Rebel Without A Claus

His lips twitched.

“Under no circumstances should you take eggnog from Gramps unless you want to end up in the hospital.”

He nodded slowly. “Solid advice.”

“The cat hates parties, so he’ll probably will try to pee in your shoes, but as soon as Dad busts out the karaoke, he’ll run away.”

“Right.”

“And if Aunt Sarina asks you if you want to try her Christmas cake, it’s the quickest way to get drunk. If you don’t count the eggnog.”

“Okay.” His lips pulled up to one side.

“And if, at about eleven o’clock tonight after I’ve a whole bottle of wine, you see me on the karaoke machine singing All I Want For Christmas, you mind your own business and never mention it, is that clear?”

His smile took over his face, and his eyes twinkled in a way that said he was absolutely going to mention it for the rest of my life. “Crystal clear, Scrooge.”

I pouted and glared. “Let’s go.”

“Hang on. One more thing.”

“What?”

He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward him, then dug something out of his pocket. The white berries made me purse my lips as he held the sprig above our heads and grinned. “What’s that mistletoe rule your mom has?”

“You know full well what it is, that’s why you’ve got this bit.”

He shook it. “Well?”

“Fine. You win. But only because it’s Christmas Eve.”

He smirked as I stepped against his body and cupped the back of his neck. I had to get up on my tiptoes to make my lips properly reach his, and he looped his arm around my waist, holding me against him so I didn’t slip in the snow.

It was a sweet, firm kiss, and the way he held me was so tender I couldn’t help but melt against him.

God, I was so weak for him.

It was ridiculous.

One touch could turn me to goo.

I didn’t know what had happened to make it this way, but the speed with which I went from zero to… this… was scary.

Had I ever really gotten over that high school crush? Or was this all just new and shiny and would wear off if he stayed? Would it wear off if he left?

I couldn’t think about that right now. I wanted to enjoy Christmas, especially if this was the only one I had with him.

We broke the kiss and headed inside, and he was so not ready for the cheer that my whole family gave up when he walked into the living room. I laughed hard, but Nicholas was kind of shellshocked, and he just stood there… staring at everyone.

Dad laughed and came over, clapping him on the back. “Thank you, son. For keeping the grotto going this year.”

“What am I? Chopped liver?” I threw out my arms and looked around. “I saved Christmas by finding him, thank you very much!”

“Look at that.” Michael grinned. “The Grinch really did save Christmas.”

“All right. That’s enough of that. I am festive, thank you very much! Look at this dress.” I unzipped my coat and put my hands on my hips. “It doesn’t get more festive than a Santa dress.”

“Ooh,” Verity cooed. “Look at Miss Scrooge over there!”

Gramps approached us with two cups of eggnog. “To Santa!”

“I think we’ll start with something that isn’t quite pure rum, Gramps.” I laughed and kissed his cheek. “But thank you.”

He offered them to Nicholas who agreed with me, then shrugged. “More for me, then!” Gramps proceeded to down one entire cup by himself, and I shot Nicholas a look that said, “I told you so.”

We took off our coats and hats and hung them up, then joined the party. Jazzy was playing with Fudge the cat with a Christmas cat wand, and it appeared to be keeping them both out of trouble for now. Dad swept Nicholas off to speak to Michael and Uncle Jack, and Mom looped her arm through mine with a happy sigh.

“You did a good job, Quinn. You surprised me.”

“That’s rude,” I said, sipping some wine. “It’s like everyone thought I’d mess it up.”

“It’s a lot of work.”

“That’s not a denial.”

She chuckled and leaned in. “The odds were stacked against you, honey. You’d never done it before and you didn’t have a Santa, yet in ten days you’ve made it the most profitable grotto we’ve ever had.”

“Well, I can’t take all the credit. Having a good Santa helped a lot.”

“Here. This is yours.” She pulled a folded piece of paper from her dress pocket and held it out for me.

I shook my head. “Absolutely not. I don’t need it.”

“Then put it away for a rainy day,” she replied. “I have one for Nicholas, too. Same amount. You both earned it.”

I stared at the folded check in her hand, and I had no choice but to take it, so I did, and I slipped it into my own pocket without looking at it.