Page 40 of Getting Wrapped Up

Well, he was holding achainsaw. “Yeah.”

Travis nodded and didn’t say anything more.

Was he going to stay and watch?

Dammit.

Levi didn’t really know what he was doing, and beside the other man, who was obviously dressed for outdoor work and who had probably wielded a chainsaw a thousand times, Levi was acutely aware of the fact that he wore black Oxfords, his brother’s jeans and a coat that cost more than Travis’s pickup.

“This tree is pretty big,” Travis finally said, studying the tree.

“Yeah.” What the fuck else was he going to say?

“I don’t think I could handle that tree on my own,” Travis said.

Levi pretended to study the tree and gave what he hoped was a manly grunt.

“I mean, I’d want two saws and four hands on that thing for sure,” Travis added.

“Huh.” Levi pretended to be considering that. Two chainsaws and four hands? What had he gotten into here?

“I could help you out,” Travis offered. “I have my chainsaw over in my truck. It’s no problem.”

Ah, he was a man whotraveledwith a chainsaw. Levi had been impressed that Joe even had one in his garage. If Travis ran into things he needed to chainsaw on a regular basis, then Levi might even be a little smitten with Travis—in a purely bromance kind of way.

He was comfortable with that.

He tried not to look too eager. He nodded and gave a shrug. “Sure. That’d be great.”

“Why don’t you ladies go over and check out the ornaments and stuff,” Travis said. “We’ll get this thing cut and loaded up.”

There was an area that was made up of several long folding tables set up and draped with red and white tablecloths. On the tops was a huge display of locally made ornaments, photo frames, wall hangings, wreaths, yard signs and baked goods.

“Oh, but I was—” Kate started.

But Lauren wrapped an arm around her shoulders and started in the direction of the crafts. “Let me show you the candles Mrs. Pierce makes. They’re amazing.”

The women wound between the trees and were soon out of sight.

“Let’s go.” Travis clapped Levi on the shoulder and turned him in the opposite direction.

“Where are we going?” Deeper into the trees with a guy he didn’t know and a chainsaw? He’d seen this horror movie.

“To get you a tree,” Travis said with a chuckle.

They stepped out from the rows of live growing trees into a fenced-in area that had already-cut trees on display.

Understanding dawned. “We’re getting one that’s already cut.”

Travis laughed. “For sure. Cutting a tree down is hard work, and the one you picked is enormous.”

“You can’t actually cut a tree down?” Levi asked.

“Oh, sure Ican, but why? These guys already went to the trouble.” Travis started forward, looking through the displayed trees until he found one that looked a lot like the one Kate had picked out. “Here you go.”

“Kate might be disappointed if I don’t actually, you know, act all manly and tough.”

Travis slapped him on the back. “She’ll never know. Once it’s loaded in the truck, she won’t be able to tell if it’s the one she picked or not. Have her help you drag the thing into the house and put it up. It’ll be heavy and will look a lot bigger once it’s inside—she’ll never know this isn’t the one back there.”

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