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“You’re so thoughtful, Caleb. I’m really trying my hardest to enjoy this holiday. I don’t want to spoil it for you all.”
“You could never spoil it, babe. Honestly. Having you here this Christmas is the best feeling in the world. All the holidays we spent apart, I thought about you. Having you here is the best present ever.”
He wraps his arms around my back and holds me close to his chest. I hold him tightly, relishing the feel of his arms around me.
“I have something else for you.” He pulls back from me and takes me into the kitchen.
Sitting on the worktop is a large paper bag. I pull out the stool and sit down, eagerly waiting to see what he’s got for me.
“I thought we could have a quiet night on the couch, just like we used to do on a cold winter’s night. No interruptions. No fussing. Just us. So…” He pulls out a DVD box and holds it out to me.
“My favorite Christmas film. It’s A Wonderful Life. But you hate it.” I giggle like a schoolgirl.
“As long as I have you lying beside me, I’ll love anything.”
He pulls out Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, popcorn, and chips with a salsa dip.
“Anyone would think you’re trying to get me fat.”
He throws his head back and laughs. “My mom said that the way to a pregnant woman’s heart is through junk food.”
I smile. “You had my heart the day we first met in Kindergarten, Mr. Shawland.”
“Well, that is good to know. Why don’t you go and get the film all set up and I’ll get our snacks sorted.” He leans over the counter and places a soft kiss to my lips. My body tingles from his kisses alone. A feeling I’ve only ever experienced with Caleb. An experience I will never feel with another person, because I know I’ll never trust another man to look after and care for me like Caleb does.
I climb down off the stool and walk away. I put the DVD into the machine and sit down on the couch, feeling content.
“Here we go, m’lady.” He bows and hands me my tub of ice cream, before placing the popcorn and chips on the coffee table.
Caleb sits down beside me and pulls me into his side. I press play on the DVD and open the ice cream. I should probably care that I’m about to eat my body weight in junk food, but right now, nothing and no one is going to take me away from my happy place.
***
I wake up with my head resting on a warm chest. I know instantly from the feel of the arms wrapped around me that it’s Caleb. I can’t even remember coming to bed last night, but I somehow think I’ve got this man to thank for not waking up with a stiff neck this morning.
I lift my head from his chest and watch him sleeping. He looks younger when he sleeps. He looks carefree, compared to when he’s awake. He’s constantly looking for ways to fix the mess I’m in. I feel bad for laying all of that on him, but I can’t do any of this without him. He’s my safety net. My security blanket. He’s my everything.
He stirs in his sleep and rubs his eyes.
“Good morning,” I say.
“Merry Christmas, beautiful.”
He pushes me carefully onto my back and moves the stray hair from my face. He leans into my face and rubs his nose across mine.
“Merry Christmas, Caleb.”
“I say we get up, I’ll make us some breakfast, and we can maybe take a little walk around the compound before our families get here. What do you think?”
“Sounds good to me. Can we just lie here for a few minutes and then I’ll get a shower?”
“Today is all about you. If you want to lie here all day, then that’s what we’ll do.”
“As good as that sounds, I am actually looking forward to our families coming together again. I just want to spend this five minutes with you.”
I push him onto his back and rest my head on his warm chest. I run my hand up and down his flat stomach.
“This feels… nice.”
