I smiled and pointed to the order that I’d gotten specifically for her. “Of course, baby.” Alex folded herself into a chair next to Zach, who snuck his own kiss, and grabbed for her rangoons. Thomas stared at her from across the table, grinning like an idiot, like having her in his presence was enough for him. Watching them together made my chest feel warm. “What are you all doing for Thanksgiving?” I asked.
Alex was the first to snort. She held up the bag of crab rangoons and shook them in my direction. “Ordering a bunch of these and watching Netflix until I pass out?”
Her answer was so blunt. “No family gathering?”
“What family?” she countered. “My mom is gone, and I haven’t seen that side of my family in years. I don’t know my dad’s.”
My chest ached for her. “You’ll come to dinner at my house, then,” I said. “Ryan and his family are coming, and I think they invited Adrianne and her family. It’ll be a thing.” I looked at Zach and Thomas. “You should all come.”
Alex gave me a strange look. “You don’t think that you’ll feel weird, having us there around them all?”
I shrugged. “Why would it be weird? Three polycules in the same house, eating turkey. Sounds pretty normal to me.” I said it with a lot more confidence and ease than I actually felt, but the smile that spread, molasses slow, across her face was well worth it.
“Okay,” she said after a moment. “I’ll be there.” She reached over and touched Zach’s arm. “We’ll all go, right?”
Thomas and Zach both nodded. I have no doubt that if it hadn’t been for her, they would never venture out for Thanksgiving, but the idea of having everyone at my house made me feel warm.
* * *
Later,after far too long arguing with one another about the best way forward with Hunter’s case, Alex commanded me to take her home. She had Ubered in that morning, and she needed a ride. She kissed Thomas and Zach goodbye and promised to see them tomorrow, but when we got into my car, she asked, “Are we going to my place or yours?”
I drove her out to the house, happy to have her to myself for a change. We’d been doing a good job at sharing so as to not split her time as much... but getting alone time was precious to each of us. “Hungry?” I asked as we pulled into the driveway.
Alex shook her head. “Not right now.” Her gaze was a weighty thing. I could feel it as surely as I felt her touch.
“What does my baby want?” I asked as we climbed out of my car. She laced our fingers together as we walked up the path to the front door.
Alex considered it for a second. “I want to thank you,” she said softly. “For including me in the holidays. It’s been years since anyone bothered.”
I pulled her into my arms and brushed a kiss against her lips, her cheeks, her chin. “You never have to thank me for that,” I said. “You’re in my life. You will always be welcome. I’m sorry if I didn’t make that clearer.”
She smiled, returning kisses whenever I dropped them on her mouth. “Still,” she said. “It’s a big deal to me, and... and I want to show you how important you are to me. Let me?” I couldn’t say no to her, so I opened the door and let her lead me inside. “We weren’t in your room the last time I was here, right? It was a guest room.” I nodded, and she pressed her mouth to mine, brushing her tongue teasingly against my bottom lip. “Take me toyourbed.”
I shivered at the thought. The location of where sex took place had never been important to me, but the idea of spreading this woman out on my bed was like a livewire to my spine. I took the lead now, tugging her through the house and up the stairs, not stopping until I pushed open my bedroom door.
My bed was made, thank God, and I knew the sheets had recently been cleaned. I liked my space to be tidy and orderly, like my office, and Alex giggled when she looked around. “What’s funny?”
“You’re a very... particular person, Jake,” she said.
“Is that a bad thing?” I wrapped her in my arms again and peppered her face with kisses that made her giggle. “Huh?” I asked. “Would you rather I live like some frat guy with beer boxes stacked around as décor?”
Alex shrieked with laughter when I scooped her up and tossed her onto my bed. She bounced a little across the mattress. “I want you,” she said as I kicked off my shoes and climbed onto the bed with her. “Just the way you are.” Even in the dim light, I could see the blush on her face.
“Alex?”
She took a breath. “Actually, it’s not only that Iwantyou the way you are,” she said. “Iloveyou the way that you are.”
I didn’t think that my heart could beat so fast. “I love you too,” I said and crawled between her legs so that she cradled me with her whole body. I rested my head against her heart, which was pounding just as fast. “I love you,” I said again because it felt so damn good to say.
She carded her fingers through my hair. “I’ve been wanting to say that for awhile,” she said softly. “I just... didn’t know if it could work like that.”
“Loving us?” I asked, glancing up at her.
Alex nodded. “I should have known it would be easy,” she said. “Wanting you has been easy... but love is so much more complicated, and it’s never been lasting for me.”
I chuckled. “Me either, baby,” I said. “But this feels real to me.”
“Me too.”