Читать книгу A Town Called Christmas - Carrie Alexander, Carrie Alexander - Страница 10

CHAPTER FOUR

MERRY THRUST HER HANDS into her pockets and strode along the driveway, kicking up clumps of downy snow. Cold air lodged in her lungs, and she huffed, hurrying faster and faster. Puffs of vapor floated from her mouth.

She heard Mike behind her. “Wait for me.”

“I’m fine.” She raised her fists and pumped her arms. Any other time, she’d have given him more of a run for his money. Well, perhaps not any other time. A few months from now, she’d be waddling.

He caught up and took her arm. “It’s really dark out here.”

“That’s how it is in the country.” There were no lampposts or streetlights, even at the main road. The lights from the farm house had been reduced to winks and blinks among the trees.

Mike slowed, his head tilted back. “But, man, take a look at those stars.”

She resisted his friendliness. “I’ve seen them.”

He kept hold of her. “Indulge me. I’m a city boy.”

“Don’t give me that.” She stopped anyway, trying not to breathe too hard. “You’ve seen stars before, and closer than most of us get.” She thought of him at the controls of a strike fighter, zooming toward a midnight heaven, and felt a thrum on her heartstrings.

“Sure, but they look different here.”

“How so?” She tipped her head back, taking a deep breath as she gazed at the black sky dotted by a zillion diamond-chip stars. The Milky Way was especially sharp and vivid.

Merry’s defensiveness abated. Mike’s easy way, even when she’d been snippy, was a comfort.