Part 4: Holiday Cheer
Jack woke to the sun streaming in his bedroom window. He smiled. It was Saturday morning, he actually had today and tomorrow completely free from the CIA, and Laura was asleep in his arms. Life couldn't get any better.
It had been six days since he and Laura had stepped up their relationship. Laura had recovered from her cold, and Jack had miraculously managed not to catch it-though not for lack of trying. They had spent the majority of the last week together, alternating between their apartments, exploring each other's bodies. Jack had never known until this past week that sex could be this incredible. They both seemed to have an intuitive understanding of what the other liked; Jack found it an almost spiritual experience.
Last night had been the first time that they had literally slept together, and Jack was surprised at how well he had slept. He remembered the unpleasant experience of sharing hotel room beds with his younger brother on family vacations, but sleeping with Laura had been completely different; their bodies fit together just as well when they were asleep as when they were awake.
He lay contentedly for ten minutes or so, just basking in her, enjoying the sound of her breathing, the warmth of her skin against his. Then the phone rang, waking her and jarring him out of his perfect idyll.
She opened her eyes and smiled at him, and he gave her a quick kiss and reluctantly let her go in order to roll over and answer the phone. The CIA had better not want anything from him, he thought, preparing to be annoyed. "Hello?"
"Hello, Jonathan," said a familiar female voice.
"Hi, Mom." Laura smiled when she heard who it was, and he grinned back, glad that it wasn't the CIA.
"We missed you at Thanksgiving dinner, Jonathan. You are coming home for Christmas, I trust?"
"Of course I'm coming home for Christmas, Mom. I wouldn't miss it. I do have a request, though." Laura was making funny faces at him, and he struggled not to laugh. He'd asked her last night if she'd come home for Christmas with him, and she'd agreed readily.
"And what is your request, dear?" His mother sounded amused.
"Well, I have this friend, and she doesn't have any family, so I was wondering if I could bring her with me and she could have Christmas with us." He stuck his tongue out at Laura; she laughed silently.
"This wouldn't be the young woman you mentioned the last time we talked, would it? What's her name?"
"Her name is Laura, Mom."
"Well, of course you can bring her. We can put her on the sleeper sofa in the living room. Unless you'd rather she slept in your room?" his mother said mischievously.
"Mom!" Jack was rather disturbed by the notion of sleeping with Laura at his parents' house, with his whole family knowing exactly what they were doing. "I'll [I]give[/I] her my bedroom, and I'll take the couch."
His mother chuckled. "All right. When can we expect you?"
"December 23rd, sometime. We'll be driving down, so it will depend on what time we leave."
"Well, call when you get close. I'll see you soon, Jack."
"Bye, Mom." He hung up the phone and turned on Laura, pinning her to the bed and tickling her relentlessly.
She shrieked with laughter. "Jack.please.stop!" she gasped.
"Teach you to distract me while I'm on the phone!" he retorted, but stopped tickling her.
Laura took a moment to get her breath back, then gave him a long, deep kiss, running her hands over him. "Should I be worried about going home with you? Your family doesn't bite, do they?"
"Like piranhas," he answered. "But don't worry, I'll protect you." Then he went to work on her with his mouth, making sure that she was too busy to respond. He had a feeling that they wouldn't stray far from the bed today.
***
Jack sat at his desk at the local CIA office on December 22, counting down the minutes until he could go home. Ben Devlin appeared at his office door. "Afternoon, Jack," he said. "What have you got planned for Christmas?"
"Come on in, Ben," Jack responded. "I'm going to my parents' house in Baltimore. Didn't I mention that?"
"Yeah, you did. What about Laura? She going with you?" Jack nodded. "Jack, you do realize that she's going to figure out that you weren't home for Thanksgiving."
Jack turned a bit red. He'd been planning on telling Laura that he worked for the CIA tonight so that she wouldn't be surprised when she learned about Thanksgiving, even though he didn't have official permission to do so yet.
Ben laughed at his expression. "No worries, Jack." He tossed a folder on Jack's desk. "I pushed the background check on her through. You're cleared to tell her that you're a field agent. Consider it your Christmas present from the CIA."
"Thank you, Ben, but how did you know?"
Ben grinned at him. "Someone's been spotted hanging around jewelry stores," he said teasingly. "Did you buy it yet? When are you going to ask her?"
"That's none of your business!"
Devlin came over and patted him on the back. "Have a great and [I]engaging[/I] Christmas, Jack." He left, whistling "Let it Snow."
Jack opened his desk and pulled out the small box that he had purchased just today, although he had been scouting out jewelry stores for weeks. He looked at the ring one last time. Simple but elegant. It would be perfect.
***
Jack parked the car at the curb outside his parents' house, noting the vehicles of his brother and sister as well. He'd known that his brother Kevin would be there, since he was a sophomore in college and still lived in the dorms, but he hadn't been sure if his older sister Lisa and her husband Steve would be there yet. He looked over at Laura and smiled. "Looks like the whole gang's here," he said. "Ready?"
She smiled back, but looked a little nervous. "Ready as I'll ever be." He leaned over and gave her a kiss before getting out of the car. He'd told her last night what he really did for a living, and he thought she'd taken it quite well. She'd been surprised, of course, but rather than being angry at him for his deception, she'd seemed more worried that he would get hurt in the field.
Jack opened the trunk and pulled out the two suitcases; Laura grinned impishly upon seeing their separately packed suitcases again. They hadn't officially moved in together, but they had spent almost every night together over the last few weeks. Laura had acted very unhappy about the separate sleeping arrangements at his parents' house over the holiday, and had threatened to join him on the sleeper sofa in the middle of the night; he thought she was joking, but he wasn't quite sure about that.
Laura grabbed her own suitcase from his hand; he just shook his head and closed the trunk. He had known from the very first date that she didn't go in much for things like having her door opened or her bags carried; she never let him forget for a second that she was quite capable of taking care of herself, thank you very much.
As they headed toward the house, the door opened and Jack saw his mother's silhouette in the doorway. She ushered them into the house, smiling and talking a mile a minute, as the rest of the family gathered around. "Jack, honey, it's so good to see you. We missed you over Thanksgiving," she said, giving him a quick hug before focusing on Laura. "And you must be Laura. Jack doesn't tell us much about what's going on in his life, but he did mention you." She shot a quick glare at Jack before continuing, "I'm Jack's mother, you can call me Jeannie, and this is Jack's father Dale. And this is Lisa-she's three years older than Jack-and her husband Steve. And our youngest, Kevin, is two years younger than Jack." Laura smiled and shook hands with everyone, and then Jeannie announced that supper was ready and just waiting for Jack and Laura. They all headed into the kitchen.
***
Laura was fairly quiet at dinner, mostly listening as Jack and his family engaged in the familiar Bristow banter. After dinner was over and cleaned up, as Jack had expected, it was time for games. Trivial Pursuit was brought out first. "Hmm," Jack's mother said as she shook out the six game pieces. "First time we've had too many people for everyone to play. Laura, have you played much Trivial Pursuit?"
Laura shook her head. "I've never played at all, actually."
"Well, why don't you team up with Jack, then?"
A unison groan rose from Lisa and Kevin. "Jack doesn't need any help!" Kevin said.
"If we're going to play teams, we should all get partners," Lisa said. "Mom and Dad, why don't you play together, and Kevin, Steve, and I can be the third team."
Jack's mother frowned. "Well, we've never done it that way before, but I suppose that's acceptable." There were nods all around, and the game began.
Jack and Laura had the third turn, and everyone else immediately realized that they were in trouble when the couple answered 9 questions in a row correctly, earning themselves two wedges, before finally missing a question. An hour later, they'd won the game, although the elder Bristows had managed to score four wedges while Lisa, Steve, and Kevin had three. As they put the game board away, Lisa said, "Next time it's all of us against you two." Everyone laughed at that.
Monopoly was next; after all the property had been bought, the deal-making began. The Bristows played Monopoly very competitively, and deal negotiations tended to be rather drawn-out. Jack wasn't the least bit surprised when Laura jumped right into the fray, but he was surprised at how good her negotiating skills were. In almost no time, she'd arranged a five-way deal, excluding him and his mother and putting her in a slightly stronger position than anyone else. Not about to be outdone, Jack brokered his own four-way deal with his mother, Kevin, and Lisa; he came out third in that one, but Lisa was now better off than Laura, and Kevin was about equal. The game continued, and Steve soon went bankrupt; luckily for Laura, he was on her property when it happened. Jack's father was soon perilously close to bankruptcy, and Jack did some quick negotiating; even though he knew he had no chance of winning, Jack's father agreed to the deal because it was the only way anyone had a chance of beating Laura. One by one, the other players were eliminated over the next hour or so until only Jack and Laura were left, very evenly matched. The game quickly got boring for the watchers, and Steve, Lisa and Kevin got up and went to bed. Jack's parents stayed a few minutes longer before heading up to bed as well. "Jack, I'll make up the sleeper sofa for you before I go up," his mother said.
Jack and Laura played for a little while longer. "This could go on for hours," Laura said before too long.
"Days," Jack agreed. They both laughed. Jack scooted his chair a little closer to Laura's. "You want to just call it a draw?" he whispered into her ear, and then kissed her.
When they broke for air forty-seven seconds later, Laura said, "I think we'd better clean up the game board. And go to bed.before we need to go on a late-night 'shopping trip'."
"Yeah," Jack murmured, brushing her lips lightly. They put all of the Monopoly paraphernalia away and got up. "I'll show you my room," Jack said. He led her upstairs to his bedroom.
Laura looked around the room in surprise. "Are you sure you actually lived in this room?"
Jack grinned. "I cleaned out all of my personal stuff before I went to college. Mom and Dad have guests sometimes, and I didn't want them pawing through my stuff."
"I see." They stood there staring at each other for a moment, not wanting to separate. "Well, goodnight," Laura said finally.
"Goodnight." He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her for a moment, then gave her a peck on the cheek before drawing away. She gave him a dazzling smile before closing the door; he turned and headed downstairs.
***
Jack's mother watched the hug from her darkened doorway, then shut her door as Jack went down the stairs. "Are the kids put to bed in separate rooms?" Dale asked as she turned around.
Jeannie smiled. "Yes, Dale," she said. "Although if they'd asked, I would have let them share a room."
Dale frowned for a moment. "He's pretty serious about her, isn't he?"
"This is Jack we're talking about. If it were Kevin, she'd just be the flavor of the week. But Jack."
"He's most likely going to marry her," Dale said, nodding.
"Yes." Jeannie got into bed. "I like her. I think she'll be good for him."
"She already is. I don't think I've ever seen Jack so relaxed."
***
Irina quietly stuck her head in the living room and smiled when she saw that Jack was already up, dressed, and folding the sheets from his bed.. "Morning," she said.
"Good morning," he answered, coming over and giving her a kiss. "Sleep well?"
She shrugged. "It was okay. I was missing my favorite teddy bear, though," she said with a grin.
Jack smiled back. "Is that all I am? A teddy bear?"
Irina made herself look innocent. "Whoever said I was talking about you?" Jack chuckled. "Let me help you with those sheets."
As they folded the sheets, Jack said, "My mother would be scandalized. Neither guests nor males are supposed to do things like fold sheets."
"My parents were the same way," Irina said, telling the truth. Her family was well off enough that her mother didn't have to work, and her mother was glad to stay home. She had not been very happy when Irina announced her intention to join the KGB. "I did notice last night that your mother and Lisa did all the serving and the dishes."
Jack frowned. "Yes. Women are supposed to cook and clean, and men work and fix things. I guess.well, my dad served in World War II, and Mom worked in a factory while she waited for him to come home.I think they kind of were glad to go back to 'traditional' roles after that." Together, they folded the sofa back up and put the cushions in place, then sat down. "I think they know that we feel a little differently.Lisa works, and they seem to be okay with that, and obviously I've been cooking, cleaning, and doing my own laundry for the last few years, but while we're here, we do things their way."
Irina nodded. "I understand perfectly. So I guess I shouldn't tell them I know how to do things like change a tire."
Jack grinned. "It's all right to know how.I'll let you in on a little secret. My mother can fix just about anything-I've seen her change a tire. But she pretends that she doesn't know how to change a light bulb. And my father can actually cook decently, although not as well as my mother, and he knows how to clean and do laundry, too. He just never does it."
Irina grinned. "My mother could handle herself perfectly well, too, but my father would have had no idea what to do with a raw egg or a pile of dirty laundry. She used to tell me that she did 'women's work' because she was the only one in the house that knew how to do it." They folded up the couch and put the cushions on, and then sat down as close together as possible. "I should warn you, I'm not any good at pretending to be helpless."
"Thank God," Jack replied. "The only thing more annoying than a woman who's pretending to be helpless is one who really is helpless."
Irina nodded. "So what are we doing today?"
"Well, we usually have our big dinner on Christmas Eve.Mom and Lisa will be in the kitchen all morning, and Dad will take us out to get a Christmas tree. You can either volunteer to help cook or go along for the tree and get funny looks from my father."
"I think I'll go with the cooking, if you don't think they'll mind."
"You'll probably get stuck doing something boring like peeling potatoes."
Irina smiled and twined her fingers in Jack's hair. "That's not the point." Jack looked confused, and her smile grew wider. "I'm sure your mother and sister have lots of lovely stories to tell about you."
"Hey, no fair. Where am I supposed to get embarrassing stories about you?"
"There aren't any. I was perfect," Irina joked, then kissed him deeply to forestall any more discussion on the subject.
At the sound of a throat clearing behind them, they sprang apart, both turning red. "Good morning, Jack, Laura," Jack's mother said brightly as if nothing had happened. "Did you sleep well?" They nodded, neither one meeting her eyes. "Well, I'll let you two get back to your 'conversation'. Breakfast will be ready in about half an hour."
Although she didn't want to leave Jack, Irina's instructions on this trip were to develop a good relationship with the people who would hopefully be her future in-laws. It wouldn't be hard; they were far nicer people than enemies of her country had any right to be. She stood and faced Jeannie. "Do you need any help?"
"I suppose I could use a hand."
Irina gave Jack's shoulder a quick squeeze, then followed Jeannie into the kitchen.
***
Jack reached over and squeezed Laura's hand under the table as his father carved the turkey that night; he got a squeeze in return. After their conversation this morning, they'd barely seen each other. Jack could only assume that Laura's day in the kitchen had gone well, though, because she seemed much more at ease with his mother and Lisa during supper.
After supper, they played a card game that the Bristows had always called Hand and Foot, using four decks of cards; it was rather complicated and required at least six players. Laura had never played before, but she mastered the rules quickly and ended up coming in third. Jack was second, and his mother, who the family generally acknowledged as the unparalleled master of Hand and Foot, surprised no one by winning the game. The game was very long, though, and when it was over everyone headed to bed.
***
The next morning, the family gathered in the living room to open gifts. As always, Jack's mother had made hand-knitted Fair Isle patterned sweaters for everyone. He hadn't been sure if Laura would get one, but she did; either his mother had made one very quickly or she kept a supply on hand. In addition to the sweaters, each of the three children received several gifts and a nice-sized check. Jack, Lisa, and Kevin had all gone in together to buy their parents a new refrigerator, which would be delivered in a few days; the old one had been in the kitchen since the early fifties.
The gift opening was followed by breakfast, and then Lisa and Steve left to go to Steve's parents' house in Pennsylvania. After they left, Jack suggested to Laura that they go for a drive. He'd been hoping for snow today, but there was none; the world was gray and brown. The ground was frozen and not muddy, though; that was the important thing. He drove to a nearby nature reserve, got out of the car, and led her toward a trail. He could see that she'd been repressing her curiosity since they left, but she finally gave up. "Where are we going, Jack?" she asked, taking his hand and following him into the woods.
"Someplace where we can finally get some privacy," he said with a grin.
"Privacy? I'll say. Who goes hiking in the middle of winter?"
"It's not much of a hike, I promise." He wrapped an arm around her waist, and they walked along the trail in silence for about ten minutes.
"Is that a waterfall?" Laura asked as they drew closer to Jack's goal.
He raised his eyebrows and listened closely. He could hear the waterfall, barely. "You have good ears. I guess the secret's out."
"There's still the question of why we're here. I know it's not just for privacy."
"I'll tell you when we get there." Jack laughed inwardly at the look of frustration that appeared on her face. Laura tended to be very impatient when she couldn't get the information she wanted.
A few minutes later they came out of the trees and into full view of the waterfall. Laura gazed at it for a moment, while Jack watched the slight smile playing at her mouth; then she turned to him and kissed him. "Jack, it's beautiful."
It was, and it was the most romantic place Jack could think of. He put his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Laura, I love you so much. I don't ever want to be without you." He leaned forward and kissed her gently as he found the small box in him pocket, then pulled back and drew a deep breath. "Will you marry me?"
Her eyes widened, and Jack thought he saw tears glimmering for an instant. Then she broke into a huge smile. "Yes, Jack. Yes."
They kissed, and at that moment Jack was the happiest he'd ever been in his life. He opened the box and took out the ring, then lifted her left hand and slid it onto her fourth finger. Thanks to his covert measurement in the middle of the night, it fit perfectly. "I will always love you, Laura," he said softly. "Forever and always."
"Oh, Jack," she whispered, looking at the ring. She looked into his eyes, and he saw the reflection of his own love there. "I love you. Forever. No matter what." He found the last sentence slightly odd, but shrugged it off as she kissed him. As passionate as her kisses had always been, he felt like there was a new dimension to this one, like she was giving him everything and holding nothing back. He responded in kind. Finally they broke and stood just drinking each other in for a moment, both radiating love. Laura broke the spell. "Your parents will be wondering what happened to us."
"Yes." He kissed her again, gently. "They'll want to welcome you into the family." Arms wrapped around each other, they turned and walked slowly back to the car.
4/5
Jack woke to the sun streaming in his bedroom window. He smiled. It was Saturday morning, he actually had today and tomorrow completely free from the CIA, and Laura was asleep in his arms. Life couldn't get any better.
It had been six days since he and Laura had stepped up their relationship. Laura had recovered from her cold, and Jack had miraculously managed not to catch it-though not for lack of trying. They had spent the majority of the last week together, alternating between their apartments, exploring each other's bodies. Jack had never known until this past week that sex could be this incredible. They both seemed to have an intuitive understanding of what the other liked; Jack found it an almost spiritual experience.
Last night had been the first time that they had literally slept together, and Jack was surprised at how well he had slept. He remembered the unpleasant experience of sharing hotel room beds with his younger brother on family vacations, but sleeping with Laura had been completely different; their bodies fit together just as well when they were asleep as when they were awake.
He lay contentedly for ten minutes or so, just basking in her, enjoying the sound of her breathing, the warmth of her skin against his. Then the phone rang, waking her and jarring him out of his perfect idyll.
She opened her eyes and smiled at him, and he gave her a quick kiss and reluctantly let her go in order to roll over and answer the phone. The CIA had better not want anything from him, he thought, preparing to be annoyed. "Hello?"
"Hello, Jonathan," said a familiar female voice.
"Hi, Mom." Laura smiled when she heard who it was, and he grinned back, glad that it wasn't the CIA.
"We missed you at Thanksgiving dinner, Jonathan. You are coming home for Christmas, I trust?"
"Of course I'm coming home for Christmas, Mom. I wouldn't miss it. I do have a request, though." Laura was making funny faces at him, and he struggled not to laugh. He'd asked her last night if she'd come home for Christmas with him, and she'd agreed readily.
"And what is your request, dear?" His mother sounded amused.
"Well, I have this friend, and she doesn't have any family, so I was wondering if I could bring her with me and she could have Christmas with us." He stuck his tongue out at Laura; she laughed silently.
"This wouldn't be the young woman you mentioned the last time we talked, would it? What's her name?"
"Her name is Laura, Mom."
"Well, of course you can bring her. We can put her on the sleeper sofa in the living room. Unless you'd rather she slept in your room?" his mother said mischievously.
"Mom!" Jack was rather disturbed by the notion of sleeping with Laura at his parents' house, with his whole family knowing exactly what they were doing. "I'll [I]give[/I] her my bedroom, and I'll take the couch."
His mother chuckled. "All right. When can we expect you?"
"December 23rd, sometime. We'll be driving down, so it will depend on what time we leave."
"Well, call when you get close. I'll see you soon, Jack."
"Bye, Mom." He hung up the phone and turned on Laura, pinning her to the bed and tickling her relentlessly.
She shrieked with laughter. "Jack.please.stop!" she gasped.
"Teach you to distract me while I'm on the phone!" he retorted, but stopped tickling her.
Laura took a moment to get her breath back, then gave him a long, deep kiss, running her hands over him. "Should I be worried about going home with you? Your family doesn't bite, do they?"
"Like piranhas," he answered. "But don't worry, I'll protect you." Then he went to work on her with his mouth, making sure that she was too busy to respond. He had a feeling that they wouldn't stray far from the bed today.
***
Jack sat at his desk at the local CIA office on December 22, counting down the minutes until he could go home. Ben Devlin appeared at his office door. "Afternoon, Jack," he said. "What have you got planned for Christmas?"
"Come on in, Ben," Jack responded. "I'm going to my parents' house in Baltimore. Didn't I mention that?"
"Yeah, you did. What about Laura? She going with you?" Jack nodded. "Jack, you do realize that she's going to figure out that you weren't home for Thanksgiving."
Jack turned a bit red. He'd been planning on telling Laura that he worked for the CIA tonight so that she wouldn't be surprised when she learned about Thanksgiving, even though he didn't have official permission to do so yet.
Ben laughed at his expression. "No worries, Jack." He tossed a folder on Jack's desk. "I pushed the background check on her through. You're cleared to tell her that you're a field agent. Consider it your Christmas present from the CIA."
"Thank you, Ben, but how did you know?"
Ben grinned at him. "Someone's been spotted hanging around jewelry stores," he said teasingly. "Did you buy it yet? When are you going to ask her?"
"That's none of your business!"
Devlin came over and patted him on the back. "Have a great and [I]engaging[/I] Christmas, Jack." He left, whistling "Let it Snow."
Jack opened his desk and pulled out the small box that he had purchased just today, although he had been scouting out jewelry stores for weeks. He looked at the ring one last time. Simple but elegant. It would be perfect.
***
Jack parked the car at the curb outside his parents' house, noting the vehicles of his brother and sister as well. He'd known that his brother Kevin would be there, since he was a sophomore in college and still lived in the dorms, but he hadn't been sure if his older sister Lisa and her husband Steve would be there yet. He looked over at Laura and smiled. "Looks like the whole gang's here," he said. "Ready?"
She smiled back, but looked a little nervous. "Ready as I'll ever be." He leaned over and gave her a kiss before getting out of the car. He'd told her last night what he really did for a living, and he thought she'd taken it quite well. She'd been surprised, of course, but rather than being angry at him for his deception, she'd seemed more worried that he would get hurt in the field.
Jack opened the trunk and pulled out the two suitcases; Laura grinned impishly upon seeing their separately packed suitcases again. They hadn't officially moved in together, but they had spent almost every night together over the last few weeks. Laura had acted very unhappy about the separate sleeping arrangements at his parents' house over the holiday, and had threatened to join him on the sleeper sofa in the middle of the night; he thought she was joking, but he wasn't quite sure about that.
Laura grabbed her own suitcase from his hand; he just shook his head and closed the trunk. He had known from the very first date that she didn't go in much for things like having her door opened or her bags carried; she never let him forget for a second that she was quite capable of taking care of herself, thank you very much.
As they headed toward the house, the door opened and Jack saw his mother's silhouette in the doorway. She ushered them into the house, smiling and talking a mile a minute, as the rest of the family gathered around. "Jack, honey, it's so good to see you. We missed you over Thanksgiving," she said, giving him a quick hug before focusing on Laura. "And you must be Laura. Jack doesn't tell us much about what's going on in his life, but he did mention you." She shot a quick glare at Jack before continuing, "I'm Jack's mother, you can call me Jeannie, and this is Jack's father Dale. And this is Lisa-she's three years older than Jack-and her husband Steve. And our youngest, Kevin, is two years younger than Jack." Laura smiled and shook hands with everyone, and then Jeannie announced that supper was ready and just waiting for Jack and Laura. They all headed into the kitchen.
***
Laura was fairly quiet at dinner, mostly listening as Jack and his family engaged in the familiar Bristow banter. After dinner was over and cleaned up, as Jack had expected, it was time for games. Trivial Pursuit was brought out first. "Hmm," Jack's mother said as she shook out the six game pieces. "First time we've had too many people for everyone to play. Laura, have you played much Trivial Pursuit?"
Laura shook her head. "I've never played at all, actually."
"Well, why don't you team up with Jack, then?"
A unison groan rose from Lisa and Kevin. "Jack doesn't need any help!" Kevin said.
"If we're going to play teams, we should all get partners," Lisa said. "Mom and Dad, why don't you play together, and Kevin, Steve, and I can be the third team."
Jack's mother frowned. "Well, we've never done it that way before, but I suppose that's acceptable." There were nods all around, and the game began.
Jack and Laura had the third turn, and everyone else immediately realized that they were in trouble when the couple answered 9 questions in a row correctly, earning themselves two wedges, before finally missing a question. An hour later, they'd won the game, although the elder Bristows had managed to score four wedges while Lisa, Steve, and Kevin had three. As they put the game board away, Lisa said, "Next time it's all of us against you two." Everyone laughed at that.
Monopoly was next; after all the property had been bought, the deal-making began. The Bristows played Monopoly very competitively, and deal negotiations tended to be rather drawn-out. Jack wasn't the least bit surprised when Laura jumped right into the fray, but he was surprised at how good her negotiating skills were. In almost no time, she'd arranged a five-way deal, excluding him and his mother and putting her in a slightly stronger position than anyone else. Not about to be outdone, Jack brokered his own four-way deal with his mother, Kevin, and Lisa; he came out third in that one, but Lisa was now better off than Laura, and Kevin was about equal. The game continued, and Steve soon went bankrupt; luckily for Laura, he was on her property when it happened. Jack's father was soon perilously close to bankruptcy, and Jack did some quick negotiating; even though he knew he had no chance of winning, Jack's father agreed to the deal because it was the only way anyone had a chance of beating Laura. One by one, the other players were eliminated over the next hour or so until only Jack and Laura were left, very evenly matched. The game quickly got boring for the watchers, and Steve, Lisa and Kevin got up and went to bed. Jack's parents stayed a few minutes longer before heading up to bed as well. "Jack, I'll make up the sleeper sofa for you before I go up," his mother said.
Jack and Laura played for a little while longer. "This could go on for hours," Laura said before too long.
"Days," Jack agreed. They both laughed. Jack scooted his chair a little closer to Laura's. "You want to just call it a draw?" he whispered into her ear, and then kissed her.
When they broke for air forty-seven seconds later, Laura said, "I think we'd better clean up the game board. And go to bed.before we need to go on a late-night 'shopping trip'."
"Yeah," Jack murmured, brushing her lips lightly. They put all of the Monopoly paraphernalia away and got up. "I'll show you my room," Jack said. He led her upstairs to his bedroom.
Laura looked around the room in surprise. "Are you sure you actually lived in this room?"
Jack grinned. "I cleaned out all of my personal stuff before I went to college. Mom and Dad have guests sometimes, and I didn't want them pawing through my stuff."
"I see." They stood there staring at each other for a moment, not wanting to separate. "Well, goodnight," Laura said finally.
"Goodnight." He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her for a moment, then gave her a peck on the cheek before drawing away. She gave him a dazzling smile before closing the door; he turned and headed downstairs.
***
Jack's mother watched the hug from her darkened doorway, then shut her door as Jack went down the stairs. "Are the kids put to bed in separate rooms?" Dale asked as she turned around.
Jeannie smiled. "Yes, Dale," she said. "Although if they'd asked, I would have let them share a room."
Dale frowned for a moment. "He's pretty serious about her, isn't he?"
"This is Jack we're talking about. If it were Kevin, she'd just be the flavor of the week. But Jack."
"He's most likely going to marry her," Dale said, nodding.
"Yes." Jeannie got into bed. "I like her. I think she'll be good for him."
"She already is. I don't think I've ever seen Jack so relaxed."
***
Irina quietly stuck her head in the living room and smiled when she saw that Jack was already up, dressed, and folding the sheets from his bed.. "Morning," she said.
"Good morning," he answered, coming over and giving her a kiss. "Sleep well?"
She shrugged. "It was okay. I was missing my favorite teddy bear, though," she said with a grin.
Jack smiled back. "Is that all I am? A teddy bear?"
Irina made herself look innocent. "Whoever said I was talking about you?" Jack chuckled. "Let me help you with those sheets."
As they folded the sheets, Jack said, "My mother would be scandalized. Neither guests nor males are supposed to do things like fold sheets."
"My parents were the same way," Irina said, telling the truth. Her family was well off enough that her mother didn't have to work, and her mother was glad to stay home. She had not been very happy when Irina announced her intention to join the KGB. "I did notice last night that your mother and Lisa did all the serving and the dishes."
Jack frowned. "Yes. Women are supposed to cook and clean, and men work and fix things. I guess.well, my dad served in World War II, and Mom worked in a factory while she waited for him to come home.I think they kind of were glad to go back to 'traditional' roles after that." Together, they folded the sofa back up and put the cushions in place, then sat down. "I think they know that we feel a little differently.Lisa works, and they seem to be okay with that, and obviously I've been cooking, cleaning, and doing my own laundry for the last few years, but while we're here, we do things their way."
Irina nodded. "I understand perfectly. So I guess I shouldn't tell them I know how to do things like change a tire."
Jack grinned. "It's all right to know how.I'll let you in on a little secret. My mother can fix just about anything-I've seen her change a tire. But she pretends that she doesn't know how to change a light bulb. And my father can actually cook decently, although not as well as my mother, and he knows how to clean and do laundry, too. He just never does it."
Irina grinned. "My mother could handle herself perfectly well, too, but my father would have had no idea what to do with a raw egg or a pile of dirty laundry. She used to tell me that she did 'women's work' because she was the only one in the house that knew how to do it." They folded up the couch and put the cushions on, and then sat down as close together as possible. "I should warn you, I'm not any good at pretending to be helpless."
"Thank God," Jack replied. "The only thing more annoying than a woman who's pretending to be helpless is one who really is helpless."
Irina nodded. "So what are we doing today?"
"Well, we usually have our big dinner on Christmas Eve.Mom and Lisa will be in the kitchen all morning, and Dad will take us out to get a Christmas tree. You can either volunteer to help cook or go along for the tree and get funny looks from my father."
"I think I'll go with the cooking, if you don't think they'll mind."
"You'll probably get stuck doing something boring like peeling potatoes."
Irina smiled and twined her fingers in Jack's hair. "That's not the point." Jack looked confused, and her smile grew wider. "I'm sure your mother and sister have lots of lovely stories to tell about you."
"Hey, no fair. Where am I supposed to get embarrassing stories about you?"
"There aren't any. I was perfect," Irina joked, then kissed him deeply to forestall any more discussion on the subject.
At the sound of a throat clearing behind them, they sprang apart, both turning red. "Good morning, Jack, Laura," Jack's mother said brightly as if nothing had happened. "Did you sleep well?" They nodded, neither one meeting her eyes. "Well, I'll let you two get back to your 'conversation'. Breakfast will be ready in about half an hour."
Although she didn't want to leave Jack, Irina's instructions on this trip were to develop a good relationship with the people who would hopefully be her future in-laws. It wouldn't be hard; they were far nicer people than enemies of her country had any right to be. She stood and faced Jeannie. "Do you need any help?"
"I suppose I could use a hand."
Irina gave Jack's shoulder a quick squeeze, then followed Jeannie into the kitchen.
***
Jack reached over and squeezed Laura's hand under the table as his father carved the turkey that night; he got a squeeze in return. After their conversation this morning, they'd barely seen each other. Jack could only assume that Laura's day in the kitchen had gone well, though, because she seemed much more at ease with his mother and Lisa during supper.
After supper, they played a card game that the Bristows had always called Hand and Foot, using four decks of cards; it was rather complicated and required at least six players. Laura had never played before, but she mastered the rules quickly and ended up coming in third. Jack was second, and his mother, who the family generally acknowledged as the unparalleled master of Hand and Foot, surprised no one by winning the game. The game was very long, though, and when it was over everyone headed to bed.
***
The next morning, the family gathered in the living room to open gifts. As always, Jack's mother had made hand-knitted Fair Isle patterned sweaters for everyone. He hadn't been sure if Laura would get one, but she did; either his mother had made one very quickly or she kept a supply on hand. In addition to the sweaters, each of the three children received several gifts and a nice-sized check. Jack, Lisa, and Kevin had all gone in together to buy their parents a new refrigerator, which would be delivered in a few days; the old one had been in the kitchen since the early fifties.
The gift opening was followed by breakfast, and then Lisa and Steve left to go to Steve's parents' house in Pennsylvania. After they left, Jack suggested to Laura that they go for a drive. He'd been hoping for snow today, but there was none; the world was gray and brown. The ground was frozen and not muddy, though; that was the important thing. He drove to a nearby nature reserve, got out of the car, and led her toward a trail. He could see that she'd been repressing her curiosity since they left, but she finally gave up. "Where are we going, Jack?" she asked, taking his hand and following him into the woods.
"Someplace where we can finally get some privacy," he said with a grin.
"Privacy? I'll say. Who goes hiking in the middle of winter?"
"It's not much of a hike, I promise." He wrapped an arm around her waist, and they walked along the trail in silence for about ten minutes.
"Is that a waterfall?" Laura asked as they drew closer to Jack's goal.
He raised his eyebrows and listened closely. He could hear the waterfall, barely. "You have good ears. I guess the secret's out."
"There's still the question of why we're here. I know it's not just for privacy."
"I'll tell you when we get there." Jack laughed inwardly at the look of frustration that appeared on her face. Laura tended to be very impatient when she couldn't get the information she wanted.
A few minutes later they came out of the trees and into full view of the waterfall. Laura gazed at it for a moment, while Jack watched the slight smile playing at her mouth; then she turned to him and kissed him. "Jack, it's beautiful."
It was, and it was the most romantic place Jack could think of. He put his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Laura, I love you so much. I don't ever want to be without you." He leaned forward and kissed her gently as he found the small box in him pocket, then pulled back and drew a deep breath. "Will you marry me?"
Her eyes widened, and Jack thought he saw tears glimmering for an instant. Then she broke into a huge smile. "Yes, Jack. Yes."
They kissed, and at that moment Jack was the happiest he'd ever been in his life. He opened the box and took out the ring, then lifted her left hand and slid it onto her fourth finger. Thanks to his covert measurement in the middle of the night, it fit perfectly. "I will always love you, Laura," he said softly. "Forever and always."
"Oh, Jack," she whispered, looking at the ring. She looked into his eyes, and he saw the reflection of his own love there. "I love you. Forever. No matter what." He found the last sentence slightly odd, but shrugged it off as she kissed him. As passionate as her kisses had always been, he felt like there was a new dimension to this one, like she was giving him everything and holding nothing back. He responded in kind. Finally they broke and stood just drinking each other in for a moment, both radiating love. Laura broke the spell. "Your parents will be wondering what happened to us."
"Yes." He kissed her again, gently. "They'll want to welcome you into the family." Arms wrapped around each other, they turned and walked slowly back to the car.
4/5