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“It’s time to get up! It’s time to get up!”

Emma woke with a start, and it took her a moment to realize she wasn’t in bed but lying on the couch where she had been sitting the night before. She must have fallen asleep watching the Christmas lights and when she pulled the quilt up, she realized Nick must have covered her before he fell asleep. Turning her head, she could see an overly excited Ava bouncing on the floor near her trying to wake her up; when she turned her head the other way, she had to laugh. Poor Nick was still trying to sit up after, she assumed, he got the same early morning greeting from one enthusiastic little girl.

At the sound of her laugh, Nick turned to look at her with a scowl on his face; it was clear that he didn’t appreciate the morning greeting he got.

“You think it’s funny?” Nick said to Ava and Emma as they laughed at his expense. “Is this funny?”

Nick suddenly jumped up and tackled the two of them onto the couch and proceeded to tickle them until they were both crying. The sound of the laughing made Nick glad that he was able to have this time, not only with his brother’s daughter but also with the woman he had loved for so long; it made him happy to see her smiling through the tears.

Ava was finally able to wiggle out of his grasp and raced up the stairs to wake her parents so they could open gifts. Nick continued to tickle Emma until she laughed so hard she couldn’t breathe; he released his grip on her but didn’t avert his gaze. She was so beautiful and he wanted so badly to kiss her but he knew that there was still much to be said between them; he didn’t want to jump in feet first without making sure she was okay with it.
AJ was the first one down the stairs and he smirked when he saw the two of them trying to readjust themselves on the couch.

“You too making out again?” he asked with a laugh. “You could at least try to be PG around my kids!”

They both turned beet red and Nick flipped his brother off, which just made AJ laugh harder. Standing up, Nick reached out his hand to help Emma up and they headed in the same direction as AJ so they could grab some coffee. They all needed to get caffeinated before Ava exploded into the presents they worked so hard to assemble the night before.

Once the other adults and the babies joined them, they had breakfast on the table and Ava had been told by her parents that she had to finish at least half of her food before she could open her gifts. Emma joked that it was cruel and unusual punishment to make a little kid wait on Christmas morning and Nick agreed; they were quickly shot down and everyone headed to the living room once they finished eating.

The adults had agreed that they would all buy for the kids and they would do a secret Santa to buy one gift for someone else. Emma was the last one to open her gift and she wasn’t surprised that it was from Nick; he had actually rigged it so he made sure he was buying for her. He handed her a large box and when she opened it, she found a beautiful school bag and a little plaque with her name on it for her desk.

Her eyes filled up with tears at the sweet gift but AJ was the only one who noticed the fleeting sad look that passed over her face; he didn’t say anything at the moment but he knew he would ask her at some point when it was just them.

The rest of the evening flew by and, before they knew it, everyone was yawning and heading off to their respective rooms. Emma was the last one to go and Nick gave her a hug as she passed him. When he let go, they both noticed that they were standing under a sprig of mistletoe that AJ had hung without telling anyone. Nick looked her in the eyes and, seeing no sign of her pulling away, he leaned in close and softly kissed her. She didn’t pull away so Nick drew her in closer, wrapped his arms around her tightly and increased the intensity of his kiss. They finally separated slightly and Nick smiled down at her; she gave him a small smile which he took as a good sign.

“I’m going to head to bed.” Emma said quietly as she pulled back gently.

“You know we need to talk right?” he responded without releasing her. “Are you going to be ready soon?”

Emma nodded and wished him a goodnight; he watched her climb the stairs and as badly as he wanted to race up behind her, he headed back to his couch and tried to fall asleep alone.