“How in the world did you you…” I stammered, brushing him off. “What did you—”

  “I decided to come up,” he said teeth chattering. He dropped a duffel bag to the floor with a heavy thump. “I wanted to spend Christmas with you.”

  Lincoln and I glanced at each other in confusion. He spoke first.

  “But we’re coming home the day after tomorr—”

  “No you’re not,” Donovan interrupted. “Haven’t you seen the news? Have any of you been watching the weather reports?”

  We shook our heads. Lincoln slid the poker back in place as I took Donovan’s snow-covered coat.

  “No one’s going anywhere,” he shuddered. “This storm’s going to last for days. Everything’s grounded. Several feet of accumulation. Even the City is going crazy… I left not long after you flew out. Just as the first of the flakes started falling.”

  Lincoln put his hand on Donovan’s shoulder, motioning him closer to the fire. Swinging open the iron door, he threw another pair of logs on.

  “You actually drove here?”

  “Most of the way,” Donovan nodded. “I got stuck a few miles south of here, in a drift, outside a gas station. Found a guy with a plow who’d drive me up here. He plowed your driveway, by the way. I threw him some cash.” He stared at Lincoln for a moment. “You gave the address,” he shrugged. “You told me to come.”

  “Yeah yeah,” Lincoln nodded. “Sure man, no problem. I— I just thought you had to stay. You said you had clients, you couldn’t leave work.”

  New flames leapt up, and Donovan held his hands close to the fire. He rubbed them together and glanced back at us.

  “I don’t have work anymore,” he smirked. “I just got fired from Crunch Time.”

  Forty-Seven

  HOLLY

  “You got fired?” I cried in disbelief. Donovan’s nod felt like a punch to the gut. “How’d you get fired?”

  “Eddie,” he replied, as if it were all that were needed.

  “What happened?”

  “Well, he was giving me less and less new appointments,” said Donovan, “and it was starting to get obvious. He was also approaching some of my existing clients, asking if they’d be willing to switch trainers. ‘Scheduling reasons,’ he claimed.”

  Lincoln cursed under his breath. “Scumbag.”

  “I know, right? Anyway, he was also hitting on two or three of my female clients. Ones I knew he not-so-secretly liked. Not that they’d give him the time of day, but when I started warning them about him he stomped over to have words with me.”

  “Uh oh,” smiled Lincoln.

  “Yeah.”

  “So what happened?” I asked.

  “Well, things got heated and he told me to fuck off. In front of clients, no less. So I laughed at him, and Eddie didn’t like that, so he pushed me.”

  “And you clocked him,” guessed Lincoln.

  Donovan nodded. “One punch, right across the jaw. He went straight down, like the sack of shit he really is.”

  “Good for you,” said Lincoln.

  “No,” I protested, pushing forward. “No, not good for him! Because of this he has no job, Lincoln. He has no home gym, no place to train anyone. He’s going to lose his clients!”

  “Some,” Donovan agreed unhappily. “Maybe most. I don’t know. That place was… well it was ideal, really. Good location, central to the village. Such a great place, except for Eddie.”

  I stared at Donovan, and he stared at the floor. As for Lincoln, he looked thoughtful. He was rubbing his chin again.

  “Well I’m glad you’re here,” I said hugging him. “We all are.”

  Lincoln smiled. “True enough, bud. Me casa es su casa.”

  The fire crackled. Already it was getting warm again, although nowhere near as hot as before. I could see Donovan looking around, taking the place in. Realizing, as Brody and I did, how picture perfect it was.

  “Where’s Brody?”

  “The kid’s upstairs sleeping,” Lincoln replied. “Snoring like a lumberjack.”

  Donovan’s gaze shifted to me. He raised a mischievous eyebrow. “You wore him out?”

  I made a pouty face. “He wore himself out,” I said. “If you can believe that.”

  “On you?” Donovan joked, knowing it was probably less of a joke and much closer to the truth. “Yeah. I can believe it.”

  We stood huddled around the fire for a while, feeding it well, watching it grow. Donovan talked all about his long ride here. He also told us about the storm, and how we’d likely be stranded here for a while. Maybe a long while.

  As the two men laughed and got along, I took a step back to admire them. They were beautiful on the outside, of course — more physically amazing than anyone I’d ever dated. But they were also handsome on the inside, where it really counted. Each of them was smart, driven, funny. Personality-wise they were incredibly sweet also, each in his own unique way.

  And Brody…

  Slumbering upstairs, Brody added a bright optimism and youthful energy to everything he touched. It was one of the things I loved most about him. That, and his remarkably talented mouth…

  Slowly I came to the realization that being stranded here — with my three incredible lovers — wasn’t exactly the prison-sentence Donovan was making it out to be. In fact, it sounded like the best Christmas ever.

  “Sun’s coming up in a a few minutes,” said Lincoln, staring into the flames.

  “You thinkin’ what I’m thinkin’?” Donovan asked.

  “Coffee?”

  My personal trainer laughed and nodded. “Shit yeah, coffee.”

  “And breakfast!” I chimed in. My stomach rumbled its full agreement. “I almost forgot why I came down here. I’m starving!”

  “What kind of breakfast?” Donovan squinted.

  Lincoln started counting off on his fingers. “Eggs, toast, bacon, potatoes with onions…”

  Donovan wrinkled his nose. “Got any unsweetened, steel-cut oatmeal?”

  “Sure,” laughed Lincoln. “It’s out in the detached warehouse, right next to the Maserati.”

  “The blue one or the red one?” Donovan grinned.

  “Right next to the ‘fuck you’ sign. Over by the—”

  “Will you assholes stop?” I laughed. “Holy shit, if we don’t make something soon I’m going to chew my own arm off.” I pointed at Donovan, then at the kitchen. “It’s Saturday now. That’s your cheat day. Get the hell in there and start scrambling some eggs before I stick a foot in your ass.”

  “Foot in my ass,” he nodded, grinning. “Got it.”

  “But first…”

  I leapt into his arms and kissed him, before he could say anything else. Donovan’s strong arms slid around me. He held me tightly as his lips churned against mine, kissing me back firmly, passionately...

  “Welcome to the weekend,” I finally winked.

  Forty-Eight

  HOLLY

  “And I say if we’re going to have Christmas here, we’ve gotta have a tree…”

  Brody’s statement was punctuated by him stuffing a quarter of a pancake into his mouth. His jaw moved vigorously, trying to win the ensuing battle.

  “I just don’t have one,” shrugged Lincoln.

  “Not even a fake one, up in the attic?”

  Our host shot my youngest lover the dirtiest of looks. “A fake Christmas tree is fucking blasphemy,” he said. “Might as well install the Yule Log app on your phone and we could sit around watching it, rather than light the fireplace.”

  Scraping the last egg off his plate with a fork, Donovan laughed. “I don’t think that’s quite the same thing, bro.”

  “Whatever.”

  It was truly hilarious, the breakfast conversation so far. We’d debated the power of vampires vs. werewolves, whether or not Tom Cruise actually found (and refuses to disclose the location of) the fountain of youth, and which was more ‘real’ pirates or ninjas. The guys had argued over best pizza toppings, bottled water vs. tap water, and which of the Rocky movies was the best. The latter at least they agreed upon unanimously: Rocky IV.

  “So if you don’t have a tree, let’s go out and get one,” Brody was saying.

  Lincoln walked over to the window and yanked the curtains back. “See that?”

  “No,” said Brody.

  “Exactly. And that’s because it’s whiteout conditions out there. Usually the view from this window is quite beautiful. But right now?” He peered again. “I can’t even see past all the snow caked on the glass.”

  Donovan nodded and poured another mug of coffee. “Storm’s supposed to rage all day and into the night. We couldn’t get out if we wanted to, even if we had three shovels.”

  Lincoln was still staring out the window. His expression was almost restless. Finally he let go of the curtain and turned back to face us.

  “I have two shovels.”

  Brody smiled optimistically. He’d slept more than anyone. I could almost feel the energy radiating from his body, like an electric aura.

  “Nothing’s gonna be open,” said Donovan. “Trust me. The guy that drove me here said it was going to be the worst storm in—”

  “You wanna try to shovel out anyway?”

  The words just came out. I didn’t know why I said them, but something about playing outside in the snow with my three boyfriends appealed to me.

  “I mean, what else are we gonna do today?”

  All three of their gazes turned to me. I sighed and rolled my eyes, but deep in my tummy I felt a warm tingle. “Besides that.”

  The soreness between my legs was less pain and more a pleasant reminder of last night. Still, there were three of them now. A little breather certainly wouldn’t hurt, especially if we spent a lot of our energy outside.

  “Donovan’s probably right,” Brody said glumly. “Nothing’s going to be open. I guess we could make a snow-tree outside, sort of like a snowman. Sounds lame, but it’s better than—”

  “I know a place we could try,” Lincoln interjected. We all looked at him hopefully. “About three miles from here there’s one of those cut-down-your-own Christmas tree farms.” He shrugged. “I know the guy who runs it. Even if it’s closed, we could stuff an envelope in the mailbox. Take what we want, and—”

  “I’m not killing a perfectly happy tree,” I jumped in, “just so we can stand it up in your living room for a couple of days.”

  “We wouldn’t have to.”

  Donovan laughed. “You wanna just decorate it right there, or—”

  “No, they have a bunch of pre-cut trees already, for people who aren’t into the whole Clark Griswold thing. We could grab one of those.”

  Brody’s eyebrows came together, until we explained to him who Clark Griswold was. When he mentioned he hadn’t seen any of the Vacation movies, everyone groaned.

  “So it’s settled?” asked Lincoln. “Dig out, shoot down the road if we can… see if we can make it?”

  Brody nodded eagerly, and I found myself following suit. But Donovan crossed his arms.

  “And what if we don’t make it?”

  Lincoln smirked back at him. “How’s your cardio?”

  “Godlike,” he said proudly.

  “Then three miles shouldn’t be much of a problem.”

  Forty-Nine

  DONOVAN

  It really was a magnificent tree: big and full and without even a bad side to it. It was also taller than any tree I’d ever had growing up, but then again we’d never had twenty-foot ceilings.

  “Damn, it’s still not straight.”

  It had taken us the better part of the morning, just to dig out. The snow was at least three feet deep, five at the drifts — and this even after the driveway had been plowed. Luckily it was still light and fluffy, and not the soggy, water-logged snow that always seemed to weigh a ton.

  Even running two shovels non-stop, and trading off whenever someone got tired, it wasn’t until sometime after noon that we actually reached the main road. And the road itself sucked.

  “Push… no, no, on this side,” said Brody. “There you go. Hold it right there. Don’t let it tilt.”

  Still, all the shoveling was great exercise. I’d been a little panicked at the prospect of missing a few workouts, and secretly even more worried about what would happen when we got back to the City.

  No more Crunch Time…

  I’d left gyms before, but always voluntarily. Always with something better already lined up, and after having informed my clients way ahead of time. Usually my new home gym would allow a trial period for anyone I brought with me; a free month to enjoy the facilities, on the hope that they’ll switch over.

  Only right now I had no home gym. I had no plan…

  “There, twist it tight. Both sides. But don’t let go yet.”

  I waited until the tree was fully screwed into its stand. Then we all let go at once — tentatively at first — before taking a few steps back to admire it.

  “Damn good job,” Brody declared. He put his hand out. Lincoln smirked and slapped him a high-five.

  “I can’t believe we didn’t slide off the road,” I said.

  “Me neither,” Lincoln swore, “if I’m being perfectly honest.”

  It was stupid, really. Risking ourselves for a tree. Driving through a roaring blizzard, swerving around drifts and watching out for the lights of incoming snowplows. The roads had been treacherous, to say the least. Yet we’d all piled into Lincoln’s Bronco and braved the trip together, excited and nervous and still fueled with the adrenaline of having shoveled out a quarter-mile of driveway… or at least it sure seemed that long.

  “Hot chocolate’s up!”

  Holly re-entered the living room, carrying a tray of steaming hot mugs. She looked radiant, all rosy-cheeked and flush with the combination of outside and inside, of cold and heat. My heart jumped a bit, just seeing her. I’d driven more than four-hundred miles, with the image of her burned into my brain…

  And now she was here, smiling and winking at me. Handing me a cup of hot chocolate.

  “No marshmallows?” lamented Brody.

  “Sorry man,” laughed Lincoln. “Can’t have everything.”

  “We have a Christmas tree at least,” Brody agreed. “Even if we don’t have ornaments.”

  Lincoln sank into a nearby chair. Before he did, he kicked a dog-eared box his way. “Got lights though.”

  In a way it was perfect timing, getting here when I did. Getting out of the City just as the storm hit, and racing it all the way through New England. I’d been very lucky. I’d caught the roads at exactly the right time, just as people had been scared inside due to the upcoming storm. The highways were virtually empty, all the way up.

  “Aw crap, they’re tangled.”

  I’d been in the City so long now, I’d forgotten what it was like to drive without traffic. It was just me, the radio, and visions of Holly. She’d made such an impact on my life in such a short time, I couldn’t imagine Christmas without her. And not that I was jealous of her spending the weekend with Brody and Lincoln… that part I was totally cool with. But the thought of her spending Christmas without me saying what I needed to say?

  That was just too dismal.

  “Wanna nap?” Holly laid her head on my shoulder as she snuggled into me on the couch. “I know you drove all night. You have to be exhausted.”

  I smiled and wrapped my arm around her. I couldn’t nap. I couldn’t miss any of this.

  “Come upstairs with me,” I said, grabbing my bag. “Help me unpack.”

  She smiled and nodded as we set down our mugs together. Brody and Lincoln didn’t even look at us as we left. They were too busy arguing over the best way to untangle the tree lights.

  We entered one of the guest bedrooms, made up as nicely and clinically as a bed and breakfast. It was amazing how easily you could tell when a room was actually lived in, as opposed to when it was not.

  “Something up?”

  I looked up to find her leaning against the doorway, looking all breathless and sexy without even trying. I dropped my bag without unzipping it.

  “Yes,” I said, pulling her into the room. “Come here.”

  Her mouth went suddenly serious, her expression laced with concern. Even so, she melted into my body. Didn’t resist as my arms slid around her, and in fact, pulled me into her own space as well.

  “What is it?” she breathed, our faces so close we could kiss at any moment.

  For several long seconds all I could do was stare at her, admiring her beauty. Her perfect, angelic face. Her almond eyes, shining tiffany blue.

  “Donovan tell me,” she whispered. “What is it?”

  “It’s you,” I breathed.

  “Me?”

  “I think I’m in love with you.”

  It came out as a sigh. Not of disappointment, but not of abject happiness either. Of somewhere in between.

  It was a sigh of longing.

  My hand came up, and I held her by the chin. My thumb brushed her lower lip, ever so lightly.

  “Before you say you something,” I whispered, “you need to know I don’t expect anything in return. I know your position. I can’t even imagine what’s going on in your head, but I realize—”

  “Hey…”

  Holly took my face in her hands. She cradled it gently and leaned forward, until our foreheads were touching.

  “I love you too,” she breathed. “Totally. Completely. Every bit as much as you love me, Donovan. My feelings for you are all there.”

  She kissed me, and a fire passed through her lips. I felt it surge from her body into mine, consuming me, lighting me up from within with all new hope and love and reverence.

  It made me feel alive.

  “I’m not expecting you to give yourself to me,” I added quickly. “Or make your decision, or feel any differently about the others.”

  Her expression changed. It grew deeper, maybe a little sadder. But it still held the same amount of love.

  “I appreciate that.”

 

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