Christmas Love

Chapter Seventeen

Once downstairs, I walked right past Aunt Mabel, I saw Steve in the kitchen with a look I have not ever seen on his face. He must be truly pissed.

I went and sat down on the couch, as soon as I sat down, Steve came over with a cup of tea for me, Tipsy took that moment to take a leap of faith and jumped up on the couch.

I sat there in shock, she did it, usually it took her about twenty times to jump up here with me, but today she was not having any of it.

She did not even growl at Steve, she walked right past him and laid down on my lap as best as she could. He did not say anything just walked back to the kitchen muttering something under his breath about that dog and being lucky.

Whenever he did that, it always made me giggle, a grown man muttering under his breath about a dog, and not just any dog, a five-pound dog that was well past her prime and heading to being immortal at this point.

"Listen Laura, you need to talk to your husband about how he cleans off my car," I turned and looked at Aunt Mabel. "What's wrong with it?" I asked.

"When he cleaned it off this morning, there was still snow on it, I wanted to go out and couldn't because of this, I'm an old lady you know" she said crossing her arms looking right at me.

I could not help it, I really did try to contain it, but for some reason it just slipped. I busted out laughing, "Aunt Mabel, are you being serious right now? You possibly can't be this upset that Steve left a bit of snow on your car, when in fact it is still lightly snowing out" I said resting my head on the couch.

"I know it's still snowing out, but that is beside the point" she said walking to the front door. "Okay fine Aunt Mabel, you can do the cleaning of your own car from now on since my husband, your nephew does such a crap job" I said shaking my head.

I do not know if it was the hormones coursing through my veins at this point, but I was getting tired of her going after my husband. I loved this woman to death, but there are times when even a saint would find it hard to love her also.

"I can see you are just tired and cranky; I will talk to you later Laura" she said as she slammed the door behind her.

"I'm so sorry about that my little mouse" Steve said as he walked over and sat next to me on the couch.

Looking at Steve I could see the lines around his eyes, the small dark circles that were developing around them. He was handsome and rugged looking, but he was also tired and stressed.

"Love, nothing to be sorry about sweetheart, your aunt is a handful, she always has been since I was little, but she is family, and with the good we take the bad, just how it is, everything will be fine love" I said as held his hand.

We sat there in silence watching the snow gently fall to the ground, decorating the landscape with its beauty.