Chapter 20
Christmas Day is a little overwhelming.
It’s been a long time since I was part of any family, and the Chapmans are just so welcoming and wonderful there’s a part of me that wants to run away and hide for a while.
“Everyone’s coming for lunch, so we’ll open the presents before we eat,” Pippa says.
Lucas sighs loudly as we enter the living room. “Are you ready for the family onslaught, Deacon?”
“How bad can it be?” I ask, dropping onto the couch. Pippa sits beside me.
“The grandparents and our aunt and uncle will be fine. It’s Lizzy you’ve always had to watch out for.”
I pick up a cushion and throw it at him. He roars with laughter.
“I was reminded of that by Pippa.”
He grins. “I bet. She had such a thing for you. It was a long time ago, but on the other hand—she’s single again.”
“I’m not.”
“I don’t think that’s ever stopped her before.” Pippa wraps herself around my waist.
“There’s only one woman I want, Pippa, and that’s you. And you know it.” I pop a kiss on her head.
“Doesn’t mean I’m not insanely jealous of other women.” She pokes her tongue out.
“You don’t need to be. But you do need to be careful, or I’ll give you another use for that tongue.”
The cushion hits me in the head after Lucas throws it back at me. “You can cut that out right now. That’s my sister.”
We all laugh, and it feels so good—like it used to be.
The door opens, and the living room is suddenly full of Pippa’s family. She sticks with me, holding my hand and squeezing it as if she understands I’m a little overwhelmed.
And then before Lizzy walks in, Pippa gives me a gentle push and tells me to move down the couch until I’m on the end, anticipating her cousin’s move.
Our parcels are already under the tree, but the pile grows as her grandparents settle in, and then her aunt and uncle arrive.
We never had Christmas like this back home.
Sure enough, Pippa called it. Lizzy walks in and takes one look at us cuddled up on the couch and rolls her eyes.
Lizzy’s a good-looking woman. She’s tall, blonde, and everything Pippa thought I wanted. It’s probably why Pippa’s a little paranoid about her. But I only have eyes for Pippa, and no one’s going to distract me from her.
Her cousin’s eyes dart to my end of the couch, and I swear you can see her mind ticking over as to what excuse she can use to try and make me move.
Pippa pats the spot on the other side of her. “Lizzy, there’s plenty of room here.”
With a huff, Lizzy makes her way to the opposite end of the couch.
“It’s good to see you again, Deacon. You’ve made quite a big name for yourself,” she says.
“Good to see you too, Lizzy.”
She smiles, and I nestle in closer to Pippa.
“Why don’t we get started?” Jean asks.
Lucas sits himself on the floor in front of the tree. “I’ll hand out the parcels.”
It only takes a minute, and the sound of tearing paper fills the room.
“Here you go, Pippa. There are two for you.”
Lucas passes everything to Pippa, and she hands me my parcel.
“You first,” I murmur.
She grins. “What’s this?”
“Open it and see.”
The bigger package gets opened first, and she shrieks when a new, top-of-the-line Kindle is revealed. She’s been talking about how the battery in hers isn’t lasting as long—although that’s not surprising given how glued she is to it—and I went all out because she’ll love it.
“Thank you.” She flings her arms around my neck and kisses my cheek before returning to the Kindle box.
I nudge her knee with mine. “Open the other package.”
This time, I watch her face for her reaction. I don’t want to make her cry, but this might send her over the edge.
“Deacon.” She gasps.
“What is it?” Lizzy asks.
“It’s a first-edition copy of Jane Eyre.”
I smile, and Pippa’s gaze hits mine. She swallows hard.
“I love this book.”
“I know. I do listen.” I chuckle.
“I’m not sure what to say. This is the best present I’ve ever got.”
I take her hand in mine and squeeze. “This is just the start, Pipsqueak.”
“Don’t call me that,” she mutters, but the amusement in her voice tells me she’s not offended.
She dives toward the tree and brings back a flat package.
“Here.” Pippa’s eyes shine with excitement when she hands me the parcel. “You’ll probably think it’s stupid after what you gave me.”
“There’s nothing you could give me that I’d think that about.”
“Open it first.” She grins.
I rip open the paper.
It’s a photo of us from the launch party. I’d almost forgotten about the photographer we usually hire to capture the night. My throat tightens looking at it.
It’s a candid shot of us. My arm’s around Pippa’s waist and we’re looking at each other like there’s no one else in the room. I know for me there was only her.
“Why did you think that I’d think this was stupid?” I ask.
“Because it’s just a photo of us and not some crazy expensive present.”
I gaze into her eyes before I place the photo on my lap and pull her closer to kiss her. “I don’t need expensive presents. I just need you.”
She snuggles in against me. “I thought you could put it on your desk at work.”
After kissing her temple, I take another look. She’s had it framed in a simple silver frame, and I already know where I’ll put it. “It’ll look great there. I get to look at you all day.”
Pippa raises her face, and I give her another tender kiss.
“Hey, love birds,” Lucas calls. “This is from me.”
He walks over and places a long, flat gift on her lap.
“I don’t know if you’re planning on moving in together, but I’m sure it’ll happen at some point. Anyway, I made this for your home—wherever that ends up being.” Leaning over, he pecks Pippa on the cheek before retreating.
She picks it up. “It’s heavy, whatever it is.”
“Just open it, Pip.” I laugh.
“You have to help me. It’s for both of us.”
I chuckle as I rip the end of the paper. “You do the rest.”
She eagerly tears it apart before pulling out a beautiful wooden chopping board.
“Is that … kauri?” I ask.
“It is. We had a job earlier in the year where the customer let us keep the offcuts. I was trying to work out what to give you for a Christmas present, and then you got serious with Deacon, so I thought I’d make you an early house-warming gift,” Lucas says.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you so much.”
I slip an arm around Pippa’s shoulders and pull her to me. It means a lot that Lucas was thinking of both of us, but is it enough?
I think what we’re both putting off is the conversation we really need to have.