Page 135 of Forfeits

Christmas was two weeks away, and Aiden had officially moved in the week before. Now he and Lucy kept whispering and giving me smug looks.

“What the fuck is happening?” I asked.

“Nothing,” Lucy said.

“Not a thing,” Aiden said.

They looked at each other with barely contained excitement.

“Come on. I didn’t realize the two of you were going to gang up on me. I don’t think it’s very nice to keep secrets.”

“Oh, relax, Dad. All will become clear. Just you wait.”

“For what, though? What am I waiting for?”

“Patience, Fletcher. Patience,” Aiden soothed.

He must have known by then that patience wasn’t one of my strong suits.

When I dropped Lucy off at Annie and Brian’s the weekend before Christmas, she waved bye with a very smug look on her face.

In the car, I said to Aiden, “You’d better not be planning anything in the Bordello, because if that’s what Lucy’s been helping you with, I think it would be a teensy bit inapprops, you know?”

“It’s nothing like that. I’m not in this just for the sex, you know.”

We drove along the canal, enjoying the view of the city all lit up in the darkness. Colored lights were strung in places and became more plentiful as we reached the downtown area. I was so mesmerized by the pretty lights that I didn’t realize Aiden was steering into the Chateau Laurier driveway until he stopped the car in front of the massive doors.

“Come on,” Aiden said, putting the car in park and getting out.

“I— What?” I said, but I got out of the passenger seat as Aiden passed his keys to the valet.

“Very good, Sir.”

Aiden grinned at me as he opened the trunk, revealing two suitcases and two garment bags with hangers.

“Ta-da!” he said, a jovial smile on his handsome face.

“Are we staying here?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“For the night?”

“For two nights.”

“Holy shit,” I said, blinking with astonishment, staring around me at the lights bouncing off the stone of the historic hotel.

“And one very fancy dinner that we have a reservation for.” He glanced at his watch. “So we’d better get to our room.”

“Aiden, this is… This is perfect,” I said, following him inside.

A massive Christmas tree, decorated with giant ornaments, rose past the second story balcony and shone its festive cheer over the lobby.

Once we’d gotten our room keys, the attendant ushered us away and said someone would bring our bags up.

“I could get used to this,” I said, glancing at Aiden as we waited for the elevator.

“I want you to. I like to treat you well. You know you deserve it, right?”

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