Chris vanishes down the hall again and returns with a massive ball of twine, a smug look on his face like he’s just saved Christmas. “Emergency sugar rations,” he says, dropping it on the coffee table beside a mountain of candy canes and wrapped chocolates. “We decorate, we snack. Win-win.”
We start tying little loops and hanging them on the branches, and somewhere between the first candy cane and the sixth chocolate, the space around me… shrinks.
Kane steps in close behind me to reach a higher branch, his chest brushing my shoulder. One big hand settles on my waist, steadying me like he’s worried I might topple over from the sheer weight of existing.
“Easy there,” he murmurs, breath warm against my ear. “Can’t have you face-planting into the tree. Bad for the ornaments.”
“I am perfectly stable,” I say, even as my pulse kicks up. “You’re the one crowding.”
His thumb strokes once across the curve of my hip before he lets go.
Noel moves in on my other side with a string of tinsel. He ducks under my arm, his shoulder sliding along mine as he reaches past. Knuckles skim down my spine by accident, leaving a trail of sparks in their wake.
“Hold this?” he asks, looping the strand into my hands without waiting for an answer.
I lift my arms, and he steps in behind me to adjust the angle, his chest pressing against my back, voice low by my ear. “Just like that. Don’t move.”
“As if I could,” I mutter. My heart is pounding so loudly I’m terrified someone will comment on it.
A moment later, my hair slips forward over my shoulder. Chris is suddenly in front of me, close enough that I can see the darker ring around his irises.
“Hang on,” he says softly.
His fingers slide into my hair, tucking the strand back behind my ear with unnecessary care. His knuckles brush my cheekbone, warm and rough, and instead of pulling away, he lets his hand linger along my jaw for a heartbeat. Maybe two.
“You’re going to get sap all over it if you’re not careful,” he adds, his thumb grazing the corner of my mouth like he’s checking for smudges.
“I amverycareful,” I say, a little too breathless. “You’re all the ones behaving like unsupervised teenagers in a tinsel factory.”
“All I’m hearing,” Kane says from somewhere to my left, “is that you volunteered to supervise us.”
I should feel boxed in. Three big men bracketing me, reaching around me, close enough that every breath brings a different mix of cedar, cold air, and something purely them. Instead, I find myself leaning in. Testing it. When I step to the side, I accidentally bump into Noel’s chest. His hand slides to my hip instantly, steady and sure. When I reach for a higher branch, Kane is suddenly there, palm flat against the small of my back, holding me like I’m something precious and breakable. Chris passes me another candy cane, our fingers tangling for a second longer than necessary.
My brain keeps whispering,Too much, too close, too fast.
My body keeps whispering,More.
“Hand me that star?” Noel asks eventually, nodding toward the wooden star, dark-stained and smooth, like someone loved it enough to wear the edges down over time.
I pass it to him, and he heads for the ladder they’ve set up beside the tree. He climbs, the muscles in his thighs flexing under worn denim, jacket stretching over his back with every step. I try—reallytry—not to stare.
I fail immediately.
He reaches the top, bracing one hand on the ceiling while squeezing it up there. The movement pulls his shirt tight over his stomach, and I swear I see God for a second. He is bulging…
When he climbs back down, I drag my gaze up way too late. He catches it; of course he does. That slow, knowing grin spreads across his face.
“See something you like, sweetheart?” he drawls.
Caught.
“Maybe. Possibly,” I say, lifting my chin. “I’m not admitting anything without a lawyer present.”
Kane barks out a laugh. “Your face is admitting plenty.”
“It’s fine,” Noel says, unbothered. “Equal opportunity. She can objectify all of us. I vote in favor.”
Chris returns with more tinsel. “Focus,” he says mildly, though there’s amusement tugging at his mouth. “Horny later. Sparkly now.”
