“Disappeared from my garage the week before Christmas.”Bob crosses his arms.“Two days later, Danny Brookman from across the street has it up on his roof.Claims he ordered it himself, says I’m imagining things.”
Sophie leans in, lowering her voice dramatically.“They’ve been in a decorating war ever since.Dad versus Mr.Brookman.Winner gets to display this ugly Santa trophy.Like, I would lose just to make sure I don’t get that trophy, but Dad loves it.”
“It is a symbol, Sophie.And he’s won every year since he stole my snowmen,” Bob says darkly.“I can’t prove it, but I know he did it.”
I slip my hands into my pockets, keeping my tone casual.“Do you want to steal them back?”Bob’s head whips toward me, his eyes widening.For a moment, he just stares.Then a slow grin spreads across his face, and he lets out a bark of laughter.He claps me hard on the back, the force of it nearly making me stumble forward.
“You’re a good man, Alexander,” he says, his eyes twinkling with mischief.“A very good man.”
Before I can respond, Olivia’s voice cuts through the morning air.“What are you all doing?”
I look up to see her leaning out her bedroom window, hair tousled from sleep, wearing what appears to be an oversized sweatshirt.Even rumpled and confused, she’s beautiful.
“Setting up decorations!”Bob calls up cheerfully.
“It’s freezing out there,” she protests.I can see her eyes land on me, worry in them.
“Then come help us warm up,” I say, meeting her gaze.
She squints at the yard, surveying our progress.“Who put up the wooden reindeer by the mailbox?”
“Me,” I say.
Her eyes narrow.“You’re doing it wrong.”
I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face—slow and deliberate.“Then why don’t you come down here and show me how it’s done?”
Even from this distance, I can see the color rise in her cheeks.But she lifts her chin, refusing to back down.“Maybe I will.”
“I’ll be waiting,” I say, my voice carrying just enough challenge that her blush deepens.She disappears back inside with a small huff, and I hear Bob chuckle beside me.
“She’ll be down in five minutes,” Sophie predicts.
“Three,” Bob counters.
“Ten,” I say.“She’ll need to make herself presentable first.”
Bob grins at me.“You know my daughter well.”Better than you think, I want to say.Instead, I just smile and return to the decorations, positioning them exactly where Sophie indicates.
The door opens in exactly seven minutes—a compromise none of us predicted—and Olivia emerges bundled in a puffy winter coat, her hair pulled back in a messy ponytail.Underneath, I catch a glimpse of an oversized pale blue sweatshirt with soft fur trim at the collar and cuffs.She’s wearing the same UGG boots from yesterday.
She looks adorable.
She marches straight to the wooden reindeer, kneeling down to inspect my work.“See?The stakes aren’t deep enough.One strong wind, and these will topple over.”
“Will they?”I ask innocently.She adjusts them, her breath clouding in the cold air.I notice her cheeks are already pink from the temperature—or perhaps still from our earlier exchange.
“There,” she says, sitting back on her heels.“That’s how it’s done.”
“My mistake,” I say, offering her my hand to help her up.She takes it without thinking, and I pull her to her feet with enough force to make her collide with my chest.She looks up at me, and I see the shift in her expression.
“You’re shivering,” I murmur.“Go back inside.I’ll help your father.”
Her eyes flicker with surprise, and then her expression turns soft.“I’m used to this weather.But thanks.”She hesitates, and then quickly gets on her toes and presses a kiss to my cheek before moving away, the tips of her ears a bright red.
The sweet kiss throws me off, but I’m not one to let an opportunity like this go to waste.I grasp her hand and yank her towards me.She stumbles a few steps, and I quickly tuck her hand into the crook of my arm.“Come on, then, darling.Show me how to properly decorate a yard.”
Her entire face turns a brilliant shade of red, the color spreading from her cheeks down her neck.She ducks her head, but doesn’t pull away.Satisfaction curls through me.She likes being called darling.Good.I plan to say it as often as possible.
