21. Chapter 21

My eyes flutter open, but nothing looks familiar. I wait for my vision to come into focus and for my brain to catch up. Then scan my surroundings again. I have no idea where I am. A light snore comes from behind me and I jump, only to realize there’s a man’s arm wrapped around me. For a moment I think it’s just Tyler, but then I remember I broke up with Tyler. I yelp. Sitting up straight in bed and scooting away from the devilishly handsome man laying on the pillow next to me.

He opens his eyes and smiles at me. “Look who’s finally awake.” I stare back at him, confused. My head is pounding, the room is spinning, my lips are dry and hard, and I feel dehydrated. Did I get drunk and fuck Kane? I try to scan my thoughts and remember the last thing I remember doing. None of my memories are of Kane, though. I had a crazy dream about Santa and I think I fucked him, but I’m really not sure because it’s all really blurry. Before that, I think harder trying to remember. I was taking pictures in some lingerie. Is that how I got here? Oh god. The last thing I remember was thinking about sexting Kane. I must have and he obviously felt the same way, or how else would I have ended up here?

“What’s wrong, darling? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Kane says scooting up in bed, revealing his perfectly muscular chest.

Each one of his abs is perfectly defined, chiseled into his body with an undeniable attention to detail. I’m mesmerized as my eyes follow the hard lines slowing into a V below his belly button. The rest of him is hidden beneath the flannel sheets. I can feel him watching me, enjoying his body. It feels wrong, but I can’t bring myself to stop either. When I’ve finally had enough and I can stand our silence no longer, I bring my eyes to meet his. My cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

“Good morning. I’m sorry I woke you.”

He smiles at me in return, swinging his arm so I can scoot in against him. I’m not sure what to do hesitating, but also enticed by the prospect of running my fingers over his abs I decide to scoot closer. His arm snakes around me protectively, pulling me closer and leaning over to kiss me on the head.

“Do you remember anything from last night?” He asks, his voice deep and raspy, still with sleep.

I can feel myself turning red. “Will you be upset if I say no?”

He squeezes me. “Of course not. I’m sure it was incredibly traumatizing to watch everything that psycho did. If you’ve mentally blocked it out, I will spare you from reliving the details. Just know when you’re ready to face him, he’s tied up at your uncle’s place right where we left him.”

I fall against him, allowing one hand to land against his chest. His skin is warm and soft as I slide my fingers over it, tracing the muscles I so desperately wanted to touch when I first saw them. If Kane doesn’t want to tell me the details, then I’m not sure I want to know, but if I’m going to face Tyler, then I should probably have the basics, so I know what to say.

“Kane,” I whisper.

“Yes, my darling.”

The way he says that gives me butterflies. I’ve never been anyone’s darling. “If I asked you to tell me what happened, but without all the details, would you? I don’t even know what to say to Tyler.”

He sighs. “I don’t want to, but I realize you need to know. How much do you remember?”

“I don’t think I remember anything,” I confess, shifting so I can roll into him, draping one leg over his hip.

Instinctively, his other hand drops over me and he traces the curve of my hip a few times before cupping my face. “If you need me to stop at any point, just squeeze my hand.” He holds his hand out to me and I take it, and then he clears his throat.

“You called me and said there was a deer on the deck. It ran into the glass door of the sunroom, and you were panicking.” His eyes search my face to make sure I’m okay still. Satisfied, he continues. “I came down right away, but when I got there, you were running through the snow and yelling for help. You told me he was hunting you and if he caught up to you, he would kill you like he had the deer. You begged me to bring you here because you were too terrified to return to your uncle’s house.”

My eyes are filled with tears. Tyler came up here to hurt me. How could he? I gave him everything he wanted. I was patient when he said he wasn’t ready to get married or settle down. Now I know why he didn’t want to, but how could he come here just to harm me after he was the one that left? My head is spinning and I let it fall against Kane’s chest while I take a deep breath.

He releases my hand so he can stroke the hair back from my face. “Let’s finish this story after breakfast. I knew your morning would be rough, so I made you fresh apple cinnamon and cranberry muffins with walnuts.”

I nod, eager for the break and needing time to wrap my head around what happened.

“Kane,” I whisper again.

“Yes, my darling.”

“Did we?” I’m not able to bring myself to finish the sentence.

He grins down at me. “Yes, and I have no problem reminding you how it went later, but first, you need to eat.”

“You want to do it again?” I squeak in surprise.

“If I had my way, we would never stop doing it. Hazel, I think you have me addicted and I never want to spend another moment without you. Holding you in my arms these last few hours has been perfect. I only wish Dex was here, but maybe he brought you to me because he knew we could heal each other.” Kane’s words overwhelm my emotions and a tear slides down my face.

“Shhh. Come here. Don’t cry, Hazel. I promise you I will make up for every year you spent without me. I only want—“

“You only want what?” I ask him.

“Promise you won’t laugh?” He asks.

“Promise.”

“I was really hoping meeting you would be as perfect as it is, and we could fall in love like in those cheesy holiday movies and have a happily ever after. You see, I’ve always longed for companionship—someone who could love me for who I am and not the numbers in my bank account. I felt like you were my only hope and now here we are together and I never want this to end.” He confesses.

Tears stream down my face uncontrollably. “Kane,” I choke on my sob. “I could never laugh. I wanted that, too. In fact, I’ve been watching holiday romances and wishing I could be one of those lucky girls. When you showed up to shovel my snow, I wanted it to be you.”

He wipes my tears with the back of his hand. “It can be Hazel. All you have to do is promise to love me, and in return, I promise to love you more than you ever thought possible. I will give you the world if you can see me for who I am and love me.”

I wrap my arms around his neck. How is this happening? I pinch my wrist, checking to make sure I’m not dreaming. Is this really happening? Am I getting a traumatic holiday knight in shining armor love story for Christmas? I blink in disbelief, squeezing him closer.

“Are you real?” I whisper, so in shock, my filter seems to have disappeared.

“I promise you I am very real, and I am very serious. Come downstairs with me and let me show you around. I love Christmas, and I want you to experience our shared love for the season all over again. Since you don’t remember much from last night.”

He’s perfect. Absolutely perfect. I allow him to pull me from his bed, but then he scoops me up in his arms, carrying me as if I am unable to walk on my own.

“Let me carry you down the stairs. I want to hold you, and I’m not ready to let you go yet.”

He doesn’t have to ask me twice. I’m sold. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world right now.

When he steps out from the hall and onto the landing, my breath catches. “Oh my god, Kane!” I gush. Fresh-cut garland drenched with poinsettias and soft twinkling lights adorn the railing of his circular staircase. Red velvet ribbons run down the rails, curling at the end. I look up to whisper in his ear. “This is every girl’s dream holiday romance movie.”

“Why is that, darling?” His nickname for me makes me squirm as I revel in the feel of it.

His smile lifts in the corners of his mouth when he looks down at me, waiting for my reply.

“A mansion, decked out for Christmas, on top of a mountain with snow blowing in the large windows built for enjoying the magnificent views.” I giggle.

“And,” he prompts me.

“And the most handsome man I think I’ve ever met, complete with abs that don’t look real.” I cover my mouth, laughing awkwardly at my overshare.

He stops at the top of the stairs and looks up. “Mistletoe.”

My hand guides his face to mine, and I kiss his lips softly before pulling away slowly.

“No tongue?” He protests.

“Morning breath.” I confess with a grimace.

“Next time I’ll make you brush your teeth,” he growls.

“Deal.”

He descends the stairs while carrying me effortlessly, as if I weigh nothing to him. I want to tell him he doesn’t have to carry me everywhere, but I don’t think he would listen and it’s pretty sexy. I could probably live with being carried by him for the rest of my life. When we reach the bottom, he sets me down, steadying me and reaching for my hand.

There is Christmas covering every square inch of this place. A giant tree greets me at the bottom of the stairs, decked out in glass ornaments. Its lights glow softly in the dim morning light. Another snowy day on the mountain and I already know I’m perfectly content to stay right where I am, except I wonder about the clause in the will that said I have to stay for a week. I could always extend my stay. I brought my work computer with me in case I got stuck up here. It wouldn’t be unheard of, and my boss would never know. He has no reason to check on me so long as I get my work done. An extended vacation sounds nice.

Kane is tugging me past the tree and deeper into the house. There are nutcrackers, more garland, fresh wreaths, a Christmas village, and the entire house smells like the holidays. It’s spicy, with the scent of the forest mixed in. Everything is perfect. In the kitchen, he seats me at a cozy little table and brings me over a muffin.

“Milk or cocoa, darling?” He asks, placing it in front of me.

“Cocoa,” I grin.

“Good, me too.” He kisses my hand, then leaves me to make hot cocoa. I continue to look around in awe at all the decorations. It’s beautiful.

Kane slides in next to me a few minutes later, placing a cup of cocoa on the table in front of me. It’s topped with whipped cream, dusted in cinnamon, and has what looks like crushed up gingerbread cookies on top.

“Wow, what is this? Are you some kind of famous chef or something?” I blurt out after I’ve swallowed my first bite of muffin.

“Or something,” he teases. “Baking is just a hobby I picked up from my mom. She was a single mother and it was something we did together.”

I reach out and squeeze his hand, popping another bite of muffin into my mouth. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I started eating. It feels like I haven’t eaten in days. My mind drifts off with every bite I take. I’m starting to feel so much more awake. My body feels like it’s buzzing to life after having been starved for sustenance. I try to remember last night and everything that happened, but all I can remember is the pictures and then my weird dream about having sex with Santa.

“What are you thinking about?” Kane asks, pulling me out of my head.

I bite my lip. I don’t want him to know how weird I am, but I decide to tell him about my dream anyway. “If I’m being honest, I was thinking about a really weird dream I had last night where I was sleeping with Santa.”

Kane grins. “Sounds sexy. If that’s something you want to do, I have something we could both wear. I ordered a variety of sizes and choices because I was hoping you would turn out to be perfect. And now that I’m confessing this out loud, it sounds a little crazy.”

“It doesn’t sound crazy to me,” I whisper. “I would love to play dress up with you, Santa.” I wink.