“It’s not to buy a car,” Abby retorted.
Seth groaned. “I figured out that much. A tree, then. Have you had a chance to pick one out?”
“I’m thinking I could use three,” Abby said.
He blinked at that. “Three?”
“Three big ones,” she confirmed. “Enormous, in fact. One for the living room and two for each side of the porch. Then I need garland for the railings.” She smiled at him. “And mistletoe for over the front door.”
“How about the bedroom door?” Seth inquired.
She held his gaze. “Do you really think you’ll need mistletoe at that point?”
Walker held up his hands and backed away, his cheeks bright red. “Too much information,” he declared.
Seth laughed. “Now you’ve gone and done it. It’ll be all over Seaview Key by nightfall that I have an open invitation into your bedroom.”
Abby stared at him. “That is not what I said.”
“Doesn’t matter what you said. What matters is the spin Walker’s going to be putting on it the first chance he gets.”
Sadly, he was probably right, Abby concluded. “I can’t worry about what people are saying.”
“Even if it means they’ll think less of you? Don’t you want a spotless reputation when you go before council again?”
“Seth, the reality of life is that no one’s reputation is spotless. We’ve all made our share of mistakes.”
She frowned at her own choice of words. “Not that you and I are a mistake,” she added hurriedly. “I just meant that everyone’s reputation could be picked apart by small-minded individuals. I’m sure there are a few people with long memories who disapproved of my relationship with Luke years ago. A few of them probably still wonder if I’m here to stir up trouble for him and Hannah. Thankfully Hannah’s no longer among them, and she’s the one who counts.”
“Duly noted,” he said. “Now let’s get serious about those trees. Have you made your choices yet? What about these three right here?”
“Are you kidding? I can’t just point and take whatever’s handy,” she scoffed. “This is serious business. We have to stand each tree up, shake out the branches, check out the shape, make sure the needles are still fresh.”
Seth sighed. “We’re making a morning of it, then?”
“At least,” she said.
“And if I get an emergency call?”
She chuckled at the hopeful note in his voice. “I’ll probably still be here when you get back.”
“I was afraid of that.” He reached for the closest tree, stood it upright and gave it a shake.
“Nope,” she said at once.
“What’s wrong with it?” he asked. “Just so I can try to get a grasp on your standards.”
“Too short, for one thing.”
“Even for the porch?”
“Yes, even for the porch,” she said. “Besides, there’s a big hole on that side.”
“Couldn’t you turn that side toward the wall or something?”
She patted his cheek. “We’re looking for perfection, okay? There are lots to choose from. Let’s not settle just yet.”
He sighed. “Got it. And you’ll know it when you see it, so I should keep my opinions to myself.”
“That’s the spirit,” she said, then gestured toward another tree. “Try that one.”
Walker had returned just in time to overhear the exchange. He winked at Seth. “Better you than me, my friend. I have a thermos of coffee over there if you need an energy boost. Her dad and I could tell a lot of fish tales while this one was choosing trees back in the day, and she was barely knee-high to a tadpole at the time.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Seth said, looking resigned as he shook out the next tree’s branches. “Well?”
“Not bad,” Abby told him. “It’s a maybe.”
“But too soon to be a sure thing,” he concluded.
“Now you’re catching on.”
It took two hours to find the perfect trees, even on a comparatively small Christmas tree lot. By the time Abby had added sufficient garland and that package of mistletoe, even she was exhausted.
“I’ll stop by The Fish Tale and pick up lunch,” she offered. “Then meet you back at the house.”
Seth’s gaze narrowed. “That ought to take you just long enough for me to unload the trees, am I right?”
She laughed. “Almost exactly,” she acknowledged. “But lunch will come with dessert.”
He caught her gaze. “There’s only one dessert I can think of that would satisfy a man who’s worked this hard,” he said.
“Something tells me it’s not apple pie that you have in mind,” she teased.
“Not even close,” he agreed. “Though a little whipped cream might come in handy.”
Abby spotted the twinkle in his eyes and nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”
For an instant Seth looked taken aback. “Maybe you’d better stick to ordering the pie. I’d hate to think what conclusion Lesley Ann might jump to if you order whipped cream to go.”
“Exactly the correct conclusion, I imagine,” Abby replied. “But I’ll get some pie to go along with it just to save your sterling reputation.”
Seth nodded approvingly. “And the pie won’t go to waste. It’ll be great after we’ve finished the whipped cream.”
“I like the way you think.”
“I’m so glad you’re aware that I’m good for lots of things besides toting Christmas trees,” he said dryly.
She gave him a thorough survey that had his cheeks turning pink and her pulse racing. “I can definitely vouch for that,” she said. In fact she got a little breathless just thinking about a few of his skills.
It took a lot longer to get the trees in place and the decorations on them than Abby had probably intended, Seth thought as they finally finished up around midnight. They’d spent a good amount of that time in her bed.
Now the only lights in the living room were on the tree and they were curled up next to each other on the sofa with mugs of hot chocolate. Christmas music was playing in the background to set the mood, although Seth was far more interested in romance than holiday cheer. He couldn’t get over the fact that no matter how much time he spent with Abby, he always wanted more.
