It's Beginning to Look a Lot...

"If you'll stand here and hold this end, I'll unravel the rest, okay?" he told Tabitha as her mother watched, enjoying the interaction.

Seconds later the string was laid out in one long line.

"Okay, Mom," Jason told her. "You're up."

"Oh. Yes. Okay. Well, let's see."

She picked up the end Tabitha had been holding and said, "This end goes up top and we'll wind them around the tree. The plug is at the far end over there, so...."

Jason grabbed the end then stopped.

"You wanna put these up high?" he asked Tabitha who was thrilled.

He picked her up then handed her the heavy strand of lights while holding onto it to take the weight off.

"Start right there, honey!" her mom said. "That's it! Now move to your right and just wind them around the tree."

"Like this?" her daughter asked as she tried her best to do just that.

"That looks great!" her mom said as Jason helped Tabitha keep the strand looking smooth and even.

As they went behind the tree, Raquel saw the smile on her daughter's face and had to blink back tears as thoughts of her husband filled her mind. But she was also imagining something else. Something similar but not quite the same just as Jason side stepped his way back to the front.

"Awesome job, you guys!" Raquel told them as they continued to drape them around the tree like the stripe on a candy cane.

"Now we do the stin-sul!" Tabitha announced.

"Hold on, kiddo! We have to put the ornaments on first, remember?"

"Can I do the ane-jul?" she asked, her eyes open wide in excitement.

"Well, if our guest is willing to hold you up that high, then, sure."

"Willing? You just try 'n stop me, little lady," Jason said, doing the John Wayne thing again.

"Nut," Tabitha told him as another smile broke out.

Jason smiled back as Raquel handed her daughter the top ornament. He held Tabitha up above his head as she leaned over and placed the angel at the top.

"Yay!" the little girl said as she clapped her hands once it was in place. It was slightly tilted, but Raquel thought it was perfect.

They finished the ornaments and then came the tinsel. Raquel's part was very neat and pretty. Jason's was 'okay' and Tabitha's went on in clumps, but again, her mother was feeling so happy she didn't care.

"Wow. You did such a good job!" she told her daughter.

"I know," Tabitha said, causing her mom's eyes to open wide as Jason looked at her and smiled.

"She's very modest," Raquel said as she put her hands on Tabitha's shoulders as they admired their handiwork.

"What does that mean?" Tabitha asked immediately.

Jason gave her a 'what now, Mom' look which made her smile.

"It means I love you very much. That's what it means."

"Then you're a modest, too, Mommy!" the 4-year old said before turning around and putting her arms around her mom's neck.

"Now you can hug my mom, too!" Tabitha announced when she let go.

"Oh, no. Honey, he doesn't want to...."

Before she could finish, Jason not only extended his arms, he pulled her to him and held her close.

"Merry Christmas, Raquel," he said very quietly.

She held him back but loosely at first. But a second or two later she wrapped her arms tightly around him, too, and said, "Merry Christmas, Jason."

"We need to get your car," he said when they let go of one another.

"No. You don't have to do that!" Raquel insisted.

"Oh, yes I do, Boo Boo!" he replied, doing a Yogi the Bear imitation.

Before she could protest any further he was on the phone with his father.

"Dad. I need your help."

She heard him explain and asked herself why any stranger would do this much for someone he just met. It made no sense to her, but as she listened to him talk, Raquel found herself fighting back tears.

"Okay. I'll have someone drop me off there in about ten minutes."

He turned to the two 'ladies' and explained the situation.

"Do you have to go?" Tabitha asked, her little voice filled with sadness.

"Honey, Jason is going to get our car. Can you tell him 'thank you'?"

"But I don't want him to go!" she said, tears now filling her eyes.

Jason swooped in, picked her up, and raised her above his head and turned in a circle.

"Tell you what. When we get your car home I'll come back inside and say goodbye. Is that okay?"

All Tabitha heard was he'd be back because she was shrieking with laughter.

"Okay!" she said as he lowered her down.

"So...once my dad gets here, he and I will go get your car."

He touched his own nose when he said "I" and Tabitha's nose when he said "your" and got another happy laugh.

"Deal?" he asked as he extended his hand.

The little girl shook it and said, "Deal!"

He helped her clean up the wet towels and get them in the dryer before his dad arrived. Jason saw a 4-wheel drive Jeep pull up and said, "That's my cue!"

"Be careful, okay?" she said as she walked him to the door.

He went into his corny cowboy routine again and said, "Don't you worry none, lil' lady," and faked tipped his non-existent hat again.

"Goofball," she said with a smile and a feeling of warmth and appreciation in her heart.

It was still coming down, and Jared was grateful for the 4-wheel drive in his F-150. All Lightning models use a dual-electric-motor setup that gives it standard four-wheel drive. The standard-range version is good for 452 horsepower, 775 foot pounds of torque.

His dad was pulling the chain they needed out when Jason said, "Hey, Dad."

Jason took the heavy metal chain and laid it in the bed and hopped in.

"You really picked a helluva day to help out a damsel in distress," his dad quipped when he fastened his seatbelt.

"She's quite a damsel, Dad," he told his father with a little smile.

"Oh. That kind of damsel, huh?"

"Yeah. She's pretty amazing."

Jared dropped into gear then said, "So is her little girl."

"Amazing and has a daughter. Hmmm. Sounds like a readymade family," his dad observed without saying anything else.

The city had just plowed the main street which really helped, but the lot where her car was parked already had three inches covering it. Even so, hooking it up was a piece of cake.

"These tires are a mess," his dad said as he attached one end to the front of the beat-up sedan.

Steve Burns knew cars. He'd been selling them for years and owned a Jeep-Subaru dealership in town.

"How about we drop it by the shop and have some new ones put on it?" he suggested. "On me."

"Dad. Seriously?"

"She has a young daughter, right?"

"Yes. Yes, she does," Jared told him as his 'old man' nodded and winked.

"I'll hop in her car and hit the horn when I'm ready. You know what to do from there."

Jared learned everything he knew about cars from his dad, and how to correctly tow one was just one of many things he'd learned over the years.

Ten minutes later the car was up in the air at the shop.

"I'll get Rudy to drive me home. You go back to your girl's place and...."

He smiled then said, "Ask her and that girl of hers to join us for dinner. By the time we're done her tires will be ready, and I'll have the car brought to the house."

Jared Burns loved his father and he often surprised in ways like this that made a deep impression on his son. It was also the reason why he'd internalized the importance of helping out people in need.

"Okay. I'll see if I can twist her arm."

His dad laughed then said, "I saw your face when you talked about her. You won't have to do any twisting."

Jared chuckled and said, "You're probably right, Dad."

"Probably?"

"The three of us will see you soon," he said, knowing his dad was right.

After some initial, very weak protesting, the only real flack he got was from Raquel feeling like she needed to do a complete makeover first.

"You look great," he told her. "Trust me."

She gave him a funny look but loved what he said.

"Give me a few minutes to at least brush my hair and change clothes, okay?"

"You don't need to do that, but something tells me if you want to I'm sure it'll be worth the wait."

Raquel walked away smiling from ear to ear as head spun from everything that had happened so quickly.

When she came back out, Jared whistled softly.

"Wow. That really was worth waiting for."

"Stop!" she said as she felt her cheeks warming.

"You look so pretty, Mommy!" Tabitha told her.

"Thank you, sweetie. So do you!"

Raquel got Tabitha's coat, but Jared took it and said, "I'll get that. You grab yours and we'll be all set."

"Okay," the older woman replied in a sweet kind of way as he once again took charge.

As they drove to the senior Burns' residence Raquel had to know something.

"Why are you being so nice to us?" she asked.

There was no hint of anything deeper in the question, so Jared assumed she just wanted to know.

"The truth is I'd have helped anyone in your situation," he began. "But I don't think I've asked too many of them to have dinner with my family."

He smiled at her in a way that sent a shiver through her. A short, strong, very pleasant shiver.

Not sure how to respond Raquel only smiled back at him. What he said next sent an even bigger shock wave through her.

"You didn't really need me to tell you that, though, did you?"

She was still looking at him, but he was focused on the road they'd just turned onto as it hadn't been plowed yet.

"There's the old homestead," Jared said as he pointed down the street.

"That's your house?" she asked, not sure what to think and thankful she didn't have to answer his question.

Jared chuckled and said, "I wish. No, that's my mom and dad's house."

He looked over at her and said, "I live in a modest, two-bedroom apartment I'm renting."

"Let me guess. It's got four bare walls and huge flatscreen TV. And...an inflatable mattress for a bed," she teased.

"Hey! Have you been in my apartment?" Jared asked pretending to be upset that she was spying on him.

Raquel laughed and told him she hadn't.

"I just know how guys are. That's all," she told him as she kind of jutted out her chin as though she was smugly satisfied.

"Oh, okay. You're one a them there know it all girls, ain't ya?"

The cowboy schtick was getting old, but it still made her laugh.

"I don't know...everything," she said as though that was close to being the case.

"Okay. I got my eye on you, little lady," Jared warned her.

He saw he laugh and sigh and understood.

"My hick routine is wearing a thin real fast, isn't it?"

"It's...charming,' she told him as he slowly into the huge, snow-covered driveway of the very large, two-story home.

"Speaking of charming," she said as she looked at it. "This is amazing."

"So are my parents," he told her before pointing to her door handle and give her another 'don't you dare' look which caused her pull her hand back and put both of them in her lap.

"Much better," Jared said before hopping out and coming around as he'd done before.

"You wanna ride on my shoulders?" he asked Tabitha who clapped her hands and said, "YES!!!"

Jared had her ankles in one hand and held out the elbow of the other arm.

"Oh. Thank you," Raquel said as she put her arm through it. "You okay up there, honey?"

"I'm BIG!" she announced as Jared's mom came to the door to welcome them.

"Come in. Come in!" she said as she welcomed Raquel and then the pretty little girl.

"Mommy. This house is big, too!" Tabitha said, meaning Jared's truck was also big.

"Yes, it is sweetheart," he mom said as Jared's mom introduced herself.

"I'm Ellen Burns, Jared's mom. It's so nice to have you here, and I'm sorry you had such an ordeal today."

"It's a pleasure to be here, and as it turns out, it...."

She looked at Jared then back at his mom, "It really wasn't all that bad."

"Well, come on in, and I'll get you something warm to drink. Coffee? Tea? Hot chocolate?"

"Hot chock-o-lot!" Tabitha said before her mother could answer.

"Mom?" Ellen asked the other adult woman.

"Whatever you're having will be fine."

"Four hot chocolates coming up."

The door opened and Jared's father stepped in.

"Make that five!" Ellen said before letting Raquel know that was her husband, Steve.

"Oh, my gosh. I know you!" she said before he could shake her hand.

"Lowest prices in town...."

Raquel said, "Guaranteed!" at the same time he did while pointing her finger at the camera that wasn't there the way he did on his local television ads.

"Your car should be here in a bit, and you won't have to worry about those tires anymore."

She gave him and then Jared a confused look.

"You can't be driving Tabitha around on those," he said without explanation.

"I...I can't afford new ones, Jared."

Steve put a gentle hand on her shoulder and quietly said, "There's no charge. This is on me, and it's my pleasure."

He saw the younger, attractive woman tearing up and gave her a hug.

"Merry Christmas, Raquel," he quietly said.

"Thank you so much," she whispered as she fought hard not to cry.

When Steve let go, she looked at Jared and asked, "What did you do?"

He moved closer to her then quietly said, "The right thing."

"But...why?" she asked as she felt herself tearing up out of gratitude--unmerited gratitude from her point of view.

Jared gently put his hand in the small of her back and indicted they, too, should head to the kitchen.

"Do you really need to ask that, either?" he said with a smile that caused her already-wet eyes to allow tears to fall down her cheeks.

"Thank you," she told him as she tried as hard as she could not to cry.

Jared moved his arm up to her shoulder and pulled her close. Tabitha was now watching and saw her mother crying.

"Mommy? Why are you crying?"

Ellen turned to look just as Raquel was trying to brush away the tears.

"I...I'm not used to this. To so much...kindness," she said before the entire situation proved too much.

She turned to Jared and laid her head on his shoulder as Tabitha came over and held her mommy's leg.

"Don't cry, Mommy. It'll be alright," her daughter told her.

"Yes it will, honey," she said as she put a hand on the back of her little girl's head.

Ellen waited then handed the younger woman a folded paper towel which Raquel accepted with her thanks and gently dabbed her eyes.

"You have a streak," Jared told her as he pointed to her cheek on the left side. "Here. Let me get it."

He used the dampness of her tears to wipe away the mascara then told her, "Good as new."

"I'm sorry. I hate when I cry," she told everyone which now included Steve.

The entire group engaged in a mass hug with Raquel in the middle feeling so safe and secure she never wanted the feeling to end. When it did, she looked up at Jared and smiled as they stared into one another's eyes.

"You okay?" he whispered.

"Yes. I just don't know what to say."

"You already said it," he assured her before Raquel asked what she could do to help.

Moments later they were all sitting at a large kitchen table with steaming mugs of hot chocolate. Except for Tabitha's which was much cooler and topped with whipped cream and a cherry.

"This is the best hot chock-o-lot ever!" Tabitha said, the whipped cream all over her upper lip and nose.

"Can you tell Mrs. Burns thank you?"

"Thank you!" she said before taking another sip and making the mess worse.

"You're so welcome, sweetheart. Did you know you are just the cutest little thing ever?"

"Uh-huh," she replied with the innocence only a child can have. "I'm 'dorable!"

"And modest!" Raquel said as she shaded her eyes with one hand.

"You're a modest, too, Mommy!" Tabitha told her as everyone waited for an explanation.

"It's a long story, Mom," Jared said as everyone knowingly chuckled. "Just know I think you're a 'modest', too."

His mom look confused but laughed anyway as she said, "Well, okay. I'll take that!" before turning to Raquel and if she'd mind helping with dinner.

"I'd love to!" the now-recovered, very grateful woman said.

"I can help, too!" Tabitha chimed in.

Steve leaned toward Jared and said, "Maybe we should get out of the kitchen before we get tagged with...."

He hadn't finished his sentence when his wife said, "Steven? Be a dear and set the table will you?"

"Always a day late and a dollar short!" he said just loudly enough to his son that Ellen could hear.

"I heard that!" his wife teased.

"And I'm on it, honey!" he called back as he stood up.

"I guess I better give Dad a hand then," Jared said as he looked over at Raquel who wasn't just smiling at him. She was beaming, and he thought she was as beautiful as any woman he'd ever seen before.

The doorbell rang freezing everyone before Steve went to see who it was.

"Okay. Thanks, Rudy! And Merry Christmas to you and your family!"

"Same to you, Mr. Burns!" his employee said as he handed him a set of keys.

"Raquel? You chariot is ready!" he said as he handed them her.

She felt herself tearing up again but fought it off as she gave the older, still-attractive man a hug and thanking him again.

"It's our pleasure, hon," he said as he saw Ellen looking at their son and smiling.

Steve knew what that meant, and after meeting Raquel and her daughter, he was thinking the same thing.

Two hours later everyone was sitting around talking and enjoy the after-dinner glow of a delicious meal of baked chicken, roasted potatoes, and green bean salad.

"Everything was amazing, Ellen," Raquel said during a brief lull. "But we shouldn't take up any more of your time."

"Nonsense!" Ellen told her. "We're glad to have you."

She looked at Tabitha, smiled, and said, "Both of you!"

She stood up and as she headed back to the kitchen to load the dishwasher, she stopped to look out a window.

"It's still coming down outside, and it's getting worse."

"Then we really do need to go," Raquel said as a feeling of concern made itself known.

Steve then walked over to the window and looked.

"There's over five inches out there, and it's coming down so hard I'm not sure that's safe. Even with new tires."

He squinted then said, "The road in front of the house hasn't been touched."

"What does that mean?" Raquel asked, knowing it wasn't good.

"It means you can't drive your car home," Jared informed him as nicely as he could.

"But we can't stay here," Raquel said as she looked from face to face.

"Of course you can!" Ellen called out from the kitchen.

"Or I can drive you home," Jared suggested.

Before Raquel could say anything he said, "Don't worry. We'll bring your car over as soon as it's safe. Your choice."

"We'd love to have stay with us!" Ellen called out, her voice cheerful and sincere.

Raquel was surprised at how easy the decision was in spite of barely knowing these people. In any other circumstance she'd feel so out of place that staying would be out of the question. But in this case she felt...at home. It was strange to say the least, but she knew what she felt, so saying 'okay, yes, thank you' was a no brainer.

"Wonderful!" Ellen called out a third time. "Let me show you girls your room!"

"Go on!" Jared said when she looked at him.

"Okay," Raquel replied very sweetly. "Tabitha? You want to see our room for tonight?"

"Is it like a hotel?" her daughter asked, his eyes wide with surprise and excitement.

"Um...kind of only better!" her said as she took the girl's hand.

Raquel had never been in a home this nice before in her life, and the guest bedroom she and Tabitha would be sleeping in was beautifully decorated and painted in a color she loved.

"Wow. This is so nice!" she said as Ellen showed it to her.

"You two have your own bathroom right through that door," the older woman said. "There are plenty of towels in there and extra blankets if you get cold in the cedar chest over there."