"Do you always keep champagne handy?" I asked, grinning as Elio poured two glasses for us. This news felt special and I was excited to share it with Elio, but I certainly wouldn't have thought to bring champagne to this evening.

Elio was much more sophisticated than I would ever be. If he wouldn't mind it, I thought I would like to have his help planning.

"Well, as part of Eddie's gift, I got us a room at Kagura for Christmas Eve," I said. "I saved for it all year and made sure it fit into the budget and we'll have a nice room service dinner and wake up there Christmas morning. So I thought I would do it that night maybe."