"Umm, sure." Reluctantly I agreed as I looked at the wintry sky, and sat in his car. It was cold, and my cab was nowhere near.
"I think I never asked before, where do you stay Mark?" I initiated the conversation.
"I live in Madison Park, almost two streets away."
"Wow That's almost like 10 mins walk from my place. I didn't know you lived so close."
"You don't know a lot of things, Emma." He whispered; his eyes still stuck on the road.
"What?" I asked, not quite sure of what he said.
"Umm nothing, ya we stay quite close."
The rest of the ride was full of small casual talks, as Mark drove me to Benjamin's place.
"Thank you, Mark." I said as I got ready to step out of his car.
"You're always welcome, Emma."
The moment I stepped out, I felt small snowflakes slowly making their way on my head and shoulders. My heart fluttered as I loved snow. But then I realised it would be difficult for Mark to drive in this weather, so I bent to his car window again, "It's snowing. Would you like to come inside for a while?" I was genuinely concerned about him reaching home safely.
"Only if you want me to." He replied in a stern voice, his gaze fixed on my face again.
I felt a bit nervous whenever he looked at me like that.
"Umm sure. Come on in!" I tried dodging eye contact, and gestured him with my hand, asking him to hop out of his car. The moment I did, I saw the brightest smile own up his face, and he happily stepped out to join me for the party.
We entered Benjamin's home that was full of kids and smelled like strawberries. The sweet aroma of various desserts immaculately displayed on the table filled our nostrils as we made our way in.
"Aunt Emma. You are here." Both the girls hugged me as I bent down to take them in my arms.
"Happy Birthday to my favorite girls in the world." I gave them pecks on both their cheeks, as I handed them their respective gifts.
Soon Benjamin and Raina joined us too, Raina was holding little Justin in her arms, he was almost nine months old now.
"Hi, Emm. You look radiant as always." Raina hugged me as I took Justin from her and he snuggled in my arms.
"Hello, Mr. Behan. Sorry for crashing your party. I just happened to visit Emma unannounced and gave her a ride here."
"Hello, Mr. Hanly. It's a pleasure to have you with us. Please come on in and make yourself comfortable." Benjamin said as he took our coats.
We spent a great time, Mark was surprisingly comfortable in the company of little kids, and he even participated in one of their games. He was no stranger here; he surely didn't behave like one.
Almost around ten pm, we bid goodbye to everyone, and Mark offered to drop me home.
While on the way, he broke the silence and asked, "Do you mind if I take a quick detour and pick my favorite coffee?"
"You really do love coffee, don't you?"
"Absolutely. Coffee is my guilty pleasure. You know why? Because Coffee never complains, it never asks silly questions, and Coffee always understands; that's why I love its company the most."
I smiled at his sudden bout of excitement and nodded for making a quick stop.
We both were sitting in the car, our side doors open, parked on the driveway outside the coffee shop. The streets were well lit and decorated, and the snow by the sides of the road just added to the beauty.
"So how do you like your Christmas?" Mark asked while sipping his coffee.
"Usually by this time, I am decorating my Christmas tree and, preparing plumcakes and chocolate mousse pudding, along with many other special delicacies," I replied, reminiscing the old times, and holding my coffee mug tight, letting its warmth comfort my freezing palms.
"Wow. That's fancy. So, your family and friends must be looking forward to a treat tomorrow?"
"Umm, not this year. I gave it all a pass. I am just allowing myself a quiet day of self-reflection. I may visit my parents for dinner tomorrow, but nothing special."
"You are not even doing the Christmas tree?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Nope." I replied.
We both silently sipped our coffee, enjoyed the calm Christmas eve, and later Mark dropped me home.
The next morning, I woke up with a thudding sound.
I immediately jumped out of my bed, adjusting my eyes to the morning light. Someone was banging my door.
I was annoyed and still in my pajamas, but I didn't care and just rushed to open the door, mainly to stop the noise.
It was Mark, with a heavy Christmas tree in his hand and huge bags of decorations tied on his arms.
"Merry Christmas Emma! Just hold this please." He handed me one of the many bags. He was panting, almost breathless.
"Mark? What is all this? Did you carry all this by yourself? And what's in this bag?"
"No, I got the tree delivered downstairs. Umm, and that bag has plumcakes, chocolate mousse pudding and strawberry cupcakes. I baked all night." With that, he just entered my apartment lifting the tree with both his hands, paying no heed to my agitated expressions.
"What??" I turned to ask him. This was all so unexpected.
"Oh, just come on in Emma. We have a lot to do. Move your butt and help me here. You can throw your tantrums later."
Chapter 47
Vancouver
Mark
Two months later - Britney's Wedding
"Hey, Niki. Yes, I picked up Emma, and we will be reaching the airport in the next ten minutes."
It wasn't even three full months, but slowly and gradually, I
