Forever (This #5) (10 page)

Nat King Cole’s Christmas album is playing on the surround sound, and Bradley picks me up like I’m a child who weighs fifty pounds instead of close to one fifty. A lot of people put bows on top of their trees, but not us. We’re star people. I nestle the topper on the single pointed branch of our brand new Christmas tree from Calhoun’s. “There. Got it.”

He lowers me and plants short, quick kisses on my cheek, then my ear, and finally my neck. My body pouts when he stops, which he obviously notices because he chuckles, shaking his head. “You have become a little sex fiend. I can barely keep you satisfied.”

I shrug. “Are you complaining?”

His brows furrow. “Me?” He points to his chest. He’s cute when he’s playful like this. “Never. But before we plug it in, I have something for you.”

“Aw. Is this my surprise?”

“I guess by the definition of the word surprise it is
a
s
urprise
, but it’s not the one you’ve been asking me about all day.” He puts a finger to my lips. “And before you ask me again what it is, know you’ll find out about that one in a few minutes. Patience, my love.”

“Patience is a virtue I don’t possess.”

He laughs. “Ain’t that the damn truth?”

I give him a playful push, but his body doesn’t move. “Hey. You’re one to talk about patience.”

He completely ignores me as he reaches in and pulls a small box from his pocket. How did he manage to go all day without me noticing there was something in there?
Probably because you get lost in his eyes, not his pockets
. It’s wrapped in silver paper. “Go ahead. You don’t have to wait for Christmas to open this one.”

I frown. “I didn’t know we were making a tradition of gift giving while decorating our tree, or I would have bought you something.” I shrug at the thought of my empty handedness.

“You’re gift enough. Open it, Gabby. We don’t have all night.”

“What was that you were just saying about patience? And I need to hurry because of the
other
surprise?”

He raises an eyebrow, as if warning me not to ask again.

I giggle, holding my hands up. “That wasn’t asking what it was.”

“Right.” He grins.

I begin to slowly, teasingly undo the wrapping. I’d thought it was maybe jewelry based on the size and shape, but after all the boxes of ornaments I just opened, I should have known it was one of those. The tree is decked out with Hallmark Keepsake ornaments from Bradley’s family. He’s accumulated them mainly from his mom, but he has about twenty from his great-aunt. Each one has a special memory, and he took great pleasure in sharing each of those with me as he gently pulled them from the box, then carefully unfolded the bubble wrap. His dad, the womanizing politician, is not my favorite person. But Mrs. Banks has been nothing but kind to me. Her entire side of the family has to be one of the most thoughtful groups of people I’ve ever met. “You got me one?”

He nods. “I’m sure you’ll get another from my mom. My great-aunt only buys them for the kids. Once you’re eighteen, you’re…” He drags his hand across his neck. “Cut off.” We both laugh. “Anyway, I wanted yet another of your firsts to be from me. We’ve made a lot of traditions today.”

A shiver crawls down my spine at the thought of all the firsts he’s claimed. “You can say that again.” I’m not sure I can pick a favorite tradition, but I’d be content to end our day the way we started it.

“We can make more traditions of the variety I believe you’re thinking about later. I’ve never even thought I’d want this particular tradition for most of my life—sharing my tree with my wife. I can’t wait for you to add your ornaments, knowing that each one from me represents one year of our marriage.”

The picture on the package shows a silver heart with swirls over it. It says,
Our First Christmas
.

I open the box, pulling the bubble wrap, then unfolding it as we’ve done with all the others. “Oh, it’s a locket!”

“Yeah.”

My fingers slowly pry it apart. Inside there are two pictures I’ve never seen before. I drag in a breath because I can’t believe what I’m seeing. It’s a picture of us dancing at Cade’s wedding the night we met. Cade and Sam are friends, and Cade is Bradley’s cousin. Our lips are mere inches apart, and our anticipation, fear, and connection speaks a thousand unspoken words. The visualization I’d had of this moment was seared into my memory, crazy enough, for months against my will after I ran away like a skittish cat. Boy, how wrong I’d been about him back then. “Where did you get this from?”

“After they got back from their honeymoon, I went over to their new place for dinner.” He picks up the gift wrap and crumples it into a ball before shoving it in his pocket. “I asked to look at the wedding photos, which is something I’d never done before. The request when it came out of my mouth surprised me more than it did them. I was desperately hoping to find one of you in there.”

“Aw.”

“I hadn’t been able to get you off my mind. It was really screwing with my head.” He glances down the way he does when he gets shy—when he’s vulnerable. “I don’t know what my expectations were for seeing a picture of you, but when I found that one, it was like someone was squeezing me so tight I could barely breathe.”

“I know that feeling.”

When his eyes meet with mine, they’re bright blue and hooded. “I didn’t say anything to Cade about the picture then. Honestly, I left so fast. I didn’t want to be rude, but I needed air. What I didn’t know then”—he takes my head into his hands— “is that I wouldn’t be able to get it until I was with you again.”

I wrap my arms around his neck and bring his lips to mine. This kiss is different. Our tongues whip and turn, our teeth clash, and with every fiber in my being, I try to express to him that he’s my oxygen too. “Bedroom.” He shakes his head. “Here?”

He pulls back. “There’s no time for that. Later.” The man is killing me. A slow, torturous death by deprivation. “It’s our first picture, and it’s the only one of us together from the wedding. I had him make me a copy. I’ve had that for a long time. I knew I wanted to share it with you eventually, but I kept waiting for the right time. And this is it.” He tucks a piece of hair behind my ear like he did for the first time that night. I want to pout like a spoiled child who doesn’t get her way, but that would be the brat thing to do. He’s clearly thought out every possible romantic gesture for today, and I need to let him take the lead. Ha, as if it’s an option to let Bradley take the lead. He demands it. So, I try my best to ignore the ache between my legs that only he can remove. He points to the other side of the locket, bringing my thoughts back to his gift. I hadn’t even really noticed that one. I was so blown away by the picture of us at Cade’s wedding. “And this is of us in the exact same spot at our wedding. Same pose. I arranged it with the photographer. It was never included in our proofs so you wouldn’t see it until now.”

My heart pounds a little harder in my chest, squeezes just a little tighter. It’s so full, it could explode at any moment. “I don’t care about any other present or surprise. This…” I shake my head. “It’s so special. I’ll cherish it always.”

His arms roam down mine and find a resting place on my hips as he starts to rub his hands in circular motions along the base of my back. “I’m glad you like it. Where do you want to put it?”

I peek around the tree at several different spots until I position it in the front, smack-dab in the middle of the tree. “Here, so I can see it all the time.” Which makes me realize something. “Are these the only copies of these photos?”

He smiles. “No, Mrs. Banks, there are framed copies beside our bed now.”

“When did you do that?”

“When you weren’t looking, of course.”

“Sneaky.” I give him a peck on the cheek. “So, do you want to do the honor of plugging it in?”

“No, you do it.”

My brows crease. “I think you should be the one who always turns the lights on for the first time.”

He turns his head to the side. A small, crooked smile emerges from the corner of his mouth. “Is that so? Why is that?”

“Because one day I hope we’ll have kids, and in my mind, I’ve always pictured their father being the one to turn the lights on.”

He pulls me back to him, our bodies crashing into one another. “Do you already have baby fever, Mrs. Banks?”

I vigorously shake my head. “No. Absolutely not. School first, then babies, remember?” Even though he’s smiling, I swear there is a bit of disappointment. His eyes dull, the sparkle missing just a little.

Almost a year before we were to be married, Veronica, Bradley’s ex-whatever, got pregnant. She convinced him, us, everyone she conceived the week before he met me at the wedding. As it turned out, she duped everyone. Faith wasn’t his child, and we don’t talk about her or that whole situation much, but I’ve wondered lately if he’d gotten his mind right with becoming a father to only have it jerked away.

“I remember, Gabby. School first, then babies. So, you want me to flip this switch, huh?”

I nod.

He releases me, crouches down, and peeks over his shoulder. “Three, two…” We smile at each other, and I clap my hands together like the cheerleader I’m not. “One.”

Sucking in a breath, I start to turn in a circle to soak in the beauty of this moment. The sun is setting, and our house is only lit by an ambient glow. The lights of the garland resting on the mantel leave a bokeh effect on my bridal portrait, which hangs above the oversized fireplace. Our personalized stockings handmade by Bradley’s grandmother, rest on sterling silver hooks. Bradley’s had his stocking his entire life, of course, but mine was a wedding gift. Nothing anyone did for me made me feel more a part of his family than that one simple gesture. It’s like a rite of passage. I look back at our tree. Mom would be so proud to know that this is my life, but then again, I’m sure she had a hand in it all. I smile as a tear trickles down my cheek. “I love this. This life. This day. This tree.”

He swipes it, and I look down at my feet, wishing I could have willed it not to fall. “What’s this?”

“Nothing.”

He tenderly lifts my chin. “You’re a terrible liar. Wanna try again?”

“Tears of joy and a bit of sadness. Missing my mom.”

“Ah. I hate I never got to meet her.” He brushes the hair away from my wet cheek.

“It’s okay.”

He kisses my forehead. “Go pack an overnight bag. Quickly. We’re running late.”

“Interesting. A clue. How much longer?” I grin and shrug.
I didn’t ask what it was
.

As I’m turning away to walk to our room, he smacks my butt. “Quit wasting time.”

I jump when his hand hits my jeans. It’s not hard, more like a playful love pat football players do when their teammate scores the winning touchdown. “You like spanking me?” I glimpse back over my shoulder as I nearly skip out of the living room into our bedroom.

He shakes his head, chuckling. “Woman. Pack. Now.”

I raise my brows a couple of times, but can’t wipe the grin off my face. “Going. Patience, right, Mr. Banks?”

Bradley mumbles something under his breath, but by this time, I’m too far away to hear him. When I flip the light switch, I see the enlarged photos from the locket. On his nightstand is the picture from Cade’s wedding. That night I’d told Bradley I was waiting on a man who would love me not just for my body, but for my mind and my soul. The picture is in a silver frame with the words,
Mind, Body, Soul…Forever
engraved on the bottom.
Our vows
. The other one, from our wedding, is on my nightstand next to my clock in a matching frame. Euphoria sets in as I gaze at them.

“Gabby Girl. Focus. Hurry up.”

“You’re going to be a great parent one day. You know? Being able to tell from another room that someone’s being disobedient.”

“You sure you don’t have baby fever?”

“Stop. No baby fever.” I roll my eyes. “Now, shh. Be quiet so I can concentrate on the task at hand.”