Free Bound for Christmas by Sam Crescent Page B

coffees with cream and sugar?”
    The lady
rang his order up. He let Bernie go while he paid, and then they moved to the
side while the guy behind the stand did their order.
    He thanked
the guy then grabbed their food. They walked down to the lake around the corner
and down the road.
    “Have you
visited here often?” Bernie asked when he found a bench near the lake.
    “When it’s
the festive season, I love coming here. The snow, the town, and fairs make it
so worthwhile. Most of the time, I stay here for a few days then go back home
for Christmas dinner. Mom loves doing a turkey with all the trimmings.”
    “It sounds
wonderful.”
    “Next
year, we’ll go together.”
    “Are you
sure?”
    “I’ll take
you to my folks for the New Year, and then next Christmas we’ll visit them.
You’ll love it, and I promise your excitement for Christmas will be
multiplied.”
     
     

Chapter Nine
     
    Bernie sat
next to
Leon
while they ate their food. She looked forward to all of his plans, meeting his
folks and spending more time with him. His warmth rubbed off on her. All the
talk he’d been doing about his family made her wish for a bigger family of her
own. The lake was frozen solid, and the ice glistened in the sunlight. Everywhere
she looked had a layer of snow. She felt the chill but not as badly if she’d
not been wearing the fabric style tights he’d bought for her.
    “How is
your potato?” he asked.
    “Lovely.”
    They
finished off their food. “Stay here,” he said. She watched him take their cases
to throw them in the trash.
    When his
arms were around her, she was able to walk by his side.
Leon
walked her around the market,
pointing certain foods out for her to look at or try. His energy and love for
the season were rubbing off on her. She felt excited about everything he talked
about. He made a few purchases from a couple of stalls. They stopped to try
other foods. He’d make her close her eyes as he spooned in a taste of some sort
of fish salad.
    It was
nice, and when she opened his eyes, he pointed to what she’d tasted.
    “ Ew , octopus salad. How could
you,
Leon
?”
He began chuckling. She couldn’t spit out the bite as she had enjoyed it.
    “Sometimes
you’re going to have to trust me.”
    “How did
you know I’d even like it?”
    “It was
how I tasted it. Some foods you need to close your eyes in order to rid
yourself of the potential disaster.”
    She shook
her head.
Leon
was like a kid in a candy store. The more he got her to try, the harder it was
for her to trust him. Most of the food she tried she enjoyed, even though she’d
refused to ever try them.
    “I think
that is it for today. I’ve got some stuff for us to decorate the cabin with and
some food.” He took her hand leading her back to the car. Night had fallen
while they’d been out. She’d had so much fun she hadn’t noticed the passage of
time. The parking lot was almost empty. A few stray cars were parked in odd
spaces.
    He put his
parcels in the trunk of the car then assisted her in getting inside the car.
She didn’t argue as he put on her seatbelt and shut the door. Seconds later he
climbed in his side. In no time at all, they were on the main road going in the
direction of the cabin.
    “There is
a warning for more snowfall. Sometimes it can cut out the communication. I’ll
cook dinner, and you can call your friend.”
    The radio
spoke of the impending snow storm. She kept her gaze on the passing scenery.
She couldn’t see much as it was pitch black. Her thoughts were dominated by the
man at her side. He looked so calm and in control. She wondered what he did
with his life. What did he enjoy doing in his spare time? Kink was only one
part of him. She wanted to know all the little details that made him up.
    “I can
hear you thinking all the way over here,” he said.
    “Sorry, I
just have so many questions.”
    “We’ll
have time to answer them all.”
    She
smiled.
    He pulled up to the cabin. She waited in the
car