A Merry Christmas

I hadn't lived on the Oregon Coast a full year, so I had not yet tried to cross the mountain pass during Christmas. My family (nuclear and extended) all live in Portland, about two hours away from my new home in Seaside. It was for this reason that it had simply never occurred to me that I might not be able to go home for Christmas. I went home for everything: birthdays, holidays, shopping, lunch with my folks when I felt like it. Of course I'd spend the holidays with my family. And I had secretly decided that this would be the time that I'd introduce Adam to my extended family, or rather, the time that I would introduce my family to him...

When I saw My Big Fat Greek Wedding the first time, I finally realized I was not alone. My family is not Greek, but they are big and loud and in each other's lives all time. Which is why when I finished my degree in library science, I agreed to take a job in Seaside two hours from everyone. It seemed like just enough miles that I could still take part in everything that I wanted to, but far enough away to provide healthy distance.

I love my job and my new hometown. I met my boyfriend there the first week after I moved. I needed someone to make some renovations to the little old house that I bought and Adam came highly recommended. We hit it off immediately and had been dating for about 3 months. Adam had long finished the updating to my kitchen and bathroom. I wanted to add another room to the back of my house, but I also figured it could wait until later, since this thing with Adam seemed to be working out and I really couldn't afford it yet anyway.

December 23rd I spent all day making candy and baking cookies. My presents had long been wrapped, though I discovered that under the tree was not a good place to keep presents when you have a puppy. That night the temperature dropped hard and fast. We had not seen any snow yet this winter, though it had been predicted more than once. The night was crystal clear as Adam and I came home from a friend's party.

"I think it's going to snow, babe," Adam had told me as we parked in front of my house.

"I doubt it. There are only a few clouds and they've said it was going to like three times already, and nothing," I said as I snuggled into his shoulder. (Yes, I rode in the middle of the bench seat. We're still newly dating. Cut me some slack.)

We both looked at the sky though the windshield as clouds blew past, obscuring, then revealing, then obscuring again the bright moon.

"It looks like there's a ring around the moon. It's going to be a White Christmas," Adam persisted. "Maybe we should check the weather, before we go tomorrow."

"Maybe I should wait and we can drive together."

"No. I don't want you to miss the morning with your family." Adam had family obligations of his own and was planning to come only later in the afternoon, while I was planning to drive to my parents' house early Christmas Eve, then ride with them out to my Aunt and Uncle's for dinner and gifts. Adam would meet us there and have dinner with the family.

"Okay, but make sure your phone is charged just in case," Adam said, turning to kiss my forehead. I tipped my mouth up to kiss his chin. He was so sweet when he worried. "Not that my cell will be much good in the mountains," I teased. He pressed his lips to mine. It took several moments before he answered. "Still, I'd rather you had your phone, just in case."

By then I was breathless, so I didn't argue. "See you tomorrow," I said as I slipped out of the truck and booked it through the cold night air to my house. I sniffed the wreath on my door as I slipped my key in the lock. Mmm... Christmas! I could hear Dallas yipping in excitement and I turned to wave so he knew I was safely inside.

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I knew something was up before I even opened my eyes. My bedroom had a chill to it that spoke of a cold, cold day and Dallas had climbed under my covers to hide beside my warmth, even though I rarely let her on the bed. I turned over and cuddled her, rubbing her ears and neck. I was bringing her with me to Portland because she was still a cute puppy and no one could object, and besides, I couldn't leave her alone all weekend.

I'm normally against putting clothes on a dog, but I admit that I have a vest for Dallas that I put on her that day, because she got so cold when we went outside that she shook. Beagles aren't exactly built for really cold weather. Afterward, I jumped in the shower, made a quick breakfast and ran about gathering the things I was bringing with me. Dallas ran around barking and jumping in excitement until I suddenly realized she had disappeared.

I had almost everything together when I went to look for her. She was standing on the back of the couch watching snowflakes falling outside. Her little tail was wagging as she intently watched their slow decent and she was so darn cute that it took me a minute to realize, 'CRAP! It's snowing!'

I lugged everything to the car, checked to make sure I had chains in my trunk, then put Dallas in her carrier thingy and strapped the carrier in the front seat. The ground had yet to turn white, and although the flakes weren't melting when they hit the ground, I ignored the snow and set out.

Half way up the mountain I stopped to chain up. The snow was falling quite a bit harder and it had clearly been snowing in the higher elevations a lot longer than it had been down at sea level. If it had been any other day, I might have just turned around then, but it was Christmas Eve and Christmas is about family, so I cranked up the Bing Crosby and sang to White Christmas and Silver Bells as I drove through the trees and the falling snow. It couldn't have been more picturesque if I had special ordered it. It was so beautiful that I stopped to take a few pictures. I also let Dallas out to pee, but once she was out of the car she was far more interested in jumping and running through the white fluffy stuff than peeing. In fact she refused to pee, until I found her a place under the trees that was sheltered enough that there was nearly snowless ground. I finally dusted off my puppy and got her back in the car.

At that point I noticed that visibility was starting to get bad. I started the car and pulled back onto the highway, but I nearly didn't make it back on to the road. Despite my chains, the wheels slipped and slid across the road and I had a few breathless moments as I clenched the wheel and tried not to over-steer. Finally we were back on the road and I drove slowly and carefully a few more miles. Nervous, I checked my phone to see if I had any reception. One bar.

I decided then and there to call Adam and let him know where I was and that I was still trucking toward Portland. His answering service picked up and I told him my mile marker, the road conditions and my decision to drive on. I called my mother too, just to let her know I was still on my way. My service cut out part way through the second call. Then I hit a hill that my little car was just not prepared for.

I had just come down a gentle slope and was climbing the hill before me when my car started to slide off the road. I tried to steer back toward the center of the road, but I lost momentum and my car started to slide backward, rather than forward. We slid in slow motion, drifting back down the hill and to the right until my car came to a stop near the bottom of the hill, half on the road and half in the ditch, which was quickly filling up with drifted snow.

I sat there a moment and took stock. We were both okay, though Dallas was whining in fear. I patted her head and rubbed under her chin. I checked the cell phone. No bars. I turned on my engine and started the car. I had somehow killed it during the slow decent into the snowy ditch. I put the car in first gear and slowly eased on the gas. I could feel my tires spinning, so I eased off. Trying to ward off fear, I got out of my car to look at the situation. The snow was just too deep and even with chains, I couldn't get any traction. We were stuck. I wanted badly to try driving away again, but I could see that it wasn't going to work and I decided that getting my car stuck further into the snow was a terrible plan.

I got back in the car and cried. It was Christmas Eve. I was stuck in the middle of nowhere with my puppy and no cell service and the snow was nearing a foot deep. I ate a couple Christmas cookies and gave Dallas a treat while I tried to decide what to do. Despite the remoteness, I knew that there were houses hidden along the highway through here. My best bet was probably to try to find a house and use a landline to call Adam and my family. I ate another cookie to fortify myself as I tried not the think the dreaded thought 'I should have listen to my mother and turned back.' I put on my gloves and scarf and hat. I got out and stuck Dallas in my hoodie then zipped it up till only her little head was sticking out. Then I put on my coat, locked my car and headed West down the road.

The stillness of a snowy day is always so deep and I couldn't hear any of the normal forest or road noises that I associate with this stretch of land. As the flakes fell silently around me I found myself wishing Adam was there. I don't really know why. Two of stuck isn't really any better than one of us stuck, and in fact would be worse, since I was hoping he would come and get me. But the truth was everything was better when he was around. And even though we were stuck out on the highway in foot deep snow, Adam would see the beauty of the forest and feel the joy of snow at Christmas time. My heart thumped hard as I began to realize that I wanted to spend every day with Adam; every day for the rest of my life. When had that happened? I slipped a little in the snow and I sat on a convenient log to think about this revelation. We had only been dating for three months. We hadn't even had sex yet. We were both old fashion enough to want to take it slow and, true, this had always felt like something special. I stood back up, because it was darn cold and sitting wasn't helping. I could think and walk at the same time for goodness' sake.

Okay. So... So, I had found the man I wanted to marry. And suddenly I couldn't walk fast enough. Holy crap! I had found the man I wanted to marry. Now if I could only get to him through all this snow.

And as if that thought had bidden him come, he appeared over the crest of the hill. I stopped dead in my tracks, one arm supporting Dallas, so she would stay warm under my coat and one arm raised to draw his eye. He pulled over to the side where I was standing and jumped out of his truck.

"Oh thank God!" he said, as he pulled me into his arms. Dallas wiggled between us and popped her head out of my coat and barked. We both started laughing.

"Come on, let's get you both in the truck and warmed up!"

"How did you know we were stuck?" I asked, beyond curious at his sudden and heroic appearance. We climbed in the truck and I began to remove my layers, so that I could let Dallas out.

"I don't know. I got your message while I was still at my parents and something just told me to go. The farther I went, the worse the feeling got and then I crested the hill and there you were, walking down the side of the highway. Where's your car?"

"About a mile back. I didn't really walk all that far before you found me."

"A mile? Are you freezing? Here let me turn up the heat."

I laughed. God, I loved this man! We hiked together all the time and he knew a mile in cold weather was not going to kill me. But that didn't stop him from cranking the heat and pulling my already warm hands into his to "warm" them further.

"I know a better way to warm me up," I said. And I pulled him close enough to kiss. I couldn't help but put all the love and passion I had just been feeling into the kiss I gave him. When we finally pulled apart gasping, my hand was under his sweater on his chest and I could feel his hands on my ribs below my breasts.

"Let's go home," I said, with feeling.

"Right," he said. "What about your car?"

"Well, it's off the road, about half into a shallow ditch. We can come back tomorrow and pull it out, if it stops snowing, but honestly, I just want to go home now."

He gave me a considering look, then he put the truck into gear, pulled it around, and started back. The puppy settled down on the seat between us, put her head on Adam's thigh, and sighed.

We were both quiet on the home. It took longer than normal because Adam was driving cautiously with all the snow. I don't know what he was thinking, but I was thinking about a lot of things. I thought about my family. This would be the first Christmas I had ever spent apart from them. I thought about my cousins opening their presents and running around the house, crazy and hopped up on sugar and adrenaline. I thought about my grandfather telling stories about the good old days; they were wonderful stories about his youth and my uncles and father as children. I thought about the games and the pie and the times when I was a kid and my grandmother would play Christmas songs on the piano while the parents sung and the children played. Then I thought about the man beside me; how to tell him everything I felt.

How do you tell someone that you want to spend the rest of your life with them? That you want your future Christmas memories to be about him? Guys have it so easy. They can just propose. And while I could do that, I had a feeling it would take the wind out of Adam's sails. I couldn't do that to him. But I could just try to show him how I felt. I started to formulate a plan.

When we got back down to HWY 101, I called my mom to let her know that I was okay, but I wasn't going to make it there today. I expected her to be disappointed, but she mostly just sounded relieved. I felt like a jerk for making her worry and so I apologized then told her to give my love to the family. When I got off the phone we were pulling up to my house.

The puppy was sprawled out on the seat between us, fast asleep. "Will you carry her for me?" I asked. Clearly, I could have carried the puppy myself, but I mostly just needed an excuse to get him in the house. The puppy seemed like the obvious choice.

"Sure," he answered picking her up and cradling her in his arm. I gathered up my own things then got out. I opened the front door wide to let Adam in, then closed it and locked it with a strange sense of finality. We were home.

Adam laid the puppy on her bed by the fireplace then turned back toward me. I was already removing my sweatshirt, but he hadn't even taken off his coat yet. I pushed it off his shoulders, dropping it on the floor. I pushed his sweater up over his head. He quirked an eyebrow at me, cooperating but saying nothing.

I sat on the bench behind me to pull off my boots and he sat next to me to do the same. I was looking down at my boots. "I was pretty scared when my car got stuck," I admitted. "I wished you were there, even though we would have both been stuck." I looked up at him then. He was smiling. God, I loved his smile. It was the first thing I noticed when I met him. He had perfect lips and when he smiled, it made you feel like the world was a pretty great place to be in. "I love you Adam."

"I love you too," he said, and I thought his smile might crack his face it got so big.

I stood up in my bare feet and pulled my shirt over my head. Just as quickly I popped the button on my jeans and pushed them down to my feet. Adam's jaw dropped. It wasn't that much to look at: average build, short stature and practical cotton underwear and bra. I might be stacked on top, but in the way of seduction, this was less than elaborate. Adam just sat there staring at me with his mouth open, which actually made me feel a little better. Apparently he didn't need elaborate. And that was great, because that meant I would really knock his socks off someday with the underwear I had in the drawer in my bedroom.

I pulled him to his feet and reached for his belt. I just about had it off when he suddenly galvanized into action. He yanked his pants down and pulled his undershirt off, then standing just in black boxers and white tube socks, he swept me up. I laughed again in unexpected joy and threw my arms around his shoulders as he carried me to the bedroom. He set me in the center of the bed, then stopped and suddenly turned around. That wasn't exactly the action I expected him to take and I sat there in stunned silence. What the hell?

He returned quickly holding a small black box and as he moved to kneel beside the bed my breath caught in my throat and my eyes teared up.

"Sarah, I love you with my whole heart. I can't imagine a future that you're not in. I know we haven't been dating for very long, but I already know that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"

The tears spilled down my cheeks as I wrapped my arms around him. "Yes. Yes. A million times, yes!" I laughed. "Thank God you asked me. I didn't know how I was going to tell you yes without accidently asking you first."

Adam laughed at my ridiculousness as he stood up to get on the bed. He pulled me closer and wiped the tears from my face. Then he kissed my eyes and my cheeks, my chin and finally my mouth. He turned his head to tilt the kiss. My hands spread wide on his smooth back and I felt his hard muscles beneath my hands.

"You haven't even seen the ring yet," he said, pulling away.

"Uh huh. In a minute," I said, between the kisses I pressed into his neck and shoulder. I really wanted to see the ring. I really wanted to wear the ring. But at the moment, I wanted to kiss his hard body even more. He was running his hard calloused hands down my back and sides and it felt so good that I didn't want him to ever stop, but he finally pushed me back and put the box in my hand.

Oh, God.

I cracked the lid and starred down at my new ring. It was absolutely perfect. He slid it out of the box and onto my finger. I looked up into his eyes. I could feel the cool gold warming to my hand, but I couldn't look away from his eyes. He pulled me close and started kissing me again. We slowly lay back against the pillows, kissing and touching, touching and kissing.

His body was lean and muscled from construction work and running. He had a light sprinkling of hair across his chest that matched the dark hair on his head. His mouth was steadily working its way down my chest, and when he encountered the barrier of my practical bra, his hands went around my back to remove that obstacle. He rubbed his lips gently over my nipples before opening his mouth to suck one gently in. As if there were a direct line from my nipples to my crotch, I felt my panties flood while other things clenched. One hand went to the back of his head to hold him there, while my other hand continued to explore the broad expanse of his back. I encountered the line of his boxers and flattened my hand to go under the band. Even his butt felt muscled and I squeezed it to test its strength. His member jumped against my thigh and he groaned releasing one nipple and starting on the next. I clenched again. My hand continued to explore his body, coming around the front to see what we had there. I knew this was going to step up the game, and while I liked, a lot, what he was doing, my lower half was getting restless with anticipation. My hand found his shaft and wrapped around its base. Shit! He felt huge! I must have surprised him as well, because my nipple popped out of his mouth and he groaned. "Oh God, Sarah!"

I smirked wickedly and moved my hand down his shaft. He rolled to his side to allow me better access and I pulled his shorts down so I could see what I was getting into. I stared for a second. I wasn't ready for this. While he wasn't particularly long, his girth was surprising and I had the distinct thought, 'I hope this fits.' I decided to test it with my mouth first, though I knew that might be pushing his limit.