“I’m sore in places I didn’t know I could be sore,” I groan when I get out of the car, El following me with Chad and Axel.

“Here she goes again.” El rolls her eyes. “I’ve told you: I don’t want to hear about my nearly-brother-in-law’s penis.”

“Hardy-har.” I grimace when I move a step away from the car Axel drove us in. I don’t know why I had this notion he couldn’t drive, but apparently he can, and he owns an awesome sports car to boot.

“Was she like Bambi?” El asks Axel, sliding up next to Chad.

“Worse.” Even he grimaces. I think he thought I was joking about me and skates, but we weren’t on the rink for five minutes before I’d fallen into him a total of thirteen times. At that number, he promptly got me off the ice, telling me it was a bad omen. At least he didn’t let me go and kept his arm around me so I didn’t fall.

Thank you, broken collarbone.

I take a step toward him, wishing we were still in the warmth of his bed, naked and tangled in the sheets while eating pizza and watching a movie. A girl can dream. Instead, I’m standing in front of a house in the Hamptons complete with a tree in the front yard that could put the one from last night to shame.

“Wow, so your parents are into Christmas, huh?”

“Bigtime,” Axel answers, putting his arm around my shoulders, being careful of my left one. “Be prepared to not be able to move after this feast and to have gained five pounds.”

“It’s all good,” I tell him as we walk up the staircase on the left—yes, the left—side of the front door. “Does your mom know I’m—”

“Children!” a loud voice rings out as the door is thrown open, revealing a woman shorter than me with big puffy hair and a Christmas apron on. “You brought guests!”

“Miriam, I’m shocked.” El’s hand goes to her chest. “I’m not a guest—”

“Yeah yeah.” She waves her away, heading right for me. “I’m talking about this delicious piece of meat.”

“Me?” I ask, pointing at my chest and looking up at Axel who is running his hand down his face.

“Don’t, Ma…”

“Don’t you ‘Ma’ me,” she reprimands, stopping a pace in front of me. “Don’t just stand there,” she goads, opening her arms wide. “Give me some love.”

I hesitate which causes her to grab me around the shoulders, yanking me to her. I bite my bottom lip to counteract the pain, but it doesn’t work and a pained groan escaped my lips.

“Ma, she has a broken collarbone, I told you this.” Axel steps behind me, pulling me from his mom’s embrace.

“Oh, shucks, of course you did, I must have…” She pauses. “I must’ve forgotten.”

The mood seems to dampen as she says those words, all their expressions becoming sad and pain-filled. What am I missing?

“It’s okay,” I tell her. “I’d forget my panties if they weren’t—”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Axel groans, walking past us and into the house.

“What?” I ask, looking around. “Was it something I said?”

Miriam chuckles, slipping her arm through mine as she leads me into the house. “I have a feeling I’m going to like you.”

“Well, thanks,” I tell her. “Do you have eggnog?”

She scoffs. “Of course, I do.”

“Then I already love you,” I tell her, being deadly serious.

She throws her head back laughing, pushing open a door and stepping into the biggest kitchen I’ve ever seen in my entire life. There’s so many cupboards, the counters gleaming much like the dark, oak wood floor.

“Wow. Do you cook in here often?”

She lets go of my arm, and that’s when I realize nobody else has followed us in here. Not that I mind because I’m used to being on my own and meeting new people. It’s not like Axel is my boyfriend and I need to impress his mom. I’ll just be me. Vi: the number one klutz in the States.

“I used to,” she says, heading to the refrigerator. “Oh! I wondered where these got to.” She pulls out a pair of glasses before getting a pitcher of something out. “I’ve been looking for these all morning.” She laughs at herself but it’s a sad kind of laugh, one used to ease tension.

She pours two glasses and hands me one, telling me it’s eggnog, and as soon as it hits my tongue, I moan.

“So, Violet. Axel tells me you’re heading back home tomorrow. Are you doing Christmas with your family then?”

I swallow the gulp down before clearing my throat. “Ah, no. My parents like to go on vacation at Christmas.” I shrug. “I don’t see them often so…”

“There you are,” a man with a deep voice says, and when I turn around, I see a spitting image of Axel, only older with graying hair.

He heads for Miriam, kissing her cheek before taking the glass out of her hand and having a sip. I watch them, the smiles on their faces and the love shining in their eyes.

“They’ve always been like that,” Axel whispers in my ear, wrapping his arm around my waist from behind.

I close my eyes as I lean my head against his chest, relishing in the feel of him. This time tomorrow I’ll be on a flight back to L.A. I don’t want to admit I’m going to miss him, but I am. Stupid feelings.

“You must be Violet,” his dad announces, causing my eyes to open. I straighten up but Axel doesn’t loosen his arm.

“I am,” I murmur.

“Don’t hug her, Marcus! She has a broken collarbone.”

He turns around to face Miriam, but I see the smile he pastes on for her benefit. “Okay, love. Luckily you reminded me because I forgot about that.” The look in his dark-blue eyes when he turns back around tells me he didn’t forget about it at all, and he’s placating her.

“It’s nice to meet you,” he tells me, holding out his hand.

“You too,” I reply, shaking it.

“When’s this turkey gonna be done, Ma? I’m starved!” Chad shouts as he enters the kitchen with El beside him.

“Let me check,” she says, her mouth spread into a wide grin as she murmurs, “So nice to have both of my boys back in one place.”

Axel shoots me a wink when I turn my face toward him, planting a kiss on my nose.

“You weirdo,” I whisper, wiping the kiss away.

He gasps. “You can’t wipe my kiss away.”

“I can and I will.”

He leans down, kissing me again, and when I go to wipe it away, he holds my arm, kissing me several more times. I giggle like a schoolgirl and inside I’m shaking my head at the sound, but I can’t help it around Axel.

“Where’s the turkey?” We turn around at the sound of Miriam’s distressed voice. “I know I put it in the oven.” She wipes her hand furiously on her apron before spinning around, searching the room. “Where is it?”

Axel moves his arms from around me as he steps toward her, holding his hands out. “It’s okay, Ma, don’t—”

“I put it in the oven, I know I—” She cuts herself off as she stares at the sink and the giant turkey sitting in a roasting pan, waiting to go in the oven. “Oh my gosh, I’ve forgotten to put it in the oven.”

“It’s okay,” Axel whispers, “we can put it in now.”

“No! It won’t be cooked for another five hours—”

“We can stay the night.” He turns to face me. “Can’t we?”

I see the pleading in his eyes as he stares at me. “Of course, my flight doesn’t leave until twelve. And I have a feeling I won’t be able to move after this feast anyway.”

“Are you sure?” she asks, her voice sounding like a sad child’s.

“Of course.” I nod and step forward, pulling my jacket off. “What can I do to help?”

* * *

“Wait, wait, wait… say that again.” The grin on my face is hugegantic as Miriam laughs at her story.

“It’s true.” She nods emphatically. “He swung to hit the baseball, lost his footing and hit himself in the face with it.”

I snicker, turning my gaze to Axel as I raise my brow. “So, you were a klutz, too?”

He pushes his plate away when he’s taken a last mouthful of mashed potatoes. “Yeah.” He leans forward. “But I grew out of it.”

“Touché.”

Moaning as I put the last slice of gravy-covered turkey in my mouth, I turn back to Miriam. “What other stories do you have—”

“Nope.” Axel stands up, shaking his head. “That’s enough embarrassing stories.” He walks around the table, stopping beside me as he says, “Let’s start clearing the table before we do presents.”

I tilt my head back, smiling at Axel upside down. He grins back at me, placing his hand on my shoulder and moving his fingers up to the side of my neck. We stay like that for a beat, our eyes telling so many things neither of us are willing to acknowledge before I close them, shuttering it all off.

We make quick work of clearing the table, and when we’ve finished everyone is waiting in the living room next to the giant Christmas tree, the lights flashing and twinkling much like the stars in the darkened sky outside.

They start to hand out presents and I stand awkwardly before telling Axel, “I need to get my presents—”

“We’ve already brought them inside,” El interrupts.

“Oh.” I walk forward, stopping when Axel holds his hand out to me. I place mine in his, letting him pull me down next to him.

Presents are handed out and I start to worry if I did the right thing in what I bought everyone. I shouldn’t have though because El loves the new graphic card I got her along with a bright-pink hard drive. I didn’t know what to get everyone else, so I had El help me. Chad got a new ball cap, Miriam a bottle of perfume, and Marcus a pair of slippers.

But Axel, I knew exactly what to get him. He raises his brow at me as he rips the paper. I bite my bottom lip as he starts to pull them out, a chuckle escaping his throat.

“Fluffy socks?”

“Yep.” I reach over, holding them up. “I saw these and thought, ‘These would be perfect for Axel.’” I pause, my lip quirking. “I see the way you look at mine in the office.”

He reaches forward, cupping the side of my face as he stares at me. “I’m gonna miss you when you’re gone.”

I swallow down the lump starting to build, opening my mouth to tell him I’ll miss him too, but El comments, “I don’t get it.”

“As soon as Vi gets to her desk, she leans down, pulls off her torture devices—”

“Torture devices?” Marcus asks.

“Heels,” I supply, not looking away from Axel as his eyes spark.

“Then she pulls on the brightest fluffy socks I’ve ever seen. A different pair each day. Striped, neon yellow, green, pink… you name it, she has them.”

“It’s cold in your office.”

The air crackles as he reaches forward, skimming his fingertips down my cheek before he grasps my chin. “I know it is.” He lowers his voice. “Your nipples are a telltale sign.”

I gasp. “My nips have been popping out this whole time?”

“Yep.” He chuckles, planting a soft kiss on my lips before pulling back and grabbing a present down by his feet. “I got you this.”

“Ohhh!” I make grabby hands, ripping the paper open like a three-year-old kid. It tears in every which way before a frame is revealed. “You didn’t!”

“I did.”

I lift my head up, snorting at him as I turn the frame around, holding it up so everyone can see.

“I figure you’re not going to see my face every day so you might miss my handsomeness.”

“Is that right?” I ask as El comes closer.

“Mmmhmm.”

I spin the frame back around, looking at the picture of Axel dressed in his suit, staring at the camera with a broody expression on his face.

“I also have this to put in the bottom corner.”

He reaches into his pocket, pulling out a small picture, and when he places it in the corner, I lift it closer, smiling wide when I see it’s a photo of us from last night next to the ice rink, me with my cat ear hat on and Axel standing behind me, his arm around my waist as we both smile at the camera.

“I love it,” I whisper.

He moves closer to me on the sofa. “I have another present for later.”

“You do?” I ask, lifting a brow at the grin on his face and the look in his eyes as they trail over my chest.

“I do.”

Leaning toward me again, he kisses me, only this time it’s not quick; he savors it, pressing his lips to mine softly and slowly before pulling away.

“Merry Christmas,” he murmurs.

“Merry Christmas, ya filthy animal.”

* * *

I stare out of the window as we make our way to the airport, hating I’m going to miss the cold weather. When I landed here three weeks ago I couldn’t wait for the twenty-one days to be over, but now I wish I didn’t have to go back to the sunny state.

I want to keep wearing my new hat and gloves. I want my feet to be cold while I’m sitting at my desk. But most of all, I want to be able to look to my left and have instant man candy.

“You good, Vi?”

“Yeah.” I nod, placing my hand over Axel’s as he grips my thigh.

When we woke up this morning we had a quick breakfast before leaving to get my stuff from the hotel and heading to the airport.

El wouldn’t come with us, not that I expected her to anyway because she hates goodbyes. So there’s only me and Axel, the man who has surprised me at every turn, taking all of my weird moments in his stride and not once asking for more from me.

Why is that? Maybe he doesn’t see me as long-term material?

I shake those thoughts from my head as Axel pulls up in the drop-off section, turning the engine off but not making a move to get out of the car.

It wouldn’t work between us anyway on account of the fact I live nearly three thousand miles away.

Neither of us says anything for a few minutes until Axel clears his throat. “You’ll miss check-in.” His voice is flat, and I wonder what it means.

Maybe he’ll ask me to stay? Would I stay in New York if he asked me to?

“I know,” I whisper, reaching for the door handle and pushing my brain to the back of my head. Of course he won’t ask me to stay. I was a stop gap, something to pass the time. Not that he wasn’t the same for me.

Damn, I can feel tears working their way to the front of my eyeballs. I halt when I get out of the car, working the dates out in my head. Yep. My time of the month is soon. At least it explains why my emotions are all over the place. Silly me for thinking it was something more.

I straighten my back, walking around to the trunk and lifting up the handle on my case when he places it on the ground.

“So… I guess this is it?”

He closes the trunk. “You may see me in L.A. now and again.”

“Right.” I nod, way too many times to look normal. Now and again.

He’s definitely not going to ask me to stay.

“I better…” I hook my thumb over my shoulder, tilting my head to the main doors of the airport.

“Yeah.”

I bring my eyes to his, hating how I can’t tell what he’s thinking. I step forward at the same time as he does, both of us going in for a hug—me low and him high.

My hand meets his junk and my eyes widen, but I style it out by smirking up at him. “Just saying bye to him, too.”

He shakes his head chuckling. “I’ll miss your awkw—”

“Awesomeness,” I interrupt, pulling back. “I know, I’m just too cool for words. But hey, if you get bored then you know where I work.”

“This is true.” He leans against his trunk, pushing his hands into the front pockets of his dark denim jeans.

Stepping back, I pull my case with me before I hold up my hand in the spock sign. “Live long and prosper.”

I spin around, not wanting to hear his reply as I walk into the airport, feeling like the last three weeks were a dream. A dream full of awkwardness and amazing orgasms.

I guess the trip wasn’t so bad considering my lady garden got a good watering. I snort at myself, turning to take one last look at Axel, but he’s not there.

Of course he’s not.

Rolling my eyes at myself, I turn around to head back to where I belong: L.A. and my small apartment.