A Very Merry Superhero Wedding (Adventures of Lewis and Clarke) Read Free Page A

physical nature. His easy manner helped her to relax and allow herself to be a bit more demonstrative, in public and in private. She normally only let her guard down when she hung out with her siblings, especially with her little brother, Kevin. She’d spent so much energy over the years trying to please her mother, and staying away from men because they might ruin her life, she’d sort of lost herself. Hanging around Joe’s excessively huggy family reminded her that she rather liked physical displays of affection.
    She sighed happily.
    Again Joe drove in a direction not toward home. He made a couple of turns into a residential neighborhood and hit the buttons to roll down the windows partway. What was he doing now?
    Tori started to ask when she heard the Christmas music. She gasped in delight as Joe turned right and pulled into a long line of cars driving very slowly through the brightly lit street.
    “Christmas lights?” She clapped her gloved hands. “That’s one of my favorite parts of Christmas!”
     

Chapter 2
    JOE grinned. The colored lights from the outside decorations danced over Tori’s face. Driving around looking at Christmas lights was one of his favorite parts of Christmas, too. The more he and Tori got to know each other, the more they found in common.
    Keeping his foot on the brake, Joe reached behind the seat and pulled several things to the front: a blanket, a thermos, and a plastic food container. He tucked the blanket around Tori’s lap, letting his hands linger at her hips. Then he opened the thermos and poured the steaming beverage into the lid-cup.
    “Hot chocolate?” Tori asked, reaching for the cup.
    “Starbucks hot chocolate. Your favorite, right?”
    Tori nodded and sipped and grinned. She was about to say something else when he opened the lid on the plastic container. Her eyes widened as she looked in.
    “Triple chocolate cheesecake with a mint chocolate ganache topping. For my lady,” Joe said, handing her a plastic fork with a flourish.
    “Oh my gosh,” Tori gushed. “Where in the world did you find something like this?” She scooped a bite onto her fork. “Oh, it’s really cold! Mmm, bu t awesom e .”
    Joe laughed. “I hope it didn’t freeze in here while we were at dinner.” He took a bite. Wow, delicious. “At least the mint flavor goes well with the cold.”
    The cars ahead of them moved slowly enough that Joe could drive with his knee while he shared the cheesecake with Tori. This neighborhood had some of the best Christmas decorations in Double Bay. The house they were now passing had a Santa Claus scene with the sleigh and reindeer on the roof, Santa’s rear end sticking out of the chimney, and an air-filled snowman directing a choir of singing children on the lawn.
    The next house had a nativity scene with animatronic characters. Baby Jesus was waving his hands at Mary who was stroking his head while Joseph nodded. A young boy played a drum in time to “The Little Drummer Boy” music while an animatronic ox and lamb kept time with their nodding heads. The three wise men turned their heads to each other and then raised their arms to point at the star on the roof. The star was magnificent — at least five feet tall and glowing with a pulsing rainbow of pale colors.
    “I’d say these people know about Bronner’s in Frankenmuth.” Tori laughed. “Have you been there?”
    “Not yet. Been meaning to check it out sometime.”
    Tori gasped. “You haven’t been to the world’s largest Christmas store, and it’s only a few hours away?”
    Joe pretended his own shock with a gasp. “I can’t believe I haven’t taken time off work to go Christmas shopping.” He opened his mouth wide and covered it with his fingertips.
    Tori laughed and pushed at his shoulder. “If we had time, I’d take you there this year. Trust me, w e ar e going next year.”
    “Fine.” He really had been meaning to visit Bronner’s. Just hadn’t gotten around to it. It would be fun