Chapter Twenty-Five #2
“Ican’t believe we still pulled this off,” I say in awe as I look around the room and take in how absolutely beautiful everything turned out.
Friendsgiving didn’t start on time, but better late than never.
Ainsley busied herself with the help of everyone here to make sure that the food stayed warm and fresh after finding out I’d only be in the hospital for a few hours.
She knew how important this was to me, and looking around, it’s obviously important to everyone here, too.
With a sigh of contentment, I lean into Levi beside me.
Since we left the hospital, he hasn’t stopped touching me, like he’s afraid I might disappear if he lets go.
I soak it in, holding onto this moment like it might slip through my fingers.
My chest still aches with the echo of fear, but I push it back, focusing on what’s right in front of me, on him, on the steady rise and fall of my breath, and on the simple fact that I’m still here.
The room glows softly with the fairy lights Callie insisted on for ambiance, and I have to admit, she was right.
The light catches on the greenery and yellow sunflowers draped along the walls, turning everything into something almost unreal, like a picture-perfect Thanksgiving I didn’t think actually existed.
Friendsgiving is definitely a tradition I want to keep, especially if it always tastes this good.
I’m already planning on living off leftovers for the next week.
As we finish eating, conversation flows easily, warm and unforced, laughter weaving through the room. It’s nothing like the holidays I grew up with, and somehow exactly what I always imagined they should be, full, loud, and wrapped in love.
Billy flirts shamelessly with Ainsley, who pretends not to enjoy it nearly as much as she does.
Chief listens to Rory, his attention locked entirely on her.
It’s not surprising at all, but probably for the best, since he’s missing the way Blake keeps shooting him daggers.
I laugh, and Emma huffs beside him, rolling her eyes as she digs her elbow into Blake’s side.
“Ouch,” he says under his breath.
“Leave it alone,” she warns before kissing him on the cheek.
He rolls his eyes and nods, but a few moments later, his narrow gaze lands right back on Chief.
“That should be entertaining,” Levi whispers for only me to hear, causing me to chuckle.
“If Blake thinks he can control that,” I discreetly wave toward Chief and Rory, “situation over there, I almost feel bad for him.”
“My money’s on Garrett,” Levi mumbles.
We all watch excitedly as Aeliana, or Sunny as everyone’s taken to calling her, tries mashed potatoes for the first time. The giggle that escapes her as she gets her first taste before diving in with both little hands is by far the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.
“She eats just like her uncle,” Della teases Caiden, causing an echo of laughter.
Before we dive in for dessert, Tom suggests we take turns going around the table, sharing our favorite Thanksgiving holiday memory and what we’re thankful for.
When it’s finally my turn, I think back on every Thanksgiving I’ve ever had and begin laughing hysterically.
“Is she okay?” Billy asks Levi.
I have to wipe the tears from my face from laughing so hard before I’m able to respond.
“I’m sorry, it’s just...” I laugh again. “This is going to sound crazy on account that I basically almost died today, but this is actually my favorite Thanksgiving memory.”
Rory cackles. “Of course it is.”
“There’s no way,” Mark says in disbelief.
“Unfortunately, yeah,” I admit. “I had a lot growing up, but I didn’t have this.”
I put my hands up and hold them out, motioning to everyone here before continuing. “Thank you all for saving my life today, for saving Thanksgiving, and for showing me what it looks like to truly have people in my life that I can count on,” I say sincerely, looking between them all.
“I’m not saying I’m going to be the perfect person,” I add quickly. “I am still me after all.”
A few laughs chime from around the table.
“But yeah, I guess that’s what I’m most thankful for this year... Oh yeah, and this guy.” I shake my thumb toward Levi.
He grunts before a genuine smile forms on his face as he holds his glass up for a toast. “To the family we make, to the loved ones we keep, and to all those in between that we can’t seem to shake.”
A few people woo and awe as everyone clinks their glasses around the table.
“You’re the ‘those in between,’” Billy teases, poking fun at Mark.
“Ha, and what do you think you are, bud?” Mark laughs. “Damn right, though. I’m not going anywhere.”
Laughter carries over to dessert, Mark is ridiculed for his store-bought apple pie, and by the end of the night, everyone is happily stuffed and ready to go home.
Except I’m still not sure where home is for us right now.
Seeing my slightly panicked expression, Callie walks over with Chief to where I’m helping Ainsley dry some dishes.
She nods for Levi to join, so he finishes rearranging the tables back to where they belong and heads over.
“So Chief had his fire investigator take a look at the duplex to determine the cause of the fire,” she starts.
“The day before Thanksgiving?” Levi asks, sounding surprised.
Chief shrugs. “He owes me a few favors.”
“Please tell me it wasn’t the Christmas lights.” My stomach drops. “Levi warned me that they could be a fire hazard. Was this my fault?”
Something gentle moves through Callie’s gaze, and Levi wraps his arm around me.
“It wasn’t anyone’s fault,” Chief reassures me.
“Except for maybe the electrician my father’s contractor hired out,” Callie grumbles. “Looks like I may be needing Jerry’s services soon. In the meantime, while we rebuild, you two need a place to stay.”
I frown, and Callie must understand why.
“Even if your place didn’t have much damage, Chief says it’s not safe until we get inspectors in there. You can grab your things this weekend and stay at one of our places.”
I look at Levi to gauge his reaction and see what he wants to do.
“What place?” he asks, running his hand over his beard and across his jaw.
“At this point, any of them. The insurance will cover everything, so take your pick. Frosty Mountain Resort, The Cozy Cottage, Cozy Pines Inn, Turtle Bay Hotel?” She lists off all the locations her family owns and waits for us to pick one.
“What do you think?” I ask Levi.
“Whatever you want.”
I think about it, and my lip slowly twitches up. “Turtle Bay Hotel is close to both our jobs.” I pause. “And room service sounds pretty nice.”
He chuckles and kisses my head. “Turtle Bay Hotel, it is.”
Aknock at the door wakes me. “Room service,” someone calls from the hall.
I roll over, reaching for Levi, but he isn’t there.
Slowly, I open my eyes as he walks back into the room, shirtless in all his glory, Ellie padding along beside him while he carries a tray toward the bed.
The smell of bacon drifts through the air, and if my mouth wasn’t already watering, it definitely is now.
Before his knee even touches the mattress, I’m sitting up with grabby hands.
“Yes!” I snatch a piece of bacon and bite into it greedily as Levi laughs.
“I can see why you like room service so much.” He takes a bite of what looks like Taylor ham, egg, and cheese on an everything bagel before sipping one of the two coffees he brought in. “I could get used to this.”
“Not bad, right?” I chuckle, reaching for the other cup.
We finish eating, and I fall back onto the bed, happy and satisfied. The fluffy down comforter surrounds me, like I’m floating on a cloud, and I sigh.
“Maybe I did die yesterday, because this feels like heaven.”
Levi stills beside me, swallowing hard before looking away.
“Hey.” I sit up, grabbing his face with my hand, forcing him to look at me, to be present with me. There’s a haunted look in his eyes that makes him seem far away and makes my heart hurt. “I’m right here. I’m okay.”
“I know,” he rasps, trying not to notice the small cut still on my head.
I drop my hand and trail my fingers down his neck to his bare chest, tracing the outline of scars that break across his skin like slow waves. He closes his eyes, his breath turning heavy as I push him slowly onto his back against the bed.
Hooking my leg over so I’m straddling him, I lean in, pressing kisses over every inch of scarring, every painful memory I know yesterday dragged back to the surface. Every new nightmare I know will now haunt his dreams... and mine too.
“I am so in love with you,” I murmur, pulling back, desperate that he sees how much I mean it. “I love you so much, and I never wanted to.”
He laughs, but it gets stuck in his throat.
“I thought you were homeless, and you pegged me for a bitch,” I say with a laugh, but a tear falls down my cheek and lands on his chest. “We found love in the last place either of us expected it, and I will never take that for granted. You saved me, Levi.”
“I thought I was going to lose you. I thought I was too late.” His voice cracks as we take a beat, letting the reality of yesterday catch up and settle around us. As it does, he stares at the ceiling, the tears that he’s fought off finally falling.
“Look at me, baby,” I ask gently, waiting until he does to continue. “You. Saved. Me.” I enunciate every word slowly, allowing them to sink in, willing to say it over and over until it gets through his thick head.
Something behind his eyes seems to shift. Sitting up, he wraps his arms around me and captures me in an all-consuming kiss that leaves me breathless and dizzy when he pulls away.
“You’re wrong,” he says, a small smile tugging at his lips as I frown. “I didn’t save you, baby. You saved me.”
My lips press together as his words land, a rush of emotion hitting me all at once, stealing the air from my lungs. I look away, rolling my eyes at how mushy this man makes me as I try to fight my smile.
“Is this the part where I say we saved each other?” I tease, though my blurry vision betrays me as I blink and the tears fall.
“Of course not.” He grins, a look of mischief suddenly filling his jade-green eyes before they darken with intent. “This is the part where I show you exactly how much I love every part of you.”
Levi rolls me over onto my back, pinning me underneath him all in one motion, making my pulse jump in excitement.
He hooks his fingers into the hem of my shirt, his shirt, and lifts it slowly until my arms rise with it.
In one smooth motion, he pulls it over my head, leaving me in nothing but my underwear, before those are quickly discarded too.
He wastes no time dropping his mouth to the most sensitive parts of me, lighting up every nerve in my body until it feels as though I’m on fire.
His hands are relentless as they peruse every curve, his mouth sucking and nipping every piece of my flesh as he goes.
His tongue laps at my clit, his face making a home between my legs until they are shaking and I’m crying out, gasping to catch my breath.
There’s no pause, no time between my pleasure and undoing as he presses into me.
His thrusts grow deeper and build in momentum with every plunge that threatens to send me over the edge.
My body still shakes with aftershocks and spasms as one orgasm turns to two.
Still, he continues like a man crazed, and my body gives him everything he demands from it, every gasp, moan, every cry of ecstasy belongs to him.
To this man, determined to love me, not my body alone, but my mind, heart, and soul.
He slams into me one final time, his grip tightening on my hips, as he finds his release, and somehow, again, I follow behind.
Tears fall from my eyes as his hand cups the back of my head and his lips claim mine, the kiss deepening, unyielding, like a man who’s held the world and now refuses to ever let it go.
He wraps me in his arms like he’s afraid that any bit of space between us is too much, and I let myself melt into him because this is where I belong.
This grizzly, grumpy, willing to run into fire for me, mountain man, is the man I love.
Now, because of him, I have everything I could ever want, and more than money could ever buy.
Ellie hops onto the bed and curls up at our feet as my eyes grow heavy.
Yeah, this... this is so much more.