Come Home with Us

Someone pulled up out front. Maria shot to her feet, nearly dropping her Christmas romance novel in her haste. "You are going to be cool," she muttered to herself again as she peeked out the window. There they were, in Ben's Lincoln Nautilus, and Maria waved. "Be col. Be cool. Don't embarrass yourself."

She let the curtain slip back into place, looked at the door, and rushed to the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror one last time. One of them knocked and she whispered to the mirror, "Oh God, oh God, oh God."

All her well-laid plans to be cool escaped her when she walked back to the door and opened it. They looked so good. "Hi-yi-yi," Maria said, then blanched, her eyes bugging out. "I mean hi. Hi is what I meant. Oh God, I promised myself I wouldn't be weird and whoops, here I go."

Catrin's laugh was mellow and sweet. "Oh honey, don't be nervous. This is going to be a fun week, I promise."

"She says that, but just wait until we get snowed in on the mountains and have to escape yetis and packs of wolves," Ben said.

"Such a dork," Catrin said fondly. She looked around. "This is a nice place!"

"Thank you," Maria said. "I really like the location but I wouldn't mind a bigger backyard. Here I've got the porch and that's pretty much it."

"That's one thing I wouldn't mind either," Catrin said. "A little garden, a nice sitting area... anyways. Should we?"

"Let me just check my go list one more time," Maria said, grabbing up her phone.

"Your go list?" Catrin asked.

"My list of things I didn't want to forget," Maria said. "Chargers, socks, you know."

"That's handy," Catrin said. "I need to make a list like that."

"I'll send you mine. It's generic enough it would work for anyone."

"She does this at work, too," Ben said. "The booth is full of them. If she's out sick, all we have to do is pop in there and she's got everything laid out in simple enough steps even I can understand it. But no one could ever replace her."

"Aw," Maria said, squirming.

Once she gave her list a last read, Ben grabbed Maria's suitcase and overnight bag for her and she locked up behind them. Maria went to sit in the backseat of the Nautilus, but Catrin insisted she take the front seat. They stopped for gas and snacks, Ben eyeing Maria's choices critically.

"Beef sticks, always a classic," he said, nodding. "Cheese crackers, also good. But Maria, unsweetened ice tea?"

"You know my mom is going to have ten pounds of Christmas candy," Catrin said, holding a bag of trail mix. "She's probably smart to avoid the sugar now."

"Ehhhhh, good point," Ben said. "All right, you may pass."

"Let me buy, please," Maria said. "I feel guilty enough not chipping in for rent or gas."

Ben looked like he might protest, but Catrin jumped ahead of him. "If you insist, that's very sweet. But honey, you don't owe us a thing. Not ever. You're okay. It's okay to let go."

You're okay. It's okay to let go. Maria wanted to tackle Catrin with a hug, but since her arms were full, she nodded and smiled instead. She paid for the snacks, and they piled back into the Nautilus again. It was very roomy and made even comfier by the small thin throws Catrin thoughtfully brought with just for her. Maria accepted one and wrapped it around herself.

The trip was a good one. The gray day birthed heavy flurries of snowfall. The storms never lasted more than a few miles but were consistent enough Ben had to take it easy on the interstate over the mountains. That was okay. They traded snacks and stories, Ben talking some about his own family's Christmas traditions before Catrin took over.

"It's a big holiday in Pike Bridge. We should really make a point of coming down earlier next year for the Snow Drop. It's this big vendor thing, a whole bunch of crafters selling all sorts of fun stuff. And there's carolers and Santa visits and it's a blast."

"It sounds great," Maria said.

"We have a big extended family dinner on Christmas Eve and we'll do some small gifts then for everyone," Catrin said. "Then Christmas Day, it'll be just my parents and us. Maybe my siblings and their families, but they have their own morning stuff. We usually open presents pretty late in the morning and have brunch. We'll all probably go sledding too. It's kind of a tradition."

At the thought of big family gatherings, Maria swallowed hard and shrank against her door. She thought of the last ten or so Christmases at home, her father's misery and later his wrath. Her breathing quickened and she tried not to show her anxiousness. "I've never gone sledding before," she said.

"It's great," Ben said. "You have to try it. Have you ever gone skiing?"

"No, but I plan to."

"We are definitely taking her skiing," Catrin said. "We have the time this week."

And so the conversation went. The mountains calmed Maria some, as they always did. They were a large part of why she moved there. Great pine forests yawned outward, ancient and proud, made even more beautiful with limbs laden with snow. The peaks were only occasionally visible through the low-hanging clouds. Traffic was thicker than normal that day with people on the road for the holiday, but they soon left New Bainbridge far enough behind that it thinned out.

A blur of small towns passed by, Catrin keeping up an occasional dialogue about some of them. "We played volleyball at divisionals against them," she said. "They kicked our asses. I swear two of them were on steroids. But they have a bar there with the best old-timey jukebox." Things like that. It left Maria feeling more and more cozy with the pair.

"I haven't really gotten out to explore much, aside from some trips up to the trails," she said. "I love hiking but I'm afraid to go too far by myself."

"Well, give us a call when you want to go," Ben said.

"Yes, we love it up there too. Any time you want company," Catrin said.

"Might even get to call it a work expense if we can figure out how to make a couple videos out of it," Ben said. That got a laugh out of Maria, and soon they were talking ideas about hiking and camping videos. It really wasn't a bad idea, and when they texted Prosser about it when they had cell service, he texted back with two thumbs up.

Soon, they came out of the mountains and there, next to the Pike River, was Pike Bridge, their home for the next week. Catrin did a happy wiggle, and swapped to the middle seat and leaned forward. "I really love this place," she said. "Don't get me wrong, I don't want to leave the city, but this is always going to be home too."

"Wouldn't mind retiring here someday," Ben said. "We've talked about that some."

Catrin nodded. "Maybe buy a small house now before the tourists buy up much more property. It's growing, so it makes sense."

It was a small town blanketed in even more snow than the mountains. The river was a slow winding thing, too shallow to be of much use for industry but beautiful. The town itself was a blend between industrious and touristy, with a hint of Christmas everywhere you looked.

"That's really become our bread and butter," Catrin explained as Ben pulled off the interstate. "It's the big draw here for tourism. It's cheesy but I love it."

"It's fun," Maria said, looking at a big inflatable snowman in the parking lot of a diner. She giggled at another building's rooftop, where reindeer looked like they were about to take off. "It's wonderful, really."

Catrin's parents would be at work until five, so the trio stopped first at the dentist's office, which bore Catrin's mother's name -- Dr. Anne Walsh, DDS -- on a brightly painted sign out front. It and the windows were ringed in colorful Christmas lights, and inside the lobby on the wall was a vinyl cutout of a reindeer grinning and showing off pearly white teeth. A couple sat in side chairs in the reception area, reading magazines. The woman looked up and smiled.

"Catrin! Home for Christmas?"

"We are!" Catrin said.

A pleasant, wire-thin receptionist called back, "Anne? They're here!"

Catrin said to the couple, "We won't keep her long."

"You don't worry about us."

Out rushed a woman who could only be Catrin's mother. She was just as beautiful as her daughter, with a few more laugh lines and wrinkles, but otherwise just as fair, about the same build, and with the same gorgeous hair.

"Merry Christmas, Mom!" Catrin said, hugging her mother tight.

"You too, honey, you too. And Ben! Oh, look at you."

"Look at you!" Ben said cheerfully, giving his girlfriend's mother a delighted long look up and down. "Mmm mmm mmm. Tell Ross you're mine now. Sorry, Cat."

"Oh, stop," Anne said, blushing fiery red as she hugged him. He gave her a peck on the cheek and she pulled back, smiling at Maria. "And you must be Maria."

"Hi, Mrs. Walsh. And merry Christmas. I really hope I'm not intruding on your family's holiday."

"No no no," Anne said, coming in to give her a hug too. Maria laughed softly and returned it. "You are more than welcome. Catrin has told me so much about you." When she pulled away, Anne took her daughter's hand and held it up, pointing at the ring finger as she looked pointedly at Ben. "Ahem?"

"Ah, um."

"Mom!"

Anne laughed. She let her daughter's hand go and took them all in. "I have to get back to it. Dinner tonight?"

"Absolutely," Catrin said.

"Very nice to meet you," Maria said.

"You too! Looking forward to getting to know you," Anne said. "Mr. and Mrs. Louis, I'll be just a minute and then we'll get you back there."

As her mother hurried back into the inner offices, Catrin turned to the two patients. "Hey, do the kids still sled down the hill by the old Holly place?"

"They do. That's Colin and Julie Shaw's now," Mrs. Louis said. "He even put in some hay bales at the bottom of the hill so the kids aren't sledding out into the street."

"Really?" Catrin asked. "Great. I think we'll have to grab some sleds and go up there tonight. All right, good luck with Mom. Careful. She's terrible with that drill when she's been drinking."

"Only when I've been drinking whiskey. It's a tequila sort of day so you're safe," Anne called from the back.

Catrin's dad, Ross Walsh, worked at a hardware store in the heart of downtown Pike Bridge. He was right up front, a tousle of red hair making him as unmistakable as his wife or daughter. He was a short man with a ruddy complexion and a bristly patchwork beard, but when he smiled, he was quite handsome. And he certainly smiled right then, rushing to hug his daughter.

They went through a similar introduction as with Mrs. Walsh, and again, Maria emphasized that she hoped she wasn't putting them out. Ross looked almost shocked at that and reached out to squeeze her shoulder.

"Absolutely not. Absolutely not." He emphasized the absolutely the second time, as though verbally stamping his foot. "No. What's ours is yours and I'm only going to be offended if you don't make yourself at home."

Maria nodded, another wave of heat threatening to spill out through her eyes. "Thank you," she said, not noticing the troubled look between Ben and Catrin beside her.

The store was busy enough that, like his wife, Ross couldn't talk long, but when they told him that they were going to go sledding that night, he perked up. "Great idea!" he said. "We'll get some people together, make a party out of it. Call your sister and your brother."

Catrin laughed helplessly. "We will."

They departed not long after, Ross digging out a notepad from his pocket and a well-chewed pencil to write down some ideas for the night. In the SUV again, Ben said cheerfully, "Your dad is nuts and I love him."

"They're both so nice," Maria said.

Their home for the week was their next stop. It was a small place, with clapboard siding and dormer style windows that kind of reminded Maria of something from Star Wars, though she couldn't quite say why. When she told Ben, he squinted at the windows and laughed. "Oh yeah, like if you cut a TIE fighter's wings in half. I can see that."

"Dorks!" Catrin said.

Ross gave them the spare key at the hardware store and they let themselves in with the luggage. The interior was warmly decorated, though the furniture sparse and cheap. "They mostly rent it out to people here for the Snow Drop and the other touristy stuff throughout the year," Catrin explained. "My parents are close friends with theirs so we had this hooked up a long time ago."

The spare bedroom was right next to the master down a short hallway. Ben brought Maria's things in there, and gave the bed a close look. "Going to be enough blankets for you?"

Maria nodded. "Yes. Thank you."

"You sure? As cold as you get, I could grab you a dozen more."

"Ah! Shut up!"

He chuckled and headed into the master bedroom, saying loudly, "Woman! On the bed, now! We rut!"

"Oh God help me," Catrin said.

They got unpacked, checked out the fridge and freezer, both of which were empty, and Catrin made calls to her family to invite them to the impromptu sledding party that night. Ben in the meantime recruited Maria for her list-making skills, and they wrote out a short shopping list. Everyone agreed coffee was a must.

After some shopping and driving around, they headed to the Walsh home. It was a pretty good-sized place, a split level with a big picture window overlooking the quiet neighborhood. Icicle lights hung from the rain gutters and on the lawn was a beautiful light-up plastic nativity set. Maria walked to it, clutching her breast and smiling.

"My dad made the manger himself," Catrin said.

From the front door, which none of them had noticed opening, Ross said, "Which is why it's falling apart."

Maria looked up, still smiling, and shook her head. "It's very beautiful."

"Are you religious?" Ross asked her. "I don't mean to pry."

"Yes. My mother used to take us to church every year around Christmas and Easter. We didn't go much more often than that, but... yes, I like to believe."

"That's a fine way of putting it," Ross said. "Come on inside." When he opened the front door, the Walsh's dog raced out. It looked like a husky, but much, much smaller, and it bounded right towards Catrin, barking and dancing a wide circle around her before racing towards Maria to sniff her leg.

"Winston. Winston!" Ross said. "Leave her be!"

"Winston, hi!" Maria said. She started to reach a hand down then abruptly asked, "Is it okay if I pet him?"

"Absolutely. About the only time he bites is if I move my toes too close to him in the middle of the night." Ross shook his head. "Dog's gotta sleep in on the bed or Anne doesn't sleep well at night."

"Uh huh," Catrin said. "It's definitely Mom who can't sleep right and not you."

"Ah, well... he's spoiled rotten anyways."

Maria giggled and leaned down to pet Winston. He jumped up immediately on her and licked her face. She let him get in a few good doggo kisses before she stood up again. He did four, five, six laps around her, barking and wagging his tail. She never noticed Catrin looking at Ben and smiling.

They spent some time digging out sleds from the garage. Catrin's brother Andy showed up not too long after. His wife Melanie, five months pregnant, wouldn't be taking part in the sledding but brought along a portable stove and a box full of hot chocolate supplies and tins of candy and cookies. Practically everyone who came would bring something similar, including three more outdoor stoves. Catrin's mother Anne came home about the time they were wrapping up introductions and joined them after changing.

They brought the sleds, food, drinks, and folding tables to the sledding hill. Ross rigged up some outdoor lights to a generator, lighting up both the top and bottom of the hill. It wasn't strictly necessary, as the streetlights had seen a recent upgrade and were plenty bright enough. At the top of the hill, Colin and Julie Shaw's Christmas lights kicked on, which would have put the Griswold family to shame and provide a cheery backdrop to the proceedings.

A few minutes after that, an SUV rolled down the street towards them and its police lights kicked on. Maria's eyes widened. "Did we do something wrong?" she asked Catrin.

As if to answer, Colin Shaw's rumbling voice said over the SUV's loudspeaker, "Hey now, do you all have a permit to party?"

Catrin laughed and rushed to the SUV as it pulled in behind her brother's. Colin was a huge man, incredibly fit and also incredibly intimidating, if you didn't know him. Scars on his face didn't help matters much, but his appearance did not match his personality.

"Colin, you're giving our friend Maria a heart attack," Catrin said.

"Ah jeez," Colin said, coming around the front of the SUV. "It's a shame she had to fall in with you troublemakers."

"Merry Christmas," Catrin said, giving him a fierce hug. She gestured at Maria. "Maria, this is Colin Shaw. Our newest deputy and my former babysittee. Is that a word? It should be."

Colin engulfed Maria's hand with his own. "It's a pleasure."

"Oh, oh!" Catrin said. "You know what? Maria's a reader. I need to hook her up with some of Silje's books if you have some on hand."

"I do!" Colin said. "Big on romances?" he asked Maria. "My first wife wrote a bunch."

"I love them," Maria said. "My favorite genre."

"How long are you in town for?" Colin asked Catrin.

"We'll be here until a couple days after Christmas."

"Perfect. I'll bring them by if Julie doesn't first. She will want to say hi too."

"How's she doing? How's the baby?"

"Keeping us on our toes. And she's great." A dispatcher called for him on his radio and he thumbed it to talk back rapidly. When he was finished, he said, "Gotta run. Doesn't look like you got enough food here. Wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't make sure you all were fed. A pepperoni from Dalton's?"

"Oh my God, you're the best," Catrin said, and leaned up to kiss his cheek. "Come by when you can. We need to catch up."

"I'll do that. Nice meeting you," Colin said to Maria.

"You too," Maria said.

When he was driving down the street again, Catrin's smile faded and she shook her head. "It's such a tragic story. His first wife, Silje... well... she was a sweetheart. One of a kind. And really, from what everybody says, a brilliant writer."

"I'll look forward to reading her books. She passed?"

Catrin gave her a strained smile and nodded. "A while ago. But his second wife is great too. Anyways."

"Well, we're all set," Ben said, coming up behind them. He held out a sled to Maria. "Wanna take the first run?"

"I've never done it before," she said. "I'm a little scared I'll crash into those hay bales."

"You won't, I promise," Ben said.

Catrin jumped in quickly. "Hey, I know. Ben, take the first run with her. I bet you'd both fit on one of the bigger sleds."

Maria thought of nestling against Ben in such a confined space. Heat rushed to her cheeks. "Oh, um, um..."

"It's an idea," Ben said, giving his girlfriend a curious look. "But don't be jealous now of me getting my arms around Maria."

Maria said, "Oh, no, Catrin, I wouldn't, I wouldn't ever..."

"It's okay!" Catrin said, wrapping one arm around her. "It's adorable you're so nervous. Want him to go down with you?"

"Or maybe Catrin?" Ben asked. "Oooh, the two of you cozied up... mmm, yeah."

"Just for that, I do want Catrin to go with me," Maria said, and stuck out her tongue at him. He laughed and slapped Catrin's butt.

Catrin and Maria walked up to the top of the hill, Maria glad she wore sensitive warmer boots rather than her cuter but much wetter furry ones.

"Okay, the trick is..." Catrin said. "Go really fast. I mean really fast."

"And?" Maria asked.

"That's it! Crashing in the snow isn't as bad as you think it is."

Maria laughed softly. "You two are so good at making me feel at home with you."

"Good. I'm glad. You should know..."