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I shrug and watch as he tears the paper off and turns it over.

Lev just sits for a full minute, soaking in what he’s holding in his hands. After a short while, his eyes meet mine, and there’s nothing in those pools of blue but love and adoration. It makes my heart soar.

“Did you do this?” he asks quietly, referring to the eleven-by-fourteen-inch print he’s holding in his hand, his fingers tightening on the dark wood frame.

“I did,” I confirm, trying to hold back a smile.

“Dare . . . this . . . it’s us!” Lev turns the picture to show me, and I laugh, since I drew it and know exactly what it is. “I can’t believe you made this!”

The print is a drawing I did in between contracts and jobs. It’s us, lying side by side on the dock by the lake at sunset. It’s based on the night we met and hooked up there. Maybe that was the moment I knew that he was going to be mine? It was a special moment for me, and I wanted him to have a part of it, too.

“This is amazing. Thank you.” He sets the print down, pushes up on his knees, and tugs my head down for a searing kiss. When he pulls away, he shakes his head.

“You are so good. So talented. Wow,” he says, and my cheeks heat up from his praise.

“I just wanted you to have something of us,” I tell him.

He smiles again and kisses me. “I love it. I need to figure out where to hang it, but it’s going up.”

I kiss him again quickly.

“Here.” He hands me the next present, and I take it. It’s a medium-sized box, pretty flat and shaped like a rectangle.

“Did you get me a tie, Lev?” I tease. I know it’s not a tie because it has some weight to it.

“You’re a pain in the ass. Just open it.” The air in the room is light, and the tone is playful. I love it.

I smirk at him and peel the paper off of the box. Crinkling it into a small ball, I set it beside me and slowly take the lid off of the box. There’s red tissue paper folded over the gift, and I lift it with my hand. A gasp leaves my mouth, and my eyes fly up to Lev. He’s grinning, his dimple on full display.

I reach in and lift out the wrist cuff. It’s made of soft, black leather with three snaps to close around the wrist. In the center is a silver disk that has a debossed design of the Wolf Pack tattoo pressed into it—the tattoo that all of the guys got, including Nate, and the one that I got after Nate died. I’m having a hard time finding words. All I can do is exhale Lev’s name.

He sits in silence with me while I work to fasten the cuff. My hand is shaking, so Lev gets up and helps me.

“A client at the shop came in with something similar. Not the Wolf, of course, but the cuff, and I had to get you one.” After it’s in place, he kisses the palm of my hand. “It looks good.”

Our eyes meet, and I swallow hard. My eyes fill with tears, and I turn my wrist around to look at it.

“It . . . it’s, um . . . oh my god. It’s perfect.” I’m so taken aback by the thoughtfulness of this gift. My boyfriend is absolutely the best. Not only did he get that the Pack was something I chased after, but he also gave me this gift that makes me feel like I now have another piece of my brother with me. “Thank you,” I whisper. He pushes up on his knees and kisses me.

“You are so welcome.”

I hug him, and we pull away, our foreheads resting together as we both take a moment. I think we’re probably both thinking of Nate, and of us, and what this all means.

“I want this to also be a statement of commitment, Dare. I want you. I want you to be mine, now and in the future. It’s us. You and me.”

I sniff and nod against his forehead. “I want that too,” I say again. “I want that so badly. I’ve always wanted that.”

Lev chuckles. “I know.” His hand comes behind my head, and he pulls my face to his in a kiss that feels like we’re sealing our words. It’s a promise. A feeling of positive finality. I’m his. He’s mine. This is it. Us.

We take our moment and finish exchanging the remaining gifts. Lev opens mine to him, and it’s a framed photo that I found when I was doing some cleaning out of the basement. It’s Nate and Lev, standing shoulder to shoulder with me pyramiding on top of them. We’re in the pool, and we’re all beaming. Our noses are sunburnt, and our cheeks are pink from the summer sun. I remember the moment. I remember when my mom took it. Right after the photo, they both threw me off of their shoulders, and I belly-flopped into the pool. It means a lot to Lev, and I can see it in his face and the way that he reacts. He’s not quite as emotional as I was about the wrist cuff, but I think I might see a shine in his eyes.

The final gift is in a small, square gold box with a green bow on top. He hands it to me and tells me to read the tag. It says “To: Lev and Dare, From: Santa.” I quirk my lips and look at him. He has a shit-eating grin on his face.

“What is this?” I ask. “And why do I think that we’re both going to love it?”

Lev laughs out loud. “I can’t wait much longer, so open it.”

Lifting my eyebrow at him, I take the lid off and then peek inside. I move the white tissue paper out of the way, and a guffaw escapes my lips. I reach in and pull out a black leather jock. There’s a delicate chain that runs from side to side across the top, swooping down just slightly. It’s clearly only for decoration. I have never worn a jock strap in my life, and my cock twitches at the thought.