Home for Christmas (22 page)

Her heart stopped. She had a
feeling she knew what that question would be. And she knew what her answer
would be.

Christmas had come and her every
wish had come true. She was going home for Christmas with the man of her
dreams.

Austin and Savannah arrived back in
Seattle before the sun came up on Christmas morning … but just barely. They’d
dozed a little on the privately chartered plane, but neither of them desired
much sleep that day.

He had brought her to the house
first thing. She’d wanted to freshen up in her old room and begrudgingly, he
relented, taking time to turn on all of the Christmas lights in the entire
house, turn on the Christmas music, build a fire in the library and begin
scrambling some eggs.

It hadn’t taken her long to shower
and change, her bag still packed from her initial departure to Minneapolis. She
had floated into the room, still in disbelief over everything that had
happened. Each had scooted their chair as close as possible to the other as
they ate a Christmas breakfast together.

And that was only the beginning of
a gloriously joyful day.

They will be here any minute,
Savannah said, setting out four mugs with snowmen on the front and red and
white striped candy cane handles. Setting them on a waiting tray, she
anticipated Courtney’s reaction to the little snowmen mugs. She would think
they were ridiculous, which made Savannah smile. The warmth in her heart
extended to all of her friends who had helped her more than she could say
during this difficult time. Earlier today, Courtney had once again given her
the key to her condo with the expectation that Savannah would stay with her
before her marriage, provided, of course, she made the meals.

“What are those?” Austin said with
amused surprise as he came around the corner.

“Oh,” she giggled, “I found them
awhile back. They’ve been up on the top shelf of the butler pantry.” He grew
silent and she wished she hadn’t reminded him of the event that had so recently
taken place in that very room. “You know,” she said, retrieving the canister of
Starbuck’s Hot Chocolate mix he’d given her earlier, “I feel sorry for her. She
had to know that it would all come out eventually.”

“Maybe,” he uttered unconvinced.
“Perhaps she is so confident in her charms that it wouldn’t dawn on her that
anyone would think differently.”

“I truly hope she finds someone who
will take her breath away like I did. Every woman deserves that.”

“Savannah, you are one of a kind,”
he said as he came up behind her while she was heating milk on the stove.
“You’ve made me the happiest man on earth.”

Sometime later, Robert and Courtney
and Austin and Savannah had gathered in the newly installed theater to watch
one of the girl’s favorite movies, “It’s A Wonderful Life.” Austin and Savannah
cuddled into one of the double-seated recliners, his arm heavy on her
shoulders, her eyes now drooping from a full day of celebrating Christmas with
the Winslow family. And as the opening scene of the movie began across the
immense screen, she once again reminded herself that she too, from this day
forward, would also have … a wonderful life.

Memories of the day floated through
her mind as the music played. She remembered how touched he’d been as she’d
given the gifts she’d wrapped for him and placed under the tree. She watched
his eyes become misty as he traced the outline of his mother’s face. It took her
breath away to relive that memory.

He had then given her a gigantic,
beautifully wrapped box, to which he credited Lois for the wrapping. Inside had
been the Wentworth china she’d lost in the estate sale. Tears streaming down
her eyes as she unwrapped the treasures, piece by piece. Equally touching had
been the note she’d found from Lois inside, one written long before their chat
in the Library nearly two weeks prior. It had read,
“To the future mistress
of this manor.”
Savannah had whispered as she gazed at Austin with
wide-eyed wonder, “She had meant me. I thought she meant Elise, but she meant
me!”

And finally, until she breathed her
very last breath, she would never forget Austin’s proposal of marriage, bent on
one knee, in front of a roaring fireplace, with their tree twinkling in the
background, promising her forever. With tears streaming down her face, she had
said yes. He apologized for not taking her to the fanciest restaurant in the
world, for that was what she deserved. And she had answered there wasn’t any
place she rather be for such an occasion but home on this Christmas.

He wanted now … she promised June …
the twenty-ninth to be exact. Apparently, she already had a list in the making.
Six months wasn’t too long, he supposed. They’d both be busy in that time; her
with consulting and planning, his with the IPO.

“What about children?” Courtney
interrupted the movie to ask. Savannah’s eyes instantly popped open.

“What?” she questioned sleepily.

“Yes, lots of them,” Austin had
replied. “A girl first, though.”

Savannah gazed at the man she loved
quizzically; he drew her closer with the promise, “Trust me.”

And she did, as the sound of
Christmas bells chimed in the background. This year … and every year after.
They would raise their family spending Christmases here … together, always
believing that there was no greater place to be than Home for Christmas.

STEPHANIE WILSON, a native of the Pacific Northwest, has produced
television programs for CBS affiliates that were syndicated nationally. She has
written and produced a television series that won a national Angel Award for
excellence in the media.

In addition,
she has written news copy for a local CBS affiliate and directed marketing
programs for successful humanitarian organizations.

Stephanie
earned her degree from Seattle Pacific University in history and in
communications.

Stephanie has
many hobbies that keep her busy outside of her strict writing schedule and
insatiable drive to read everything she can get her hands on. She loves to play
tennis, walk the beautiful streets and trails of her neighborhood and the
northwest, garden, knit and spin fibers, quilt, research genealogy, and cook.
She belongs to several organizations and is very involved with church,
humanitarian and various other volunteer work. She also writes frequently for
her own blog as well as for Good Living Magazine.

Stephanie
lives with her husband and son in Seattle, Washington.

Visit her
website at:
http://www.stephaniewilson.com

Visit her
blogs at:

http://stephanierandallwilson.blogspot.com/

http://goodlivingmagazine.blogspot.com/