by Lexie Davis
“What are you doing today?” she asked.
He glanced up. “I don’t know. My schedule is pretty much open. What time do you get off work?”
“One.” She sipped her coffee. “Danny threatened me if I worked later.”
“You’re still coming to Misty’s, right?”
“Yes.”
“And spending the night?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” He kissed the top of Zane’s head. “I think I’m going to have to work on making Danny happy again. It’ll probably take me all morning. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him mad.”
She sighed. “He gets like that when his mom calls. I don’t know what she says, but it puts him in a sour mood.”
Julian watched her a moment. She’d already gotten dressed for work and fixed her makeup. Luna was a pretty woman without all the garbage on her face, but she knew how to highlight her eyes so that they stood out. Julian could stare at her all day and probably would if it wasn’t creepy.
“You look pretty today.”
“I doubt that.” She walked around the bar. “I need to go. Will you be okay with Zane, or do I need to wake Danny?”
“We’re cool.”
She grabbed her purse, and Julian reached for her arm. He pulled her to him for a kiss. “You’re beautiful.”
“Thanks.” She hugged him briefly before focusing on her child. “Be a good boy for Julian. Don’t get into trouble.”
Julian laughed. “You do know who is watching him, right? You’re leaving your kid with the King of Trouble.”
She shook her head. “I don’t even want to know.”
“Probably not.”
“Keep him alive, out of jail, and out of the hospital.”
Julian kissed her again. “Have a good day, babe.”
They watched her leave before moving to the living room. Zane wanted to play with his toys, and Julian didn’t see a reason not to.
* * * *
When Luna got home from work, Danny was outside on his phone. She walked toward him, listening to his side of the conversation.
“I don’t care what she says. It doesn’t matter to me.”
He turned his back to her, and she figured he wanted privacy so she left him alone. Julian sat in the middle of the living room, surrounded by toys while Zane sat on the sofa watching whatever he had on TV.
“Hey.”
Julian glanced over at her. “Hey.”
He stood and walked toward her. She waited for him to wrap his arms around her and smiled when he did. He kissed the side of her head before stepping back.
“He’s still going at it with her.” Julian peeked out the door at Danny. “It’s been an hour. I think his mom is in the hospital, and they’re trying to get him to visit. Her dying wish or something.”
“What?” Luna walked toward the door. “She’s dying?”
“I don’t know. I only got half of the conversation, and he doesn’t speak much.” Julian stepped back so Danny wouldn’t see them. “I think he’s conflicted about going. He wants to be here with you and Zane, but he wants to be with her, too.”
Luna stepped outside and walked over to him just as he hung up the phone. “What’s wrong?”
“She’s in the hospital. Wants me to visit.”
“Are you going to go?” Luna rubbed his back.
“Why the hell should I, Luna?” He turned toward her, yelling. “I get nothing but shit from her every fucking time she calls, and now it’s Christmas. She’s trying to ruin the whole damn holiday for everyone because she’s a selfish cunt.”
Her eyes widened. “Maybe you’ll feel better? Get all the stuff you’ve been harboring out in the open with her.”
“And leave you and Zane behind?”
“We can go with you.”
He shook his head. “I’m not ruining your Christmas. Plus, she doesn’t like you.”
Luna folded her arms over her chest. “You’re just going to worry about her if you don’t go. It’s okay, Danny. I can pack a suitcase. We can leave now and be there by six.”
“And Julian?”
Luna blinked a few times. “What about him?”
Danny ran a hand over his face. “He’s got an elaborate Santa ordeal for Zane. I can’t take that away from him.”
“He’ll understand.”
“You’re not going, Luna.” Danny leaned against the railing. “I shouldn’t even be considering going myself.”
Luna tried to understand where he came from. She thought he needed her support, but instead he seemed to want to keep her at a distance. She couldn’t argue with him. It was hard enough without her making it a big deal.
“Okay.” Luna wrapped her arms around him. “I don’t like it but okay.”
“The quicker I get it over with, the quicker I can be home.”
“Yeah.”
“Plus, you’ll be with Julian.”
She stepped back. “I want to be with you, too. And Zane wants to be with you.”
“Zane doesn’t even know I exist when he’s around.”
“How can you say that?” So it was going to be a fight. “He’s your son.”
“He calls Julian daddy.”
Luna pursed her lips. “He’s two. He doesn’t understand.”
The door to the house opened, and Julian stepped outside with Zane. He didn’t say anything as Zane ran toward Danny. She watched as the little boy wrapped his arms around Danny’s legs.
“Daddy.”
Danny lifted him and hugged him close. She didn’t understand where Danny was coming from and partially accepted that he simply needed someone to vent to. Neither one of them said anything while Danny held their child. Zane clung to him, wrapping his little arms around Danny’s neck.
“You seriously want to leave us behind?” Luna asked. “It’s Christmas.”
Danny kissed the side of Zane’s head. “I love you. I’ll be back in time to open Santa’s gifts. It’s not the end of the world, Luna.”
“Fine.”
Julian pulled her to his side. “We can still have fun. We’ll save you a plate from Misty’s dinner.”
Danny nodded. “I need to get ready.”
He sat Zane down, and the little boy pouted with tears filling his eyes. Danny stopped and knelt down in front of him. “What’s wrong?”
He glanced over at Luna, then Julian before he started crying. Danny pulled him to him, kissing his cheek. “I love you. It’s okay.”
“He thinks something is wrong.” Luna moved away from Julian and held her hand out. “Come on. We need to get ready, too.”
He moved away from Danny and went to her. She lifted him and hugged him close. Maybe neither one of them understood why Danny wanted to go alone, but if he promised to be back before morning, then she wasn’t going to complain too loudly. He should visit his family, even if neither one of them could stand them.
Luna went inside and set Zane down. He ran off to his room while she went to hers. What the hell did she wear to this party? She had a Christmas sweater, but it was Texas and too hot for that. After debating for a moment, she decided on a nice red blouse that she matched with jeans and sandals.
“You look gorgeous,” Julian commented when she walked into the living room. He knelt on the floor, helping Zane pick up his toys.
“I don’t know what to wear.”
“That looks great.” He smiled.
“Where’s Danny?”
“He left.” Julian held a bin for blocks while he and Zane picked them up out of the floor. “He said he’d be back early tomorrow morning.”
“What do you think about this?”
Julian didn’t say anything for a moment. “I think he wants to deal with his family on his own. If you or Zane are with him, then he’ll need to protect you. It’s probably easier to go deal with the mess then come back home. He doesn’t want to ruin your Christmas.”
“Would you do the same?” Luna asked him.
“Probably.” Julian m
et her gaze. “If I had a parent like his, I probably wouldn’t want my family anywhere near them.”
He sat the blocks aside and started organizing the books. She watched him a moment before determining he was right. She wanted to be with Danny, but she accepted that he wanted to take care of his family by himself. It wasn’t ideal, but she was coming around.
“I’m going to be pissed if he’s not back.”
“We discussed that.” Julian sat the books on the coffee table. “I’m supposed to take Zane and run for the hills.”
Luna shook her head. “You’re both dorks.”
“It’s going to be okay, buttercup.” He stood from his spot on the ground. “I promise.”
“If you’re sure.”
“I am.”
Julian pulled her to him and hugged her for a moment. She liked the security he provided. Even when she didn’t feel so steady herself, he could wrap his arms around her and give her that strength she needed.
“Daddy.”
Julian glanced down. “Julian.”
Zane held up a fire truck book.
“Honey, we’ve read that a thousand times today.” Julian reached out to take it from him. “Can you get another book?”
Luna watched as her child waited for Julian to sit on the sofa and read to him. Julian kissed her before doing just that. Both boys curled up next to each other with the book Zane loved. It made her heart swell for both of them. It didn’t take too long to finish the book, and Luna decided to help Julian out when Zane wanted to read it again.
“Come on. We’re going to Misty’s house to eat and play. She has books over there we can read.” Luna lifted him and carried him to the kitchen. “Are you hungry?”
Zane laid his head on her shoulder. “Where’s Daddy?”
“He’ll be back soon.” She grabbed a sippy cup for him from the dish drainer. She double-checked his bag and hung it over her shoulder.
“I love you, booger.” She kissed his temple. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Seven
The party was in full swing when they got there. Julian didn’t know some of the people, but managed to sneak away from the commotion to take a shower and put something else on. All he had was dress pants and a button-down shirt, so he went with it. Luna seemed to fit in. She escaped with Misty and London to the back porch while the Brandon and Easton worked on the finishing touches of the meal. Rowdy handed him a beer when he walked in the kitchen.
“Where’s Danny?” Rowdy asked.
“He went to visit his mom. She’s sick or something.”
“Ah, the wicked witch of Houston,” Killian commented. “Hell, I’m surprised he went.”
“Yeah, Luna was upset about it. She wanted to go with him.”
“That’s a terrible idea.” Killian leaned back in his chair. “That woman refused to let her and Tom stay at their house when they came to visit. She forced them to get a hotel room. It wasn’t because they didn’t have the space either. They did. She doesn’t like the idea of a ménage relationship.”
“It’s not her choice,” Jett, his brother, commented. “It’s really none of her business.”
“Family isn’t so simple. You know that.”
The doorbell rang and Rowdy went to answer it. More people showed up, and Julian waited for Rowdy to introduce them.
“Hunter, Luke, and Katy.” He pointed to each one. “And Alisha, Katy’s sister.”
“That’s Julian, and you know the rest of the grease monkeys.”
Asher, another Patton, scoffed. “I’m offended.”
“It’s mayor grease monkey to you, Sheriff,” Gunner commented.
Rowdy flipped him off. “Ladies, the women are out back if you want to join them.”
Hunter and Luke took a seat at the large table while Rowdy grabbed beers for them. “Just a word of warning: Misty and London invited Kai and Dash. They’re going to try to fix Alisha up with them.”
“That doesn’t surprise me.” Hunter opened his beer.
“Hunter is ready to get her married off.” Luke chuckled. “Though I hate to tell him that if she does enter a relationship with them, it would just add two more people to our household. Alisha basically lives with us as it is.”
“I can tolerate Kai and Dash though,” Hunter commented.
“They’re starting that new project on the north side of town, right? A new neighborhood,” Gunner asked. “I thought I saw the building permits float across my desk.”
“Yeah, Dash said they were working on a new development.” Killian glanced over at Julian. “Maybe they have another project for you and Micah.”
Julian shrugged. “Maybe.”
When they all sat down to eat, Julian liked that London and Katy took on the role of entertaining Zane. The little boy was living it up with two pretty women giving him all the attention he could want.
Luna scooted closer to him so that everyone could fit around the table, and he draped his arm on the chair behind her. He liked how relaxed everything felt. It was exactly how he imagined having a family would be like.
“We’re doing a gift exchange after dinner,” Misty informed everyone. “I think we can all fit in the living room.”
Luna reached for Julian’s wrist and pulled his arm around her. “This is just going to get more awkward, isn’t it?”
“Since they’re your friends, no.” Julian kissed her. “Friends take care of friends. That, if anything, is what I learned without a family.”
“I don’t know.” Luna glanced over at him. “I still feel bad.”
He kissed her again. “It’ll be okay.”
The gift exchange was quite elaborate. Julian had never seen so many gifts, and it was clear that the women of Lucky were extremely thrilled to have bought something for everyone. Luna collected Danny’s gifts and sat them to the side so she could take them home to him.
“Okay, open them,” Misty commanded. She had her camera out, snapping photos of everyone. Julian decided to take a few pictures of his own, mainly of Luna and Zane.
Brandon took Zane and helped him open the all his fire truck gifts. Julian laughed since Zane was more interested in the fire truck paper he’d picked out than the actual gifts inside.
“You bought him a fire truck playset?” Luna questioned. “He will never take it off.”
Julian grinned. “That’s the point.”
Brandon helped Zane with the hat and the jacket. He even clipped the plastic walkie-talkie to his hip. Zane ran over to them to show each part of his outfit. Luna smiled. Julian was pretty certain she was happy, and that was all that mattered. They took family pictures then set the timer to take a large group picture in front of the tree. By the time everything was done, it was nearly nine o’clock, and Zane’s full steam was running low.
“I’ll put him in my room. Rowdy, will you get a fold-out bed for me?”
“Sure.” Rowdy stood to do just that as Julian carried Zane up the stairs. The small boy had a big day, and Julian was happy to see his little face light up. Rowdy set up the bed, and Julian put Zane in the middle of it. He pushed one side against the wall and put pillows on the floor just in case he rolled off. It wasn’t high enough that it would hurt too badly, but he wanted to be careful.
“You’ve taken the daddy role seriously, huh?” Rowdy asked. He glanced over at the small child.
“We’re buds.”
“Yeah.” Rowdy slapped his back as he left the room. “Santa is coming. Brandon is dying to set the gifts out.”
Julian followed him back down the stairs and watched as Luna’s eyes widened when Brandon brought the large fire truck from down the hall. She turned toward him then back at the gift.
“You bought him a fire truck? The one I wanted to get him?”
“Yeah.” He studied her a moment. “It’s okay, right? Danny said it was.”
Luna wrapped her arms around him. She didn’t say anything as she held him. He tightened his arms around her and buried his nose in her hair. It made
him feel good that he could do something so insignificant to make her life better. He wanted to see her happy. He wanted her to have a good Christmas.
“I love you.” Tears spilled onto her cheeks as she stared up at him. “I can’t even put what I’m thinking into words.” She shook her head. “He’s going to be so happy when he sees it.”
Julian kissed her forehead. “I love you, too. Merry Christmas, beautiful. Your gift from me is upstairs.”
“I bet.” She laughed as she wiped her tears.
He kissed her. “You and your dirty mind.”
Misty set out the gifts she’d bought for Zane that were from Santa. “Okay. The rules are everyone has to be awake to see his reaction. I need a few pictures, and I know Luna will want some, too.”
“You could film it,” Easton suggested. “That would be pretty sweet.”
“You’re nominated for the job.” Misty patted his chest. “Okay, everyone, get some sleep. Tomorrow is Christmas, and it’s going to be the most wonderful day of the year.”
* * * *
Luna followed Julian to his room and sat on the bed while he grabbed two gifts. As if she didn’t feel bad enough about not buying anyone anything for Christmas, she immediately felt worse.
“You didn’t have to get me something.”
“I know.” He undid the buttons on his shirt. “You’re not an obligation. I bought it because I wanted you to have it.”
She smiled and peered into the bag. Inside was a long necklace box. Anticipation rose as she felt giddy. He bought her jewelry? She smiled and pulled the box out, opening it.
“Oh, wow. It’s beautiful.” She pulled the rose gold diamond heart necklace from the box and glanced up at him. “This costs too much.”
“You’re worth it.” He pulled his shirt off and hung it up on a hanger in the bathroom.
“No. Julian, this is like thousands of dollars.” She licked her lips. “You shouldn’t have spent that much money on me.”
“Why?” He undid his pants.
“Because. Who spends that much money on someone?”
She felt even shittier about not getting him a gift. He spent a lot of money on them, and they got him nothing in return. She couldn’t even afford to get him socks, much less something nicer.
