Page 18 of Bringing Home the Biker

“Santa!” Woods shouted, and his face lit up with pure joy.

Ben scooped him up effortlessly and swung him into his arms. “Yup, he’s coming, but only if you’re sleeping.”

Woods threw his fist in the air like a miniature superhero. “To bed!”

Rain chuckled as she followed them toward the hallway. “This is the only night of the year I can actually get him to go to bed without a fight.”

“See you in the morning!” their voices echoed as they disappeared to their bedrooms, Woods still chanting, “Santa!” like he was leading a parade.

I turned to Axel, who looked as content as ever and leaned casually against the counter. “I can help my mom finish cleaning up if you want to head to bed,” I offered.

“You sure?” he asked, tilting his head like he wasn’t fully convinced.

I nodded. “Yup. I’ll be quick.”

“Okay,” he said and smiled warmly. He turned toward my mom and Jim. “Goodnight, everyone. Thanks for an amazing night.” Then, with a quick squeeze of my hand, he added softly, “I’ll meet you in bed,” before he headed down the hall.

Jim went to the living room to pick up the remnants of the cotton ball game and left Mom and me to deal with the disaster that was our gingerbread table. We worked together, corralling the sticky houses into trays and wiping the counters clean of rogue frosting and sprinkles.

“That was a fun night,” Mom said as she wrung out a dishcloth.

“Yup,” I agreed, though the word came out more like a sigh. “It was definitely something else.”

Mom chuckled as she dried off the tray she’d been rinsing. “I really thought you and Axel were going to build some kind of gingerbread mansion.”

I rolled my eyes, though I couldn’t stop the small smile that tugged at my lips. “Yeah, so did we. Turns out there’s a big difference between real construction and frosting construction.”

She laughed and shook her head. “Still, it was fun to watch. I like him, Star.”

I paused mid-swipe on the counter but didn’t look at her. “Yeah, he’s a great guy.”

“He’s not at all the type of guy I thought you’d end up with,” she added thoughtfully, and that made me scrub the counter just a little harder.

“Star,” she said gently.

“Yeah?” I replied, not meeting her eyes and instead focused on a spot that probably wasn’t even dirty.

“You can stop scrubbing. I don’t want a hole in my granite.”

I froze, then sighed and set the rag down.

“I like Axel with you,” she said softly, and her words sunk in deeper than I wanted them to.

So did I. But the truth was, Axel wasn’twithme—not really. This whole thing was temporary. A few more days, and we’d go back to what we were before. Nothing.

“Yeah,” I finally said, my voice barely above a whisper. “Axel’s a great guy, Mom.”

She leaned on the counter and watched me with that all-knowing look only a mother could manage. “You seem happier than I’ve ever seen you. And I love that.”

I swallowed hard and didn’t trust myself to look at her. “I do, too,” I admitted, because it was the truth. Axel made me happy—happier than I’d ever been. But in a couple of days, this would all be over, and I’d probably feel the exact opposite.

I tossed the rag into the sink and forced a yawn. “I better get to bed. Woods isn’t the only one excited to see what Santa brings.”

Mom laughed and pulled me into a warm hug. “Goodnight, sweetie. See you in the morning.”

I headed down the hall toward my old bedroom, and my steps were slower than usual. Something about my mom’s words had left a lump in my throat, and I needed a moment to shake it off.

No matter how much my mom had driven me crazy about meeting my boyfriend for the past year, I knew she just wanted the best for me.

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