Long distance relatives
"Merry Christmas, Chloe!"
Mac had to move the phone away from her ear as the shriek on the other end of the line nearly deafened her.
"Mac!" Chloe exclaimed. "I didn't expect you to call today! Merry Christmas!"
"How are you?"
"Fabulous," Chloe replied. "So excited for Christmas. And you know what the best part is? My dad's going to be home this year."
"Oh, that's great, Chloe," Mac said sincerely.
"Yesterday I went Christmas shopping with one of my friends, Michelle. And I got my dad this really fancy new watch and my grandparents some new books, and I even got Scout a Santa hat."
"Oh, I'm sure Scout will...um, appreciate that," Mac said, wondering if the horse would mind dressing up for the holiday.
"Michelle is really cool," Chloe continued. "She's in my math class and she loves shopping. Usually she goes with her sister, and I told her that I had a big sister, and she said, 'well, why doesn't she come shopping with us some time?' And I told her you couldn't because you lived in Washington, and she thought that was the coolest thing ever. And then I found you the cutest Christmas present at the mall. Wait until you see it...I just mailed it a couple days ago."
Chloe finally took a deep breath, and Mac laughed. "Well, I can't wait to see it. But I'm not in Washington right now."
"You're not?" Chloe asked. "Where are you?"
Mac twisted the phone cord shyly, grateful that Chloe couldn't see the heat rising in her cheeks. "Pennsylvania."
Chloe could hear it, though. "Is Harm there with you?"
Now Mac did blush as she thought about their steamy kiss under the mistletoe last night.
"It's his family's farm," she managed to say.
Chloe squealed excitedly. "So when you and Harm finally get married, are you going to have a Christmas wedding on a farm? That would be so beautiful, Mac. I think you definitely should. You could even come to our farm here in Vermont, although it really snows a lot here. I don't know if you want to get married in the snow."
"Chloe!"
"Oh, come on, Mac. Just admit already that you two are perfect for each other. Remember when I had that dream that you two got married and I was your flower girl?"
"And I told you that not all dreams come true, Chloe," Mac argued.
"Except at Christmas time, Mac. Dreams always come true at Christmas time."
