The Christmas Tree Guy

by Railyn Stone

  “If you don’t mind me asking, how long were you married?”

  “Ten years. We got married right out of college at 22, and then we had the boys about seven years later.”

  His eyebrows lifted and he leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table. Just his small movement towards her had her heart leaping into the bottom of her throat and if he leaned any further, she was going to choke on an artery. “It’s funny, I wouldn’t have thought you were even old enough to have five year olds.”

  “You’re sweet. And I’m very thankful for you delivering the tree to us. I know that’s not really part of your business, so it was very nice of you.” She blushed furiously and was silently grateful for him going the extra mile the night they’d picked out their tree. She grinned thinking of how ridiculously hard it would have been for her to lug the tree into the house without his help.

  “I’m just glad I could help you out. That’s what the holiday season is all about right?”

  “Yeah, sure. That, and finding Wii games and Transformers and GI Joe action figures.” Hearing his easy laugh emerge from his perfect mouth, she felt her nerves start to subside and her body relax as they continued their conversation.

  “Sounds like you’ve been in the toy store.”

  “Yes I have. I wish I hadn’t waited so long to do my shopping, but it’s been kind of hard to get into the Christmas spirit. It’s our second Christmas without the boys’ dad, so it’s a little easier than the first, but still requires a little adjustment.” She stopped abruptly and looked away, before giving him an apologetic smile. “And look at me just rambling on, I doubt you want to hear any of this.”

  “Hey, it’s not a problem. Sometimes it’s good to talk about these things so you can deal with it and not bottle it up, you know?” She nodded in agreement at his last comment. He had such a laid back and easy spirit about him that she found herself opening up and telling him more than she’d intended.

  They continued to talk, finding out more about one another as the conversation wore on. Sydnee discovered Quinn was eight years her junior, at twenty-six, and he was working in the Christmas tree lot to help out his uncle like he had most of his life. They talked non-stop through lunch and were enjoying each other’s company when her phone buzzed. Are you okay? lol. No axe wielding? Sydnee giggled at the series of smiley faces with devil horns on the screen and looked up to see Quinn watching her, completely bewildered. “Is there a joke you aren’t telling me?”

  “No. I’m sorry,” she sighed. “My best friend Sara, the woman I was with the other night, she just sent me a text message.”

  “The life line?”

  “The what?” she asked, puzzled at his question.

  “The life line. You know, when you get in trouble or need someone to bail you out of a bad date…the life line.”

  “Something like that. I feel so bad right now, and extremely old.” She pulled her bottom lip through her teeth and grinned. She typed in ‘I’m fine,’ hit send and placed her phone in her purse before turning her attention back to Quinn. “So, Quinn, what about you? I mean, you said you were working at the tree lot to help your uncle. What do you do besides that? For some reason, you don’t strike me as the lumberjack type.” Sitting forward, Sydnee placed her chin in her hand as she propped her elbow on the table.

  “Lumberjack type?”

  “Well, you know, cutting trees, moving them around, lumberjack stuff?”

  Laughing, Quinn shook his head at Sydnee. “Well, I wouldn’t say my uncle is much of a lumberjack, and exactly what are they supposed to be like?”

  “You know, like the guys you see on TV. Wearing the flannel shirts and dirty old boots, and they are pretty burly guys, right?” Sydnee inquired, taking a sip of water.

  “Well, no, I’m not much of the lumberjack type then. I guess you could probably tell by the little accident I had.” Holding up his hand, she could see the remnants of where his stitches were. “I’m not much for cutting trees.”

  “Hmm, so what do you do?”

  “Not much really. I just lay around the house most of the day playing video games and bumming off my parents.”

  “What?” Sydnee’s smile faded quickly and she looked at Quinn with wide eyes. She wasn’t sure she’d heard him correctly and she anxiously waited for his reply. The image of him lazing around playing video games on his mother’s couch ran through her head and she swallowed hard. I knew it. I told Sara this was going to happen. It seemed like an eternity before she watched a slow grin travel across his face, forming a sideways exclamation mark with his one dimple in his left cheek.

  “I’m kidding,” he laughed at her deadpan glare.

  “Oh. You are horrible,” she exhaled and couldn’t help but laugh along with him. For a moment, his serious expression had her doubting if he was telling her the truth or not. She had to admit, it was something she was concerned about. Knowing he was much younger than her, it was a possibility the only job he had was working at the tree lot. And of course, there was nothing wrong with it, but how stable of a career could that be? Stop it Syd. It’s not like you’re going to start a relationship with the guy. It’s lunch. Just one lunch.

  “I had to do it, especially after that lumberjack stuff,” he chuckled before adding, “I’m a personal trainer.”

  “Really?”

  “I got into it when I was in college.”

  “Oh?”

  “I got my bachelor’s degree in exercise science and then went right into my master’s program, and during both I worked in the gym at school as a trainer. After I graduated, I took a job in Texas, before moving back here to work at Fahrenheit. I’ve been there since.”

  “You train at Fahrenheit?” Small world. She took her Pilates class there, but she couldn’t remember seeing him. She was pretty sure she would have remembered him.

  “Yeah, why?”

  “I take a Pilates class there. I’m guessing that’s why Sara said you looked so familiar. She must’ve seen you.”

  “You must take a class later in the day or something?”

  “If it’s a good week, I usually get to the Wednesday night and the Saturday morning classes.” Sydnee took another sip of water before placing her arms on the table. No wonder he was so well built. He looked good in clothes; she could only imagine how good he probably looked without them.

  “Oh, yeah, I’m there during the week in the early mornings. My clients start coming in around five a.m.”

  “Sounds like you’re an early riser.”

  “Yes. Leaves more time in the evenings to play video games,” he laughed and she tilted her head.

  “Okay, I deserve that I guess,” she nodded. “What got you interested in training?”

  “I’ve always loved sports and since I wasn’t really good enough to go pro in anything, I did one of the next best things. Became a trainer.”

  Sydnee couldn’t help thinking Quinn seemed to have his head on straight. That was a plus. She wasn’t sure what she was going to find out about him when she agreed to lunch, but it was turning out to be a lot better than she initially thought it would. “Sounds like you’re playing to your strengths.”

  “I guess so. My dream is to one day get to the professional level. Gotta start somewhere, so here I am. Adam, the owner of Fahrenheit, is a great guy and I’m learning a lot from him.” She appreciated how he seemed to light up while talking about his aspirations and ambitions. It was nice to see someone who had a passion for something and was working towards a goal.

  “I’m sorry if I offended you about the lumberjack thing.”

  Quinn shook his head and she could see either he had great genes or his parents had pretty much bought his orthodontist a new house. His teeth were flawless as his grin stretched across his gorgeous face and she could barely concentrate on the words tumbling out of the perfect orifice. She really hoped she hadn’t offended him by her comments since she’d been a little presumptuous about his actual profession. “Thanks. No offense tak
en. My uncle actually runs a farm. The Christmas trees are only part of what he does. It’s pretty lucrative, but seasonal.”

  “Sounds like you grew up in a family of entrepreneurs.”

  “Pretty much. You have to do something in my family. They don’t care what so much, as long as you do something.”

  “Lots of hard workers in your family too, from the sound of it.” Sydnee had been so preoccupied with their conversation she’d lost all track of time. Glancing at her watch, she realized they had talked for more than an hour. She had a few things left to wrap up at the office, and she didn’t want to be late picking up the boys after school. “Oh wow, look at the time. I need to get back.”

  “Oh, yeah, I need to go too.” He stood and reached over to help her with her coat before slipping his on. He started to usher her towards the door and she stopped.

  “Uh, Quinn, I know you said you knew the owner, but are they cool about us just walking out without paying?” She looked around, uneasy at the idea of a ‘dine and dash’.

  “Oh, yes. You know how you said I was from a family of entrepreneurs? Well, my family owns the restaurant.” He grinned, holding the door open for her as he waved and said goodbye to the young lady who seated them earlier.

  “Well, there are just tons and tons of layers to you aren’t there?” Reaching the sidewalk, they continued talking as they walked to her SUV.

  “Sydnee, I really enjoyed talking with you today.” He paused for a moment and she could see a tiny bit of apprehension in his eyes. “Do you think maybe we could do this again?”

  “Quinn, I don’t know. I mean, you’re sweet and I really enjoyed talking with you, but…” Her insides liquefied seeing the light bounce in his eyes. She had enjoyed lunch with him. What would it hurt? No. Can’t do it. He’s too young.

  “It’s the age thing huh?” Damn. Is he reading my mind?

  “Well, yes that’s one issue for me.”

  “And what’s the other issue?”

  Shrugging, Sydnee looked away for a moment before turning back and exhaling a deep breath. “Quinn, it’s not really an issue per se…”

  “Really? So the race thing isn’t an issue?”

  “No. I, uh, I guess. It’s a little of both.” He was so point blank and upfront about everything and she understood even better what he meant when he said he didn’t play games. She wanted to be as honest with Quinn as she could. She didn’t have a problem with interracial dating. In all honesty, she’d just never been approached by a man outside of her own race and since she’d never been approached, it was never something for her to consider. Now, she was standing in front of a man finally presenting her with the opportunity and she was ill prepared. She had no idea how to answer him or what to do. Part of her wanted to go out with him. The part of her that seemed to come alive each time she talked to him. The other part of her was scared. Scared of what it would be like to date someone so totally different from her. What would her friends say? Better yet, what would her mother say? She knew if no one else would have a problem with her dating a white man, Carroll Duprey would.

  “It’s only a problem if you let it be.” His boyish grin made her heart thud against her chest and she was amazed at the level of charm he had. What was it about this guy?

  “Quinn-”

  “Look, just dinner, maybe a movie or something like that. Harmless, and from what I can tell, both twenty-six and thirty-four year olds like those things. So we do have something in common.” He stood staring at her and she couldn’t help but be impressed at his confidence. Race, age, nothing seemed to matter to him and it was refreshing to be around someone who didn’t live by labels.

  At this point, she was floundering. She had no other recourse. He’d laid out every reason they could go out and she had no ammunition for rebuttal. “I-”

  “Just dinner and a movie. What do you say? This time I’ll pay. I promise I’m not a cheap date,” he winked, referring to their free lunch at his family’s restaurant.

  “I have a feeling you aren’t going to give up until I say yes,” she laughed, thinking it had been a while since she’d gone out with any man since the blind dates she was set up on and really relaxed. And seriously, what would it hurt for them to go out again?

  “How did you know? I tell you what, just to make it fair this time, why don’t you give me a call?” Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a card and handed it to her before opening her door.

  “And just what makes you think I’ll call you?”

  “I don’t know that you will, but let’s just say I really hope you do.” He replied as she got in her car and he shut the door lingering long enough to entice her with his dynamic smile. She watched as he turned and his athletic body seemed to glide across the parking lot to his own car.

  Twirling the card over in her hand, she rubbed her finger across the embossing. “This could be interesting,” she murmured, placing the card in her purse.

  ###

  “So, how’d it go?” Sara asked as she and Sydnee sat on the sofa. Sydnee had barely had time to settle in at home before Sara stopped by to interrogate her about her lunch date. She laughed at how Sara nearly split in half anxiously waiting for Sydnee to give her the scoop about her lunch with Quinn. Once she fed the boys and helped them with their reading and got them into bed, she and Sara sat down to talk.

  “It was nice.” Thinking of her lunch date with Quinn, Sydnee nonchalantly folded clothes on the sofa. “What the heck are they doing to these socks?” She held up a third pair of socks with holes in them. “I just bought these.”

  “They’re little boys. They are probably doing puppet shows or something every night after you go to bed. Never mind that, tell me everything.”

  Sara’s overexuberance made Sydnee laugh. It was as if it was her personal challenge to get Sydnee back in the dating game, and now that she had had lunch with Quinn, Sara wanted to know every juicy detail. “Okay, he’s a personal trainer at Fahrenheit.”

  “That’s where I know him from. I’ve been wracking my brain trying to remember where I’ve seen him.” Sara said, throwing her head back on the cushions.

  “Well, his name is Quinn Masters. He has a master’s degree in kinesiology, and he’s working at the tree lot to help his uncle out like he always does this time of year,” she continued, throwing the socks she was able to salvage and match into the basket.

  “So that’s how he stays so yummy. And?”

  “And what? He’s twenty-six. He’s an only child. His family owns Deuce-22. He likes sports and…he asked me out again.” Sydnee shrugged, trying to act as if it wasn’t a big deal, but knowing she was failing miserably.

  “What? Hunky, trainer, and a rich family? You struck gold girl. So, when are you two going out again?” At this point, Sara was practically foaming at the mouth and Sydnee could only shake her head at her friend’s overexuberance at her recent lunch date and the possibility of another with the young man.

  “Well, actually, he gave me his card and told me I had to call him.” Sydnee replayed her last interaction with Quinn over in her head. She wanted to believe he was some cocky, arrogant muscle-head, but it just wasn’t the case. He was confident, funny and undeniably sexy.

  “Oh my gosh, he put the ball in your court. I think I like this guy.”

  “Anyway, I’m not so sure about this anymore.” Sydnee stopped folding clothes and looked over at Sara. She’d thought about nothing else since she got back to work from her lunch date. Quinn was more than she bargained for. He was like a breath of fresh air. He had a great sense of humor, and his youth and enthusiasm was a pick-me-up she’d enjoyed while they talked. She decided before the lunch date that it would be a one-time thing, but the more she talked to him, the more she was starting to like him.

  “Oh come on, what’s to think about? Look, it’s not like he’s asking you to marry him. He just wants to go out with you. Can’t you just loosen up and go with the flow for a change?”

  “Sara, that’s
easy for you to say. You don’t have two little boys to raise and an ex to deal with. I just don’t have the time for a fling, you know? The boys need stability. Someone I can depend on. This little young guy has a whole life in front of him.” It was true. The boys did need stability. Their father leaving the way he did, had thrown their lives into a tailspin and Sydnee was working to make things as normal as she could for them. It was a big reason none of the previous blind dates she’d been on had gone anywhere. Yeah, it was nice to go out with guys, but a lot of times, they either didn’t want children or they didn’t seem like men she’d really want around her kids. Getting back into the dating game was a real eye opener for her and she understood why many people just stuck it out in loveless marriages. Who the heck wanted to try finding ‘Mr. or Mrs. Right-Even-Though-He/She-Has-Flaws’ all over again?

  “Honestly, Syd, it’s not like you are going to have him around the boys right away and your baby daddy is virtually non-existent, so I don’t think you’ll have any problems from him. And for goodness sake, live a little. Relax. Give the guy a chance. What do you have to lose?”

  “What do I have to lose? You are such a flower child with your head in the clouds. It wouldn’t be an easy relationship. I mean, I don’t have a problem with the fact he’s white and I’m black, but so many people still have problems with interracial couples, and to top it all off, he’s eight years younger than me.” What is my mother going to think?

  “I understand that, but come on, it’s the twenty-first century and if people haven’t gotten past color issues and barriers by now, then that’s their problem. Don’t cross him off just because of that.”

  “I’m not crossing him off just because of that.” Sydnee looked down at her hands in her lap. She was confused and everything seemed jumbled up in her head. She just wanted to make the right, responsible decision, but she was also close to giving in to the curiosity nagging at her soul. “I’m just trying to be responsible about this and just-”

  “Look, I get it all right. You’re nervous about dating him and what people might think. But girl, you are just having fun and if this guy just wants to hang out and have fun, what’s wrong with that?” A wicked grin crossed Sara’s face as she waggled her eyebrows and crossed her arms. “Everyone needs a little fun in their life. Even you, Miss Franklin Covey,” Sara added, referring to Sydnee’s tendency to plan everything.