“Step back from the lady, Stephen.” Uncle Lee pushes on his arm and pulls Parker into a hug. “Heard a lot about you. Merry Christmas and welcome,” he says, pulling away and hugging me tightly. “Been too long, Holden,” he says before letting me go.
I lead Parker to the loveseat and nod for her to sit before taking the bag of gifts and placing them underneath the tree.
“Here you go,” Aunt Lottie says, handing me a plate full of peanut butter cookies.
“You trying to put me in a sugar coma, woman?” I ask. “Coach would have my ass if he saw me eating all of these.”
“They’re not all for you. Share them with Parker.”
“Oh no, you handed these to me,” I tell her.
“Don’t mind if I do.” Parker grabs one of the bite-size cookies, well bite-size for me, and shoves the entire thing into her mouth. Her hand covers her face as she chews, and the moan that she releases as she swallows has my dick jumping behind my zipper. Now is not the time to go there.
“Cookie thief,” I tease.
“They’re so good.” She smiles up at me as she reaches for another. This time, all I can do is shake my head at her.
“You ready for the season?” Uncle Lee asks.
“I’m ready. The new team and teammates thing is a little nerve-wracking, but I’m always ready to play the game I love.”
“You’re going to do great. We should hang out with Cam and Paisley before spring training starts so you two can get to know one another better.”
“Cam?” Uncle Lee asks.
“My brother-in-law is Cameron Taylor.”
“Well, I’ll be. That must mean” He stops as if mentioning her dad is rude.
“Easton Monroe is my dad.” She smiles at him.
“You finally found one worth keeping.” Uncle Lee chuckles.
“Hey!” I pretend to be offended, but he’s not wrong. I wasn’t looking before Parker, but now that I’ve found her, I’m definitely going to do everything I can to keep her.
“He’s not wrong,” Parker says, joining in on the banter.
“Do you play?” Mom asks.
“I do, actually. Softball. This is my last year of college.”
“What’s your major?” Aunt Lottie asks.
“Public relations. My uncle Drew, he’s the GM for the Blaze, has offered me a position with the team when I graduate.”
“That’s wonderful,” Mom comments.
“Yes and no. I’m grateful for the opportunity, but I don’t want people to think the position was handed to me. It’s entry-level, and I have to prove myself to work my way up,” Parker explains.
“Well, I say take every advantage you can get. As long as you’re not hurting anyone else, life is full of events that lead you to your next chapter. There’s nothing wrong with taking the help he’s offering,” Dad tells her.
Parker nods. “That’s a good point.”
“Well, now that we’re all here, who’s ready to open some presents?” Uncle Lee asks. He stands and begins to pass out presents from under the tree.
“Will you grab ours?” Parker asks.
I can see she’s uncertain about her gifts, but we both decided on the same things for our families. Grabbing the bag we set under the tree, I pull out the two bottles of wine and hand them to Mom and Aunt Lottie. “These are from Parker,” I tell them. They gush over the wine and thank her.
We take turns opening gifts, and to Parker’s surprise, my parents got her a sweater, and my aunt and uncle gave her a gift card for a massage. We laugh and cut up, and once all the wrapping paper is cleared, we settle in to watch A Christmas Story. It’s a tradition, and the five of us can recite it word for word, but we still watch it every year.
“Parker, have you ever seen this movie?” Dad asks.
“Yes. My sisters and I watched it every year growing up. It’s been a few years, though.”
I make a mental note that she and I need to start our own holiday tradition, starting this year. My mind is racing with the possibilities when Aunt Lottie’s voice breaks into my thoughts.
“Here we go.” Aunt Lottie turns down the lights, and she and my mom squeeze onto the big couch and snuggle up to my dad and uncle. Not together, but you know what I mean. This year is the first year that I have my own snuggle partner, and I happen to like it a hell of a lot. More than I ever thought I would.
CHAPTER 23
Holden
“I love your family,” Parker says from the passenger seat of my truck. We’re headed back to my place. At least that’s my plan. I haven’t asked her yet if she wants to stay with me, and I don’t think I’m going to. I think I’ll just drive us to my place and see what she says.
“Today was a good day.” Even though her dad did a little flexing, it was still good to get to see her with her family and get to know them. What was even better was seeing her get to know my family. She fits in with us, and snuggling with her while watching my family's favorite Christmas movie? Well, that turns me into a sap I never thought I’d be. I can recall countless times I’ve ridden my friend's and teammate's asses for going all soft over the women in their lives. Now I get it. I mean, I grew up watching it with my dad, but he was Dad, and it was for my mom, so that made it okay.
“It was. I just wish my dad wasn’t such an ass to you.”
“He’ll come around.” And if he doesn’t, that’s his problem, not mine. If he can’t see how much I care about her, then that’s on him.
“You don’t know that.”
“I do know that. He’s going to see what you mean to me.” At least, I hope he does. Either way, I’m going to continue to be respectful to him. No way would I ever want to put her in the position where she might have to choose. Part of it is the fear of losing her, and the other part can’t stand the thought of her having to make that decision. However, I’m hopeful that he’ll come around. He seems to have finally accepted Cameron. Maybe one day, that will be me.
“You’re not sick of me yet?” she asks when I pull up to the gate of my house.
“Never. Besides, I have your gifts to give you.”
“Oh!” Her eyes light up. “With everything going on, I forgot about you and I exchanging gifts.”
“Exactly.” Pulling my truck into the garage, I shut off the engine and hit the button on the ceiling to close the garage door. “Come on. You’ve got presents to open.” Not having to be told twice, she reaches for her handle and carefully climbs out of the truck.
Inside, we tear off our shoes and coats and make our way to the living room. I hit the switch that turns on the lights for the Christmas tree, and the room is lit with an intimate glow.
“Come sit.” Parker is already sitting on the floor in front of the tree, with the remaining presents in two piles. “These are yours,” she says, pointing at the pile in front of her. “And these have my name on them. And I’d just like to add that you’ve already done so much for me these aren’t necessary. You built me an office and bought me a computer.”