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8. Kiss under the mistletoe
“What about write a letter to Santa? You haven’t done that yet.”
“I did.” Her tone is somber. “Lola and I wrote our letters together while you were with my brothers.”
“Oh.”
Disappointment floods me when I realize she’s right—that her list is complete. My stomach churns at the thought of leaving her and returning to New York. It’s clear that things will never be the same between us… I just wish I knew what that meant for our future.
“Please tell me you won’t leave yet,” she says.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I assure her. “I have to be here to give Lola her Christmas present, don’t I?”
After speaking with Dylan, Presley and I visited Tinker Toys yesterday, and it’s safe to say that Lola is getting everything she wants for Christmas.
Presley sighs in relief as she snuggles closer. “I’m glad you’re staying.”
Me too.
Johanna hands me a neatly wrapped box with a bright red bow.
“What’s this?”
“It’s for you. It’s tradition for everyone to open this particular gift on Christmas Eve, and considering you’re part of the family now, I didn’t want to leave you out.”
My hands tremble as I carefully open the gift, peeling back several layers of white tissue paper to reveal a set of red-and-black flannel pajamas and a pair of black slippers. I look around and notice that we all got the same thing.
“Mom gives us all matching pajamas every year,” Presley says from her spot next to me on the couch.
“She shouldn’t have gotten me a pair,” I say quietly.
I feel guilty as hell, seeing as I’m an impostor. Johanna thinks that Presley and I are madly in love when, in reality, I coerced her daughter into bringing me home with her and then pretended to be dating her. Although it didn’t feel much like pretending when I was balls deep inside her perfect cunt a few hours ago.
“Yes, she should have.” Presley places her hand on my arm. “You wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want you to be,” she reminds me.
“What about your brothers? Won’t they be angry?”
I expect dirty looks from them all, but Harrison and Cash have left the room, and Dylan’s helping Lola into her PJs, ignoring me altogether.
“I asked them earlier, and they said they’re cool with it,” she tells me. “You impressed them yesterday with your reaction to their prank. Harrison thought for sure you’d threaten to sue and storm out of here on your private jet.”
I snicker. “If it were anyone else, I probably would have. However, I suspect I’d have done something similar if I had been in their shoes. You’re an extraordinary woman, Presley Stafford, and you’re lucky to have a family who would do anything for you.”
“You’re right; I really am.” She gives me a soft smile.
I wish I could be a part of it for real.
“We should go get changed,” Presley says.
“Yeah, okay.”
She heads to her parents’ bedroom and I use the bathroom down the hall. Once everyone returns to the living room dressed in our matching pajamas, Johanna claps her hands with joy.
“Let’s get a quick picture,” she says.
Everyone groans as she motions for her family to gather around the fireplace.
I think about moving to the other side of the room to make sure I’m not in the way, but I decide to stay in my place on the couch, staying outside the frame of their photo.
