The Hen Houseglows like it knows what today is.
Firelight flickers against stone, soft and constant, the Christmas tree standing just off to the side with white lights that don’t blink or compete. Everything smells like pine and woodsmoke and something warm baking somewhere it shouldn’t be.
Aleks stands behind me, arms wrapped around my waist, his body a solid line at my back. Not tight, not possessive, just right. His chin rests lightly against my shoulder, and I lean into him without thinking, like my body already knows this is where it fits best in times when you’re about to watch something sacred.
I know she’s okay, but I still worry that the last-minute change of venue shook her a bit, and when we rolled up in front, she lost it. I felt horrible. But now, as Claudia appears at the top of the stairs. She looks even more beautiful than she did before emotions took hold.
She pauses there, one hand on the banister, and for a second, it feels like she’s taking a breath for all of us. Ivory silk, elegant and straightforward, hair loose enough to still be her.
Paul waits at the bottom of the stairs, and so does our father, who Aleks has been very … on top of his schedule, insisting that each morning before he heads to the arena, they play a game of chess, and when he comes home, they either come see me, or watch highlight reels together. It depends on the day, of course. Some days, Aleks is my boyfriend; on others, he probably just thinks he’s part of my security team or the staff.
Thankfully, today is agood day.
Both Paul and Dad look up at her at the same time, and my chest tightens in the best way.
She comes down slowly, deliberately, and when she reaches them, she doesn’t hesitate. She links her arm through Paul’s, then through our father’s.
Aleks’s arms tighten just a fraction around me, like he felt it too.
They walk her together. No rush, no spectacle. Just three people moving forward because this is how life should be.
Deacon waits in front of the fireplace, Savannah in his arms. He’s in a tux, sharp and impossibly handsome, but it’s Savannah who steals the breath from the room, dressed in the cutest little velvet Christmas dress I could find, hands gripping his lapels like she’s anchoring him to the moment.
He doesn’t look away from Claudia, not once.
When they reach him, the minister smiles and waits until the room settles again before speaking. “Who gives this woman to this man?”
My father’s voice is steady, and Paul’s meets it at the exact same time. “We do,” they say together.
My eyes burn before I can stop it. Aleks notices immediately, his thumb brushing gently beneath my eye, grounding me without a word.
The fire pops softly behind them. The tree lights shimmer. Savannah beams like this is the best day of her life.
Aleks leans down, mouth close to my ear.
“Tsaritsa moya,” he murmurs, so quietly it’s just for me.
I close my eyes for a second and let myself feel everything at once. Love that doesn’t ask you to choose. A family that expands instead of fractures. Arms around me that promise to stay, no matter what the future holds.
When I open my eyes, Deacon is smiling like a man who knows he’s home.
And standing there, held exactly where I belong, I understand something simple and certain, so am I.
I wake Christmas morning to the sound of a text, and it’s Aleks’ phone, not mine.
He sits up carefully as quietly as he can, like he’s trying not to wake me.
I sit up and hold back the urge to say “Merry Christmas,” because I do not want him to change position. Watching him feels like a gift. Domestic hot. His back flexes as he reaches for his sweats, muscles loose and unguarded. His glorious ass flexes as he bends to grab his sweats, and then I get the very rare look at his soft cock, which hangs and swings as he moves… It’s beautiful.
When he grabs his shirt, he must catch me out of his peripheral vision, and we both say, Merry Christmas at the same time.
I ask, “What are you doing up so early?”
“Your father’s Christmas gift is on its way up.”
“I thought the gift was the new clubs and the golf trip you, Deacon, and Paul were taking him on when the off-season starts.”
It better be, because that was the theme of his whole Christmas from me.
