“Eat your food,” Ozzie griped playfully. “And then I will make the biggest fire I can without having the fire department called.”
“Deal.”
The biggest fireOzzie could make involved all the firewood crammed into his tiny steel fire pit and Tuesday squirting anentire bottle of lighter fluid over top of it. Ozzie was pretty sure he lost part of an eyebrow when they first lit it up, but it was worth it once the wood caught and the fire was blazing away.
He and Tuesday stood side by side, holding each other and watching the fire burn. Ozzie had brought the Yule log out, but he hadn’t added it to the pit yet. He watched the flames as he leaned his head against Tuesday’s shoulder, lost in his thoughts.
Only a few days ago, he’d been dreading spending the holidays alone.
Then a gorgeous alien crashed into his bathtub and turned his whole world upside down with glittery slime, pink tentacles, and the most beautiful smile in the universe.
“Whatcha thinking about, baby?” Tuesday asked softly. “You have the same look on your face that you got after I asked you why they didn’t just ride big eagles to the mountain.”
“Oh.” Ozzie smiled. “Just thinking about how you completely upended my entire life, destroyed my daily routine, and made me the happiest man ever.”
“Ah, so good stuff. ’Cause it’s about me.”
“Exactly.” Ozzie chuckled. “Part of this holiday is, uh, looking back at the year that’s gone and ahead to what’s coming. Thinking about the future was pretty crappy for me, to be honest. I didn’t know how to get out of this rut I was stuck in. I was pretty sure I was gonna be miserable forever, and now…”
“Now?”
Ozzie hugged Tuesday closer. “Now I can’t wait to see what happens next.”
Tuesday cupped Ozzie’s cheek, turning his head so he could press a sweet kiss to his lips. “Fuckin’ ditto, baby.”
Ozzie kissed him back for a long moment, listening to the flames crackle and the wind breezing by. He breathed in Tuesday’s sweet scent, savored the soft swipe of his tongue,but he laughed when he felt the distinct pressure of a tentacle squeezing his ass.
“Oops, my hand slipped.” Tuesday giggled.
“That was definitely not your hand.”
“That is true. It was definitely not.”
Ozzie chuckled softly and then sighed, glancing over at the Yule log.
Tuesday followed Ozzie’s gaze. “Is it time to roast it?”
“Yes. I think it is.” Ozzie headed over to pick up the log, and he smiled as he looked over the sun wheels. “You know, some witches like to visualize a promise for the future when they burn the log. Sort of like making a wish.”
“Don’t tell me what it is!” Tuesday gasped. “Or it’s not gonna come true!”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Ridiculously true.”
Ozzie huffed as he headed over to the fire pit. “Okay, fine. I won’t tell you.”
“But now I want to know, baby. Damn.” Tuesday hummed. “What a pickle, huh?”
“All you need to know is that it’s something nice,” Ozzie promised, carefully and quickly sticking the log into the center of the pit. He took a step back and smiled as Tuesday hugged him from behind. He dropped his hands over Tuesday’s, watching the ribbon on the sun wheels catch first, and he could smell a whiff of warm spices.
“I hope it’s this,” Tuesday murmured.
“What?”
“Your wish,” Tuesday said. “I hope it’s for this. To you know, last a while.”
“Maybe.” Ozzie’s heart skipped a beat. “I am starting to get used to you, even with all your glitter and tentacle stuff. Be a shame if you decided to up and leave or something.”
