“Not planning on it. Although there’s so much new snow, it would be a soft landing.”

She positioned herself beneath him, aiming the flashlight beam at the top. He disturbed a snow-laden branch, creating an avalanche that fell on her before she could move out of the way.

“Lovely,” she said, rubbing the fresh snow out of her face.

“Sorry,” he replied. “Almost there.” He climbed until the branches thinned, and reached up to clip the light string close to the top. Then he began his descent, paying out the string of lights from his backpack. “This is what’s known as extreme decorating.”

“I must say, stringing lights on a tree in the wilderness was not the first thing I thought of when you invited me for a walk.”

“You don’t mind.” It wasn’t a question.

“You barely know me. How do you know whether or not I mind?”

“Another one of my superpowers.” He worked methodically while she held the beam steady, lighting the way for him. At one point, he went too far out on a limb and it bowed ominously. “Watch it,” she said. “That one won’t hold you.”

There was a loud cracking sound, and he came down like a sack of coal. Her heart leaped to her throat. “Oh my gosh, Logan.” She waded through the snow and dropped to her knees beside him. “Are you okay?”

He was practically drowned in the deep snow of the tree well. She could tell he was assessing himself—back, neck, extremities.

“Not a scratch,” he informed her, lifting his head. “Superpowers did the trick.”

She rose from her knees and held out her hand. “I think there are enough lights on the tree. Let’s plug them in and see if they work.”

“Sure, they work. I tested them before we came out.” He took her hand, but his weight and the soft deep snow unbalanced her, and she fell forward against him, the snow caving in around them.

“Sorry about that,” he said. “Damn. This is not going well.”

She climbed out of the hole and fetched his snowshoes so he could do the same. If not for the tight cuffs of her sleeves and the muffler around her neck, she would be extremely uncomfortable at this moment.

He found the end of the light string amid the lower branches. “You all right?” he asked as he worked.

“I’ve survived worse in the snow.”

“You’ll have to tell me about it one day.” He worked quickly, brushing the snow away from a pipe running up the tree trunk with an outlet at the top. “All right. Ready for the lighting?”

“Do you want to do the honors or shall I?”

“You’ve earned it, putting up with my antics.”

“Is that what these are?” she asked. “Antics?”

“I’m good at antics. I excel at antics.”