Vann stifled his second yawn in under five minutes. He was perpetually tired, pushing himself for weeks to meet each deadline in the demanding schedule. Everyone on the team stuck it out with him, equally pushing themselves, squeezing in as much time as they could into each day. Drayton had left the office for a late morning meeting while Vann had taken advantage of the holiday silence, stealing a few extra hours to revise details his inner-perfectionist demanded be tweaked in the plan. He loved the synergy of working with the team, but it was a little tough getting in the right headspace with the constant phone calls and interruptions to handle the day-to-day tasks.
“Do you mind if we take the surface roads instead of the highway? I’m getting a report of major slowdowns in a few spots along the way,” Jason said.
Vann glanced up at the company driver as he traded his focus between the road ahead and the rearview mirror as he drove. “Not at all. Whatever you think.”
Not having to deal with the after-Thanksgiving-sale traffic and chaos was definitely one perk of having a driver. He stretched his legs and leaned back against the headrest. He had lost track of time and assumed Drayton should be home by now. A tired smile slipped his lips. He would never have imagined he’d be a businessman or the one arriving home late after a long day of work.
He rolled his head to the side on the soft, leather cushion and stared out the window. Parking lots were full and people hurriedly walked into stores while others shoved bags full of purchases into their trunks to free up their hands for the next round of shopping. Everyone around him made wish lists or talked about getting this present or that one or which store sale offered the best deal. His team had asked him what he wanted for Christmas, but he’d shrugged off the answer each time.
He had already received two gifts to last a lifetime that he’d cherish each day: his freedom and a second chance with Drayton.
He still wasn’t sure he deserved to be at Drayton’s side, but he slowly worked toward that goal with each passing day. It included days filled with endless tasks and responsibilities at the office, but all the stress and madness of the day always faded when they lay together in bed each night. That was the fancy bow wrapped around the perfect gift. And exactly why he and Drayton had agreed the only gifts they would exchange would be time together—a full day without interruptions or shop talk but plenty of sex until they both passed out. He definitely wouldn’t object to that offer.
“It’s the gift that keeps on giving,” Drayton had told him last night before passing out on the couch in his post-orgasmic euphoria.
Vann rolled his bottom lip between his teeth, hiding a smile at the thought. Drayton was his gift. One he sure as hell enjoyed unwrapping every day.
Something caught his eye, jolting him up in his seat. “Jason, can you pull off to the side, please?”
He craned his neck to get a better view between the passing cars as Jason found a safe spot to stop. He rested his elbow on the edge of the window and tugged at his lip, staring at the tent full of Christmas trees.
Growing up, he’d never had one up at his house for the holidays. One year, he had salvaged a small tabletop plastic tree someone had discarded. Whoever it was must have thought it was trash since it would tip if it held a single decoration, but he didn’t care. That one-foot tall, uneven shrub meant something to him.
That was enough reason for his father to take the tree and burn it in the barbecue grill in the backyard, melting away the plastic and Vann’s attempt at having any sort of holiday cheer.
He rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger, hoping to wipe away the memory. He didn’t have family traditions or big holidays. Hell, he didn’t really have any holidays. The closest he’d ever come to anything special was with Drayton, sneaking in a little private time until Dray had his Christmas dinner with his parents or at some party at the yacht club. They had turned their tree by the lake into their own Christmas tree with a few decorations and propped a flashlight upward at the base of the trunk so it would light the branches.
He sighed, looking at the different size trees in the pop-up tent display out in the field. They could easily fit one of those large spruces in their penthouse. And he knew exactly where they could put it—in the living room, by the left wall where the lights would reflect off the window and give it some extra sparkle. Or he could take one of the small ones and set it up in the design department. The crew was creative enough to come up with their own spin on the decor.
Maybe he could start some tradition with Drayton at home? Pull him away from work long enough to do…something. They could pick out a tree and decorate it. How much time would it take to decorate a tree?
He frowned. There was no way he’d ask anything more of Drayton after everything he had already done for him. Besides, he’d lived his life thus far without any holiday traditions, so there was no need to start something now.
“We can go,” he told Jason gruffly. He straightened in the seat and looked ahead, ignoring the ache in his heart at never having been one of those hyper kids bouncing around under the tent, tugging their parents along to inspect the trees.
Vann ran his hands through his hair again. That had been one drive where the scenic route hadn’t helped his mindset. Seeing everyone right smack in the middle of the holiday frenzy was messing with his head. He tugged on his sleeves and pulled at his collar, hoping to right himself. Drayton could read him like a book, and he certainly didn’t want him to think there was anything wrong simply because the holidays always brought a wealth of less than festive memories.
The elevator dinged when it reached their floor. He exhaled the breath he had held and walked out into their penthouse, feeling a tiny bit more confident in his facade with each step.
He stopped in his trek, his lips parting in awe.
“Hey,” Drayton said, glancing over his shoulder with his jean-clad ass sticking up in the air and his head ducked under the tallest Christmas tree Vann had ever seen inside a building. He worked his way out from under the tree and brushed his hands together. “I needed to make sure it had plenty of water. It already sucked up half the base full.”
Vann stood stock-still, staring at the bare, deep green addition to their living room. “You…got a tree.”
Drayton walked over to him, a shy smile coloring his expression. “I wanted to surprise you with the biggest tree I could find. I figured we could decorate it together.”
“It’s…big.”
Drayton scratched his head and his features twisted. “Uh, yeah. I had to hire a crew to bring it over here. I think I went a little overboard.”
Vann shook his head, staring at the thick, large tree set up exactly where he thought would make the perfect spot. The tree was insanely tall and the top branch extended so high it bent downward, curling into a hook when it hit the ceiling. “It’s perfect.” He looked over to Drayton, his chest heaving with each shallow breath.
“I haven’t put up a tree here, so I don’t have any decorations. We’re going to have to brave the crowds or we can order them online if you want to avoid all that. I know you still have trouble with big groups of people.”
“We can go to the stores.” Vann wanted the full-on Christmas experience. He’d definitely work through and find a way to manage the pushing and shoving of the holiday crowd if it meant he could have a Christmas tree and be able to decorate it with Drayton. Between the two of them, they could start their own Shaw traditions.
“We can do whatever you want,” Drayton said. “I picked out the tree because I wanted to surprise you but…if you don’t want a tree, we can donate it or something. Or take it to the office instead. We’re going to get this pine smell in here after a while, and I’m not sure if you like that or not, so if—”
Vann launched himself forward, wrapping his arms around Drayton’s shoulders. He screwed his eyes shut, trying to calm the fireworks of emotion bursting and flaring inside. “It’s perfect. Right where it is. And it’s the nicest Christmas tree I’ve ever seen. Ever.”
Drayton snaked his arms around Vann’s waist and pulled him into a tight embrace, pressing a kiss to Vann’s temple. “I want our first Christmas to be special,” he whispered.
Vann held him close, cupping the back of Drayton’s neck, welcoming the warmth and love that always radiated toward him when they were together. “It already is.”