Chapter Seven

 

 

Savannah took in Romance’s most popular pizza parlor and smiled. “You’re kidding.” Of all the places she’d imagined Baxter might surprise her with dinner, this hadn’t even crossed her mind.

“What? Not a pizza fan?” The look of concern on his face was sweet. “We can go somewhere else if you’d prefer.”

“No, no. Pizza’s great. This just wasn’t what I expected.” The scents of pepperoni, tomato sauce, and cheese wafted to her nose. A long growl reached her ears, and she laughed. “I think my stomach agrees that this was the perfect choice.”

Baxter grinned and put a hand against her lower back as he guided her through the line. He purchased two buffets, drinks, and a whole cup full of tokens. “You can’t have pizza without video games.”

They found a table and filled their plates before sitting. Savannah bit into her piece of pizza and nodded approvingly. “I need to eat here more often.” She caught him giving her a funny look. “What? Not a fan of macaroni and cheese pizza?”

“Not even a little. Why someone would combine the two, I’ll never know.” He lifted his own slice. “The craziest I get is eating sausage and pepperoni together.”

Savannah took another exaggerated bite and enjoyed the way his eyes sparkled in humor.

They ate, although all the noise from the many families coming in for dinner made it difficult to hold much of a conversation. Once they’d finished, Baxter held up the cup of tokens and shook them. “You ready for some fun?”

She stood decisively. “You bet.”

“Great. We have about an hour, then we need to head to part two of this evening’s entertainment.” When she started to ask him what he was talking about, he shook his head. “Nope, you’ll find out later. Come on, let’s see if they still have Rampage.”

Twenty minutes later, Savannah watched Baxter as he destroyed the high scores on Pacman. “I had no idea you were so good at this.”

“Oh, my buddies and I spent way too much time here when we were in school. I think it’s awesome they kept most of these old games. Nothing new can compete with them.” The ghosts finally caught up with him, and he stepped away from the joystick. “Your turn.”

“No, thank you. I don’t think I could even try to beat that kind of score. Besides, I was more of a Nintendo kid. Smash Bros., Zelda.” She leaned against a nearby arcade game. “My parents, sister, and I would stay up way too late playing them and snack on way too much popcorn.”

“That sounds like a lot of fun.”

“It really was.” She motioned to the surrounding games. “This reminds me it’s something I ought to make time for again. At least once in a while.” She didn’t schedule enough plain fun in her life.

“I think that’s important.” Baxter watched her for several moments as though he were trying to read between the lines.

The guys she’d dated in the past had all been nice enough. But everything was superficial. She’d gone through the motions of going out to dinner and going on walks. As soon as it got to be more personal than that, she’d pull away. She’d never been the thin, pretty girl in high school, and she certainly didn’t qualify as either now.

Katrina told her she was too self-conscious. Savannah knew she was right, but it didn’t make it easy for her to change the way she felt about herself. Or the idea of letting a guy get close enough to where, if he rejected her, it’d actually hurt.

She reached out and tapped the cup that had only a few tokens left. “Come on, let’s see how good you are at Skee-Ball.”

The thought crossed her mind that she was having more fun on this supposed date with Baxter than she had with probably any other date she could remember. She quickly squelched it and focused on trying to toss the small, wooden balls into the numbered holes at the end of the ramp. Coming here was a great idea, and it only had her curious about what Baxter had planned next.

 

~*~

 

Baxter liked this new relaxed Savannah. He’d been afraid she’d hate the idea of pizza and games, but she’d jumped right in. They combined their tickets from their poor attempts at Skee-Ball. He waited as she tried to find something to trade them in for. When she returned, she handed him a blue bouncy ball. “Your share of the winnings.”

“My favorite color.” He bounced it off the floor and caught it easily. “What’d you get?”

She popped a purple monster pencil topper on her index finger.

He laughed. “Now that’s scary.”

“She was the last one. I couldn’t just leave her there alone.” Savannah made the monster dance a moment before she gently patted it on the head. “Besides, they were about the only thing we could afford.”

“I guess we wouldn’t win any Skee-Ball awards, would we?”

“Yeah, probably not.” The smile she gave Baxter convinced him he couldn’t have been happier winning anything else. “So what do you say? You ready for the next installment in our evening of fun?”

She took the monster off and tucked it into her bag. “You’ve been doing all right so far. I’m curious to see what you’ve got planned next.”

He’d worried before that she wouldn’t find his dinner plans fancy enough. He should’ve known better, though. While they may not have been great friends growing up, she’d always been the no-nonsense kind of girl.

A detail among many that definitely appealed to him. He escorted her back to his car and then drove across town. He could tell she was trying to guess his destination. They had enough time, so he took several extra turns just to throw her off. He finally pulled up in front of the elegant Esmeralda Theater. The large marquee out front highlighted the movies playing this week.

Savannah chuckled. “You keep surprising me.”

He parked and turned toward her. “Is that a bad thing?”

She studied his face for a moment before shaking her head. “No.”

“Good.” He got out and went around to open the door. “If you will come with me, I’ve already got tickets to tonight’s showing of White Christmas. Did you save room for popcorn?”

“Are you kidding? There’s always room for popcorn.”

Yep, she was a girl after his own heart.

Marianne Carter, the owner and manager of the theater, greeted them with a happy smile. “Come on in, you two. Welcome!” Marianne often dressed to match the holiday movies she was showing. Tonight, she sported blonde curls and wore a white sparkling sweater, leggings, and shoes just like Vera-Ellen from White Christmas.

Savannah gave her a hug. “You look amazing.”

“Thank you. It’s always fun dressing up.” She motioned to the concession area as another couple entered the theater. “Make yourself at home.” Marianne turned to greet the newcomers.

Baxter purchased their snacks. Once they got everything and settled into their seats, they set the large tub of popcorn between them. As the lights began to dim, Baxter looked at Savannah with mock seriousness. “Now, you have seen this movie before, right?”

The lack of light made it difficult to see her face, but her giggle washed over him. “Once or twice.”

“Okay, just checking. I was going to say that, if you hadn’t, we need to have a serious talk about your lack of appreciation for classic Christmas movies.”

The film began, and Baxter split his attention between the movie he knew by heart, and the occasional feel of Savannah’s hand when his bumped into it while reaching for popcorn. Every time it happened, he had to fight the instinct to abandon the popcorn in favor of holding her hand.

He managed to stick to his plan until they were over halfway through the movie. He’d gone for another handful of popcorn. This time, their hands went into the tub at the same time, and they both stilled. Uncertain how Savannah was feeling, he softly caressed the skin on the back of her fingers with his thumb. It wasn’t until she’d turned her hand a little and opened her palm that he took it in his. Their fingers naturally laced together, and that’s exactly where they stayed for the remainder of the movie.

The credits began to roll, and the lights slowly came back on again. Baxter glanced at their joined hands, gave hers a squeeze, and looked at Savannah’s face. She gave him a shy smile as though she were about as shocked as he was to see they really were still holding hands.

Reluctantly, he released hers and stood. “You can’t go wrong with these classic Christmas movies.” He picked up the tub of popcorn and offered it to Savannah. When she shook her head, he threw it out on their way to the main part of the theater.

“That was fun. Thank you, Baxter.”

“You’re welcome.” He waited until they’d exited the building into the cool night air. “I have one more thing planned for tonight.”

Savannah glanced at her watch, noted the late hour, and raised an eyebrow.

Baxter chuckled. “Oh, come on. Live a little.” He gently bumped her shoulder with his. “I promise you’ll like it. So, are you in? I’ll have you home in an hour.”

Now it was her turn to laugh. “Yes, I’m in. And if it takes longer than an hour, I’m sure I’ll survive.”

“I’m glad.” He helped her into the passenger side before going around and getting behind the wheel. He drove through town to the other side. He’d just read about Cherry Circle in the paper. The neighborhood loop was supposed to be one of the most highly decorated neighborhoods in town. He’d heard nothing but good things about it and thought it would be a great way to end the evening.

As they neared the street, he slowed behind a line of cars. That’s when he turned the radio on so that Christmas music filled the cab.

“Oh! Are we checking out Christmas on Cherry Circle?” Savannah leaned forward in her seat and tried to see around the cars in front of them. “Katrina took Kyle and said it was awesome. I was going to go last year but never got around to it.”

“I thought it might be fun.”

The line of cars inched forward, but it didn’t matter. Between the Christmas music playing on the radio and Savannah’s presence, it could take all night and Baxter would be just fine. They compared holiday decorating horror stories from their childhoods, the worst gifts they’d ever received, and then also the best ones.

“I guess my favorite gift would have to be the year my parents bought me a certificate to a baking class. I was probably thirteen.” Savannah watched as the Christmas lights grew closer, her voice sounding wistful in the near darkness. “I know it sounds crazy to you, but it was like a dream come true. Especially because it meant getting some more cooking tips so my cupcakes never made you or anyone else gag again.”

The humorous lilt in her voice told him she wasn’t holding it against him anymore. He was glad, but he still felt bad about the whole thing. He couldn’t have known his reaction had made her feel so bad. He reached for her hand again and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “I really am sorry about that. I promise I won’t ever again gag over one of your delectable pastries.”

She laughed. “I appreciate that.” She leaned forward in her seat. “Oh, here we go!”

The lights they’d been seeing as they drew closer were now just outside the windows. The neighborhood had gone all out, and Baxter wondered just how much electricity they’d pulled in to put up a display this elaborate.

They eventually rolled down their windows and turned the radio off because there was even music being piped into the front yards to match the different themes. As they slowly made their way through the half-circle neighborhood, he and Savannah commented on the different yards. He had to admit his favorite was the Star Wars decorations, complete with a Wookie wearing a Christmas hat. That the house was playing the song “What Do You Get a Wookie for Christmas?” only secured it at the top of the list.

“That one was pretty epic,” she agreed. “Although I especially liked the winter wonderland.” The front yard had looked like a snow-covered hill. There were animals building snowmen, making snow angels, and even throwing snowballs at each other. “I hope it snows for Christmas this year.”

Her voice sounded wistful. Baxter wasn’t particularly fond of winter weather. But right then, he was sure he’d march right up to the North Pole himself and request a snowfall for her for the holidays. “They’re saying we have a chance.”

“I sure hope they’re right.”

By the time they finished touring the neighborhood, Savannah was hiding a yawn behind her hand. He smiled a little and began the drive back to his grandparents’ house. It was definitely the black sheep on the street with every other house lit up with Christmas lights, decorations, or at least the silhouette of a colorful tree visible through the window. The porch light hadn’t even been turned on.

Baxter pulled into the driveway. “I’ll walk you to the door. I didn’t even think about the light when we left.”

“Me, either.”

The moment she stepped onto the driveway, Baxter offered her his arm. She slipped her hand through it and flashed him a pretty smile as he led her toward the front door.

“I had a great time, Baxter. Thank you again for insisting I go out tonight.”

Her choice of words had him chuckling. “You’re welcome. I think.” He waited for her to open the front door. The two dogs ran to them, tails wagging, and light from inside the house flooded the porch. “I know I kept you out way past your bedtime. I promise I won’t show up too early tomorrow to tackle the back deck so you can sleep in.”

“I appreciate that.” She lifted her chin to look into his face. What he saw in her eyes was a mixture of curiosity and nerves. Probably a good representation of what she was seeing in him.

He cupped her elbow and leaned in to place a kiss on her cheek beside the corner of her mouth. “Have a good night, Savannah. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Good night, Baxter.”

She gave a little wave as she fought her way past the dogs to get inside the house. He waited until the door had closed and he heard the locks slide into place before going back to his vehicle.

When he’d first asked Savannah to go out with him tonight, there were a lot of different scenarios he’d played out in his mind. But it’d all gone better than any of them. Not to mention he should get an award for not outright kissing her underneath that porch light.

He thought about how much she enjoyed the Christmas lights and then about how less-than-cheery his grandparents’ house was. That’s when he got an idea that he continued to piece together well into the night.