Page 26 of Christmas By Design

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” I slide under the blankets and pat the area next to me. “You coming in or what?”

That wry smile stays right where it is as she opens my coat and lets it pool at her feet. I curse the fact that I’m not twenty anymore because I would take her again right now if I could.

Hopefully, she’s okay with quality over quantity.

She saunters over to me and lowers herself onto the floor. She lies down with her back to me and wiggles around, trying to get comfortable on the hard surface. Once she settles, I lie on my back, near to her but not touching. We said we just wanted to get it out of our systems. I want to be respectful of her if I’m out of hers. But she’s far from out of mine, and I doubt I’ll get much sleep tonight.

Enough time passes in silence that I think she’s fallen asleep, but then she takes a sharp inhale. “Do you…” She trails off and grunts in frustration. “Do you want to hold me?” Then, she adds, “You might be right about the body heat.”

I chuckle and narrowly avoid blurting out that, fuck yeah, I want to hold her. I roll to my side, pulling her so the silken skin of her back is pressed up against my chest. She weaves her legs into mine and presses her cold feet to my shins. I slide my arm under her head to give her my bicep as a pillow. She sighs contentedly and melts into me as my other arm encircles her waist even tighter.

It’s not long before we’re both drifting off, snuggled together and as warm as we can get. My last thought before completely giving into sleep is that I could get used to being pressed up against Gemma Woodard just like this.

Chapter 16

Gemma

Beckett must have gotten up sometime in the middle of the night to tend to the fire, because when I wake up with a crisp, blue, winter sunrise shining in my face from the living room window, the fire is still roaring, and we’re no longer entwined like we were when we fell asleep.

Light snoring comes from behind me, and I slip out from under the blankets as carefully as I can so as not to disturb him. I throw his coat around me and tiptoe over to the counter where I had left my phone last night. Beckett must have powered it off for me, because nothing happens when I tap it. That was smart, considering there’s nowhere to charge it. And kind. And thoughtful.

It’s been a minute since someone thought to do something small and meaningful for me. At least, that’s what I tell myself when tears prick my eyes, because it’s silly to be emotional over someone looking out for me in this way. I’m usually the one who has to be in charge of all of the things, looking out for everyone else. Even living with my parents—they love Nova and me and are always willing to jump in to help, but they don’t generally take care of small things like this. It’s not that they don’t want to. That’s just not how we operate.

I power on my phone and quietly move to the office, shutting the door softly behind me. As soon as my phone lights up, I video call my mom. She answers on the first ring.

“Hi sweetie,” she says as her smiling face fills the screen. She pulls the fluffy edges of her robe closed tighter. Her image jostles as she props the phone up on something in front of her. “It’s good to see your face. That storm was pretty intense.”

“Are you all okay?” I try to keep my teeth from chattering in the cold away from the fireplace and Beckett’s warm body. And then, I try to keep the flush from rising in my face at the thought of Beckett, naked under the blankets in the next room.

“It wasn’t as bad here as it was where you are. Your dad was watching the radar all night. Most if it missed us and hit you, he thinks.”

Of course he was watching the radar all night. Checking the weather and playing amateur meteorologist during a storm is peak Midwestern Dad. And if you looked up that term in the dictionary, there would be a picture of him right next to the definition.

I grin at that, even as I glance out the window to see nothing but giant, white piles of snow as far as the eye can see. “Yeah,” I sigh as my mood drops. “I don’t know when we’ll be able to get out of here. I think Beckett’s car is probably buried.”

“That’s okay, Gemmy. As long as you’re safe. Nova is fine with us. She’s actually still sleeping.” Mom is trying to be reassuring, but my damn tears are starting again.

“It’s Christmas Eve, though.” My voice is pitiful and small. “I love Christmas Eve with you.”

“I know, honey. But we can have a redo of Christmas if we need to, as long as you’re safe,” she repeats, sterner this time. I know she’s right. We were lucky to make it here before the storm, and even though it’s cold, we have a fire and food. Things could be worse.

“I didn’t get her a present yet,” I whisper as I wipe at my eyes. “I was going to do it last night when we got back.”

Mom tilts her head to the side. “You’ve been so busy with this job, Gemmy-bear.” It’s not scolding. She’s offering me an explanation, but the guilt creeps in, nonetheless. “Nova’s so young. She won’t remember. Just focus on getting home as safely as you can, okay? We can worry about the rest later.”

I nod silently and swipe tears away from my eyes again. “Give Nova a big squeeze for me, okay? I should probably go and save my phone battery.”

“Of course, honey. We’ll see you soon.”

We say our goodbyes, and I take an extra few seconds after I turn off my phone again to collect myself. When I think I’ve shoved my sadness down far enough that it’ll stay put, I leave the office and make my way back to the warmth of the living room.

I try to slide back under the covers carefully, but as soon as I’m nestled in, Beckett rolls to me and wraps his arm around my torso. He presses a hot kiss against the back of my neck.

“How’s Nova?” he asks.

“Sleeping,” I reply simply. “Sorry if I was loud.”

“You weren’t. I guessed you’d call her first thing.”