Christmas morning dawned bright and early. Elizabeth woke as the sun warmed her face. She smiled, feeling Nathan's solid presence next to her, and she snuggled closer to him. Going to sleep beside him and waking up next to him each morning made her feel safer than she'd ever felt before in her life.
She watched as Nathan stirred, his blue eyes slowly opening and finding hers. He smiled sleepily. "Good morning," he said softly, wrapping her in his arms before closing his eyes again.
In the few days they had been married, Elizabeth had found out that Nathan was a gradual waker. He would open his eyes and smile at her every morning, then his eyes would close again for a few minutes before he would open them again and actually get out of bed. She loved finding out the little things that made him tick.
She pressed a kiss to his cheek, then wiggled out of his arms and padded to the kitchen to make the coffee. She ground some fresh beans, then poured water into the coffee maker. She hummed some Christmas carols to herself while she waited for the coffee to finish brewing.
Right before the beeper went off to let her know it was finished, she felt Nathan's strong arms encircle her from behind as he buried his face in her hair. "Merry Christmas, my darling wife," he said in her ear.
Elizabeth tilted her head to look back at him. "Merry Christmas, Nathan." He pressed his lips to hers in a long, sweet kiss, then released her. "The coffee smells good."
She laughed. "And you have incredible timing. It's just now ready."
He grinned. "Timing is everything." Removing two mugs from the cupboard, he poured the coffee while Elizabeth found the honey and cream. She stirred them into her coffee as Nathan sipped his black, watching her. "You're the only person I know who puts honey in her coffee," he commented.
"It's delicious," Elizabeth responded, taking a sip of the sweetened drink. She sighed happily as she pulled a candy cane from the cupboard, peeling the paper off and using the candy to stir her coffee. "And now it's Christmas in a cup!"
Nathan chuckled. "You and your froo-froo coffee," he said with a shake of his head.
She gave him a sassy smile. "Always." They walked to the living room. Nathan plugged in the Christmas tree lights, and they sat on the couch just taking in the beauty of the tree as they sipped their coffee. Elizabeth leaned against Nathan. "So, we're leaving tonight for our honeymoon."
"We are," Nathan said. Elizabeth could hear the smile in his voice. She glanced back at him, brows raised. "So...where are we going?"
"I guess you'll find out when we get there," he said casually, giving her a wink. "And don't think that you're going to guess from our airport stops either. I intentionally booked a flight with several stops to keep you guessing."
Elizabeth's mouth dropped. "You what?" She suddenly started laughing. "You went through all that trouble just to surprise me?"
He grinned. "Yes, ma'am. I don't want you to know where we're going until we get there."
"And what if I hate flying?" Elizabeth asked, allowing a flirtatious lilt to come through as she placed her cup on the coffee table.
Nathan laughed. "That would be a problem, if it were true. But you told me you love flying and traveling in general. So I don't think you're going to have a problem with our flight plan."
He had a point. She did love flying. She sighed. "So I guess I'll have to wait. But we will arrive there sometime tomorrow, right? This isn't an overseas flight?"
Nathan simply smirked at her, finishing his coffee and placing his cup next to hers. "Mum's the word, my dear."
She pouted at him, but he erased it quickly with a kiss that made her melt against his chest. "That's not playing fair," she whispered with a smile as Nathan trailed kisses down her cheek. He simply chuckled and brought his lips back to hers. Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him, letting herself just feel. She loved his kisses, whether they were deep and passionate or light and tender. Right now he was kissing her with the gentle passion she loved so much, making her forget everything else and focusing her senses completely on him.
Nathan pulled back an inch, taking a deep breath. "I love you so much," he said, smoothing back her hair. "How was I so fortunate as to find you?"
She smiled, gently stroking the hair at the back of his neck. "I often wonder the same thing. You have been such a blessing to me." She kissed him this time, and they were lost in each other for several long moments.
They pulled apart, and Nathan gave her a tender smile. "Are you ready for presents?" he asked.
Elizabeth's eyes lit up. No matter how old she was, gifts always excited her. "Yes, please!" she said, chuckling. "My inner child is ridiculously excited right now."
Nathan laughed, sliding to the floor. Elizabeth joined him on the carpet, reaching for the gift she wanted him to open first. They had gotten each other two gifts, and she was as excited to give him his as she was to see what he had gotten for her. She held up a present wrapped in gold paper and handed it to him. He handed her a similarly wrapped box. She laughed, looking at the other gifts, both of which were wrapped in red paper. "Did you use matching wrapping paper for these gifts on purpose?"
He grinned. "I sure did." He nodded at the wrapped gift in her hands. "Ladies first."
Elizabeth tore open the wrapping paper, revealing a beautifully leather-bound copy of each of Tolkien's main works. Her mouth dropped as she ran her fingers over the books. "Oh, Nathan," she said, looking up at him. "This is perfect. I love it!"
He smiled. "I thought you might. You do love The Lord of the Rings movies so much, I figured the books were probably a favorite as well."
"They certainly are," Elizabeth agreed with feeling, holding the books to her chest. "Your turn!"
Nathan opened his present and grinned. "A Ty Cobb jersey!" he exclaimed, holding it up and studying it. "These are hard to find, Elizabeth! I've been looking for one for years. Where did you get it?"
"I might have a family friend who worked for the Tigers," Elizabeth said with a playful shrug. "So I gave her a call."
Nathan shook his head, looking awed. "This is amazing. Cobb is my favorite player!"
"I know," Elizabeth laughed. "You and Lee talk baseball so much, I was able to figure out quite easily who your favorite was."
Nathan reached over to hug her. "This truly means the world to me," he said. "Thank you." Reaching for the gift wrapped in red paper, he held it out to her. Elizabeth took the gift, noticing a look of vulnerability in Nathan's eyes. Wondering at it, she opened the present and gasped.
A beautiful wooden angel looked back at her, intricately carved and painted. It was stunning. Noticing some words carved at the bottom of the angel's dress, Elizabeth looked closer. The words Always do what you are afraid to do looked back at her.
"Emerson," Elizabeth said with a soft smile. "I love Emerson." She glanced at Nathan. "This is absolutely beautiful, sweetheart. Where did you find it?"
Nathan smiled a little shyly. "I made it," he said.
Elizabeth's jaw dropped. "You made this?" she gasped, looking down at the beautiful woodwork and craftsmanship.
He nodded. Elizabeth was so touched, she felt tears forming in her eyes. "This is incredible, Nathan. You have a gift."
He shrugged modestly. "It's just a hobby of mine."
"Just a hobby?" Elizabeth repeated. She held up the angel. "This is not 'just a hobby,' Nathan. This is stellar." She scooted forward, placing a hand on his cheek and kissing him tenderly. "And it came from your heart," she whispered. "That means the world to me. This is the best present anyone's ever given me."
Nathan looked a little embarrassed at her praise, so she chuckled and handed him his gift. "Alright, I'll let you off the hook now, though one of these days you'll take a compliment without looking uncomfortable."
He smiled at that, looking at her gratefully, and opened the package. It was a biography on Frank Sinatra. Nathan grinned. "I've been wanting to read this! How did you know?"
"You might have mentioned it a time or two," Elizabeth said, laughing. "And I know how much you love Sinatra."
"Thank you, Elizabeth," Nathan said, leaning over to kiss her. "This is perfect." He lingered near her, tenderly rubbing her cheek with his thumb. "Merry Christmas, sweetheart."
"Merry Christmas," she whispered back. "This is easily the best Christmas ever."
He smiled, nodding. "Last night was wonderful. I can't remember a more lively Christmas Eve dinner than the one we had with the Coulters and Carson and Faith. And midnight Mass was as beautiful as ever."
Elizabeth cupped his cheek in her hand. "Are you alright not spending the holiday with Colleen and Allie and Steve?" Colleen had asked if it could just be the three of them for Christmas this year, since Steve was still recovering. She had worried that Nathan might be hurt by it, but he had taken it well.
"I am perfectly fine with that," Nathan said. "Bringing the gifts by yesterday was perfect for being able to see them, but I understand why they want their time together. They are learning to be a family again after so many months." He smiled. "Besides, I have you. What more do I need?"
The pilot's voice came over the cabin. "We are starting our descent into Denver. Please remain seated until the plane comes to a full stop."
Nathan felt Elizabeth stirring against his shoulder. They had both slept for most of the overnight flight between Honolulu and Denver. At nearly seven and a half hours in the air, Nathan was thankful they were both able to sleep. It would have been a long flight otherwise.
Elizabeth stretched, sitting up. "Are we landed?" she asked, blinking in the dim light of the cabin.
"Not quite," Nathan said. "We're starting our descent now. It should only be another fifteen minutes before we get to the gate."
Elizabeth leaned her head on his shoulder again. "How many more flights do we need to catch?" she asked.
Nathan laughed. "No, ma'am, I'm not saying. It's a surprise, remember?"
"Not even a teeny, tiny hint?" Elizabeth asked.
Nathan shook his head. "You'll see soon enough," he said with a smile. "Trust me."
He held onto her hand as the plane made its sudden stop, then taxied to the gate. Elizabeth peered out the window. "I've never been to Colorado before," she said. "Those mountains are majestic!"
Nathan looked as well. He'd never been here before either. The Rockies were tall and proud, snow covered against a brilliant blue sky. "It is beautiful," he agreed.
Elizabeth sighed. "Too bad we're not staying here, huh?" she asked with a grin. "How many more stops did you say there were, again?"
Nathan laughed. "Nice try, love, but you're getting nothing out of me. You'll see what our next destination is shortly."
"Do we have a long layover?" Elizabeth asked as they gathered their carry-on bags.
Nathan shook his head. "No, it's not long at all."
Elizabeth gave a sigh of relief. "Oh, good! I like traveling, but not so much the layovers." They filed out of their row, then made their way through the doors and into the airport, which was bustling with activity.
Nathan looked around, surprised. "I would have thought it would be a little less crowded, being the day after Christmas," he remarked.
"Oh, you'd be amazed at how much holiday traveling there is," Elizabeth said, looping her arm through his. They walked through the airport. Elizabeth looked around, trying to figure out where they were headed next. Nathan smiled to himself as they kept walking.
They came to the shuttle, and Elizabeth halted. "That will lead us out of the terminal," she said, pointing to the sign. "This is the way to the baggage claim and the airport exit."
"I know," Nathan said, grinning at her mischievously.
Elizabeth's mouth dropped. "We're staying in Colorado?"
"Yep."
Elizabeth's eyes lit up. "Oh, this is so exciting! I've always wanted to visit the Rockies!" Her eyes grew wide, and she smacked his arm. "You nut! You said we had multiple stops, but this was a direct flight!"
Nathan laughed. "'Multiple' simply means more than one, and technically we took multiple flights. Kauai to Oahu counted as one."
Elizabeth giggled, shaking her head. "You did it," she said, grinning. "You managed to surprise me. I'm impressed."
"Just wait until you see where we're going," Nathan said. "You're going to love it."
"I don't suppose you'll tell where…?"
Nathan shook his head as the shuttle came to a stop. "Nope. Still part of the surprise."
They found their bags, then walked to the parking lot to get the car Nathan had rented. Elizabeth blinked in the bright sunshine. "Wow," she said. "It's cold, and there's snow on the mountains, but the sunshine is so intense!"
Nathan nodded. "That's apparently a thing here in Colorado. It can be freezing, but things look incredibly bright." He gazed at the mountains, feeling a sense of awe. "Maybe it's all that pure snow reflecting the sun that makes it seem so bright."
They placed their luggage in the trunk, and then got into the car. Nathan punched the address into the GPS, and they started on their way. "We've got a bit of a drive," Nathan told her. "So get comfortable."
Elizabeth chuckled. "It can't possibly be longer than that plane ride."
"True," Nathan said. "Compared to that, this is a short trip. Only about an hour and a half."
"Oh, that's not bad at all!" Elizabeth said, flipping on the radio. She searched stations until she found one that was playing Christmas music. Grinning, she leaned back. "I'm so glad there are still stations with Christmas music. It's so sad that most of them stop the day after Christmas. Don't people know that the twelve days of Christmas are after Christmas day?"
Their drive was a pleasant one. Elizabeth exclaimed over the natural beauty all around them, and Nathan simply enjoyed being with her. This was their first trip together, and he just knew they were going to love every minute of it.
The hour and a half flew by, and soon Nathan was driving up a narrow road in the mountain town of Estes Park. After several switchback turns, he pulled into the drive of their rental for the week. As they got out of the car, he watched Elizabeth for her reaction.
She stared at the log cabin in awe, her hands clasped against her throat. "Oh, Nathan!" she whispered, taking it all in. He came to stand next to her, wrapping his arms around her. "Do you like it?" he asked.
"Like it?" she repeated, staring at the view. "It's gorgeous!"
The cabin was situated beside a beautiful lake, with mountains as a backdrop and lots of pine trees surrounding the cabin and lake. Snow lay lightly on the ground. The cabin was decorated with twinkle lights and poinsettias. It was a picture perfect spot.
Elizabeth turned in his arms, snuggling against his chest. "This couldn't be better, Nathan. You picked the best spot for our honeymoon."
He leaned down to kiss her, then smiled against her lips. "I'm so glad you like it." Resting his head against hers, they both looked out at the lake. "This is going to be a wonderful week."
