Kelly Jamieson: All I Want for Christmas

"That sounds awesome.” He paused then gave a wicked smile. “Remember, you owe me."

She swallowed as warmth rushed over her at the thought. Then she gave him her address, and they arranged a time for him to pick her up. With a long, hard kiss, they said good-bye.

Erin's family was a hoot. Her father was even funnier than Erin. Her sisters were sweet. Their husbands were ... okay, yeah, they could be rude and crude but in a completely inoffensive way that made him laugh. They all welcomed him as if he'd been with Erin for ages, not a total stranger to them, even though it was Christmas Eve and a family party.

The house was a big old house in a well-to-do neighborhood, exquisitely decorated with lush greenery, twinkling white lights everywhere, and a lavishly decorated tree. When he got closer to the tree, he saw with amusement that many of the ornaments were old and even home-made, created and garishly painted by little hands.

"Is this where you grew up?” he asked Erin as she handed him a cup of eggnog.

She nodded.

"I want to see your bedroom,” he murmured and watched her cheeks turn pink.

"Dex!"

"Hey.” He pulled her in close so he could whisper in her ear. “If you can drag me into the women's washroom and have your way with me, I think we can sneak away to your bedroom for a few minutes.” He paused. “Don't worry, I won't collect my debt here."

She laughed breathlessly, and he loved how he could get her going like that.

"Okay,” she said. She leaned her head back on his shoulder to look up into his face.

"Auntie Erin! Auntie Erin! Come show us that thing that tells us where Santa is!"

Dex raised a brow at her.

"It's a Web site,” she told him with a little laugh. “It's tracking Santa's progress."

She'd introduced him to Ashley, Brittany, Courtney and Destiny, and he'd grinned. He would never remember all the names. Numbers he could remember, names not so much. Although the alphabetical thing might help. He followed behind her and the herd of little girls as they went into the den and she opened up the Web site. “See, right now he's in England,” she told them seriously. “And this is where we are.” She pointed to the screen.

"He's coming, he's coming!” They all squealed excitedly and ran from the room. Dex grinned.

"They get a little hyper,” she explained affectionately. She stood up, and Dex moved right up so they were touching, looking at each other.

"Erin?” Her mother appeared in the French doors of the den. Dex jumped back a little, prompting a glimmer of amusement on her mom's face. “We're going to open gifts now. Are you coming?"

"What about Santa?” Dex inquired as he followed the two women out of the room.

"He brings presents for the kids,” Erin explained their family tradition. “They'll open those in the morning. Tonight, we just exchange family presents.” She bit her lip. “Such as they are."

He could see how distressed she was about the whole present thing. She was a bit of a perfectionist, he was coming to realize. It was very sweet.

She was apologizing all over the place about the gifts as they opened their presents, until finally her mother set down the fuzzy socks she was holding and scolded her.

"Erin, just stop,” she said firmly. “You're here, and we love you. It doesn't matter about the presents. You could wrap up dog poop, and we'd still love you."

Dex snorted with laughter but pulled Erin in for a hug.

"Yeah, Erin,” her sisters agreed.

"I don't want dog poop!” Brittany wailed, and everybody laughed.

"It doesn't have to be perfect,” her mother continued, her voice softer now. “You get all caught up in having to have the perfect gift, perfect decorations, everything perfect ... it doesn't have to be perfect."

He saw Erin's hand come up to her face and swipe at a tear. He tightened his arm around her shoulders protectively, and she turned her face into his chest. Aw, hell, she was crying.

"I just wanted to get everyone something they would like,” she sobbed into his sweater. “And I found all these perfect gifts, and they never showed up, and I didn't have time to go shopping because I had all this other stuff to do ... the party...” She sniffled. “...the staff gifts. And all the work that needs to be done by year end.” She fisted her hand in his sweater. Dex looked up at the rest of the family gazing at her in horror and pressed a hand to the back of her silky head. “Then today Cheryl gave me a present, and I didn't even have anything for her! And then I end up giving you guys stupid presents from 7-Eleven, and it just sucks!"

Dex swallowed uncomfortably. “She's been a little stressed lately,” he explained to her family. They all nodded, even the girls quiet now. The only sounds in the room for a long moment were “Silent Night” playing on the stereo and Erin's sobbing.

She lifted a tear-streaked, stricken face then stood up and ran out of the room.

Dex looked around at the people he hardly knew and forced a smile. “Uh..."

Having dashed out of the room completely mortified, Erin headed for her old bedroom. There she sat down on the bed and covered her face with her hands.

What more could go wrong? She knew she'd been stressed but, God, breaking down in front of Dex and her whole family—well, especially in front of Dex—was just wrong. Dex had finally shown interest in her after months of crushing on him from afar, and now she'd completely blown it. She was such a loser.

She sobbed quietly, embarrassment now layered over unhappiness.

What would he think of her? She didn't know if this was considered a date or not but, other than lunch earlier, it was the first time they'd gone out, and here she was, a puddle of misery. This must just be a lovely evening for him, and now he was down there sitting with strangers. Or maybe not. Maybe he'd decided to get while the going was good, make his escape while she was up here crying her mascara off.

She lifted her head, wiped at her face and sniffed. Then she heard a soft knock on the door, and the door opened a crack.

"Erin?"

It was Dex. She swiped more at her eyes and under her nose. She must look hideous.

He poked his head in the door and eyed her cautiously.

"Are you okay?"

She gave a jerky nod. “Yes. I'm mostly embarrassed now."

He came all the way in and closed the door gently behind him. “Don't be embarrassed."

She closed her eyes, felt her cheeks get warm. Her entire face must be as red as a Christmas ornament by now. “I'm sorry I lost it. I've just been..."

"Stressed. You're trying to do too much and make everything perfect. Like your mom said.” He came and sat beside her on the bed, put his arm around her shoulders and hugged her. He stroked her hair and her back. “They just want you for Christmas. The gifts don't matter."

"I know.” She sniffed. Dex reached for a tissue from a box that sat on the table beside the bed and handed it to her. “I feel like such an idiot. I wouldn't have blamed you if you'd left. It's Christmas Eve, and I doubt you want to be sitting here with a loony tune like me."

"This is exactly where I want to be sitting on Christmas Eve,” he said softly. He stroked a finger over her cheek, swiping up one last tear. Their eyes met and held. Erin swallowed, her throat tight.

"Okay,” she whispered. He leaned in and kissed her, a gentle, slow lingering kiss. When he drew back, her heart was pumping madly. She drew in a shaky breath. “Thank you, Dex. You're right, I've been kind of stressed out.” She blew her nose, looking all adorable and pink. He couldn't help but smile. “Sorry,” she apologized again. She smiled brightly. “I feel better now."