Chapter 46
Chapter forty-six
Tom
The soft light filtering through the curtains hits my eyes as I wake up. My face scrunches, a groan of pure protest making it past my vocal cords. I roll over to the empty space beside me. The sheets are cold.
I’m used to it. Yosh is an early-morning rooster, while I’m more of a night owl.
I drop my head onto his pillow and breathe in. His scent is still here, herbal and fresh, like the morning itself. It makes me miss him more, even when I know he can’t be far.
A dull sound from the living room confirms that.
My eyes are still heavy with sleep, but the need to see him wins. Last night ruined me. Somewhere between his arms and the way our eyes locked when he filled me, he took my heart. For a guy like me, that’s pretty problematic. In a good way this time.
I shove the covers off and roll out of bed, smiling to myself.
At the closet, I grab the first thing I see, a white shirt and my old baggy tartan pajama pants.
My feet hit the cold floor. I put my glasses on and hurry to the living room. I need caffeine. Theine. Whatever. And him.
The door creaks sharply as I open it. The parquet floor complaints too, both sounds that betray my entrance, but Yosh doesn’t respond. He’s sitting on the dark oak windowsill, eyes fixed on the outside world.
I lean against the frame and let my eyes wander over him, the way the pale morning light casts a glow.
He’s holding a steamy cup of tea, fingers disappearing into the sleeves of a hoodie. My hoodie. Printed on the back is a large blue butterfly with a skull, my own cover design. His long, silky black hair is hidden, only the cut of a bob showing.
I watch as pulls up his knees and nestles deeper into the soft cotton. I get it. It’s cold behind the glass.
He’s so fucking beautiful.
I raise my thumbs and index fingers, framing him like a photograph.
And when I focus a little more, I see snowflakes falling on the other side of the window.
“We might get a white Christmas after all,” I say, and when he turns, he gives me his brightest smile.
“Morning, Sapphire.” He stands and hugs me for a long moment, the warmth of the ceramic mug radiating onto my back. I kiss him good morning.
We both sit down opposite each other on the windowsill.
I watch the snow cover the bicycles and boats like a soft white blanket. The streets are almost empty, and when someone cycles past, their tracks disappear within seconds.
Yosh reaches for the side table. Only then do I notice a second mug steaming there; he’d been expecting me.
When I take a sip, I feel his eyes on me, studying my posture, my expressions. He leans back to take in every detail.
“You look like a gingerbread man in those cozy flannels. Makes me want to take a bite out of your waist. Any chance you’ve got a pair I can steal?”
Of course. He always nicks my stuff, but usually they just vanish from my closet and magically reappear on his body. And whenever I say something about it he just blows me a kiss and tells me he looks good in my shirts.
I grin. “Alright. Can be arranged. I’m going to make a Scot out of you yet.”
“No need for that,” he says softly, still smiling.
I take a little green and red velvet box out of my pocket.
“I actually have a different Christmas present for you. I wanted to give it to you before we leave for Heatherfell.”
His brow lifts as he sets his mug on the sill with shaking hands. “Tom…what did you do?”
“Relax, it’s not a proposal. You’d have bolted by now.”
My lips twitch as I push the box into his hands. “Go on. Open it.”
He turns it over in his palms, then flicks the box open with his thumb.
I’m smiling like an idiot as I take in his shocked expression.
“Merry Christmas, love. Let’s not drive this one off the road, shall we?”
He pulls out the car keys and dangles them in front of his eyes. Then his hand flies to his mouth.
“Sapphire…oh my God. Please don’t tell me—this is too much. I can’t accept this.”
“Yes, you can. I know how much you loved your Gremlin, and I know you’ve poured all your savings into the house right now. So please, let me do this for you.”
He grabs the back of my neck, crushing his lips to mine before covering my face in frantic kisses.
That escalated quickly from I can’t accept this to you’re the best boyfriend in the world.
He plays the humble act well, but deep down he loves being spoiled rotten. I just know it.
And honestly? That’s exactly what I want to do. Not always with a car, though. That was a serious dent in my savings. Next time I’ll just weed the herb garden.
I get up and grab my phone from the kitchen island. On my way back, I scroll through the photos, keeping my best poker face.
“Here. I had the dealer deliver it to your place. Tiffy took a photo.”
He reaches for the phone, but I hold it just out of reach.
“Unfortunately I couldn’t get my hands on a lime-green one. I really tried, but you know how it goes on the island. So I picked this one instead.”
“You crazy? I’m really happy no matter what c…”
He cuts off as he takes the phone, hand flying to his mouth.
I stay quiet, waiting for a reaction. A second later he sets the phone on the windowsill and walks to the piano, standing there in complete silence.
“What is it?” I ask. “Don’t you like the hot pink? Thought you’d fancy something flashy. You’ll be the only one driving that car on the island. Very exclusive.”
I walk over and place my hand over his, trying to read his face. Still no words, but the look on him says he’s loading into panic mode.
That’s when I can’t keep a straight face anymore and burst out laughing.
“Relax, of course I got you your iconic lime-slime mobile. I asked Shaylon to do an epic Photoshop. If you’d kept scrolling, you would’ve seen the real one.”
The squeal he lets out is pure frustration. He swoops me up by my thighs and slings me over his shoulder. Then spins me around before dumping me on the Chesterfield.
“Fuck, McKenna. I hate you! I hate you! Don’t play with my emotions like that.” He drops beside me, fingers attacking my sides. My hands brace against his shoulders as I try to wrestle him down. We both roll across the couch like idiots.
It’s hardly surprising we fall into another make-out session, lips colliding, laughing into each other’s mouths until the tension starts to thicken…amongst other things.
Yosh moves his fingertips over my face to brush away a loose curl. He smiles before giving me a serious stare.
“I’ve got a present for you too, Sapphire.”
He gets up and disappears into the bedroom. A minute later he’s back, holding a neatly wrapped gift box. He sets it on my lap. My hands itch to tear into it like a kid.
I honestly can’t remember the last time someone gave me a present that wasn’t bought out of obligation or to fix a mess. An actual gift, picked for me.
“I’m sorry, I obviously can’t top your present. This is for you.”
“Please, shut up. This means more to me than you know.”
I open the box and lift out a long-sleeved UV shirt. It’s sky blue, a skeleton merman printed on the back. My fingers go over the bony ribs, the sapphire blue fish tail, its hair made out of seaweed. It’s badass, weird and exactly my style.
“Made it for you,” he says. “There’s this new surf shop at Starlight Bay that does custom work. First I met up with Zion, you know he’s a tattoo artist, right? I had him sketch the merman, then took the design back to the surf shop.”
He shrugs a little shy. “I loved it so much I had them make one for me too. Same design, but lilac and amethyst. I know you like those colors on me.”
I just keep staring at it because it’s perfect.
He knows me, knows what I like. He’d remembered that stupid joke I made about our fish tails after the mermaid pool, and he actually brought it to life.
He turned it into art. For me, for us. For the thing we love doing most, besides having sex, obviously.
“I love it! Matching shirts means we’re officially a surf team.”
“Like, the Saint Luna Mermen?”
I grab his arm. “Oh my god, yes! We could travel the world, do competitions. We’re good, I know we are! We just need more time on the waves.”
I yank the shirt over my head and hop onto the couch.
“After a flawless ride by his lover, McKenna is paddling toward that monster wave! Will he dare take it? It looks impossible, but he’s going for it anyway!
Look at that amazing balance! He’s the best surfer the world has ever seen!
Oh my god, no! He disappears into the break!
But wait, what’s that? He’s through! He made it!
McKenna makes it out alive and the Saint Luna Mermen are crowned champions! ”
I crash into Yosh, grabbing his hand and throwing it in the air to celebrate our imaginary victory.
He squeezes my hand tight before yanking me to his chest.
It’s a bit absurd considering there’s a thick layer of snow on the other side of the window. But hey, dreams are dreams, and, Saint Luna, Bondi or Maui, I don’t know, they are all just a flight away. I can see that for us.
Yosh is still breathless with laughter, but there are diamonds in his eyes as he looks at me.
“You’re insane. And I absolutely love it. But please, sit down. There’s still something else inside that box for you.”
Another present? I lean back over the box and spot a Polaroid lying at the bottom. I pick it up and flip it over.
“I had to take a photo, I couldn't exactly get it past customs.”
It’s a set of chef’s knives. The picture was taken at Palm Oasis. I recognize the black marble counter from the island.
“Oh my god, they’re amazing, love. Wait, is this a hint?”
“Obviously. You told me Calvin’s knives were so shitty they didn't even slice through a bun. So I got you these and absolutely forbade Cal from even looking at them. He said he only reheats pizza, but thanked me for the gift anyway, because now you will be cooking for him.”
I grin. “Love Cal. I’m glad the three of us talked things through. It was necessary.”