Chapter 25
Chapter twenty-five
It was Christmas Eve when they landed. No sooner had they stepped foot onto the tarmac, their parents were on the next flight to Spain. And that was just the way Ebony and Gavin had wanted it.
A few years ago, they had established as a family that the best Christmas present they could all give one another was getting rid of the obligatory Christmas dinner.
It was the greatest idea they had ever come up with.
While their parents got to gallivant around the world, Ebony and Gavin had the house to themselves.
After dropping off Ethan and Luis at their houses and picking up Duke from Taylor's, they were finally able to get back home.
Ebony inhaled the cold air from the empty house as they rolled their suitcases through the door.
The warm Caribbean weather seemed but a dream now compared to the icy air whipping through town directly off the cove.
"Fuck, I'm tired," Gavin's groan echoed through the hall as they made their way into the kitchen.
Duke, who was happy to be home, was sniffing every nook and cranny as if he hadn't been home in years and not just cozied up with Taylor's mom on their couch.
Hiding a yawn, Ebony followed Gavin into the hall to go upstairs. "You should be, you spent the entire flight talking and playing cards with the guys instead of sleeping like I did."
Although she had been secretly thrilled that he had.
When he had first arrived on the boat, she had been so relieved to see him she hadn't truly stopped to consider how Cameron would feel seeing him.
That first night at dinner she could feel the wary tension from Cameron when Gavin sat down next to her.
But things took an unexpected turn. The next morning after their talk she had come out onto the deck to find all four of them immersed in the most competitive game of ping pong she had ever seen.
A game where the opponent tried to get the ball to bounce off the table and into the ocean to cause the other player to have to dive off and retrieve it.
It was as if the fight had never happened.
All four of them spent the remainder of the trip laughing and talking just like before.
Occasionally she caught Cameron's doubtful glance at Gavin but when he met her gaze he just shrugged.
Later when she was able to get him alone, he told her he was confused too.
"I have no idea what he's thinking but he seems to be acting normal," he confessed.
"And you?" she had asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. All she could think about was that vicious fight between them in his room. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I mean I'm not over what happened but this isn't the time or the place to bring it up. So, if he wants to pretend, I can pretend too."
And as much as it pained her to hear that, Ebony had to admit she was shocked at how well both guys kept up the pretense for the trip. Even as Gavin had pulled up to Cameron's house he had stayed in the car as she walked with Cameron up to his door.
Maybe things were going back to normal?
Gavin grabbed her suitcase without a word, pulling her from her thoughts; he hoisted both his and hers, one in each hand. The fabric of his jacket pulled tight over his arms as he started up the stairs, every step drawing her eyes to the flex of his muscles.
"Sure," he gave her a pointed look over his shoulder. "And yet that is your third yawn in a row."
Ebony nodded in defeat. Point taken. Even with the sleep she had gotten she was exhausted. She didn’t bother unpacking. Showering and changing into a loose long sleeve lounge set, she went back downstairs just as Gavin was shutting the front door.
Surrounded by plastic bags, he looked up at her and smiled. "Let the feast begin."
Every inch of the wide coffee table was covered in food. From two different pies, to fried turkey legs, collard greens, mashed potatoes, and macaroni and cheese they had enough food to last them well into the new year.
In the corner of the room the fire danced behind the glass panel as the TV played a holiday horror movie Gavin had picked out.
Settled deep into the plush cushions of their couch, Ebony sat across from Gavin, his legs bracketing hers under the covers.
She was hardly watching the movie; her mind was back on the yacht.
The last night of the trip, Gavin had surprised them all by sitting at the piano as the servers cleared away the dinner table.
With his tux pressed, perfectly tailored to his strong build and his hair glinting under the chandelier’s glow he wordlessly commanded all of their attention. Absorbing it without demand.
Like smoke drifting over the keys his fingers moved deftly over the instrument coaxing out a familiar melody that made both Ebony and her mother smile. It was one of their favorite songs. One of the many songs her mother had played in the car as she picked them up and dropped them off at school.
The moment he started to sing, her chest had tightened.
For you, I’d give a lifetime of love
Whatever you need, I’ll find a way
No dream is out of reach
With you, no words could ever hold my love
Or all the thoughts I'm of dreaming of
She hadn't heard him sing in what felt like forever.
She had forgotten how deep and smooth his voice was.
It wrapped around her slow, like silk, draping over her and holding her tight.
He sat sure and confident in his seat as his hands moved effortlessly over the keys.
Every now and then his stark blue eyes would look up to her, striking her like lightning under their weight.
Life is hollow on its own
But since you, I’m not the same
Now everything I touch feels right
Every path, every fight
It’s all for you
"Fuck, I forgot the bastard could sing," Ethan whispered, causing her dad to laugh.
But Ebony couldn't look away. Around her everyone else had disappeared as she watched Gavin. Every word had felt like it was meant for her. What terrified her wasn’t the song.
It wasn’t the look in his eyes that electrified the room and made the hairs on her arm stand on end.
It was how much she wanted him to mean it.
Wanted him to want her. Wanted to drag his attention back, selfish and unashamed, and hold it the way she used to, before he walked away and took her world with him.
"I'm going to eat your leg."
Ebony blinked, her thoughts vanishing into the wind as she focused back on reality. Across from her, Gavin was staring at her with a raised brow while holding the last turkey leg—her turkey leg.
Putting two and two together she smiled and nodded. "Yeah, you can have it."
No sooner were the words out of her mouth, he was biting into the leg. They stayed like that for hours camped in the den, watching various movies while the fire danced and Duke dozed on his cushion.
But her thoughts still churned. Looking over at him, she watched as he stared at the screen, her gaze drawn to the strong line of his jaw.
To the way his golden lashes curled just slightly.
He was absolutely beautiful. Not for the first time, she found herself wondering what traits he’d inherited from his biological mom, who had supposedly left when he was a toddler.
Sensing her staring at him Gavin turned and gave her a smirk. "What?"
Ebony bit her lip with a frown. She didn’t want to argue but she couldn’t shake the sudden pestering thought.
Gavin shifted to sit up straighter. He sat forward, holding her gaze. "Whatever it is, say it."
That was easier said than done. Looking away she glared at an invisible spot on the floor.
This moment—right here—was everything she had wanted for months and somehow more.
It was as if she was getting some secret part of him that she had never known existed.
There was an intensity to him now that hadn’t been there before, in the way he touched her, held her, slept beside her every night since their talk on the boat. It was all so achingly perfect.
She never wanted it to end. And yet… a small part of her feared the perfection. Like she’d wake up and it would vanish. Like this was all some beautiful dream she wasn’t meant to have. The thought made her ill. What if tomorrow came and he was cold again?
She licked her lips and forced herself to speak. "You…you said you pulled away and were mean to me because…you were jealous, right?" Essentially that was what he had said, right? That he was jealous.
"Yes."
Ebony wasn't sure what she was expecting but his swift unapologetic agreement wasn't it.
"But…what's to stop you from doing it again?
" The wound deep in her heart she had carried for months at his sudden change still ached.
"What's to stop you from getting jealous about something else, someone different?
" She could feel herself getting worked up, a desperate edge tinging her words. But she needed to know. She couldn’t survive that again.
She couldn't. She wouldn’t let him put her through that a second time.
Old anger mixed with new mounting fear made her restless and she began to push back the covers so she could stand. She needed a moment to collect herself to push down the growing panic.
Gavin moved without warning. Before she could move, he was caging her beneath him. Each arm was planted beside her head, holding him above her with a stillness that vibrated the air. Bright blue eyes that seemed to glow in the low light of the room looked down at her.