Chapter 3
Landry
“Star?” I call out as I walk into the Happy Auras shop on Main Street.
The bell over the door jingles, announcing my arrival. Usually my gorgeous wife would’ve rushed out to greet her new customer by now, but the only sound I can hear is the muted tones of orchestral music playing in the air.
I walk further into the shop, following the source of the strumming harps.
Making my way toward the back, I find her sitting on a stool in front of the double-pane glass window, an easel in front of her, a paint palette in one hand, and a brush in the other.
The canvas in front of her depicts a beautiful view of Bull Mountain, with its snow-covered twin peaks and the old oak tree standing tall between them.
The background is a riot of color with splashes of red and blue mixing together in a chaotic dance, much like the Northern Lights we saw on our Christmas trip to Rainbow Springs.
The headphones on my wife’s head explain my lack of greeting, and I can’t help but smile as she bobs her head to whatever she’s listening to, her creativity flowing in every move she makes.
Her brow is furrowed in concentration as the paintbrush moves with purpose, adding flickers of purple to the already colorful mix.
Leaning against the doorway, I stand and watch her in awe—as I’m often known to do when it comes to her—marveling at the way she manages to bring beauty to everything she sees, touches, and feels.
To our wonderful nomadic life too…
I wait until she stops painting and empties her hands before slowly crossing the room and resting my hand gently on her shoulder.
She turns her head, a soft loving smile curving her perfect pink lips as she slips the headphones down to hang around her neck.
“Hey there, Picasso," I say quietly before nodding at the painting. “I hope that’s goin’ in our livin’ room. It’s beautiful.” I bend down to brush my lips over hers. “Just like the artist.”
“I was thinkin’ it could go over the fireplace. Somewhere to admire it when we can’t look at the real thing out our kitchen window.”
“Smart and pretty, ain’t I a lucky husband.”
Star smiles against my mouth, giving me another kiss before pulling back.
I give her room so she can move. She stands and stretches her arms above her head, her once-white Broderie shirt riding up to reveal a sliver of her smooth, pale stomach beneath.
Just that look is enough to remind me just how lucky I am to call Starchild Graham mine.
“I’m the lucky one, you know that,” she says, as if reading my mind. Or did I say that out loud? I must wear my confusion on my face because her grin turns all-knowing. “Yes, you muttered that like an oath under your breath.”
“Nothin’ I wouldn’t say to your beautiful face,” I murmur, my gaze dropping to her lips again.
Her eyes sparkle with that mischievous gleam that always promises fun for later. “But I’m glad you like the paintin’. I can’t take credit for the beauty of the land, just the gift I was given to put it onto canvas when I feel inspired.”
Star leans into my side, her head resting on my shoulder. “Are you here to take me home?” she asks.
I wrap an arm around her, holding her close to my side as I turn her into me and press a kiss against her temple. “It’s gettin’ on in the afternoon and you and I have plans tonight.”
“We do?” she says, tipping her chin to look at me.
I chuckle, shaking my head at her with a grin. “Yeah. As soon as Gramma arrives, we’re hittin’ the road.”
The way her eyes narrow at me tells me I’ve got all of her attention now. “What have you done, Landry Graham?”
“Me?” I say, feigning innocence. “Why do you sound so suspicious?"
“Oh, I dunno, maybe it’s because you’re always romantic, and attentive, and lookin’ out for me, and suddenly you’ve got this whole date planned and you kept it from me. You never keep things from me.”
“That’s cause I’m a blabbermouth and you always just give me a look that makes me tell you,” I explain. I groan and drop my head when she demonstrates the exact same look that always makes me spill.
“Does this mean you’re goin’ to tell me what we’re doin’ then?” she says, her voice dropping to a sultry whisper, her body pressing into mine, soft against hard, the scent of Jasmine and vanilla filling my senses.
I have to grit my teeth so that I’ll keep my lips zipped and stand my ground. I wanna surprise her. Us men might have a secret contest going between the six of us, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to spoil my wife and show her just how much she means to me.
“If I told you now, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise,” I reply with a smirk, unable to resist pressing a quick kiss to her lips before gently pushing her away. “So, you just wait patiently, and all will be revealed soon enough.”
Star pouts playfully, but there’s a twinkle in her eye that tells me she’s enjoying the anticipation. “Fine, but you better make it worth the wait, Lan.”
“Oh, I intend to,” I assure her, dipping my head with thoughts of kissing the pout off her mouth when the bell over the door chimes again, making Star giggle and me groan.
“Helllooo,” Gramma, Star’s beloved grandmother and head of the Sunday School Sallys calls out.
My wife reaches down and laces her hand with mine before leading us out into the shop where we find not just Gramma, but her best friends and fellow Sallys, Frankie, Aggie, and Dottie.
“We’re all here to take over so that you two lovebirds can go make me more great grandbabies,” Gramma announces without a lick of shame.
“Gramma!” Star gasps.
“What? She ain’t wrong, Star,” Miss Frankie pipes up. “We're all waitin’ for more babies to come along. We don’t even have enough for one each yet.” She turns to me. “So you better get workin’ on it, Landry. There’s a time for practicin’ and there’s a time for gettin’ the job done, you hear?”
Star buries her face against my chest, but there’s no missing the way her body shakes with laughter. Meanwhile, my cheeks feel like they’re about to catch fire.
“On that note, we’ll be off then,” I rush out, leading my wife out of her store to the cackles of the Sunday School Sallies behind us.
“Have fun kids,” Miss Frankie calls out.
“Do what we can’t do anymore,” Miss Aggie adds.
“Oh my goodness,” Star wheezes in between giggles as we reach my truck. “I can’t believe that just happened.”
I snort. “I can.” I crowd her in against the truck door, pressing my body into hers and tilting her face up just as I lower mine. “Are you ready to get this Christmas date started, Mrs Graham?”
Her breath catches, her eyes flashing with heat. “If it means more of you gettin’ all alpha and growly on me like this, then hell yeah.”
I cock my head and arch a brow. “Alpha and growly? That does it for ya?”
She grins. “Oh yeah. Definitely.”
“Alright then. Good to know.”
Star wraps her arms around my hips and pulls me in tight. “You know what would be good to know?” she says, bringing her lips to mine.
“Nope,” I say, shaking myself free from her trap and stepping back, smirking when she huffs out a frustrated sigh. “You’ve gotta wait. It’s not a surprise if you know about it, Star.”
“You’re no fun,” she says as I open the passenger door and help her up into her seat.
“I’m a lot of fun. Why do you think we’ve been practisin’ instead of ‘gettin’ the job done’?”
“Well, if you want to fit any more practice in, Landry Graham, I guess it’s time we get this date started.”
A wicked grin takes over my face. “Yes, ma’am.”
When you’re married to a well-traveled woman, you have to think hard when coming up with a Christmas date to surprise her. Also playing a factor is the fact that Star would give the tie-dyed shirt off her back for anyone who needed it.
With that in mind, I decided our date needed to involve something that would fill up her giving heart while also experiencing the joy of Christmas.
That’s why we’ve traveled an hour out of Spring Haven to a small town—even by our standards—where there is an annual Christmas pageant being held, with all proceeds going to the local food shelter.
“Do I get to know why I there are elf costumes in the back of the truck?” she asks as we pass the ‘Welcome to Skylight Peak. Population 157’ sign. “Wow. I thought I’d been everywhere in this state. Apparently, I was wrong. Good job, husband.”
"You're not an easy woman to surprise, you know," he teased, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.”But I’m glad this is a new place for both of us.”
“Hey. I’m not that bad.”
That earns her a pointed look. “You can literally tell the future, Star. How could anyone surprise you?”
“Only if I’m tryin’ to see it,” she mutters. “Anyway, Skylight Peak and an elf costume. Am I helpin’ the town’s Santa or somethin’?”
Driving down the very small main street—maybe the only road through town—I find the town square where the twilight parade is due to start.
I guide Star out of the truck and along the snow-covered street, her head moving from side to side as she looks at the festive decorations covering the shopfronts and sidewalks.
Around us, people in various Christmas costumes bustle about, all seemingly buzzing for the festivities ahead.
It reminds me of our trip to Rainbow Springs when we surprised George Rainbow and his town with a Christmas festival.
“I feel a little underdressed,” Star murmurs, looking up at me. “Now I get why we need costumes.”
I hold our costumes up in the air. “Thought you might. I spoke to Joan at the food bank, and she said we could get changed there before it starts.”
“Before what starts?”
“We’re joinin’ in on the annual Skylight Peak Christmas pageant and potluck dinner,” I tell her. "We’re goin’ to help Joan and her other volunteers at the dinner—and give back to the community here—but first, I nominated you for another job.”
“Really?” she says. Her answering frown is adorable, so much so I have to dip my head and brush my lips against her crinkled brow.
With a laugh, I nod. “Yep. Santa needs a helper on his sleigh and since Tobes isn’t here to steal the cool jobs, I figured you’d love throwing suckers to the kids.”
She melts like snow in the sun, her smile so big and bright it almost blinds me. “You know what I love the most about you, Landry Graham?”
I pull her in close. “What’s that?”
She rests a hand on my chest. “You’re givin’ heart. You’re one of the most thoughtful, considerate, and honorable men I know, and I’m lucky to call you mine.”
My throat thickens as I shake my head. “Think you got that the wrong way around, Star.” I give her a squeeze. “I became the luckiest man on earth when the mountain chose you for me.
“Maybe she chose you for me.”
“I think we’ll have to agree to disagree with this one,” I muse, brushing my lips against hers. “Ready to go give a little Christmas to those who deserve it?”
“Oh yeah. Let’s go.”
An hour later, I stand at the back of the small crowd and watch with awe and pride as my beautiful elf wife waves, dances, smiles, and laughs with Santa on top of an old white and red wooden sleigh as it’s slowly pulled on a trailer down the street.
She’s totally in her element—footloose, fancy-free, and thriving. So far, this surprise is everything I hoped it would be for her.
And I know this is supposed to be a contest between all of us men at Bull, but all I care about is giving Star the chance to refill her cup just like she is right now.
Her eyes sparkle with joy when she hops off the sleigh at the end of the pageant, her cheeks flushed from both the cold and excitement.
As she searches the crowd and locks her gaze with mine, I can’t help but admire how the colorful lights of the town square shine in her eyes, adding an extra glow to her already blazing aura. What can I say, Star’s readings have started rubbing off on me.
She stops in front of me and we reach for each other, her fingers tangling with mine as she tilts her head up and grins at me. “That was so much fun. I had the best time, Lan," she gushed, punctuating her words. “Thank you for tonight. It was perfect."
“The night is still young. Now, let’s go help share some of that contagious festive joy of yours to people who might need it.”
She shakes her head, her eyes crinkling at the sides. “I know what you’re doin’, Lan, and I love you all the more for it. But you’ve got one of the most givin’ hearts I know and this surprise date might’ve been designed for me, but you’re lovin’ it just as much as I am.”
“Any time with you is a blessin’, Star. Gettin’ to be with you and help others, that’s just the icin’ on the Christmas cake,” I say with a huge smile.
“I love you, Lan.”
“Love you too.”
Then her eyes turn wicked as she leans her weight into me. “You know what I’m goin’ to love even more though…?” she whispers.
“What’s that?”
“Goin’ home and gettin’ you out of that elf costume. Gramma did tell us to get practisin’.”
I touch my lips to hers, breathing her in like I love doing. “Your Gramma is a smart woman.”
Just as I’m about to kiss her speechless, she pulls away and grins, knowing exactly what she’s doing. “Let’s go. Santa said she’d save us a seat. There’ll be plenty of time for that later.”