Thomas smirked. “If you think this is amazing, wait until you see what else I’ve got in store for you today, sweetheart.” His blue eyes sparkled with mischief.
She narrowed her eyes. “I thought we said no presents…” She picked up her sandwich and took a bite.
“We did. But it’s not a present, exactly. I think you’ll forgive me for breaking our pact.”
She chewed and swallowed. “Probably. One flash of that cheeky smile of yours and I’m a goner. Besides,” she picked up her tea and sipped, “I broke it, too.”
Thomas raised his eyebrows. “Seems we’re both as bad as each other.”
“Yes, it does.”
They exchanged a conspiratorial grin, then finished their breakfast without speaking, the only sounds being the birds in the garden calling out as they scouted around for their own Christmas breakfast. Mia had no doubt that they’d find it. The freezing weather and hardened soil might prevent them from uncovering worms and other insects, but the fact that Thomas had multiple feeders scattered throughout the grounds, which he kept regularly topped up—paid for out of his own pocket, too—meant they’d feast well, not only on Christmas Day, but throughout the cold season.
“Mmm, that was amazing,” Mia said, sitting back in her chair. “Since you cooked, I’ll wash up.”
“No, bugger the washing up! It’s only a few bits—we’ll leave it until later, when we clean up after dinner.”
Mia shrugged. “All right. Before we go for a shower, shall we open our presents, then?” She bobbed excitedly.
“Your not-exactly-a-present isn’t something you can unwrap.” He drew his brow down, as though thinking how to word it without giving the game away. “You’ll have to be showered and dressed before you can get it.”
“Okay!” she said brightly. “Let’s go into the living room so you can open yours, then. It’s under the tree.”
“Is it?” He frowned. “When did you put it there?”
“About ten minutes ago. Come on.” She got to her feet, then stepped around the table, grabbed his hand, and pulled him up.
They went into the living room and Mia then playfully shoved Thomas onto the sofa. “Don’t get too excited, though, it’s just something silly.”
“Aww.” He mock pouted. “You mean it’s not a puppy?”
“Puppies are silly. That’s the whole point of them—they’re furry little comedians that get away with murder because they’re so bloody cute. But no, it’s not a puppy—because they are for life, not just for Christmas, remember? Besides, it’d suffocate in that box.”
“Fair point. Maybe for my birthday, eh?”
She turned away, smirking and shaking her head, and retrieved the box. Then she sat down next to him and handed him the present. “Merry Christmas, Tom. I hope you like it.”
Giving her an assessing look, then peering at the gift, he lifted it as though weighing it. He tilted it from one side to the other, then squeezed it gently. Finally, he sniffed it.
“Bloody hell, would you just open it already?”
He stuck his tongue out at her. “Oh, be quiet. This is part of the fun—trying to guess what someone’s bought you before you open it. It’s been a while since someone bought me a Christmas present, so I’m making the most of it.”
A sudden, unexpected stab of grief pierced her chest at his words. She looked at him, frozen in place, and her eyes filled with tears.
He immediately abandoned the box and reached for her, mortification etched onto his face. “Oh, Mia. Shit, I didn’t mean—”
“I know you didn’t,” she sobbed, sagging into his embrace. “I just… this is the first… and we’re both… we’ve got nothing. Nobody.”
“Hey,” he said firmly, putting his hands on her upper arms and pushing her back so he could look into her face. “That last bit isn’t true. I know it’s your first Christmas without your dad, and trust me, I plan to do everything within my power to make it as painless as possible for you. Though apparently I’ve fucked that up already. And yes, we’re both orphans—which fucking sucks. But we haven’t got nothing. Or nobody.” He squeezed her arms, then released one of them to wipe away her tears with the pad of his thumb, then smooth her hair back from her face. “Remember what we said before? No matter what happens in the future, we’ve always got each other. Remember that?”
She took in his earnest expression, hot tears still streaming down her face, and nodded. “Yes. I remember that. I’m sorry—”
She was dragged back into Thomas’s arms before she could say any more. “No apologies, Mia. You do what you need to today, behave how you need to, whatever it takes to get you through the day. I’m here, all right? Here if you need me. Equally, if you’d rather be alone, that’s fine too. I’ll understand.”
Wrapping her arms around his broad back, she shook her head. “No, I don’t want to be alone. I want to be with you. Just us two, all day. I love you.”
“I love you, too.” He twisted his neck and kissed the side of her face. “More than I can put into words.”
They stayed that way for a few minutes, until Mia’s tears dried up, the shock of emotion seeping out of her. Finally, she pulled back and dug the heels of her hands into her eyes, rubbed them hard, then wiped away the last of the tears. She gave Thomas a watery smile. “Sor—”
He put a finger over her lips. “Nope. What did I say?” He removed his finger, then jerked his thumb at the box. “Can I open my present now?”
Mia’s smile was wider this time, stronger. She was surprised to note she felt stronger. But then why wouldn’t she? She was pretty damn tough in her own right, and she had her rock. What more could she possibly need to get her through the day? Nodding, she said, “Go ahead.”
Picking up the parcel, Thomas didn’t mess about this time. He groped around for an edge—no mean feat, given how she’d deliberately wrapped it to make it difficult to get into—then finally found one. Within seconds he was looking at a nondescript, brown cardboard box. He put it on his lap, flipped it open, then reached in and pulled out handfuls of the shredded tissue paper she’d stuffed in there. Once he revealed the gift, she watched as his expression went from confusion to comprehension, then extreme amusement. He looked up at her and chuckled. “You absolute minx!”
Mia giggled. “I couldn’t resist.”
Thomas lifted out the bumper-sized boxes of his favourite teabags and biscuits, shaking his head. “You know, this is an awful lot of tea and biscuits for just one person.”
“Perhaps I could share them with you?” she shot back, looking at him coyly through her eyelashes.
“I can’t think of anything I’d like more. Thank you.” He put the gifts down. “But first, let’s go and see your present.”
“See it?” She frowned. What could she see, but not open, because it wasn’t the sort of thing you could wrap?
Thomas got to his feet, then took Mia’s hands and pulled her up. “Stop trying to figure it out—you’ll never manage it. Just hurry up and get showered and dressed—the sooner you do that, the sooner you can see your gift.”
“All right, all right!”
They jogged up the stairs, with only the promise of the mysterious gift stopping her from dragging him to the bed to make love before they got ready to go out.
Half an hour later, they left the cottage, bundled up against the cold. They walked hand in hand, and Thomas led Mia in the direction of her house, but just as they got to the edge of the formal gardens, he stopped. “I’m just going to blindfold you,” he said, then reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a thick scarf.
“Blindfold me? What—”
“Mia, just trust me. It won’t be for long. It’s nothing kinky—this time.”
She squinted at him for a second, then gave a reluctant nod. He smiled, then pressed a quick kiss to her lips before slipping the material over her eyes and tying it firmly, but not too tightly, at the back of her head. “Is that all right? It’s not uncomfortable?”
/> She shook her head. “No, it’s fine. And no, I can’t see a bloody thing, before you ask.”
With a chuckle, Thomas took her hand. “Come on, then.”
She allowed him to lead her along the path, and after a few seconds her sense of direction told her they were heading towards his shed. Surely he wasn’t taking her to the shed for a shag? Not that she objected to the shagging part, naturally, but they could have done that in the warm comfort of the cottage. No, it couldn’t be that—especially since, now she thought about it, she realised that whatever it was, he was a little nervous about it. It was something he was fairly certain she’d like, but he wasn’t one hundred per cent sure.
That definitely counted sex out then—she loved having sex with Thomas, and he damn well knew it.
She made her mind up to stop trying to figure it out. They weren’t at all far from the shed now, so whatever it was, she’d find out very soon.
After a couple more minutes of walking, Thomas said, “Okay, stop. Wait there. I’ll be right back, I promise. And no peeking. All right?”
“Yes, all right. I won’t.”
She heard the scrape and crunch of gravel as he walked away. She wasn’t quite at the shed. More like beside one of the flat lawns with trees dotted over it.
Barely a minute later, she heard Thomas returning—or at least she assumed it was him. There would be nobody else in the grounds today—whatever they got up to, it would be safely away from prying eyes.
“Okay, Mia,” he said when he drew closer. “I’ve got my hands full now, so I can’t hold your hand anymore. I’m going to put my back to you in a second, so grab onto my shoulders, all right?”
“Yes, okay.” What was he carrying?
“Good.” More crunching, and she sensed movement directly in front of her. “Right, I have my back to you now.”
She groped around, found him, then did as he said and placed her hands on his shoulders.
“I’m going to walk slowly. We’re staying on the flat, but be careful. I don’t want to ruin this surprise with a twisted ankle or something.”
“Understood.”
He began walking, and she gripped on tight and kept up with him. They soon stepped off the path and onto the grass, which was crunchy underfoot with frost. They didn’t walk much further before Thomas said, “I’m about to stop.”
The two of them arrived at a halt without colliding, by some miracle. Mia waited in silence, shifting from foot to foot in anticipation. She heard some shuffling sounds, then sensed Thomas move close to her.
His voice came from behind her. “I’m going to take off the blindfold now.”
“All right,” she replied, her voice tight with excitement. What on earth was he up to?
There was some fidgeting around at the back of her head, then suddenly the scarf fell away and she had to squint as the bright daylight attacked her eyes. Once she’d adjusted to the glare, she looked around. Thomas stepped up beside her, grinning.
She took in the pine tree, which had been standing in its current position for as long as she could remember, the ladder, and the large plastic box which looked as though it had something sparkly in it. Then she looked back at Thomas. “We’re… going to decorate the tree?” she said cautiously, in case she’d gotten it wrong.
Thomas’s smile dimmed slightly. “Yes, if that’s what you want. You seemed so disappointed that you didn’t get to decorate the cottage and the tree with me, it got me thinking. You didn’t say anything about putting up a tree or decorations in the big house,” he jerked his head in that direction, “which, again, I understood. Probably a bit too much this year, huh? But… I thought this would be a good compromise. You get to decorate, but it’s not too in your face.”
She responded by throwing her arms around him. Warm, fuzzy feelings flooded her body and she beamed. “This is amazing,” she said against his ear, then kissed his cheek. “Thank you. You really are the most thoughtful person I’ve ever met.” She kissed his cheek again, then pulled back so she could plant one on his lips. It was long, and lingering, and Mia had to force herself to stop before she got too tempted to drag him to the shed, after all.
“Phew,” Thomas said when they broke it off. “That’s certainly warmed me up. Some parts more than others.” He winked.
“Yes, I thought we should stop before we got carried away. It’s a bit cold out here for all that, isn’t it?”
Thomas gave a wry smile. “These temperatures probably wouldn’t do me any favours. Shrinkage down below. I’d rather be in a nice, warm place so you get the best version of me.”
Mia giggled and batted his arm. “There’s nothing wrong with any version of you. Now, what have we got here?” They both turned and strode towards the plastic container.
“Everything and anything I could think of,” Thomas responded. “We don’t have to use it all, obviously. Even this whopper of a tree might not take all that. Just pick out whatever you fancy and leave the rest. Though if you could please refrain from opening the black box until last, okay?”
Nodding, Mia dipped her hand in the plastic box and rooted around. “Fairy lights?” she said, turning to him with a frown. “But—”
Thomas smiled and pointed to something near the base of the tree.
Her eyes wide, she replied, “Bloody hell, you had an electric point put in? That’s amazing! But how the hell did you manage that without me noticing?”
Tapping the side of his nose conspiratorially, he said, “That’s for me to know. It wasn’t easy, though, so can I insist that you do use the fairy lights?”
“Of course!” she said, and pulled out the box of multi-coloured LED lights. “Let’s start with these, then.”
Mia was glad of her many layers of warm clothing as they spent the next couple of hours decorating the huge tree. Love and laughter alone couldn’t keep her warm—but there was certainly plenty of that flowing between them.
Once they’d finished to their satisfaction, Thomas retrieved the mysterious black box and stood in front of her. “And now, for the piece de resistance!”
She took it from him, screwing up her face thoughtfully. They’d already put a star on the top of the tree, so what else could be the finishing touch to their festive masterpiece?
“Go on,” he said, excitedly, “open it.”
Under normal circumstances, a woman being presented with a box by their partner on Christmas Day might already be hearing wedding bells. But these weren’t normal circumstances. Not to mention the box was far too large for jewellery. It was about fifteen centimetres tall and deep, and almost twice that in length.
She flipped it open to be met by black tissue paper. She carefully pulled the layers off and stuffed them in her pocket, and finally revealed two items. Two more decorations for the tree—but they were so much more than that.
Mia’s eyes filled with tears as she took in the beautiful silver angels with loops coming out of their tops to hang them up with, and holding plaques in their hands. On one plaque was engraved Mum, and on the other, Dad. She looked up at Thomas. “I-I don’t know what to say.”
“Do you like them?” His eyes were wide with concern.
“Yes, I do.” She sniffed. “They’re beautiful.”
He sagged with relief. “Phew. I just thought it’d be a nice idea. Another little memorial to your parents. Your own personal angels, looking down on you, on the house, on the grounds. Where they belong—right here.”
Mia nodded, unable to speak for the emotion overwhelming her. She crouched and put the box on the grass, then removed the angels. She looked at the tree, then over at the house, then back to the tree. Finding a suitable pair of branches next to each other, she hung each of the ornamental angels so they were overlooking the house. Their home. Her home—which it would continue to be, thanks to Elias.
She walked carefully backwards over the grass to get a look at the tree from a distance. “It looks amazing. It’ll look even better when the lights are switched on.”
>
“Well, they’re plugged in ready,” Thomas replied, “but it’s so bright they won’t show up. We’ll come back after dinner and switch them on.”
“All right.” She walked over to him, wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. “Thank you for this. Really.”
Enfolding her in his arms, he said, “You’re welcome, sweetheart. I’d do anything to make you smile, especially on days like this.” He squeezed her. “It’s been a tough year, but you’ve almost got through it. Not long to go now and we’ve got a brand new year to enjoy.”
She tilted her head back and looked at him. “It has been a tough year, to say the least, but I’ll say one thing for it.”
“What’s that?”
“It brought us together. A year in which that happened can’t be all bad, can it?”
He grinned. “No, I guess not.”
As one, they leaned in for a kiss. For a while, there was nothing but birdsong, and the faint snatches of their breath.
When they parted, Mia let out a contented sigh. “It is so peaceful, so quiet.”
“Don’t get too used to it.”
“What do you mean?” she asked, frowning.
“Next year is going to be far from peaceful. It might be just me and you right now, but next year there will also be Elias, and Alex, and maybe Arjun. Not to mention a wedding to organise, the estate to run… you’re going to be a busy woman.”
Mia laughed. “It sounds hectic. But you know what? It’s the good kind of hectic. And you’re going to be here with me every step of the way, so I just know I’ll be okay.”
“You don’t need me to be okay, Mia,” he said, looking deeply into her eyes. “You’re a tough cookie.”
She shrugged. “Okay, maybe not need, but most certainly want. I want you with me always, Tom. I love you. From the bottom of my heart.”
His handsome face broke into a grin. “I love you, too. From the bottom of my heart.” Just then, his stomach rumbled loudly. He chuckled. “Well, that was timely. I was just going to say let’s get back and get the dinner on. Turkey and trimmings all right?”