the night. She pushed aside thoughts of her imminent return to Celestial Maintenance, and absorbed every bit of her surroundings, stuffing it into her memory to play back when she could no longer experience it firsthand.
Tony set Penny on her feet. “Well, you better get going. Find us a tree.”
With a smile glued to her lips, Penny scampered off obediently, leaving Dora and Tony to weather the awkward silence left by the child’s absence. Pulling her coat closer around her, Dora turned her attention to a blue spruce.
“Look at how beautifully this is shaped,” she said to fill the tense void.
Tony took the end of one of the limbs in his hand, and then broke one of the tiny fragile needles. The smell of fresh pine seeped into the cold night air. Dora breathed deeply, storing the fragrance with the rest of the memories.
Tony watched her. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think this was your first Christmas.”
Dora froze. She couldn’t very well admit that it was her first Christmas, or at the very least her first on Earth. “I feel like every Christmas is my first,” she said quickly. “I just love this season of the year.”
He grinned again.
Dora almost wished he wouldn’t do that. Every time he smiled she felt as if her insides were that ball of snow that had melted in her hand that morning. Not good.
The streetlights blinked on and off several times. Dora glanced around her and found, from the other people’s complete disregard for anything but selecting a tree, that she’d been the only one to witness the blinking lights. Evidently, Calvin didn’t approve of her musings. “We’d better find Penny,” she told Tony, then sidled past him and into the clump of trees into which Penny had disappeared moments earlier.
Once inside the thick barrier of trees, Dora became instantly disoriented. Looking around her, she tried to decide where she’d come from, but every direction looked the same, a wall of impenetrable pine trees. She turned to retrace her steps and ran headlong into Tony’s wide chest. When she again lost her footing on the slick snow, his arms automatically encircled her.
Raising her face to thank him, she lost all sense of time and place. He was staring down at her. His eyes held warmth and, for the first time since she’d come into Tony Falcone’s home, a faint glimmer of life. Mesmerized, she held her breath and waited. For what, she had no idea. She only knew that something momentous was about to happen to her. Something that would change her life forever.
Very slowly, Tony lowered his head and gently touched her lips with his. His mouth was cool at first, then turned warm and sweet and oh, so inviting. She curled her arms around Tony’s neck and hung on, never wanting to let the moment end. Never wanting to—
Out of the corner of her eye, Dora could see every light in town blinking madly. Instantly, she pulled free of Tony’s embrace.
“Dora?”
“We need to go find Penny,” she said, her voice choked with regret.
Tony stared at her, but before he could ask the questions she knew hovered on his lips, a scream came from the other side of the lot.
Penny .
CHAPTER 4
When Tony and Dora reached the spot where Penny stood unharmed, they stopped dead in their tracks. Penny was jumping up and down next to the most pitiful-looking tree Dora had ever seen, a brilliant smile transforming her usually solemn face.
Both heaved a deep sigh of relief. Penny had screamed with excitement and not in distress as they had feared. Dora couldn’t recall being that frightened ever before.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tony open his mouth to scold Penny for scaring them. But Dora nudged him and shook her head. He closed his mouth. “Well, what do you think?” The little girl turned sideways and surveyed her find with adoring eyes. “Isn’t it special?”
Special was one way to describe it. The tree couldn’t have been more than five feet tall and the
Tony set Penny on her feet. “Well, you better get going. Find us a tree.”
With a smile glued to her lips, Penny scampered off obediently, leaving Dora and Tony to weather the awkward silence left by the child’s absence. Pulling her coat closer around her, Dora turned her attention to a blue spruce.
“Look at how beautifully this is shaped,” she said to fill the tense void.
Tony took the end of one of the limbs in his hand, and then broke one of the tiny fragile needles. The smell of fresh pine seeped into the cold night air. Dora breathed deeply, storing the fragrance with the rest of the memories.
Tony watched her. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think this was your first Christmas.”
Dora froze. She couldn’t very well admit that it was her first Christmas, or at the very least her first on Earth. “I feel like every Christmas is my first,” she said quickly. “I just love this season of the year.”
He grinned again.
Dora almost wished he wouldn’t do that. Every time he smiled she felt as if her insides were that ball of snow that had melted in her hand that morning. Not good.
The streetlights blinked on and off several times. Dora glanced around her and found, from the other people’s complete disregard for anything but selecting a tree, that she’d been the only one to witness the blinking lights. Evidently, Calvin didn’t approve of her musings. “We’d better find Penny,” she told Tony, then sidled past him and into the clump of trees into which Penny had disappeared moments earlier.
Once inside the thick barrier of trees, Dora became instantly disoriented. Looking around her, she tried to decide where she’d come from, but every direction looked the same, a wall of impenetrable pine trees. She turned to retrace her steps and ran headlong into Tony’s wide chest. When she again lost her footing on the slick snow, his arms automatically encircled her.
Raising her face to thank him, she lost all sense of time and place. He was staring down at her. His eyes held warmth and, for the first time since she’d come into Tony Falcone’s home, a faint glimmer of life. Mesmerized, she held her breath and waited. For what, she had no idea. She only knew that something momentous was about to happen to her. Something that would change her life forever.
Very slowly, Tony lowered his head and gently touched her lips with his. His mouth was cool at first, then turned warm and sweet and oh, so inviting. She curled her arms around Tony’s neck and hung on, never wanting to let the moment end. Never wanting to—
Out of the corner of her eye, Dora could see every light in town blinking madly. Instantly, she pulled free of Tony’s embrace.
“Dora?”
“We need to go find Penny,” she said, her voice choked with regret.
Tony stared at her, but before he could ask the questions she knew hovered on his lips, a scream came from the other side of the lot.
Penny .
CHAPTER 4
When Tony and Dora reached the spot where Penny stood unharmed, they stopped dead in their tracks. Penny was jumping up and down next to the most pitiful-looking tree Dora had ever seen, a brilliant smile transforming her usually solemn face.
Both heaved a deep sigh of relief. Penny had screamed with excitement and not in distress as they had feared. Dora couldn’t recall being that frightened ever before.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tony open his mouth to scold Penny for scaring them. But Dora nudged him and shook her head. He closed his mouth. “Well, what do you think?” The little girl turned sideways and surveyed her find with adoring eyes. “Isn’t it special?”
Special was one way to describe it. The tree couldn’t have been more than five feet tall and the
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