“You can’t leave us, Maia,” Jase burst out.
“Jase needs you almost as much as I do,” Cole added, feeling on the verge of desperation. She was blinking back tears, and he had the feeling she was going to pull away from him at any moment. He slid a ring from his pocket, a circle of brilliant diamonds to slide on her ring finger. “Jase found the perfect Christmas present for me, and gave it to me ahead of time. I want to give it to you.”
“Cole,” she warned, shaking her head, looking down at the ring. She’d never seen anything like it, and it had to be worth a fortune. “Where in the world did you get this, Jase?”
“It was in the box with my mother’s things,” Jase said in a low voice.
“Oh, my God, you cannot give this to me. You have to keep it for the woman you marry,” Maia said, turning her head to look at him.
It was a mistake. The boy had tears in his eyes. He immediately reached out, putting his hand over hers and Cole’s. “I gave it to Cole because it was all I had to give him. He needs you. He’s different around you. Relaxed and happy, and he smiles. I’d never seen him smile until you came to be with us. And I need you too. Don’t leave us, Maia.”
She took a deep breath. It was overwhelming to be caught between the two of them, their dark secrets and their dawning hope. “There’s more to being married and relationships than need. If I stayed, and it wasn’t right, eventually it would all fall apart. You both know that.” She wanted love. She deserved love. As much as she loved them both, she would not be cheated.
“Maia.” Cole caught her chin and forced her to look at him. “I’ll be the first to admit I don’t have a lot of pretty words to make this right. I don’t know the first thing about how to tell a woman she’s my entire world, but that’s what you are to me. You’re not someone I want as a housekeeper for Jase, but if I could choose a woman to be a mother figure, a sister, a friend for him, then it would be you.”
“What do you want for yourself?”
“I want a woman who loves me in spite of all my failings. A woman who understands when I have nightmares and do things she might be afraid of. I want you, Maia. I don’t even know when I fell in love with you. I just know that I am in love with you.”
For a moment she could hardly believe he’d said the words. She’d wanted to hear them so badly, she was afraid it was a trick of her imagination. The wild pounding in her heart began to subside and she could feel peace stealing into her. “Funny thing, Steele,” she said, “I feel exactly the same way about you.”
Cole sat in shocked silence, afraid to move or speak. Afraid of breaking the spell. Someone, a long time ago, told him miracles happened on Christmas. He was terrified of believing it.
“I’m very much in love with you.”
Jase hissed out a breath between his teeth. “You two are making me want to pull out my hair! Cole, you should have told her you loved her right away. Maia just say yes, so I can breathe again. I’m having an asthma attack and trying not to die while you two figure it out.”
“Yes,” Maia said.
Cole dragged her into his arms and kissed her. She fit there, fit him. Understood him. He had no idea how it had happened, but the how and why didn’t matter, only that she loved him.
A noise drew his attention and he turned to find Jase waving his arms, wheezing, desperate to breathe.
“You weren’t joking,” Cole said. “Where’s your inhaler?” He searched through the pockets of Jase’s shirt. Jase pointed frantically toward the kitchen, and Cole sprinted away.
“Calm down, Jase,” Maia added, taking his hand. “It’s going to be all right. We’re all going to be fine.”
Cole was back, handing the boy the inhaler and watching with a slight frown on his face as Jase used it. “Next time, don’t be fixing my problems until you’re safe, Jase. I should have been watching you more carefully.”
Jase took a deep breath and smiled at his brother. “Someone has to look after you and Maia. You’re really not all that good with the women, Cole. I know more than you do about romance. And you’d better smile at her a lot.”
Maia laughed. The sound filled Cole with joy. He looked around the house. His home. It belonged to them now. Maia, Jase, and Cole. It was their home. The fire burned brightly and filled the room with warmth and comfort. The Christmas tree filled it with fragrance.
“You know, Jase,” Cole said. “I think Christmas is going to be our favorite holiday.”
“I think you’re right,” Jase said with complete satisfaction.
The two brothers looked at Maia, and she threw her arms around them. “I knew you’d see it my way,” she said happily.
epilogue
FOUR YEARS LATER