Christmas Perfection Read online

  “That’s not going to be a problem. Sky cooked enough to feed an army.”

  “Well, good job. I’ll just go and put this in the kitchen with the rest of the army food.” With that said, Betty breezed past him.

  “Babe! Mom’s in your kitchen!” Derek called. The sounds of thundering footsteps preceded Sky down the stairs. He waved at Derek and his father before rushing into the kitchen.

  “Son, that was mean. And on Christmas.” Tom Hudson had removed his coat and was in the process of hanging it up in the closet. There was laughter in his voice.

  “That wasn’t mean. This sweater is mean.”

  “You do have a point,” Tom commented. He turned and Derek got his first good look at his father’s sweater. He had thought that his dancing reindeer were bad. His father’s sweater had snowmen decorating Christmas trees.

  “Where does she get these things?”

  “If I knew, I would stop her.” Tom looked down at his sweater with a grimace. “I’m starting to think that she has someone make them.”

  “Sky’s is blue with snowflakes. It actually looks nice.”

  “How did he get so lucky?”

  “No idea. Are we the worst?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  Derek led his father to the living room. He settled on the couch while his dad chose one of the chairs. “Who’s worse?”

  “I think Ava might be.”

  “Why?”

  “Son, she’s eight months pregnant, and your mother found her a Christmas sweater.”

  Derek took a moment to picture that image in his head. He shuddered. “Good point.”

  “Oh, sweetie, you look so handsome in your sweater!” Betty exclaimed. Not only was she minus a pan, she had shed her coat. Her Christmas sweater was covered in holly and poinsettias. She pressed a kiss to Derek’s cheek then sat on the end of the couch nearest her husband. “And you should see the amount of food Sky’s made. It looks wonderful.”

  “Yeah, he’s been cooking all day.” Derek looked up and Sky walked in and settled next to him. “He’s amazing.”

  “I’m not that amazing,” Sky responded. He tucked himself against Derek’s side, resting his head on his shoulder. Derek wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him closer, pressing a kiss to the tousled brown hair.

  A knock sounded at the door, ending the small moment of peace they were experiencing. Derek’s sister Sabrina (red sweater with gingerbread men) and her husband Carson (blue sweater with sledding polar bears) arrived with bags full of presents. They had only been married for eight months and were excited about spending their first Christmas as a married couple. They also liked to spoil family members, which explained the presents. Although the seven thin boxes that Carson shoved under the tree looked like Christmas sweaters for Sky’s family.

  When his brother Vince arrived with his pregnant wife Ava, Derek felt his eyes widen. His brother’s sweater seemed to have a Twelve Days of Christmas theme to it. Ava’s pregnant belly was covered with an entire penguin Christmas scene, complete with tree, presents, a penguin Santa and Christmas dinner. Derek could hardly believe that she was wearing it.

  “Ava, you look—”

  “Say it and I will smack you.”

  “Pregnant.”

  “Good save.”

  Derek chuckled and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Go find some place to sit. I’m sure that Mom is dying to see you.”

  “She just wants to fuss over her first grandbaby.”

  “She’s like that.” Derek was about to close the door when a slender hand wrapped around the frame. He pulled the door back open to reveal Sky’s mother.

  Bliss Waters was tiny, standing just five feet three inches. Both of her children were taller than she was, and, having a good two inches on Sky’s five foot eight, Derek felt like a giant standing next to her. Bliss smiled and used one hand to pull his head down to kiss his cheek. “Merry Christmas, darling.”

  “Merry Christmas. I’m not sure that Sky’s going to be too happy with you bringing that.” Derek pointed at the covered dish in her hands. “He worked really hard on dinner.”

  “You don’t need to worry. I have permission.”

  “Permission?”

  “It’s tofurkey. For Katie.”

  “Do I even want to know what that is?”

  “I don’t think so, dear.”

  “Bliss, are you going to introduce me or are you going to make me stand out here in the cold all night?” a female voice asked. Derek watched in amusement as Bliss blushed.

  “Sorry. Candice, I want you to meet Derek, my son’s partner.” Bliss stepped to one side to allow the other woman to enter the room. She was taller than Bliss with dark hair and a grounded appearance. She looked like a good fit for the sometimes flighty Bliss.

  “Hi Candice, nice to meet you.” Derek reached out a hand and his was taken in a firm grip. He immediately liked her.

  “Same here. I’ve heard good things about you.”

  “Really? What sort of things?”

  “Sorry, they were told in confidence.”

  “Hi Mom,” Sky said. Derek turned to see his lover standing behind him.

  “Hi, baby.” Bliss pushed past Derek and wrapped her free arm around Sky’s waist. Sky placed a kiss to the top of her head then turned and led her to the kitchen.

  “Well, it looks like we’ve been abandoned,” Candice remarked.

  “Come on, I’ll introduce you to everyone else.” He took her coat and hung it in the closet, assuming that Sky would eventually deal with his mother’s.

  “Lead on.” Candice gave him a bright smile. Derek led her into the other room where his family was sitting. By the time he finished the introductions, Sky’s sister Kestrel had arrived with her husband Kendrin and their three children; nine year old twins Katie and Kevin, and six year old Kristy. Bliss had also made her way into the room.

  Kristy had dashed straight to Ava and was talking excitedly to her about her sweater. There was a stuffed penguin dangling from her small hand. Pulling herself onto the couch next to Ava, Kristy tilted her head. “Are you having a baby?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Do you know if it’s going to be a boy or a girl?”

  “No, I want to be surprised.”

  Kristy nodded her head. “I think that’s a good idea, but I hope it’s a girl.”

  “Why?”

  “Boys are annoying and they smell,” she stated in a matter-of-fact tone. Everyone in the room froze for a moment and then burst into amused laughter. Derek turned his head as arms wrapped around his waist. Sky was standing next to him.

  “Hey, babe, how are things in the kitchen?”

  “Good. We have time to open presents first.”

  “Nice. It looks like Mom got sweaters for your entire side of the family.”

  “You don’t think she’ll get matching sweaters for everyone for the wedding, do you?”

  “I think we should be safe as long as we don’t get married near a major holiday.” Derek twined his arm around his waist and pulled Sky into a kiss. When he drew away from the tempting lips, Sky’s eyes looked glazed. “You’re under the mistletoe again.”

  “You’re standing here on purpose, aren’t you?”

  “That is a distinct possibility, pretty boy.” Derek swooped in for one more quick kiss. “Come on, time for gifts.” Moving his arm away from Sky’s waist, Derek grasped his hand and pulled him further into the room. The kids made room for them on the couch. “So, who’s ready for presents?”

  Derek laughed as a loud cheer echoed around the room.

  The kids weren’t the only ones cheering.

  The seven boxes turned out to contain Christmas sweaters, just like Derek had suspected. Bliss got a pretty white sweater that had a Christmas tree on it. Candice’s sweater was dark blue and covered in stars. Kestrel and Kendrin ended up in matching gingerbread sweaters. Kestrel’s had a pink background while Kendrin’s was mint green. It would have seemed
odd that the sweaters were the same, except Derek knew for a fact that Kendrin and Kestrel occasionally wore matching clothes.

  Watching the kids open the sweaters was interesting. Kevin tore the paper off without any regard for what was on it, other than the tag saying it was his. His sweater had nutcrackers on it and he pulled it on with an excited yelp.

  Katie loosened all of the tape on the corners of her gift before she pulled the box out from the inside. Her pink sweater had sugarplum fairies and candy on it. She looked over every inch of the sweater before she pulled it on. Once she had it on, she tugged on the collar of the other shirt she was wearing until it was settled over the neck of the sweater.

  Kristy opened her gift slowly, without ripping it. Once the paper was removed, she folded it and placed it to one side. When she opened the box, she let out an excited squeal. Her sweater was a smaller version of Ava’s. Kristy jumped to her feet and ran straight to Betty, giving her a hug and asking for her assistance in putting the sweater on over the clothes she was wearing.

  Watching the two families interact, Derek felt a warm flood of affection. Their families were easily meshing together into one large family. Turning his head to one side, Derek pressed a kiss to the top of Sky’s head. He felt an answering kiss against his neck. In his opinion, Christmas couldn’t get any better.

  * * *

  Sky was starting to put the food in serving dishes when he felt a presence at his elbow. He looked to his left and saw his mother standing there. “Hey Mom.”

  “Hello, my dear, do you need any help?”

  “You can help me put this stuff in the serving dishes. They’re on the table.” Sky smiled at his mother as she grabbed one of his many dishes of food and took it to the table. He turned his attention back to the turkey. “Should I carve it here or should I carry this incredibly heavy cooked, dead bird to the table?”

  “Carve it in here. Is the bowl with the daisies on it the one for the vegetarian stuffing?”

  “Yes. That stuffing is in the pot on the stove.” Sky moved away from the turkey and grabbed a spoon and a serving dish. He then started to remove the stuffing from the turkey.

  “You’ve done an amazing job, Skylark. The food looks wonderful.”

  “Thanks, Mom.” Sky felt a swell of pride. His mother was the one who had taught him to cook. Having her compliment his food was a great feeling.

  “Have you heard from your brother?”

  The question startled Sky so much he nearly got the spoon stuck inside the turkey. “Mom, you know that I haven’t heard from Falcon since he left home.”

  “I just hoped, what with it being Christmas and all—”

  “What? That he’d get over twenty years of anger and call? And of all people, why would he call me? He blamed me for dad leaving.”

  “How can you think that? Nothing that happened with your father was your fault.”

  “He didn’t believe me!” Sky snapped. He could feel twenty years worth of repressed emotions bubbling up inside of him. This was not a conversation he wanted to have with his mother before Christmas dinner.

  “What?” Bliss’s voice had gone very soft. She was still putting food in serving dishes, but Sky could see that her hands were shaking.

  “I don’t want to talk about this now.”

  “Skylark—”

  “Hey, it smells great in here,” Derek announced. He stepped into the kitchen with a big smile on his face. “What can I do to help?”

  “You can help me carve the turkey while Mom takes those dishes to the table,” Sky instructed. Bliss gave him a look, but she picked up the dishes and left the kitchen. Sky slumped when strong arms wrapped around his waist.

  “What was that about?”

  “She asked if I’d heard from Falcon.”

  “Why would your brother call now when none of you have heard from him in years?”

  “Because it’s Christmas and my mother seems to think that means that family should call.” Sky smiled slightly as Derek kissed his cheek.

  “That’s right, it is Christmas. It’s Christmas and our hungry, yet loving, families are in the other room waiting for us. And you agreed to marry me.”

  “I did, didn’t I?” Feeling his good humor rapidly returning, Sky turned in his lover’s arms and looped his arms behind Derek’s neck. “Best decision I’ve ever made.” He smiled at him. “I love you.”

  “I love you too,” Derek replied. He pulled him closer and Sky willingly surrendered to the embrace. He tilted his head and was rewarded with a loving kiss. When they pulled away, Derek ran a finger down his nose. “So, you said you needed help with the turkey?”

  “I could use your superior carving skills.”

  “Well, let me at the turkey.”

  “Good, you do that, and I’ll get Kristy’s bowls ready.”

  “Bowls?”

  “She doesn’t like her food to touch. We found that little bowls were easier than plates.”

  “I thought that she only eats food that is yellow?”

  “She does, but it still can’t touch.”

  “Your sister’s kids are weird.”

  “Yes. My sister is raising a bunch of little freaks.” Sky flinched as he was suddenly whapped on the back of the head. “Ouch.”

  “Don’t talk about my grandchildren like that. They’re little darlings.” Bliss gave him a dirty look and grabbed the other serving dishes that Sky had filled.

  “Freaky little darlings,” Sky muttered. He grabbed the stack of little bowls with one hand, the food coloring with the other and started getting Kristy’s dinner ready. He had no idea how Kestrel put up with her daughter’s weird food habits. By the time he finished with the bowls, Derek had the turkey carved and a selection of white and dark meat was arranged artfully on a platter. Sky was fairly certain that his mother was responsible for the placement of the turkey.

  Gathering up the remainder of the food, Sky followed Bliss and Derek into the dining room. The entire group was seated around the table. Sky had to smother a laugh. When they had first moved in, he had questioned why they needed such a large table in their dining room. He finally had his answer. The table looked perfect surrounded by family.

  Sky took his place at one end of the table, while Derek sat in the other and his mother sat in the empty seat next to Candice. After a quick round of thanks, they dug into the food. Katie was thrilled with her tofurkey and her special stuffing. Kristy, who had decided that Ava was her new best friend, was chatting excitedly while studying her bowls for non-yellow touching food. Thankfully, she didn’t find any. Ava had a rather impressive portion of food on her plate. It surpassed even the amount her husband had taken.

  “So, Sky, would you like to tell us about that ring I noticed on your hand?” Betty asked. Sky nearly choked on the piece of turkey in his mouth. He looked up to find the entire table, including the normally easily distracted kids, staring at him.

  Sky swallowed his turkey. “I’m sorry?”

  “She was asking about the ring on your finger, little brother. And I have to say, I’m kind of interested as well.” Elbows on the table, Kestrel rested her chin on her crossed hands and grinned down the table at her brother.

  “Elbows off the table, Mom,” Kevin said. He had given up taunting his sister with turkey and was watching the interaction of the adults. Kestrel blushed and removed her elbows from the table.

  Sky glanced at Derek. His lover gave him a slight nod. Taking a deep breath, Sky addressed the assemble guests. “Derek and I are getting married.”

  There was a moment of silence before the table erupted with sound. Everyone was attempting to congratulate the happy couple at once. Amidst all the chatter, Sky glanced at his lover. When he saw the smile on Derek’s face, he knew that everything would work out fine.

  In fact, everything would be wonderful.

  * * *

  Derek pulled the last dish out of the sink and listened.

  Silence. The house was silent. Their families had
finally gone home.

  Since Sky had cooked the meal, Derek had volunteered to clean the dishes. He had been helped briefly by Bliss and his mother, but he had left the rest of the dishes until after they left. The after dinner events had mainly consisted of repeated congratulations and several board games with the children. By the time every family member had said what they wanted about the impending marriage, Sky had been so happy he had been glowing. It was a look that Derek quite liked on the other man.

  Tossing the dish cloth onto the counter, Derek left the kitchen in search of his future husband. He found him sitting on the couch in front of the lit fireplace, wrapped in a blanket and looking out the window. Following his lover’s line of sight, Derek spotted snow falling outside. He took a moment to just study his lover. Sky had turned off all of the lights, so he was illuminated by the light from the fire, the window, and the still lit Christmas tree. To Derek’s eyes, he looked like something out of a storybook.

  “Hey, pretty boy.”

  Sky turned to him and a smile crossed his face. “Derek. Come and join me?”

  “Always.” Derek crossed the room and settled under the blanket that Sky was holding up for him. He pulled Sky into his arms and wrapped the blanket back around them. “So, how do you think Christmas went?”

  “I think it was a hit. Your mother already thinks we should have it here again next year.”

  “Really? When did she say that?”

  “While you were trying to talk Ava out of beating your brother with her Christmas present. Although, he really deserved the beating for the remark he made about how much food she ate.”

  “My brother is not a smart man.” Derek kissed his lover’s neck. “I got the smarts in the family.”

  “What makes you think that?”

  “I got the most amazing man in the world to agree to marry me.”

  “That is a very good point.” Sky turned so his head was tucked under Derek’s chin. Derek pulled him close and pressed a kiss to his silky hair. Sky responded by kissing his throat. “This was by far the best Christmas I’ve ever had.”

  “It was a good one for me, too.”

  “You know we’ve only got until maybe New Year’s Eve before our mothers start asking us about wedding plans.”