She helped me find balance in my life. I bought this house, and the first thing we did was turn half of the garage into my home office. It was in that garage that I managed to finish editing the final book of The Bastyan Saga, which hit shelves almost a week ago, just in time for Christmas. So far, fans and critics loved it—more than they could say for the third season of the show, which started airing a few weeks before the release of the book. Fans loathed and resented the addition of dragons. Jane made sure to make clear, when asked, that I wished all the best for the show, but I’d walked away before the third season, due to creative differences. And then she made sure to point them in the direction of my dragon-free book.
Speaking of, Jane, who had come alone to the party and still refused to introduce me to her mysterious partner, was over on the other side of the room chatting with Gerald. I raised my glass to her, and she responded with a salute of her own.
I clinked my glass with a spoon. “Okay, everyone!” I said, shaking with anticipation. “Let’s get this grab bag game underway.”
Fingers crossed things would go off without a hitch.
This was now officially my second year as part of Dani’s family’s Christmas traditions, and I was already starting to understand the dynamics at play.
The rest of the family migrated to their spots. Dani’s mom winked at me on the way to her seat. Kelsie and Brennan, hair mussed and lips swollen, wandered in in a haze, and Dani shot them a look of annoyance (though she was starting to come around to Brennan, who gushed about Kelsie in interviews and had convinced her to take business classes in college). The twins sat in front of the fireplace, glued to their phones.
Dani passed out playing cards to the family. “Most of you know the rules. Ace picks first but then gets to trade at the end of the game. All items stay wrapped until the end. Third steal has to go back to the pile.” She nodded toward the mound of wrapped gifts under the tree.
As planned, Rafferty, who’d gotten the ace when Dani passed out the cards, stood, pretending to stretch, and swapped cards with me.
“Who has the ace?” Dani’s eyes scanned the room.
I held up my card. “I do.”
Her brother, Bobby, grumbled in faux-annoyance. “Of course the new guy draws the best card.” Relaxing a bit, I shot him a subtle thumbs up from across the room. Everyone was playing their part perfectly.
I stalked over to the pile and scanned the gifts, pretending to look for just the right one. I picked up my own gift—a shoebox shoddily wrapped in Santa paper.
“Okay.” Dani had assumed authority of the game. “Who has number two?”
Kelsie extracted herself from Brennan’s arms and went over to the tree. She picked out a package wrapped in beautiful gold paper. I assumed it was Una’s.
The game continued like that, everyone picking the gift that looked most appealing to them, and with each person’s turn, my heart beat a little faster. I took another pull on my wine and could barely taste it. We figured out quickly that the gift Dani’s dad had brought was the one hastily thrown into a baby shower bag, so everyone in the family started vying for that one, since her dad was known for sweetening his gift with lottery tickets or even a $50 bill.
Dani, who had the king, grabbed her dad’s gift from her niece Raithnait and held up the package like Mufasa held up Simba in The Lion King. “I am the champion!” she sang.
I blew out the breath I’d been holding for at least the last two rounds of the game. She fell right into my trap, as I knew she would.
“Not so fast.” I waved my ace. “I believe I get to swap at the end.”
She frowned at me. “You wouldn’t.”
I glanced over at her father, who was watching all of this play out with a grin on his face. “What do you think, John? Should I let her have the package she wants?”
Laughing, he shrugged. “It’s your funeral, if you take it.”
“Those are the rules,” Bobby said. “Ace gets to swap with anyone at the end of the game. Dani knows she’s a sitting duck there, holding Dad’s present. She wouldn’t hesitate to take it from you, Matt. I say go for it.”
“Go for it,” Kelsie said.
The room started a chant of “Go for it,” and I, grinning, slowly made my way over to Dani, who watched in horror as I plucked her dad’s gift from her arms and handed her the one I’d wrapped.
Her nostrils flared out. “If there’s even a toilet bank in here.”
I shrugged. “If there is, them’s the breaks.” I reached into the bag from Dani’s dad and pulled out another homemade bottle of moonshine with a fifty-dollar bill wrapped around it. “Ah, President Grant! Nice to see you.” Smirking at Dani, I folded up the bill and ceremoniously placed it in my wallet.
She made the “I’ll kill you” sign, slashing her finger against her throat.
We all watched as the rest of the family, by card value, opened their gifts. Finally, Dani, who’d drawn the king, ripped open the paper on the shoebox.
“It is a toilet bank,” she said, glaring at me. “Where did you even find this?”
“Maybe there’s something else in there,” Kelsie said.
Dani dug around in the box, but there was nothing there but tissue paper. She shook the bank. It rattled. She rolled her eyes at me. “It’s probably a penny.”
“Maybe a button,” I said.
Still faux-glaring at me, she unscrewed the bottom of the bank and shook it to release its treasure. A huge diamond ring fell into her palm. Her eyes looked like they were going to bug out of her head.
I jumped up. “Shoot! I made a mistake.” I reached into my pocket and grabbed my wallet. “Here. I’ll trade you the fifty—”
She clutched the ring to her chest. “No!”
I landed on one knee in front of her and reached for her hands. “Dani, ever since your dog attacked me a year ago, all I’ve wanted to do was be near you. Will you do me the great honor of being by my side for the rest of my life?”
Her face pulled into the biggest, scrunchiest smile of all time, and she placed the diamond ring on her finger. “Yes,” she said, jumping up and hugging me.
Someone popped the cork on a bottle of champagne, and Dani’s dad started pouring everyone moonshine. I wrapped an arm around my future bride and planted a huge kiss on her lips as an idea for another possible series popped into my head.
I filed that away for tomorrow or the next day. Now was the time to enjoy being with family and friends. There’d be plenty of inspiration to go around later.
…
Read on for a sneak peek at Julie Hammerle’s upcoming novel It’s Raining Men. Coming soon everywhere books are sold!