Jensen stepped into Alec’s house and called, “Alec! Where are you?”

Alec called back, “In the kitchen. I would have met you at the front door, but I’m in the middle of something. Come in here, and I’ll give you a kiss.”

Jensen grinned as he headed for the kitchen. He inhaled the sweet scent in the air and stopped for a moment to gaze at the Christmas tree. The branches were full of family decorations from his background and Alec’s. He loved their decision to put Christmas trees up in each house and blend the decorations on both. It meant that he had a part of Alec in his home all through the Christmas season and vice versa. As he passed by the tree, Jensen caught a glimpse of his favorite ornament. It was a ceramic house that opened and held a photo inside of Alec, Jensen, Beef, and Les. They took the photo after a performance downtown where Alec and Beef worked the lights.

“Come on, Jensen! You’ve got to see this.”

Jensen walked through the doorway to the kitchen and smiled. Alec stood next to the table wearing oven mitts and holding a cookie sheet filled with fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies. He smiled and said, “Your favorite!”

“You baked those yourself?”

“I’m getting better. I didn’t burn any this time, at least not yet. I’ve got the last sheet of the batch in the oven right now. Baking is fun once you get the hang of it.”

“Those look perfect! Put the cookies down. I need a kiss.”

Alec placed the cookie sheet on a base of hot pads resting on the kitchen table. He wrapped his arms around Jensen, oven mitts and all. “As you requested.” They kissed passionately and pushed their bodies tightly together. Alec asked, “Did you have a good day?”

“Oh, I did! I got so excited by your cookies that I forgot to tell you the big news. I didn’t think I’d hear anything until after New Year’s Day, but they called me this afternoon.”

“Big news? They? Who?”

Jensen stared intensely into Alec’s eyes. He spoke in a volume slightly above a whisper. “I got the job.”

Alec smiled. “I knew it. You’re irresistible.”

Jensen spoke louder. “I got the job!” After shouting it, he clasped his hands in front of his mouth while Alec hugged tighter.

Alec said, “I’ve been waiting for this.” He opened the cupboard, pulled out two glasses and then opened the refrigerator to retrieve a bottle. “We’re celebrating right now. There’s nothing like seizing the moment.” He asked, “Do you want to pop the cork?”

Jensen shook his head. “No, I think you should do the honors.” He clapped as the cork shot across the room.

Alec poured the bubbly champagne into each of the glasses. As he set the bottle down, he said, “This is worthy of a huge celebration, but we can share the champagne as a start.”

They both reached out to clink their glasses together. Alec said, “To my man! He’s the most amazing one out there, and I offer a heart full of congratulations.”

Jensen grinned. “Thank you so much.” He sipped the champagne. “They want me to show up about a month before the school year starts, but I didn’t think that would be a problem. We’ve got almost eight months to sort out the move, and they’ll pay most of the expenses.”

Alec asked, “Are you still thinking the same thing about our houses?”

“Oh, definitely. I think we should put them on the market. It should give us a big chunk of the cost of a new house in Arizona. We should talk to real estate agents as soon after New Year’s Day as possible. I think it might be best to sell one of the houses, move into the other one together, and then sell it closer to our moving date. If I were shopping for a house in our neighborhood, I’d be a little nervous about buying a house with the one next door on sale at the same time.”

Alec sipped more champagne and nodded. “I didn’t think about that, but it makes sense. I have one condition related to all of this house talk.”

“A condition? If I turn it down, are you going to stay up here in the Midwest?”

“I’m not sure it’s a deal breaker, but it’s important to me.”

Jensen asked, “What is it then?”

Alec said, “I insist that I take charge of the gardening. The desert southwest will be completely different from here, but I’m up for the challenge. Your track record isn’t so great.”

Jensen laughed. “If that’s the only condition, I think we’re in good shape.”

“Well, now I have to ask the difficult question. Have you told Les yet?”

“I called him on the way home from work. I hope you don’t mind that he found out first. I wanted to tell you in person instead of over the phone.”

Alec smiled. “That doesn’t bother me at all. How did he take it? He’s such a fucking sweetheart. I hope it wasn’t too hard.”

Jensen shrugged. “I was surprised. It wasn’t a rough conversation at all. I have a lump in my throat talking about it right now, but he said it would be great to have somewhere to crash if he wanted to travel to Arizona. I said, ‘When you travel to Arizona.’ He laughed and said, ‘You know you can’t keep me away.’”

“Oh, he would be welcome any time.”

Jensen nodded. “He told me that he’s looking at some options, too. He said our consideration of the big change caused him to start thinking, too.”

“Do you have any idea what his plans are?”

“None, but the lab tech work he does is in demand almost anywhere like your lighting work. I think he’s worried he’ll never find his man if he stays here, so he’s hoping to discover more fertile ground.”

Alec said, “He’s such a good guy. I wish him the best.”

Jensen tugged Alec’s forearm and pulled him toward the couch in the living room. He said, “Put your glass on the coffee table and snuggle up here with me. Tell me about your day.”

They lay together on their sides with their bodies spread out the length of the couch. Alec laughed and said, “I don’t think this fucking couch was designed for two of us to lay on it like this. Please don’t push me, or I’ll roll right off onto the floor.”

Jensen grinned and said, “I would never do such a thing.”

“So my day…I baked cookies. I ordered some flower seeds for the spring, too. I figured even if we’re moving, we need to have the front yard look presentable. It should probably look even better than normal if we want to sell the house. By the way, I think mine should go first.”

“Your house? Are you okay with that? You lived here with your mom. Will that be a problem at all?”

Alec kissed Jensen’s lips and asked, “Did I tell you one of the last things she said to me? It was during the day she was here before the last trip to the hospital.”

“I don’t think so. I’ve heard a lot of stories now, but I don’t remember that one.”

Alec said, “Mom looked me in the eye and said…” Alec paused. “I don’t think I can capture her husky, gravelly voice in those last days, but you can imagine it. She looked at me and said, ‘Alec, promise me you’ll look high and low for that man that you deserve. I never found mine, but I know that you can. Promise me that you’ll look.’ At least that’s how I remember it.”

Jensen smiled. “That’s a wonderful thing. She wasn’t all bad. She loved you.”

“No, she wasn’t all bad, and you’re right. She did love me in her own way. Some things were awful, and I think I’ll have scars from them forever, but I have to give her credit for picking a great way to exit the stage.”

“She didn’t say anything else after that?”

“Nothing of note. The rest of my mom’s words after she got to the hospital were mostly about comfort and complaining that she wanted to go home. I think if she saw the two of us together, she would be proud of me. I think she would feel more pride than she ever felt while she was alive.”

Jensen placed a hand on Alec’s cheek. “Your mom sees the two of us together. She’s here. I know she is. That’s why I’m a little worried about selling this house first.”

Alec shook his head. “No, it’s fine. I’ve done what I was supposed to do in this house. I can go now. We can leave the ghost behind, and Mom’s free to go, too. I’ll take the pictures of her with it, but I’m ready to leave this house. That’s the way I see it.”

Jensen wrapped an arm over Alec’s shoulder pulling him as close as possible. He whispered, “I love you, Alec.”

“I love you, too, Jensen. It’s early, but it feels like Christmas just arrived.”