As he walked down the street, Clay couldn't help but smile. He had a lot to be happy about as he'd just completed his last final of the the semester signifying the start of winter break. Tomorrow, he was headed home to celebrate Christmas with his family and but before he left, he was going to stop by Clothes Over Bro's to give Brooke and Millie their gifts.
Over the last six months, he and Brooke had become the best of friends. Because of her busy schedule, they mostly just hung out late at night at her place watching movies or a ballgame But occasionally, they'd meet for lunch or got to a bar. They'd grown so comfortable with each other that they could talk about anything including their sexual conquests—even giving each other tips and recommending positions. Clay really enjoyed getting a woman's perspective on things and she enjoyed his as well. But, it wasn't just that. They would also let each other vent about the stress in their lives for Clay it was always school related while with Brooke it was work and her mother. In short, they'd grown quite fond of one another.
Recently, Clay had talked Brooke into helping him make a comic book for his niece. Clay had written the story, which featured Maddy as the lead character and he talked Brooke into drawing the illustrations for it. Of course as part of her "fee", Clay had agreed to put a character called B- Dazzled, who was awesome and looked an awful lot like Brooke, in the story. They'd just finalized the book a few days ago and he'd just got it back from the printers today. It looked amazing. And he wanted to be sure Brooke got to see it before he gave it to Maddy. And to be honest, he hoped he might be able to talk Brooke into wrapping the gift for him. He hated wrapping gifts.
"Hey Millie," he greeted as he made his way into the office. "Merry Christmas," he added while handing her an envelope.
"Thanks, Clay. You too," she answered as she opened it. "Knicks tickets! This is so great. Thanks!"
Clay had discovered that Millie was a quite a sports fan so it made figuring out what to get her fairly easy. Given that he lived on a college student's budget, it was also very handy to intern for a sports agency that often got free tickets.
"You're welcome, Mil. Consider it a thank you for all the help you gave me this year. The Jeter marketing campaign never would have happened if not for your advice about Victoria," Clay explained.
"Awe, you're welcome buddy. I got you something too," she mentioned while pulling out a small wrapped box.
Clay opened it to find a navy blue Armani tie in it. "Whoa, Mill, you shouldn't have," Clay exclaimed. He knew Millie's assistant salary didn't cover much.
"Don't worry about Clay," she admonished. "I actually managed to snag this for free at one of our fashion shows and I thought you would like it."
Millie knew that the boy needed more professional clothes for his internship so she thought it would go to good use.
"Good looking out, Mil!" Clay complimented. "So where is your boss at I have a gift for her too."
Millie's face fell at the mention of Brooke. "She's been in alone in her office all afternoon. She requested no visitors shortly after she got off the phone with Victoria."
"What happened?" Clay wondered.
"Well, Brooke hasn't talked about it, but I think it might have to do with the fact that Victoria is going to be staying in Milan for the next two weeks instead of coming home as planned," Millie guessed.
"They were supposed to spend Christmas together," Clay sighed. Brooke had been looking forward to to spending Christmas with her mother for weeks and he knew that this must have crushed her. "Do you think she'll let me talk to her?"
"It wouldn't hurt to try," Millie shrugged hoping that Clay could help.
Clay nodded and proceeded to walk into Brooke's office. He decided that he would pretend he didn't know she was upset. After all, Brooke hated when people pitied her and that's the last thing he wanted to do. "Hey Davis, Merry Christmas," he greeted while entering her office. He could tell at first glance she'd been crying due to the redness in her eyes. He saw her look down and quickly wipe her eyes before answering, "Oh, hey Clay," she responded. "Merry Christmas to you, too."
He didn't quite know what he should say so instead he just walked over and gave her a hug. Brooke sunk into his embrace. The last thing she wanted was to admit that she was hurt, but she couldn't help but cling to him in a way that suggested she was anything but fine. "What happened?" his whispered as he still held her.
Brooke was going to try to joke it off, but she for some reason she felt safe with him and frankly she really needed to just let it all out. So with a shaky voice she cried, "they always do this to me. Why do I set myself up for this?"
"Hey, this is not your fault, Brooke," Clay soothed as he pulled back a little to look in her in the eyes. Brooke shifted out of his arms and walked over to the couch motioning for Clay to follow. As they sat down, Brooke explained that her Mom had decided to stay in Milan because she wanted to have some additional business meetings immediately after Christmas and she didn't see the point of flying back home just to leave a day later. And when Brooke had offered to fly to Milan to be with her, Victoria had countered that it was silly for her to fly all that way just for Christmas. With that comment, Victoria had just confirmed to Brooke that spending Christmas together truly meant nothing to her mother. And of course, since her Mother wasn't going to make it, her father used it as an excuse not to come either. "So, I guess I'll just spend another holiday by myself in front of the TV," Brooke sighed.
"Nope," Clay argued. "You're coming home with me."
"Clay," she said shaking her head. "It's sweet of you to offer but..."
"I'm not taking no for answer Davis," Clay interrupted. "Come on, my sister loves you and the rest of my family will too once they get to know you." A couple months ago Molly and her husband Matt were in New York and so they had all hung out together and had a great time. Brooke even gave them a tour of Clothes Over Bro's.
"Clay, I really appreciate it, but I don't want to intrude," she argued.
"You wouldn't be," he countered. "Besides, you'll be saving me from having to be the third wheel with my sister and brother-in-law. AND, you could be there to see Maddie open her gift. Look how great it turned out," he said while handing her the finished copy of the comic book they'd created. "Don't you want to be there to see her open it?"
Brooke smiled as she flipped through the pages of the comic book. Clay had spent a lot of time coming up with the story and she'd worked hard at bringing it to life with the illustrations. Maddie was the lead character of course and got to save the day in the book. Brooke had had her doubts that she would be able to do the illustrations, after all she was no Peyton, but because she thought it was such a sweet idea on Clay's part and because he had such confidence that she could do it she had agreed to help. Now, looking at the finished product, she had to admit it had turned out wonderfully. "This is pretty great," she agreed.
"See, you got to be there to give it to her," Clay encouraged.
"Clay, I don't want your family to know my parents ditched me on Christmas," Brooke admitted showing her vulnerability. "I mean what would they think? I don't want to be the girl whose parents don't want her… I mean... that don't want to spend time with her."
"First of all, my family wouldn't judge," he argued. "But even if they did, the judgment would be on your parents—not you, Brooke. This is about them and their struggles to know how to parent; it's not about you."
Seeing that she still had her doubts, he moved so that he would be kneeling in front of her. He put his hands on her lap and looked in her in the eye, "Brooke, this is not your fault. You're an amazing girl and anyone would be lucky to have you as their daughter. They suck at being parents—you're not the problem. Got it," he ordered. Brooke wanted to believe him, but it wasn't that easy to believe.
Seeing her uncertainty, he offered "Now, if you don't want me to tell my family what happened that's fine. I understand. I'll just tell them I invited you weeks ago, but I forgot to tell them you were coming. Trust me, this is totally something I would do so they will believe it," he grinned.
She had to laugh. She knew from experience that Clay had a tendency to forget to tell his family things. His sister had teased him about it in front of Brooke before. As she stared at his smiling boyish face, she felt her resistance waning. After all, Clay clearly wanted her to spend Christmas with her. And it felt nice to be wanted. So she felt herself whisper, "Okay."
"Okay?" Clay questioned. And she nodded, causing him to jump to his feet and pump his fist. "Yes, we're going to have some much fun, Davis. So, I'll swing by and pick you up around 9 so we can be at the train station by 10."
"There's an Amtrak stop in your town?" she wondered. She knew Clay was from a small town near the coast in Massachusetts and was surprised that they'd have a train depot there.
"Well no, we'll get off the train in Boston and my Mom will pick us up," he elaborated.
"What if I arrange for us to get a car and drive up?" Brooke offered. "That will save your Mom having to pick us up."
"Are you sure?" he wondered. He always felt guilty about taking advantage of Brooke's wealth.
"Yes, it's no trouble. Clothes over Bro's has several company cars and Millie can reserve us one," she explained. "And this will give me a little more time to shop."
"Shop?" he questioned.
"Well, I can't show up to Christmas without presents for your family," she said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"You don't need to get them anything," he countered knowing that it was probably useless to argue with her about this as Brooke loved giving gifts.
"Yes, I do," she retorted. "It would be rude not to since I'm intruding on your family's holiday."
"Alright," he conceded. "Just keep the gifts small though or it will make my family uncomfortable."
"Okay," she agreed.
"Yo, Davis let's go," Clay hollered as he made his way into her apartment. Brooke was in her bedroom finalizing her packing.
"I'm ready," she answered walking out of the bedroom. She had a one huge and one medium suitcase and a smaller bag used for shoes.
"Damn, Davis," he said gesturing to her luggage. "We're not moving to Massachusetts."
"Hey, this is your fault," she retorted. "You gave me no details about what we'd be doing so I need to have some clothing options. And besides this bag has presents in it" she said referring to the medium suitcase. Clay just smiled at her rational and chose to let it go.
"Alright, let's get out of here," he motioned and grabbed two of her bags. Brooke followed with the smaller bag. They loaded up the BMW SUV that Millie had reserved for them and headed out on the road.
They were pretty compatible in the car except for the radio. Clay was a big fan of 80s Rock and Brooke was no fan of Motely Crue. Half way through Clay's rendition of "Kickstart My Heart", Brooke shouted she couldn't take and promptly changed the station. This resulted in a 30-minute debate about music, which started out at a fairly high level and quickly dissolved into an excuse for the two of them to make fun of each other.
They had taken turns driving throughout the trip. Clay was now driving the last leg of the trip. They were about thirty minutes from his house when he noticed that Brooke had gotten really quiet.
"Are you getting bored with me already, Davis?" he said while nudging her shoulder.
"No," she mumbled. "Just thinking."
He decided not to push anymore until he noticed her fidgeting bit in her seat. And that's when her realized what was wrong, "Are you nervous, Brooke?"
"No," she stuttered unconvincingly.
"Brooke, come on," he whispered. "Don't lie. It's me."
"Maybe a little," she admitted. "I've never spent the holidays with another family."
"Relax, there's nothing to worry about; they are going to love you," He assured her. "Besides, my Mom will be really happy to have another person with us. She's from a big family and loves having a lot of people around. But, now that her parents are gone, her siblings don't always get together on Christmas. It will just be us, my sister, and my father's parents this year."
Soon they were pulling up to Clay's childhood home, a quaint, two-story New England style house. While it wasn't a large home, it was easy to see that it was very well taken care. As they got out to unload their bags, they heard the door opening and a woman Brooke assumed was Clay's mother walking toward them.
"Hey Mom," Clay greeted while giving her a hug. His Mom was a thin blond woman; Brooke guessed was in her 50s. She was very pretty, but in a more understated way than Victoria was.
"It so good to see you," his mother mused. "It's been a while…"
"Not that long," Clay argued knowing he should try to make it home more, but he was busy in New York. His Mom just laughed and then shifted her gaze to Brooke.
"Mom, this is Brooke. Brooke, this is my mother, Kate," Clay introduced as the two women shook hands.
"It's so good to meet you," Kate exclaimed. "My kids have told me so much about you; it's nice to finally meet you."
"Thank you for having me," Brooke smiled.
"Well, come on let's get inside; its cold out here," Kate ordered as she grabbed one of their suitcases to help them carry it all in.
Brooke took a moment to study the house. It was warm and cozy. And it was filled with the smells of a home-cooked meal. In short, it was everything her childhood home wasn't.
"Clay, you'll be sleeping on the pull-out couch in the Den, and Brooke will be in your room," Kate instructed.
"Oh, I can sleep in the Den," Brooke offered feeling guilty for stealing Clay's room.
"Nonsense, you're a guest," Kate dismissed.
"Yep, those are the House rules, Davis," he said as he led her into his childhood room. "
I know it's a little small," he apologized. He knew his childhood room probably paled in comparison to the luxury accommodations that Brooke was used. The room was a soothing blue color complete with a lot of sailboat décor. She also noticed a little reading nook that had a bookshelf next to it. The shelf consisted of mostly comic books and some photos of family and friends. She also noticed a few comic book figurines on it.
"It's perfect, Clay," she answered easing his fears. She picked up the Wolverine figure off the shelf and smiled, "cute doll."
Clay couldn't help but blush and simply mumbled, "It's not a doll; it's an action figure. Besides, it's a collector's item." Seeing a clearly amused Brooke, he added, "It's manly."
"Uh, huh," Brooke grinned.
Changing the subject, he explained that there were towels for her on the desk. "The bathroom is down the hall and there are extra blankets in the closet if you get cold. Do you need anything else?"
"No, I'm fine," she answered. The room with all its reminders of Clay made her feel oddly at ease. And she felt excitement at the thought that she would be spending Christmas with an actual family. She owed to Clay for giving her this opportunity. He quickly dismissed himself to give her a little time to herself, but before he left she called out to him, "Clay."
He turned around to meet her gaze. And then she whispered, "Thanks for …everything."
"Sure," he shrugged. "I'll be in the kitchen with my Mom. Come down whenever you're ready."
Brooke made her way into the kitchen. She couldn't help but smile as she heard Clay's Mom scolding him for loading up on too many cookies before dinner. Noticing her entrance, Clay joked, "See why I don't come home very often? Look what I have to deal with."
"I think you're lucky; they let you come home at all," Brooke teased.
"Oh, I like this girl," Kate laughed as she and Brooke smiled at one another.
"You're here for a few minutes and already my Mom likes you better," he grumbled.
"Oh, poor baby," Kate replied. "But don't worry, you can get away from all this teasing, because I need you to put the Christmas lights on the house. I've done everything else, but you know I don't like getting up on the roof."
"Mom, you have a giant tree in the living room covered in lights, do we really need lights outside too," he whined. "It's so cold."
"But it won't feel like Christmas without them," Kate complained and then looked to Brooke for some support.
"Yeah, I love outdoor lights," Brooke added.
"Fine," he conceded as he made his way outside to get the lights.
"I should go help him," Brooke offered.
"Oh, he'll be fine," Kate insisted. "Stay here with me where it's warm. We still have the hooks on the roof so it won't take him more than an hour. He just whines about it to get a little extra attention."
"Okay," Brooke agreed. The truth was she was a little nervous to be alone with Kate. But after a few minutes, they were chatting like old pals. Brooke shared with Kate some of the adventures she and Clay had had and Kate shared a few childhood stories about Clay that made Brooke laugh. She was going to have a lot of fun teasing him about them later.
"I'm really glad my son met you, Brooke," Kate confessed. "You know ever since Clay's Dad died he kind of shut himself off. Don't get me wrong; he's always been popular. And, he never struggled to find a date. But, I felt like he doesn't allow himself to get too close to people. I never felt like he had a best friend that he could really confide in. But, with you, it's different. You're the first person he's ever told me about when we talk on Sundays. I can tell you mean a lot to him. And I've never seen him happier so thank you for that."
Brooke felt herself tearing up a bit overwhelmed with all that was said. Kate's words were so heartfelt. And she couldn't believe that Clay actually talked about her to his Mom. She'd never really been the take home to Mom girl, let alone one that parents approved of. And she and Clay weren't even dating. Not quite knowing how to respond, she settled on saying, "He makes easy… to be his friend."
There bonding moment was quickly interrupted by Clay entering the kitchen with his nose all red from being outside and mumbling about how cold it was. They both laughed at his red face.
"I'll tell you what will warm you up," Kate mentioned. "We should light a fire."
"Ooh, I love sitting around a fire on a winter's night," Brooke agreed.
"Good, it's settled," Kate said. "Clay, go get the wood and start the fire."
"Put the lights up Cinderella. Start a fire Cinderella," Clay whined.
"Relax, princess," Brooke laughed. "I will help you."
As they arranged the wood in the fireplace, Clay asked, "So, I hope it wasn't weird for you to be alone with my Mom
"She's great," Brooke smiled. "She told me some interesting things about you."
"Oh yeah?" he wondered.
"So apparently you were fond of cross-dressing as a child," she smirked.
"She told you that," he groaned. "My sister would make me play dress up. I was only five and she was twice my size. I didn't have a choice."
"Uh, huh," she teased.
"Mom didn't show you pictures did she?" he worried.
"There are pictures," Brooke shrieked as her face lit up like a child about to have ice cream. "I've got to see these."
"I was kidding there aren't any pictures," he tried to cover.
"Sure, then you won't mind me asking your Mom about that," Brooke taunted.
Clay just groaned it was going to be a long night.
Fortunately for him, Brooke became distracted from her quest for the photos by the arrival of his grandparents. She watched fondly as the family members greeted each other with hugs.
"And who's this pretty lady?" Clay's grandpa asked as he caught a glimpse of Brooke.
"Grandpa, this is my friend, Brooke Davis. Brooke, these are my grandparents, Martin and Charlene Evans", he introduced.
"It's nice to meet you dear," Charlene told Brooke as they shook hands. "Clay, I didn't know you had such a lovely girlfriend?"
"We're friends, Grandma," Clay explained. "We're not dating."
"Not dating? Well, you need to get to work on that son," his Grandpa teased as he lightly slapped Clay on the shoulder.
"So Mom, when is Molly getting here?" Clay asked trying to change the subject.
"Actually, I thought they'd be here by now," Kate answered as she glanced at her watch.
"Uh, I'm starving," Clay groaned. "They better not make us wait to eat."
"Clay, be patient," his Mom lectured. "You know the drive takes them a little longer now that they have Maddy."
"Molly was late before she had a kid," Clay whispered to Brooke. She quickly nudged him the stomach with her elbow to shush him. But she couldn't help, but laugh at his antics.
They had a lovely dinner. The Evans loved to tease one another and joke around. Brooke found herself sitting back and trying to take it all in. She liked everyone and she was absolutely in love with little Maddy, who now at three-years-old had become quite the character. She gave the family plenty of laughs throughout the evening. She was currently playing in the living room while the adults remained at the dinning table talking.
"So, Brooke do you go to NYU too?" Charlene asked.
"No, I work in fashion," she answered modestly.
"Grandma, Brooke is the creator of the Clothes' Over Bro's clothing line," Molly chimed in. "She's an extremely talented fashion designer. She made this top," she added pointing to her blouse.
"Wow, that's lovely dear," Charlene complimented. "Your parents must be so proud."
"Yeah," Brooke winced as she thought about her parents. She felt Clay grab her hand below the table and give it a squeeze. She was amazed at how attuned to her feelings he could be. She turned to look at him and as if to say thank you with her eyes.
Their moment was interrupted by Maddy laughing loudly when she came running into the dinning room carrying mistletoe.
"Oh, no," Matt groaned. "Prepare yourselves. My wife taught Maddy about mistletoe and now she's obsessed with making people kiss."
"Hey, don't be such a Grinch," Molly scolded. "I think it's cute."
First, Maddy started with her great grandparents. She was too little to hold the mistleto over their heads so she just touched them each with it. And called out mistletoe only her three-year-old pronunciation sounded more like she was saying "Mrs. Toes." Charlene and Martin shared a small peck happy to oblige their granddaughter who giggled adorably after seeing them kiss.
It was then that Maddy ran over to Clay and Brooke and started poking them with the mistletoe. Brooke and Clay looked like a deer caught in the headlights as they were unsure how to proceed. And then Maddy began shouting, "Mrs. Toes, Mrs. Toes, Mrs. TOES!"
Molly gave them a look of apology and tried to explain to Maddy that Clay and Brooke were not dating. But, Maddy would not stop shouting. Finally, Clay decided to give Brooke a kiss on the cheek. But, Maddy was not having it, "Lips, Lips," she shouted. So, it was then that Brooke leaned over and gave Clay a nice soft kiss on the lips. Clay was a bit shocked at first but he quickly responded to the kiss. While the kiss was short enough to be respectful of the family in the room, it was also long enough to satisfy Maddy. And long enough to have an effect on them.
Her lips were softer than he'd imagined, Clay thought. Brooke had always wondered what it would be like to kiss Clay and she had to admit it felt nice. She found herself thinking about what a real kiss would feel like from him.
Soon, Charlene and Martin announcing they were headed home to go to bed.
Once they left, Molly and Kate excused themselves to go give Maddy a bath. It was then that Matt asked Clay and Brooke if they would be interested in going on town.
"Come on," he encouraged. "Since Maddy has been born, Molly and I rarely get a night out. And she won't want to leave if you guys stay here. Your Mom has already offered to watch Maddy tonight. All I need is for you guys to agree. Come on, it'll be fun."
"What do you think, Davis?" Clay asked.
"Sure, I'm game," she shrugged.
"Yes," Matt exclaimed as he put his arm around. "I think we're going to be good friends."
"Trading me in already," Molly teased as she returned to the room seeing her husband's arm around Brooke.
"Never, Baby," he answered while walking over to kiss her.
"Oh, God," Clay groaned clearly disgusted by seeing his sister and brother-in-law be mushy. Brooke just shook her head as his antics, she found it sweet to see a couple so in love.
"Just for that, you guys are driving tonight, because I'm going to need to get drunk to deal with this mushy crap all night," Clay ordered.
"Fine," Matt agreed. "Let's take our car."
Because Maddy's car seat was still in the backseat, it forced Clay and Brooke to sit close together in order to fit. Clay had his arm around her to try and make the situation more comfortable for the both of him. Since the kiss early in the evening, Clay felt himself looking for excuses to touch Brooke and be close to her. Brooke felt herself enjoying the closeness. It had been far too long since she'd had the physical comfort of being truly close to someone. Sure, she'd had her share of one-night stands since she'd been in New York to give her a sexual release. But, it had been far too long since she had just been held by someone or cuddle with someone to avoid the cold. It felt nice to be close to someone especially Clay who made her feel safe.
Clay had requested they go to his favorite hometown pub, a sports bar called The Bullpen. As they made their way in the small cozy pub, Brooke felt Clay's hand on the small of her back guiding her in. Neither quite knowing what was going on with all the touchiness between them, but neither was willing to risk acknowledging it either.
As they surveyed the room, the guys told Brooke and Molly to grab a table while they got them some drinks. Soon the foursome sat in a booth sipping drinks, swapping stories, and having a great time. Suddenly, Molly, who like the rest of them was a little tipsy, shouted out, "Oh, my God, we have to play Redneck Roulette."
"Yes," Clay yelled while high-fiving his sister.
"What's Redneck Roulette?" Brooke laughed as their enthusiasm.
"It's this lame game that the two of them made up and then always end up fighting about who wins," Matt whined.
"Don't listen to him," Molly argued. "So how it works is, we pick a table of people in this bar. And then we each play a song on the jukebox. Whoever gets the biggest reaction out of the table without talking to them wins. Basically, you just have to pick a song that you think they'll like. "
"I get the roulette part, but why do you call it redneck?" Brooke wondered.
"Because, we always play in dive bars," Molly explained.
"Yes, and I'm currently on a 10-game winning streak," Clay bragged.
Molly rolled her eyes, "Whatever, you've just gotten lucky lately."
"Face it older sister, you've been surpassed," he quipped. "I'm a sports agent. I'm going to make a living reading people. This is my game."
"The arguing is only going to worse from here on out," Matt whispered to Brooke as they shared a smile watching the Evans siblings banter back and forth. "They are so competitive."
"Okay, since you're the master of this game, you won't mind if I pick the table," Molly challenged.
"Fine," Clay agreed.
Molly surveyed the room and then selected a table that consisted of four women who looked to be in their forties. Two of them had platinum blonde hair and they were all dressed a little risqué for their age.
"Alright, let's go pick our songs," Molly motioned.
"Not, yet," Clay stalled. "I need a few minutes to observe them before I make my selection."
"Fine," Molly sighed. "I'm getting another drink."
"I'm going to the restroom," Brooke mentioned.
Once the girls arrived back at the table, Clay announced he was ready to play. "Okay, so you get four songs per dollar so are we all playing?"
"I'm not," Matt said.
"Why not?" Molly asked him.
"Because Babe, even if I win, I'll end up losing, because you're a sore loser," he admitted.
"I am not," she whined. Brooke smiled realizing that Molly and Clay had very similar whining faces.
Matt managed to appease his wife by explaining that he loved her competitiveness, but he just didn't feel like playing tonight.
"You're playing though right, Davis?" Clay questioned.
"Sure," she agreed.
With that the three of them headed over to the jukebox to make their selections. Each of them not looking while the other selected their song. Molly went first, then Clay, then Brooke. For the remaining song, Clay just selected something he wanted to hear.
They had to wait through a few songs before their songs came on. Molly had selected "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun," unfortunately the women at the table didn't respond at all to it.
"Oh, I guess these girls just don't wanna have fun," Clay quipped. "It was a nice try going for something popular in their generation—but you clearly misjudged their taste."
"Shut up, asshole," Molly snapped.
Soon Clay's song came up, which was "Don't Stop Believin' by Journey. The women at the table began to sing along to the music creating a smug smile on Clay's face.
"And that's… how… it's done," he smirked indicating he'd won. "Looks like the next round of drinks in on you, two."
"Hey, it's not over yet, Brooke hasn't gone," Molly pointed out.
"Yes, but she's a rookie—no way she beats me her first time out," he grinned. "And the only way she could win now is if they actually got up and danced."
"Hey, it could happen, Brooke argued.
"Yeah, it's not over yet," Molly agreed.
"Okay, tell you what Molls, if Brooke actually wins, I'll buy us all shots us," he said smugly. "You won't have to buy me anything."
Soon the sounds of "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi filled the bar, which was Brooke's choice. And that's when the girls at the table started shouting and got up to dance.
"Boom, you just got crushed," Molly taunted Clay while high-fiving Brooke.
"Whatever, you got beat too," he grumbled. "Beginners luck."
"Well, this beginner wants tequila for her shot," Brooke smirked.
"Ooh, me too," Molly added.
"Alright," he sighed while getting up to go get the shots.
"Impressive, Brooke. Clay hardly ever gets beat," Matt complimented.
"Yeah well done for knocking him down a peg," Molly nodded. "What's your secret?"
Brooke quickly checked to make sure Clay wasn't around before confessing, "I actually ran into one of the girls in the bathroom and just asked what her favorite song was."
"Oh, my God that's awesome," Molly laughed clearly approving of Brooke's cheating. "You so have to marry my brother."
Her comment startled Brooke a bit, but before she could process it much Clay returned. "What's so funny?" he asked.
"Nothing," they all said.
"Uh, huh," Clay scowled clearly not buying it.
Before he could quiz them, Matt had asked Molly if she wanted to dance since a love song was now playing. As they watched couples filling up the dance floor, Clay worked up the courage to ask Brooke if she wanted to dance. The song was "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole, which she really liked and so she accepted his offer.
As they began to dance, Brooke realized that Clay must have picked this song since the dollar he put in allowed for four songs. She'd been fond of this song since she'd heard at a wedding once as a little girl. "Did you pick this song?" she asked as they swayed slowly to the music.
"Yeah," he smiled. "Don't tell anyone, but I'm a sucker for classics."
"It's beautiful," Brooke offered.
"Yeah, it is," he whispered looking into her eyes. They both knew he wasn't talking about the song.
As they listen to the romantic lyrics, they couldn't help but begin to move closer and closer together. Clay loved the way she smelled. He guessed she used some kind of coconut shampoo, plus something else that he couldn't quite pinpoint that made her smell amazing. As his arms tightened around her, Brooke couldn't help but notice how naturally their bodies fit together. He was just enough taller than her that her head would fit perfectly between his shoulder and neck and yet he wasn't so tall that she couldn't easily lean up to kiss him.
Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe because she hadn't been with a good kisser in a while or because of the romance in the air but for whatever reason she felt herself starting to lean in. As their eyes met, she could tell he wanted her too. And then just as their lips were about to meet, she felt Clay jerk back a little. She then noticed that Matt had bumped him in the shoulder.
"Sorry guys, Molly is getting tired," Matt apologized. "Are you about ready?"
Damn it Matt, Clay thought. He was finally about to really kiss the girl of his dreams and he gets cocked blocked by his brother-in-law.
Brooke on the other hand felt a little relief. She couldn't believe she was about to kiss her best friend. What would happen if they didn't workout, she'd lose him forever. Just like she lost everyone else.
As they made their way into the Evans house, they tried their best to be quiet not wanting to wake Kate or Maddy. But, soon they saw Kate was actually watching TV in the living room. "Mom, what are you still doing up?" Molly asked.
"I guess I was waiting for you guys to come home," she shrugged. "Old habits die hard."
"Sorry, we didn't mean to keep you up," Clay apologized.
"Don't be, it's so nice having you all the house," Kate admitted thinking it was nice to not have a quiet house for once. Clay and Kate gave her a sad smile as they knew that she got awful lonely by herself in the house. And she really loved having them all home.
"Did Maddy give you any trouble?" Matt asked.
"No, she was great," Kate smiled. "You know I love spending time with her."
"Well, I'm going to head to bed," Molly announced. "Good night all." She hugged her Mom. And then she and Matt made their way to their room.
"I think I'll turn in too," Kate added. "You guys staying up?"
Clay glanced at Brooke and said, "Well I was hoping that Brooke would join me for a night cap." Seeing her hesitation, he begged, "Please I'm not quite ready for bed."
"Alright," she agreed.
"Okay, we'll you to have a good night," Kate said while she hugged her son. Brooke was startled a bit when Kate moved to hug her too. Kate gave her a real tight motherly hug and then whispered, "I'm so glad you're here with us, sweetie."
Brooke smiled at her words and watched as Kate retreated upstairs to her room. When Clay went to the kitchen to get the drinks, Brooke decided to turn the lights in the living room off since Molly and Matt were sleeping in a room just down the hall. Besides the lights from the Christmas tree provided enough light to see. As she took a few moments to truly study the tree, she realized it wasn't covered with perfectly matching ornaments like the tree her mother put out—that is when she actually remembered to put one up. No, this one had a lot of homemade ornaments. And many that had Clay and Molly's names on them marking a special occasion. It was the tree that represented a family. And it was beautiful. As she thought about the tree and the Kate's words, she felt herself tearing up a bit.
Clay's felt his breath leave his body when he saw her sitting in the living room. She was looked unbelievable in glow of the Christmas tree light. And he didn't think he would ever see something so beautiful until his gaze met her eyes and he realized she was upset about something. He quickly set the drinks down on the coffee table and moved to sit next to her. "Hey, what's wrong?" he whispered.
"Your Mom just gave me a hug, a real hug," she answered shakily as she fought to hold back the tears. Clay just waited for her to continue. "Your family is so wonderful. I just never… knew what that felt like," she explained. "I was just thinking that I've never really been a part of a real family."
"You are now," he answered without hesitation. Seeing she still had doubts, he went on, "You're my best friend, Brooke. My family is your family. And let's be honest, they like you better than me anyway. Face it Davis, you're stuck with us," he grinned.
She didn't know if it was because of how much his incredibly heartfelt words meant to her, or because she had enough alcohol to give her the courage or frankly, because he looked so damn handsome in the Christmas tree lights, but for whatever reason she felt herself moving in to kiss him. Clay responded immediately and pulled her into his body. This was his Christmas wish and he was going to make the most of it. Unlike their earlier kiss, this one was deep and unhurried. It was incredible. When he felt her pull back, his heart sank fearing that she was going to say it was mistake. But, then without saying a word, she simply grabbed his hand and led him into his room. So much for just being friends.
Thank you so much to all of you who reviewed, favorited or followed. I can't tell you how much of a motivator it is for me to keep writing when I know that people are reading it. Please review again and help me get the next chapter out in a timely manner.
