by Janice Lynn
Harry made a little whimper sound from where he slept beneath one of the tables. Bodie knew how the dog felt and fought whimpering himself. A carriage ride with Sarah. Maybe he should do Sarah a favor by grabbing the dog and running while he still could.
Not that he’d ever been one to run, but with the way his mind kept going back to the way their hands had brushed against each other earlier, how their almost kiss at Harvey’s Farm replayed through his mind, how just being near her made him feel better inside, their going on a sleigh ride together knowing he’d soon be leaving felt like stepping into crossfire.
Chapter Thirteen
Bodie fought taking a step back from the sheer force of their smiles that even Sarah’s hug couldn’t shield him from.
He had just agreed to go on a sleigh ride. With Sarah. No. Big. Deal.
Right. That’s why all the women in the booth were looking at him as if he’d morphed into a Prince Charming who was about to sweep Sarah off her feet on a romantic carriage ride.
“It would be a shame for Ruby’s reservation to go to waste,” he tried, hoping to clarify why he’d agreed.
The Butterflies weren’t buying it. Nothing he could say would convince them he’d agreed for any reason other than that Sarah wanted to go.
“A shame, indeed,” Rosie agreed, snatching the reservation slip from Ruby and handing it to Sarah. “Look at the time!” she exclaimed. “You and Bodie have the last ride of the night.”
“Ooooh,” Claudia praised. “That’s for a full twenty minutes.”
“The best ride of the night,” Ruby beamed. “My Charlie would settle for nothing less.”
Glancing down at the paper, Sarah nodded. “Thank you, Ruby. Now, go check on Charlie and don’t forget to let us know how he is.”
There was a flurry of kisses and hugs, then Ruby was off.
Claudia and Maybelle’s attention returned to customers who were now ready to check out. Rosie stared at Bodie and Sarah expectantly.
“Maybe you’d like to visit the other booths now?” Bodie asked, knowing he’d like to do that. Or pretty much anything that got them out from under the watchful eyes of the Butterflies.
“Thanks for that,” Sarah told Bodie as soon as they were out of earshot of the church booth. Maybelle and the others had really laid it on thick.
And perhaps in Sarah’s desire to go on the sleigh ride, so had she.
Letting Harry’s leash out so the dog had a few feet of leeway, Bodie glanced at her. “For rescuing you from the Butterflies?”
“That, too, but I meant for agreeing to go on the sleigh ride.”
Guilt hit her. He really had been put on the spot. No wonder he’d agreed. He’d probably feared the Butterflies would serve him for Christmas dinner had he refused.
“We don’t have to go,” she said. “Not if you don’t want to. The others never have to know.”
Not that they wouldn’t. The Butterflies had eyes and ears everywhere. No doubt word would get back to them if Sarah and Bodie never showed for Ruby’s sleigh ride.
Still, she’d deal with them when the time arose if that was what Bodie needed from her.
Bodie gave a tug on Harry’s leash, and stopped walking. “Do you want to go on the sleigh ride, Sarah?”
She bit the inside of her lip, then nodded. “I do. A lot. I mean, I’ve really wanted to go, well, my whole life. Who doesn’t want to go on a Christmas sleigh ride? But last year…” How did she explain the fiasco of her relationship with Richard? “Well, it didn’t work out. So, yes, I would like to, but that doesn’t mean you and I have to go. There’s always next year.”
Watching her closely, he took a deep breath. “Like I said at the booth, if you want to go, we’ll go. It’s not a big deal. Let’s not make it into one.”
He sounded so matter-of-fact about it she could almost believe him.
Almost.
“I…” she hesitated, not sure what to say, then smiled. He was right. It wasn’t a big deal. She needed to quit acting as if it were. They were just two friends going on a free sleigh ride they’d been given. She needed to remember that. “Thank you, Bodie. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.”
At her words, Sarah swallowed back the knot forming in her throat.
Not from the bottom of her heart. Her heart was not involved in this. She was just feeling gratitude for the wonderful friend he was.
This year, she was going on a sleigh ride. With Bodie.
“Step right up, folks,” a teenaged boy called as they passed his booth. “You need to play to win because winning is what it’s all about.”
Surprising Sarah, Bodie walked over to see what the boy’s game involved.
“Buy a ticket for a chance to win the lady a stuffed Christmas toy.”
The booth was a throwing game. The contestant threw a red ping-pong-sized glowing ball into a small opening on a painted reindeer face. The opening appeared barely large enough for the ball to fit through.
“You want a stuffed Christmas toy?”
Not that she doubted Bodie’s abilities, but the hole was tiny. Sarah gave Bodie a skeptical look. “You think you can win?”
He glanced back at the game board, then nodded.
Cutting her gaze to the teenager, she asked, “How many chances does he get?”
“Each ticket buys three chances to win.”
“Three chances? How many does he have to get to win?”
“Just one.” The boy walked over and put the ball through the opening, showing that it did fit—with no margin of error. “Ready to try your hand?”
Pulling out some cash from his front pocket, Bodie paid the boy who then handed him three glowing balls.
Bodie cupped the balls in his hands, examining each one for about a millisecond before choosing one and handing the other two to Sarah. “You want to go first?”
She looked at him in question. “What?”
“Go ahead.” He gestured for her to throw.
“No sports, remember?” she reminded, knowing her throws would be a waste of his money.
“Me, either, remember? It’s for fun, right?”
“Right.” She eyed the board, aimed the best she could, then underhand tossed the ball toward the deer’s missing nose. The glowing ball bounced off the board and onto the ground.
“Whoops,” the teen said. “Try again.”
Sarah looked to Bodie to see if he minded her wasting a second one of his chances. He nodded for her to go ahead. She aimed and this time tried throwing overhanded. The ball bounced off the board again and was further away from the opening than the first time.
She laughed and turned to Bodie. “Okay, that was all kinds of ugly. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
Taking off his jacket and handing it to Sarah, along with Harry’s leash, Bodie eyed the opening with such a serious expression he seemed to be mentally calculating thrust velocity and wind dynamics as he took aim, flicked his wrist just so, and threw the ball toward the deer’s face.
The ball went straight into the nose opening.
“You got it!” Sarah exclaimed, bouncing with excitement and giving him a congratulatory hug. Harry awarded him with a single bark, too.
“Hey, dude. You win,” the teen said, impressed.
“I thought you said you didn’t play sports,” Sarah teased as she handed his coat back.
Bodie grinned. “By choice—not from a lack of skill.”
Sarah imagined there wasn’t much Bodie couldn’t do if he set his mind to it.
“Pick your prize,” the boy told Sarah.
While Bodie put on his coat, she glanced over the stuffed Christmas toys and picked a silly-looking elf because it made her think of the joke she’d told when they’d unpacked Aunt Jean’s ornaments.
The joke made her think of Bodie’s laughter. Which made
her feel warm inside. She looked down at the big-eared elf in its green hat and outfit and smiled. She couldn’t have made a more perfect choice.
As they walked away, Bodie eyed the toy. “Now I know why Santa’s elf had low elf esteem.”
A bit breathless that his mind was on the same wavelength, Sarah hugged the elf. For a few moments, they walked along in silence, but finally, Sarah couldn’t hold it in any longer.
“I’m wondering why you didn’t play sports. That’s some throw you have.”
He shrugged. “I was interested in being a soldier, not in sports. That doesn’t mean I never played with friends or in pick-up games. Just that I never had interest in devoting myself to a sport.”
“What other hidden talents do you have?”
Looking at her out of the corner of his eye, he shook his head. “None I’m telling you about.”
The reminder of how very different his life had been from hers hit full force. He’d seen and done things around the world unlike anything she’d ever see or do.
She was content with that. Some, like Claudia, dreamed of traveling the world. Sarah believed everything she wanted, needed, was right in Pine Hill.
Would Bodie ever consider settling down in one place? Her chest constricted a little that their dreams weren’t more in sync.
They popped into art and crafts tents, sampled homemade fudge that almost compared to Mrs. Harvey’s, listened to music performed on a stage that had been set up at the far corner of the square, then, when it was time, they made their way to a side street where Mr. Harvey was picking up and dropping off guests for their sleigh ride through the city park.
“Look, they’re dressed like Mr. and Mrs. Claus,” Sarah exclaimed, loving the added touch.
“Just so long as those horses aren’t flying reindeer in disguise,” Bodie mused.
“Where’s your sense of adventure?” Sarah challenged. “Flying reindeer have got nothing on Bodie Lewis.”
He grinned. “So you say.”
The couple before them told Mr. Harvey thanks and goodbye while Sarah gave Mrs. Harvey the reservation slip.
Then they greeted Mr. Harvey, who helped Sarah into the sleigh and waited for Harry to jump up, then Bodie, before he climbed into the front and told them a few rules for their safety.
“Now, y’all just forget I’m here, sit back, and enjoy,” Mr. Harvey concluded before signaling for his Clydesdales to take off on the path they’d already trodden numerous times that night.
The night air was crisp, but with her coat, hat, scarf, and gloves Sarah hadn’t been overly cold up to then. The moving sleigh created just enough wind to put a chill straight through her and she spread the carriage’s thick, fuzzy blankets over her and Bodie.
In all her sleigh fantasies, she hadn’t been cold in a single one. Nor did she remember being cold on the one she’d taken with her father all those years ago. Then again, it had been in the middle of the day with her father.
Harry seemed intrigued by the sleigh ride, standing at attention and moving from Bodie’s side of the sleigh to hers. Fortunately, he didn’t bark, as Mr. Harvey had warned that if Harry barked, it might spook his horses.
“This is Harry’s first sleigh ride?”
“As far as I know.”
“Yours?”
He nodded.
She shivered and pulled the heavy blanket up further around her.
“Cold?”
She nodded. “A bit.”
“Here.” He pulled her closer and adjusted the blanket to tuck it in more securely around them.
With her being so close to Bodie, Harry jumped up onto the seat in the spot she’d vacated, pulling his leash across her. First, he looked out of the sleigh, then settled down next to her, his head lying across her blanketed lap.
“Sorry,” Bodie apologized.
“No problem. Harry adds extra warmth.”
Obviously thinking her comment meant she was still cold, Bodie wrapped his arm around her, hugged her close, and made sure the blanket covered her.
Ah. This was more like her fantasy sleigh ride.
A beautiful starry night through the park with a gorgeous man holding her close. Even Harry lying against her was near perfect.
Sighing with contentment, she lay her head against Bodie’s strong shoulder, snuggled into his warmth and closed her eyes.
That’s when she felt it. The tiniest of nature’s kisses that wasn’t a kiss at all.
She opened her eyes and looked around them with disbelief. The night sky illuminated by the occasional light pole was sprinkled with white specks.
“It’s snowing!”
Bodie laughed. “Guess you can’t have a sleigh ride without snow.”
“Guess not.” She stuck her tongue out and caught a flake, then laughed. “I can’t believe it’s snowing.”
Bodie couldn’t believe it was snowing, either.
He couldn’t believe a lot of things.
Had someone had told him six months ago when he’d been lying in a hospital bed in Germany, alive but wishing he wasn’t, that in December, he’d be in a horse-drawn carriage driven by a man who looked a lot like Santa, with a beautiful, smiling woman cuddled up in his arms and a dog he owned sleeping beside her, well, he’d have thought them delusional.
If someone shook him right now and he awakened to find this was all just a dream, that wouldn’t surprise him at all. Maybe he’d never awakened from the hospital bed and this alternate world only existed in his head.
“It’s like a dream come true,” Sarah said, cuddling up against him as her words echoed his thoughts.
Only this, riding in a sleigh with her and Harry, wasn’t his dream. Never had been.
His dream was being a soldier. Of fighting against bad guys for freedom and justice for all.
Unbidden, he was hit with flashes of the day his Humvee had exploded around him and his unit as an IED went off. The jolt of remembered terror and pain hit him like a body blow, threatening to rob the moment of everything good.
He closed his eyes, squeezing them tight against the ebb of darkness that he expected to engulf him.
“Bodie?” Sarah reached up, touched his face. “Are you okay?”
Through her glove he could feel her warmth, could feel her concern, could feel a lifeline to reality. This reality. A reality where he was in a quaint little town in a horse-drawn carriage with a woman as sweet as the fudge they’d eaten earlier.
Bodie opened his eyes.
Glancing down at her, she came into focus and the darkness left as quickly as it had snatched at him.
“I’m fine,” he said, grateful he was telling her the truth and hating that his murky thoughts had invaded this precious moment. He wouldn’t let them.
Apparently, neither would she, because her gloved hand palmed his cheek in what could only be called a caress as she smiled up at him. “I’m glad.”
“So am I.”
With that she snuggled back into the crook of his arms and he held her close as the sleigh pulled them along the small river that ran through the park. The moonlight dabbled light off the water. The falling snow sprinkled the ground.
Bodie reminded himself again that this wasn’t his dream, but it was hers, and he was so glad he could give it to her. In exchange, he’d allow himself for the moment to relish the warmth and goodness Sarah so freely gave.
The ride only lasted twenty or so minutes. Bodie had cared nothing about going on the sleigh ride, but by the time Mr. Harvey delivered them back to the drop-off point, he admitted he wasn’t ready for the ride to end.
Riding in the sleigh with Sarah snuggled against him and snow falling around them had been surreal, like being trapped inside a magic snow globe where everything was perfect. Where he was a different person and not some jaded, broken man who’d only just begun to put
his shattered life back together.
When Mr. Harvey stopped the sleigh, Bodie thought their adventure complete, but apparently Mrs. Harvey had other ideas as she joined them, camera in hand.
Rather than getting off the sleigh, Mr. Harvey told them to smile for the fancy camera his wife held.
“What is it with you people and pictures?” Bodie mumbled.
“Yeah, yeah,” Sarah teased. “Why don’t you make that funny face for me again?”
As she’d probably intended, Bodie smiled.
“Now,” Mrs. Harvey instructed. “If you look up, you’ll see that dear sweet husband of mine stopped in just the perfect spot for the next picture. As it just showed up there earlier tonight, we’ve decided ’twas a Christmas miracle and meant to be.”
Bodie and Sarah looked up and spotted the mistletoe at the same time. When they looked back at each other, Sarah’s eyes had widened.
“Now, now,” Mrs. Harvey tsked, motioning for them to cooperate. “Don’t be shy.”
Shy had nothing to do with it.
“I think she wants you to kiss me,” Sarah said slowly, her eyes growing even larger.
Bodie’s eyes might be huge, too. His hesitation certainly was.
“Doesn’t matter what she wants. We don’t have to kiss just because there’s planted mistletoe hanging from a lamp post.”
Uncertainty and what could only be labeled as disappointment shone on Sarah’s face.
Bodie’s stomach knotted. Did she want him to kiss her?
Memories of standing by their Christmas tree at Harvey Farm, of holding her hand earlier, swamped him, stirring his insides into a muddled mess.
He’d wanted to kiss her on both occasions. He wanted to kiss her now.
That didn’t mean he should.
“Quit making a big deal out of this and just kiss me,” Sarah ordered, sounding thoroughly fed up with the whole thing.
Bodie hesitated. When he still didn’t move, Sarah gave him a huffy glare. “Look, we may as well do this. The Harveys aren’t going to let us out of the sleigh until we do.”