19. Chapter 19
Chapter 19
Julien
D uke bounded across the lawn after the ball Julien had thrown. The old dog ran, spry as a puppy, to retrieve the tennis ball across the massive backyard.
Julien took a moment to flick the ash off his cigarette before he knelt to take the ball back when Duke proudly returned it to him.
The ball was slimy and wet, but Julien didn’t mind. “Good boy,” he cooed when Duke dropped the ball at his feet. He gave the dog a scratch behind the ear for good measure.
“Uncle Julien,” Kelsey said from where she stood, bundled up and blowing bubbles with her brother on the patio.
Julien stiffened at the name. He whipped around to look at Tyler who stood by his niece and nephew, holding the bottle of bubble soap. Liquid had spilled all over his gloves and onto the neatly laid brick of the patio .
All Tyler offered was a warm smile and a shrug.
“Yeahhh?” Julien threw the ball to the patiently waiting dog.
“Do you think Santa will bring Duke a Christmas present?” she asked. She pronounced think with an f, and all her r sounds came out as w . It was painfully adorable.
Julien never thought he would want kids, but he could possibly reconsider after spending time with Kelsey and Owen. Besides the few times he’d been to one of the Rossi family gatherings, he’d never spent time around kids. Those had been filled with stress rather than cozy feelings.
“I think if he’s been a good boy, he might, yeah,” Julien said because he had no idea if dogs got gifts in the Ashford house. But seeing as Duke even got his own stocking by the tree and a family Christmas sweater, it seemed likely that the dog would at least get a nice bone.
“He’s a dog,” Owen said, in the pragmatic little tone he used when he thought he said something brilliant. “Dogs are always good.”
Julien laughed and crouched to pick the drool-covered ball up once more. “True. And Duke doesn’t steal anyone’s shoes either,” he added. “So, I think he’s probably been terrific.”
Tyler nodded in agreement with Julien’s assessment. “What about you guys? Have you been good?” Tyler asked them while Kelsey dipped her want into the bottle and sloshed more soap over his glove.
“Yes!” she cried out. She blew too hard, and no bubbles appeared from her wand, even when she tried again.
“I think so,” Owen commented with less enthusiasm. “Mostly.”
Tyler laughed. “I guess we’ll see in a few days when Santa gets here. Come on, we should clean up before our contest.”
Julien stepped on his cigarette, picking the filter up so he could throw it into the bin in the garage before they went inside.
The Ashfords did gingerbread house decorating contests every year. Tyler had even shown Julien the pictures from prior years, which were insanely detailed. Julien had no idea gingerbread houses could even look like that, let alone how to make one look like a literal house.
“We’re going to make it together,” Tyler assured him. “Besides, no one can ever beat Cece and Brad. They do this stuff for a living.”
“I didn’t know there was a market for full-sized gingerbread houses,” Julien said. He went to wash up. The large table was now covered in candy and gingerbread pieces, all lined up for construction.
Cece walked in with a tight smile and announced, “Brad had to go meet with a client. He’ll be back late tomorrow. Mommy is now on your team.” Cece sat and pulled her son into her lap. Owen squirmed and tried to get away.
“You’ll ruin it,” Owen grumbled.
Julien caught Tyler’s eye, and they both grinned in unison.
“We have a chance,” Tyler hissed. He set an arm against Julien’s side and bit down on his lip, mischief glinting in those blue eyes.
Julien wanted to pull Tyler in for a kiss right then and there but stopped. He was still playing at being boyfriend, as much as Jules was being himself now. Julien wanted to kiss Tyler when there wasn’t a part to play when he could do it and know that they both wanted it.
He pecked him, unable to resist. The kiss was chaste, but Tyler's answering blush sent warm satisfaction to Julien's fingertips.
As the days passed, Julien grew more confident that Tyler wanted him. However, finding the right moment to break that transactional wall that still hovered between them was difficult.
“Are you sure you want me as your partner?” Julien asked dubiously.
Tyler sat and patted the chair beside him. “Absolutely. But if you ruin this for me, I promise I will make your life Hell.”
Julien raised his eyebrows as he sat next to his fake boyfriend. “You can’t say I didn’t warn you.” He popped a minty gumdrop into his mouth.
Once everyone was settled, the teams were set. Tyler and Julien sat at one side of the table. Beside them, Hailey and Wally had already mapped out their plans. Cece and Owen sat on the other side of the table. While Jim sat with Kelsey, helping her create the house of her dreams.
Connie would act as the official judge. However, Julien suspected she did not want to become covered in white frosting. She walked around the table and snapped pictures of the progress.
“Stop eating all of the candy.” Tyler smacked Julien’s hand away from the candy pile they claimed.
“You just ate an entire licorice wheel,” Julien pointed out. “It was your third one.”
Tyler gave him an innocent look. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Can you please hold the walls up so the frosting can dry?”
Julien did as he was told. So far, their house was pretty bare bones, but it looked like a house, which was better than Julien could have done by himself.
He remembered doing this with his mother, but the house had already been put together and sturdy enough that a rambunctious boy couldn’t set it toppling over. Actually constructing it seemed as though it would take hours.
However, Tyler managed to get it up and functional in just a few moments. “Do we think chimney?” He picked up a candy cane and popped it into his mouth.
“Yeah, how else is Santa going to get in?” Julien asked. He finally let go of the walls, which were solid enough that they didn’t fall. He reached over and pulled the candy cane from Tyler’s lips, bringing it to his own.
“Hey, that was mine,” Tyler said. He tucked his finger in the hook and tugged. It popped out of Julien’s mouth. Tyler replaced it between his lips smugly.
“You aren’t very good at sharing, are you?” Jules picked the piping bag of frosting off the table and dabbled some onto Tyler’s nose.
Tyler’s eyes widened behind his glasses. “You were absolutely right. I should have picked someone else to be my partner.”
He took the bag from Julien’s grip and smeared some across Julien’s cheek .
“It’s not my fault you don’t listen to me, Baby.” He leaned in and ran his tongue over the tip of Tyler’s nose. “Who do you usually partner with?”
Tyler’s cheeks were bright red, and he sucked on the candy cane for a long moment before replying. “I was partnered with Kelsey last year. We came close, but Brad and Owen ultimately took the W.”
“Bad luck,” Julien said.
Tyler returned the candy cane to Julien before leaning in to lick the frosting off his cheek. He smelled like mint, and the warmth of his tongue was tempting. Julien could turn his head and capture his mouth to taste the sweetness of the candy on him.
But Tyler backed away too quickly for him to make a move.
As much as they were surrounded by other people, Julien felt like he was in a bubble with Tyler. It popped when a pretzel flew its way and landed in Tyler’s hair.
“This is serious business, you guys,” Hailey said. “Stop making out. Brad’s not here, so it’s anyone’s game.”
Hailey and Walter’s creation looked precisely like a log cabin. The pair used pretzels to make wooden siding, and they sprinkled powdered sugar over it to make it seem like a gentle snowfall had cascaded over the entire scene. Their gumdrop trees even looked realistic somehow.
Julien looked at the mostly bare house he and Tyler were working on. “I think we’re going to lose.”
Tyler narrowed his eyes. “No. We still have time. Stop flirting with me and start decorating.”
Julien couldn’t argue with that. There were bragging rights on the line, after all. Tyler began to focus and pipe delicate shapes on the roof to make shingles. At the same time, he employed Julien to stick peppermints to the bottom of the board to create a pathway to the front door.
“I did this once with my mom,” Julien told him when they added the final details to the walls.
Tyler stopped and looked up at him. “Yeah?” he asked.
“Yeah,” Julien said, unsure why he even brought it up. He didn’t usually talk about Mom with anyone. Julien liked the idea of talking about her more. He never had anyone he wanted to share bittersweet memories with. With Tyler, the desire to share came naturally.
“She took me to this place after we went to dinner. I threw up because I ate so much candy.”
“Well, try not to eat so much you throw up now,” Tyler said with a smile. “What was she like?” he asked softly. “I mean, if you want to talk about her. You don’t have to.”
Julien considered the question. There was a lot to say about his mother, the warm way she smiled, how she would do anything for him, how hard it had been watching her die.
“She was…great,” he said in the end because it surmised everything. “She would have loved you.”
Tyler reached out and squeezed Julien’s hand. “I bet I would have liked her too if she was anything like you,” he told him softly.
“She was a lot better.”
“Are you all done?” Connie asked. “I think it is time for the judging.”
In the end, Jim and Kelsey won with their princess fairy tale house, which used edible sparkles and actually somehow resembled a castle.
Owen and Cece came in second, if only because it was an unspoken rule to let the children win. Their house looked very traditional, with Christmas trees and peppermints stuck over the roof.
The real winner, of course, had to be Hailey and Wally with their intricate log cabin.
However, Julien was partial to his house with Tyler. It was a little haphazard, with candy clearly thrown on in the last few minutes. Julien didn’t have an eye for decoration and had done his best to distract Tyler the whole time.
But Tyler had told Julien he liked him, and it seemed so sincere and honest that Julien was pretty sure it was the go-ahead he needed.
Whatever fake boyfriend scheme they had going on, maybe he could put it behind them and make an actual move.
He wrapped his arm around Tyler while Connie gave little gifts to Kelsey and Owen for a well-done job. Jim got up to find wine for the occasion, and Hailey pulled Wally into the kitchen to help her make dinner.
Julien’s phone buzzed in his pocket, and he frowned when he saw Lou Rossi’s name on the screen. “Ugh, I have to take this, Ty. I’ll be right back.”
Tyler’s eyebrows raised, but he shrugged. “Sure, yeah.”
Julien headed out to the garage and pulled the phone to his ear. “What’s up, Lou?” He glanced over his shoulder to make sure the door was closed.
“So, you are alive. I was getting worried. I thought you had my money,” Lou said.
Julien pinched the bridge of his nose. “I do. I have it. But I have this family thing in Connecticut. I’m not back yet. I told Tony, though. I’ll be back the day after Christmas.”
“The sooner, the better, Julien. It’s been a long time coming. I’d hate for you to fuck me over after I’ve been so nice to you,” Lou told him.
Julien licked his lips and tried to keep himself from growing angry. It would be a bad idea to piss Rossi off now. He was so close that he could taste his freedom.
He’ d been so distracted by Tyler and the whole cluster of family bonding that he’d let himself forget that he was here for one reason. Or he had been here for one reason. Now, he was here because Tyler had a chokehold on him, more than Rossi ever had.
“Trust me, I don’t want to do that. You know I appreciate everything you’ve done for me,” Julien lied. The Rossi family had done nothing but drag him into illegal shit, threaten him, and keep him under their thumb for years. He wanted out. “I just can’t get away yet, but I’ll see you when I’m home. I promise.”
“I hope so, Jules. I really hope so.”