Holiday in Hiding: a Secret Santa story by Lily Michaels

Author:Lily Michaels [Michaels, Lily]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Contemporary LGBTQIA Romance Fiction
Publisher: Totally Entwined Group
Published: 2022-09-22T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Liam

Nothing, absolutely nothing about the time I’d spent with Megan and Jax in general—and this evening in particular—was something I could’ve predicted, but when she moved to fold herself into my lap and Jax resumed his seat beside me, tugging the blanket off the back of the couch to cover us, I was more certain than ever before that I was dreaming. There was no possible way the black cloud of bad luck I’d experienced should have led me here, but here I was.

Jax wrapped an arm around me, tugging me close to his side. Without even thinking, I laid my head on his shoulder, and the perpetual tension that lay heavy in my gut for five years eased a fraction.

It had been such a brief time together, but somehow all the events that culminated into this night created a bond I hadn’t felt in such a long time. Shit, I was starting to care about someone other than myself. That wasn’t just inconvenient as hell, it could be dangerous. This was most definitely a sign that I needed to figure out a way to leave before knotting myself in a deeper tangled web than I was already in.

Megan nuzzled her face into my neck, and Jax pressed a kiss to my temple. Just like that every thought of figuring a way to disappear from their lives left my mind. Not yet. Even if I knew damn well this couldn’t last, I wasn’t ready to leave yet.

“You can stay with us if you want.” Megan’s soft voice floated up to me, pulling me from the suffocating thoughts blanketing my brain. She lifted her head and blinked clearly sleepy eyes at me. “You don’t have to, but if you want to sleep with us, you can—even if it’s just tonight.”

Logic and desire locked in an immediate battle within me. Wanting to wasn’t even close to the issue. It was about what was the smart decision. If I went with what I wanted, I’d never leave. The truth washed over me like a bucket of ice water. Everything I wanted in that moment was sitting on the sofa with me.

Fuck it. We’d crossed a line tonight that meant when Agent Xavier finally got the clearance to set me up in a new place and I left, I’d only be taking a part of my heart with me. There wasn’t a chance in hell I wouldn’t be leaving a piece behind with Megan and Jax. If I was already going to be broken, I might as well make as many beautiful memories as I could now to hold onto.

I smiled down into her cautiously hopeful face. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

The beaming grin she gave me in response was worth the sharp dagger of pain with my silent reminder to myself that this was temporary. I scooted her from my legs and got to my feet, fishing through the pile of discarded clothes on the floor for my boxers and sliding them into place.

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