Money Trail

Chapter 21: Reunion

Chapter 21: Reunion

“Are you sure this is everything?” Dallas asked for the third time. It seemed every time they packed the car and Ilia was certain she had indeed gotten everything, she remembered another present she had forgotten to grab.

The difference between Ilia from now and yesterday was day and night. Any morose and anger was gone and she was back to the exact same smiling, airy Ilia Dallas had come to know. She was wearing a very festive, pink Santa hat with golden trim with a matching female Santa suit that looked like it came with it. If Santa were a very sexy blonde girl who liked pink, Dallas imagined he still wouldn't look that good.

Dancing around as if she was walking on clouds, singing with any song that came on her many radios regardless of whether or not she knew the words, and marveling at the blanket of fresh snow that had come in the night; she was really in her element and there were sparkles practically coming from every pore on her body.

And that worried Dallas greatly. She was repressing her emotions again, doing the same thing she had done before. He was half afraid they were taking steps backwards and weren't getting anywhere as far as fixing her daddy issues were concerned.

Until, after stowing another almost forgotten present in the car, he came back to find her staring sadly at her twinkling Christmas tree, the depression hanging around her like a thick cloud. However, it had only been there a moment then she noticed him and was right back to her happy mood.

Very much willing to wait out this stage of her healing process, denial and pretense, he went right along with it. He let her replace his favorite cowboy hat with a red Santa hat with a dancing reindeer on it, hummed along as she sang, and didn't let it bother him when she always seemed to be running inside to pick up something she had forgotten.

“I think so...” Ilia bit her lip, thinking as she looked into her house, one hand clasping her keys, the other holding the door open.

Dallas leaned against the car, looking at her over it's hood as he waited for her to unlock it so he could climb in. She, he knew, would insist on driving.

Ilia hesitated another moment before locking her door and running to her car, smiling and singing 'fa lalalala' as she went despite the lack of music. Dallas knew she would turn it right back on the moment she got the key in the ignition.

They got inside and, as predicted, before she even turned on the heater, Ilia pumped up her Christmas channel.

“Are you excited, Cowboy?” she asked him as they pulled out and began driving down the road.

“I can't wait.” he nodded, having to speak up to be heard over the music that Ilia was jamming out to.

“When was the last time you celebrated Christmas?” she asked him.

“Last year.” Dallas answered, raising an eyebrow. “Why, when was the last time you celebrated it?”

“Well last year of course.” she laughed. “I just figured that with your line of work, the Holidays wouldn't be the top of your priority list.”

“They aren't.” he admitted. “But they are celebrated world over, you know. I don't know what you think I do but I promise I'm not that out of touch with the rest of the world.”

“Just making sure.” Ilia laughed again, it sounded like tinkling bells and Dallas was sad to know that it was forced. He really wished that her Holiday's would be more happy. He didn't want to be her unhappy, quite the opposite.

They began making idle chit chat as Ilia pulled onto the highway. It was comfortable and easy. It seemed they really did need to get out of the house. Ilia certainly seemed to get cheerier the closer to her sister's house they got.