Page 149 of Suck My Puck

He nods, a shy smile pulling at his lips. “When you went to bed last night, I stayed up and prepped the dough, then I got up early to bake them.”

My heart flutters in my chest at how thoughtful it was for him to plan this surprise for me.

I kiss him, then take a bite. I moan at the pillowy texture and the perfect balance of sugar and cinnamon. “Oh my god,” I say around a mouthful.

“It tastes okay?” Braden asks.

“It tastes incredible. Braden, these are the most delicious homemade cinnamon rolls I’ve ever had.”

He beams. “Really?”

I nod. “You have to try one.”

I hold it up and he takes a bite. His eyes go wide as he chews. “Wow. I did a kick-ass job on these.”

I chuckle. We finish the cinnamon roll and have a few berries. I splash some milk in my coffee and take a sip.

“I know you like frothy milk in your coffee, but I didn’t want to wake you up by using the frother. That thing is pretty loud,” he says.

I run my hand through his wavy blonde hair that’s messy from sleep. “This coffee is perfect. So are the cinnamon rolls. This was the perfect surprise, and this is the perfect Christmas morning. Thank you.”

He looks at me with warmth in his smile and his gaze before kissing me.

“I have another surprise for you,” he says before twisting around. “Maizie! Here, girl!”

Maizie trots into the bedroom and runs up to us, a big red Christmas bow tied to her collar and wearing a headband with fuzzy reindeer antlers. I squeal and lean down to pick her up.

“Oh my god! She’s so cute!” I kiss her head and she licks my face.

Braden chuckles. “Getting her to sit still to tie that ribbon around her collar took almost as long as prepping the cinnamon rolls.”

I laugh. For the second time since waking up, my heart flutters in my chest.

Earlier this week, Braden went through all the testing to see if he’ll be able to donate bone marrow to Lucas. He’s been pretty quiet since then, checking his phone often to see if he’s gotten the official okay. I can tell he’s disappointed that he hasn’t heard anything yet. So to know that he put all that aside to make Christmas so special for me means the world.

“I love it. Thank you so much for the most amazing Christmas morning.”

The corner of his mouth quirks up in that sexy lop-sided smile. “Anything for you. Wanna open some presents?”

I grin wide. “Yes.”

I grab his Bashers hoodie from the floor and throw it on. I pad to his dresser, grab a pair of his boxers and socks, and slide them on.

I start to walk off, but Braden grabs my hand and pulls me to him. He kisses me. “You look so fucking cute wearing my clothes.”

I smile against his mouth. “You’re not mad that Iconstantly steal your clothes so I can wear them around the apartment?”

He shakes his head. “Nope. It’s the hottest thing in the world.”

I head to the bathroom to pee and brush my teeth. When I walk into the living room, I take in the cozy scene. The Christmas tree with presents, the fireplace roaring, snowflakes falling outside. I gaze out the floor-to-ceiling window at the stunning snow-covered Rocky Mountains in the distance and Denver skyline in the foreground.

It takes a second before I notice the stockings hanging above the fireplace. I smile as I walk over and run my fingers over the stitching that spells out my name.

I look over at Braden, who’s carrying two mugs to the coffee table in the living room.

“You got us stockings with our names on them?” I say, stunned and so happy.

“Of course I did.”

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