A Tinsel Tale: Book One by Jill Downey

Author:Jill Downey [Downey, Jill]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-12-19T16:00:00+00:00

17

EVIE

“Alexa, play Christmas songs,” I say, as I grip the tree about mid-way up the trunk. The needles are uncomfortably scratchy against my skin. Jamie lies prone on the floor under the tree, tightening the screws on the stand. All that is sticking out is his fine backside and muscular legs, looking mighty tasty in his faded Levis. Alexa replies and holiday tunes begin streaming through my Bose speakers.

“Is that better?” he says, voice muffled.

“Almost. It’s still leaning slightly to the right.” We placed the tree to the right of the fireplace, which is burning brightly, casting a warm glow over the room. Mags and Bruiser are settled on their beds while Huxley hyper-vigilantly watches every move Jamie makes. “What do you think, Hux?” Huxley’s eyes dart to me for a millisecond then back to his person. The herding instinct is real, folks. I chuckle at his focus. “He’s locked in,” I explain to Jamie.

Puss is lounging on the back of the couch paying rapt attention and making mental playdates with the tree.

“How’s that?” Jamie says, voice strained.

“Better. Hold on a sec, I’ll step back and take a look.” I walk backwards a few paces and study the tree. “I think we’ve got it.”

I watch his delectable ass as he army crawls out from under the tree. He hops up in one fluid motion, then fluffs his hair with both hands, dislodging any clinging needles from his wild mop. He takes a look at his work and agrees. “Perfect. Where are your lights? I’ll start stringing them.”

I lift the lid off a large plastic tub and pull out several strings of lights to test. “Let’s start with these,” I say. I plug them in one at a time to make sure they all work. I hand them to Jamie then I return to the tub to search for the Christmas star. “How many lights do you think we’ll need?”

“I’d say at least two or three more strands. This tree is massive.”

“Here’s the star,” I say. I carefully take it out of the box. My mind drifts back to the year Mom and I bought it while we were out Christmas shopping in downtown Chicago. It had been a blustery December day and Mom had come down to spend a couple of days with me during the holiday season. I’d actually taken two days off work. Shocking. The star was ridiculously expensive, but we couldn’t resist. We giggled, pinky swearing not to tell Dad we’d spent sixty-five dollars on a tree topper. “Wait until you see it lit up. It’s a light show all on its own,” I say. Setting it aside, I dig out three more strings of lights to test.

Jamie looks over at the star and chuckles while untangling a string of lights. “You think it’s big enough?”

“Don’t laugh. You’re going to want one after you see it.”

“No doubt.” He smiles at me, and I swallow hard at the warmth in his gaze.

“I’m glad you came a little early to get started before Gwen gets here,” I say.

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