Chapter 12
Briar
The littles were all in their pajamas now.
They couldn't have been more adorable. All that morning I could barely take my eyes off Rivi.
The more I watched him, the more I realized I was falling under his spell.
It wasn't that he was new to all of this.
Honestly, I'd preferred experienced partners in my past. No.
It was his extreme innocence and wonder at this perfect and magical time of year.
It enthralled me.
And it vexed Trent.
We had cold cut sandwiches for lunch. Rivi chose to sit next to me on the couch with his plate. Nothing I could do about that. Trent was just going to have to live with it because this boy was latching on to me and I had zero plans to stop him.
Not caring if Trent overheard me, I said to Rivi, “I love your Michael jammies. Just so you know, Little Pan.”
He grinned up at me, his dark eyes squinting behind his glasses. “You remembered.”
“Of course.”
He leaned in and whispered. “Little Pan. I like that a lot.” His eyes flashed behind his lenses.
This boy. I wanted to hold him in my lap and never let go. If Trent knew what I was thinking, he was either going to kick me out of this house or kill me. So be it.
Early in the afternoon, it started snowing. We all went to the windows to look out and admire the beauty.
The littles continued to watch movies and giggle a lot. The room was warm and cozy, with beautiful artwork of men on the walls. Most were abstract nudes. Not necessarily erotic but more romantic. I found an easy chair and studied each one before taking a short nap.
I was awakened by a whisper in my ear.
“Are you still asleep?”
Slowly, I opened my eyelids. Rivi's eyes peered at me from over the tops of his glasses which had slid down low on his nose.
“Nope.”
“Sorry if I woke you but I didn't think you would want to miss such a beautiful sunset right before all the trees get lit.”
“No, I don't want to miss that at all.”
Rivi grinned, then for the very first time put his hand on mine and lightly squeezed. Our only other touching had consisted of me brushing his shoulder with my hand. The skin-on-skin contact zinged through my body. I pushed myself up from the chair and turned my hand to grip him back.
He tugged and said, “Come over to this window here. It's the best view.”
“All right.” I let him steer me where he wanted me to go.
Already, the sky was a brilliant pink and orange mixture toward the mountains where the snow clouds had parted. The color was so brilliant and alive I doubted there was any way to name it and be accurate in the description.
The part of the house where this room was located was between the first and second floor. We were overlooking the rows of the pine forest from the perfect vantage to see all of the decorated trees when they lit up.
I glanced quickly from side to side but didn't see Trent.
Rivi and I still held hands. I should not have felt nervous, but whatever unspoken issue Trent had with Rivi taking a liking to me, and me to him, still existed.
I had to tread carefully. Trent was my good friend.
This was his property. I'd had plenty of time today to take him aside alone and speak to him.
But I lost my nerve every time I thought about it.
When I was a kid, my father had called me the great procrastinator. Some things never changed.
Rivi swung his hand and mine went with it. His fingers interlocked with mine. It all felt so natural.
The room was noisy, glasses clinking with ice, littles laughing and talking excitedly, men chatting. More guests had joined us here since I'd fallen asleep. The air was electric.
Suddenly, the orange sun dipped below a cloud and revealed itself hovering over a mountain top. Slowly it sank behind the snowy peak. Just at that moment, all the lights came on down below and the trees sparkled to life.
The entire room filled with voices of awe and surprise and wonder. Christmas was truly here.
“Santa's on his way!” Rivi kept his voice slow for my ears only. It was so sweet.
“He'll see this place from way up high.”
“The Christmas lights on the trees will be like a beacon.”
“Exactly,” I replied.
I felt the tap on my shoulder. “Presents.”
I turned and saw Trent holding out a small box. To me. He stood partially between me and Rivi, and I had to let go of Rivi's hand to take the package. He had a stack of them and handed another large one to Rivi who grabbed it gratefully, then breathed out a quick “Thank you.”
“I didn’t expect this. Seriously?” I asked Trent, turning the present over in my hands.
“Seriously.”
I looked Trent in the eye, trying to read him, but he glanced away too quickly for me to assess what he might be feeling knowing that he’d seen Rivi holding my hand.
Trent said nothing more and continued down the line handing everybody a present.
I'd seen the packages stacked under the big tree, but I didn't know who they were for.
Now I understood they were for all of us.
Trent missed nothing. He forgot nothing.
He was the most generous person I'd ever known without being ostentatious about it.
The sky turned even more brilliant, then slowly darkened. The rows of lit trees looked unearthly in the lightly falling snow.
The boys were murmuring. “Can we open them now?”
“Yes,” Trent said.
I held mine tightly in one hand. Rivi stared down at his. They were all beautifully wrapped with satin bows. Mine was gilt green. Rivi’s was red with little sleighs all over it.
Rivi fell to his knees and tore at the paper. He pulled out box containing the newest, most expensive game station brand. The other boys got the same. They jumped up and down.
“And it’s fully loaded with tons of the newest games,” Trent explained, waving his hand through the air. “I don’t know what all, but my assistants tell me it’s what everyone wants.”
“Wow, thank you!” They all spoke at once.
Rivi caressed his box like it was made of gold.
I ripped open my gift. What would Trent have ever thought to give me?
Under the paper was a plain white box. I lifted the cardboard lid to see a fancy, lace-edged envelope with the words printed: Bet you thought I forgot your holiday bonus.
I poked it open and saw… a check. I lifted the paper a little more.
Trent gave Christmas bonuses every year, but this was more than usual.
$10k. I didn’t show it around. I wanted to keep it private.
But everyone could tell it was something good.
I glanced up.
“Maybe I’m too old for games?” I murmured.
Trent heard me and shot me a look. “Buy your own.”
With this kind of bonus, of course I could.
Colin had a box like mine. Since he worked the club, his was probably a bonus, too. The others sported high end bottles of tequila and glassware.
My heart was beating fast. Not just from the money, but now because he’d given me so much I felt the need to please even more. Did he really want me to stay away from Rivi?
I looked at Rivi rising to his feet, hugging the box to him.
Maybe Trent was right. Maybe working for him and pursuing Rivi made things far too complicated. Maybe I needed distance.
I held up my present. “I’m off to put this away.”
“Be back in time for dinner.”
More food. Trent kept it coming. The fresh, hot meals. The gifts. The ambiance.
I walked up to him and embraced him. “Thank you.”
“You’re a valued team member and friend,” he replied nonchalantly.
I took my time in my room. Sitting. Thinking. About Rivi.
I wasn’t sure what to do. He was my type. In two short days, I already adored him. He’d latched onto me.
But… complications.
I decided to take a hot shower. My thoughts became less chaotic when I had warm water cascading over my body.
I stood under the shower head. As I predicted, the steam and the fantastic water pressure cleared my mind.
Simple.
I just needed to get Trent aside and talk it out. It was the answer. Find out what was bugging the guy, fix it and get on with my life. That’s what friends did. Talked. Listened. Fixed.
When I got out and dried myself off, I dressed in clean, warm clothes. I wondered if anyone would notice the different outfit when I went back downstairs for dinner.
Rivi would.
But it was Trent’s attention I was seeking now.