Page 27 of Merry Little Christmas
I was on my knees with Cole behind me. One hand slipped beneath the baggy T-shirt I wore—hisT-shirt—and the other wrapped around my throat. At the image of his lips dusting across my shoulders, goosebumps pebbled up in the same path. It was just line work now, and I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it once it was finished, but between being sick and my unwanted visitor, I hadn’t touched my tablet in weeks—it was a start.
Before I got too flustered, I locked the screen and flipped the case shut. By the sounds of it, Cole and Jesse were hard at work again, and it wouldn’t take them long to wrap things up. I had zero desire to spend my entire day packing, so it was time to get to work.
As I cleared out my closet, one large box teased me from the corner: my diapers. I’d stalked that website for weeks and when I finally ordered them, I tracked the delivery religiously. I didn’t need anyone getting a hold of it by accident.
But I also hadn’t been able to bring myself to open it.
I’d been new to being Little when I ordered them. I was curious, but cautious about experimenting with them on my own. Considering how fussy I got when I was wet, it was probably a good thing I hadn’t.
By the time Cole poked his head in the room to check on me, I was nearly finished. The power was still out and with the sunlight fading, it was time to call it a day. “You need any help?” he asked.
I scanned the things around me, deciding that I didn’t need most of it right away. Grabbing a couple of bags, I indicated the box in the corner. “I think I’m good, but can you grab that?”
My heart raced throughout the drive home. Cole, sensing something, kept a possessive grip on my thigh. Even after such a short amount of time, neither of us were a stranger to me being in diapers. It surprised even me that I’d gotten so comfortable with them, even to the point ofusingthem. But the ones in the back of my closet had been my dirty little secret for months. I was nervous for Cole to know that I had them, and I couldn’t put my finger on why.
“Where does this go?” he asked about the box once we’d brought everything inside.
Blushing, I looked at my feet. “The nursery.”
Cole paused, no doubt curious, but he didn’t bat an eye. He carried the box down the hall and set it in the middle of the floor. “Do you want me to help you unpack it or…? Baby, what’s the matter?”
I’d frozen in the doorway, unable to take another step. “I don’t know,” I admitted with a huff. “It’s nothing we’re not used to.”
Cole slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out his boxcutter. Carefully, he sliced through the tape—and smiled. He withdrew the two packs inside and set them on the changing table. My cheeks were on fire.
There were two different designs because naturally, I couldn’t decide. Both were black, but one was lace-printed while the otherhad tiny skulls and crossbones all over. Cole took out one of each and admired them, grinning ear-to-ear. “These are adorable.”
“I like yours better.” I wasn’t going to admit that I preferred them because the teddies disappeared…
Cole, unfazed, simply put them away where they belonged. “We can use both. What’s got you so nervous?”
I shrugged, feeling my head grow fuzzy—my body’s natural reaction when I was anxious, but it was ramped up by being in the nursery. With the box empty, Cole flattened it and gathered me into his arms. “I guess I’ve just had them for so long that it feels odd to unpack them now.”
“What kept you from trying them?”
I arched a brow. “You’ve seen what I’m like when I’ve had an accident. Can you imagine if I had to handle that myself?”
“Say no more,” Cole chuckled, bending down for a kiss. When our lips parted he said, “I have something to ask you.”
“What’s that?” Our lips ghosted across each other, and I was desperate for him to spit out whatever it was so I could haul him to the bedroom.
“Will you come home with me?”
Confused, I pulled back and furrowed my brows, scanning the space we were standing in. “Um, wearehome. Did Jesse hit you in the head with that torture device?”
“No, he didn’t,” Cole laughed. “And I don’t mean here.”
“I’m going to need more information.”
“My parents, Peyton. I want to take you home to my parents.”
That didn’t clear anything up at all. “Cole, I already know your parents. I think they like me better than they like you.”
“Of course they do but that’s not the point. I want them to meet you as mypartner.”
Heat rushed to my face so quickly that I swayed, lightheaded. “Partner?”
“That is what we are, isn’t it? Is there another term you’d prefer?”
