless, of course, Luke wants to come along back to our house, as I suspect he does.”
Tara sighed with contentment. “I suspect that too.” It was what she wanted, as well.
After handing over her car keys to Aunt Sandy and sending up a prayer that the woman would not drive like she usually did, Tara slipped her gloved hand into Luke’s and walked with him back to his car.
He had been quiet, more so than usual, but she waited until after they were in his car to ask him why.
He slipped off his gloves and took her bare hands between his, rubbing life back into her fingers. “Did I just coax you into something you didn’t want to do?”
“What do you mean? I had fun.”
“Fun-fun or fun-ish? When we first met, I was so terrified you’d make me choose between you or my friendship with Derek and Jody, and I know now you’d never make me do that. But the truth is, I’d choose you anyway. Even if you didn’t ask me. I want your happiness more than I want anything else. Also, I’m afraid my Christmas gift for you is really lame.”
Tara reached up and touched the hint of scruff on his face. “If you think I’m the kind of girl who asks for a thirty-dollar limit and then secretly pines away for a diamond tennis bracelet, then you don’t know me as well as you should.”
“But Bob and Derek said that—”
“I’m not interested in Bob or Derek.” She leaned in a little bit more and kissed away as much of his doubt as she could. Then she reached down into her bag and pulled out his gift, a scarf she’d knitted for him in the university colors so he could wear it to the football games.
“You made that for me?”
“Yep.” She draped it around his neck and used the two ends to pull him in closer. “It has various uses.”
He laughed. “I do love a useful gift. Do you want your gift now?”
Heston and Sarah honked loudly, probably as part of their never-ending quest to tease Luke, but he just batted them away like he would a fly before twisting around and pulling out a gift bag from the backseat. He placed it on Tara’s lap. She sensed his nervousness as she moved aside the white tissue paper and pulled out something smooth and rectangular.
“I don’t know if it all qualifies as homemade, but I did sand and stain it myself.”
It was a box, polished to a high gleam, with a lid that lifted up like a treasure box. Inside were three Christmas ornaments on ribbons. It wasn’t until she studied them that her breath caught and tears threatened to fall. How could he think she wouldn’t like this? She held up the first one—a trio of children singing with a dog howling at their feet. The children were wearing Santa hats.
“How we met.” She reached over and tugged on his sleeve. “Now it feels special rather than super embarrassing.”
Luke kissed the side of her head. “As much as I hate to say this, we’ll forever owe Sandy and her meddling.”
“But we never tell her that.”
“Agreed.”
