Love Under the Christmas Tree

Christmas Eve filled Carter with anticipation – and fear.

Three years ago he had moved to the small town of Pinecrest. It looked like a perfect Christmas postcard in the winter. A blanket of snow hugged every building and glistened in the sunshine. Giant candy canes were placed along the main street and at the steps of city hall. If you walked by lawns and parks the town’s frosty inhabitants, with stick arms and carrot noses, could be found. In the town square a large pine tree was decked with as many bobbles as it could hold and a Christmas star was placed at the very top. At night the tree and every building would glitter with thousands of coloured strands that could be seen from the Whitmore Inn, which sat on a hill above the town.

He’d moved from the city to take over the Whitmore Inn. And it was at the town square’s Christmas tree where he first met Aurelia.

Aurelia had crashed into his life like a whirlwind, her arms full of a Christmas bouquet. He’d quickly realized that it was not just the holidays that caused her to have that much energy, but that her liveliness was innate and her smile infectious. He’d gone to her florist shop at least twice a week for a month before he’d worked up the courage to ask her out, stumbling over the words until she’d put her hand over his and said yes.

For three years he’d learned everything about her, how her noose wrinkled at coffee, and how she was fastidious at organizing everywhere and everything, and how she hated to get out of bed but once she did was a ray of sunshine.

The only problem was Carter was not good at gifts.  

Based on past experience Carter had little hope that he wouldn’t mess up his Christmas gift. Not after Valentine’s where he had gotten a chocolate heart etched with their initials, only for it to break down the middle. Carter had spent the night explaining that he wasn’t breaking up with her. Not after her birthday where the vacuum cleaner feather duster combo did not go over well.

But this Christmas Carter had decided to propose. He loved Aurelia and wanted to build their lives together. Which meant the proposal had to go well. He was fairly certain Aurelia would accept but he did not want to be hearing about the mistakes of the proposal ten years from now. Aurelia’s brother Jack still hadn’t moved on from the vacuum cleaner, and it was one of his favourite stories to pull out at a party.

This time Carter had planned meticulously. Nothing was going to go wrong on his watch. He had planned the perfect proposal…sort of. He had planned a proposal. And a back-up proposal if the first one wasn’t going well. And a back-up for the back-up in case that didn’t work out. And just to be certain he’d planned a backup for the back-up of the back-up.

His first plan was proceeding perfectly. Aurelia was standing in front of the Christmas tree in the lobby of the Inn when he came down the hall, her fiery red hair streaming past her shoulders. She still wore her toque, matching her navy Nordic sweater. Carter took a deep breathe in and walked over.

“Admiring the tree?”

Aurelia turned her head to look up at him. “You did a great job on decorating them this year. Sometimes I wish Christmas trees could stay up all year. It gives the Inn a festive feeling.”

“They do bring to mind some special memories,” Carter said, wrapping his arm around her. Aurelia leaned her head against his shoulder and wrapped her arm around his waist in return. Carter’s eyes looked over the Christmas tree. And then they looked again.

It was gone.

He stiffened and leaned around the tree, jostling Aurelia. “What are you looking for?”

“Ah, I just thought I saw something here. Earlier.” Carter looked around the other side of the tree panicking. Where was it?

“Oh the silver ornament?”

Carter whirled around. Aurelia continued, “I took it up to the front desk. One of the guests must have put it up. It doesn’t fit into your red and gold scheme for the year. Hopefully you’ll find the owner, it was a nice ornament.”

“Hopefully,” Carter murmured remembering the silver bell. The first time he’d set foot in her shop the song had been playing. That morning he’d set the engagement ring inside the bell and hung it on the tree. Luckily Carter was able to easily retrieve the ring and he had his back-up plan.

------------------

Snow gently fell outside the window as their server cleared away the dishes from their lunch at the Inn’s restaurant.

“Would you like desert?” Their server asked.

“Yes,” Carter said quickly. “Can we get two slices of apple pie?”

“Coming right up,”

When their server walked away Aurelia said, “I’m not really that hungry for desert Carter.”

“That’s what you always say,” Carter looked at her. “But then you eat most of mine. This way we both get to enjoy it.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Aurelia smiled and placed her hand on his.

Their server returned a few minutes later and placed a piece of apple pie in front of each of them, the flaky pastry lattice a beautiful golden colour with apples peeking through.

“Patty does make a good apple pie. And you’re right,” Aurelia had a mischievous gleam in her eye, “I would have eaten all of yours. Are you okay, though? You haven’t eaten any.”

“I’m fine, I was just admiring it,” Carter picked up his fork and watched as she ate the pie, waiting for the moment that she’d find the ring. Would it be this bite, or that piece?

While he waited he may as well enjoy his pie though. Carter took a bite of his pie – and Patty had made a good pie – but as he bit down he realized there was something hard in his pie. It was the ring.

Carter picked up his napkin and started coughing.

“Are you okay?” Aurelia asked, concerned.

“I’m fine,” Carter brought his napkin back on his lap, hiding the ring.

As they finished their pie Carter remembered the first time he’s made apple pie with Aurelia. It had been messy and his pastry dough a colossal failure but they’d laughed, and kissed, and said their first I love yous.

------------------

That afternoon the Whitmore Inn held its first snowman building competition. All the families who were staying at the Inn over the holidays, and several from town came out for the event.

Aurelia and Carter were also participating and had staked out a spot next to Jack and his family.

“Jack if you don’t put a proper base how do you think you’re going to be able to keep the head on?”

“It’ll support the head,” Jack yelled back. “You should be more concerned about your snowman. They aren’t supposed to be lopsided.”

Carter packed snow between the head and body and took a step back. Their snowman was only slightly tilted and seemed to be holding up well. Meanwhile Rachel, Aurelia’s niece, was packing extra snow between the base and body of their snowman so it looked less like snow balls and more like a snow column.

Carter hurried and went to the pile of wood he’d had the Inn collect for the occasion, scouring quickly through them to pick out two arms. Aurelia raced Jack over to collect the carrot, hat, scarf, rocks, and buttons. Placing the arms on the snowman he reached into his pocket and placed the ring on the end of the twig on one of the sticks where Aurelia would notice it.

“Okay,” Aurelia dropped her pile of trimmings on the ground. “Time to leave them in the snow dust! You take the buttons, I’ll do the rest.”

“You and Jack are always so competitive,” Carter picked up the buttons and started placing the big black circles along the front of the snowman. “Have you guys ever considered just enjoying time together?”

“This is us enjoying time together,” Aurelia finished placing the carrot and scooped up the rocks to put the eyes and smile. “If there’s one thing family board game night has taught it’s that arguing is half the fun.”

“And that yelling inside is okay,” Rachel called over, “Despite what Mom says.”

Carter laughed. The Littleton family game nights were legendary for devolving into what they called spirited discussion and what everyone else called arguing over technicalities, and who cheated, which everyone seemed to do at some point during the evening.

Aurelia finished placing the hat and started quickly winding the scarf around the snowman’s neck. Carter watched horrified as the scarf flew past twig arm, causing the ring to go flying in the snow.

“Done,” Aurelia yelled in triumph.

“It’s not a timed competition,” Jack yelled as he placed his hat.

“Doesn’t matter, I was still done before you.”

Aurelia and Jack continued to banter back and forth, oblivious as Carter walked through the snow, eyes frantically hoping to see a glint of the ring.

“Looking for this?” Rachel held out the ring in her mitten.

“Yes, thanks Rachel!” Carter took the ring relieved.

“Does this mean I get to call you Uncle Carter now?”

“Not yet but hopefully soon,” Carter gave her a quick squeeze as they watched the siblings banter devolve into a snowball fight. Carter and Aurelia had watched Rachel several times but his favourite was when they built snowman and drank hot chocolate. It was moments like that when he thought they’d be good parents.

------------------

To say that Carter was nervous that evening would be an understatement. His first, second, and third proposal ideas hadn’t panned out. They relied on too much subtly. This time he would go for the direct approach.

“Come on, let’s look at the lights.” Carter pulled Aurelia onto the upstairs balcony.

“We saw them downstairs earlier Carter,” Aurelia protested. “You need to give your speech and announce the contest winner before the caroling.”

“They can wait a few minutes,” they stopped at the railing. “Besides I put some new lights up earlier. I just need to plug them in.”

“Are you sure you need more lights?” Aurelia looked over the lawn. “You’ve covered every bush, tree, and railing.”

Carter chuckled, “It’s just a few more strands.”

“Okay, show me these lights.”

Carter kneeled down on one knee and plugged in the extension cord he’d left there earlier in the afternoon. He looked up and saw Aurelia looking down at him as the strands lit up – and then all the lights at the Inn promptly went dark.

Carter stood and looked out at the lawn, where he’d laid out strands saying ‘Will you Marry Me?’ and saw nothing but the dark expanse.

“So maybe a few less strands next year?” Aurelia said.

------------------

 After resetting the circuit breaker and caroling Carter and Aurelia were on their way home. Carter felt defeated. All his planning and his plan, and his back-up plan, and the back-up for his back-up plan, and his back-up for his back-up of his back-up plan had failed. All he really wanted was to marry Aurelia but how was he supposed to do that if he couldn’t ask her?

Driving along Main Street Carter saw the Christmas tree in the town square where he had met Aurelia three Christmases ago. Every time he walked by it he thought of her and how lucky he was that day. A warm glow grew in his chest as he thought of that moment. He pulled into a parking spot.

“Why are we stopping?” Aurelia asked.

Carter turned off the car and turned to her, “Do you want to come look at the Christmas tree with me?”

Aurelia smiled, “Always.”

They got out of the car and walked over to the tree hand in hand.

“You know when we first met I was so embarrassed. I was rushing to make my last delivery and couldn’t see around it so of course I fell into you,” said Aurelia. “And you smiled at me and you made me laugh about it. I knew then there was something special about you.”

“I knew there was something about you too,” Carter turned to her and looked in her eyes where he could see his whole future. Dinners, and kids, and game nights, and fights and love, most especially love. He went down on one knee and Aurelia gasped. “I didn’t know then what it was that made you special but I do now. I know that you are obsessively organized, so much that you notice one ornament out of place. I know that you love deserts but pretend that you don’t. I know how much you love your family, and that you’re extra competitive. I know how much you love Christmas, and the lights, and the traditions. And I know you’re the only one for me.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring. “Aurelia Frances Littleton, I’ve been planning this for weeks and trying to ask you this all day. I love you. Will you marry me?”

Aurelia had tears in her eyes, “I love you too, yes!”

Carter slipped the ring on her finger and as he stood Aurelia held the lapel of his jacket and pulled his head down to meet hers in a kiss.

A while later Aurelia asked, “What do you mean you’ve been trying to ask all day?”