53. Haelyn
FIFTY-THREE
HAELYN
“Stop being so nervous. They are going to love you.” Tristan kissed my head.
I was standing in the middle of the living room downstairs, with my hands resting on my hip bones. My eyes scanned the surroundings and I tried to mentally check if everything was in place.
Christmas Tree. Check.
Tinsel and lights on the ceiling. Check.
The red blanket on the couch. Check.
Fake snow around the tree. Check.
Red napkins and table cutlery. Check.
Artificial trees at the entrance. Check.
There was something missing. I could feel it.
“Oh my God.” I suddenly turned around, searching for the missing piece.
“What?” Tristan asked from next to me, his brows furrowed.
“I forgot to put the ‘Ho ho holy shit, it’s Christmas’ sign at the entrance.”
Where the hell did I put it? I remember the exact moment I had it in my hand before I went to put red paper tissue in the bathroom, but then it all went black.
Think. Think. Think.
My boyfriend—still getting used to calling him that—watched me as if I had grown another head. He opened his mouth, then closed it right back. “You know what? I don’t want to know.”
Mentally, I rethought the entire map of places I’ve been to today. I didn’t have much time to figure it out, so I turned to Ryker for help, even if I knew there was a slight chance for him to know where the hell I put the cursed thing.
With my hands in my hair, I threw him a desperate glance. “Ryker, do you know where I put the sign? Your family will be here any minute.”
Ryker was chilling on the couch with his legs parted open and an uninterested look in his eyes. After a week of living with him, I still couldn’t adjust to the pure indifference he had in life, but I had to accept him as he was.
Yet I could see he was trying his best despite him not wanting to show it. When I first saw him, the roots of his hair began to grow and today, he shaved it all back down.
While I wasn’t a big fan of bald heads, it looked good on him in contrast with the piercing in his nose.
Ryker got up from the couch, not looking at me, and walked to the door with his usual stern face, then opened it and pointed at the sign hanging on a pin.
I sighed in relief, touching my heart with my palm. My shoulders relaxed as I offered him a smile. “Thank you.”
He closed the door and retook his seat on the couch, right before I felt Tristan’s arms hugging my waist. Tristan kissed my neck and I was too stiff to allow myself to relax fully.
Of course, he felt that. It wasn’t like I was hiding it either. “What are you so worried about?”
I exhaled, whirling on my toes to see him.
Remembering Ryker was standing right next to us, I dropped the hands that were about to circle around Tristan’s shoulders and took a step back.
My palms faced the air. “I just… this is my first proper Christmas and I want it to be perfect and then, I’m meeting your family for the first time and I don’t want to screw it up.”
“You still have time to invite your friends over if that’d help you ease the tension,” he suggested.
As much as I wanted them on my side in this, I knew this night was important for Tristan. I was going to meet his family and I wasn’t going to transform Christmas day into a meet and greet of each of our friends.
We were going to spend the second day of Christmas with them and also Sebastian and Nadia. That way, we were able to give full attention to his family tonight and do the same with our friends tomorrow.
We could spend the next holiday together.
Shit.
I was already picturing a future with Tristan by my side without realizing it.
“No, it’s fine,” I told him and avoided his eyes, afraid that he’d see right through me.
It wasn’t normal to feel like all of this was meant to be. Not yet. We’ve been official for a week now and I already placed him in every future event in my mind. I had to get a grip of myself.
“Everything is perfect. You made sure of it.”
The ring bell echoed in the house and I turned to stone. They were here.
My first instinct was to look in a mirror, but the closest one was in the bathroom under the stairs. I didn’t have time to go there to make sure I looked presentable.
I patted my hair, threaded a hand through my curls, then moved toward the door and back to Tristan. “Shit, shit. They’re here. How do I look?”
Tristan leaned down, a smirk on his face. “Fucking hot,” he whispered. “You’re lucky we have guests, because otherwise, I would’ve shown Santa what a bad girl you are.”
My thighs clenched and I threw him a look, heat rising to my cheeks. Now was not the moment to make inappropriate comments and I opened to tell him just that, when his family walked in.
“This place looks amazing,” said a stunning woman with a red bow in her hair.
My body was pointed to the door when I felt Tristan gluing his back to mine. “See? I told you,” he whispered.
I stepped up to them. “You must be Esmeray.” I smiled at her. “I’m Haelyn.”
“Nice to meet you, Haelyn. I have to admit, you transformed this place from a dark cave to Santa’s home. It’s beautiful,” she continued, her eyes roaming over all the decorations I put around the house. “This is my husband, Kai. My sister, Raven, and back here”—she pointed behind the three of them—“are Lacey and Kiaran.”
What was it like for her to join such a big family? Was she as nervous as I was? Or did she click with them from the first moment?
“I’m so happy I finally got the chance to meet you all,” I said, letting my gaze wander over all of them.
“Can we share the presents now?” Lacey, the blonde little girl, asked.
Kiaran groaned and touched his stomach. “Can’t we do it after? I’m starving and this place smells like an oven.”
“No. I’ll go first,” Lacey insisted.
I fought a smile. “You can put the presents under the tree.” I pointed at the large green tree, decorated with white globes and artificial snow behind us.
Lacey didn’t hesitate and walked to it, emptying her arms there and the others quickly followed her, but not Kai. I slowly walked away, giving them some privacy.
“I thought you didn’t like Christmas,” I heard Kai say to Tristan.
“I thought that too.”
Since we didn’t know each other well, all of the gifts we exchanged were the usual Christmasy things—socks, blankets, decorations. Esmeray gifted each of the girls a red bow like hers and helped us put it on. We all looked adorable.
When I gave Ryker his gift, I held my breath, playing with my hands in my lap. Tristan squeezed my elbow, but my eyes were solely focused on his brother.
I hoped he liked it.
He opened the new Xbox, a couple of games and a pair of earphones.
Even if it wasn’t much, when he said, “Thanks,” and looked me in the eye, it was more than enough for me.
He then opened Tristan’s gift, and stared at his brother. “You’re kidding.”
“No.” Tristan smiled. “It’s yours.”
When I cleaned around the house—even though they had a maid—I saw on Ryker’s desk a collection of mini cars. There was only one in the front row—a Porche 911—so I told Tristan about it, knowing he wasn’t sure about what to get him for his birthday.
“It was Haelyn’s idea,” Tristan said, and I wanted to slap him. He should’ve kept this between his brother and him. Plus, it might’ve been my idea, but Tristan fully paid for it.
“Thank you,” Ryker said to both of us.
Kai went with him to see the car and I rose from my seat, then went to the bathroom to get what I needed before coming back. I had the box in my hands as I walked to Tristan.
He reluctantly took it and before he could open it, a meow brushed past our ears.
“No way.” I heard Esmeray’s sister, Raven, laugh in the background.
“Oh my god, I need to see it.” Esmeray came closer as Tristan took the lid away and gathered in his arms a tiny and little grey cat.
“She’s adorable,” Lacey said, coming next to me to pat him on the head.
“She’s a he,” I told her, smiling.
“What are you going to name him?”
Tristan was still looking at me, probably not believing I got him a freaking cat. I wasn’t sure if he was mad or wanted to kiss the shit out of me.
“Race,” he said, nodding his head as he turned the cat around and bumped his nose into his.
“Race what?” Lacey asked, frowning.
“Race is his name,” Tristan continued, smiling. “Thank you, beautiful.” He raised on his feet and leaned down to kiss my forehead.
Race. I liked the name. It was somehow a definition for our future with the racing car. He was a reminder that we were training for a race and that we were about to win it.
“You’re welcome.” I grinned from ear to ear, happy he liked my gift.
“Now, can you hold Race for me while I bring your gift?” He put him into my arms before I even had time to nod.
As soon as he turned on his feet and went out, Lacey stretched her hands. “Can I hold him?”
“Yes, of course.” I gave it to her, nervousness sinking its way inside me.
I sat down, hugging myself. I loved gifts but hated the part where I had to wait to get them. And right now, it was as if time had stopped passing and I just stared at the goddamn door without blinking or breathing.
No matter how hard I tried to think about what his gift could be, I had no idea. None. Zero.
So I tapped my foot on the ground, patted Race a few times, and bit my lip and my cuticles until the door opened. I got to my feet, my breathing stopping.
When I saw Kai’s and Ryker’s backs entering the living room while they pulled something inside, I stilled. I knew every white metal part of that thing with my whole being.
I almost dropped to my knees when I covered my mouth with my palms.
He was insane. How could he get the approval to do something like this?
Tristan was the last to enter, pushing the hospital bed right next to our tree from one of the rooms on the first floor. He thanked the boys and then came by my side, taking my hands away.
“I wanted your first Christmas to be perfect,” he murmured, brushing my tears with his thumbs. “And I knew you’d think about your mother the entire time, so I brought her here. I prepared her room and from now own, she’ll stay here with us.”
“Tristan…” I started, my throat tightening.
He shook his head. “Don’t say anything yet, I want to show you something,” he said and dragged me by my hand.
When I looked back at everyone on the couch, the girls were all crying, holding tissues under their eyelids to prevent tears from slipping to their cheeks.
I gulped and looked down at my mother. I got her hand in mine.
“Hi, Mom.” I smiled through tears.
“Diane, can you show her?” Tristan leaned down, looking at my mother.
“Show me what?” I asked, glancing between the two of them, but before he could reply to me she shakily raised a hand in the air.
I couldn’t remember the last time I saw my mom moving from her bed, so I didn’t know how to react or what to say. My brain stopped working at that moment.
Tristan brought my mom here as a gift and on top of that, she moved. She fucking moved. It was more than a squeeze of her hand, or lifting a finger. This was different. This was an improvement that gave me the confidence she was going to recover.
And I never thought I would be as happy as I am now. Looking around, I felt a sense of calm. Somehow, I knew that these people were going to become my family.
I wiped my tears, laughing. “Can you do that again?”
My mother repeated the motion and Tristan squeezed me tightly in his arms. I could feel his smile on my cheek when he kissed me and I smiled like a fool.
“I can’t believe you did that,” I whispered.
He took a strand of my hair and put it behind my ear. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you. No limit, no God could stop me from taking care of you.”