"Still, what are you doing here?" Cristina asked, letting Jacob in.
"I was invited," he said. "Uncle Murray asked if I was going home for Thanksgiving and I told him that since I had finals, I wouldn't be doing that and he invited me for dinner."
"Oh," Cristina said. "Well, happy Thanksgiving, Jacob."
"Happy Thanksgiving to you, too, Cristina. My, you have gotten even prettier over the last two years," Jacob replied. The young man winked at her as he greeted the various members of the Cohen family.
"You dated him?" Owen asked. He was a little more than curious.
"Yes, for about two years," Cristina said. "My freshman and sophomore year at Dartmouth. When I got into Dartmouth, I was only 17 and Uncle Murray asked Jacob to look out for me, since he was already a junior there."
"You both call him Uncle Murray. Are you related somehow?" Owen asked as he was puzzled.
"No, no, he's my Uncle Murray because he is married to my Aunt Dorothy, who is my mother's sister. He is Jacob's Uncle Murray because Murray and Jacob's dad were best friends in college and remained good friends throughout the years. So I guess since the families were close, the kids called each other's parents aunt and uncle, even though they are not blood-related," Cristina explained.
"Okay," Owen said. He gave Jacob the once-over. There was something about Jacob that seemed so familiar, yet Owen knew he had never met him before. He reminded him of someone else that he knew. Owen looked at Jacob's dark wavy hair and his fine features. Then, it hit him. Jacob looked a lot like Pablo Quinteras. Other than the fact that Jacob had green eyes and Pablo had brown eyes, they were cut from the same cloth as they were both blessed with dark hair and pretty boy looks. It dawned on Owen that Cristina had a type – a dark-haired, pretty boy type of guy. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks. Owen looked nothing like this – he was blonde and fair. And while people considered him handsome, he was nowhere close to the pretty-boy type. He could not believe this. No wonder he was fighting an uphill battle with Cristina. He was not her physical type. What did she see in these guys? He could not help but scoff.
"What was that, sir?" she asked. "Do you need anything?" He shook his head and wondered why she just couldn't see him, for who he was and what he stood for and how he felt about her. It was an odd feeling for him. Usually, he had women falling all over him, trying to get his attention. Cristina never acted that way with him and now he knew why. He just wasn't the physical type to which she was attracted.
"No," he said. "I am fine. Cristina. I hope you don't mind me asking this but why did you break up if you were with him for two years."
"It's okay, you can ask. I am so over it, now but it was really painful, then. When he graduated, I was just finishing up my sophomore year. He had been accepted at NYU Law and he felt since we were going to be separated, he didn't think it would be a good idea to continue this relationship. So we broke up. It was very hard for me, at first, but I got over it," she said. "I did have the suspicion that he wanted to date other girls in New York and didn't want to have the burden of a girlfriend back in college."
"So it doesn't bother you that he is here?" Owen asked. He felt like decking this kid. How could he treat Cristina like that?
"A little," she said. "But it's okay. Nick and Nate are here and I love them. You're here and I am glad you're here because you are a great boss and I like you." He smiled when she said that she was glad that he was here. Maybe he would be able to overcome her aversion to blonde guys, after all.
When everyone was seated at the dinner table, Murray and Dorothy sat on the head and the foot of the table, while Cristina and Owen sat on one side, while Jacob sat on the same side with Nick and Nate. Owen was surprised when Cristina put her hand into his but then he realized that Murray was going to say a prayer, so everyone joined hands. It was nice to hold hands with her, even though it was just for a prayer.
Jacob winked at Cristina from across the table. She shook her head at him. Owen felt like reaching over the table and giving him a smack on his head. Jacob had dumped her so he could date other girls. He had no right to be winking at her like that, Owen thought.
"So, Cristina," Jacob said. "What are you doing now?"
"Well, I am Mr. Hunt's personal assistant," she said, gesturing to her boss.
"Mr. Hunt?" Jacob took a closer look at the blonde man sitting opposite him. "You're Owen Hunt, that professional tennis player. Oh my God, I didn't realize that at first. I thought you looked familiar but I guess I didn't place you without a tennis racquet in your hand."
"Yes, I am," Owen said.
"Wow, Cristina, you must really be getting to travel the world," Jacob said, enthusiastically. "You always wanted to do that, especially with your ability to speak all those different languages. I am sure you are enjoying yourself."
"Honestly, Jacob, it is one of the best things I have ever done. New places, new people, new cultures. Imagine seeing all of the things that I only read about in books right in front of me. Best of all, I have the greatest boss to share it with," she said. She looked at Owen and gave him the brightest smile. It warmed his heart to see it. "We go sight-seeing in whatever city we are in to just appreciate everything that the city has to offer. Just fabulous. I have a good life." She wondered if she was over-selling it but she wanted to prove to him that she was doing just fine, without Jacob Milner in her life.
"That's good to hear," Jacob said. "I am glad that you are doing so well."
"So how is your final year at law school going, Jacob?" Murray asked. He was listening to their conversation and he seemed a little puzzled by the dynamic between his best friend's son and his niece. It was as if Cristina wanted to prove that she was doing okay without her former boyfriend.
"I am doing fine, sir," Jacob said. "I only have next semester and then, I will be done. Of course, there are always the boards."
"So are you going to stay in New York or go back home to Raleigh and do the North Carolina boards instead?" Dorothy asked.
"Pondering staying in New York. I like it here," Jacob said. "The city seems to agree with me. So, Cristina, are you based in New York, when you are not traveling the world?"
"Yes," she said. "But not in the city. Mr. Hunt has an estate in the Hamptons."
"Hmm," Jacob responded. "So are you staying in New York for the rest of the holidays?" Would this guy not shut up, Owen thought. Why was he asking so many questions?
"Cristina will be going to her parents' place in New Hampshire for the holidays," Owen answered for her. "I will also be heading to Vermont to my parents' Christmas tree farm in Vermont. Neither of us will be in the New York area for the holidays." He said it, quite firmly, so he could curtail any further talk on where Cristina will be for the holidays. Jacob certainly got the message because he immediately recognized a rival for Cristina's affections. He knew that Owen Hunt had a greater interest in Cristina than an employee-employer relationship. Jacob examined his ex-girlfriend's demeanor. She seemed totally oblivious to it. "Hmmm," was all Jacob could say.
Murray and Dorothy certainly could feel a certain amount of tension between the two young men and they knew that their young niece was probably the source of that tension. Dorothy certainly wanted to lighten the air a little bit.
"So, Cristina, tell us about your travels," she said, brightly to her niece. Cristina perked up at that question. She could talk at length about where she had been and what she had seen. She was a very descriptive speaker and she had them enthralled. Even though Owen already had first-hand knowledge about what she was speaking about, he was just as avid a listener to her stories. He looked at her with adoring eyes.
After dinner and dessert, Cristina walked Owen to the front door. "So I guess this is where we say goodbye," she told him. "I am heading to New Hampshire, tomorrow. I probably won't see you until the new year. So, happy holidays, Mr. Hunt." She gave him a tight hug. "I will miss you, sir."
"And I, you," he said, hugging her back. He kissed her on the top of her head. "Have a wonderful holiday with your family."
She watched as he got into his car and left for his hotel. Owen planned to stay in the city to do some shopping over the weekend. Then, he had his meeting with the shoe company on Monday, and then after that, he was going to fly up to Vermont.
When he stepped out of the airport in Vermont, he could feel how much colder and crisper the air was up there, compared to New York. But he didn't mind, this was his home. He told his parents that he could rent a car and drive to the farm but he knew they would be waiting for him. "Mom, dad," he said. His mom, Bea, rosy-cheeked with blue eyes, ran to hug him.
"So good to see you, Owen," she said, hugging him. He wiped the tears away from her eyes. His dad, Moe, tall, white-haired and also blue-eyed, gave him a quick hug and a slap on the back. "Looking well, son," Moe said. "Thanks, dad," Owen said, grinning. He got into the back-seat of his parents' double-cab truck. As they drove out of the airport and headed to the Christmas tree farm, Owen marveled at how quiet and beautiful everything was.
As they drove along, Owen's mom turned around. "So, it has been another great year, Owen. We cut out all of the stories about you and added it to our scrapbook."
"Oh, Mom, you have been doing that since I was 12 years old," Owen said. "You must have about 30 scrapbooks by now."
"Actually, 32," Bea said, proudly. "So, Owen, I thought by now, you would bring home a girl to meet us for the holidays. We see you with all these beautiful young ladies in the magazines but we have never met any of them."
"Oh, mom," Owen said in exasperation. He threw his hands up in the air.
"Oh, come on, son," Moe said. "Your sister, Katie, has four kids but none of them carry the Hunt last name. You're our only hope for the future of the Hunt name."
"Okay, okay, I met someone whom I really like," Owen said. His parents perked up, immediately. "So where is she?" Bea said.
"She is home with her parents in New Hampshire," Owen said. "She is there for the holidays."
"New Hampshire is right there, Owen," Bea said. "You can just hop over the state line and get her and introduce her to us."
"It is not that easy, Mom. She doesn't know that I feel this way," Owen admitted, sheepishly.
"Oh, good grief, Owen," Moe said. "Haven't I taught you enough about handling the ladies?" Bea glared at her husband. "We have been married 30 years, Moe, and you still can't handle me. So what could you teach our son?" Owen had to laugh at his parents' bickering. He went back to staring at the Vermont countryside and remembering how much he had missed this place.
Cristina had settled back into her old room at her parents' home. It still had all the stuff from her high school and college days. She really needed to clear out all that stuff and put them in box in the basement. She had so much great stuff to put in her room from all her travels. She enjoyed being home with her parents. Her mom, Helen and dad, Burt doted on their only child.
The house was festively decorated for the season, except there was one thing missing. They had no Christmas tree. Cristina and her mother, Helen, kept nagging her dad to go to the Christmas tree lot and get a tree for the house. He kept putting it off because he said he had so many things to do. Two days before Christmas, he finally relented. They went to the Christmas tree lot in town and were greeted by the sorriest and saddest looking trees.
"Dad, all the good trees are gone. Look at these scrawny trees with hardly any needles on them," Cristina chided her father. She pouted. It wasn't Christmas without a beautiful Christmas tree in the living room.
"I am sorry, honey, for putting it off so late," Burt said. He hated to disappoint his daughter and he looked around the lot, looking for the best tree he could find. It was to no avail because every time he found a tree, Helen and Cristina found fault with it. He had just about given up when Cristina gave a little scream.
"I know where we can get a tree," she said. "We just have to drive over the state line to Vermont. It is only 45 miles from here."
"Vermont?" Burt said. "What's in Vermont?"
"My boss, Owen Hunt. His family has a Christmas tree farm in Vermont," Cristina shrieked. "Why didn't I think of this earlier? We can cut down our own beautiful Christmas tree, strap it to the top of the car and bring it home."
"Forty-five miles for a tree?" Burt said, doubtfully. But then he saw Cristina's face. He could never deny his little girl anything.
"Okay, baby," he said. "We will go to the Christmas tree farm in Vermont for a tree."
"Oh, good," she screamed. "I will call him now. You won't regret this, dad." Cristina called Owen, immediately. When Owen saw her name on his phone, he was surprised. He hadn't heard from her since Thanksgiving, he answered, happily, "Hey there, you. What's up?"
"Can we come to your farm and get a tree?" she asked. "We are at the Christmas tree lot in our town and there is nothing that we want."
"Yeah, of course," he said. "I mean we have sold a lot of trees but we have many great trees here. I can help you choose and cut it down."
"Thank you, thank you," she said. "We're leaving now. We should be there in less than an hour." She hung up the phone. Owen couldn't believe it. Cristina and her parents were coming to the farm.
"Who was that on the phone?" Bea asked.
"It's her. The girl I was telling you about. She's coming here," he told his mother. Both mother and son smiled at the same time.
A/N Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate when you take the time to do so.