They weren’t the only two who had decided that being cooped up inside the home wasn't a good idea. Half of the mountainside community were either making snowmen and snow castles or shoveling snow. Some of the markets were open, mainly just the supermarket and fuel station. The Christmas tree farm was the main attraction as it provided open spaces for the kids to run around with their friends.

Andre stole a glance at Sonia, admiring the way her eyes lit up and how she grinned each time a kid hit one of their friends with a snowball. Her straight blonde hair escaped from her winter cap, framing her delicate, round face. Her lips were plump and painted a glossy tint of red. Her eyelashes were long, fanning out against her checks whenever she looked downward or closed her eyes. She was perfect. After all these years…she was still perfect. And there had been no one else for him. No one else that could prove to be as satisfying as Sonia. He just couldn't believe how much she'd changed. But deep down, he knew that she was still the same person. The same innocent and kind Sonia. Now she was a woman who had matured over the last four years, both physically and mentally.

"So, this is where everyone here gets their Christmas tree from every year?" she asked.

"I think so. Tom doesn't own the only farm near Aspen Valley, but for the mountains, this is it. Cutting season begins soon."

"Looks like he's already got a few customers checking out the product," she said.

"He lets customers pick out their trees while they're still in the ground. Sometimes months before he's actually ready to start chopping."

"Wow, that's different."

"Wanna go take a look? Sounds like you'll be here for the holidays if you get that job."

"If I do, I'll probably get a small apartment. I don't think I'll have room for a real one."

"He's got small trees too. Or we could just pick out a big one for the cabin."

"Let's do that," she said, holding out her hand.

Andre took her hand without hesitation and they walked hand and hand toward the thicket of Christmas trees.

As they were heading between the first row of trees, a young couple was heading out of it. Andre recognized the guy and they exchanged greetings.

"I didn't know you were living out here, Andre," Hogan said.

"It's temporary. I have that job with Remly repairing the dams, so I left Aspen Valley to make my commute a bit easier."

"Cool. I thought I hadn't seen you around town lately," Hogan replied.

Andre turned to Sonia and said, "This is Hogan. He and I went to school together. Hogan, this is Sonia."

"Nice to meet you, Sonia. This is my girlfriend, Trista," Hogan said.

More greetings were exchanged. Sonia reached down for his hand again. He took it right away, rubbing his thumb gently over her palm.

Sonia wasn't the type of person to make small talk with strangers. As far back as Andre could recall, she would try to avoid them. She had always seemed content in her greenhouse with all her plants. He liked going out and making new friends whenever possible. He liked to have fun, even in the most trying situations. They were truly opposites, but everything about her intrigued him down to his very core.

After a while Hogan said, "How long have you two been dating?"

Andre cleared his throat and felt Sonia's palm heat up against his.

"Um, this is ah…we're friends," he said.

Hogan narrowed his gaze which then traveled to their joined hands before saying, "Oh, wait a minute. You do look familiar. Sonia…Bentley. She's your sister. You used to talk about her when you and I were working at the golf course. Your stepsister, right?"

Hogan and his girlfriend looked back and forth between him and Sonia, waiting for the answer. At some point, their expressions took on a different meaning.

"Isn't that…ah, forbidden?" the girlfriend asked.

"Andre's not my stepbrother anymore," Sonia said, surprising him. "His mom and my dad are getting a divorce."

"Oh…" Hogan chuckled. "Yeah…okay."

"We were just getting ready to check out the trees. It was nice seeing you around, Hogan," Andre said.

"Nice seeing you too. When this is all over, maybe we can meet in town for a beer."

They said their parting greetings and went separate ways.

When Sonia and Andre were out of earshot of the prying eyes of the couple, Sonia exclaimed, "Small world indeed."

"Yep," Andre replied.

He should've pretended to care that Hogan disapproved of what he called a forbidden relationship, but he didn't. The more time he spent with Sonia, the more he realized he didn't care what anybody thought. That's how he'd lost her in the first place…caring about what people thought.

Now she was back, claiming a job interview had drawn her here.

Andre knew better. They were way more connected than he wanted to believe. He didn't even need to convince himself of what he already knew. The emotional evidence was there. Evidence that left him tempted to claim what his mind, body, and soul wanted.