“Do you still see him?”
“Nah, he died about ten years ago now. No one took over the shop. It’s still sitting there empty.”
His eyes lit up like a genius idea had popped into his head.
“Why don’t you buy it?” he asked.
Truth was, I’d never thought about it before. I was lookin’ after my siblings for most of my life. Even when I got myself in good with the Steel Paragons MC, it was for them. It was like having an extended family to help me look after my brothers and sisters. Then, when they got old enough and seemed to be doin’ just fine on their own, I went out roaming the land, never really feeling settled anywhere that I stopped.
The last place I thought I’d ever stay would have been this town. The one that held such shit memories. But then why had I bought land here? Why did I come here to hibernate during winter?
What if staying and growing some roots didn’t mean I had to be stuck? Could I find a way to make it work? Because I had to be honest, his question brought up some ideas. And maybe I wasn’t hating them.
“Okay, can we do something else now?” He sat up and kissed my cheek. It felt like he was letting me off the hook, the unanswered question forgotten.
“Yeah, put on a damn Christmas movie,” I said, voice gruff like I hated the idea, but it wasn’t that.
“Really?” he lit up so adorably.
“Better yet, let’s take the laptop upstairs and watch it in bed,” I suggested. “I’ll even let you use my chest as a pillow.”
“Best night ever,” he whispered before he threw himself at me, kissed my cheek, then shot off the couch.
Then he bounded off like an excited puppy.
And I sat there for a long moment as the realization hit me that I was actually really fuckin’ happy.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Danny
I layered up, eyes on the land of white beyond the back door. I was so excited I was nearly vibrating out of my skin.
I wrapped a scarf around my head, then pulled on my elf hat, pressing the ears against my own in hopes of it blocking the cold.
“Ready?” Killjoy asked, hand on the knob.
After breakfast, he asked if I wanted to see his garage. I so did, but mostly, I wanted to go outside, and I didn’t want to do it alone.
Yeah, yeah. I was supposed to be up herealone, and I would have gone outside if it had worked out that way, but the truth was, there were a number of things I hadn’t actually thought about. Like what if I stumbled on a dangerous snow-creature? Or… what if I fell and broke my leg? The idea of having to drag myself back to the cabin was enough to keep my ass inside.
“Yep,” I said, mentally bracing for the cold.
We stepped outside, and though I’d been out in it a couple times now, I’d almost forgotten how cold it was. It nipped at the end of my nose. I loved it, and I smiled despite the sting it brought to my skin.
I figured all I needed was to get used to it. Maybe one day my inner Cali boy would move on and I could become a snow bunny.
My stomach flipped at the thought. I wouldn’t have the chance toget used to it. I might not have known when I’d be leaving now, but I felt the time ticking down.
Telling myself to enjoy it while I was here wasn’t really helping me. I didn’t want to leave. I didn’t want to walk away from Grumpy Pants Killjoy.
I was a few steps behind Killjoy, but it was sweet how he kept checking over his shoulder to make sure I was still there.
With a devious grin, I reached down and scooped up a handful of fresh snow.
Brr! That shit was cold. I felt the bite of it in my fingertips even though I was wearing gloves.
As fast as I could get my hands to work, I made a ball. Then I lobbed it at his back.
