Lily

I rushed down the stairs from the train platform, pulling my wool coat more tightly around me. Even with the coat, scarf, gloves and the sweater I’d layered under it all, the whipping winter wind still managed to seep in and chill me to the bone.

Shivering, I hurried along the street with a quick glance up at the darkening sky. With only a few weeks left before Christmas, I wouldn’t mind a little snow. In fact, a white Christmas that kept me snowed in with Will sounded pretty close to heaven to me. The only thing that would make it perfect would be if we could spend it in my house.

Next year. I grinned as I made that promise to myself.

But then I remembered I still had a problem to contend with this Christmas. Namely, what to get Will for Christmas.

I sighed. The first week we were together, I hadn’t let myself think about getting him a gift. It seemed too much to hope for that things would last an entire month.

Now, even with only a few short weeks of being together under our belts, I found myself beginning to believe. And with that belief came the realization that I needed to think of a Christmas gift for my man. What was I supposed to buy for my rich, rock star, has everything boyfriend?

I didn’t come up with any bright ideas before I hit the steel outer door to my apartment. I made a mental note to ask Maggie to help me brainstorm.

I sighed in pleasure as I stepped into the stairwell and shut out the cold behind me. I stood there a second and let the warmth battle back the chill. Bliss.

Then I remembered who might be waiting for me in my apartment and I grinned as I hustled up the stairs. Before I left for my gig bartending at an office Christmas party earlier, Will said he had some errands to run today but that he thought he’d be home by the time I got back. And as sickeningly, saccharine sweet as it sounded, even after a few hours apart, I was excited to see him again.

I dug my key out of my bag when I hit the top of the steps, but before I could use it, the door flew open. Will stood on the other side, a welcoming smile on his face.

“You’re here.” I flung myself into his arms, pushing him back a couple steps.

He chuckled as his arms closed around me. “Where else would I be?”

Damned if I wasn’t starting to believe him when he said stuff like that. He really had no intention of taking off and leaving. He’d proven it to me every day for weeks.

I shifted up on my tiptoes and tilted my head back for a kiss. Will didn’t disappoint. He claimed my mouth with a fierce possessiveness that told me he’d missed me as much as I missed him today.

When he lifted his head, his eyes blazed down into mine. “I’d like to pick that up again later.”

“Later? What’s wrong with now?” I pouted up at him.

He gave me an indulgent grin and kissed the tip of my nose. “I have a little surprise for you first.”

My eyes grew wide as a mixture of trepidation and excitement churned through me. Most of my life, surprises were not a good thing. Though I had a feeling Will’s surprises would be different. “What kind of surprise?”

He grabbed the ends of my scarf and unwound it from around my neck. “Let’s get you comfortable, and then I’ll show you.”

I moved to unbutton my coat as he hung my scarf on a hook, but he came back to me and brushed my hands aside. “Allow me.”

His voice was low and throaty, the tone he usually reserved for when he had me naked and underneath him. Just the sound of it made heat start pooling in my belly and my panties get damp. But even with the desire building between us, I couldn’t resist teasing him.

“If I knew how hot you got stripping me out of my winter gear, I’d have been wearing my coat and gloves to bed instead of my nighties.”

Heat flared in his eyes at the mention of my nighties. Something I’d learned fast, Will was totally appreciative of my penchant for silky, skimpy, girly lingerie and nighties.

“Sweetheart, I don’t care if I’m peeling you out of one of those sexy nighties or your winter coat. It’s always like I’m unwrapping the best present.”

I melted against him, trapping his hands between us. “Stop being so sweet.”

“You want me to stop?” he asked with a laugh.

No. Safe to say I didn’t want him to stop. Never wanted him to stop. But I had a reputation to uphold. “You can’t expect me to wait until later to drag you to bed if you’re going to say things like that.”

He groaned and dropped his forehead to mine. “Maybe this surprise was a bad idea. We should just skip it and go with your plan.”

I pushed off his chest and finished the job of removing my coat, kicking off my boots at the same time. “No can do, Bub. You told me you had a surprise for me. I’m not letting you off the hook.”

He made a pained noise in the back of his throat. “Tease.”

I shrugged. “I can live with being a tease. Now, show me this surprise.”

He grinned and tugged my hand. “Coming right up.”

He led me into the living room and my jaw dropped. He’d spent the afternoon doing a little redecorating. And shopping. My couch was still the same, but he’d turned it so it’s back faced the kitchenette. He’d bought a sofa table that doubled as a desk and had my laptop set up there.

The old, rickety television stand I’d been using for years was nowhere to be found. Instead he’d bought a corner television stand that now held a ginormous television. And moving the TV into the corner left one wall of my apartment empty…except for the real live Christmas tree complete with twinkling white lights that stood there now.

I whirled toward Will where he stood leaning against the doorframe, his hands shoved in his pockets. “Oh, my God. You got us a Christmas tree!”

He grinned. “I strung the lights, but I left the ornaments. I thought we could decorate it together.”

I fought to find my voice and when it came it was barely above a whisper. “You want to decorate the Christmas tree with me?”

He stood up from where he was leaning and pulled his hands from his pockets. The look he bestowed on me as he closed the distance between us was so gentle and tender, I had to swallow down the lump in my throat.

He pulled me into a warm hug. “Yeah, sweetheart, I want to decorate the Christmas tree with you. Do you like your surprise?”

I pulled in a shuddery, shaky breath as I fought off tears. I pushed my face into his neck, wrapped my arms around his waist, and mumbled, “Yes, I definitely like my surprise.”

He rocked me a little in his arms and brushed a kiss over my temple. “Good.”

After several minutes of standing there being held by him and trying to absorb what he’d done for me, I finally managed to pull myself together. I pushed off his chest, tipped my head back and asked with as much attitude as I could muster, “So we going to decorate this tree or what?”

“My tough girl.” He grinned down at me. “Let’s decorate a tree.”

I started to turn and then a thought occurred to me. “I don’t have ornaments!”

“Relax. I took care of that.” He gestured to a few bags lined up against the wall.

I hurried over a started digging through. “Oh, my God. I can’t believe you did this!”

The bags contained a beautiful array of glass Christmas ornaments. They reminded me of the vintage ones I’d seen in a magazine once. Like something that had been handed down for generations.

I turned and gaped at Will. “These are incredible.”

He gave a self-deprecating shrug. “I hit a few stores. When I saw these, I thought they were perfect. They reminded me of a picture I saw in your scrapbook.”

I blinked. And then pinched myself. Then walked over and pinched him.

“Ouch. What was that for?” He rubbed the spot on his arm I’d pinched.

“Had to make sure you’re real.”

He stopped rubbing and started grinning a boyish grin that made me melt. “I guess you like the surprise.”

I threw my arms around his neck and laid a long, hard, wet, deep kiss on him. I only pulled back when I thought I might pass out for lack of oxygen.

I held his gaze with my own. “Yes, I think you can safely say I like my surprise. In fact, I think it’s the best surprise I’ve had in my entire life.”

“Good.”

“Let’s get it decorated so I can show you exactly how much I love your surprise.”

“Sounds like a plan,” he said. “Just a couple of things we need to do before we start.”

With that he turned to the kitchenette and turned the burner on under a pot on the stove. He hit play on the phone dock and soft Christmas music filled my tiny apartment. In minutes, he’d made us steaming cups of hot chocolate complete with marshmallows.

He handed me my mug and held his up so we could clink them together. “Now we’re ready to decorate a tree.”

I stared up at him wide-eyed, still trying to convince myself this was real. Fear that I’d wake from this dream any second kept me frozen in my spot.

His eyes narrowed on me. “I don’t like that look you’re giving me. Are you thinking of pinching me again?”

His teasing broke the spell I’d been under.

“Maybe,” I said with a laugh.

He shook his head. “Less pinching, more decorating.”

“Yes, sir.”

We turned to the tree and spent the next hour carefully hanging each beautiful ornament, sipping cocoa, and enjoying every minute we got to do it together.

It was much later, after the angel I hadn’t seen at first had been placed on top of the tree. After the hot chocolate had been drunk and the last ornament hung. After we shared a pizza that Will ran down the street and picked up for us. And after I’d spent more than an hour with him in my bed and showed him with my mouth, hands, tongue and teeth exactly how much I loved his surprise.

As we clutched each other, trying to catch our breath, Will suddenly stiffened. “I forgot something.”

Before I could react, he jumped out of bed, headed into the living room. In moments he was back carrying a small gift bag with red tissue paper poking out of the top. He motioned for me to sit up and as soon as I did, he dropped it in my lap.

“What’s this?”

He shrugged as he slipped back into bed next to me. “Just something I saw that reminded me of you.”

“You’ve already done so much for me, Will. You didn’t have to get me a present.”

“I didn’t have to. I wanted to.” He tugged one of my long, dark curls. “Now open it, would you?”

My teeth sank into my bottom lip as I turned my attention to the bag. Slowly I pulled out the tissue and reached inside to find a plain brown box. With no clues to go on, I opened the box and pulled out what it held—a snow globe.

Inside the globe was a little white cottage all decked out for Christmas. Lights were strung along the roof, a wreath on the door. I turned the globe and gently shook it before turning upright again.

My eyes filled with tears as I realized I was looking at my dream house. I didn’t know how Will knew, but he’d picked out a perfect replica of my house.

“Here.” He reached for the globe and turned something at the bottom. He let go and a sweet rendition of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” filled the air. It was like holding my dream in my hands.

I gasped and a tear managed to escape and leak down my cheek. Will caught it with his thumb, wiping it away.

“You like it?” he asked.

“I love it,” I said. But what I thought was, I love you.

I couldn’t find the courage to say the words out loud, but after placing the snow globe carefully on the nightstand, I turned to him and did my best to show him exactly how I felt.