Winter Wishes

The winter solstice is still a week away, but we went to sleep last night with snow falling, and this morning, about 3-4" on the ground. Not really enough for me, but it was pretty. I posted a few pics on my Facebook page to start the day. The township finally rolled out the plows and salt trucks to clear the street, but now the wind is picking up and by the time I have to head to the day-job in the morning, the wind chill will be around zero. Yay. Ha!

Anyway, looking at the winter wonderland outside my office window makes me want to stay home for a few days, get snuggled in with some cocoa and tea and some of the books in my TBR pile and just dig in. It's a nice daydream. Since I can't do that, I'm going to rush through the rest of my weekend chores and make some cocoa and read for a little while. Before I do that, I have a snippet for you this week from Light the Way Home.

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            Nate schooled his expression to neutrality before turning around. Hayden’s chin jutted stubbornly, and his blue eyes narrowed. “I’m saying Lucie might be busy right now,” Nate said evenly. “Maybe we’ll see her outside tomorrow.”

            “I can knock on the door.” His son crossed his arms on his chest, covering the spotted blue dog graphic. “She said we’d play later, and it’s later.”

            “We can check, but, buddy, you have to promise not to be upset if she’s busy. Plus it’ll be suppertime soon, so we’ll be busy here, too.”

            Hayden’s chin jutted out further.

            “Just don’t get your hopes up,” he said, trying to keep his tone from dropping in defeat.

            Hayden bolted for the back door.

            Nate followed more slowly, picking up his son’s jacket from the chair inside the door. By the time he reached the bottom step, he heard his son’s voice, then Lucie spoke in reply, though he couldn’t hear the words. When he cleared the lilac bushes, he expected to see Hayden’s shoulders droop.

            He was a little surprised to see the two of them walking into the middle of the neighboring yard while Lucie bounced the big yellow ball on one hand. Huh. He would’ve bet on her putting Hayden off. He paused at the open gate between the yards to watch them. They’d stopped, and she crouched in front of Hayden, who chattered a mile a minute. She nodded as she rose.

            Hayden jogged backward a few steps, grinning, then held out both hands.

            Lucie gave the ball another bounce before she tossed it to him.

            His son caught it, giggling. “Too easy,” he shouted. He jumped once, then moved a few more steps away from her. “Ready?”

            “Ready!” She leaned forward and held out her hands.

            Nate wished he could see her expression.

            Hayden lobbed the ball at her, and she caught it before it hit her in the face. He smiled and shook his head when his laughing son danced backward a couple more paces. “Throw it again!”

            “You sure you can catch it so far away?” The tease in her voice made Nate relax. Lucie Russo might be a nice woman. Mindi and Harry trusted her, which meant she was okay.

            But she seemed to be enjoying his son, genuinely enjoying him. Maybe she had nieces or nephews–she was comfortable, chatting with Hayden as they played catch.

            He leaned on the fence to watch.

            “Daddy, come play with us!”

            Lucie straightened and looked over her shoulder, eyes widening.

            Nate felt a little kick in his gut at the appealing image–pink cheeks, green eyes that tipped up at the outer corners, full lower lip dropping a tiny bit. Lucie Russo was pretty.

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Is it starting to look like winter where you are yet? If it isn't, do you wish it would, or are you okay without it? I'd love to hear about it.

Until next time, happy reading!