Total pages in book: 52
Estimated words: 49005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 245(@200wpm)___ 196(@250wpm)___ 163(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 245(@200wpm)___ 196(@250wpm)___ 163(@300wpm)
“You like it?” he asks me. “It’s just a little hobby of ours.”
“A little hobby? This must be months of work.”
An instrumental version of “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” is playing from somewhere in their yard, and many of the hundreds and hundreds of lights that decorate their property are coordinated with the song, flashing on and off along with the lyrics.
There are half a dozen wooden toy soldiers, large as real men, inflatables of various sizes, several elegant trees fully constructed from lights, and a large Santa in a sleigh with reindeer on their roof. What I’m listing is just the tip of the holiday iceberg—there’s more, much more.
“It’s something to do in our spare time.” He offers me his hand as he tips his head toward their front door. “C’mon in.”
Inside, their house is just as festively decorated, but it’s the smell that commands my attention first. “Did you make brownies?”
Nick pops his head out of the kitchen. “Hi, Holly. They just came out of the oven.”
“Can we start with dessert first?” I tease.
“Everything’s almost ready.” Nick disappears again as two dogs rush over to me, their tails wagging furiously.
“This is Trixie and Sammy,” Rudy says, introducing me to a spaniel mix and a medium-sized honey-brown dog respectively, both of them as good natured as their owners. “We have a cat, too, Jameson. He might be out later.”
I get to know the dogs, and give Trixie belly rubs when she rolls over. Meanwhile, I also take in my surroundings, a beautiful two-story home, spacious and nicely furnished with dark neutrals.
Rudy takes the bottle of wine I brought, and I eventually follow him into the dining room, where a table is set for three with stoneware dishes, nice glassware, and cloth napkins. There’s a basket of rolls that smell almost as good as the brownies.
“You have a lovely home.” When Rudy thanks me, I ask, “How did you and your brother come to live together?”
“It made good economic sense when we were starting our practice. At the time, we thought it would be a temporary arrangement, but we realized we liked it. There are two of us to share the yardwork and housework, and the bills.”
“And the holiday decorating.”
Rudy chuckles. “That too. We plan to keep living together … if we can find a woman who wants to share her life with both of us.” He says this with intention, and when I glance over at him, he holds my gaze for a long beat.
Nick starts bringing in the food, as Rudy opens the wine I brought and pours some for each of us. I offer to help them, but they assure me everything’s taken care of.
In addition to the rolls, they’ve made a tossed salad, the beef stroganoff they mentioned when they invited me over, and buttery peas with thyme that have me looking at the vegetable in a new light.
In between me raving about the food, we reminisce about the highlights of our first day of volunteering.
“The kids asked Santa for a lot of fun and funny things.” Rudy’s fond expression when he thinks about the children makes it easy to imagine him being a dad someday. “My favorite was when I had a boy sitting on one of my knees, and his little dog on the other. When I asked the boy what he wanted for Christmas, he had a list, but every item was something for his dog. Specific treats, and lots of dog toys. When I asked if there was anything he wanted for himself, he shook his head.”
“Aww, that’s so cute. I hope he and his pup both get a lot of presents from Santa.”
When I say the word pup, Sammy’s ears perk up. Both dogs have been lying quietly on a big, fluffy bed in the corner of the dining room, with no begging for scraps.
“I heard from Lisa that the shelter covered their expenses for the event on the first day,” Nick says. “That means all the money we take in over the next three Saturdays will be clear donations.”
I quickly swallow a bite of a roll. “That’s wonderful!”
“Of course, it helps that a lot of things were donated, like all the decorations, but the shelter had to buy our costumes, rent the photo equipment, and buy the frames and all the supplies. It seems that Lisa did a really good job advertising the event.”
“Or maybe word spread quickly about how attractive the Santas were.”
The corners of both men’s eyes crinkle as they accept my compliment. “The same could be said about Mrs. Claus,” Nick says.
When we’re finished eating, I insist on helping them with the dishes. It’s quick work, with everything going into the dishwasher except for a couple of items that Rudy washes by hand, and I dry.
“Are you ready for dessert?” Nick asks as I eye the pan of brownies on the stove.