Chapter 2
Samuel
I hate these things. Hate them with a passion. And almost more than that, I hate Christmas. So much fuss over nothing. I mean, I do appreciate the reason for the season, and it’s not that I don’t love giving gifts or being kind to people. Of course I do. I’m human.
But the constant Merry Christmas everywhere, the movies, decorations, office parties, endless office parties, constantly being harangued to give donations to a million different causes, not that I don’t support a million causes already, and endlessly being nagged by everyone I know to be happy and to have the joy of the season and... I just hate it. I’d rather just have black-and-white decor, go to work, do my best, and stop feeling like I’m putting in time until things get back to normal. Basically.
But I am not the only person in the universe, as I have been accused of thinking at times, by several former girlfriends who shall remain anonymous, and I try to appease the important people in my life, like my parents, my brother, and my little sister, Allison. I adore her, although don’t tell her that, because she’ll take shameless advantage of it.
I actually really like her best friend too, although I definitely don’t want that getting out. I am in the middle of a very stressful season of my business as I allow more and more of it to be taken over by others, so I can spend time relaxing. That’s a bit of a foreign concept to me, since I haven’t done much relaxing for the last fifteen years, but I’m told that it’s good for my health, and I’m told that if I don’t do it, my lifespan will be rather short.
So, I decided that I would share this mansion with my brother. It’s actually his, but he never uses it, and he’s more than happy to allow me to use it as my relaxing headquarters here in the small town of Christmas Tree, Pennsylvania, the town I grew up in. It might not have been my first choice to settle in but this is where Daniel is, and this is where Allison spends a lot of time too, and my parents just recently bought a lodge on the edge of town. So, it seems natural that this is where I should be as well.
So, I am having a bit of a party to introduce some of my business associates to my new town and also—ulterior motive here—to bring business in for the town. It’s a beautiful place, with a lake nearby and several ski resorts not too far away as well. My friends will definitely pour money into this town, which I can only see as good for everyone.
I’m having another, larger party for the entire town as a goodwill gesture.
Allison’s best friend, Lucy, is coordinating that party. It seems like I can’t get away from Lucy, and I have to admit I’m not trying very hard.
Literally, actually, since she just landed in my arms a second ago, and now I’m holding her while she turns six different shades of red and looks absolutely adorable as the tip of her cute little nose lights up like Rudolph’s.
I’m tempted to tell her that, and interestingly, I’m also tempted to smile. Which is not usually a problem. Me smiling.
“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry,” she says as she tries to straighten herself.
She has on a dress which seems to billow everywhere. I remember when Allison went through that stage where she wanted to wear princess dresses everywhere, including to the grocery store. My mother indulged her, even though it was extremely embarrassing to have Allison clacking down the grocery store aisles in her princess shoes with her dress brushing everything.
That’s what Lucy’s dress reminds me of now, but Lucy does not feel anything like a little girl. She feels soft and warm in my arms, and it takes me a little while to realize that she’s straightened up, and I can drop my arms. It takes me even longer to realize that the entire room, which had been full of noise and laughter, has now fallen completely silent.
The last thing that I fail to realize is that I am standing directly underneath the mistletoe.
But Allison, being a typical little sister, even though she is in her late twenties now and should know better, points to the two of us and says, “You guys are under the mistletoe together!”
Did I mention that the entire room was completely silent?
Her voice carries like a shotgun blast in the early morning stillness. I’m pretty sure every single person in the room heard, but if they didn’t, they probably cheered along with everyone else, because a giant roar goes up from the crowd.
Yeah, this is not the kind of attention I was trying to get. My business associates know me as a straight shooter, someone who is always focused on doing the right thing, and I’m all about working hard. I don’t believe in wasting time or spending a moment on something frivolous, like mistletoe and the myths that go along with it.
Except, maybe I’m a little bit tempted to give in this one time, just because it’s Lucy.
Although, I’m not sure that I could have gotten out of it even if I hadn’t been tempted to give in. Allison says, “Come on! We’re all waiting on you. It’s the holiday rule, you know.”
I don’t know anything about such a rule, but I do know that Lucy looks around, startled and a little scared, and then her eyes lift to mine, questions in them. As though she’s asking me what we should do about this.
Like I know. There’s only one thing I can think of to do.