Chapter 12
Twelve
Holly’s typical tradition was to put up her tree the Sunday after Thanksgiving, and she was surprised when Lucas asked if he could stay and help her.
Actually, they had gone to the local Christmas tree lot the day before so she could pick out her tree. He’d been curious why they didn’t decorate it as soon as they brought it home, and she had to explain that it needed a day to acclimate to the inside temperatures.
It was kind of cute how clueless he was, but it also made her sad because these things were part of her family’s traditions—picking out a fresh tree, eagerly waiting until it was time to decorate it, and then making a colossal mess of the house while you sorted through boxes of lights, decorations, and ornaments.
But he took it all in stride and helped with anything she asked of him, and made sure nothing was left out that Shmoop could eat or get tangled up in.
He had been staying with her since the night before Thanksgiving, and while she thought it would be weird having him in her house for that many days, she was actually loving it.
The temperatures had dropped, and outside, snow was gently falling, making it the perfect time to put up her Christmas tree.
Inside, however, the living room smelled like cinnamon and pine, and soft holiday music played from a speaker on the mantle.
Her tall Christmas tree stood half-dressed in the corner—the lights were already strung, but the ornaments were still scattered across the floor.
Shmoop was unimpressed with the entire process and was snoring loudly in his bed.
Lucas was crouched beside one of the boxes, holding up a crooked, glittery reindeer. His slightly amused expression spoke volumes. “This guy’s seen things.”
Holly grabbed it from him, feigning offense. “Hey, that’s Harold and he’s vintage. Be nice.”
“Harold has one eye and sparkles like he went through a glitter explosion.”
“Exactly, and he’s fabulous.” She lovingly reached up on her tiptoes to hang Harold near the top of the tree.
Once he was settled, she turned to find Lucas watching her.
There was something in his expression—it was tender and thoughtful—before he got up and walked over to her. His hands lightly rested on her waist
"You were wobbling."
"I was reaching. Big difference." She adjusted the ornament before spinning around in his arms, an impish grin tugging at her lips.
He grinned. “My mistake.”
"Okay, it’s your turn to pick an ornament to place on the tree. Something equally iconic, please."
“I’m sorry. What?”
“That’s the tradition. Everyone takes turns putting ornaments on the tree.
I just hung Harold, so now it’s your turn.
Didn’t you ever…?” Then she stopped herself because she remembered his sad story about leaving for school with the house was undecorated and then coming home and everything was done.
“Hmm…let’s see what we’ve got here.”
Her collection of ornaments was a bit eclectic.
Anytime she traveled, she’d buy a Christmas ornament.
Every one of them that hung on the tree had a story.
Some funny, some sentimental, some just because she liked the look of them.
But as Lucas sifted through the ornaments, she wondered what he thought of them.
She watched as he paused and then held up a plastic taco with a tiny Santa hat on it. Shaking her head, she laughed. "You wouldn’t."
"Oh, I would."
“But…but…that’s not a prime or iconic ornament! There are so many other fabulous ones to choose from!”
With his eyes never leaving hers, he stood and carefully hung that silly taco right next to her porcelain angel, looking absurdly proud of himself. "There. Balance. Beauty and beef."
She groaned, but was secretly amused. “Okay, my turn. Now watch and learn.” As she turned to grab another ornament, Lucas moved behind the tree, and suddenly popped his head out from the branches like a mischievous elf.
Startled, she laughed. "What are you doing?"
"I live here now. Among the ornaments."
This playful side of him was a complete surprise, and she was loving it.
Still laughing, she said, "Oh my goodness, get out of my tree!
" Moving around to the back where he was, she swatted at him with a strand of silver garland, but he caught it and wrapped it gently around her shoulders, pulling her closer. “You are utterly ridiculous.”
"Hey, you’re the one who invited me to decorate."
"Yes. Decorate! Not inhabit the tree."
They were face to face now, her hands still tangled in the garland, his nose brushing hers.
The playful energy simmered into something softer as the moment stretched.
The twinkling lights bathed them in a warm, golden glow.
The only thing that would have made it more perfect was if they were standing under some mistletoe.
Note to self: Buy some mistletoe!
"You’re beautiful, you know. Especially when you’re bossing me around with ornaments."
“Aww…” She felt herself blushing. “It’s one of my many gifts.”
He leaned in and kissed her—slow, sweet, wrapped in garland and the pine-scented air—while Harold and the taco looked on approvingly from the tree.
When they finally parted, she playfully nudged him lightly. "Sorry, but…you’re still not putting the taco on the front of the tree. He’s a back-of-the-tree kind of thing."
“That just seems wrong. And if there’s an order, I didn’t get the memo.”
“I would have thought it was obvious.”
“I think you’re forgetting who you’re dealing with,” he murmured. “This is the first tree I’ve ever decorated.”
And for some reason, that hadn’t clicked before. Like she knew his family didn’t do this sort of thing, but she thought he might have done it at his grandparents’ house or a friend’s or…
She launched herself into his arms, hugging him tightly.
His arms gently banded around her. “Everything okay?”
“No,” she mumbled, pressing her face against his throat. “I’m sad.”
“Why?”
Looking up at him, she tried really hard not to cry. “Because you never had the chance to make memories with ornaments and decorate a tree that looks messy instead of artistically decorated. That should be something every kid does.”
Reaching up, Lucas cupped her face, offering her a small smile. “I didn’t know I was missing it. But this right here? What we’re doing? We’re making memories. I’m making memories. So…thank you.”
Then he kissed her, and it was just the right amount of sweet with heat. They carefully maneuvered away from the tree and over to the couch, where they took a sexy break from the decorating.
That week, the office seemed more chaotic than usual, and it was because Holly had taken charge of decorating for the holidays.
This was another project his mother hired people for in the past, but now it was up to them to make it look festive.
He loved the way she took total joy in the process, but he was not a fan of the mess that seemed to follow her everywhere.
He was still recovering from the tree decorating on Sunday.
Still, he had to admit that it was a lot of fun and seeing the finished product—a charmingly eclectic and slightly misshapen tree—filled him with a sense of accomplishment.
Plus, he loved the way Holly thanked him for all his help.
It was lonely when he returned to the guesthouse Sunday night, but he already felt like he’d overstayed his welcome. She hadn’t said anything to him; it was just his own thing in his head.
There were no decorations, no color, no character, no…life. And being that it was just a guesthouse, he wasn’t interested in changing anything. He was, however, suddenly feeling the itch to go house hunting again. Maybe Holly would go with him and help him find his perfect home.
And what exactly did that look like?
Before he met Holly, it looked like a modern house with white walls, a white kitchen, and neutral, boring furniture.
But now? Now he envisioned a craftsman style with a big front porch and a swing.
Inside, lots of color and framed photographs, a fireplace with a big mantle, and some big, oversized sofas.
And a dog.
Shmoop immediately came to mind, but that was just because he was the only dog Lucas had been around, right?
But the more he thought about this future house, the more he pictured Holly there with him, which was crazy! They were only newly dating. They barely knew each other. He couldn’t possibly be thinking about a future this soon, could he?
“Obviously I can because I am,” he murmured, leaning back in his desk chair.
“Knock, knock!”
He looked up and found Lennon standing in the doorway. “Hey, what’s up?”
“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here,” his friend said. “Or like a Christmas tornado had come through.” He laughed. “Holly’s got a good heart, but her process is a bit chaotic. I think I saw her and people from every department trying to get everything organized.”
That made him chuckle. “And she should. There’s no reason for her to be doing it alone.”
“Did we have all those decorations in storage or did she have to buy them?”
“Good question.” And before he could think about it, he saw her walking past his office. “Holly?”
She reappeared, smiling but breathless. “Hi! Is everything okay?” Turning her head, she spotted Lennon. “Oh, hey! How are you today?”
“I’m good! I was just telling Lucas how much I was admiring the decorations.”
That seemed to please her. “Thank you! It’s turning into a group effort.”
“Where’d you find the decorations?” Lucas asked.
Holly took a few steps toward him. “Um…I had to reach out to the building manager and he said we had a storage unit in the basement. So I went down there and got everything, but there wasn’t a tree.
I’m guessing your mom used the same decorator that she used on the house and it’s the whole tree thing all over again. ”
“So there’s no tree?” Lennon asked. “There was usually something like…”
“Five,” Holly finished for him. “Five trees. I know. I’m working on it, so everything will be the same.”
Standing, Lucas moved toward her, his hands twitching with the need to touch her. “What can I do to help? We don’t need to buy a twenty-foot tree, right? Can I maybe just go to the store and buy some pre-lit trees and call it a day?”
“No, we don’t need a twenty-foot tree, but I don’t know what store you’re going to go to. We can order them online if we need to. I know exactly what they looked like and…”
“Nonsense! Lennon and I will go and pick them up over lunch, right?”
Lennon’s eyes went wide. “Um…yeah. Sure. We can do that.” He turned and smiled at Holly. “No worries.”
“You guys are awesome! Thank you!” She looked ready to come over and kiss him, but immediately changed her mind, opting to wave on her way out the door.
“Dude, what was that?”
“What was what?”
“You and Holly!” Lennon said with amusement. “The two of you were like two magnets fighting to stay away from each other!”
“Oh, um…”
But Lennon clapped him on the shoulder with a grin. “I’m not looking for specifics, so relax. I just wasn’t expecting it.”
“We’ve known each other for years, but not very well. Once we started working on the whole party thing and spending time together, something just clicked.”
“Good for you!” He quickly glanced at his watch. “Let me go grab my phone and we’ll head out to lunch. And buy some trees, I guess. Why did you volunteer us for that?”
“Because she’s taking on everything and it’s my family’s fault. If picking up a few Christmas trees will help, then it’s the least I can do.”
“That’s one way of putting it,” Lennon murmured before stepping toward the door. “I’ll meet you in the lobby in five minutes.”
“Sounds good! Thanks!”
It hadn’t been on his schedule to go out of the office for lunch today, but it wasn’t a bad thing. He was trying to prepare for his call with his sisters—which was going to happen tomorrow—and he was obsessing about it. So maybe a little Christmas tree shopping would be a good distraction.
Plus, it had been a while since he and Lennon hung out or did anything together.
“Got a minute?” Holly peeked her head back into the office.
“Sure! What’s up? Everything okay?”
Nodding, she stepped in and quietly shut the door behind her before boldly walking over and kissing him until they were both breathless.
Then she pulled back, looking pleased. “I wanted to do that earlier, just not in front of Lennon.”
When she went to move away, he tugged her back over and kissed her thoroughly. And this time, he pulled back first. “I wanted that too, but just like you, not in front of Lennon.”
“Aww…”
“Five trees, right?”
“Yup! Eight-foot ones that are pre-lit should be fine. Once I see them, I’ll order ornaments.
There were a few boxes down in the storage room that had basic tree decorations in them, but I can order more online and have them here by the end of the week.
But if you get the lighted ones, it saves us a ton of time and energy. ”
“I’m on it!” he assured her, kissing her one more time.
She cupped his face when they broke apart. “Lucas Brooks, you have been a very good boy this year. I’ll make sure Santa knows, so you get everything you want for Christmas.”
Visions of her in red silk in front of her tree came to mind as he peeled it off of her like she was the present. But the reality was that he had everything he wanted already, and it had nothing to do with material things.
He had Holly Brown.
And that was better than anything Santa could swing down the chimney.