He deserved a Merry Christmas, damn it, and she wanted to share it with him.
“You can’t leave,” she said, again slipping behind the trees. “I already let the air out of your tires. You’re not going anywhere.” She had no idea if they’d believe the lie, but it was worth a try.
For a single moment, Hendrix’s eyes lit with humor. That’s when she knew. The reason he’d approached Ted from the opposite direction was becausehe’dflattened their tires.
Enraged, Ted struggled. “You’re going to be sorry about this, Joey!You belong to me. I’m going to make you so sorry–”
In the middle of his tirade, Hendrix tightened his arm, effectively cutting him off so that Ted gasped and frantically struggled for air.
Leo dropped the shotgun to the side. Moments later, they heard the sirens. Shaking from the inside out, Joey said into the phone, “You’re still there?”
“Yes. Are you safe?”
She looked at Hendrix. “Yes.” She almost wanted to smile. “Please tell the officers that after my ex broke a window and tried to get into my cabin, he pulled a knife on Hendrix Becker. Hendrix is the owner of the campground and a retired police detective. He’s the taller dark haired man restraining my ex with that knife. My father-in-law is here too, and he threatened us with a shotgun. Right now the shotgun is on the ground beside him.”
All because Hendrix was amazing. Whether it was fair or not, he was hers and she didn’t plan to ever let him go.
For long minutes the officers sorted things out, taking the weapons and asking a lot of questions. The very second they allowed it, she threw herself into Hendrix’s arms. “I’m sorry,” she said, knowing he’d be irked that she hadn’t stayed inside with the doors locked. “I couldn’t –”
“Shh, babe. It’s okay. I understand.”
Incredulous, she pushed back to see his face. “You understand?” No way had she expected that.
His smile went crooked. “You love me.”
“Oh, God, Hendrix, I do!”
An officer standing nearby grinned.
“I know. And you had a gut feeling, right? Like you had to be here?” He cupped the side of her face. “Never ignore that. I did that once and it cost me.”
“But all this...” She glanced around at the broken glass, the blood on the small porch of the cabin and the blood on Hendrix. Thankfully not his blood, but still. “You should not have had to go through this again.”
“Totally different story this time.” He kissed her. “Your ex will be out of the picture for a good long while, no innocents were hurt, and best of all, I have you.”
Joey wrapped her arms around his neck again. “You do,” she whispered. “Now and forever.”
“Come on. We need to change clothes, and then we need to pick up our boy. Our official holiday is just about to start.”
Bright and early Christmas morning, Hendrix sat on the couch in his living room, watching as Ryder opened his gifts. Nothing had ever given him more pleasure. Beside him, Joey sat yoga style, that wild hair he loved so much fluffed around her face, highlighting her beautiful eyes, and occasionally hiding her magical dimples.
“Oh, my, gosh,” Joey said. “Here’s another one from Hendrix.”
Instead of ripping into the present, Ryder took it and ran over to climb onto Hendrix’s lap. He wore a blue sweatshirt, baggy sleep pants, and his feet felt like ice, but Hendrix hugged him close. “Do you mind another present?”
Laughing, lisping a little through his missing tooth, Ryder promised, “Ilovepresents.”
Smoothing a hand over his unruly hair, Hendrix said, “I love you, bud.”
Ryder froze, his eyes going round, his face still. Then he dropped the gift and threw himself against Hendrix, his skinny arms squeezing tight around his neck. “I love you, too!”
Hendrix hugged him with one arm, and with the other he beckoned to Joey. He could see the sheen of tears in her eyes, but with that small smile and her sweet dimples, he didn’t mind. Shewas happy, and he wanted her to stay that way for the rest of her life.
Sitting beside him, she snuggled in. “I love you too, Hendrix. So much.”
“So much,” Ryder echoed, before he sat back. “We’re a family, huh?”
Damn, but emotion thickened Hendrix’s throat. “We are. And guess what?”
