Wings of Love (19 page)

“I’m going to go see if your mom needs help,”
Amy excused herself from the group.  “I’ll be right
back.”

“Okay babe.”  Adam watched as Amy
walked away.  “Good job you two dorks, you almost gave it
away.”

“It isn’t everyday we get to have a fun at
your expense,” said Joey.

“You know what they say about paybacks dude,”
Adam joked back.  “I’m glad you all could make it.”

Adam had never enjoyed a Christmas as much as
he enjoyed this one.  After the Christmas dinner was
finished and nobody could eat another morsel Adam and his father
excused themselves. 

They went outside to hitch up the horses for
the traditional LaPointe sleigh ride.  Adam put the
bridle on the horse and fit the bit into its mouth then buckled the
reins to the loops on the side of the bridle.

“A good woman is hard to find,” his dad
backed the horse up to the sleigh.  “I think you found
one in Amy.  I’d be proud to have her as a part of our
family.”

“Thanks dad,” Adam said as he coaxed the
horses to move forward.  “See you later.” 

The sleigh bells rang loudly, signally to all
those who waited on the front porch that the rides had
begun.  After numerous trips back and forth the line of
passengers finally disappeared.  Adam searched through
the group to find Amy’s face illuminated by the campfire as she
waited for her ride.  Adam picked her up as planned for
the last sleigh ride of the evening while the rest of the family
and friends gathered around the fire drinking hot cider and
cocoa.

This was their magical evening under the
stars, tucked inside the sleigh with blankets.  The
horses pulled the sleigh effortlessly through the snow covered
road, their bells jingle jangled with each step.  Adam
stopped the horses on the side of the road, the lantern flickered
dimly as the wind blew past.  He gazed into her eyes
which out shone the stars in the sky and held her hands in his.

“Thank you, babe, for being my best friend
and the love of my life.”  Adam took a small white box
from his coat pocket and opened it as he knelt down in the sleigh
holding her left hand in his.  “You stole my heart when
you kissed me that night.  Amy, will you be my wife?”

Amy’s eyes filled with tears of joy as she
looked in amazement at him.  “You are the flame that
burns within my heart.  Yes, Adam I would love to spend
the rest of my life with you.”

“I am a man that truly has it all,” his voice
trembled as he slipped the ring on her finger.  “I love
you Amy Marie Makowski.”

Adam viewed Amy holding out her hand as she
treasured her engagement ring that sparkled in the
moonlight.  He gently kissed the tears away upon her
radiant face.

“It’s absolutely beautiful,” said Amy as she
snuggled closer to him under the blankets.

“So are you.”  Adam eyes danced
with happiness as he stared into Amy’s eyes.  He pointed
up at some mistletoe which was dangling next to the “Our First
Christmas 1977” ornament.  “Now how do you suppose that
ever got there?”

“You are all I’ve ever dreamed of and
more.”  Amy let out a heavy sigh of happiness as she
cuddled up to him to feel the warmth of his body.  “What
a wonderful first Christmas together.”

Adam pulled Amy into his arms as he kissed
her underneath the moon and the stars and the
mistletoe.  He felt a lump in his throat knowing that he
was the luckiest man in the world.  Back at the house he
knew they were all anticipating their arrival home.  But
they would just have to wait a little bit longer because he wasn’t
ready to share Amy with anyone just yet.

Chapter 15

 Amy finished making her veggie dip for
the New Year’s Eve party that Joey volunteered to host this
year.  She decided to give Janet a call while she waited
for Joey and Angie to return with the food and munchies for
tonight. 

Amy picked up the receiver and dialed Janet’s
number as she sat down at the kitchen table.  She wrapped
the plastic silverware inside a napkin tying it in a bow with
ribbon while she waited for her to answer the telephone. 

“Hi Janet.  It’s
Amy.”  She continued with the task at hand as she
spoke.

“I was just thinking about you,” Janet
exclaimed.  “Did you set a date yet?”

“Yes, we decided on February 14,” Amy paused
with her work as she beamed with happiness.

“Aww, how sweet, Valentine’s Day,” Janet
sounded excited.  “Let me know when you want to go
shopping for dresses.  I can’t wait to be your maid of
honor.”

“I’m so glad you can make
it!!”  Amy told her as she got up to open the cupboard
door to look at the calendar.  “It will have to be
soon.  How about we plan for next Saturday?”

“That works for me,” agreed
Janet.  “I’m so happy for you and Adam, the first of our
group to tie the knot.”

“Can you believe it?”  Amy put all
the wrapped silverware on a tray for tonight.  “Not to
change the subject, but we all have been watching My
Generations.  You are playing the part of Kendall to
perfection.  So tell me, does she end up sleeping with
Dr. Braxton?”

“My lips are sealed,” Janet
teased.  “You’ll just have to stay tuned in to see.”

Amy heard Joey and Angie come through the
door carrying bags of groceries.  “What are you doing
tonight?”

“Luke and I are going to ring in the New Year
at Times Square.”  Janet answered.

“How exciting!”  Amy motioned to
Joey and Angie. “It’s Janet.”

“Happy New Year!”  Joey shouted
towards the phone as he unpacked the groceries.

“We love your show!”  Angie also
chimed in as she put the bags of shrimp in the refrigerator.

“She says Happy New Year to you both and
thanks for watching the show.”  Amy relayed the
message.  “It was nice talking to you.  You and
Luke have a good time tonight.  I’ll see you next
Saturday.”

Amy cleaned and cut vegetables for the dip
she made as Angie fixed cocktail sauce for the
shrimp.  Joey brought in two six foot submarines from
Tubby’s which he left on the back porch to keep cold. 

“Knock, knock,” said Bob as he came in the
back door carrying several bags of ice.  “I got the keg
in my back seat, where do you want it?”

“I got a tub on the back porch,” Joey said as
he put his coat on.  “Come on, I’ll help you bring it
in.”

“Do you want to give me a
hand?”  Angie emptied out a bag of New Year
decorations. 

“Sure,” said Amy as she grabbed a step stool
from the hall closet.  “I’ll put up the streamers while
you blow up the balloons.”

Amy and Angie decorated the living room and
kitchen as well as set up the area where the food would be served,
when the doorbell rang. 

“Joey, you better get the
door!”  Angie hollered from the kitchen. 

“How many people did he
invite?”  Amy asked as she opened and stacked the plastic
champagne cups together. 

“I have no idea,” Angie
admitted.  “You know Joey, the more the merrier.”

The party was in full swing when Amy went
upstairs to wait for Adam’s phone call.  She shut her
bedroom door as 
We Will Rock You/We Are the
Champions
 by Queen blared from the living room.

Amy grabbed the phone on the first
ring.  “Hello?”

“Hi babe, what are you doing?”

“Waiting for you to call,” she
admitted.  “Do you remember what tonight is?”

“New Year’s Eve?” he teased then continued
his conversation.  “It was a year ago we had our first
dance, our first kiss and you stole my heart right from under my
nose.”

“You do remember.”  Her thoughts
flashed back over the last year.  “We sure have been
through a lot this past year, some bad, but mostly good.”

“We’ve only just started,” Adam sang softly
over the phone.

“Have you been drinking?”  Amy
laughed because he messed up the words to the song while attempting
to be romantic.

“Maybe,” Adam answered.  “I called
the hall and the caterer today.  Everything is set for
the 14th of February.”

“Great.  I have an appointment with
Father Francis and my Aunt Sarah offered to do our wedding
cake.”  Amy shared the plans she had been working on
since he went back to school.  “I also have our
invitations written up and ready to be mailed.  Next week
I am going shopping with the girls for our dresses and
flowers.”

“Everything is falling into place,” Adam
stated.  “Oh, my Uncle Jim offered to take our wedding
pictures and I set up an appointment for the tuxedo rentals in two
weeks.”

“I hope we didn’t forget anything,” Amy
worried not wanting anything to go wrong on their special
day.  “I want it to be a day we will cherish
forever.”

“I know I always will,” said
Adam.  “By the way, how did the game go yesterday?

“The kids had the best time of their
life.  You should have seen their faces when Bob came out
on the ice.”  Her face brightened as she recalled the
excitement of the kids.  “He is their
hero.  After the game he introduced them to the whole
team and gave them each an official NHL hockey puck.”

“That’s great he did that for the kids,” Adam
said.  “Everybody needs a hero.”

“After the game I took the kids out for ice
cream,” Amy lay on her bed staring up at the
ceiling.  “That was a whole trip in
itself.”  She laughed remembering the messy faces and
hands she had to clean up afterward.

“Sounds like you had a really good time.”

“I love working with the
kids.”  Amy felt her emotions fill her
heart.  “It is rewarding to see we are making a
difference in their lives.”

“I’m proud of you Amy,” Adam
stated.  “You and Bob are doing an admirable thing.”

Amy could hear the ruckus downstairs as the
countdown began.  “Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five,
four, three, two, one.”

“Happy New Year,” Amy and Adam said
together.

“Do you remember the first song we danced
too?”  Adam asked.

“I sure do,” Amy sang to him the first line
of the chorus.

  He continued with the last line
of the song then stopped abruptly.  “Well, I hate to
leave you on that note, literally, but there are some other guys
waiting in line who need to use the phone.  I’ll see you
soon Amy.”

“I love you,” Amy
whispered.  “Sweet dreams.”

“You too, babe.”  Adam hung up the
phone.

Amy thumbed through her 45’s until she
found 
If You Leave Me Now
 by
Chicago.  She placed it on the turntable and set the
needle onto the groove of the record.  Listening to the
song, she hugged her pillow and reminisced about their first
dance.  She could almost feel his hands resting upon her
hips as they swayed to the music.  Amy swore she smelled
his Old Spice cologne mixed with the scent of his
shampoo.  Adam still made her heart fluttered just
thinking about him.  She brushed a tear off her cheek
that had escaped and choose to smile instead, thankful that they
had their whole life ahead of them.  Amy listened to the
song one more time before rejoining the party, which is exactly
what he would have wanted her to do.

***

 Adam just finished talking to his
college coach and the owner and coach of the Motor City
Blades.  He also had been in contact with three other
clubs in the NHL that wanted him to play.  He been
offered a four year contract with the Blades but he wanted to
discuss it with Amy first.  He headed straight to the
nearest pay phone and called her number.

“Yello?”  Joey answered the
phone.

“Hey, Joey.  How are ya
doing?”  Adam asked as he leaned his elbow on top of the
phone enclosure.

“Great, off to Chicago tomorrow.”

“Awesome, you ought to be able to knock them
out of the playoffs.”  Adam paced back and
forth.  “Is Amy there?”

“Yeah, she is lying down.  She
hasn’t been feeling too good lately.”  Joey
said.  “Let me go get her.”

Adam could here Joey’s footsteps as he ran up
the stairs and then his voice.  “Amy, Adam’s on the
phone.”  He waited for a few minutes until he heard Amy
pick up the phone.

“Hello, Adam?”  Amy’s voice sounded
groggy from sleep.

“What’s wrong babe?”  Adam was
worried and wanted to know immediately.

“I must have a touch of the flu,” Amy
answered.  “My stomach hurts and I have the chills and
then break out in a sweat with a fever.”

“Do you need me to come
home?”  Adam was ready to jump on the next flight home so
he could be there with her.

“No, I’ll be fine.  Just hearing
your voice makes me feel a little better already.”  Amy
said sweetly.  “What’s new with you?”

“You are not going to believe it
Amy.”  Adam was excited to share with her the news he had
been keeping to himself all week.  “I’ve received four
offers and I wanted to discuss it with you before I made my final
decision to officially join the NHL.”

“Wow, Adam,” Amy’s voice cheered
up.  “Who are the offers from?”
“Chicago, New York, Toronto and Detroit,” Adam listed them off to
Amy.  “So what do you think?”

“What do you think is best?”  Amy
asked.  “I know you’ll make the right decision.”

“I was leaning towards
Detroit.  It’s a four year contract.”  Adam
told Amy.  “How does that sound, babe?”

“Sounds good to me,” Amy
answered.  “In fact I was hoping you’d say that.”

“This way we don’t have to uproot and leave
our families.  I wouldn’t want you to be alone in a
strange town when I’m on the road.”  Adam caught his hat
that blew off in the wind.  “I figured it can’t hurt
having Joey and Bob on the team either.  I’ll have family
with me when I’m away.”

“You’re always thinking.”  Amy
yawned.  “I’m sorry, I am exhausted.”

“Well, I’ll let you get some
rest.”  Adam looked up as he felt wet sleet pelting down
on his face.  “I hope you feel better
babe.  Call me if you need anything.  I mean
it.”