The event begins wrapping up, and I don’t know what to do—except stand here like an idiot, watching her be everything I’ve ever wanted before I even realized I wanted anything atall.
“How was the event?” Luke asks as he finishes stretching out my knee after training.
“It was good,” I say as I sit up on the table.
“How’s your holiday shaping up?” He grabs some candy from his desk and pops them into his mouth like medicine.
“Same as always. Quiet.”
“You and Addison, mate. Same thing.”
I blink at him. “What do you mean?”
“She’s not doing anything either.” He stares at me like he’s trying to prod me along. “Tried to get her to spend it with Pippa and me, but she doesn’t want to be a third wheel. Said she’s gonna get takeaway and watch movies.”
My brain glitches for a second. The idea of Addison alone on Christmas? No. Absolutely not.
“Why are you telling me?” I ask, trying to sound casual and nonchalant.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Luke says, grinning as he leaves his own office.
I don’t know if I thought this through or not, but here I am, standing on the edge of something.
I’m inviting her for Christmas. It doesn’t have to be anything big. It doesn’t have to be anything she doesn’t want it to be. Just dinner. A movie. No pressure. I know we’ve got this whole “just until the end of the season” thing going, but that doesn’t mean she has to spend Christmas alone.
I showerand head up to her office.
“Hey,” I say, tapping on the doorframe.
“Hi.” She looks swamped, elbows deep in papers, eyebrows pinched.
“What are you doing?”
“Just some last-minute things before I log off for the holiday. I’ll still have to manage some correspondence, but all the large-scale bases are covered.” She gestures vaguely at the stacks of paper. “It’s boring admin stuff, but necessary.”
“Got it.” I sink down into the chair across from her. “So,” I say, trying to sound casual, like I haven’t been rehearsing this in my head for over an hour. “This whole alone-on-Christmas thing you’re doing? It doesn’t work for me.”
She blinks. “What?”
Brilliant. I’m fumbling this already.
“I just mean… I’m on my own too. With us playing on Boxing Day this year, Mum took a shift at the hospital. I’ve got no plans.”
“Okay?”
“I just thought… maybe you’d want to come over? Nothing wild. Just a decent meal. Watch a film. You can judge my decorating.”
“Spend Christmas with you?”
“There’s no catch, Addison,” I say, softer now. “Just you and me, doing what we always do, just on Christmas.”
Finally, a small, almost shy smile breaks across her face. “Can I still wear sweatpants?”
I laugh. “You can wear whatever you want.”
Her smile widens, and she nods. “Alright, Captain. You’ve got yourself a date.”
29
