by Alex Jane
When Justin and Roman took their seats, Joel only smiled whereas Chase beamed in what he clearly thought was an encouraging way across the table at them. Thankfully, he stopped when his husband elbowed him in the side and, suitably admonished, went back to eating his breakfast.
When Justin snuck a glance at Roman, he was looking both confused and relieved things were simply carrying on as normal, much the same as Justin. Shrugging at each other, they set about filling their plates, happy to simply eat and be around family, relieved no own was going to make the situation awkward. That was until Tyler came in through the door.
Rather than apologizing for being late, he simply shucked off his jacket and slumped down into the vacant chair, saying, "The two of you manage to get your heads out of your asses yet?"
Justin's mom glared at him and unsubtly tried to kick his leg under the table. "If you mean, have they made up, I think that's a yes."
Tyler raised his eyebrows as he reached over the table to grab some toast and looked between the two boys. "This true?"
As Roman hunched over he jabbed at the eggs on his plate with his fork and gave a mumbled, "Yeah, I guess."
Justin grinned and with a wink said, "Yup. Twice." There was no way he was going to let his uncle think he could embarrass him.
That was all it took for the staid, uncomfortable atmosphere in the kitchen to dissipate into a round of chuckles marred only by Roman glaring at Justin and muttering, "Seriously?"
Justin frowned at him and waved his bagel vaguely. "Yes? There's no way what happened in the parking lot counts."
"I don't want to hear about what happened in the parking lot. Not at the breakfast table and certainly not from any colleagues," Kyle said, pointing a finger with the warning.
"Oh, let the kid have some fun," Tyler said, holding out his hand over the table. He wiggled his fingers at Joel a couple of times before Joel rolled his eyes, lay down his fork, reached into his back pocket, and pulled out his wallet.
Justin watched the exchange open-mouthed, before exclaiming indignantly, "Ten bucks? Is that it?"
"And three shifts at the bar," Tyler said through a wicked grin.
"T-two shifts," Joel corrected.
"Two shifts plus closing, as I remember," Chase mumbled, earning an elbow in the ribs from his husband.
"You're n-no help."
"It's your stupid fault for making the bet in the first place."
"Can we not do this today?" Kyle asked, sending exasperated looks at his little brothers. "It is Christmas after all."
"You're right," Chase said, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out some rolled-up papers. He dropped them on the table in front of Justin's plate. "Merry Christmas."
"We don't do gifts until everybody's eaten," Justin said, confused and a little surprised his uncle would break with tradition.
"It's not a gift exactly, maybe more of a suggestion," Chase replied with a shrug, picking his fork back up and tucking into his plate of eggs.
Justin narrowed his eyes, suspicious that there was some kind of a joke involved, but picked up the papers and unfolded them. "What is this?" he asked, looking at the application form and wondering if his uncle was, in fact, a mind reader.
"Well," Chase said, dragging a couple more pancakes from the pile onto his plate. "It won't be long until you graduate, and I know you've applied for your board certification." Justin nodded in reply, so Chase went on. "I just thought if you wanted to go ahead to get your master's degree like you always talked about, there are worse places to study than Gannon. And don’t worry about the money. You know I’ll help you out."
"I suppose it's got nothing to do with Roman living right around the corner?" Justin carefully rolled the papers back up again.
Chase smirked over at him. "Does he really? Why yes, I suppose he does."
It wasn't that it was too much, or too soon, but it still irked Justin that his family were trying to make his decisions for him again. Or perhaps he just didn't enjoy the thought that he was so damn predictable. Clearly the raging emotions must have shown on his face, as Roman took his hand under the table and squeezed it tight.
"You don't have to do that," Roman said quietly as he leaned in. "It would be great to have you close but you don't have to think about it right now."
Thankfully, Kyle forced the conversation to move on, although Justin was very aware of the paper next to his plate. He didn't want to think about moving across the country or the future in general, but Chase was right. He was ready to see if things were going to work out between him and Roman and being in the same city would definitely be a good start. Admittedly, Roman would be traveling around during the season from place to place, but Justin would have his studies to keep him occupied, and it wasn't as if he wouldn't be able to work as a personal trainer while he was qualifying. Plus, he never found it hard to make friends and had heard Indiana was a pretty nice place to live.
Once breakfast was done, and the dishes washed and put away, the six of them moved into the lounge, flopping down onto the couches, already thinking about lunch as they rubbed their bellies full of breakfast. Overeating was as much a Meadows brothers' tradition as the tree and the gift giving.
Every year someone took turns to hand out the presents from under the large tree that was practically groaning from the amount of ornaments on the branches and the hundred colored lights that made the whole room sparkle as they twinkled. This year Justin's mom had the privilege and sat with her legs folded out to one side on the floor, pulling out the brightly wrapped gifts and throwing them over as the TV played Christmas movies in the background.
The cacophony of ripping and confetti of wrapping paper revealed socks and books and silly trinkets, a few expensive items, and some handmade things, all welcomed with shouts of delight and laughter. Justin’s mom teared up at the book of poetry he’d scoured the planet to find for her. It would never replace her own mother’s volume, but it was good enough to make her smile and squeeze the Dickens out of him after Tyler had passed her a Kleenex.
Justin got some new clothes, the box set he had on his wish list, and the obligatory joke gift of a child's doctor's kit with a tiny plastic stethoscope and Batman Band-Aids that the uncles took turns in getting him every year. There was one other package, badly wrapped, with no label, but from the way Roman looked nervous when Justin squeezed it, he figured the gift was from him.
"I didn't get you anything good," Justin said as he ripped at the shiny paper.
Roman shrugged. "Neither did I, technically."
He looked away when Justin frowned over at him, which made little sense until Justin looked down at what was in his hands. "It's a hat. Wait," Justin said, holding it up. "This is my hat."
Not just any hat, it was his favorite hat, a bright fuchsia pink in a thick knit that fitted his head perfectly, one he had lost years before and had never found its equal. He had worn it everywhere until it had suddenly gone missing. Pretty much around the same time he and Roman had broken up.
"You took my hat."
Roman shrugged one shoulder. "Not intentionally. It ended up with my stuff and I…well, I wanted something of yours." His voice had gotten quieter as he spoke, aware that although no one appeared to be paying them any attention, the room was full of nosy parkers. "I took good care of it."
"I went crazy looking for this thing," Justin muttered, turning the hat over in his hands before pulling it onto his head. He looked up at Roman who was still looking unsure. "I think you might have to make it up to me."
Roman smiled. "Anything you want."
"Anything, huh?" Justin smirked and wiggled his head just to feel the bobble bounce. "How about lending a hand to find some place to live when I move to Erie?" Justin smiled even wider as Roman's face lit up. "I'm guessing I might even need a roommate."
"As luck would have it," Roman said, leaning in almost close enough to kiss. "I know a guy who might have a spare room available. He travels a bit and might hit you up for some o
f that massage you're so good at."
A shock of emotion welled up in Justin, and he wasn't sure for a second if tears would come or he would laugh aloud. But when he managed to swallow it down, he sighed, and grimaced for effect. "I'm not sure about that. Is the rent good?"
Roman cupped his cheek, brushing it with his thumb and pressing a chaste kiss to his lips before whispering, "Pretty good. And he doesn't even steal the covers."
Justin smiled, closing his eyes for a minute and wondering if Christmas miracles would ever end, before he had a thought and laughed. "Ah crap. I'm going to get such shit from Will about this. I've been telling him I don't date jocks for the last four years."
"Good," Roman said, kissing him again. "'Cause neither do I."
THE END
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Thank you for reading Glitter Fixes Everything. I hope you enjoyed it.
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Acknowledgments
Thank yous going out to bunch of people. To Kiyle for prodding me into getting this finished and helping me choose the locations—completely without bias. To the Peeps in my readers groups for answering my silly questions, and to Milly for coming up with a great name for the character formally known as Dylan (don’t ask). To Susan, for giving me a thumbs up, massive Thank You, Hun. Victoria worked her butt off as usual to get this ship shape, and Diane, who as well as making it sparkle at the last hurdle, was also faithful in her quest to rid the world of first chapters forever. I failed you this time but I will endeavour to persevere in future. Tonnes of love to all of you. And Merry Festivus!
Tinsel Fixes Everything
They say you never get over your first love.
After a meteoric rise to baseball stardom, Chase Meadows’ dream is cut short and he’s back home for good, helping his brothers run the family bar while he finds his feet. Plenty of things have changed since he left for college. Although one thing he recognizes right away is Joel Levine.
From setting eyes on the skinny, stammering teen their first day of high school, until reluctantly parting five years later, the two of them had been inseparable. And now, Joel is definitely someone not easily forgotten.
But as Chase settles back into home town life, he finds that under the superficial differences—the leather jacket and tattoos—Joel is still the same person he fell for when they were fifteen. While they’re both older and wiser, Chase never stopped loving Joel. And as Christmas rolls closer, Chase starts to think that maybe Joel never stopped loving him either.
They say you never get over your first love.
Some people don’t have to.
Tinsel Fixes Everything
‘Tis the Season
Aaron has spent the past ten months alone. When he meets a sad, yet strangely familiar man on a cold Halloween night, he impulsively invites him home. But the intimate connection they share lasts only until morning. Aaron wakes up alone—wracked with guilt and devastated to have lost his chance.
Or so he thinks.
Thanksgiving brings Aaron another shot at happiness, but letting go of an old love and accepting a new one isn’t as easy as everyone keeps telling him. And by the time Christmas Eve rolls around, it becomes clear that Aaron’s not the only one struggling to let himself love again.
Christmas miracles are all well and good, but it’s going to take more than the Holiday Spirit for Aaron to get his happy ever after.
A story of grief, sadness, and letting it go; and finding love when you least expect it.
’Tis the Season
The Alphas’ Homestead Series
Telling the story of Caleb and Jacob, two Alpha werewolves living in the backwaters of Nebraska, from their first meeting in 1871, through twenty years of trials and tribulations as they fall in love, find themselves with a family, and live a life they never dared to hope for before they met each other.
Home is where you are
Returning Home
Longing for Shelter
Home in your Heart
Be My Sanctuary
Always Here
Without a mate – a family, a pack – a wolf has no home.
But what if home finds you?
Find out more here
The Homestead Legacy Stories
A series of standalone stories set in the universe of the Alphas’ Homestead Series.
The Arrangement
Book 2 - Coming January 2020
Mr & Mr Detective
Gazes Into You
A Foreign Country
About the Author
After spending far too long creating stories in her head, Alex finally plucked up the courage to write them down and realized it was quite fun seeing them on the page after all.
Free from aspirations of literary greatness, Alex simply hopes to entertain by spinning a good yarn of love and life, wrapped up with a happy ending. Although, if her characters have to go through Hell to get there, she’s a-okay with that.
With only a dysfunctional taste in music and a one-eyed dog to otherwise fill her days, Alex writes and walks on the South Coast of England—even when her heart and spellcheck are in New York.
www.alexjane.info
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