Sincethen, the company had gone from strength to strength. Demand to rent a property from McCrutchens’ Homes was higher than ever, to the point where we had invested in three new propertiesthatTristan was undertaking complete renovations of. He was in his element.
“I might have to start spanking your ass if you keep calling methat,”I growled, finding Tristan’s cock and stroking it.
“Promises, promises,” he winked.
I pulled his mouth to mine, kissing his beautiful lips before asking,“How do you want me, Bug?”
His eyes flashed with heat.“On all fours.”
I could have predictedthatbefore he said it, it was his favorite position, both when he was fucking me or when I was fucking him.
He rolled off me, grabbing the lube from the bedside table as I rolled onto my stomach. Positioning himself behind me, I pressed my chest against the bedsheets as I lifted my ass into the air so Tristan could prepare me.
I hissed when cold liquid drizzled between my ass cheeks, but as he rubbed it over my hole, I bit my lip to stop an indecent groan from escaping. Our bedroom was the furthest away from the room Emma and Rob had slept in, but I didn’t want to risk them hearing us.
Tristan eased two fingers into me, smearing the lube inside me before rubbing more lube over his cock. He lined himself up and slowly pushed inside me, the two of us moaning salaciously together.
“Bug,”I panted, looking over my shoulder at him when he was all the way in. His brows furrowed in concern. It was one of the many things I loved about him; he always made sure I was comfortable. I grinned at him.“Fuck me hard. Don’t hold back.”
A devious smirk crept over his lips as he pulled his cock out, slamming it back in. He threw his head back, a dark chuckle floating into the air.“Merry fucking Christmas to me.”
Despite my attempts to get Rob and Emma to let me hire staff to cook Christmas dinner, they refused, claiming they were looking forward to cooking in my kitchen. I didn’t know why. They’d recently moved into a new housethathad a kitchenthatrivaled mine.
Still, as they insisted, they took over my kitchen and prepared the most incredible feast anyone could have had.
We sat in the dining room, a room I had never used until I became part of the Crutchens family because I never had anyone to have dinner with. Rob sat at the head of the table, carving the turkey, while Emma sat next to him, plating up vegetables for everyone.
Next to her was Ivy, who continually moaned about how disgusting brussel sprouts were, while Holly was engrossed in her phone, no doubt texting Carly.
At the other end of the table was Bella Matthews. With a little convincing, she moved back to Henderson and took a new job as Rob’s PA—Poor Alice couldn’t keep up with the amount of work he and I generated. It took Bella a little while to warm to me, but we were well on our way to becoming firm friends.
On the subject of Alice, she and her husband, Clive, had joined us for Christmas dinner, and I couldn’t help but notice how Clive spent the whole time with a hand resting on her baby bump. It transpired they’d wanted a child for years but had never tried because they knew they couldn’t afford it.
The enormous pay rise I gave her contributed to their family growing.
Finally, Tristan sat next to Alice, and I sat next to him, and while everyone enjoyed the delicious meal, I tried my hardest to keep my nerves at bay, the ring in my pocket feeling like it weighed a ton.
What if Tristan said no?
Emma was certain he wouldn’t. She and Rob were the only two who knew of my plan to propose to Tristan after I’d asked them for their blessing. Emma hadevenhelped me pick out the ring. After we’d picked out the platinum band with a black line running through the center of it, she’d pulled me into a hug and told me I was the best son-in-law she could have ever hoped for.
I’d be man enough to admitthatI had a little cry atthat.
Once everyone had finished their dinner and were ready for an afternoon snooze, I stood, tapping my wine glass to get everyone’s attention. All eyes fell on me, and although I was used to making public speeches, nerves fired through me.
I cleared my throat.“I know you’re all full of food and ready to have a Christmas nap, but Ijustwanted to say a few words.”I swallowed, trying to slow my racing heart.“Until last year, I never knew what it was like to celebrate Christmas with a family, but because of each one of you sitting here at this table, I now do.”Tristan’s hand cupped the back of my thigh, giving it a reassuring squeeze. I met Emma’s eyes across the table.“Each one of you has given me more than I ever deserved. You’ve given me your trust.”I raised my glass to Emma, who smiled.“You’ve given me your loyalty and friendship.”This time, I raised my glass to Rob, Alice, and Clive.“You took a chance on me when you had no need to,”I said, lifting my glass to Bella, who bowed her head.“And you’ve given me…”I paused, looking over at the twins.“Well, you’ve given me lots of grief and taken all my money for the swear jar.”
“Maybe you should stop swearingthen,”Ivy retorted.
I scoffed.“We all knowthatwill never happen, andevenif I did stop swearing, I’m sure you’d find another way to spend my hard-earned cash.”
“Probably,”the girls replied together, earning laughs from around the table.
I shook my head, grinning at them. I was a sucker when it came to the twins, worse than Tristan was. He at least made them do chores to earn pocket money. I couldn’t help but spoil them, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
The grin slid off my face as I turned to look at Tristan. This was it. I sucked in a deep breath and sent out a silent wishthathe wouldn’t say no.“And you’ve given me love.”He smiled up atme, his eyes twinkling. I held his stare, momentarily forgetting everyone was watching.“Bug, a year ago, you barged into my life and flipped everything I knew upside down. And I’m so damn glad you did. You helped me more than you’ll ever know, and you make me want to be a better man. Every day is an adventure with you, and I never want it to end.”I slid my hand into my pocket, cupping the ring box.“So, Bug. Tristan.”I lowered myself to my knee, gasps ringing out around the table as Tristan’s jaw fell open.“Would you do me the honor of marrying me?”
His eyes darted from mine to the ring box and back to mine again, tears filling them. I held my breath, waiting for the rejection. But it never came.
