Tea took her by the hand and informed her it was Eliza’s job to put on the tree topper. She managed to bumble her way, with Tomasz’s assistance, to installing the beautiful hand-crafted angel. Fiona dragged Tea over to the piano, and the sweet sounds of Christmas carols echoed through the house. The piano was near the tree, and everyone had gathered around singing, some particularly badly. Tomasz was either a horrible singer, or intentionally trying to ruin the song. David tried to sing louder to drown him out. Fiona chastised both of them. It was fine entertainment.
After a few songs, Eliza noticed that Fiona was not with the rest of the Marek clan. Peeking into the kitchen, Eliza found her slicing some kind of fish, surrounded by preparations for a feast.
When Fiona glanced up, Eliza asked, “Do you want some help?”
“If you’d like,” Fiona said. “The onions need chopping.”
Eliza picked up a knife, dug out a cutting board, and started slicing large yellow onions, holding them at arm’s length and hoping not to cry.
Fiona peeked at her between slicing. “How is your mother, dear? I’m sure she must miss having you home for Christmas.”
“Oh, she and Johnny are fine. They’re doing some crazy wrestling show in Texas—a Christmas spectacular showdown of some sort. I’m sure they won’t miss me.”
“But do you miss them?”
Eliza paused for a moment, sure that the onions were causing the pricks in her eyes, because she really did feel amazingly at home in the Marek house. Already. She put on a smile for Fiona. “I’m happy to be here.”
Fiona set down her knife. She came over to Eliza and gave her a brief one-armed hug, keeping her fish covered hands from touching her. “I’m happy you’re here too, dear. He has so missed you.”
Eliza gave her a shy smile and focused on slicing the onions and blinking back the water in her eyes.
“Now,” Fiona said, stepping away and breaking the slightly awkward moment. “I need to get that pasta on, or we’re not going to have anything to eat!” Eliza smiled as she watched Fiona buzz around the kitchen, assembling a dozen dishes while Eliza kept at her assigned task. With Fiona’s Christmas apron adorned with gingerbread men and her industrious cooking, it seemed almost like home.
* * *
Tomasz was ruining David’s singing and ticking him off, not to mention grabbing all the attention, once again. It was good to be home. After a full round of Christmas classics, he glanced around, wondering where Eliza and his mom had gone. He raised his eyebrows at Tomasz as everyone dispersed.
“They’re in the kitchen, talking,” Tomasz said, the corners of his mouth turned down.
“Really?” David asked. “What do you think they’re talking about?”
“I don’t know, dude, but it can’t be good when your girl’s talking to your mom.” He looked askance at the kitchen, which made David laugh. Tomasz had never had a girlfriend that lasted long enough to bring home for Christmas. David peeked into the kitchen, and they were chatting like old friends.
“Dinner ready?” he asked.
“Well, it might be if you actually helped out,” his mom said, a scowl quickly replacing the smile she had for Eliza. He came in and was generally useless until they shooed him out again. But not before he stole a few kisses from Eliza and earned a few more scowls from his mom.
Dinner was traditional Polish, with plenty of fish and pierogi, even though Christmas was still days away. His mom had pestered him to find out what Eliza liked, but he insisted she wasn’t fussy. That only resulted in an odd assortment of Italian pasta, Irish corned beef, and American salads that made the table look like a gathering of the UN. They were all overstuffed when they were done. Clayton and Tomasz settled in for some Halo 3, with Tea gamely playing along. They all had the luxury of seeing their loved ones whenever they wanted. Time was precious to him and Eliza, and he wasn’t going to waste a minute of it. He grabbed her hand and escaped up the stairs before anyone could stop them. With a little trepidation, he led her to his room. It felt odd that he had shared so much with her, but not this.
“Uh, so …” he mumbled. Fortunately, his mom hadn’t put up any embarrassing relics from his childhood in his absence, and it looked the same as when he left it seven months ago. Eliza drifted to his CD collection, turning on the player. Some light jazz started trickling out of the speakers. He pulled her to his bed, lying down next to her and idly playing with her hair while they listened to the music. She was so beautiful, deep brown eyes looking up into his, that he almost forgot his purpose for coming up to his room. Of course, he had many reasons, but he decided the main one could wait.
He kissed her softly, because she was so lovely and fit so wonderfully into his family. When his kisses turned passionate, she pushed him gently back, making him smile.
“Don’t you think they’ll come looking for us?” she asked.
“They had better not!” he said in mock outrage. He traced a line with his fingertip along her jaw and down her neck, causing her to pull in a breath. Brushing her hair away, he followed the same line with his kisses, delighting in the effect it had on her. His heart was pounding madly in his chest. He would have had to stop, if she hadn’t pulled away first.
“I thought we weren’t …” she said.
“Weren’t what?” he asked mischievously, knowing full well what she meant.
“Well, I am in your bed, after all.” She had a point there.
“So you are.” He resumed his kissing, starting at the hollow of her throat. He had no intention of breaking their promise to wait, but there was no reason not to torment her when he had the chance. He slipped his hand to the small of her back and pulled her tight against him.
“David!” she gasped.
“Yes?” he whispered into her neck. He didn’t know if she wore perfume, or if it was only the smell of her, but it was starting to make him lightheaded.
She growled in frustration and pulled his head up to kiss him. He must have taken things too far. Her kiss rolled him back on the bed and lit a fire in him that threatened to burn out of control. He gasped and gently pushed her back. She smirked.
“Not fair.” He tried to regain his composure by keeping a space between them.
“Really?” She ran her hands along his chest and moved to kiss his neck. That way lay serious danger, so he quickly moved out of the bed. She smiled in triumph, and he shook his head.
“Oh, it’s okay for you to tease, but not for me?” She pretended to be put out.
“You,” he said, climbing back onto the bed with her, but putting a small distance between them, “are much more difficult to resist. Obviously.” She smiled wider. He sighed, and went back to running his fingers through her hair, a relatively safe activity that might keep him out of trouble.
When his heart had slowed, he said, “I have something for you.” He reached under the pillow where he had stowed the small box.
“What’s that?” Her eyebrows shot up.
“It’s just something small. A Christmas present.” It wasn’t wrapped. The plain blue box opened on a hinge. She stared at it, not taking it from him and looking alarmed.
“What’s the matter?” he asked. “The last present I got you wasn’t so bad, was it?” He touched the small ring around her neck. He loved that she still wore it.
With a determined frown, she opened the box and saw the tiny heart shaped charm lying inside. She seemed relieved.
He lifted her chin with his finger. “You already have my heart. Will it be so bad to wear it around your neck?”
She shook her head. “It’s beautiful. I love it.” She kissed him. He didn’t understand why she had seemed so worried. Then he realized: Christmas, small box …
“Did you think I was asking you to marry me?” he asked, amazed. He had every intention of asking Eliza to marry him, someda
y. But he was surprised she would be thinking of it so soon.
“No, no,” she said. He could tell she was lying and maybe embarrassed.
“Would that be so bad?” he asked softly. “Marrying me?”
“No! I mean, yes! I …” He was even more surprised by the flush rising in her face.
“Eliza, I’m not asking you to marry me now. Someday, but … it’s too soon.” He struggled to say what he wanted. Searching her face for understanding, he realized he wanted his children to have those same chocolate eyes. He just knew they had to wait.
She twisted a strand of her hair. “I’m not ready, that’s all.” She stared at the box that held his heart.
“We won’t do anything until you’re ready. Until we’re both ready,” he said softly. “Agreed?” She nodded.
He reached behind her neck, unclasped her necklace and then laced the heart charm onto it. The two charms made a tiny tinkling sound as they touched. He reached behind her to put it back on.
“Until then, you have my heart. And I don’t want it back.”
“I have something for you, too,” she said, smiling again. “But it’s in Tea’s room. I’ll be right back.” She jumped off the bed and was gone in a flash. Before he had time to wonder what she had gotten him, she was back with a small box in her hand. It was about twice the size of the one he had given her. He stared at it, trying to guess what it might be.
“Open it, silly,” she said. A small blue iPod nano was nestled inside.
“Eliza, you shouldn’t have …” She pressed her fingers to his lips.
“You saved my life. I’ve been trying to find a way to repay you. This isn’t exactly it, but at least you’ll have your music again.”
He raised his eyebrows. “What’s on here?”
“A few things from my playlist. I recorded something special for you, but you have to wait until you get back to California to listen to it.”
He was intrigued, but he promised to wait. He carefully set the box aside and brought her back into his arms. They snuggled and talked until late in the evening, when a brave Tea dared to come to his room to retrieve Eliza and say they were all going to bed.
* * *
She wished she could go back in time, to Monterey Bay last summer, and tell herself that a year of separation at Princeton would not end David’s love for her. She wished she could tell past-Eliza their love would grow incredibly strong, and that she was afraid for no reason. She probably would have dismissed future-Eliza as a crazy but delightful dream. She certainly wouldn’t have believed she could be sitting here, driving through the golden monotony of Oklahoma and chatting with her mom about spending the summer with David.
Her giddiness about that kept growing with each mile they laid down in their cross-country trip. She had brought more CDs this time, but they didn’t need them. She had missed her mom so much, they easily filled up the hours talking about everything and nothing. She was glad Mia could come, although she was determined to make this trip on her own one day, just to show she could do it.
Her first year at Princeton had been wonderful and intense. Classes were tough, but fascinating. Her education classes were the most interesting. The more she studied about how young minds grew and learned, the more she wanted to know. With Addison’s help, she had secured a summer teaching assistant position in a literature class at a Monterey Bay high school. She was excited about the work, but she couldn’t wait for her summer with David to begin. The last time they had seen each other was Spring Break, when he came out to Princeton. It was a glorious week, but it was vacation. The summer would be the first time they would see each other every day, but also go to school and work, just like a normal couple. It was a gift they had been long denied, and she couldn’t stop thinking about it, counting the miles as they slowly ticked by on the odometer …
* * *
David was jumpy. Of course, he knew why—he was waiting for Eliza to arrive. But the level of his agitation was getting so high he needed to find some kind of distraction. He had finished listening to Eliza read Pride and Prejudice on his iPod for the second time, so he didn’t have that for a diversion. He put some music on the stereo, and that helped. Clayton had already gone over to Tea’s, and David wouldn’t see him for the rest of the weekend. At least, he hoped not. Eliza had dropped her mom off in Albuquerque and was driving on her own, which made him nervous, but he had to trust that she could take care of herself. Eliza had called several hours ago, when she left Bakersfield, and probably wouldn’t call again before she arrived. Cell phone coverage was spotty along the way.
The waiting was driving him mad. They had become experts at waiting, filling their time with classes, phone calls, and letters. Why this particular couple of hours would put him over the edge, he didn’t know.
He had thought that his love for Eliza would not change, even if they were separated while she was at Princeton, but he was wrong. It had grown stronger, more enduring. Partly because he came to know her better, but also because he saw her grow into someone more confident. She was finding her purpose in the world, and it made him love her even more. He hadn’t thought it was possible.
There was a soft but distinct knock at the door. He flew to it, praying it wasn’t Clayton coming back for socks or some damn thing. He tore open the door, and there she was, looking weary from her long drive and absolutely radiant. He grabbed her and pulled her inside, a little too roughly by the surprised look on her face. He closed the door and kissed her, pressing her back into the door with the intensity of it. He just needed to touch her, to reconnect. His mind was dizzy with the feel of her soft lips and her arms wrapped around him. When he finally paused for a breath, she said, “Well, hello to you, too.” She chuckled softly.
He smiled, not at all embarrassed by his unrestrained need for her. He had to tell her at once. “I got in,” he said breathlessly. Her eyes went wide, questioning, so he nodded. “I’m coming to DC in the fall.” She let out a squeal of excitement and hugged him hard. He lifted her up, and she crashed her lips onto his.
As he held and kissed her, flashes of their future danced through his head. They had an entire summer together, an embarrassment of riches, and it felt like all the time in the world was now theirs. He pictured frenetic drives up the Eastern Seaboard to spend lazy weekend liberty time with her, and longer leaves where they could explore the Capitol together. Later, once he was assigned a diplomatic post, she could travel the world with him, just as she had always imagined. He suddenly saw her coming home from a weary day and regaling him with tales from the ex-pat class she had taught, her laughter filling their small home with joy.
Together.
He held her tighter, embracing all the future possibilities along with her slender frame. He was never going to let this girl go again.
The End
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To Christine Kaye Campbell, for always believing in me, for bragging about me to everyone that walks by, and for being my mom.
To my brother Ed, for saying the words I needed to hear at just the right time.
To Eileen and Brian, the original Teagan and Clayton, for being impossibly cute and for making me believe in love at first sight.
To the Coven of Scribblers, my lovely critique group, for sharing all the ups and downs and for understanding the importance of craft.
To my fabulous editor CJ, for her professionalism and wit and for loving the story. You know this wouldn’t have happened without you.
And finally, to the Omnific Publishing team for all their fantastic work in launching Life, Liberty, and Pursuit. Thank you!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Susan Kaye Quinn grew up in California, where she wrote snippets of stories and passed them to her friends during class. Her teachers pretended not to notice and only confiscated her stories a couple of times. Susan left writing behind to pu
rsue a bunch of degrees and a husband, but she was drawn back by an irresistible urge to share her stories with her niece, her kids, and all the wonderful friends she’s met along the way. She doesn’t have to sneak her notes anymore, which is too bad.
Susan writes from the Chicago suburbs with her three boys, two cats, and one husband, which, it turns out, is exactly as a much as she can handle.
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