Page 81 of Until You Found Me

The wind in her sails deflates, a lighter tone replacing her anger. “Actually, I do have plans.”

“Oh yeah? Can I come?”

She smirks. “Sorry, I don’t think my boyfriend would like that. We have a whole day planned. Very romantic.”

“Boyfriend, huh? Sounds serious.”

“It is.”

“So I got no chance then?” He leans his head back against the seat rest, rolling her a lazy glance.

“I’m very loyal to him. There’s no other penguin out there for me.”

Logan grins, muffling a laugh in his throat at her penguin comment. “Damn, he’s a lucky man.”

“I dunno about that. He has to put up with my temper. One I didn’t realize I had until now.”

“Eh, I think he’d say it’s no big deal.”

She holds her hand up between them until he laces his fingers with hers, then rubs them together, caressing the digits and letting their hands dance in front of the heat vent.

“For real though, what do you wanna do for Christmas?” he asks.

“Anything. Nothing. Just be here with you, that’s enough.”

“Was thinking we could get a tree? A little one for the table. Albert, the pharmacist, runs the lot as a side gig. He’d give me a good deal.”

Logan has no business spending a single cent on even the ugliest charlie brown tree. He would suggest they cut one down themselves, but while he’s gotten back most of his strength, he’s still been told to take it easy. He wants at least one thing to be special, though. For her but also, in some deep-seated part of his mind, for himself.

“We could decorate it with popcorn,” she agrees.

“Popcorn and cranberries.”

“There’s a bottle of wine in the dome from the welcome kit. We can set up the tree and get tipsy and then…oh wait, you can’t drink, I’m sorry.”

“I can drink a little. Very little. I read the pamphlet.”

“You read it?” Her face softens in approval.

“Cover to cover.”

“It’s a date then.”

“I’m in.”

“Not yet, but you will be.”

He blushes on the spot at how sassy and dirty her teasing has gotten, loving every second of it. The sound of her laughter as they head inside makes it even better.

They’re going to get a tiny Christmas tree and decorate it while getting slightly tipsy. He can’t think of a better way to spend the holiday.

Chapter 18

Tessa doesn’t remember a single Christmas before this one. There must have been hundreds of gift exchanges and plates of cookies left for Santa spanning from her childhood until she had a child of her own. All of that is tucked away now with other important memories she can’t grasp. She tries to focus on seeing her glass half full, reminding herself that she can spend this first Christmas with Logan like she’s spent every other first so far.

His excitement to take her tree hunting downtown has swept her up in the holiday spirit. The scent of pine greets her as they wander between rows of trees too big to fit in the tiny trailer they call home. Children chase each other under branches, laughing in overstuffed coats, and Tessa can’t help but wonder what her daughter is doing right now. Is there a tree at their house? Probably not. Did she live every Christmas walking on eggshells, too afraid to celebrate anything?

“Hey, you okay?”

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