As she pulled away, Deckard said, “Wow, this is a welcome surprise. What brings you by?”
She lifted her items a bit higher to catch his eye. “Just a few things for tonight. Stopped by on my way home.”
“Well, I’ll be heading your way shortly. Just finishing up a few things for my grandma.”
“Okay, see you then.” January lifted on her toes to press another kiss to his lips. His arm was still wrapped around her waist and he didn’t loosen his hold as she tried to take a step back. “What?” she asked him.
“Everything okay?” he questioned, concern evident in his voice.
“Yeah, why wouldn’t it be?”
“I don’t know.” Deckard paused before he freed her from his embrace, adding, “I’ll be close behind you.”
She waved at him as she left the aisle he was working in, tossing a farewell toward his grandparents working at the front of the store after she had her items rung up.
At home, she made quick work of tidying up her house after she placed the ham in the oven. The small dining table was replaced with the larger buffet table, adding a mixture of chairs around the setting to accommodate everyone. January laid the covering and the placemats on the table. Using some evergreen clippings she had snipped from her own Christmas tree, she tried her best to make something festive out and situated it around the candles she had picked up at the general store. She thought it looked nice, but something was missing. It wasn’t nearly festive enough.
January looked around her space searching for a regal centerpiece to bring the design together, but nothing seemed to fit. The monogram that was working as a makeshift tree topper would work, but she didn’t want to remove it. Shrugging her shoulders January gave up her hunt and decided to relax before she needed to get started on the side dishes.
She remembered Deckard saying he would be over soon, but that had been over an hour ago. Needing to kill some time, January went ahead and changed into the red body-hugging dress she planned to wear for the night. The material was soft cashmere that ended just above her knees, sleeves that stopped at her elbows, and a scooped neckline. Her hair still maintained its bouncy waves from this morning, so she only needed to do a quick touch up of her makeup.
Back in the kitchen, January poured a glass of her favorite red wine, a local merlot, and started some of the side dishes that she hadn’t prepared the night before. With everything, almost ready to go, January took the chance to relax. Relax as much as a host could with the feelings weighing on her chest. She grabbed her phone from its dock in the kitchen and shuffled toward the living room, taking in the beautiful space that Deckard and her family had helped decorate.
With the flip of a switch, January’s fireplace roared to life, and she stood back to take in its beauty. She always found the flicker of a flame beautiful. It was never constant, ever changing its shape and color; it pushed and pulled against nature.
Flipping through a playlist on her phone, January queued up some soft music to play through the wireless speakers she had situated in the house. Standing a few feet from the fireplace, January took a large sip of her wine as she watched the flame dance to the music.
“Wow,” a voice called out in wonderment.
January looked over her shoulder to find Deckard approaching her, the look of awe evident on his face. He reminded her of a child that received his most wished Christmas present.
“You are absolutely stunning, January.” The compliment sank deep into her heart and she knew that she’d treasure it for eternity. He leaned forward and kissed her softly, pulling back before she was done.
“Let me take off my coat and I can help you finish things. Sorry that I’m late. I got tied up.”
“That’s okay. I have most everything ready to go, so we have a bit of time to relax before everyone arrives.”
“Well, I’ll definitely take a glass of whatever you’re drinking,” he added as he made his way toward her coat closet to hang up his jacket.
“Sure.”
January left her post in front of the fireplace and went back to the kitchen to pour a glass of wine for Deckard. Just as she placed the topper back on the bottle, Deckard walked up to her with a small bag in hand.
“This is for you.” He held the bag out toward January, who traded him for the glass of wine. “Happy birthday, sweetheart.” She had been peering down into the bag, but at the mention of her birthday, her head snapped up in surprise.
“What? Thought I forgot?” he chuckled.
“No. I just. . .didn’t expect anything. You didn’t have to get me a gift.”
“I know, but I wanted to.” Deckard took a sip of the wine, then urged her to open the bag.
Inside the black bag with black tissue paper was a red velvet rectangle. January set the bag aside and held the container in her hand as if it were the most precious thing she had ever owned. Her eyes shot up to his again and he silently urged her to open it with a gesture of his hands.
The hinges squeaked as she popped the lid and it snapped in place. Nestled inside the box was a delicate bracelet. It was so unique, January had never seen anything like it. This was no ordinary jeweled tennis bracelet. The links were a series of intertwined snowflakes with small diamonds situated in the center. In the middle of the links was a thin, long rectangle.
January reached into the box and pulled out the bracelet, bringing it closer to her face to get a better look at each piece. The rectangle was engraved with her name and she recognized the script used as the same from the star Deckard had designed for her parents almost two weeks prior.
“Did you engrave this?” she asked him.