Page 113 of Offside for Christmas
"Cole." Ellie's voice cracked. "You did all this?"
"I wanted our first Christmas together to be special. Just us. No team, no family, no distractions." He moved to stand behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Just you and me."
Ellie turned in his arms, and there were tears in her eyes. "This is the most romantic thing anyone's ever done for me."
"Good. Because I have a reputation to uphold now."
"What reputation?"
"Ellie Winters' boyfriend. That's a full-time job." He was grinning now, unable to help himself. "Very demanding position. The boss is tough but fair. Excellent benefits package."
"Oh?" She was laughing through her tears now. "What are the benefits?"
Cole pulled her closer, lowering his voice. "I'll show you later."
She kissed him, soft and sweet, and Cole thought that this—this moment, this feeling—was what Christmas was supposed to be about.
They ate breakfast by the fire, plates balanced on their laps, talking about nothing and everything.
Ellie told him about past Christmases with her family, about the year Amber convinced everyone that Santa was actually an elf in disguise and caused a minor crisis. Cole told her about the Christmases with his grandmother, the small apartment thatsmelled like cooking and love even when there wasn't much money.
He pulled Ellie close. "Ready for presents?"
Her eyes lit up. "I thought you'd never ask."
They moved to sit by the tree, and Cole handed her a small box wrapped in silver paper.
"You first," he said, suddenly nervous.
Ellie unwrapped it carefully, revealing a simple jewelry box. When she opened it, she found a single key on a silver keychain shaped like a miniature santa, and a folded note.
She read the note aloud, her voice shaking:
"This is the key to my apartment. I know it's fast. I know we've only been together a few weeks. But Ellie, you're already home to me. If you want, make it official. Move in with me. Or I'll move in with you. Or we find a new place together. I don't care where we live, as long as we're living together."
She stared at the key, tears streaming down her face.
"You want me to move in with you?" she whispered.
Cole's heart was pounding. "Only if you want to. No pressure. If it's too soon, if you need more time, that's okay. I just—"
"Yes."
He stopped mid-sentence. "Yes?"
"Yes, I'll move in with you. Or you move in with me. Or we find a new place." She was crying and laughing at the same time. "I don't care either, Cole. Yes."
Relief flooded through him so powerfully it made him dizzy. "Yeah?"
"Yeah."
He kissed her, then picked her up and spun her around, both of them laughing like crazy people. When he finally set her down, they were both breathing hard, grinning at each other.
"Your turn," Ellie said, wiping her eyes. "Here."
She handed him an envelope, and he noticed her hands were shaking slightly.
Inside was a certificate—official-looking, printed on nice paper:
