Chapter Thirteen
Sven
A soft bed with luxurious bed linens, a large bowl of buttered popcorn, and a movie on the television was the perfect way to end the night. Dom was snuggled at my side and not on the other end of a phone connection. This was the arrangement I longed for during all our buddy-watch nights. I loved having Dom next to me where I could witness his reactions to whatever we watched. I felt his laughter rumble through his body and saw the wry curve of his lips as he criticized the wholly unrealistic action sequences playing on the screen. I mostly watched him instead of the movie, and I understood why Dominic preferred to see the world through Molly Beth’s reactions.
“This is better than I ever imagined,” I said.
Dom nodded as he lifted a handful of popcorn. “It’s not a terrible movie if you just accept the franchise is meant for entertaining escapism and not as an accurate representation of…anything.”
“I couldn’t tell you a single thing that’s happened so far,” I said. Dom looked at me with a quizzical expression that made me laugh. “I know that you’re the neatest popcorn eater I’ve ever seen though. Not a single kernel has dropped on the bed.” I gestured to my side, where several buttery kernels had rolled to their final resting place on the comforter. “You don’t take your eyes away from the screen to eat or drink.” I cocked my head to the side. “How’d you keep up a steady text commentary with me during buddy watches?”
“I barely looked away from my phone on those nights,” Dom said. “I was more interested in your thoughts and reacted to your opinions rather than sharing my own.”
I cocked my head to the side and narrowed my eyes. “You mean you liked to rile me up by arguing?”
Dom shrugged and ate the popcorn in his hand with maddening neatness. I hadn’t planned to knock his kernels free. My hand had acted independently when it snaked out and smacked his arm. That was my story, and I was sticking to it. Dom stared at me with a shocked expression that quickly morphed into one of retribution. Instead of being afraid, I shivered with delight. He tackled me to the bed, spilling the rest of the popcorn onto the comforter, and pinned me beneath him. Dom’s fingers sought my ticklish spots, and I alternated between laughing and begging for mercy. I’d been well and truly fucked, so I didn’t think it was possible to have any spark left. Turned out I had a can-do libido that would arise, literally, to any challenge.
“Huh-uh,” Dom said when he felt my arousal prodding him. “You’re not getting rewarded for bratty behavior.”
“Yet you’re kissing a trail down my stomach.”
“Teaching you a lesson,” he replied.
I tucked my arms under my head and submitted myself to his mastery, watching as he worked my dick with his mouth and hands while maintaining eye contact. Dom crawled back up my body after he swallowed my release. He kissed me, and I loved the way I tasted on his tongue. I would’ve returned the favor, but he hadn’t gotten hard again and seemed content with two orgasms for the day.
“Well, have you learned something important?” Dom asked when we parted for breath.
“What it feels like to be cherished.”
Dom’s lips parted into a wide smile. “Good, because you are.”
I brushed my fingertips over his cheeks, his bristly jaw, and his full mouth. “I’m falling in love with you, Dom.”
“I’m falling for you too.”
“Don’t let go,” I whispered.
“I’ve got you.”
Just like the earlier conversation about our intense feelings, we sealed our vow with a kiss. One stretched into two and then became a make-out session that lasted long beyond the rolling credits on the movie.
I knew the rest of the holiday wouldn’t pass without bumps or potholes in the road just because we’d culled the toxic people from the group. I expected John’s and Emerson’s presence to linger in haunted expressions, but Janet and Christian proved to be more resilient the next morning. They’d worked together to prepare a lovely breakfast for everyone.
“I baked cranberry and orange scones,” Christian said. “First time in several years, so they might not be up to scratch.”
“They smell like heaven,” I said, reaching into the breadbasket and helping myself.
Helen assessed her oldest daughter over a cup of coffee. “You look fifteen years younger since tossing the cheating bastard out.” Then she reached for a scone. “Christian, you probably haven’t baked pastries because Emerson banned butter and sugar in your home. It’s unnatural if you ask me and probably accounts for his miserable existence.”
“Mom,” Molly Beth whispered.
I bit my lip and lowered my head so I wouldn’t laugh. Dom, who’d just taken a drink of orange juice, spluttered but managed not to choke. I peeked from the corner of my eye to gauge the other reactions around the table. Dom Sr. covered his mouth with his napkin while Christian saluted his grandmother with a scone.
Janet snorted. “It’s okay. There’s no need to tiptoe around us.” She placed her hand on Christian’s shoulder, and he smiled at her. “We’ve had a shock, to be sure, but both of us have already taken steps to put our lives in order. We’re going to come out of this stronger than ever.”
“I have no doubt,” Molly Beth said.
“What miracles have you pulled off this close to Christmas?” Helen asked.
“The first thing I did was hire legal representation,” Janet replied. “My dear friend is one of the best divorce lawyers in Colorado, and she is all too happy to stick it to John.”
“Glad to know there’s at least one woman John hasn’t already stuck it to,” Helen said.
“Mom!” Molly Beth said.
“You’re right,” Helen replied. “You and I never fell for his smarmy ways either.”
“She missed the point of my objection,” Molly Beth said to Dominic.
“No, love. She ignored it. Big difference.” He leaned toward his wife. “Why would you expect anything different after all this time?”
Molly Beth shrugged and reached for a scone.
“What about you, Christian?” Helen asked.
“I’ve called some friends, and they’re going to help me pack and move out as soon as I return to Fort Collins. I’m going to stay with Mom until I can sort out a place of my own.” Then Christian snickered. “Apparently, Emerson is so universally disliked my friends offered to move my stuff out before I got back. One of them was ready to go over as soon as we disconnected the call.”
“I’m so happy you have amazing friends,” Helen said.
Janet looked at her watch and made a sound of distress. She picked up her fork and tucked into her breakfast.
“Do you have somewhere you need to be?” Molly Beth asked.
“AA meeting,” Janet said. “There’s a group in Vail. I’ll attend their meetings until I can get home and find a local group.”
Helen stood up, rounded the table, and hugged her daughter. “You make me so proud.”
The tears came then, first with Janet, then Helen, and finally Molly Beth. We picked up our plates and carried them to the family room to give the women some privacy. Janet looked nervous about her meeting until someone suggested we go to lunch and do some shopping afterward. Dom looked less eager about the shopping part, but he quickly got into the spirit once we walked through the charming town. He even snuck off once to make a purchase he wouldn’t let me see.
“You’ll have to wait until Christmas,” Dom said.
“Two days? That’s forever.”
He showed me mercy on Christmas Eve. We tiptoed back out to the tree after everyone went to bed. Dom moved the gifts around and pulled out a box wrapped with shiny red paper and adorned with a silver bow. “Don’t bother telling me it’s too pretty to open. I saw you tear into your birthday gifts.”
I looked up from his present to meet his gaze. “But this is from you.”
Dom leaned forward and kissed me. “And there will be many more. Open it.”
I took the stick-on bow off the package and placed it on Dom’s bare chest. “Just so you know, you’re the only present I need.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” he said, gesturing for me to hurry.
I carefully unwrapped the gift, much to his annoyance, and held my breath when I opened the lid. Shredded silver paper filled the box, and I gave Dom a suspicious look.
“There’s something delicate in there, so handle it with care.”
I carefully sorted through the paper strips until I bumped into something made of glass. Curving my fingers around the cool surface, I eased it from the protective bed. I knew immediately the significance of both the gift and Dom’s words of caution when a beautiful crystal heart ornament hung from my fingers. Tears filled my eyes. This was more than a Christmas ornament; this was Dom giving me his heart and urging me not to break it.
“It’s stunning.” I carefully laid the heart in the palm of my other hand and studied the intricate details. It wasn’t made of solid, smooth glass but several delicate strands knitted together like a sweater. My own heart pounded in my chest like a bass drum when I looked into his eyes. “I will treasure this always.”
Dom reached forward and gently stroked the glass heart. “There were several options to choose from, but this one snagged my attention and wouldn’t let go.” He smirked. “Kind of like the man holding it.” Tears slid down my face, and he brushed them away. “The knitting on this ornament reminded me of how you put my heart back together again.”
“Dom,” I whispered.
His green eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “One text thread at a time until you pieced me back together again and wove yourself into the fiber of my being in ways no one else ever has or will.”
Gently placing the heart back in the box, I set it aside and crawled into his lap. I’d made a similar sentimental purchase from the same boutique he’d bought my gift. I reached under the tree for his present and handed it to him. “Merry Christmas.”
Dom kissed me before accepting the box I’d wrapped in navy blue paper with silver snowflakes. He took forever to untie the silver ribbon, even though his body thrummed with eagerness.
“Demure season is over, baby. It’s time to indulge,” I told him. “Tear into it.”
Dom glanced up with a scowl. “I don’t know what a demure season means.”
I waved him off and threatened to unwrap the gift myself. Dom twisted his upper body so I couldn’t snatch the box, but he moved his nimble fingers faster. He chuckled when he saw the store logo on top of the box.
“Yeah, yeah. Great minds,” I said.
Dom snickered as he removed the lid. He stared down at the ornament for so long that I wondered if I’d made a mistake. I’d found a display of round silver ornaments with illustrated couples painted on them. I’d found one with a similar likeness to us. The brunet guy even had a thick covering of scruff on his jaw. Cartoon Dom and Sven stared lovingly into one another’s eyes and wore matching sappy grins. The artist had painted a gorgeous mountain view in the background and the year below the couple. Dom gently traced the ornament with his index finger.
“Turn it over,” I said.
Dom followed my instructions with great care. “Our first Christmas,” he read.
“Of many,” I told him.
Dom lifted his head, and it was my turn to brush away his stray tears. “How many?”
I carefully took the box from him and set it next to mine before giving him my full attention. “As many as you want.”
“All of them.”
I pushed Dom to the rug and lay on top of him. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
The stretch of days between Christmas and New Year’s Eve was the best of my life. Dom and I alternated between rowdy family time and tender private moments. I drifted through my days in a blissful fog I never wanted to clear.
I watched the flames dance in the outdoor fire pit and nestled closer to Dom. I’d never considered myself a lap cat, but my ass had never met thighs like Dom’s either. Thinking I was cold, he wrapped the throw blanket tighter around us.
“Everything okay? You’re awfully quiet,” Dom said.
“I refuse to believe that all good things end. Why can’t we just float from one good thing to another without saying goodbye?”
Dom nuzzled his cold nose against my neck. “Where’d that come from?”
“I just love this vacation bubble so much, and it’s making me sad to think about leaving it.”
Dom cupped my face and turned my head so he could look into my eyes. “Are you worried about what will happen to us when we get back to real life?”
“No. Maybe,” I admitted. “We both work a lot of hours. I have never felt so secure in a relationship, and I don’t want to lose this.”
“So we won’t,” Dom said.
“That easy, huh?”
“It can be,” he replied. “Tonight is the perfect time to make some promises to each other.”
I chuckled. “Most resolutions fail within the first month.”
“We’re not most people, and I’m not talking about making casual resolutions with little to no thought given to how to carry them out.” He tapped the end of my nose. “I want to make firm commitments to you.”
I angled closer to his big body. “Sounds like you’ve given this a lot of thought.”
“Because you’re always on my mind.”
The melody to Willie Nelson’s song played in my head, but Dom kissed me before I could hum it. Best not to ruin this beautiful moment with my off-key renditions. “I love this idea. You go first.”
“Honest communication. Always.”
“Agreed,” I said, then kissed his lips. “Our relationship comes first. Always.”
“Easiest yes I can make.” Dom’s mouth lingered against mine when we sealed that promise. “Your dreams are my dreams, and mine are yours.”
“Hell yes!” I nipped his bottom lip after our kiss. “We create traditions like movie nights and stick to them.”
“Absolutely.” Another promise sealed with a smooch, but Dom slid his tongue between my lips to deepen our connection.
The patio door opened behind us, but we didn’t bother pulling apart.
“Countdown to midnight has started,” Molly Beth said. “The ball is dropping.”
“Child, can’t you see they’re focused on different balls?” Helen asked. “Close the door and leave them alone.”
I pulled back from Dom and smiled. “God save Helen, our queen.”
“She’s a national treasure.”
“I love you, Dom.”
He sucked in a breath but didn’t cough. Dom’s eyes shone brighter than the stars above. “I love you too.”
From inside, his family cheered when the clock struck midnight. I looped my arms around Dom’s neck and said, “Happy New Year.”
“The happiest.”
Fat snowflakes fell gently from the sky like nature’s confetti as Dom kissed me.