Christmas Love

Chapter Sixteen

Grabbing my cereal, I decided to go to the couch and watch the snow come down. Sitting there watching how soft the snowflakes were falling to the ground always relaxed me.

It reminded me of last year being stuck in the cabin with a man whom I never thought I would end up with, yet here we are, married, a baby on the way and living in our own home.

Never give up on your dreams was my new moto.

I felt soft lips gently kissing the top of my head, "hey little mouse," I opened my eyes and saw Steve leaning over the couch looking at me with a smile on his lips.

"Hey love" I whispered back, "I have a surprise for you" Steve said as he helped me sit up. I noticed a fire going, I smiled at that, he knew how much I loved a fire going when it was snowing out.

"Well, the fire isn't it, but I know how much you love them" Steve sat down next to me on the couch, and he laid out a paper on the coffee table.

"What's this?" I asked looking at a blueprint for what I had no idea.

"I want to build us our own treehouse, like the old one but safer and I also want to fix up the old on for our little one when she gets older to play in."

"I love the ideas, but aren't we a bit old to have a treehouse?" I asked with a smirk on my lips, in some ways he was still a big kid.

"What's wrong with a place just for us, to hide away from the world even if it's for a moment for me to steal a kiss from the most beautiful woman?"

Steve always knew the right thing to say. "I love that, and I love you" I said as I laid my head on his shoulder looking over the plans.

"I love you to my little mouse," "when do you plan on starting up these projects?" "In the springtime once, the ground has thawed."

We sat there for the next hour, while Steve went over every detail of what he wanted to do. A yawn slipped out that I so desperately tried to hide.

Steve saw and he stopped talking and stood up, standing there with his hand out to me, I took ahold of it and stood up with a little bit of effort.

I followed him upstairs, and he shut the door making sure Tipsy was not going to join us. I knew that look on Steves face, some quiet time was just what we needed.

I woke up to Aunt Mable arguing with Steve downstairs. I just laid there, thinking if I did not get up, I could just go back to sleep and not deal with whatever was going on downstairs.

"Laura, are you up yet?" I could hear Aunt Mabel hollering from downstairs, ugh that woman could drive anyone batty after a while.

"Aunt Mabel, no need to holler for my wife, you need to leave her be" Steve said in a gruff tone. My protective bear, he never liked when I was woken up from a nap by his aunt.

I got up and shuffled to the bathroom, ignoring Aunt Mabel standing at the bottom of the stairs.

She could wait, my bladder could not.

After I was done, I stood there looking at myself in the mirror. I was dreading going downstairs, I knew what this was about, anytime Steve and his aunt argued over anything, she wanted me to clear it up which means take her side.

Most times I never did, but on occasion, when I could see she was right I would voice my opinion on it. Steve never got upset, he knew I would take her side only if it was the right thing to do.

Aunt Mabel did not see it that way, but then again, she only thought her way was the right way. Loved the woman like a mother most days, today was not one of them.