Chapter 16

"Aah!!"

Alicia woke up, scared out of her mind. Something had hit her window so hard, she was surprised it didn't break. She got out of bed and looked out the window. She gasped in amazement when she saw the sight: everything was covered in white.

"It snowed!" she said.

Another snowball hit the window and she looked down. Merrill was standing there. Alicia squealed and began jumping up and down like a kid on Christmas morning.

"Merrill!! Come up here!!"

He ran up the stairs as fast as he could and opened the door. Despite the fact that Alicia was still wearing her pajamas- a tanktop and shorts, she jumped onto Merrill, who was covered in snow.

"Oh, I'm so glad to see you! I missed you so, so, so, so much!"

"I missed you too, baby. But I was only gone for a week."

She planted a huge kiss on his lips and said, "A week too long. A week without kissing you and holding you and sleeping with you."

"And Happy Thanksgiving to you too," Merrill said as he took off his hat and coat.

He sat on the sofa and Alicia climbed into his lap.

"So, are you all rested?" she asked.

"Yeah. I had a good night's sleep…but it would've been nice to have you there in my arms."

"Hey, I told you to come here."

"Ditto."

"But all that matters is that we're here now."

"Hey, get dressed so that we can play in the snow."

"I'm too comfortable. Are my parents here yet? Or yours?"

"No. Just me."

Alicia admired the muscle definition in Merrill's arms as he took off his coat.

"Have you been working out?" she asked.

"A little. Just lifting some weights on my free time. Can you notice?"

"Oh yeah. I wanna feel."

She went to the sofa and sat next to Merrill. She placed his hand on his bicep and he flexed it. Her knees nearly buckled.

"I'm gonna take a shower before I get myself into trouble," she squeaked.

He pulled her close to him and said, "You're not going anywhere until I get a kiss."

"Well, if you insist."

They closed their eyes and became lost in a deep, penetrating kiss. After a good five minutes or so, they let go and Alicia smiled with satisfaction.

"You are so good at that," she said, "I could kiss you all day and not be the least bit bored."

Without saying a word, Merrill leaned in again and kissed her lips. Then he took her hands in his and slid them around his neck.

"Remind me to ask you something important later."

"Why can't you ask me now?"

"Because I wanna wait for just a little while longer. And I like keeping you in suspense, Ms. Spencer."

"Whatever."

"I'll be in the main house if you need me."

"OK."

He left the garage and as Alicia headed into the bathroom, another snowball on the window startled her. She looked out the window again and saw Merrill in the snow.

"Ali, I love you!" he yelled.

Even though she knew he couldn't hear her, she yelled back, "I love you too!" through the window. He grinned at her and ran back into the house. After Alicia took a shower and got dressed, she bundled up and crossed through the thick blanket of snow that covered the backyard. She heard laughing and saw the kids building snowmen and throwing snow at each other.

"Aunt Ali!" Morgan called, "Come play with us!"

"I will in a second, sweetie. I'm just gonna go in the house for a minute!"

"OK!"

Alicia went into the house through the backdoor and took off her coat.

Colleen said, "Hey there, sleepyhead- where have you been? It's almost 12."

"I was so comfortable in my bed. It smells amazing in here! What can I help with?"

"I have everything pretty much ready. I was actually about to go join our men in the living room."

"Have you heard anything from Mom and Dad?"

"Yeah. Dad called about an hour ago and said they were leaving at 1."

"Cool. Well, I'll be in the living room if you need me."

"OK. I'll be in there in just a second."

Alicia walked into the living room and laughed to herself. Merrill and Graham's eyes were glued to the TV set.

"What are you two watching?"

Graham's eyes didn't leave the screen as he answered, "Pre-game show."

She replied, "Oh, I see. Hi, Merrill."

Merrill also didn't look up.

"Hey."

She stood in front of the TV and said, "You two are like zombies."

Merrill, who hadn't even realized that Alicia was in the room, smiled and said, "Hey you! Come sit."

She went and sat next to Merrill on the couch. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and kissed the side of her face. Outside, she could see the kids still running in the snow with the dogs.

Alicia looked at Merrill and said, "Baby, let's go play in the snow with the kids."

"But football's on."

"Not technically. It's the pre-game show. All they're doing is talking and making terrible jokes. Come on.."

"You go ahead. I'll come out next commercial."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Alicia kissed Merrill and went into the kitchen. She bundled herself up and joined the kids outside.

"She's really got you wrapped around her finger," Graham said to Merrill.

"Yeah, she does. But I don't mind. I love her."

"Merrill, I've heard you say that about a million girls."

"But I never meant it. I would say it the same way I said, 'I love Jerry Seinfeld.' It's a novelty way of saying it. But I really do mean it. I love Ali. I'm..I'm so in love with her, I can't see straight."

They both heard Alicia's contagious laughter outside and Merrill smiled.

"You know how you meet a beautiful woman and your stomach kinda drops because you're so in awe?"

"Yeah."

"I feel like that every single time I look at Ali. It never wears off and I don't think it ever will. To me, she is the definition of beauty and kindness and…just everything I cherish and value. And you know what? It may sound a little strange, but there's this one moment that sticks out in my head from your wedding to Colleen."

"What was it?"

"She was 11 or 12 and I was 17. I was going into senior year and she was in middle school. I would've never even given second thought to thinking about Colleen's kid sister and I dating…it was absolutely out of the question then. But there was this one moment where we were at the reception and we ran into each other at the dessert table. I'm not even sure if Ali remembers this. But anyway, she was looking down and I asked if she was OK. Then she looked up at me and said, 'I'm fine, Merrill. What's it to you?' And when she looked up, her eyes knocked me out. I had never seen eyes so mesmerizing…that hazel, green mixture. I mean, there I was, speechless, as this 11 and a half year old girl looked at me. The feeling was so overwhelming that I had to walk away. Graham, I think I knew then. Even though I was dreaming about being with older and mature women in college, she impacted me and I never forgot it."

"Then that's a sign," Graham said, "If you knew then, deep down, that Ali Spencer would somehow have an influence on your life, then I highly doubt that there's someone more suited for you in this world."

"It's the next commercial. I'm gonna go outside and play with Ali like I promised."

Merrill had abruptly changed the subject because he was becoming inundated with emotion. He got off of the couch and put his coat on. Then he went outside, but Alicia was nowhere to be found. Neither were the kids.

"Hello?! Where are you guys?"

He heard giggling and went around to the backyard. There he found Bo, Morgan and Alicia making angels in the snow. Alicia sat up and smiled, waving happily at Merrill. He thought she looked adorable, wearing a white snow outfit with a pink fuzzy hat.

"We're making angels! Come make one with us!" she yelled.

He approached her and kneeled beside her.

"Why would I make an angel when I already have one?"

"You never turn off that charm, do you?"

"Not as long as you're around, baby."

They shared a quick kiss and then Merrill tugged on Alicia's hat.

"You look so cute," he said, "It's-"

All of the sudden, a giant snowball smacked Merrill on the back of his head. Alicia burst into laughter as Morgan and Bo ran up to them.

"Gotcha, Uncle Merrill!" Morgan exclaimed.

Merrill gathered a handful of snow and Alicia screamed, "Run, Morgan!"

Morgan ran for his life as Merrill pelted him with snow. After a short chase, Morgan stopped and took out his inhaler.

"You OK, buddy?" Merrill asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine!"

Suddenly, a car pulled into the driveway.

"It's Grandma and Grandpa!" Bo squealed.

"My parents," Merrill said.

Merrill and Alicia got up, brushed themselves off and walked to the car.

Eliza gave Merrill a hug first and said, "It looks like you two were having fun."

"Yeah, we were. How were the roads?"

"Not too bad- just a little icy. Hi, Alicia. How are you, sweetie?"

Alicia gave Eliza a hug and replied, "I'm great, now that Merrill's back from Jersey."

Robert hugged Alicia as well and said, "Uh oh. That's a sign of forthcoming marriage- missing someone to death when they've only been gone for a week."

Merrill put his arm around Alicia and said, "She might as well start calling you Mom and Dad."

They laughed and then headed inside to meet Colleen and Graham. About an hour later, Colleen and Alicia's parents showed up and the house was bustling. The women helped set up the table while the guys watched TV and cheered like they were actually at the game. Eventually, Alicia walked into the living room and cleared her throat.

"I hate to interrupt your male bonding ritual, but dinner's ready."

Everyone met up at the table and took their seats. Bo was at Alicia's left and Merrill sat to her right. They all linked hands and closed their eyes as Graham began to pray.

"Dear Lord, thank you for gathering us here today on this special occasion. Thank you for the bond that our families share. There are many other families who are torn apart by conflict and bitter emotions, yet we're here together rejoicing. Bless those families going through turbulent times and bestow happiness upon them. Thank you for keeping Bo and Morgan under your protective watch. Keep them happy and healthy, Lord. And thank you for bringing Merrill and Alicia together and leading them to fall in love."

As Graham continued, Merrill stroked Alicia's hand with his thumb and she did the same. She opened her eyes for a millisecond and saw that Merrill had his open as well, with his head bowed. He winked at her and squeezed her hand. Then she closed her eyes again as Graham finished.

"…this we ask in your son Jesus Christ's name, amen."

Later that evening, Graham held a Thanksgiving service at the church, which the whole family attended. After it was over, Alicia packed an overnight bag and stayed in Philadelphia for the night with Merrill. He was giving her a back massage as she laid on the floor of the living room.

"This feels amazing," she cooed.

"You're so tense."

"Maybe it's from picking up Bo. I tend to do that a lot."

"How can you not? I swear, she's the cutest little girl I've ever seen. And I'm not just saying that because she's my only niece. She really is cute. Everyone says so."

"I know. Hey, what was it that you were going to ask me earlier?"

"What do you mean?"

"Remember when we were back at the garage house and you said you had something important to ask me?"

"Oh yeah. Well.."

"Well what?"

"When I was visiting Matt, I was thinking about how much time you spend here."

"Yeah.."

"And the thing is, now that we're together, I hate spending the night here alone. And this apartment seems so desolate when it's just me. So I was wondering if maybe..you know, you'd like to move in here with me."

Alicia flipped her body around and sat up.

"You mean move away from the farm house?"

"Yeah. I figured you could use a taste of independence."

"I mean, I'd love to, but…how am I gonna commute back and forth from LaStalla? I don't even have a car."

"I'll drive you. I don't mind. And when the season starts, you can have my car."

"That's the thing. When you leave, I'll be here by myself."

"You can go back and forth between here and Newtown. It won't be so bad. We can make it work. Come on…I'll help you move."

Alicia thought about Colleen.

The whole point of me moving to Newtown was to be closer to Colleen. I feel so bad, but she'll understand. I love Merrill- and I can go visit Colleen anytime. It's not like we'll be miles and miles apart from each other

"OK, OK," she said.

He threw his arms around her and said, "You have no idea how happy you just made me. Waking up and seeing your beautiful face every morning…I get chills just thinking about it."

Alicia sat herself in Merrill's lap and looked at him.

"I love you so much," she said.

He planted a soft kiss upon her lips and replied, "Ditto."

Then Alicia re-positioned her body so that he legs were wrapped around Merrill's waist. She pressed her face against his and gave him a deep tongue kiss that lingered for a long time. Merrill slipped off Alicia's shirt and unhooked her bra.

"Let's move into the bedroom," Alicia whispered, nearly breathless.

Without a second thought or reply, Merrill scooped Alicia into his arms and carried her into the bedroom. He kicked the door closed behind him and carefully placed Alicia on the bed. She backed herself against the headboard as Merrill took off his shirt and crawled towards her on the bed. He immediately captured her lips in a kiss that almost made her scream out his name.

As he kissed her neck and let his fingers explore her body, he said, "See? This'll be a perk when you move in. We can spend every night doing this- over and over and over again."

Each time he said "over," his fingers would creep higher and higher along her inner thighs.

"Then I'm moving in first thing tomorrow morning," Alicia replied.

Merrill lowered his face to hers and pecked her.

"I love you, beautiful."

Alicia grinned and replied, "And I love you, stud."