Her joy does something dangerous to me. It does something… earth-shattering.
She’s so warm. So bright.
So damn unexpected.
She and her joy make me want to let her have every version of Christmas she’s been trying to build for everyone else.
And that is exactly the thing I need to be careful with. Because she’s not here forever. Because I’ve learned better than to get attached to people who will leave.
Because my family arrives in a few days and I need to be functional, not wandering around with my heart knocking into walls.
But then she yawns, and the blanket slips from her shoulder. My heart hitches.
“You should get some rest.”
She blinks up at me, like a kid who’s trying to avoid bedtime. “I am not.”
“Yes, you are.” I gently tug the blanket back into place. “You look like you’re two minutes away from purring like a kitten in front of a fireplace.”
She scrunches her nose. “You’re exaggerating.”
“I’m speaking the truth.”
She pushes herself to her feet, swaying only slightly. “Okay. Fine. I’ll go to bed.”
“Good idea. We have an early start tomorrow.”
Without thinking, I fall into step beside her. I walk her as far as the bedroom door, stopping myself just short of opening it for her.
“Night, Natalie.”
She pauses in the doorway, hand on the frame.
Looks up at me. Her full lips curve up. “Goodnight, Calder.”
That little smirk of hers plays over and over in my mind. Imagining what it would feel like against my lips. On my body.
Wrapped around my cock.
It’s a thought that keeps me awake, and hard as a rock, well past midnight.
SEVEN
NATALIE
When I wake the next morning, it’s quiet outside, and Calder is already awake.
Of course he is.
He’s at the window, one hand braced on the frame, looking out at the world like he’s assessing it for structural integrity. The fire is low but steady, painting warm lines across his back.
His hair is mussed.
His henley is a shade of blue I’m pretty sure was engineered to ruin women.
And his voice—when he finally speaks—is a low morning rumble that makes the air shift.
“Storm’s moving out.”
