Page 6 of A Perfect Christmas with Chaos
Bending over I reach under the tree—scowling at the ominous gold mystery present as I do—and pull out the last present I have for Ember.Handing it to her, I say, “Second to last one, babe.”
Ember takes it but frowns.“Jeez, Mav.You’ve already got me enough.”She glances over at the pile of clothes, jewelry, makeup, and other odds and ends that I’d gotten her.
“Yeah, but these last few presents are special.”
Without Ember holding him, our puppy, Saint, saunters towards Will and her unicorn.
Ember takes her time unwrapping, almost as if she knows what’s inside.I tense as the paper comes off, and bite my lip as she removes the top half of the box.The subtle changes to her expression have me holding my breath.
Is it too soon?
Will she say yes?
Ember’s face flushes with color, and she bites her lip.Her eyes dart up to my face for a second before settling back to the leather vest inside the box—the one with her name on it and mine.The one declaring her my woman and a part of our little HOC family for life.
“Mommy!You got a jacket like me!”Will claps her hands and then runs her tiny fingers over the patches on the vest.“Ooohhhh...it’s like Aunt Birdie’s.”
My chest tightens with unease as Ember’s fingers follow the same path Will’s did.They slide over the HOC insignia.Then she picks it up like it’s a fragile piece of cloth and gently turns it around.Her fingers don’t touch the actual patch, but they trail over the words on it,Property of Luce.Then they move to the other side and scroll over her nickname,Doll.
Her silence causes my stomach to roll like the ocean in a storm.
Not able to stand it a moment longer, I move towards her and crouch down.I comb her hair away from her face.Cupping her jaw, I tilt her face a little so she’s looking up at me.
“Baby, you’re gonna give me a stroke.What are you thinkin’?You don’t like it?”
Shaking her head, my panic spikes, but then she says, “No, I was just wondering what took you so long.Lily said you ordered this thing months ago.Did you forget how to spell my name?”
Still with the smart fucking mouth.
“She wasn’t supposed to say anything.”
“Yeah, but Lily can’t keep secrets.Especially when she’s drunk.”
Grinning wide now, she picks it up and stands.With great care, she slides her arm through one side.I stand behind her and help her put her other arm through.Seeing her red waves cascade down over my colors gives me instant wood.
Thankfully, I’m behind her, so Will can’t see a thing.
Gripping Ember’s shoulders, I turn her.Her face is down as she takes in the look of her new property vest.
“God, Doll.Say somethin’.You’re killin’ me here.Do you like it?”
As an answer, she grabs a hold of my T-shirt and yanks me closer.Going up on her tippy toes, she kisses me hard and long.Then pulls back for a mere second to whisper, “I love it,” before she plants her lips over mine again and sweeps her tongue along my lips.“I love that it tells everyone you’re mine, too.”
A rumble rattles off in my chest.In the background, I hear Will saying something about kissing being gross, but I couldn’t give a fuck.Weaving my fist into Ember’s hair, I deepen the kiss.Without words, I tell her exactly how much I love her.
We only pull away from each other when Will wedges herself between us and starts pushing on both of our stomachs.“Can we show her the surprise now?You said after all the presents were opened.”
I groan.I don’t want to stop.But I also smile because Will is an impatient little shit, and I love it.Even though she’s not biologically mine, she’s so much like me it’s uncanny.
“Yeah.I think now’s a good time.”
Will jumps up and down, unable to contain her excitement.“Will you help me ride my bike after?”
Ember smirks up at me.“I told you.”
At the thought of teaching Will to ride her first bike and finally showing Ember what I’ve done with the space above the garage, my grin spreads.
Could anything ruin this day?Nah, I don’t think so.
