Havoc for the Holidays (Home for the Holidays)

20. Ezechiel

Chapter twenty

Ezechiel

N ew Year’s Eve

“Baby, I can't find my toothbrush.” Ollie’s voice carried down the hall from my bathroom. My bathroom. I smiled to myself with giddiness. It was the morning after he and Becs had both spent the night. Ollie had spent quite a few nights here just he and I while his parents spent quality time spoiling the littlest redhead. This milestone was a first for us. It felt so impossibly right to have them both in my cottage, I was damn near ready to ask him to move in straight away. Too bad we promised to wait six months. The first of June couldn't come fast enough.

“Medicine cabinet, love. Right hand side.”

“Found it!”

“Ez, is it almost pancake time?” The aforementioned fiery haired darling peeked up at me where we stood at the counter.

“Just about.” I smiled down at her with a wink. “Extra chocolate chips in yours.”

“You're the bestest.” She leaned in closer. “Second to Daddy, anyway.”

“I agree. Your Daddy is the bestest of the best.” I tousled her hair and returned to the task at hand. As it would happen, I was better at breakfast. Ollie’s dinners were divine spectacles of classic comfort food, but frankly, he sucked at breakfast. It was one of many examples of how we were perfectly matched.

“Laney’s daddy’s boyfriend makes cinnamon swirl pancakes. You get that recipe, okay?” Becs hopped across the kitchen and paused to squint at the fridge. “This is boring. I'm gonna make you pictures for here like at our house.”

“That sounds like the greatest idea ever, little love.” I watched out of the corner of my eye as she disappeared through the doorway and smiled even wider. Considering I was not a fan of children before moving to Windhaven, I was surprised at my one hundred eighty degree flip. All my students had grown on me, but Becs had truly managed to weasel herself into my heart. Not only did I have a boyfriend, but I also found myself with a built-in partner in crime, too. Dating a single father was a two-for-one deal that I was blessed to be the recipient of.

“Something smells divine,” Ollie murmured as he slid in behind me and propped his chin on my shoulder. “I didn't mean to sleep in so long. Was she too much trouble?”

I leaned back against his chest and exhaled in contentment. “Not at all. You looked too peaceful to wake when she came looking for a glass of water. We ended up watching some cartoons. Ten out of ten, great way to start the day.”

“Oh God, did you get your first experience of Bluey?” He nuzzled my neck with a huff of laughter. “I don't know whether to apologize or laugh.”

“Um, excuse me? Bluey is awesome. I'm a convert now.”

“I'll admit… I sometimes forget to stop the stream after she's fallen asleep. I don't know if it's the accents or the low stakes action, but I get—”

“Sucked right in.” I finished his sentence with a laugh. “I could have kept watching all morning, but the little tyke was hungry.”

“You didn't have to do all this. I appreciate it.” Ollie stepped to the side as I moved to flip the last of the pancakes onto the platter.

“It's my pleasure. I love spoiling you both.” I nodded toward the small round table in the corner. “Becs helped by setting the table.”

“Goodness. All this pampering will go to my head.” He invited himself to the coffee pot and poured himself a mug. I was over the moon that he finally, finally did so without asking permission first. The fact that I kept his favorite coffee creamer on hand earned me another quiet thank you and a bright red blush. God, he was criminally adorable.

“Becs, breakfast,” I called out as I set the platter in the middle of the table. Her socked feet pounded through the house before she arrived in the kitchen with a flash of red and a merry giggle.

Only once we were all settled with our food did the conversation resume. It was a big day. One I never would have expected until my Oliver took it upon himself to spread the word about what the studio could offer.

“What’s the plan today?” Oliver peeked across the table at me with his fork poised in front of his mouth. “And how can I help?”

“Mom is going to head over to the inn at three and set up the room for the girls’ sleepover. We have to be there at four. Lessons from five to seven, and then the party starts.”

“Yeah, Miss Judy said it's gonna be like a Princess Party so I'm bringing the tiaras, okay?” Becs set her fork down to reach for her glass of milk with both hands. “It's gonna be great.”

“Yes it will be, my darling.” Ollie reached over to tuck a curl behind her ear. He turned his gaze back to me before continuing. “And your mom is feeling alright? It won't be too much?”

“She's been doing good. The new meds and the lack of work stress are helping with the migraines. She has a couple of the older girls from the studio coming to help, too.”

“Are you nervous?” Ollie's fingers snuck over the table to tangle with mine.

“A little. If tonight goes well, they want to negotiate something as a part of a weekly stay package. Latin ballroom lessons on site, followed by a cocktail hour, dinner and dancing. Honestly, it could be huge for the studio.”

He pointed his fork at me with a surprisingly stern expression. “I want to read over any contracts before you sign them.”

“Mr. Branson…” I pantomimed fanning myself. “I like this bossy stern version.”

“Oh…” He flushed a delicious shade of crimson and bit his lower lip to hide his smile. “Mn.”

“Sorry. Can't help myself.” I winked and returned to my breakfast with ten thousand more comments on the tip of my tongue. Alas, there were little ears present. I didn't need to make it any worse for my sensitive Ollie.

We cleaned up the kitchen together in effortless synchronicity, something that left me with warm fuzzy feelings in my chest and a smile on my face. With time to kill, we ended up on my couch with Bluey on the television. I swear, my mind was addled because I found myself imagining dance choreography for my young students based entirely on the damn theme song.

We lost track of time and jumped in our seats when the front door opened and my mother arrived. I checked the time on my phone and gasped. Somehow, it was nearly three and I still had so much left to do.

“Hello, you three. I've come to see if Becs wants to come with me to set up for the party?” My mother held up a plastic bag that contained all manner of pink decorations.

“Heck yeah!” Her little body tumbled off the couch with her eagerness. She was gone and back so fast, my head spun as she hoisted her massive backpack onto her shoulders with a grin. “I got my sleepover stuff and the tiaras.”

I watched as Ollie crouched down to give his daughter a hug and kiss with even more warm fuzzy feelings in my chest. Those feelings expanded too big to be contained by my body as she came running over to also exchange hugs and kisses with me. Hell, the fact that she'd so easily accepted me into the tight-knit unit of her family was enough to have me swallowing as emotion clogged my throat. Love between partners was such a powerful thing, but the love of a child was something even more special. I was blessed to have both.

Ollie left shortly after Becs and my mother, promising to meet me at the inn. He’d volunteered himself as my dance partner and assistant for the dance lessons, but I was most looking forward to the party afterward. As much as I hated to see him leave, I had more than enough to occupy myself with in the sparse time remaining before the show.

As expected, the hour disappeared faster than I would have liked, but once I was set up in the inn’s banquet space, the nerves melted away. Dancing in any capacity always managed to ground my soul and inspire my mind. There was no room for nerves on the floor. Not when the joy of movement was there to take their place.

I was distracted going through my clipboard when the sudden appearance of music startled me. As soon as my eyes landed on Oliver, my jaw went slack. The sneaky man who’d stolen my heart stood at the sound system with a grin that spelled mischief in all capital letters. His outfit was enough to make me want to cancel the event entirely and drag him to the nearest hideaway. Snug black breeches, trim black dance shoes, and a fire engine red satin shirt unbuttoned so low, I could see the entire span of his lean, pale chest. His hair was tamed back with gel and my God, I was in trouble.

“Holy shit,” I whispered, dropping the clipboard to the floor with a gasp. “Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?”

“May I have this dance, Ezechiel?” He strode partway across the room and held out his hand.

“You absolutely may.” I crossed the distance and let him pull me into the dancer’s hold. “Who would have thought you were such a natural at Latin ballroom?”

He maneuvered us through a few simple salsa steps, his once sultry grin turning pure and shy. “I blame club dancing.”

“Well, I'll take it.” I switched our hold to take the lead and guide him through a slightly more complicated set of movements. The chemistry between us extended well beyond the bedroom and this was a perfect example of how effortlessly we could give and take control without even speaking a word.

“Tonight is going to be perfect.” He rested his cheek against mine and let his body move with mine.

“It already is, my love.”

“God. I love you, Ez.”

“I love you, my Ollie.”

We danced through the remainder of the song, as well as the next, completely unaware of everything outside of us as we let the seductive melody of the music guide us in an effortless rhythm of two people moving as one. As the final note faded, raucous applause erupted and had us springing apart with a unisonous gasp.

Numerous guests had arrived during our private dance and judging by the intensity of their cheers, they were quite happy with what they witnessed. I glanced to the side to check on how my partner was handling the sudden scrutiny, but I had nothing to be worried about. He was completely ignoring them and solely focused on me. The wattage of his smile could rival the sun. Yeah, we were going to be just fine. So long as we had one another, none of the rest mattered.

“Ready to put on a show, Mr. Branson?”

“As ready as I'll ever be, Mr. Billings.”

And ready he was. We danced through the evening and well into the night. We danced through the countdown and even as we kissed, right there in the middle of a room full of people and I knew in my heart, right then and there, that this was exactly where I was meant to be—with him.