Chapter Twelve

Christmas Morning

S omeone knocked on the lodge door just before dawn, drawing Azrael’s attention from his book.

Azrael was the only one awake so far, but that could be because it was twenty minutes after five in the morning.

There was only one person who would knock on the door this early.

It had to be Real.

Azrael jumped to his feet, afraid to hope, and hurried to the door.

It could be any other member of Pegasus, Genesis, or Erebus. Hell, it could be someone from Phoenix.

Yanking open the door, he stood, gazing up into Real’s blue-gray eyes.

“I thought you weren’t coming.”

“I changed my mind,” Real murmured and Azrael got déjà vu. The former SEAL crowded him back from the doorway. “Where are your socks?” The words were growled at him in Real’s raspy voice and Azrael laughed.

“I was sitting on the couch, I don’t need socks,” Azrael tried, but couldn’t get the vision of Real with another guy out of his mind and his anger resurfaced. Rather than start a fight, Azrael spun and made his way back to said couch, curled up and pulled the throw blanket over his lap.

Real put his go bag down and removed his leather work boots. The teenager moved like a dancer and Real couldn’t stop his gaze from following Azrael.

With his boots removed and coat on the hook by the door, Real snagged his go bag and made his way into the great room.

“Get snowed in?” Azrael said with a lifted brow barely visible through the fall of silky dark hair.

Real squinted at the sarcastic comment.

“No,” he grunted.

“So you’re here by choice?”

“Yes.”

“Good.” Azrael gave him a satisfied smile. “Merry Christmas.”

Rather than return the greeting, Real stared at Azrael. After a long moment of locking eyes, Azrael glanced toward the cold fireplace.

“Can you start a fire?”

Instead of answering, Real pushed to his feet and laid wood on the blackened grate. Within a few minutes, he had the fire going. Crackles and snaps filled the quiet room and sent a glow over the surrounding area.

“What are you reading?”

“ Eruption , by Michael Crichton and James Patterson,” Azrael said, showing Real the orange cover with the volcano on the front.

“Is that the one that uses Crichton’s partial manuscript?” Real asked.

“Yeah, Crichton’s wife decided that James Patterson was the right author to finish writing his book.”

“Is it any good?”

“Yeah, it’s fast paced like Patterson, but sciencey like Crichton.”

“Lend it to me when you finish,” Real murmured, stretching his legs out.

When Real snagged part of his throw blanket, Azrael tightened his grip on it.

With a puzzled frown, Real locked eyes with his.

Azrael knew it was unreasonable to hold onto his anger over Real’s actions, and he sighed. Making a quick decision, he decided he wasn’t going to hold a grudge. As long as Real didn’t go off and screw someone else, he could let go of his anger for the holidays.

Azrael relented and took it upon himself to arrange the blanket over Real’s lap. The man closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the couch cushions.

And there, in the quiet of the room, the fire sent a glow over a young man on the cusp of becoming an adult and a retired soldier in the prime of his life.

And if someone were watching them, they might think they were destined to be together.

Time would tell.

Travis herded Molly and Joey down the hall and into the great room. The Christmas tree lights had stayed on all night so that Santa could find his way with gifts. The smaller children ran to the tree with excited voices and Dylan barreled out of the hallway to join them.

Joshua came up behind him and draped his arms over Travis’s shoulders from behind and kissed the back of his head.

“Hey now,” Seven said, coming from the kitchen area.

“Bro, Travis and I are dating,” Joshua said.

“Like I couldn’t tell?” Seven scoffed with a smirk.

Joshua snorted and linked his fingers with Travis’s and led his boyfriend to the large brown-and-cream braided rug that the tree sat on.

Holiday music piped softly through the room and the smells of cinnamon rolls, coffee, eggnog, and chocolate filled the air.

Couples and teenagers wandered in from down the hallway and into the great room. And after getting beverages, be it coffee, eggnog, or cocoa, they all joined the children and either sat on the floor around the tree or on the large sectional.

Dave poured himself a fresh cup of coffee and turned to find Stone holding the carton of heavy cream. Dave held out his steaming mug.

Stone poured the cream and even lifted a clean spoon to stir the brew, turning it creamy white.

Dave held Stone’s eyes for a long moment.

“I’m tired,” Dave whispered around the lump in his throat.

Something glittered in Stone’s eyes at his words. “I know,” Stone whispered back. “And I think this is the best thing for you.”

Dave nodded and Stone took the mug from his hands and pulled him into a tight hug.

Dave didn’t allow this very often, but right now he needed it. He needed to know that he was making the right decision and that Stone would support him.

“We are okay,” Stone assured him with a tight squeeze.

“Promise?”

“I promise,” Stone stepped back and smiled at him with a wink.

Dave was left wondering how they would navigate their friendship if he decided to permanently move out here to Colorado.

But right now, he wouldn’t worry about it, the facility wasn’t even built yet.

And he and Stone were okay. His best friend and right-hand man said had they were okay. Stone walked into the great room and joined the noisy group of their family.

A found family, but in a lot of ways, they were as tight as any blood relation.

Dave stepped through the archway, but rather than follow Stone, he stayed gazing at the scene.

Each couple sat close as they often had since arriving at the lodge. Dave noticed that Joshua and Travis seemed attached. The other men of Pegasus and Erebus were couples who were married or currently living together.

Dave drew comfort knowing that he had given same-sex couples a safe place to exist. His specialty teams had become more than a way for them to earn income, but also a haven for a marginalized group of people.

In the coming years, he hoped that his facility would also become a refuge.

Gage laughed and lifted Joey onto his lap, and Dave smiled at the little boy’s excitement, and Mason leaned his head on Gage’s shoulder.

Dave couldn’t imagine seeing Gage without Mason, Seven without Hunter, Ice without Echo, and Creed without Kellum.

And himself…without Stone.

“Coming?” Stone called patting an open space on the large section next to him.

“Hurry! We want to open gifts,” Beck called, waving.

“Yeah, we can’t do that without our fearless leader,” Kellum teased.

“Come on, Boss,” Azrael called with a smile from where he sat beside Real.

Everything was falling into place. This holiday would be a season to remember, and Dave wouldn’t have traded it for anything in the world.

The End