Disclaimer: The concept, canon, and canon characters belong to Forever creator Matt Miller and Warner Bros. Studios. All other characters, the plot for the story, and Henry's flashbacks are my own creation. I have posted my story here, and I don't profit from it. (Translation: I don't own Forever, but if I did, we would have a second Christmas-themed episode now.)

Author's Note: Happy holidays, everyone! I wanted to give you a romantic Jenry fan fic. (In case you're wondering, this is set a few months after Henry and Jo begin to date, and it's between one and a half to three and a half years after 1x22.) I hope that you will enjoy it.

By the way, this will be the only story in which I post five chapters at once. As the chapters are much shorter than what I usually write, I felt free to publish all five at once. (That, and it's only two days before Christmas, and I wanted everyone to enjoy the full story for the holiday.)

There are general references for every episodes.


Chapter 1

This isn't like me.

Henry released the star on top of the tree. He took a step back and inspected the tree's ornaments one last time. The strings of cranberries and popcorn kernels ran between the antique baubles which hung from the tree's branches. Unlit candles and silk bows adorned the spaces between the ornaments. As far as he could tell, the tree appeared to be a proper one.

He looked around the room and peered into the kitchen. Holly and ivy garlands outlined every window, door, and table in the kitchen and living room. More garlands wrapped around the staircases' bannisters like scarves. Abe stepped onto a stool and started to nail yet another piece of greenery over the lintel of the folding doors separating the living room and kitchen.

Henry sighed as he tried to keep his mind anchored in the present. He hadn't celebrated Christmas since the year before he had left England aboard The Empress of Africa. After that fateful night at sea, the holiday had been more of an acknowledgement in passing than a cause for reveling. Yet, this year, as it was his and Jo's first Christmas as a courting couple, he felt that he needed to reconsider his position on the holiday so that she would regard him as a suitable prospect for marriage.

The newest ornament swayed and attracted Henry's attention. He watched as the decoration's pendulum-like movements slow and then stop, allowing him to get a better look at it.

"Mistletoe?" He hadn't mentioned it when he and Abe had discussed the decorations.

Abe stepped off the stool, picked it up with his free hand, and stared at his father. "You, of all people, know it's traditional." He thought for a moment. "Don't tell me your parents believed that any pagan associations were grounds for not using it in their holiday decor."

"We did hang it from the bottom of several kissing boughs located throughout the manor." He glanced over Abe's head as a vague sense of nervousness began to take root in him. "With the exception of tonight, it'll be just the two of us here. We can easily omit it, and I doubt that Jo would even notice its absence."

"I'm not planning to participate in the tradition tonight."

His impish son's motive for the plant's inclusion suddenly became clear. "Abraham!"

"You'll thank me later." With that, Abe smirked and walked toward the kitchen with his tools.

Henry cast a wary eye at the decoration. He suddenly suspected that it and a copious amount of wassail might have led to his conception centuries ago.

He huffed in resignation. Admittedly, he did yearn for a lover's kiss from Jo while they stood under the mistletoe tonight. As they was conducting a proper courtship—or, given the modern social standards, as proper as they could—they had been limiting themselves to chaste intimate gestures and touches. Lately, though, her kisses, embraces, and caresses of his face and hands were all he could think about at times, and his ruminations were creating some very ungentlemanlike thoughts and impulses. If he and Jo were to kiss according to tradition tonight, he didn't trust himself to be a perfect gentleman in that moment.

That was not to say that he wasn't tempted to act on his impulses. He had broken the rules of proper courtship on numerous occasions and in various ways. Yet, with Jo, it was different. Everything about her made him desire to uphold his standards, even when courting. Hopefully, he could maintain his propriety until the appropriate time to consummate their relationship.

The bell to the front door jingled. Henry raced through the living spaces, down the stairs, and through the shop's retail area. He arrived at the door just in time to see Jo struggle to keep it open while holding two bags of groceries.

He grabbed the door and held it for her. He reached out for one of the bags, and she handed it to him. As she cleared the entry, she flashed him a grateful grin, rose onto her toes, and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks."

The phantom impression of her lips on his cheek led his mind to the mistletoe in the living room. Fortunately, the weight of the bag prompted him to keep his focus on the mission that he had given her. He studied the bag's contents and noticed that all of the ingredients for tomorrow's breakfast were there.

"I hope that you didn't mind doing this for us. Abe couldn't leave the stove, and he naturally enlisted me as his taste tester." He hated to use subterfuge, especially after what had happened during their first year of working together, but, in this case, he had wanted to surprise her with the decorations.

"Mind?" She chortled. "It's not every day that I get to see where you shop for groceries. It kind of reminds me of both La Marqueta and the bodega in my old neighborhood."

At that moment, her phone rang. He motioned for the other bag, and she placed it in his arm before reaching into her coat pocket. She looked at the device and rolled her eyes.

"Speaking of which." She tapped her screen. "Hello, Mom."

"Where are you?" Mrs. Martinez's voice filled the air, and Henry could hear the sound of a boiling pot of food on the other end of the conversation.

Jo turned her head and smiled at Henry. "I'm at Henry's."

"That's wonderful." She paused. "I've just received an alert from the city saying that there's a city-wide travel ban starting about midnight due to the coming blizzard."

Jo's eyes widened. Henry nodded his confirmation of a similar receipt ten minutes before.

"What about it?"

"I want you to stay there until either the ban is lifted or Lt. Reece orders you to return to work."

Jo became alarmed. "But, Mami—."

"No buts, Josephine." Henry almost dropped the groceries at the sound of Mrs. Martinez's strict tone of voice. "It's not worth your life to drive here in this weather. You can always celebrate the holiday with us later." Her voice softened. "Besides, it'll give you more time with your boyfriend and his roommate."

Henry's mind and heart started to race. If only Mrs. Martinez knew what her instructions to Jo had just done to him…

Jo sighed in resignation. "Okay. I will. Be careful yourselves. Tell everyone I said hi and that I'm sorry I can't make it this year."

"That, I can do. Tell Henry and Abe that I said hello."

Jo winked at Henry. "I will." After saying their goodbyes, they hung up.

Jo sighed as she pocketed her phone. It wasn't often that she was exasperated with the people whom she cared about.

"What is it?"

She chuckled. "My mother wants to sabotage—" she wiggled her fingers in the air while saying the last word "—our courtship."

He smiled. "Between my upbringing and your fondness for Jane Austen's novels, our chaperones want to ensure that our courtship isn't strictly platonic."

"Tell me about it."

She quickly sobered as they neared the door to the stairwell. Apparently sensing that he noticed her frustration and melancholy, she turned to him. "I'm sorry. This is the first time that I've gotten some idea of how you feel when you can't tell people that Abe's your son."

His heart broke for her. Her love for him and her maternal instincts and affection toward Abe were becoming more obvious to everyone, including her mother, and Henry wished that he would make it easier for Jo. As he couldn't change his condition, he longed for some other way to ease her concerns. At this point, he would even claim Abe as his step-son when talking to others if it would help her.

He inhaled and reminded himself of the day. "I suppose it's natural. If we were to marry, he would be your step-son."

She chortled. "I'm still wrapping my mind around the idea that if we got married and Abe and Fawn got married, I would be a great-grandmother at my age."

"And you would make a very lovely and youthful one."

She playfully nudged him with her shoulder. "Are you trying to be charming?" She grinned. "Fortunately for you, it's totally working."

The tantalizing aroma of the Christmas meal drifted down the stairs and into the shop. Jo inhaled. "Turkey and stuffing? You're going all out."

"As I am seeking your hand in marriage, I felt that you deserved more than our usual gift exchange this year."

"You're putting your best foot forward, huh?" Her elfish grin deprived him of the ability to formulate any response.

Henry abruptly remembered leaving the front door unlocked. He set the bags down on the desk. "Go on up. I'll join you in a minute."

"Okay." She leaned over and kissed him on the lips before disappearing through the door.

He pivoted and headed back to the door. As he turned the lock and ensured that the sign was flipped to "closed", he peered out the glass. Several light flurries had fallen throughout the day, leaving only a dusting of snow on the ground. Now, though, the snowflakes were falling faster than usual, and the wind carried them much more rapidly toward the buildings and to the shop's door. Cars and pedestrians, either oblivious to the growing threat or attempting to return home without being caught in the suddenly treacherous conditions, continued to pass by the shop.

Henry inhaled. The last time that a storm had come in much earlier than expected, his life was changed forever. He wasn't superstitious, but what did this portend?