“I disagree!” I declare. “I think it’s beautiful.”
The guys move toward us and I hurry forward to Carson. He opens his arms for me and I slip mine around his neck.
“You guys are so cute,” I grin.
“But I’m the cutest, right?”
“Of course.” In his blue snowman sweater, he actually is pretty damn cute. I pull him down, bringing his lips to mine. The kiss immediately lights a fire deep inside me, and I have the thought of dragging him to our room right this moment and fucking him until we both pass out. I want him to spank my ass as I ride him, and then pull my hair as he pounds into me from behind.
The thought makes my heart race, but I resist, knowing we can’t do that right at this second.
Not yet.
His tongue brushes against mine, teasing me, almost daring me to forget about our friends and drag him up to our room.
Pulling back, I give him a cheeky little smile, needing a distraction, and ask, “How’d you guys manage to pull this off, anyway? Especially you. You’re not exactly the decorating type. You’re more the chest-pounding, cave-dwelling, drag-me-back-to-the-bedroom-by-my-hair-type.”
Ooooh, new fantasy unlocked.
He smiles at my comment, but beneath that is a surprising amount of exhaustion in his eyes. “You don’t want to know, Star,” he answers in a deadpan tone.
I raise a brow, but before I can say anything else, Wilder’s voice cuts through the air.
“Dinner is ready.”
Carson wraps his arm around my shoulders and we head into the dining area with the rest of the group. My eyes go wide when I see that the long table is covered with platters and bowls of steaming food. There’s a platter of sliced turkey, a dish of green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, dinner rolls, a cheese platter, and more. Sure, the dinner rolls look a little small and wonky and the turkey skin is black, but it’s an impressive spread and I can hardly believe the guys did all this.
“Wow, guys!” Stacey exclaims as Owen pulls a chair out for her. “This is really impressive.”
“Gotta give credit to Wilder,” Carson says, offering me my own seat. “We were flailing in the wind, but he got us on track and made this very edible meal possible.”
I glance at Wilder, surprised. He’s standing near the kitchen island, his expression as stoic as usual, but I think I see a slight tinge of pink on his cheeks above his beard.
Everyone sits down, but before we dig into our dinner, Jensen stands back up, holding his wine glass.
“Before we eat, I just want to say a few words,” he begins.
“Booooooooo,” Carson calls out, making everyone laugh. I elbow him in the side, and he chuckles.
Jensen grins and shakes his head. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll keep it brief, I promise. I just want to say how good it is to have us all here, celebrating together and making up for all the shitty Christmases we endured this year.”
“Hell yeah!” Zander wraps an arm around Rylee’s shoulders and kisses her.
“It’s been a hell of a ride the past few years.” Jensen gazes down at Grace, green eyes glowing with adoration. “We’ve each gone through some major changes. Fuck, I’m a married man! Who’d have thought that would happen?”
Another round of chuckles and Grace takes his hand, kissing his knuckles.
“Skyler and Carson are engaged, and so are Stacey and Owen, who also have baby number two on the way, and Rylee and Zander have their own kid coming.”
Sutton holds up her glass, arching a brow. “Love that for you all. Truly. Meanwhile, I’m married to my career and a $200 vibrator named Excalibur.”
“Nice.” Wilder holds his fist out to her and she bumps it with her own.
“$200?” Carson whispers in shock.
“I’m glad we’reallhere,” Jensen continues. “We’re not just a team…we’re a family, and I love you all.”
“Ahhhhhh.” Owen holds his hands over his heart and makes his eyes big. “We love you too!”
