Page 115 of Have a Bear-y Little Christmas

“Uh, excuse you, I think you meanbear.”

I laughed at that. God, I loved her humor and timing. I tilted my head back, letting out one of those big, bellowing peals of mirth I knew she liked and would never fail to make her blush. Then I pulled her close and kissed her with all the happiness and contentment bubbling through me.

But then Jeannie pulled back slightly, staring deep into my eyes. “You know I love you, right? I’m sorry I haven’t said it out loud, but I hope my actions show it.”

“I do now,” I said, before kissing her yet again. “And I love you too. Even without saying it.”

She grinned, looking up at me through her lashes. “I could tell.”

She melted against me, her body so soft and inviting. As I held her there in the middle of that clearing, I didn’t know exactly what the future held, but I was happy to face it with her by my side.

That didn’t mean I had noplansfor the future—no, my mind was spinning with all sorts of ideas. All of that could wait, though, because I had a wonderful date with my equally wonderful girlfriend to experience.

And honestly… I kind of wanted to shift again.

Chapter 29

Remington

A Holiday of Our Own

I was excited.

I was also tryingnotto think about how I was excited, which in turn was amping up my excitement.

Funny how that worked.

And by funny, I meant really fucking annoying.

“Daddy, if you don’t chill, you’re gonna give it away,” Addy chided from the back seat, watching me through the rearview mirror.

“I know, I know,” I murmured as I turned onto Jeannie and Max’s street. “Believe me, girls, I’m trying.”

“Why are you so nervous? It’s not like you’re gonna popose!”

“Propose,Eva,” Addy murmured. “But that was very close. Good job.”

“Thank you.”

I was glad that I didn’t have to answer that, because Ididhave a master plan for proposing to Jeannie, and this was the first step in a six-month scheme.

In the six weeks since Jeannie and I had cleared up our miscommunication, it really had felt like being on a honeymoon. I could tell Jeannie was really trying to express both her emotional needs and successes outside of being a mother, and I was making efforts not to assume everyone magically knew what I was thinking and feeling. It was actually working out great for all of us—it even improved how my team was doing now that the landscaping season was hitting a fever pitch. Unfortunately, summer was peak season for us and that could lead to a lot of stress, especially with the extreme heat.

And man, every year it just kept getting hotter and drier. While my body had the ability to protect itself from the dangers of heatstroke and sunburn, that didn’t mean I wasn’t constantly hot, sweaty, and chugging some form of electrolyte drink.

But my thoughts of work were all banished from my head as we pulled up to Jeannie’s townhouse and the door immediately opened. Always punctual, those two.

“Hey there,” I called, rolling down the passenger’s window. “Y’all ready to go splash around?”

“Am I?” Max exclaimed, racing to the car. Jeannie started to reprimand him, but she cut herself off and shook her head in exasperation. Max was about back to the weight and strength he was before he’d gotten sick again, but his stamina had improved quite a bit. So while he wasn’t going to be winning any strength competitions soon, he didn’t get winded nearly as often or need to nap as much.

The doctor’s theory was that the infection had acted as a system reset, so now his body was spending a lot less energy trying to survive and was able to put those extra calories and whatnot into filling out his frame.

“Hey there, handsome,” Jeannie said as she opened the passenger-side door. “Come here often?”

“Not often enough,” I said, leaning over to kiss her cheek.

“Ew!” the kids chorused. Even though they were probably the most supportive little ones a blended relationship could ask for, they never missed an opportunity to act like kissing was gross.