“Oh, well let’s see. There’s antlers, pine needles, blinking red noses, candy canes, bells, peppermints…but you know, now that I think of it, you’re right. There is no difference.” Feeling Gail’s anger nearing the boiling point, he offered, “Oh, lighten up, Gail. Let’s sing a song. Your holiday theme song.” Immediately Sam started singing and dancing, taunting Gail. “Dashing through the snow, in a one-horse open sleigh…”

“Sam, I swear…”

“O’er the fields we go—come on Gail—laughing all the way, ha ha ha!”

“Sam…”

“Bells on bobtail ring, making spirits bright, what fun it is to laugh and sing Gail’s sleighing song tonight. Come on Gail—jingle bells, jingle bells…”

“I swear I hate you, Sam. I’m going back in coach, where I was supposed to be in the first place.” Rolling her eyes, Gail left for the back while both Sam and I laughed out loud, nearly hurting our sides. I was laughing with Gail, Sam unfortunately was laughing at her. Any way it came, it was laughter that I needed. Laughter that felt good.

“Sam, I missed you so much. I haven’t laughed like that in such a long time.”

“I missed you too, girl. So how’s it going? The engagement party is in a week, right? Have you made a decision yet?Feliz Navidad! Welcome aboard!”

“No, not yet. Happy holidays. Welcome aboard. I’ve got one more finalist. And the rules were that I wasn’t supposed to make a choice until I’ve seen everyone, right?”

“Right, but you can at least have a favorite.” Noticing the blank expression on my face, Sam’s cheer faded. “Not even a favorite?”

“Nope. But I’ve got one more to see. That is, if he’s flying on a commercial flight in the next few days.”

“Montana. Always remember, the glass is half full. No matter how many times it’s tipped over and spilled. No matter how many people have drunk from it, it’s always always always half full. You remember that. You are a diva. Diva for life, diva for love. Never forget it.”

Sam always knew what to say to make me feel better. At times he made me feel like he felt worse about my unmarried state than I did. Whether he did or not didn’t really matter, because he was always uplifting and inspiring.

“You know what, Montana, it just hit me. You’re not just a diva, you’re more than a diva, you’re a…a…”

“A what?”