Page 64 of Tinsel in Telluride

LUCA: There’s a travel mug of coffee on the island with your name on it.

LEIGH: Thank you.

LUCA: Damn. I like it when you do that.

LEIGH: What? Thank you?

LUCA: Yeah. Last night it made my dick hard too. Maybe I have a praise kink.

LEIGH: Want me to tell you you’re a good boy?

LUCA: Maybe later. If you do that now, I’m going to have to take another shower or risk the guys seeing just how turned on I am.

LEIGH: But you’re such a good fucking boy, thinking of me, making me my coffee. I’m a lucky girl.

LUCA: I hate you.

LEIGH: Enjoy your shower.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

LEIGH

“Is everything okay in there?”

“Uhhh.” The fear and uncertainty in Luca’s voice is almost comical. “Yeah, I’ve got everything under control.”

I’m not sure if he's trying to convince me or himself.

He was so confident when he told me he’d handle this diaper change. Because in his words, how hard could it be?

Which probably makes this all the more enjoyable. It's karmic retribution for all the blowout diapers I have changed alone over the last two years.

Still, it was incredibly sweet of him to handle one of the dirtier aspects of parenthood.

In fact, he’s really stepped up today. He’s handled everything from giggles, to meltdowns, to going with the flow and adjusting his carefully thought-out plan. Including when Zach didn’t have the patience for the many layers of painting needed for ceramic ornaments.

Of course, Luca handled it by paying the shop’s teenaged employee an extra couple hundred dollars to finish them for us.But who am I to judge when he has done everything to make today special for Zach?

And me.

You’d never guess Luca has only missed one Christmas with Zach from the way he crammed five years’ worth of activities into one day. We’ve painted ornaments, caught snowflakes on our tongues, and sang Christmas carols at the top of our lungs (much to the dismay of passersby). At the town’s small Christmas market, where Luca bought everything Zach touched to wrap and put under the tree, we sipped hot cocoa and laughed until our sides hurt. There was even a sweet moment Luca bought me a bracelet that had coffee cup charms because I did a double take while browsing. He had no idea it reminded me of my mom and our mornings together.

The magic of Telluride only made it more special. The small valley town is like something plucked from another time—every building is made of brick and every storefront has a purpose. There are restaurants, a post office, and a hardware store. Coffee shops, a bookstore, and a clothing boutique, each with lights sparkling in their windows to celebrate the upcoming holiday. There’s no missing thesense of warmth radiating at every turn despite the frigid temperatures. People fill the sidewalks, but unlike in New York, where they walk with intent. Here, they stroll like they have nowhere to be except right here.

A loud cough that almost sounds like a gag pulls me from my dreamy thoughts, and I lean against the bathroom door.

“Is it supposed to be everywhere?” Luca asks, and seconds later I hear an actual heave. “And the smell. What died in this kid's ass?”

Pressing my lips together, I manage to stop my cackle, but there’s no mistaking the humor in my tone. “Let me in.”

“No, I got this.”

I press my palm against the door, like he’ll feel my encouragement through the wood. “Are you sure?”

There’s a delay in Luca’s answer, leaving me seconds away from going to the register of the small coffee shop to ask for a second key.

“Yeah. I’m almost done.” There’s another faint gagging sound, followed by Zach’s faint giggles.

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