A Prayer for Every Year

December 13th
He did show her the next picture, that of a sleigh, and her face lit up immediately. She had always wanted a sleigh ride! Jack smiled at her after she voiced the particular emotion and explained to her the situation.
He had already asked Garrett for the afternoon off to go visit a friend just north of Washington that gave sleigh rides to families. He was making an exception for his old friend and this 'special lady' that was coming along with him. Garrett had agreed because things were slow at the moment.
"Terrorists are all out visiting family," Garrett had joked.
Sue, on impulse, had hugged him right in the middle of the bullpen, then, skipped to her desk to keep herself busy for the morning.

She was more than excited by the time Jack called to her and told her it was time for them to get going. She all but sprinted out of the bullpen and downstairs to Jack's car, already having discussed with him that he would be driving. She enjoyed the countryside as they drove along, smiling like a child in a candy store told to buy whatever she wanted. They talked of small things on the way over, bantering about who started which fights over the last two months including the flour fight in his kitchen and the snowball fight in the park. In the end they both agreed that they would settle it some other time. They arrived an hour later and drove into the embodiment of country cottage. Sue grinned as she exited the car and wandered up the front steps, only slightly behind Jack, Levi right on her heels.
"Jack, old buddy!" That was when Sue lost the conversation. It wasn't because of any terrible fate, just that Jack and his friend turned away from her. She contented herself with Levi, having pulled his Christmas tree out of her pocket, was wrestling it through the snow. She was so focused on getting Levi to let the toy go, she jumped when Jack put a hand on her shoulder. Giving the tree one last good yank – stumbling backwards slightly into Jack's outstretched arms when Levi decided to just let it go – Jack introduced her to his friend, Paul.
"Now, I hear someone wants a sleigh ride," he said, his voice remarkably like that of a Santa in a mall asking the kids what they wanted for Christmas. Sue only laughed and agreed, linking her arm with Paul's for the walk to the stables. She was concentrated on Paul's mouth – he was rattling off things about sleighs and horses – and missed the jealousy that flashed over Jack's face. However, that look quickly faded when she paused and disentangled her arm from his friends.
"Well? Aren't you coming?" she asked sweetly, holding out her hand. He nodded, declining her hand for a more intimate position of his against the small of her back. This time, Jack didn't miss the jealousy in Paul's eyes. Nevertheless, both men put aside their new differences in favour of the only woman and her desire for her first sleigh ride.
To Sue, it was everything she could have dreamed. The horses were big and brown, covered in bells and the sleigh was a bright red. She and Jack were cozy under the blanket, his arm around her, keeping her close. His other hand was palm up in her lap and when her hands weren't flying in excitement, she had one in his or cradled it in both of her own.
"You know what would make this absolutely perfect?" she asked suddenly, turning to face Jack. He smiled at her exuberance.
"What?"
"Snow. This would be absolutely perfect if it started to snow right now." His smile grew to a grin as a white flake settled itself on her nose just as she finished speaking. Her eyes grew wide as she looked up into the few flakes that were falling.
"How did you do that?" she asked, only half joking.
"It was your wish," he responded, still grinning. She hit his chest lightly before snuggling on hand back into his. Then she did something that surprised him. Her free hand wrapped around his that was nestled comfortably on her hip. She settled comfortably against him, just enjoying the feeling.
He squeezed her hand in her lap after a moment. She looked up at him, all innocent. Or she would have been if it hadn't been for the sparkle in her eye. He withdrew his hand from hers and tilted her chin up slightly. She went willingly, her eyes darting from his brown orbs to his lips. Time seemed to stand still as they looked into each other's eyes and moved in slow motion as his lips descended on hers.
At that moment, all was perfect in the world.