Free Revving Up the Holidays by A. S. Fenichel Page B

promise.”
    “Good night.” She wouldn’t meet his gaze.
    Isaac tucked the scrap of material into his pocket and
reached for her arm. “You’re not running away, right? You just need to go home.
If I thought you were running from me again, I would chase you back to your
condo.”
    Finally, she looked at him. “I’m not running.”
    “Good.” He leaned down and kissed her. Her arms wrapped
around his back and her fingers toyed with the hair at his collar.
    He could have kissed her all night long. He would make sure
to do that one day. He broke the kiss and pressed his lips to her forehead.
“Good night. I’m going to call you tomorrow.”
    Her eyes darted around the shadowy shop floor. He feared
that she was about to make some kind of argument, but she just nodded.

Chapter Seven
     
    Isaac had said he would call, so when he phoned the
following morning, she hadn’t been surprised. He told her he’d be over around
two in the afternoon. That had been a complete shock. Why would he come over so
early? She assumed he would come by after dinner for sex.
    She worked all morning to finish grading so that she could
relax when he arrived.
    Still, her heart jumped into her throat when the doorbell
rang. She was certain she was having some kind of attack. It was insane that a
grown woman with a doctorate degree could get so torqued up over a man. But
this was Isaac and she couldn’t deny that she was in love with him. She just
wished she hadn’t told him.
    The last thing she would have expected was to find Isaac on
her stoop with a small pine tree and several large shopping bags.
    “What are you doing?”
    His grin melted her heart. “It’s Christmas Eve. I’m starting
a new tradition.”
    She leaned over and peeked inside one of the bags and found
it full of decorations. “You bought all this for me?”
    “May I come in?” He leaned the tree against the side of the
building, grabbed the bags and walked inside, not waiting for an answer.
    She knew her mouth gaped but she couldn’t imagine why he’d
brought all the Christmas décor.
    “I bought one of those stands to hold the tree up. It’s in
one of these bags.”
    He rummaged through the bags. She put her hand on his
shoulder. “Why did you do this?”
    Straightening, he pulled her into a hug. “You shouldn’t stop
celebrating Christmas because your parents aren’t here. I just wanted to give
you a new tradition, a new start.”
    It might have been the sweetest thing anyone had ever done
for her. Tears welled up on her bottom lids and when they tumbled down her
cheek, he kissed them away.
    “Are you going to help me decorate?” she asked.
    His wide grin had her heart pounding. “I thought I would, if
you want. I’ve never done it before, but you can show me.”
    “I’d enjoy that.” The idea of decorating her house had been
painful without her parents alive to enjoy the season. She’d planned to let the
holiday pass unnoticed for the year and hope she’d be more festive next year or
the one after that. But with Isaac there to share the tradition, her enthusiasm
rocketed.
    Maybe her heart wouldn’t be broken. They could keep in touch
after he left to go back north. In the meantime, he’d be in town for another
week. Why should she deny herself the memories of spending time with the man
she loved? Maybe it would be worth the heartbreak to build some memories with
Isaac. She’d never get another opportunity to be with him. It would be foolish
to ruin their moment with worry over the future.
    “What should we do first?”
    She looked around her small condo. “Let’s move the couch and
put the tree in front of that window.”
    He moved the furniture while she pulled everything out of
the six large shopping bags. “This is a lot of stuff.”
    He shrugged. “I didn’t know how much we would need.
Remember, this is my first Christmas tree.”
    She found the tree stand and put it in place before Isaac
went back out the front door and retrieved the