Chimney just wanted the perfect Christmas present for Maddie, and as he and Buck wrestled the tree into Buck's truck, Chimney couldn't wait to see her reaction. Buck had assured him that Christmas was Maddie's favorite time of year growing up, and Chimney was banking on that.

He couldn't wait, he thought again, as they drove to her house. He hoped that Maddie wasn't mad that he'd dumped Buck back on her, but surely she understood. Besides, the real answer was Buck finding a new place entirely.

Which was probably not happening anytime soon, Chimney reflected, which meant that for the near future, a lot of their dates would include seeing Buck.

Dates.

Chimney's hands tightened on the steering wheel. He'd thought about it as dates, a word that he'd never used around Maddie, a word that he had convinced himself he wasn't even thinking about. But here he was.

Dates.

God. He'd love to go on a date with Maddie Buckley.

He remembered how instantly she'd known his voice earlier that week on the phone with Brandon, and his chest tightened. There had to be a little something more to their relationship, and she'd said...she'd said she'd let him know if things changed. When things changed.

Thank god Jason had helped him with the tree, Chimney sighed, trying to think about something else. He'd had no idea how to pick one out, and that had changed the whole experience.

Jason was a great guy, he thought, pulling up in front of Maddie's house, excitement bubbling in his chest. He was so excited.

He wondered why he'd felt it was so important to correct the man when he'd assumed that Maddie was his girlfriend. Just because of honesty? Yes, Chimney was an honest man, but surely, it was easier to let strangers think whatever they wanted.

But, and he couldn't put his finger on it, the way Jason had said girlfriend made it...lesser. And Chimney wasn't doing it just because she was his girlfriend, even if she had been. He would have done it to make her year. Because he wanted her happy.

He really wanted to see her happy.

And now he and Buck were wrestling it into the house, and Chimney couldn't wait.

"Ho, ho, ho," Buck announced, and Chimney rolled his eyes, but saw Maddie coming out of her room at the top of the stairs.

"Surprise," he called, watching as she came down the stairs. God. She was so graceful, but today, it was like the sight of them had chilled her veins, and she was clutching at the railing.

"Wow," she said, just standing at the top. "A Christmas tree."

"Yeah," Chimney said proudly, releasing the tree and turning to gaze up at her. "Buck said you didn't have one yet."

Surely this was the best Christmas gift possible.

And yet.

"Is this okay?" He asked, staring at her, feeling his heart sinking. He'd messed this up. He wasn't sure how, but he'd messed this up badly. "Is this the wrong kind of surprise?"

Of course...Maddie lived on planning things and making sure nothing was ever unexpected.

"No, it's so sweet," Maddie said, but the way she couldn't even look at the tree and was staying so far away from it was a huge red flag. "Really. I love that you did this." Her voice was cautious, and every word rang untrue.

"You just didn't want it," Chimney said, wanting to slap himself. How hard would it have been to just ask her what she wanted? "That's okay. I mean, we shouldn't have assumed."

He could see Maddie panicking, and he felt awful for putting her in this position.

"I just really wasn't gonna do much Christmas this year," Maddie stammered, trying to find words that were gentle and nonoffensive, he could see it. She couldn't be honest, was terrified of being honest and saying just how okay this wasn't. "All of my decorations and stuff are back in Pennsylvania."

Buck had missed this entire exchange, only hearing the last words out of Maddie's mouth, waltzing back into the living room laden with the gift bags. Chimney desperately wanted to keep him from speaking but he couldn't say anything in time. "And that is why we bought everything you need," Buck enthused. "We have lights, we have ornaments, We even have an angel high for on top of the tree."

Chimney saw Maddie's eyes grow even more panicked, darting everywhere. She was crossing and uncrossing her arms, and he didn't know what she was thinking, but he could tell what was happening.

She was moving forward, and took the angel from Buck's outstretched hands, slamming back into the box. "No, angels are creepy," she said, and Chimney could tell that she was shaking.

"You know what, I think we might have overstepped," Chimney said, desperately trying to smooth over this moment. "Maddie should be able to pick out her own decorations."

Buck was staring at Maddie, but he shifted to staring at Chimney in disbelief. He could almost see the words running through the younger man's mind.

"We'll just bring this back to the store," Chimney interjected.

"What are you talking about?" Buck asked, talking to Chimney but staring at Maddie. "You can't return a tree. Come on." He was bending down a little, trying to catch Maddie's eyeline. "You always loved Christmas, right? Ornaments, stockings, cookies. You made your own bows."

"I'm not really feeling the holiday this year, okay?" Maddie said, defensive, and Chimney wanted to slap himself. Victims of domestic abuse had a hard time around the holidays. Obviously.

"Well, no, it's not okay," Buck said. "Come on, what's going on with you?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Maddie said, voice raising.

"Guys, it's fine," Chimney said, one last effort to stop what he could tell was coming. "You know what? I'm just going to take away the evidence before this turns into a crime scene."

He hoisted the tree, leaving the room, leaving the house, so frustrated with himself for not even having checked with her. Buck and Maddie were fighting, and Chimney's heart ached. This was not how this was supposed to have gone.

He dumped the tree at the curb, staring up at it. "Bah humbug," he said, his heart aching.

Life was crazy, Chimney thought, patting his pockets one more time to check for his wallet as he got into his car. At least he still had his keys.

He checked all over his car, before shaking his head. He must have dropped his wallet. At least Jason had been there. Crazy coincidence.

Now. Christmas.

Chimney stared at the DVD in his hand, knowing that another Christmas of watching TV alone and eating take-out awaited him. And he was okay with that.

What he wasn't okay with was the idea of Maddie spending Christmas alone, even if she didn't want to celebrate it. Buck had mentioned that she had tried, but failed, to pick up a shift at the dispatch center, and Chimney wondered just how much she wanted to escape the holiday.

He just didn't want her to be alone, but he didn't want to push it again. He'd crossed major boundaries with the Christmas tree, and the last thing he wanted was to cross more by insinuating himself into her Christmas.

But he couldn't let her do this alone.

His heart jumped when he knocked on her door, and he bounced nervously until her face appeared and she opened it. He knew that she had to have known it was him, so at least she was still talking to him.

"Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy," Chimney began. "Chinese food and Die Hard, the greatest Christmas movie ever made."

Well, she was smiling, but her lips moved and his heart fell again. "I'm sorry," she began, and he wondered if she was about to ask him to leave. "About the tree. I shouldn't…"

"Whoahoho," Chimney interrupted, seeing where she was actually headed. "Christmas is supposed to be about feeling safe and warm with the people you care about; that's the gift."

She was nodding, and Chimney could see her eyes welling up. "What it's wrapped in doesn't matter," he finished. "Who needs a tree?"

She extended her hand, a smile on her face, and he took it, reveling in the feel of her skin against his.

"Well," she said. "I decided I do." She'd pulled him inside, and there was a tree before Chimney, his tree, decorated and twinkling and...perfect. "I didn't steal it. Someone left it on the sidewalk, and I didn't have a lot of time, so it's not perfect."

"Who needs perfect?" Chimney said, dropping the Chinese food. "It's…" His eyeline shifted from the tree to Maddie, who was standing there, so straight and tall, so strong. "It's beautiful. What made you change your mind?"

"The holidays with Doug weren't a celebration. They were a performance, pretending to be a happy couple that had it all. I just didn't want to pretend this year."

Chimney wanted to pull her into his arms, let her know that it was okay, let her know that every choice she'd made was the right one.

"I realized that he's taken enough from me," she continued. "I'm not going to let him take one more thing, and I sure as hell am not gonna let him take Christmas."

She turned around, and Chimney could see the tears in her eyes, and he wanted to tell her that she didn't have to...but maybe she did. She was letting it out. "Last year was my worst Christmas ever, but maybe also my best." She was staring at Chimney. "That's the day I decided to leave."

He reached to take her hand, taking a huge chance. "Now that is a good reason to deck the halls," he whispered, and she was stepping into his arms, and he was holding her close, breathing her in. Maddie was so precious to him. He hated her past, and he hated that she had these scars, but he was so glad that he was the one she wanted to spend this Christmas with, that she had chosen to rewrite her past, and that he was the one she was going to rewrite it with.

He wasn't ever going to forget this moment, and how much she meant to him, and how much she trusted him.

He was never going to make her regret this.

"I didn't have time to make hot mustard on my way over," he apologized, breaking the moment, stepping away from her.

She laughed, wiping tears from her eyes. "That's okay," she said.

"So I stopped in China town and grabbed some," he finished, slipping it from the bag.

"Chimney!" She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "You are way too good for me."

"Nothing's too good for you," he murmured, following her to the kitchen with the rest of the food.

It was an interesting way to spend Christmas, but Chimney had never been much for tradition anyway. They sat on the couch by the Christmas tree, and Maddie slowly moved closer to the point where her head rested on his shoulder. They ate Chinese food, and gasped over Die Hard. She'd never seen it before, and Chimney was anxiously watching her more than he was watching the movie, praying that she liked it.

And she did. She almost applauded at the end, something that Chimney loved about her.

Christmas was nearing it's close, and the food was gone. Maddie had brought out some Christmas cookies that had been a gift from a coworker, and they were nibbling.

"Maddie," Chimney whispered. "Merry Christmas."

She turned to look at him, stirring from her snuggled position on the couch next to him. "Merry Christmas, Howie," she said, her lips curving into a beautiful smile. "Thank you for being here with me."

"I wouldn't be anywhere else," Chimney said.

She was so close, and Chimney wondered if she was going to kiss him, but she was pulling back, and snuggling back into him.

They fell asleep there, not waking until Christmas was over.