Three Months Later
“Come on, babe. You can’t put that there.”
Norah allowed Chase a sweet chuckle and came up behind her, circling her arms around her as they both scrutinized the Christmas tree in front of them.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“Seriously? The Virgin Mary cannot go next to Snoopy Santa. That’s just weird…and borderline sacrilegious.”
“What? Sacrilegious? That’s absurd.” Chase spun around and playfully grabbed Norah’s hips. “No one’s going to actually care which ornaments are next to each other. And besides, I heard Snoopy is Catholic.”
“You’re such a brat,” Norah said, scrunching up her face in what Chase knew was feigned annoyance but pressing her body closer to Chase’s. “And everyone knows Snoopy is Jewish.”
Chase shook her head and grabbed her tighter. The oven let off a pleasant ding, and Norah perked up.
“Cookies are ready. But this time you have to let them cool first.”
“I did almost burn my lips off the other day…”
Norah left the living room of the small farmhouse on the outskirts of Atlanta she had purchased at a steal just about the minute they arrived home from Louisiana.
In a matter of weeks the place was meticulously furnished in true Norah fashion with the perfect couch, the perfect artwork on the walls, and a charming oak table in the dining room that she and Chase would have their Christmas dinner at—along with John, his wife, and their grandbaby—the following week.
From the night of Jamie’s service on, Norah seemed to know exactly what she wanted and went and took it.
Even though the house was purchased in Norah’s name, Chase had been involved in the entire buying process, as well as all the home-improvement projects.
She wasn’t the handiest person on the planet, but she could follow instructions well, and after a couple of YouTube videos, Chase had managed to get the wood-burning fireplace up and running.
That night she stood by the fire, looking around at the twinkling lights on the tree they’d even cut together at a tree farm two hours outside of the city.
Norah’s cat, Pumpkin, was curled up on a blanket so close to the fire Chase worried she’d actually melt.
The scent of vanilla drifted in from the nearby kitchen, and Norah hummed along to Christmas music.
Chase smiled to herself, shaking her head at how quickly Norah could change from menacing army captain to domesticated housewife when the holidays rolled around.
Of course, she also never let herself forget anyone who tried to threaten them.
They would be sorry they did, no thanks to Chase.
There were moments, and they came often since Louisiana, when Chase couldn’t believe this was really her life.
“You know how much I love you, and love having you here.” Norah danced back into the room with an eggbeater covered in leftover sugar-cookie dough and held it up to Chase’s mouth.
“Mmm…” Chase licked her tongue along the edges, her eyes closed. “You are the best. Do you know that?”
“I love you being here. But—”
“Was that a bribe? I feel like that was a bribe. A sugar bribe.”
“You really need to go pack.”
Chase rolled her eyes and took the eggbeater from Norah’s hand, carefully licking the rest of the batter off it. She took her time, and after she finished, she laid it on the table and looked back at Norah with a grin.
“You’re right. I hate packing, but you’re right.”
“Just think of the end result though.” Norah draped her arms around Chase’s neck and swayed with her to the soft music coming from the kitchen. “In just three short days, this place isn’t just mine anymore. It’s ours.”
Chase held Norah’s hips, so overwhelmed by the feeling of having everything she’d ever wanted and didn’t think she’d have that she needed to prop herself up.
Six months earlier, she was passing away her time with meaningless sex, lonely nights, and then a global pandemic, which thankfully had simmered to a low boil by Thanksgiving—one that was at least manageable, thanks to vaccine rollouts.
Now, she was eating sugar cookies by the fire, a stocking with her name on it hanging next to Norah’s, and dancing to Billie Holiday with the only woman she’d ever wanted.
How quickly everything could be taken from you.
And how quickly it could all be yours again.
She couldn’t predict what tomorrow held.
But for that day, and for all the foreseeable days of the future, Chase had a quiet farmhouse on the outskirts of Atlanta, complete with the white picket fence and, most important, a forever she knew would always include Norah.