Chapter 28
Chapter Twenty-Eight
DAISY
There are so many ways to wake up on Christmas morning.
The smell of bacon and French toast cooking in the kitchen.
Your parents eagerly waiting for you to see what Santa brought.
The loving kisses of a dog excited to spend the day with their best friend.
But nothing beat the absolute perfect way I got to wake up.
Kaia’s legs wrapped around me, and her warm lips kissed all over my neck and shoulders.
I blearily opened my eyes to feel her smiling into my neck and without hesitation, I squeezed her tighter and smiled so wide I didn’t think I had anymore face left for my smile to stretch across.
It was already shaping up to be the best Christmas I’d ever had, and I’d only looked at her.
“Merry Christmas, sweetheart.” The term of endearment came out without a second thought.
She didn’t seem fazed by it. If anything, she smiled even more. She licked her lips, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from trailing down, desperately wishing I was on those lips instead.
Remembering I didn’t have to wish, I grabbed her face and did just that, enjoying her little intake of breath. We’d slept together so many times, yet a simple kiss still caused a reaction like that and I loved it.
“Merry Christmas to you, too, baby. How did you sleep?”
She had returned to her position next to me on the bed and was idly dancing her fingers across my hips. I leaned into the touch, quietly begging for her to move her hands lower.
“After you blew my mind with the best sex of my life? Like a damn baby. Seriously, were you speaking sign language? Because the way your tongue and fingers were moving, I could’ve sworn you were speaking something into me.”
Her blush was so deep I couldn’t help but grin. We stayed up way too late, baking snickerdoodle’s and making out in the kitchen. She looked so delicious in her gingerbread-themed silk shorts and tank that I had to get her on the counter and enjoy a different flavor of cookie.
When the actual cookies were done, I barely cooled them off enough to put them on the counter before she had my shirt off and was dragging me to the shower to, in her exact words, “clean off before we got dirty.” I didn’t have any objections to that, and that turned into a long night.
“I’m glad I could help,” she finally answered.
“And how did you sleep?” I asked.
She placed a soft kiss on my forehead, causing my heart to beat just a little faster, as it always did when she did that.
I wasn’t a saint. I loved getting naked and using my mouth and fingers for anything I could, and I loved when she did the same, but it was moments like this that meant the most to me.
Waking up together and talking, or not talking and scrolling on our phones, one hand always on the other’s arm, back, or butt. I cherished these intimate moments with her, where we just existed together.
She sat up, giving me the perfect view of her pretty pink nipples. It was a struggle not to take one in my mouth.
“I slept perfectly.”
She looked like she wanted to say more, but didn’t. I just gazed at her for a moment, waiting for her to say what was on her mind.
Finally I smiled, not wanting to pressure her to speak about whatever was going on in her head. It was Christmas, and I wanted it to be a day full of love and happiness.
“Everyday I wake up next to you is better than the last,” I supplied. I didn’t know if it was the holiday spirit or just the way she was looking at me that caused me to open up like that.
She stared at me, a small puddle of unshed tears pooling above her lower lashes before she shook them away and smiled and leaned down to press a kiss on my lips. And just like that, the conversation was over.
“Fuck, baby. That was the best morning sex I think I’ve ever had on a holiday. Maybe we should get up and take Duke out and get some coffee before we open gifts, though. Any longer in this bed and I’m going to neglect both of my babies. Duke needs to take care of business, and you need breakfast.”
“As you wish. This is the perfect time for your first present, actually.” She jumped out of bed, and I groaned at seeing her boobs bounce away from me. I thought boobs were the greatest gift of all, and wasn’t I just the luckiest woman in the world to be able to even look at Kaia’s?
She came back and held up two pairs of what looked like pajamas. Red and green with some gold around the waist and…
“Kaia, honey. Are those Christmas onesies? In the style of a present?”
She nodded and jumped up and down so excitedly. “Yes! Do you like them? I thought it would be cute to match.”
I smiled and walked over to her to take one. We both put them on at the same time. “Are you my other present? Because I can’t wait to unwrap you.” I winked before stepping closer and unzipping hers just a little, just enough to see the top of her chest.
Unfortunately, she zipped herself back up and rolled her eyes, but not without a slight blush. “Later. Oh! I also got us these hats.” She ran to the closet and pulled out three matching red-and-white Santa hats, a strap attached to the smaller one.
I looked at the small hat, a million jokes coming to my head. “We do have a red toy… Is this your way of telling me you want to ride Santa’s sleigh?”
Her eyes got so wide, her face turning beet red. I thought I was going to pee myself from laughing so hard. She was way too easy.
“I mean, we can talk about that, but maybe later. We really need to take Duke outside.” I gave her an out, and she looked relieved.
She nodded and brought me in for a sweet kiss. I supposed I hadn’t killed the mood yet, and I now had something to think about for the rest of the day.
Kaia insisted on going outside with Duke and that all three of us wear those Santa hats.
We looked like a cute little family, and as I made our coffee, that thought kept replaying in my head.
I wasn’t sure how to feel about that truth.
If I gave any thought to what we were doing and how it looked, that was exactly what we were.
We lived together, cooked together, slept together, both sexually and literally. We even worked together, in a sense. Our lives had overlapped over the years, but more so since she moved in. And while I adored her and had no regrets about our lives together, I couldn’t say I wasn’t scared.
What happened when she decided she wanted something different? Someone different? Eventually it would happen. She’d realize she had spent her whole life accommodating her life around her father’s. She had to want something different for herself.
Something simple and someone she could talk to verbally. Someone she could go out with who didn’t need patience while they navigated talking to someone unfamiliar with sign language.
I knew it was coming, but how prepared could I really be?
I was slowly realizing that I could try to be okay with it, but I probably wouldn’t be.
There was a huge possibility that it would wreck me.
While I wanted her to have everything she wanted in life, a small part of me hoped I would be included in that.
Kaia came back in, and I threw all those thoughts away. We weren’t talking about what we were doing or where we were going with it. We were taking one day at a time. There was no point in thinking about the future. Not right now.
After she took off her boots, I smiled and handed her a cup of coffee, holding up a mistletoe in my other hand. She looked at it and grinned before kissing me.
We drank our coffee and shared a few snickerdoodles, and then I put the cups in the sink and dragged her to the couch.
“Okay, present time! You went first, so now it’s my turn.” I had a few small things I wanted to give her before the real gift. One of which was her favorite book series.
“Oh my God, Daisy! You got me the foiled box set?! I love it!”
“I know my girl. I know you already have the set, but not the fancy-looking one with sprayed edges.” I shrugged.
She gave me a look I couldn’t place. “You definitely know me. Thank you, sunny. Really, I love it.”
“I’m glad.”
She gave me a warm hug and stood, heading to the Christmasween tree. I still laughed every time I looked at the Christmas-and-Halloween-infused tree.
“Doodle, you didn’t have to get me anything.”
She scowled. “Oh, stop that. Here, open it.” She thrust the present on my lap.
When I opened the box, my smile was warm and genuine. “Kaia, it’s stunning.” She had gotten me a gorgeous necklace with a sunflower attached to the golden chain. White diamonds sparkled in the middle of the sunflower. It stole my breath away.
“You like it? It’s not too much? I just saw it and immediately thought of you. I know it’s your favorite flower, and I call you sunny, and—”
I cut off her rambling with a kiss. This woman was absolutely special. I pulled us apart and smiled at her flushed cheeks. “You’re perfect… it’s perfect, I mean. Thank you, seriously.” She had this gleam in her eyes, but I got up to get her another present before I could contemplate it any further.
We exchanged a few more small presents. Socks, Ipad and phone covers, even some books we’d both wanted, before giving Duke his gifts.
My heart grew about four more sizes when Kaia presented him with his own stocking, filled with toys and treats, and patted him on his head, whispering something I couldn’t see.
When she returned to the couch, I had her last gift in my lap and a question on the tips of my fingers. “What did you say to him?”
She blushed and shook her head. I grabbed her chin and turned her head so she had to look at me. I gave her a pleading look and she blew out a breath.
“I told him Merry Christmas, that I love him, and I thanked him for taking care of you. That you are very special to me, and I appreciate him.”
I bit my lip, not out of desire but out of determination to keep a sob from breaking free. Kaia was one of the sweetest people I’d ever known, and the love and adoration she showed my dog warmed my heart more than I could’ve ever known.
I didn’t know what to say to that, honestly. I should’ve told her she was special to me and I couldn’t find the words to express just how much. I hadn’t realized how much until this moment.
“Here. The last one,” was all I said instead, smiling with complete affection for the woman sitting next to me and tracing circles on my leg as we exchanged gifts.
She took the gift, and our fingers brushed, causing my breath to catch slightly. The warmth of her touch spread throughout my whole body.
I impatiently watched her take her time to remove the bow and ribbons like they were the most precious things in the world. She laid them on the table and unwrapped the gift, revealing the matte black box underneath.
She opened the box and stopped to look at me. “Daisy, you got me a necklace with my initials on it? It’s beautiful.” She smiled.
“Open it,” I said, motioning to the locket.
She looked at me with her brow furrowed and did as I suggested, picking up the necklace. She traced her initials and threw me a soft smile before opening it. Her hand came up to cover her mouth.
“If you don’t like it, I can return it. I just saw it and thought it would be perfect. I’m sorry if I overstepped.”
She said nothing as she shook her head, tears falling from her eyes. I patiently waited for her response. For her to tell me she hated it and I had no right, or to tell me she loved it. Both options made me nervous.
Finally, she wiped her tears and seemed to gather herself, although the tears kept falling.
“Daisy, I don’t know what to say. This is the most thoughtful thing anyone has ever given me.
You didn’t overstep; you stepped just right.
You got me a meaningful gift that I can never repay you for.
You got me a locket with pictures of my mom and dad side by side. ”
I smiled. “I did. I thought you’d want to carry them wherever you went. You see the stone on the top that’s filled with something?”
She looked closer and nodded. “Yeah, what is that?”
I looked at her, nervous to admit, “It’s your dad, Kaia. I thought—”
She cut me off with a press of her lips against mine. I felt her tears against my face, and I took the moment as a sign she wasn’t upset with me.
When she pulled back, I wiped her tears away and kissed her forehead. “Do you like it? I wasn’t sure how you’d take it, but I wanted to do something to show you how much you mean to me, Kaia.”
Her smile was nothing short of affectionate. “It’s amazing, Daisy. I absolutely love it. I can’t believe you did this for me. Not only do I have a picture of each of them but I now have a piece of him with me at all times. I cannot thank you enough.”
“Your smile is all the thanks I need. I’m glad you like it. Are you hungry? I can make us an actual breakfast.”
She took my hands in hers and gently caressed my thumbs, giving me the warmest look I’d ever gotten from her.
She mouthed, Thank you, before leaning in for a kiss.
I was all too happy to give in, and when our lips touched, I disjointed our hands and wrapped mine around her, pulling her closer to me.
The kiss was slow and sweet, like she wanted to take her time, like she wasn’t expecting it to lead to anything, and I didn’t either. I could’ve been happy to stay on that couch, in that kiss with her, for the rest of the day.
She let go, and I pouted when she sat back, even though she was smiling. “How about cinnamon rolls? I’ll help.” She stood up and took my hand, pulling me to stand next to her. My breath caught when she dragged me closer to her and hugged me, squeezing me tightly.
“I think that’s a wonderful idea,” I finally managed after we separated. When was the appropriate time to have sex with someone in the kitchen after you gave them a very sentimental and meaningful gift? Asking for a friend.