Authors: Marion Ueckermann
Poles Apart (14 page)
His father chuckled. “Sarah Jones from
South Africa?”
Sarah’s eyes widened, her mouthing a
little more verbal this time. “How did he...?”
Leaning over, Niklas whispered in
Sarah’s ear. “Korvantunturi.”
“Only one beauty hailing poles apart from
here darkened my door these past few days, Niklas.”
“Darken? He hates me,” Sarah mumbled.
Niklas shook his head, his voice low.
“No, he doesn’t. I can tell he already loves you.”
The old man cleared his throat. “I might
not be there, but I am still here.”
“
Isä
, I’m sorry. You’re quite
right. So, do you mind if I bring Sarah home to meet you and
Äiti
?”
“It’s about time you brought a girl home,
Son. We would love it. I’ll tell your mother. And I look forward to meeting
Miss Jones. Again.”
A giggle slipped from Sarah’s lips and
she clamped her hand to her mouth.
“See you later,
Isä
.”
“Drive safe, Niklas. And don’t forget to
keep your eyes on the skies. I hear the aurora borealis will be out later in
glorious colors—heaven celebrating the birth of the Savior.”
“We will, Father.”
Around them the skies had already begun
to darken as Niklas cut the call.
He clasped Sarah’s face in his hands,
his fingers spreading to her hairline. “I told you he loves you.”
You did.
Releasing her, he bent down and began to
roll a snowball, pushing it along in the snow. It didn’t take long to change
from a tennis ball size to something resembling a football. “Do you want to
build a snowman together? Before it gets too dark. The snow’s just right.”
“I’d love nothing more.”
Niklas continued to roll the snowball.
It grew bigger and bigger. He heaved the large ball one more time before
leaving it and starting on another. “That’s the lower body done. This one will
be the mid-section.”
Concentrating hard on her task, Sarah
continued to roll what would definitely be the head.
“Sarah, now that you’ve nothing to fear
from meeting my parents, does that mean you’ll eat Christmas Eve dinner with
us?”
Stooped over, she glanced up at Niklas,
sweeping the long strands of hair out of the way to get a better view of him.
You
can do this.
She smiled.
“Yes.”
With a grin, Niklas placed the second
ball on top of the first then dusted the powder from his gloves. He stepped
closer. Taking Sarah in his arms, his eyes searched hers. “And my very first
question? Will you write your love story with me?”
Holding his gaze, a smile spread across
her face. “A co-authored work? I like the idea.”
He tightened his embrace. “Is that a
yes?”
“Yes.” Yes. A million times yes. She
smoothed her gloves over his hair. “I only believed in love at first sight in fiction…until
now. Until you. I want to spend every Christmas together under the mistletoe,
starting with this one.”
Niklas pulled the mistletoe ring from
his pocket again and held it above them. And then he kissed her, as tradition
demanded. Not that either of them needed an excuse. When their lips finally
parted, Niklas removed Sarah’s left glove and slid the ring on her finger.
Her eyes widened. Had that mistletoe
berry sparkled?
“Let’s go home and celebrate. My mother
has
glögi
waiting.”
“
Glögi
?”
“Hot mulled wine with sugar, spices,
raisins and nuts.”
“Hmm, sounds delicious, and warm. Like
you.”
His eyes narrowed, sending ripples
across his brow. “Warm?”
“All right—hot!” Heat flushed her
cheeks.
As they walked back across the snow
toward the sleigh, Risto began to bark incessantly. Niklas stopped and looked up
at the sky. A faint applause surrounded them, and then the heavens burst into an
array of luminous colors—pink, green, yellow, blue, and violet.
Sarah’s breath hitched. The Northern Lights.
She’d given up hope of seeing them. Then again, she’d given up hope on love,
too. But God knew her deepest longings and dreams. He’d been faithful. And patient.
“Even the heavens approve,
Pupu
.”
“They certainly do.” Sarah snuggled into
his arm, her hand in his pocket to keep warm, her thoughts turning to her
family.
Mom. Dad. Hannah... What would they think?
She had to tell them.
She gazed up at Niklas. “Can we stop at
my cabin for a while when we get back?”
“Of course. You have something you need
to do? Write that first chapter of our love story?”
“Yes, the part where I introduce you to
my family on Skype—after all, I’m meeting your parents, it’s only right that
you meet mine.”
He swallowed hard. “Now?”
Sarah turned. Her fingers caressed his
cheek. “Don’t worry. Mom, Dad, Hannah, the boys...they’ll love you.” She slid
her arms around his neck.
“How can you be sure?”
“Because I love you. And they know I
don’t love easily. They’ve been waiting for my happily-ever-after for too long.
Once they hear our story, they’ll fall in love with you, too.”
Placing his finger on her chin, Niklas
tipped Sarah’s head and brushed his lips across hers. “How does a South African
summer wedding sound?”
“Amazing. As long as it’s this summer
and your parents are able to escape to warmer pastures for a while.”
“They normally do after Christmas.”
“Great.”
“Then it’s settled.” He sealed the
decision with a kiss.
“We’re missing the Northern Lights,”
Sarah mumbled.
Sliding his arm around her shoulder,
Niklas and Sarah stood rooted, enjoying the heavenly show. Risto, too, had
stilled in awe.
When the lights began to fade, Sarah
turned to Niklas, a grin tugging her mouth. “So, if I’m to trade in Jones for
Toivonen, what’s the meaning of my new surname? As a writer, these things are
important to me, you know.”
Niklas wrapped her in his embrace and Sarah
trembled as his kisses moved from her lips, across her cheek. His breath warm on
her ear, he whispered a single word. “Hope.”
Marion
Ueckermann’s passion for writing was sparked in 2001 when she moved to Ireland
with her husband and two sons. Since then she has published devotional articles
and stories in
Winners
,
The One Year Devotional of Joy and Laughter
,
and
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Miraculous Messages from Heaven
.
Published novellas include
Helsinki Sunrise
and
Oslo Overtures
[White Rose Publishing, Pelican Book Group], and
Orphaned Hearts
. Her
third Passport to Romance novella,
Glasgow Grace
, has been contracted.
She’s a finalist in the 2015 ACFW Houston ‘Storming the Short Story’ contest.
Her story,
Dancing in the Rain,
will be published in this anthology
early 2016.
Marion
loves writing contemporary inspirational romances set in novel places. She
lives in South Africa in an empty nest with her husband and their crazy black
Scottie, Wally
.
Visit
Marion at her
website
or
Amazon
Author Page
.
Passport to Romance
Heart of Africa