Welcome to Blissville

by Walker, Aimee Nicole

  Surprising Gabe kept my spirits up during the long day. In fact, I didn’t even mind when Trent showed up midday to take Dare to lunch. Wren minded a lot though. Those two guys were making me nuts, but there was nothing I could do about it except knock their heads together. The idea grew in merit each day that the tension grew between the two men. I didn’t want to accuse Dare of using Trent to make Wren jealous, but he sure as hell didn’t look at Trent the way he looked at Wren. Stay out of it. Stay out of it. Stay out of it.

  Repeating that in my head over and over helped, until Dare approached me that night with a nervous expression on his face. No one on my staff feared me for crying out loud. I was the best damn boss on the planet, yet Dare looked like he was seconds away from pissing down his leg. What could be so…

  “It’s not a good idea,” I said when I realized what he wanted to ask. The crestfallen look on Dare’s face made me feel terrible, and I thought perhaps he liked Dr. Doofus more than I had originally thought. “Okay, let me talk to Gabe.”

  “You’re the best, Josh,” Dare said, hugging me. “I’m going to start planning our ugly sweaters because there’s no way Gabe can tell you no.”

  “No fucking way,” Gabe said, shaking his head.

  I looked up from stirring the pot of stew that Martina had started earlier in the day. Gabe sat in a kitchen chair with a baby on both knees. “I haven’t even asked a question yet.”

  “I can tell by your expression that you’re going to ask something I won’t like, and I can bet what it is since we’re only a few days away from the annual Christmas party for our friends and salon family.” Do you see why I love him so much? Not salon employees. Not salon staff. Family! “The answer is no.”

  There comes a time in every man’s life where he needs to learn to choose his battles or be miserable. Now, I could’ve pointed out that Gabe’s ex-lover, one he lived with for a few years, sat at our table and ate our food week after week, and I never once complained or got jealous. I would’ve been justified in doing so, and maybe I would’ve taken up the fight if Dare had convinced me that Trent was the one for him, but I saw the smug smirk Dare gave Wren after talking to me. Therefore, I chose not to call Gabe out on his knuckle-dragging bullshit.

  “I was going to ask if you wanted to top or bottom tonight, Captain Know-It-All.” I said I pick my battles; I didn’t say anything about giving Gabe a bigger ego than he already had.

  Gabe threw his head back and laughed. “God, you’re such a bad liar.”

  “That’s a bad thing?”

  Gabe tipped his head and thought for a second. “Not at all, but I do wonder how the hell you keep beating everyone at poker.”

  “I’m a Gemini, Gabe. Multi-faceted. Chameleon. Awesome.” I put the lid back on the pot and walked over to the loves of my life. After I kissed each baby on the forehead and Gabe firmly on the lips, I said, “I need to go make a quick phone call before dinner.” I thought it was best not to have the conversation at the salon the next morning, and I wanted to give all my energy to Gabe and the babies after dinner.

  “Tell Dare that he’s playing with fire,” Gabe called out to me.

  I went to the library slash office to call Dare and was glad when he answered right away. “So, look—”

  “Hell has frozen over,” Dare said, interrupting me. “Gabe actually told you no.”

  “He really hates Trent, and to be honest, I’m not all that comfortable around him either. Trent has apologized for the way he treated me, and I even think he means it.”

  “But he still makes you uncomfortable,” Dare added. “Kind of like a reminder of a bad time in your life.” His voice had softened to nearly a whisper at the end. “Oh man.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “I think that’s what I am for Wren. I remind him of something or someone unpleasant.”

  “I doubt it, Dare. You’re so delightful to be around,” I told him.

  “No, it makes perfectly good sense. There have been a few occasions that he briefly dropped his guard, and I saw that he wanted me. Something holds him back.”

  “It probably doesn’t have anything to do with you.” I thought back to the way I battled my feelings for Gabe. Yes, our initial meeting was a disaster, but Gabe had attempted to apologize many times afterward. I wouldn’t let him because it was easier to hold him at bay when I was pissed. “I think he’s fighting himself, not you. Would you like some advice from someone who’s probably been in a similar headspace as Wren?”

  “That would be great.”

  “Don’t play games with him, Dare. If you really want a shot with Wren, you’ll have to be patient and show him that you’re worth the risk. Sometimes you have to wear them down with your patience.” I smiled as I recalled Gabe doing just that. “When he pushes you away, give him space to breathe, but don’t ever give up. Prove to him that you’re someone he can rely on and a person who will care for all of him, even the parts he doesn’t like. I’m not asking you to let him push you around by any means, because he needs to respect you and your feelings.”

  Dare blew out a shaky breath. “He has the power to destroy me, Josh.”

  He sounded so conflicted, and I wished I could give him a hug, but had to settle for verbal reassurance. “He probably thinks the same about you, cutie. You need to figure out what you want and then go after it. If your heart chooses Wren, then you drop this pretense with Trent and focus your time and energy on the man you want. While it might be cute when Wren goes all caveman over the doctor, it’s not good for him, and it’s no way to begin a relationship.”

  “Relationship,” Dare repeated reverently. There was no doubt in my mind who Dare really wanted. Did he possess the mental toughness and tenacity it took to win Wren’s trust and heart? Only time would tell. “I want what you and Gabe have.”

  I chuckled. “Then you’ll take my advice to heart, my friend. Gabe did all the things that I described, and I knew that my heart was safe with him. He showed me a life I never dreamed possible, and, Dare, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for him.”

  Dare sighed sappily. “Thank you, Josh. I’m sorry that I asked if Trent could come to the party with me. It was really selfish, and I didn’t mean to disrespect Gabe.”

  “I know that, Dare. I’m glad we could have this conversation though.”

  “Me too. See you in the morning.”

  “Goodnight.”

  I just stood in the peaceful library for a few minutes after I hung up, hoping that I did the right thing by giving Dare advice. I should’ve stayed out of it, but I hated to see a beautiful opportunity wasted by miscommunication.

  “Dinner is ready,” Gabe said softly.

  I whirled around and found him leaning in the doorway. “How long have you been standing there?” His posture was casual, but the heat in his eyes was anything but, so I suspected he overheard most of what I said to Dare, if not all. Gabe straightened then crossed the room to cup my face.

  “You gave the kid good advice, Sunshine.” Oh, how I loved the deep timbre of his voice and the look of adoration in his dark brown eyes. “We’ve sure had our ups and downs, but I’d do it all over again.”

  He could still render me speechless, but that was okay, because I showed him how much his words meant to me with a kiss. Lord, that man knew how to make me melt. I eagerly waited for the moment that we could go upstairs to the privacy of our room, so he could open his naughty Santa advent calendar.

  Gabe pulled back from our kiss and ran his thumb over my wet lips. “Let’s eat dinner because I have a surprise for us.”

  I groaned. “Babe, can’t we stay home tonight. We can watch Die Hard after Destiny and Dylan go to bed. We’ll watch it naked,” I tossed out as an added incentive.

  “We can do all of the above,” Gabe assured me as he tugged my reluctant ass toward the kitchen. “My excursion won’t take long.”

  Thirty minutes later, Gabe packed us all in the Grandparent’s Express minivan. Al sat up front with Gabe because
he was too tall to ride in the back. I wedged myself between the two car seats, while my parents and Martina climbed into the third row.

  “Everyone buckled up? This sleigh is pulling out,” Gabe said cheerfully.

  I rolled my eyes then glared at him in the rearview mirror. “Did you rent this bright red minivan on purpose?” I asked my parents.

  “Pure coincidence,” my mom replied. “Sure is snazzy though. Plenty of room. Your father and I are going to buy one and drive it here when we move. Well, I’ll drive the van while he drives the moving truck.”

  “Still not giving up on that idea?” I jokingly asked my mom.

  “You couldn’t be so lucky,” she teased as she ruffled my hair.

  “Are we there yet?” I whined to Gabe before we made it to the end of our street.

  “No cookies and hot chocolate for you tonight, Bad Daddy,” Gabe said.

  “Yet, Papa? Yet?” Destiny repeated, reminding me of Savage.

  “Yet? Bad Daddy!” Dylan said, waving his little fists in the air.

  “Gabe!” The last thing I wanted was my kids calling me Bad Daddy in public.

  “I was just teasing, Dylan. Good Daddy, not Bad Daddy.”

  “Bad Daddy!” both twins said.

  Gabe bit his lip to keep from laughing, but I wasn’t amused. Hell, I would’ve preferred Little Daddy over Bad Daddy. I was going to smash that advent calendar to bits, but only after Gabe saw what he was missing out on.

  “Good Daddy,” the grandparents all said as if they sensed the storm brewing inside me.

  “Bad Daddy!” Dylan and Destiny countered.

  No matter how many times someone called me Good Daddy, the kids kept insisting I was Bad Daddy. They giggled and squealed like happy babies do, especially when I pretended to cry. I realized they were treating it as a game. Instead of launching their sippy cups off their high chairs just so Gabe or I would pick them up, they teased me to get a dramatic reaction. So, I used reverse psychology and referred to myself as bad so that they would call me good. It worked beautifully and I figuratively patted myself on the back.

  “Where are we going exactly?” I asked.

  “Wen told me about this subdivision in a neighboring community that goes all out for the holidays. Every house is decorated with a theme, and he said that some of the displays flicker in time to music.”

  “Oh man,” I said, certain that Gabe would be taking notes for a future display.

  “We’ll blow them away next year, Gabe,” my father said, rubbing his hands together.

  “You know it, Dad.”

  We weren’t the only ones driving out to see the neighborhood light displays that night. Cars were backed up down the street for a good mile and a half and the spectators creeped along at a snail’s pace. Our babies were sound asleep before we even turned on the street, but Gabe lit up as bright as the displays. His childlike enthusiasm made me ridiculously happy, and I forgot all about punishing him.

  My dad and Gabe chatted nonstop on the trip home about all the things they wanted to do next year and how they thought they could achieve it. All that excitement came to a screeching halt when we turned down our street and noticed that our house wasn’t lit up like it had been when we left.

  “We’ve been hit by the Christmas Bandits!” Gabe said. Our moms took the babies inside while the rest of us checked out the damage.

  Sure enough, someone had come along and cut the electrical cords where they plugged into the outlets, stole our big, beautiful wreath off the front door, and busted the glass snowmen on the porch.

  “Can you believe the balls on these guys?” Gabe snarled. “They vandalized the police captain’s house? Merry Fucking Christmas to you too, assholes. Laugh it up while you can because I’m going to find you,” he yelled into the night.

  Uh oh. Gabe was about to go John McClane on somebody!

  “The Christmas Bandits hit ten more houses last night besides yours, Cap,” Wen said. “This is getting out of control.”

  “It has to be young punks with nothing better to do with their time,” Adrian commented.

  “Do you think it’s the same group of burglars and vandals?” Wen asked. “The crimes are different but their ability to move around town quietly without getting caught is the same.”

  “I guess it’s possible,” Adrian said, but he didn’t sound convinced. “Typically, people’s crimes escalate, not de-escalate.”

  “Boredom? Easy targets?” Wen asked.

  “Anything is possible,” Adrian replied.

  I pinched the bridge of my nose as I tried to figure out what I should do next. I’d already held a town hall meeting for fuck’s sake and increased patrol officer presence. These little fuckers were always a step ahead of me.

  My cell phone lit up with an incoming call from Josh, and I welcomed the interruption to my downward spiraling thoughts. “Miss me already, Sunshine?” I said into the phone.

  “I’ve been hit!” Josh said frantically.

  “What?” My heart nearly exploded in my chest as my mind raced through all the horrible possibilities. “Oh my God! Are you okay? Where are you? I’ll be right there!”

  “What do you mean? I’m at the salon. Where’d you think I was?” The anger in his voice dwindled to irritation.

  “You said you were hit, so I thought you were involved in a car accident.” I was going to turn him over my knee and spank his ass for scaring the fuck out of me like that.

  “Baby, I’m sorry,” Josh said softly. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m just pissed off.”

  His tenderness mollified my thundering heart a little bit, but I wasn’t ready to forgive him yet. “What happened?”

  “The Christmas Bandits hit the salon last night,” he said. “Christmas lights cut and the pretty wreaths my mom made twenty years ago were stolen.”

  “All of them?” I asked.

  “Yes!”

  Bertie had made enough wreaths to decorate the entire wraparound porch on the salon. Each wreath had a pair of white ice skates in the center and were adorned with white lights and red bows. Josh inspected each pair of skates to make sure they were a pristine white before Bill and I strategically hung them around the porch. “Every third post,” Josh had reminded me. “Hang them too close and they just look tacky. The Roman-Wyatts don’t do tacky decorations.” I knew they meant a lot to him because he even kept a bottle of white shoe polish handy to touch up the skates when needed.

  “What kind of monster does this, Gabe? Those wreaths have hung on that porch longer than I’ve been alive!”

  “I’ll get your wreaths back, Sunshine. I promise.”

  “Damn straight you will, Captain Kick Ass. In the meantime, I’m going to call a few of the local business owners to see if they’ll join me in offering a reward for the capture of the Christmas Bandits.”

  “Great idea,” I told him. “Let me know what they say, and I’ll announce it in the local newspaper.”

  “I’ll offer up a thousand-dollar reward by myself if I need to; I want my wreaths back.”

  “You arrange for the funds, and I’ll take care of the rest. We’ll get them back.”

  “We make a great team.” I heard the smile in Josh’s voice.

  I suspected he was remembering the activities from the previous evening. I needed an outlet for my frustration and Josh provided the perfect distraction with his naughty secret Santa countdown thingy. I think I surprised us both when I chose to wear the silky red mask and submit myself to Josh and the soft, red feather.

  “In all things, Sunshine.” I heard Adrian clear his throat and Wen chuckle, which meant that either my voice or expression hinted to where my mind had gone. “Adrian and Wen are in my office and they think we’re having phone sex instead of discussing a heinous crime committed against you. I’m going to send Wen over there to take a statement and photograph the crime scene so that you can file an official report. I can’t look like I’m playing favorites.”

  Wen grinned and shoo
k his head. “On it, Cap.”

  “Adrian gets to compile the data from all the reported crimes into a program, so we can determine peak times or even days of the week. The slightest similarity could bust the case wide open.”

  Adrian sighed heavily, but followed Wen out the door without complaint.

  “Are you alone now?” Josh whispered into the phone.

  My brain and dick perked up. “Yes. What did you have in mind?”

  “Just you wait and see what I have in store for us tonight.”

  “Do you remember how everyone cautioned us not to go overboard with holidays and birthdays for our kids because they’d come to expect it and we’d put pressure on ourselves to keep outdoing the previous years?” I asked Josh.

  “Yes.” I knew Josh had zero intention of listening to that particular piece of advice. We would do things our way and to hell with what people thought.

  “That logic doesn’t apply here, Sunshine. I’m going to need you to step this up each year from now on.”

  “I accept that challenge, Gabe.” I heard Dare calling for Josh in the background. “My client is here, so I have to go. I’ll call you in a bit after I’ve had a chance to drum up support for the reward money. I love you.”

  “Love you, too.”

  After I disconnected the call with Josh, I went in search of Adrian. I was half-joking when I mentioned the program because I wanted to razz him, but it gave me another idea.

  “It’s time to go John McClane on these fuckers!” I told Adrian.

  “What brings you by the newspaper, Captain?” Myrna Evans asked me a few hours later.

  The first time I’d met her, Billy Sampson had dropped off an anonymous letter informing the Blissville Daily News that the police department wasn’t treating his threats against Josh seriously. That seemed like decades ago, but in reality, not even two years had passed since then.