Page 50 of His Christmas Gift

DEAN

Alight whisper coaxed me awake the next morning, making my eyes slowly open and squint against the morning light streaming in through the hotel room’s window.

Slowly, Autumn came into my focus as she leaned over from beside me. I smiled at the sight of her.

“Hello there,” I murmured, wondering what she was up to. The last time she woke me up like this, she wanted to go out and about together. If she asked me to do that again, I would agree within a heartbeat.

“Hey. Sleep well?” Autumn asked me.

I nodded. Ever since we started sleeping in the same bed together, I had been sleeping so soundly. I hardly ever woke up during the middle of the night, and I always woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the day. That had to be something to do with her.

“Did you? You had a busy day with the girls yesterday,” I asked her. She ended up coming back to the hotel late that night because they all went out to dinner together. I was happy to hear that she had such a good time.

“I slept great,” Autumn replied, seeming excited. “I got breakfast for us.”

I brightened up as I sat up more, the sheets slipping down my bare chest to rest around my waist above my sleep shorts.

“Really? That’s nice of you,” I told her, reaching out to rub her upper arm affectionately. She was always so thoughtful.

Autumn crawled away and grabbed a to-go box from the desk in the room. She also grabbed a white coffee mug that I hadn’t seen before. With a smile on her face, she carried them over to me setting the box full of eggs, bacon, and toast in my lap and placing the coffee mug in my hand.

I turned the coffee mug so that I could read the black wording on the front. World’s Best Boss. A laugh broke from me as I looked up at her.

“Did you get this for me?” I asked her.

Autumn nodded, biting her lip bashfully.

“Merry Christmas,” she said. “I couldn’t imagine having a better boss than you.”

I felt touched. She was the type that didn’t even need a boss, though. She could be a leader. She had the drive and the intelligence. Being in any other position held her back from her true potential.

“Thank you,” I told her sincerely, reaching out with my free hand to pull her into a warm hug. I kissed her temple before letting her go. I wanted to kiss her elsewhere, but there was something that I had to talk to her about first. I had been thinking of it for some time now, but this coffee mug felt like a sign. It was time to talk about it.

“You’re interested in staying at the gym, right?” I asked her, making sure that her goals aligned with my future vision. I wanted to do something that would help both of us. In a way, we were already working together. I just wanted to adjust some details.

“Of course. I always want some sort of part in it. It’s in the family,” Autumn replied as she moved to sit in front of me, crossing her legs. She gave me a curious look.

That would be the only time that Autumn wanted to do anything involving her family. It seemed like Aunt Lisa was the only person in her family with whom she was close. I did feel bad about taking over her gym, but at least Autumn would have a say in what happened with it moving forward.

“Well, you should have more authority when it comes to making decisions for it,” I told her, setting my things on the nightstand so that I could have a serious conversation with her first.

“More authority?” Autumn questioned me.

I nodded. I hadn’t worked out all the details yet, but I wanted to run this idea by her first before putting things into motion. Hopefully, she accepted my proposal.

“I want to run the gym with you as partners,” I replied.

Autumn’s eyes widened in surprise. She stared at me for a few moments like she was trying to decipher my words.

“What do you mean?” she asked me, not understanding what that meant for her.

“I want you to run the gym with me. We both make the business decisions for it. You don’t work for me. You work with me,” I told her. I didn’t want to hover above her when it was her gym. It belonged to her. I just wanted to be there to assist and provide guidance and input if she needed it.

“Why?” Autumn asked, seeming unsure. “You’re not doing this out of pity or anything, right?”

I supposed I could see why she could think that. I was the one who took over her aunt’s gym. Now, I was trying to let her step in more. Maybe I did feel guilt, but I also saw promise in her. She could run this gym well, and I knew she wanted to do more than teach classes and do some paperwork. This gave her more say.

“No. I want you to work with me because I think you can help me turn this place around,” I replied.

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