Christmas Chickadee

"Dana, people move in and live together all of the time. But you're right, I guess I should have given it more thought before suggesting it. I don't want anyone to think less of you. I guess as a man I'm not as sensitive to how people would view me in that respect. I could give you a ring."

I couldn't believe my ears. Give me a ring so I could move into his house. As much as I appreciated his wanting to make things better for me, for us, I was having a hard time putting everything together. Maybe I really shouldn't care what people thought. After all, I was a mature woman. Andy was right about people moving in together even though they weren't engaged or married. But a ring? What was he thinking? A promise ring?

That could mean almost anything we wanted it to. Then it occurred to me—isn't this what I thought I wanted—his wanting to stay in this house with me and not moving to California. Of course it was, but he had to show me he didn't want to stay in California and run the new office.

"Okay. I have no idea what you have in mind regarding a ring. Andy, maybe it would just work better if we waited until you finished up in California. Then we can talk about it and if we're ready I could move in then. Ring or no ring."

I watched his expression as he thought it over.

"Andy, I have one major concern. I know how much you love your work and I don't want to diminish how important it is, but I want you to know I expect you to work reasonable hours. I don't want to marry a workaholic and be lonely. I want to have a family and know you will be there to be a good influence on our children as they grow up. I want you married to me, not your job and me."

"Dana, I know. I realized after my last relationship failed I was part of the problem. I'll trust you to tell me if I'm not meeting your expectations. I promise to limit myself to no more than forty-five hours a week. I promise to be there for you, for us. I want a healthy balance between work and our home life. Most of all, I want to make you happy."

I leaned over and gave him a kiss. I trusted him and knew he meant it. He looked at me with a smile. I could see he was thinking of something. He grew a frown, creases showing in his forehead.

"Guess I should have given this a little more thought before I brought it up."

"Andy it's fine. But I just can't help but feel you're up to something."

"Geez what do I have to do to convince you I really love you my little chickadee. You're in bed with me and I'm taking you out to dinner this evening. I assume you're not going to ask me to take you back to your apartment to spend the night alone."

I leaned in to give him another kiss on the cheek. He was right about that much.

"I'm sticking to you like glue until you have to leave again. I know you love me. So, if I do spend time at my apartment you're going to be with me. My apartment or here makes no difference if you're with me."

He laughed. "Okay. I can see you have this all figured out. How about we get up and spend some time downstairs relaxing. That is unless you want to do some birding before we go to supper."

I was immediately interested, like he could read my mind. It seemed a little scary.

"Let's get up and go birding. A little walk to get some fresh air would be nice. Or has California already got you so hot-blooded you can't handle the cold," I teased.

He looked at me with a smile and then laughed. "No, the thing that makes me hot-blooded is you."

We got up, dressed, and went for a walk around the lake on a portion of the trail we hadn't walked together previously. The snow was about six inches deep and fluffy. We encountered a feeding flock of birds, most of them cardinals, though we found a Song Sparrow and Hermit Thrush too. After we got back, we changed into nice clothes for supper. I was glad I had brought a pair of dress slacks, blouse, and light sweater with me as we decided to go to a better restaurant. More accurately, he suggested one and it was fine with me. On the way Andy looked over at me as he drove.

"You look very nice Dana. You have a great sense of taste when you dress to go out."

"Why thank you Andy," I replied knowing he appreciated my fashion sense.

That was one thing he was good at, making me feel good about myself. He always looked so good himself and I had never really told him I thought so. He was handsome enough that he could have dressed in worn out jeans and a faded plaid cotton shirt with holes in it and he would look good to me.

When we pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant he came to my side of the car and opened the door for me. I took his arm as we headed to the doorway. I was still impressed with him when he was such a gentleman. He treated me like a lady when we were in public. He might mess around with me and be a bit goofy when we were alone together, but when someone else was watching he acted mature and dignified. It made me feel as if we were a mature couple. A couple that had known one another for a much longer period of time than we had.

I was surprised when the hostess greeted us and Andy indicated we had a reservation. He hadn't mentioned having a reservation. But then whenever we had gone out before he had been prepared. I passed it off as Andy being Andy. We were seated in a booth towards the rear of the dining room. It was lit dimly and the sound of people conversing quietly and of silverware on dishes commingled to make a suite of sounds that seemed soothing to me. It was just as we had finished eating that Andy reached out and took my hand from across the table. He was looking at me with his soft, wonderful eyes.

"Dana, you have such delicate hands. I love to hold them. I love to have them touch me when we kiss. While I was working last week I kept seeing your hands and your face. Seeing your lovely eyes. I could feel your lips on mine. I couldn't concentrate on my work. I didn't sleep and I wasn't eating well. You were constantly on my mind. Dana, after a few days I knew for sure why. It was because I missed you so much. I couldn't ignore my feelings."

I felt myself blush a little. It was so sweet of him to tell me that. He had already told me he loved me. But this confession was something I hadn't expected. I was just about to respond when he went on.

"Dana, I went to California to run away from my past. Away from the pain I had been feeling for so long. Thinking a new place and new faces would change my life. But I knew after three days it wasn't going to work. The only face that made me feel better was yours. The only place that came to mind that made me feel comfortable and happy is the house we have spent time in together. You've made it possible for me to see the house I live in can be a home filled with love. Dana, I love you and want to marry you."

I was so touched by his words I just sat there. Then, I watched in disbelief as he moved to a position next to me and presented a sparkling diamond ring. It glittered in the dim lights of the room—it seemed to magnify the light only for me as he held it in front of me. I felt myself take in a deep breath.

"Dana Endicott. Will you marry me?"

I don't remember exactly what I said. It must have been yes as he slipped the ring onto my finger and we kissed. We left the restaurant and returned home. As we traveled I kept looking at the ring on my finger, my heart beat rapidly each time I looked at it, a sense of euphoria as I knew what it signified.

That night was as magical as any I had ever experienced in my life. We sat in front of the blazing fire place and kissed and snuggled. We talked and made plans, we kissed and caressed each other, then made more plans until it was time for bed. That night we made love to each other slowly, tenderly, and more passionately than ever before. In the morning, I awoke and looked at the beautiful ring on my finger and realized it wasn't a dream. I turned my gaze and looked at the man that lay beside me. The handsome, kind man I had given myself to as a Christmas gift. This chick had come home to roost in a most wonderful place with an amazing, hard-working man.

Andy finished setting up the California office over the next three months and promoted a woman to manage the operation from within the company. Andy came home to see me, or I flew to California to see him every week or two during that time. Together we used up my vacation time as we birded southern California, making memories together. There was no doubt in my mind he was keeping his promise not to be married to his job, but to me. His actions spoke far more than any words ever could.

When the work in California was finished he returned home where we made life happy for each other at our home on our private lake. I had moved into his house after we were engaged, subletting my apartment to satisfy the lease agreement and saving money for our future. We were married almost a day to the year after we had first met. This time, this little chickadee became his wife and birding companion, living our love in our house in the woods.

I never again seemed as accident prone as I had the first few days I met Andy. To this day he insists that somehow I had managed to make it happen—none of it had been an accident. I just smile—sometimes being a lucky klutz can be a good thing. But, I'm always extra careful when pulling out the spotting scope—we have plans that involve keeping those parts of him in good working condition. After all, we have empty bedrooms to fill in a house we both adore.