Jaxon snorted. “Better knock on that wood, love. You just jinxed us.”
I knocked on the table just as someone knocked on the door. Jaxon and I both stared at the door. “Who could that be? No one’s supposed to be here for another hour.”
I opened the door and Luke greeted me with a wave. “Merry Christmas.”
“Hey, Luke. Merry Christmas to you too,” I replied awkwardly.
Jaxon joined me at the door and shook Luke’s hand. “What brings you by?” he asked.
I stepped out of the way so Luke could come in. With a big smile on his face, he held out an envelope to Jaxon. “I figured I’d be the one to give you the good news. I thought it’d make a nice Christmas present.”
Jaxon took the envelope and opened it quickly. “Is this about the bike design?”
Luke winked at me and nodded while Jaxon fumbled with the paperwork. Excitement bubbled in my chest and I slapped a hand over my mouth to hold in my gasp. “Well?” I said, waving him on. “What does it say?”
Mouth gaping, he handed me the papers, a look of pure shock and awe on his face. “They want me to design their bikes…all of them.”
Squealing, I jumped in his arms. “This is amazing! Are you going to do it?”
He chuckled and set me down. “Hell yeah, I’m gonna do it. I’d be stupid to pass this up.”
Luke pointed at the contract. “Not to mention, they’ll be paying you a shit ton of money. It’ll be the perfect job when you retire from football.”
“You could design full-time. Just imagine all the opportunities you’ll have,” I added excitedly.
Luke patted Jaxon on the shoulder. “All right, you two, I’m going to get back to the family. I just couldn’t wait to give you the good news.” He backed toward the door and stopped. “Once all the holiday shit is over with we should all get together and hang out. I’d love to pick your brain.”
Jaxon beamed. “We’d love to. And I appreciate you stopping by to give me the news.”
Luke nodded and once he’d walked out the door, Jaxon lifted me in his arms. “Holy shit, this is intense. I didn’t think they liked my sketch. It’s been weeks since I gave it to Luke.”
“Obviously, they love it. What a great Christmas present.”
His smile softened and he set me down. “Since we’re on the subject of Christmas presents, I want you to go ahead and open yours.”
“Now?”
He walked over to our Christmas tree, which glistened with bright, white lights and a couple hundred multicolored ornaments. I was anal about my furniture matching, but my tree was decorated with a mishmash of ornaments from my childhood. My mother didn’t care about putting up a tree anymore, so she’d sent me all of her ornaments. Every time I looked at them, it felt like I was back home. Jaxon moved a couple of the presents out of the way and pulled out a box.
I gasped. “Where did that one come from?” It was a box that could probably fit a book inside. I’d wondered if he was going to propose, but what he handed me was too large. We’d made little comments about marriage, but we hadn’t really discussed it.
Jaxon handed me the box and smiled. “I just put it under there today.”
Grinning from ear to ear, I tore open the wrapping paper like I was a little kid. The box had no weight to it, but I could hear something shuffling inside when I shook it. Jaxon watched me, his face full of excitement. I lifted the lid and pulled back the tissue paper. Inside there was a picture and a folded piece of paper. Looking at the picture, I saw it was a wide-open field with a pond.
“What is this?” I asked, holding up the picture.
Jaxon nodded toward the box. “Keep looking.”
I opened up the paper and as soon as I saw the writing, I shrieked. “This can’t be real!”
“I assure you it is.” Jaxon laughed. According to the document, I owned the ten acres of land that was in the picture.
Slapping a hand over my mouth, I gazed at him in awe. “This is too much.”
He shook his head. “You deserve it for putting up with me. I sold my lake property and stumbled across those acres. I know you wanted something like that and I didn’t want the opportunity to pass you by. Now it gives you the perfect place to build your house and have those horses you wanted.”
Tears fell down my cheeks and I kissed him. “Thank you. This means so much to me.” I got up and fetched his present from under the tree. “Unfortunately, my gift to you isn’t nearly as elaborate as that.”
“I’m sure it’ll be great,” he said, trying to make me feel better. Taking a deep breath, I handed him his present and watched him open it. When he’d fully unwrapped it, his eyes brightened. His old leather-bound portfolio had been scratched and scuffed up over the years. Not to mention, Sadie had taken it, which tainted it in a way. I knew he wanted a new one, so I had one made with his name engraved in real gold in the black leather. It was a place he could keep his new designs. “Bristol, it’s amazing. I can’t wait to fill it up.”
“I’m glad you like it. I look forward to seeing what all you come up with.” The doorbell rang and I could hear my parents on the other side of the door. “Looks like our first Christmas is about to begin.”
Cupping the back of my head, he drew me in close, his lips warm against mine. “It’s the beginning of many more. Merry Christmas, love.”
“And Merry Christmas to you.”
Epilogue
Bristol
SUPER BOWL SUNDAY
The crowd was wild, their screams and shouts no doubt heard all over the city of Charlotte. It was the fourth quarter, with Denver beating us by two measly points. Both teams had fought hard, and it was still anyone’s game. My brother had been sacked numerous times and I could see it weighing on him; he wasn’t used to that. It was a high-stakes game, with everything on the line.
“Come on, guys!” I shouted.
Hayden whistled and clapped her hands. “We have to win this.” Her baby bump had started to grow, but she still wore her normal-sized clothes. I thought she looked cute with her Carolina jersey snug around her tummy.