"Why does Jewell want us here again?" Ember put the SUV into park and turned off the ignition.

"The only thing she told me was that it was a Christmas surprise for Amanda and we needed to help." Keelee unhooked her seatbelt and glanced through the windshield toward the front porch of Jasmine and Chad's ranch house. "I love her Christmas lights! I wonder if Chad got up on a ladder to do the second and third floor?"

Ember glanced out the windshield. Snowflakes landed and melted on the warm glass. "It is beautiful. Joseph's doing ours today."

"Adam, Kaeden, Isaac and Drake are joining forces to do lights on all our houses." She put her hood up and sighed. "Joseph could have..." She glanced at Ember, and they both started laughing. "Never mind. Joseph doesn't play well with others."

A sense of intense warmth and love flooded Ember's heart. "He only plays well with me." She glanced at Keelee who smiled softly at her. Their friendship had endured years and become stronger when they helped each other navigate troubled waters.

"You two were made for each other." Keelee nodded to the porch. Jasmine had opened the door and wrapped her arms around herself trying to block out the bitter cold. "Come on, before she catches pneumonia."

Ember grabbed the keys and opened the SUV door. "Oh, damn!" She slammed the door and sprinted to the warm orange glow of the open doorway and promise of warmth.

When they reached the foyer, Jasmine waved them in and shut the door behind them. "I have wine set up in my office. For some reason, I have a feeling we're going to need it."

Ember shrugged out of her down-filled coat and hung it on a beautifully carved hall tree that was made out of a... well, tree. It was huge but fit the grand entryway of the home. "Why, what did Jewell tell you?" She rubbed her arms out of instinct although the warmth of the house was starting to penetrate the bone-chilling cold of the South Dakota evening.

"That Jade needed help and something about Christmas. She left a voice message and hasn't picked up my repeated calls. Neither has Jade, but that's par for course. When Jade gets involved with something, all bets are off."

Keelee stopped short alongside her. "Jade?" They both asked.

"So it seems. Come on, wine and snacks while we wait to get our mission brief." Jasmine turned and headed to her office. Ember and Keelee were no strangers to the home and knew the way. The beauty of the home still amazed her. Jazz's office was expansive with a large stone fireplace. The mantle was made from pine harvested on Jasmine and Chad's ranch. The corner of the room boasted a wet bar with delicate feminine accents of hand-carved fleur de lis and magnolia blossoms. Over a long low carved cabinet, they'd hung a seventy-inch flat screen. The office wasn't much of an office. It was more like a family living room if you discounted a desk and computer off to one side. The warm dark jewel tones, silk, and faux fur pillows and throws, soft high-pile carpet and comfortable furniture made the room so inviting Em would never consider it a workplace. This is the room they gathered in for Winchester Wednesday when it was Jazz's turn to host.

"You don't think she can't come, do you? Amanda is so excited to have everyone home this year," Keelee asked as she made a beeline for the wine. She lifted the open bottle and poured three glasses without asking Em or Jazz if they wanted any. It was what any of them would do in each other's home.

"God, I hope not. Mom was here yesterday. With all this snow, we are going to have a toboggan race for the kids." Jasmine motioned out the window to a large hill that the kids loved to slide down. "We were brainstorming ideas and prizes."

Em snorted, "I'd recommend bourbon."

"For the kids?" Keelee gawked at her.

"Hell, no. For the men. You know the second they find out there is a competition they will end up challenging each other. Maybe hot toddies?" She glanced at Jasmine.

Jazz laughed and nodded. "Noted. I'll make sure the bar is well stocked."

The soft jingle of the telephone at Jazz's desk turned all three heads. "Well, this is it." Jazz nodded toward the desk, and they all settled around the dark mahogany escritoire. It was too beautiful to be called a desk. Jazz pushed two buttons and answered the phone on speaker.

"Hey, Jewell."

"Hey! Is everyone there?" From the sound of her voice, Jewell was obviously eating something.

"Ember, Keelee and I are here. What is going on with Jade?" Jasmine glanced across the expansive wood top at them.

"Okay, Jade is here and so is Tori. I'm stepping back and letting Jade tell you the situation."

"Hey. Thanks for this. I needed to talk to each of you, and... shit to be honest I really didn't want to have to say it over and over again, so I'm consolidating. I'll talk to Faith and Dani after we hang up."

Ember sat straight in her chair. "Jade, are you sick?"

"What?" Jade's voice cracked through the speaker. "Hell no. I'm fucking engaged." Ember blinked at the speaker then at Jasmine and Keelee. All three women looked at each other in stunned silence. "Hello? Jewell, is this thing broken?" Jade's question broke the momentary paralysis that gripped all three women.

"Well, it is about damn time!" Jasmine flew back against her chair and clapped her hands gleefully. "Congratulations! Have you told Mom? Set a date? God, send me a picture of the ring!"

Em and Keelee added their congratulations and chuckled at Jasmine's happy dance in her chair.

"Okay, hold the door for just a minute. First, Mom does not know, and I forbid anyone to tell her."

Jazz's forehead furrowed, and she sat up, looking at the phone. "Why?" Her question held a healthy measure of suspicion.

"That's the reason for the call. I want to surprise her and I need your help." Jade explained.

"What, like a Christmas present?" Em was piecing together the conversation, or she hoped like hell she was.

"I want to get married the day before Christmas in the afternoon at Mom and Frank's church in Hollister, and I want to do it without Mom knowing anything about it."

"Shit." Jasmine's curse said it all.

"That's less than three weeks!" Keelee leaned forward. "How… "

Jewell interrupted. "Ladies, before you have the same freak-out that Tori and I had, we've started a timeline with tasks identified.”

"Right." That was Tori's voice. "Keelee, I need you to get with the florist you used in Rapid..."

Jasmine hit the button to hang up the phone and gazed across her desk at Keelee. Ember stood, went to the bar, and picked up the wine bottle. She poured them another full glass of wine and sat down.

"Can I just say, if we pull this off it will be a miracle?" Ember mumbled into her glass.

Keelee nodded. "It's Sunday. I can't get with the florist until tomorrow." She took a healthy swig of wine. "They needed a minimum of three months lead time for my wedding."

Jasmine turned to her computer and pulled up the email Jewell had sent to all of them. She opened the spreadsheet. "Here are the dresses." She clicked on the link. "Oh, they are pretty." She clicked on the shipping and nodded. “We need to order them tomorrow to make sure they get delivered in time, especially with the delays during the holiday. The delivery will be coming here, not into the complex, so that eliminates Guardian having to fly them in. Thank God for small miracles."

"Jade said all the dresses were going to be sent here? I hope no one needs alterations." Em eyed the three selections of dresses suspiciously. She had been blessed with curves, a lot of curves. The pencil skirt was out. The A-line would make her look like the Hulk, but the third one. The skirt would work… the top? She didn't look great in a halter-top, because... big boobs but this wasn't about her. She pointed at the dress she would order. “This one for me."

Jasmine tapped the pencil skirt. "I'll take that one. Okay, just to mark this off the list, let's order them now."

Em glanced down at the “to do” sheet. "Cake?"

"Betty did mine." Keelee's knee bounced hard for a moment until she sat straight up in her chair. "Sky can do it!"

"Sky Lang?" Jasmine shot a glance at Ember.

"Absolutely. She started making cakes for Kadey's birthday parties when she couldn't afford anything else. She is an amazing baker, and the things she can do with frosting are mind boggling. I can ask her!"

Em grimaced, "But, Jade said not to tell anyone else."

Jasmine huffed a laugh and slapped the desk. "She wants this shit done and done in three weeks. If we have to make a few allowances to do it, then we make those allowances. Keelee, you talk to Sky. See if she's willing to try, and ask what she'll need. We can get everything from Rapid. Em, can you take the day tomorrow?"

"Um… I have clinic in the morning, but the schedule is light because training is on hold during the holidays..." She glanced at Keelee. "I can ask Adam to cover, he has a few souls in the hospital, but he doesn't have clinic hours tomorrow."

"Excellent. As soon as we can in the morning, let’s head down to Rapid City. We'll go in person to the florist Keelee used and beg, borrow or steal the damn flowers."

Em stopped the truck in her driveway after dropping off Keelee. She smiled at the beautiful star affixed to the chimney of the house. LED lights, draped like icicles, framed the front of the house, and a sign that indicated Santa should stop “here” was posted prominently in the snowbank that was their front yard. South Dakota had had more than their normal forty-two inches of snow that year. It was pretty, but she could have done with a little less of the winter wonderland. Large and small snowmen scaled the mounded snow on the other side of the walk. Her men had been busy.

She turned off the ignition and got out of the SUV still looking at the lights. "Beautiful." Her breath frosted in the air.

"Yes, you are."

Joseph stood in the door to the kitchen and she smiled with a shake of her head. She'd stopped jumping at his sudden appearances once she realized he was always near.

"I was talking about the lights."

"I know."

She smiled, and when he walked down the stairs and stood in front of her, she rose up on her toes to kiss him.

He kissed her again before he pointed to the door. "Get in before you freeze." He grabbed the extension cord off the wall by the garage and plugged in the heating block of her SUV. It was absolutely necessary if she wanted to start the vehicle in sub-zero weather.

"Is Blake asleep?" She opened the door but waited for Joey to step in behind her. He shut the door as he slipped past her.

"He went with Mom and Frank to pick out a Christmas tree for their house." Joey pulled her into a tight embrace. "Did you have a good time at Jasmine's?"

Ember groaned and dropped her head back, so she could see him.

A single male eyebrow arched up. "What?"

She sighed. "Do you want the short version or the long one?"

"The one that explains the heavy sigh." He folded her back into his chest, and she drew a deep breath.

"Jade threw us for a loop. That's for sure." Ember laughed when her husband made a growling noise in his chest. "I had so looked forward to this Christmas being a quiet, peaceful time."

A sudden burst of baritone laughter vibrated in her ear. "You've met my sister, right?"

She chuckled too. "Yeah. I have."

"What's she up to now?" Joey released her from the hug and trailed his hand down her arm to her hand. He lifted it and kissed her palm while his eyes fixed on her.

God, the excitement of being the sole focus of a man this intense never got old. A shiver ran through her. "She's engaged."

Joey lifted his lips away from her palm. "And?"

"And she wants to get married on Christmas Eve, and she doesn't want to let your mom know so Amanda doesn't have to stress the details."

Joey smirked. "Instead she wants you, Jasmine and Keelee to stress the details."

Em cocked her head. "Very astute. A wedding in three weeks is impossible."

Joseph tugged her into the living room and sat down, pulling her on top of him. "Is it? Impossible?"

"No, not really, but it will be difficult to pull off." She ran her fingers through his thick hair. The greys were sneaking in, but it was sexy on her man. "She didn't want us to tell anyone."

Joseph reached up and pulled the clasp out of her hair sending, the damn curls tumbling around her face. "You tell me everything." He pulled her down, his eyes holding hers in an intense gaze.

"You're my safe place." She leaned down and dropped a soft kiss on his lips. "Besides, you'd never betray my confidence." She ran her finger over his bottom lip and squeaked when he snapped at it. Oh, hell, it had been at least a month since they'd been able to play. Make love, sure, that happened almost every night, but play... she sighed and looked up at the clock. Her quick glance was enough for him to know what she was thinking.

"An hour before they said they'd be back." His fist tightened in her hair, and he pulled her down to him. "You've got three minutes to get naked and meet me in the playroom."

"She's doing what?" Adam Cassidy dropped into his recliner and stared at his wife.

"Getting married in three weeks." Keelee dropped in the chair with him and wiggled to settle on her hip next to him. "See?" She held up the phone and scrolled through the tabs of tasks that still hadn't been done. "Em is going to ask you to take clinic in the morning so she can go to Rapid with Jasmine."

Adam shrugged. "That's fine." He took her phone away from her and settled her against his chest. "What does she have you doing?"

"I got voluntold to find someone to make a cake. I'm going to ask Sky if she could do it. With only three weeks left, I'm pretty sure I'll have plenty to do. Good thing I'm done Christmas shopping." Keelee's fingers slid to the button of his shirt. Her finger snaked in and rounded the small plastic disk. It popped out of its anchor.

"And you're supposed to keep this from Amanda?"

Keelee nodded and circled her finger around the next button.

"She knows everything that goes on around here. How do you propose you do that?"

Keelee shrugged and popped the button free. "Maybe we should call in reinforcements."

"Like who?" Adam watched as her fingers trailed down to the third button.

"Dad." Keelee laughed at Adam's groan. "Sorry, mood killer, huh?"

"Total mood assassin, but keep going. I'm sure I'll be able to resuscitate the patient."

Keelee slid her fingertip to the next button. "I'm positive you will, Doctor Cassidy." She slid the button out of the material and snuck her fingers under his belt buckle.

Adam sucked a sharp breath when his wife's fingers wiggled their way under his jeans and boxers and wrapped around his cock. "How long is Lizzy at Kadey's?"

"All night." Keelee lifted on her elbow and batted her eyelashes at him. "Oh, look, Doctor. I think we have a pulse."

"This sounds like a disaster waiting to happen." Chad sat in the rocking chair in Chloe's room. Their daughter was out like a light in his arms. Jasmine folded the last of the clean clothes and put them away. She shut the drawer and smiled at her family. Chad's eyes had closed, and he'd stopped rocking. The man was burning the candle at both ends trying to get the last tracks of his new album recorded before everyone descended for Christmas. His mom was coming for Christmas for the first time. He wanted to make sure he could spend time with her instead of being cooped up in his studio.

"It is already a disaster, that's why we are going to go to Rapid tomorrow and sort out the flower situation."

Chad made a non-committal sound. Jasmine quietly crossed the room and took her daughter out of Chad's arms, which was getting more difficult. Chloe was growing like a weed. Chad roused and leaned forward rubbing his eyes. "Sorry." He stood up and stretched.

Jasmine threw him a smile as she laid Chloe down. "Shhhh..." She patted her daughter softly as she settled for the night. She kissed her on the forehead and headed for the door. Chad pulled it closed, leaving it open a crack.

He put his arm around her and they walked down the hall to their bedroom. "I'm assuming Joseph is driving y'all tomorrow?"

"I wouldn't doubt it." Joseph was that damn protective of Ember. They ambled into the master bedroom and passed into a closet just as big as the bedroom. They both liked clothes. It was an indulgence.

"If he doesn't, let me know and I'll drive with you." Chad pulled off his graphic t-shirt and dumped it into the closet hamper.

"I am more than capable of driving to Rapid, or have you forgotten?" She pulled her silk t-shirt off and smirked when Chad's mouth dropped open.

"Have you been wearing that all day?" He had his jeans half off.

Damn, his body was fine. The cross-fit workouts combined with the exercise routine Dixon and Drake had made for him had ripped his body. The man who could have literally any woman in the world loved her. Their life was filled with love, laughter and the type of sex they both needed. Jasmine had learned a lot about herself since she'd met Chad.

"What? This old thing?" She motioned to the leopard skin corset. "Maybe." She shimmied out of her jeans and kicked them to the side, revealing the lace-up, leopard skin panties underneath.

"Sweet mother of pearls." Chad stood up, releasing his jeans to pool around his ankles. "How the hell do you get more beautiful every time I look at you?"

Jasmine sauntered over to him and ran her hands up the ridges of his abs. "I have dark magic that keeps you entranced."

Chad stepped out of his jeans and walked her backward out of the closet and toward the bedroom as his fingers struggled to unlace her corset. The laces caught in her hair. He groaned as he worked to undo the bindings. "Do you have any dark magic to get you out of this contraption easier?" He stopped walking her backward when they reached the king-sized bed.

Jasmine pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and shook her head. "No. I guess I'll just have to pay my penance." She dropped to her knees with her hands behind her back and nuzzled his stiff cock.

Chad's fingers carded through her hair and pulled it to the side. He tugged it back until she looked up at him. "I love you. What do you want tonight?"

She closed her eyes and rubbed her cheek against his cock. "I think you should teach me a lesson about wearing clothes that are hard to get out of."

He dropped her hair and sidestepped to sit on the side of the bed. "Then over my knee, my love."