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“I hope you don’t mind,” Don says, wiping his hands on his jeans. “But when I was sorting out your friend’s place and upgrading the security, I found a gift under the tree with your name on it, so I brought it here. It’s under the tree if you want to open it.”
Candy’s eyes light up with surprise and delight. She bounces up from the couch, and I follow her to the tree. Sure enough, there’s a parcel under there that I don’t recognise. It’s a box about the size of a piece of paper, wrapped in beautiful navy paper with a silver bow nestled beneath the branches. Candy eagerly picks it up and holds it in her lap as we all gather around her, curious to see what’s inside.
She carefully peels back the paper, revealing a sleek black box with the logo of a high-end lingerie brand embossed in silver. Candy’s cheeks flush as she opens the box and reveals a matching set of black lace bra and panties nestled inside. She pulls out the bra and holds it up in front of her, admiring the delicate lace and the intricate design.
“Wow,” she breathes. “This is…really fucking funny actually.” Her face is on fire but she’s laughing as she tosses the expensive lingerie back into the box and sets it to one side.
“Sounds like there’s a story there,” Frost says with a smirk.
“I lost…well, all my shit, when I broke up with my ex. He took everything, even my underwear. This is Elle’s idea of a joke because she had to lend me everything.”
“Even panties?”
“Everything.”
“What a jackass. Is that the guy we beat up? Can we beat him up again?” I joke.
“Umm, a different guy.”
“You sure know how to pick them, Floss,” North says, leaning back and watching her with amusement.
Candy shakes her head but there’s a small smile on her lips. “Yeah, I guess I do. But hey, at least now I have some new underwear.”
Don chuckles. “Well, I’m looking forward to a fashion show later.”
We settle back into the couches, the fire blazing merrily in front of us. For a while, there’s a comfortable silence as we all bask in the warmth of the room and the company of each other. I glance around at my brothers, feeling a sense of pride and affection for each of them. They’ve come so far from when we first started the club. We’ve been through so much together, and yet here we are, still standing strong.
And now, with Candy in our lives, it feels like we have something even more precious to protect. I catch her eye and she smiles at me, her eyes sparkling with happiness.
“Thank you,” she says softly, and I know she’s not just talking about the decorations.
I take her hand in mine and squeeze it gently. “Merry Christmas, Candy.”
“Merry Christmas, Dash,” she replies, her gaze flicking back to the tree. “Looks like you guys have some presents to open. Go on!”
She gets off the sofa to make room for Wint when he comes in, protesting that she’s happier on the floor, curled up by the fire like a cat.
We all laugh and settle in to open the gifts under the tree. It’s a strange feeling, opening presents with my brothers. We’ve never really done anything like this before. But as each of us unwraps our gifts, the atmosphere in the room lightens and becomes more jovial. Don opens a new leather jacket from me,Frost gives a set of fancy whiskey glasses to North, and Wint gives me a gift card to my favourite bookstore. Despite being insanely busy this year, it looks like all of us have taken the time to find a gift that we think each other will like.
Candy is sitting in the middle of the floor, surrounded by wrapping paper and ribbons, her face lit up with delight as she watches us all. She just fits with us. Sure, we’re a dysfunctional, violent, and fiercely loyal family, but we’re a family nonetheless and we want to share that with her.
Eyeing the small pile of presents still under the tree, I know that the others feel the same. There’s five gifts remaining, despite orders that we wouldn’t get her anything. Five gifts. Not four. Meaning even North picked something out for Candy.
I glance over at North with a raised eyebrow, but he just shrugs nonchalantly and leans back against the sofa. Candy seems to notice the exchange and quirks an eyebrow at me.
“What?” she asks, a mischievous glint in her eye.
“Looks like you have another gift or two under the tree, Gumdrop,” I say, nodding towards the remaining presents under the tree.
She looks surprised but excited as she scrambles up from the floor and starts ripping through the wrapping paper. One by one, she opens each gift, revealing a lady’s crash helmet and leather jacket from Don, a course of one to one self defence lessons from Frost, a delicate gold necklace from Wint, which she puts on straight away and which I think may be some sort of subtle collar, an e-reader from me, and finally, a small box from North.
She looks up at North curiously, and he silently nods for her to open it. With a smile, she carefully unwraps the box to reveal a pair of keys inside nestled on a bed of red satin. She frowns.
“It’s the key to this house,” he says gruffly. “You have a job at our club for as long as you want it, and a home in this house for as long as you need it.”
“And the other one?”
“It’s the key to the dungeon…and an invitation to play anytime you like.”
