into the cold, fluffy cloud that is now my parents’ yard, and it is only then that he stretches out both of his arms and legs and makes a goddamn snow angel.
“I can’t be sure, but this feels a lot like victory.”
“You are such a cheater!” I shout at him and grab both of his shoulders, glaring down at him.
But Luke just continues making his snow angel, smiling up at me the whole time.
“This means I won, right?” he questions. “Pretty sure this means I won.”
My glare flames and sparks, and still perched on his stomach, I reach down to grab two handfuls of snow in my bare hands, ready to shove them straight into his face.
The bastard is too quick, though, reaching out to stop my momentum and flipping me onto my back. His body hovers over mine, while his hands ensure my wrists can’t finish the job.
“Oh my God!” I exclaim, but it becomes impossible for me to stay angry when Luke is grinning down at me like that. “Ugh! You make me so mad!” I add, but giggles follow every word.
“But you’re giggling, Ace. How can you be giggling if you’re mad?”
I blink my eyes several times, trying to see past the soft, dusty illusions that have settled on my eyelashes. “Because you also drive me insane.”
Luke chuckles, but in an instant, his eyes go from playful to serious. He leans down to press a soft kiss to the corner of my mouth. “Merry Christmas, Ava,” he whispers against my skin. “There isn’t anyone else on the planet that I’d want to spend this day with.”
“Ditto,” I whisper, and my breath is pale against the numbing air.
His eyes search mine, and I don’t know what he’s looking for or what he finds, but whatever it is, it makes him smile.
My gaze flits to his lips, and I reach up, placing both my hands on his cool skin, and gently tug his face toward mine. But before I get to do what I really want to do—kiss the hell out of him—I’m startled by the sounds of the wreath on the front door jingling as it swings open.
“What the hell are you two doing out here?” I look over Luke’s shoulder to find my dad standing on the front porch, dressed head-to-toe in red velvet, black boots, and a fake white beard. A cup of hot chocolate steams from his hand.
Luke glances back toward the front of the house. “Oh, holy fuck,” he mutters, his shoulders shaking with laughter as he buries his face against my shoulder. “Am I seeing shit, or is your dad wearing a Santa suit?”
“Oh, you’re seeing crystal clear.” I giggle. “Santa Claus has officially come to town.”
Once Luke and I changed out of our wet clothes, we headed downstairs to find the whole Lucie gang—Kate and Zach, Landon and Em, and my parents—sitting around the breakfast table, feasting on Guy’s famous Christmas Day breakfast buffet.
Cinnamon rolls and pancakes.
Waffles and eggs.
Biscuits and gravy.
And well, pretty much any morning-inspired food item known to humankind.
We ate, we laughed, and we all most likely walked away from the kitchen with an extra five pounds.
But now that our bellies are full and my dad has what he calls “Guy’s Famous Christmas Tunes” playing through the Bluetooth speakers in the living room, it’s time to gather around the tree and open presents.
“Who wants to go first?” my dad asks, looking around the room, and to my utter surprise, Luke stands up from his spot beside me on the small sofa near the bay window.
“If you don’t mind, Guy, I’d like to start us off by giving Rose and your girls a gift.”
My dad’s lips curve into a smile beneath his fake white beard. “By all means, get us started, son.”
Luke walks over to the tree and picks up four large wrapped gifts, all the same size and shape, and hands one to my mom, then to Em, then to Kate, then to me. “Merry Christmas, Ace,” he says with a little wink and sits down beside me.
All four of us just kind of sit there, looking at one another, and it takes Luke saying, “Go ahead, open them” before we actually begin to tear into the wrapping paper.
But none of us anticipates what’s inside.
“Oh, Luke.” My mom gasps and puts a hand to her lips.
Em looks up at me with wide, tear-filled eyes.
Kate smiles.
And I just stare down at the gift in my lap in awe. “W-when did you