by Autumn Reed
I bit back a smile. “What if I wanted to unpack and go for a run?”
Theo scoffed. “And miss out on all the fun?” He shook his head, his expression awash with disappointment. “Haley, Haley. Be a good girl and help me decorate.” As I turned to walk down the hall to my bedroom, he called, “Or you might end up with coal in your stocking!”
“Well, we can’t have that, now can we?” I winked over my shoulder and was rewarded with Theo’s surprised expression before I sashayed toward my room.
After furtively checking the cell phone from my dad, to no avail, I returned to the living room and handed Theo the small trinket I had picked up for him at the Asian Art Museum.
He smiled. “Thanks, Haley. This is awesome.”
Placing my hands on my hips, I said, “Alright, bossy elf, tell me what to do.”
“Bossy elf, eh? I like it.” He glanced around, assessing the options. “Can you untangle and test the lights while I put them on the tree?”
“Sure.”
We caught up on the past few days, chatting about his exams and my visit to San Francisco. The decorations and music were putting me in the holiday spirit, and I couldn’t help but hum along with some of my favorites while we shared holiday traditions and memories.
Just talking about how my dad surprised me with a “camp out” under the Christmas tree every year made me smile. It started when I was eight years old and obsessed with camping—the only “vacation” Dad would allow—and he knew I was upset we couldn’t camp during the winter. So, he laid out our sleeping bags by the tree and built a fire in the fireplace. We would roast marshmallows and munch on caramel corn while we pretended that the lights on the tree were stars instead.
Shaking my head to return to the present, I said, “I haven’t heard you mention your El Gigante trip in a while. Are you still planning to go over the break?”
“No,” Theo said from behind the tree. “We decided to wait until spring break. I think I could benefit from more training, and the warmer weather will be nice.”
“That’s good. Is one of the other guys going with you, then?”
“Yeah.” Theo rounded the tree once more. “Ethan and Knox are going.”
“Really?” I sputtered. “I thought Knox hated the idea.”
Theo chuckled. “I guess Knox realized I was going with or without his approval, so he decided to tag along and keep an eye on me.”
“Ha, why does that not surprise me,” I said, and Theo gave me a knowing look. “So . . . does that mean you’ll both be home for Christmas?” Please say yes, I thought.
“Absolutely.”
“Good. Because I missed you guys at Thanksgiving.” While true, I also hoped my comment would open the door for Theo to tell me where he and Knox had been. I still had no clue whether their absence had been work-related, family-related, or even girlfriend-related, and it was nagging at me.
“Yeah, sorry about that. We would have rather been here with you. And, I definitely plan to make up for it at Christmas; we have a lot to do, snowflake.”
“We do?”
“Christmas decorating and shopping, the Zenith party, Christmas Eve and Day at Patrick’s house, and whatever else we feel like.” Theo paused as he plugged in another strand of lights. “That reminds me, do you want to look for a dress for the Zenith party tomorrow after work?”
“Actually . . . I already bought one.”
He stopped and stared at me. “You did? When?”
“In San Francisco.”
“And you waited all this time to tell me? I want to see it.”
“Nope. It’s a surprise.”
Theo groaned. “You’re joking, right?”
I shook my head, grinning from ear to ear.
“After all of my help, you’re going to shut me out?” He pouted, making his eyes huge and blinking with exaggerated movements. It was ridiculous but adorable.
I laughed. “And I thought you liked surprises.”
Theo huffed and went back to lighting the tree. “That’s just cruel, Haley. You’re lucky I like you so much.”
It wasn’t long before he had finished lighting the tree, and we both stood back to admire our work. Theo wrapped an arm around me, resting his hand on my waist, and I dropped my head to his shoulder.
“Ornaments?” Theo asked, leaning his head on mine.
“Definitely.”
“I’ll be right back,” he said, squeezing then releasing me. “There are a few more boxes that I want to grab.”
“There’s more?”
The look he gave me was the equivalent of him saying, “Of course there’s more. How could you even think there wouldn’t be?”
Theo hadn’t been gone long when one of my favorite holiday songs started playing. Sorting through the tinsel and ornaments, I couldn’t resist singing a few bars. When the song ended, I turned to find Theo frozen in place and holding a box.
“Finally,” Theo sighed happily. “I finally got to hear your beautiful voice again.”
I turned away and busied myself with sorting ornaments, embarrassed that he had witnessed my impromptu performance. Theo placed a hand on my shoulder. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. But I couldn’t resist listening; your voice is so rich and soulful.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled.
“Seriously. And you have to agree that I have exercised remarkable restraint, if I do say so myself, considering I’ve barely mentioned your amazing voice since our little Mary Poppins sing-a-long.”
“I guess that is rather remarkable for you,” I retorted, garnering a light tug to my hair.
Before we could discuss it further, Knox’s voice boomed through the loft. “What the . . .”
“Dickens!” Theo called out, finishing Knox’s sentence, as he winked at me. I stifled a laugh at Theo’s latest creative cursing and cringed, awaiting Knox’s reaction while he marched down the hall toward the living room.
“What the Dickens? Really, Theo?” Knox rolled his eyes. “Haley and I leave you alone for less than a week, during finals no less, and look at the disaster you’ve made.”
“Moi?” Theo asked, putting his hand to his chest. “But Haley’s just as guilty as I am.”
My mouth fell open and I glared at Theo.
Knox chuckled but then said in a stern tone, “Haley, I’m so disappointed in you,” before turning back to Theo. “And where did all of this stuff come from, anyway?”
Theo waved a hand through the air. “Here and there. Does it matter? You should stop grumbling and help us.”
“Bah humbug,” Knox said casually as he walked toward his bedroom.
Once Knox was out of earshot, I slapped Theo on the arm. “Thanks a lot, pal.”
“He’s not actually mad. As much as Knox loves to play Scrooge, he secretly enjoys the holidays.”
“If you say so,” I said skeptically. “What should I do now?”
“Feel like decorating the banister?”
I shrugged. “Sure. Although it looks like you already did.”
“Nah. Just the greenery; it still needs lights and ornaments.”
I wrapped the greenery with lights and was finishing the segment at the bottom of the stairs when Knox reemerged from his room. I approached him and lowered my voice. “I hope you’re not upset about the decorations.”
He looked down at me, his expression thoughtful. “After living with us all these months, I assumed you’d know I was kidding.
Squinting my eyes, I scanned his face like I was searching for something. “One of these days I’m going to discover your tell.”
“Not likely,” Knox said with a laugh, his tone bordering on haughty.
“We’ll see,” I responded with a sly grin.
“Yes, we shall.”
I leaned forward, challenging him. “Are you trying to get the last word in?”
His gaze roved over my face and settled on my mouth, then he unexpectedly grabbed my arms and closed the distance between us, placing a kiss o
n the tip of my nose. “Yes.”
My eyelashes fluttered madly in response as he released me, and I fought the giant smile threatening to overtake my face. “What was that for?” I whispered, feeling bashful from Knox’s sweet and spontaneous display of affection.
Knox nodded his chin, gesturing upward. When I looked up, I finally noticed the ball of mistletoe affixed to the bottom rung of the banister.
“Alright, turtledoves,” Theo called, “with less than twelve days until Christmas, this tinsel isn’t going to hang itself.”
“Chop chop,” Knox replied, before giving me a secret smile and grabbing a box of ornaments.
I stood still for a few moments, soaking it all in—the decorations, the laughter, the sense of family. After everything that happened over the past week, I was happy to be back at the loft . . . to be home.
Tied Up
Sitting across the conference room table from Melissa, I glanced at the clock, surprised to see that it was already after eleven. We’d been working together on a presentation for the youth outreach program for the last three hours, and the time had practically flown. Thankfully, we were on a hard deadline, so Melissa was more focused than usual and was keeping the gossip and chatter to a minimum.
I finished another slide and held back a smile at the sense of accomplishment I felt. Although I’d created plenty of presentations and other reports as part of my homeschool curriculum, it was nice to complete a project that would actually be used. Of course, it helped that I found the topic—research on the correlation between education and crime—interesting.
After a few more minutes of silence, Melissa stretched her arms and sighed dramatically. “Can we please take a break? Maybe grab lunch?”
“Why don’t you go ahead? I’ll keep working and eat my sack lunch when you get back.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“Nope. Not at all.”
“Thank you, thank you! I seriously need some time away from this room. Be back soon!”
I had just added a new slide to the document when I heard a brisk knock at the door. Looking up from my laptop, I smiled. “Hey, Tyler. What are you doing here?”
“I saw you through the window and waited until Melissa left to come in.” His expression turned sheepish. “Sorry, that sounded creepier than I intended.”
“It was only a teensy bit creepy,” I responded, laughing and holding my thumb and forefinger about a half inch apart to emphasize my statement.
“Well, that’s a relief. Anyway, I wanted to catch you alone so I could ask if you would be my date to the Christmas party tomorrow night. What do you think?”
His smile was so genuine and hopeful, my stomach dropped to my toes. I didn’t have a good reason to say no since I liked Tyler and enjoyed spending time with him, but I couldn’t bring myself to say yes either. When I tried to imagine myself dating him, my mind was flooded with images of six other guys. Instead of walking hand-in-hand with Tyler, I saw myself dancing with Liam, caught up in Knox’s bear hugs, laughing with Theo, sleeping in Chase’s arms, hypnotized by Jackson’s eyes, and stargazing with Ethan.
“Um . . .” Crap, what should I say?
“I know it’s last minute, so if you have other plans, I understand.”
“It’s not that . . .”
His smile dimmed, and the only shred of composure I had left disappeared. “Or, if you don’t want to, that’s okay as well,” he said quietly.
I paused before forcing the words out. “I’m sorry, Tyler. It’s just that my situation is sort of complicated.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll see you there, okay?”
Not sure what else to say, I nodded then watched him walk away. Did I make the right decision? I wondered. I could have finally experienced a real date, and with someone who was nice, attractive, and intelligent. Jess would probably tell me that I was crazy to turn him down . . . and maybe I was.
Ever since Theo’s birthday party—when I’d first admitted to myself that I wanted Theo, Chase, Jackson, Liam, Ethan, and Knox to be my guys—I’d been living in a kind of limbo. I was constantly aware of every gaze, smile, and word they threw my way, not to mention the lingering touches. But, I didn’t know what any of those things meant. None of the guys had made a move, and I was beginning to wonder if it was all in my head. Just because they were sometimes flirtatious and protective didn’t mean they had romantic feelings for me.
And, what were my options, really? I could go out with Tyler, but would that be fair to him when I was secretly pining after the six guys who were intrinsically tangled in every facet of my life? I could take things into my own hands and pursue one of the guys . . . yeah, like that’s going to happen. Or, I could continue on as I had been and choose to be happy that I had them in my life at all. Easier said than done, I thought wistfully.
Forcing myself to get back to work, I pushed my dating, or non-dating, woes to the back of my mind. I’d already given Tyler my answer, and I wasn’t willing to take it back now.
After taking a break for lunch, I was just getting re-focused on the project when I heard Melissa gasp. “Oh. My. God.”
“What’s wrong?”
She held out her phone to show me a photo of a hand displaying a gaudy engagement ring. “One of the girls from my high school cheerleading squad tweeted that she’s getting married. That’s insane! She’s only twenty; what is she thinking?”
“Wow. That is pretty young. Do you know her fiancé?”
“I met him at a party after they started dating last year, and he seemed like a nice guy, but still . . . can you imagine committing at that age?”
With my non-existent relationship experience, I wasn’t the ideal person to ask, and I didn’t even know how I felt about it. “I guess I’ve never considered it. Maybe if I was certain I’d found the right person?”
“Well, not me. I plan on spending my twenties dating. There are way too many cute fish in the sea to get married so young.”
She continued scrolling through her phone, making comments about what her friends were up to according to social media. I was barely paying attention until she exclaimed, “Oh, that reminds me! I tried to add you as a friend on Facebook, but I couldn’t find you. What’s up with that?”
“Oh, I don’t have an account. I’m not that social, as you know.” In other words, I only have eight friends, including you, and that’s seven more than I had a few months ago.
“Haley! Everyone has a Facebook account or at least Instagram. How do you keep in touch with your friends from high school?”
Oh, great. Here we go. “I was homeschooled.”
Her face transformed into one of total shock. “What? But you seem so normal!”
“Thanks. I think.”
“I guess it makes sense, now that I think about it. You’re quiet, and you’re also really smart. You probably would have been bored in public school.”
Well, that’s one way to look at it.
“Anyway, you totally need to get on Instagram and then post lots of pics of the Jaguar guys. You’d probably end up with thousands of followers.”
Never gonna happen. “I’m sure they’d love that,” I said sarcastically.
When I finished the presentation and returned to my cubicle hours later, Theo was lounging in my chair with his feet propped on the desk. “Finally!” he said, sitting up so abruptly that the chair pitched forward. “I was starting to think I’d have to turn bloodhound and hunt you down.”
“Or you could have texted me,” I replied dryly.
“Or that. Ready for dinner and a movie?” he asked eagerly.
“Yep.” Theo had made me promise earlier in the week that I’d hang out with him to make up for him missing the fun part of the San Francisco trip. He insisted that I needed to experience an ordinary Friday night and made plans for us to go out after work.
After dinner, we arrived at the theater, and I was surprised when we bypassed the line and headed straight for the lobby. Theo ha
d already purchased the tickets and held out his phone for the attendant to scan. Since Dad and I had only visited the movie theater in Minden a few times, I reveled in the experience and enjoyed seeing the film on such a large screen, especially with Theo’s arm draped around my shoulder for most of the movie. About two hours later, we filed out of the theater, the audience abuzz with conversation about the feature presentation. Theo pulled his phone out of his pocket, texting as we crossed the parking lot to his car.
“Sorry, Haley. I need to stop at the office before we can go home. Patrick left something behind, and I volunteered to get it.”
“No worries.”
When we arrived at Zenith, the parking garage was eerily quiet. At ten-thirty on a Friday night, most employees had left hours ago, and there were only a handful of cars in the garage. How miserable it must be to work this late on a Friday, I thought.
The lobby was silent, a lone security guard manning the watch. Theo swiped his keycard, and we exited the elevator on the sixth floor. He scanned his thumbprint and entered a code in a keypad on the wall near the office entrance before we proceeded to Patrick’s office, chatting about the movie and laughing at some of the funnier parts. I was mid-sentence when Theo’s arm suddenly jutted out, blocking my path and stopping me in my tracks. I snapped my head toward him, surprised to find a very serious expression on his face.
Patrick’s office was at the end of the hall and the door was ajar, light glowing from the office. Theo held a finger up to my lips, impressing the need to stay silent. I felt my eyes grow wide, and nodded to indicate my understanding, before he slowly removed his finger. I glanced toward Patrick’s office again and strained my ears for any noise, but all I could hear was the hum of the building. Since all the other exterior office doors were closed and presumably locked, Theo pulled me into a nearby cubicle.
“Hide here and text Jackson,” he whispered.
With a sense of dread settling over me, I shook my head vehemently, not wanting to send Theo alone into unknown danger.
“Yes, Haley. It will be okay. Trust me.” His voice held an authoritative quality I had never heard, and I found it reassuring.