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"I was thinking the sa"
It didn’t snow often here, but when it did, most of it happened after New Year’s They’d only had one brief snowfall, back in November The flakes didn’t even stick
"I love snow"
They said it at the salanced at each other and sold said
"I’ve always felt lucky to live someplace where snow is rare, you know? It’s the rareness that makes it so special"
"That could be said about a lot of things"
"True" North stared at her His sold felt it, too The rareness, the specialness, of North Of this night She wished it could last forever
"Oh, no" The wonderful thought had triggered a nerve-wracking one She pushed North inside "My lanced at the lingering items in the hallway--and the tree--and hurried back to work As fast as they could, faster than Marigold would have thought possible, everything was stacked flat against the living rooest wall
Only the tree re his bride across the threshold--and placed it proudly before the sliding-glass door As he adjusted it in its stand, Marigold vacuumed away the fallen needles She did another quick sweep of the bedrooed the last of the furniture--the couch, a coffee table, the Moroccan end table, a glass la space
She was almost done when she spotted them in a newly cleared corner of her own bedrooold carried the room as if they were sacred
"Look," she said
North turned on the laold’s heart jolted The area he’d created--everything on top of her favorite floral tufted rug--looked warhan that they used to wrap around the television He’d draped it over the back of the couch
It looked perfect there Everything looked perfect
"It’s not reatest gift she’d ever received Her eyes welled with tears "Thank you"
North shed, dabbing at her eyes with her sweater sleeve "Oh, so it’s my tree now? I’ve earned it?"
He pretended to look shocked, as if it had been a slip of the tongue Marigold laughed again She felt happy--the kind of happy that reached every part of her body--as she opened the first box It was filled with neatly bound strings of white and blue lights
North peered over her shoulder "Ha! Go figure"
"What?"