“Daddy, that’s not nice. You wouldn’t have won anyway. Eli’s house is awesome.”
“Thanks, Gracie,” I say as Thatch sighs, eyeing my gingerbread mansion. “Yeah, I must admit, for a first-timer, you really did the damn thing.”
“Thanks.”
Ruby eyes the rest of the houses on the table. “Gracie, you come in second place. Second cup is yours.”
“Yay, thanks, Grammy!”
Whitney eyes my house, and I press my lips together as her nostrils flare, competitive fire fizzling as she starts to clean her side of the table.
“I’m busy with dinner,” Ruby adds, “be a dear, Sweet Pea and make his victory cup for him.”
Whitney opens her mouth and clamps it shut before sliding back in her chair and standing.
“I’ll help, Auntie Whit,” Gracie offers gleefully.
“I need your help,” Ruby says, “go grab an apron, baby.”
“But Grammy, I wanted to help—”
“Now, Gracie,” Thatch snaps, adding the last of the gumdrops to his house.
“Fine,” she huffs, stomping into the kitchen as Thatch glances up, his eyes hardening.
“I’m okay with getting mine last,” I say, glancing up at Whitney while stuffing the unused crackers in a zip lock bag. “I don’t at all mind waiting.”
Whitney lifts her eyes to mine, and I feel her brush off at my double entendre before she speaks.
“Rules are rules,” she mutters before taking off toward the kitchen.
“Man, the temp just lowered like ten degrees in here,” Thatch says with a chuckle as he turns to me. “What exactly happened between you two?”
Everything.
In truth, for me, it was too much, too soon. Mulling over a way to convey that to Thatch without sounding like the self-absorbed ass I was, I’m saved when Serena walks in and deposits a freshly bathed Peyton into Thatch’s lap.
“This kid is yours for the next hour,” she says warily, “minimum.”
Thatch rescues his house as Peyton lunges for it, his fast reaction saving Peyton another bath as he whisks the baby from the table. Conner approaches, hair wet and in fresh pajamas, eyes widening when she sees my construction before brief disappointment fills her light brown eyes.
“Just in time,” I say, grabbing some of the unbagged supplies. I gesture for her to come closer. “You want to help me finish? I could use a little help with the walkway.” Conner’s answering smile is all the help I need as she moves toward the table and gingerly takes the seat next to me. Whitney enters the room, and I see her pause in my peripheral before she sets a steaming mug of snowman soup in front of me.
“Congrats, Eli,” she says without a hint of grudge in her tone.
“Thank you,” I say, meeting her eyes briefly before I push the oversized cup toward Conner. “Mind drinking this for me? I don’t want to hurt Ruby’s feelings, but I don’t eat much chocolate.”
Conner’s eyes widen as she glances at the concoction before nodding enthusiastically. I feel Whitney’s eyes on me briefly before Conner and I get to work.
“That was really nice,” I say, glancing over at Eli, where we stand perched at the kitchen sink. “What you did for Conner.”
“It was nothing,” Eli says as I hand him a freshly washed plate.
“She’s so shy…I worry sometimes.”
“I was too,” Eli says easily.
“You? You were shy?”
“Yeah, I was, especially when I was her age. She might just need a little longer to come out of her shell. The right person will come along one day and bring it out of her.”
“You sound sure.”
“Because I’m speaking from experience.” He swallows and glances around the kitchen. “You weren’t exaggerating. Your family really goes all out.”
I can’t help my pride-filled smile. “But it’s cool, right?”
His eyes glimmer with appreciation as he scans the fully decked-out kitchen while I study the hard lines of his jaw. Lines he’s grown further into since our time together. “Yeah, yeah…it really is, but you know I don’t see any Santa de—”
“Shhhh,” I admonish, eyes widening. “And you won’t. St. Nick is Peyton’s arch-nemesis. He hates him. Any mention of that jolly old bastard and he’ll go psycho baby like Damien in the Omen scary. There was a thing at the mall last year, and let’s just say it wasn’t pretty. I have no idea how he still remembers it, but it’s ingrained in him.”