Page 33 of His Perfect Gift

Before I could get the words out, I was hefted into the air. “Enough,” he said, throwing me over his shoulder. “I already told you… you are the perfect gift.” He walked to the shower. “Now, let’s enjoy this Christmas Day.”

The water poured down on us as I watched him grab the shampoo and lather it up before his hands were in my hair, massaging gently. Just like he did last night.

I sighed like a content kitten, allowing all my doubts to fall and sliver to the drain like the suds and water. Whatever happened, I knew it would be a memorable Christmas as long as I could spend it with Aaron.

“It’s about damn time.” Axel smirked, tapping his Rolex as I entered the living room. When his eyes scanned over Amber, his mouth fell slack.

“Merry Christmas to you, too,” I said, lightly squeezing Amber’s hand in reassurance. She was nervous—with good reason.

Axel rose from the oversized sofa and rounded it cautiously. I shot him a silent warning, hoping he could read the room and understand what I was trying to convey.

Don’t make her uncomfortable.

Luckily, my son was a master of hiding his emotions, and he didn’t prove me wrong. He relaxed his demeanor, spreading his arms wide. “Merry Christmas, Pops.” He enclosed his arms around me, patting me on the back.

We pulled apart. “Uh, you remember Amber Johnson, don’t you?”

It was difficult for him to maintain his surprise, and any other time, I would’ve laughed at his reaction. Yet he recovered smoothly and nodded. “Yeah, Amber, it’s been a while. How are you?”

“I’m doing great.” Her voice sounded like she’d sucked on helium.

Natalie entered the room, holding Alexa in her arms. I smiled, holding out my arms. “Here’s my daughter-in-law, Natalie, and my granddaughter, Lexi.” I hugged Natalie and took Alexa in my arms.

Natalie and Amber exchanged pleasantries. Amber turned to Alexa, and her eyes softened as she took Lexi’s little hand. “She’s beautiful.”

“She is.” I gazed down, watching Amber coo to Lexi, who bounced excitedly. Tenderness filled my chest, and I had visions of Amber and I having our own child. Christ. I needed to rein it in. We’d only spent the past twenty-four hours fucking and living in bliss, and now I was ready to impregnate her?

I was going to scare her off. In my defense, I’d been out of the game for a while and was a little rusty.

However, it didn’t stop me from pulling Amber close and giving her a quick kiss. “Shall we go to the kitchen and take care of the food?”

“Sure.”

“No need,” Axel said, propping against the back of the sofa. “Nat and I already started reheating the dishes that Chef Ollie prepared.”

Amber side-eyed me with a rueful smile. “And here I thought we were going to have to serve chicken nuggets and frozen dinners. I was beginning to feel sympathetic for you.”

I fisted my mouth, covering a laugh. “Ollie prepped all the food yesterday morning before he left to spend the holidays with his family. It only needed to be reheated and served.” Lexi struggled in my arms, wanting to move around, so I set her on her feet. I watched as she waddled over to some of her toys that were spread around the living room floor.

“Oh. So you really were slumming it when I ran into you at the grocery store yesterday.” Amber crossed her arms and tilted her head.

“You little brat,” I teased, stopping myself from swatting her sweet behind since we had company, who was watching us with curiosity. I could only imagine what Axel and Natalie were thinking. Well, Axel caught us in my room while she was waking me up in the best possible way, so there wasthatto consider. This exchange seemed kind of tame in comparison.

“I thought I’d make some mimosas. Amber, would you like to help me?” Natalie said.

“I would love to.” She followed her out of the room to the kitchen.

Axel raised an eyebrow at me when we were alone. “You ran into each other at the grocery store?”

“It’s a long story,” I muttered under my breath.

“Luckily, I’m here all afternoon.”

“Don’t be so sure about that,” I warned with a fake scowl, but he just shrugged it off.

“So… you and Amber.”

“Yeah.” I shoved my hands into my pockets to keep from fidgeting around. I was nervous and seeking my son’s approval, which was kind of strange at this point in my life.

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