“What fresh snowy hell is this?” Joker whispered.
Colton’s smile faded slightly, and Ace wanted to smack his friends. He needed to give them a good talking to before they stuck their boots in it any deeper.
“Oh my Chanel,lookat thosesweaters!” Fitz squealed. “I need them!”
“You’re cute.” Ace caught Gio’s eye and motioned to Colton. Gio nodded.
“Colt, did you see the hot cocoa stall? I need some. You have to help me choose because you know I’ll never be able to. Ooh, I bet they have peppermint!”
Colton laughed. “That sounds like a great idea.”
Leo gasped. “That stall has a Goldfish Cracker ornament!” A puff of snowy air was all that remained where Leo had stood.
This was perfect! “Laz, why don’t you go with Leo? King will be right there.”
“Sure. It looks like they have a camera ornament, too.” Laz turned to Mason. “Look, Cowboy! They have a cowboy hat with mistletoe on it.”
Mason laughed and joined Laz and Leo.
As soon as the boyfriends were off, Ace whirled to face his brothers-in-arms. “Alright, asshats. You listen, and you listen good. Colton makes me watch all the small-town, sweeter-than-molasses Christmas movies every year. I watch them happily because my husband loves them, and I love my husband.”
“Which has what to do with us?” Joker asked.
“It has everything to do with you. Colton has been dreaming about having one of those TV small-town Christmases for years, so you Scrooges will embrace the holiday spirit and love every freaking minute of it, or I will make your lives a living nightmare. Do you understand me?”
Lucky put a finger up. “But Ace—”
“I don’t want to hear it, Eduardo. You’ll wear the ugly Christmas sweaters, decorate cookies, drink hot chocolate, make Christmas cards, enter the snowman-building contest, and be so filled with Christmas spirit that you’ll be crapping tinsel.”
“That doesn’t sound sweeter than molasses to me,” Joker muttered.
“Shut it. You’re going to do all the holiday things, and you’re going to do it with smiles on your faces because my husband has been there for every one of us without so much as a second thought. Colton deserves this, and guess what? So do your boyfriends for putting up with all your crap year-round.”
“Harsh,” Jack grumbled. “I’m—”
“A giant computer nerd who goes to comic book conventions and gets excited over the latest tech, and your sweet-as-apple-pie boyfriend loves you so much that he doesn’t justmakeyour costumes, he goes to those conventions with you anddresses upwith you and listens to you go on and on about a bunch of tech stuff he doesn’t understand. He’s the first to show up when someone needs a hug and makes soup for everyone when they get sick. Sweaters in ninety-degree heat aside, Fitz is a cinnamon roll of goodness and gossip.” Ace turned to Red.
“Laz hasn’t just been there for you during PTSD episodes. He’s gone to therapy sessions with you to learn how to best help you when you have an episode. He’s happily documented every special event and created incredible family portraits and albums. When one of your dads fell off that ladder while putting up hurricane shutters, and you were stuck in Key West, who rushed him to the hospital and stayed with him until you got back?”
Red smiled warmly. “Laz did.”
“That’s right. Because he is there for you at the drop of a hat.” Ace turned to King. “You never thought you’d fall in love, much less find someone as amazing as Leo. No one makes you laugh like that adorable genius. You two understand each other in a way none of us do. He’s the best thing that’s ever happened to you and the only one who can get you out of your funk when you’re being a miserable bastard.” Ace narrowed his eyes at Lucky. “And cousin, that cowboy deserves a street named after him for putting up with your overdramatic ass.”
“Excuse me?I’moverdramatic?”
“Yeah, it runs in the family, but Mariah Carey and Beyoncé got nothing on you, and you know it. And who’s the one that pulls you out of your little meltdowns over ridiculous shit? Mason. That man loves every little thing about you.” And last but not least. Ace folded his arms over his chest as he eyed Joker.
“Yeah, yeah. Gio is a saint, okay. I know how lucky I am to have him.”
“Okay, good. We all on the same page here?”
They grumbled, so Ace motioned behind them. “Look at them.” He turned, his heart filled with joy at how happy they all looked. Fitz was in cozy sweater heaven. He was chatting happily with the stall owner and had more sweaters in his arms than he could carry.
Leo cradled the Goldfish Cracker ornament in his mittened hands like it was the most precious object in existence, while Laz took a picture of Mason posing with the cowboy hat ornament on his head. Gio had two cups of hot chocolate, one in each hand, and he took a sip from each. He was like a kid in a candy shop. Colton was handed a cup of hot chocolate with a giant gingerbread house cookie hanging off the side, and his laughter warmed Ace all over. He turned back to his friends, who all had the sappiest smiles.
“I see we’re all on the same page. Go be fucking merry.”
King arched an eyebrow at him but didn’t say a word. Instead, he headed off in the direction of the ornament stall. The rest followed, and Ace took a moment to appreciate Colton from afar.
