He tried to forget the incident the whole day. Joshua refused to talk to him when he found him in his room. He was sulking and even Alec's explanation and apology didn't help. He kept repeating, "Max sad."

"I know!" Alec replied, miffed by just how much that fact influenced his life lately. "But you can't make it all better by trying to force her to kiss me," he reasoned. Although, on second thought, that might help … Nah, she'd just get pissed at him.

"Max likes Alec," Joshua insisted.

"Of course she does, I'm her SIC, but she loves Logan. You can't change that by a simple mistletoe sprig." Although life would be much easier if he could.

Alec rubbed his forehead. This was becoming too much for him.

"Logan sucks," Joshua said sincerely.

"You're right about that." Alec sighed and left Joshua still sulking.

He then spent the entire afternoon making the cake. Gem stopped by and brought him the layers. She asked whether he needed any help decorating it, but he insisted he wanted to finish it himself.

He'd had some chocolate in his cupboard and was now decorating the cake with it. Everything he touched became sticky, his kitchen looked like a mushy bomb had exploded in it after only ten minutes of work. He wiped his hands in a towel when he went in search of a knife to try and smoothen out the top layer of the chocolate. Just as he returned to the table, someone knocked on his door. He panicked. He didn't know what to do and while he was deciding on whether to hide the cake or simply hold the door closed, Max entered into the room.

"Shit!" he mumbled and squared his shoulders in front of the table to hide the cake behind him. Then he noticed he was still holding the huge knife in his hand. He put it behind his back without moving his eyes from Max's shocked face.

"What are you doing?" she asked appalled when she saw the destruction in his kitchen. Every surface seemed to be smeared with something, there was a heap of towels on the counter and Alec had a brown streak on his chin.

"Nothing." Lame.

"Think I'm stupid? You're up to something, I can tell by the devastation you've caused to this poor kitchen."

She moved forward and he moved with her to block her view.

"Alec!"

"Get out," he said and flinched when she glared at him. He nearly chuckled when he thought she looked like a sprite with her hands on her hips, glaring and so small in front of him.

"Alec, I'm warning you! This will have consequences. What are you doing?" she demanded and quickly moved to the left to try and get a peek behind his back. But he was faster.

"Please, Max. I'm not up to anything, could you just trust me this once."

He could tell that she was surprised by that 'please', but she still didn't relent.

"Come on, tell me. It can't be that bad."

"Max, get out before I'm forced to hurt you," he threatened, but it sounded lame even to him.

"Please," she snorted.

She turned back to the door like she'd heard someone there and that split second was all she needed. When his eyes followed hers, she was already by his side, peeking around his tall frame.

"Alec? What's this?"

Alec grumbled, mad at himself for not locking the door, mad at her for being so curious.

"It's a cake," he mumbled when she eyed him perplexed.

"I can't hear you."

"A cake, it's a frigging cake."

She looked from him to the heap of chocolate on the table. "Hmmm, I wouldn't have guessed it."

"Haha!"

"Who's it for? Or have you suddenly turned a sweet-tooth?"

She was grinning now and he was mortified. But she misread his expression.

"Oh, it's for a girl!"

"No!" he exclaimed. "I mean, yes. No … well …"

She furrowed her brow. "So which one is it: yes or no?"

He lifted his hands in the air in defeat. "It's for you," he mumbled.

"Huh?" She either didn't hear him or … Oh, she heard him alright, at least if her shock was any indication.

"Me?"

He shrugged. "I wanted to cheer you up … and it was supposed to be a surprise but since you came barging in here …"

She swallowed hard. "For me," she repeated, staring at the cake like she forgot Alec was still right there beside her.

"You were so down lately and I thought, even though you insisted you wanted nothing Christmassy, that some chocolate cake could cheer you up."

"So you made a cake?" she asked astounded. "For me?"

"Well …" he fidgeted with his chocolate smeared t-shirt. "Gem made the layers and I wanted to decorate it, but I guess that's harder than I thought and I pretty much ruined it." He shrugged.

"You can't ruin something that's filled with chocolate," she smiled. "Let's eat it."

He looked surprised at her. "You … wanna eat it?"

"Well, what else am I supposed to do with it? It's my cake, after all, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but I thought … I mean, it looks more like a heap of … I'm not gonna even say it …"

"Yeah, better stop talking and give me a fork."

He turned and walked to the drawer, a small smile gracing his face when he realized she was pretty cool about it. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all.

He handed her a fork and grabbed one himself. They started eating, but after the first bite they looked at each other. There was something wrong with the taste. Max made a brave face and swallowed.

"It's … good."

Alec took another bite. "No, it's not."

"Yeah, you're right," Max agreed when she swallowed again with difficulty. "What did you put in here?"

He shrugged. "Chocolate. You can't go wrong with chocolate, right?"

She tried to force herself to eat some more, then she looked at him suspiciously. "How long have you had that chocolate?"

"How should I know? A few months?"

"Maybe it has gone off," she speculated.

"You think?"

"Something must've been wrong with it because this doesn't taste like chocolate."

Alec went to search through the trash to find the wrapper of the chocolate. When he checked the date when it expired, he realized it was six months ago.

"Dammit!"

He heard Max giggle behind his back.

"I'm so sorry. This was supposed to be a nice surprise and I ruined everything."

She looked at him with a calm gaze. "Don't they say it's the thought that counts?"

He had to admit, she was taking it pretty well. Otherwise she'd be jumping down his throat already or kicking his ass, but she was being more than nice considering he messed up again.

"Sorry," he repeated. He really felt bad about ruining it all.

"Don't worry about it," she smiled when she walked to the door. "I'm … grateful you thought of me. Thanks."

She was acting so differently than her usual self that he didn't even know how to reply. By the time he figured it out, she was already out the door.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

The morning of Christmas Eve he had to take the last reports from that week to Max's office.

She actually smiled when she looked up. He was so unprepared for it, his step faltered at the door.

"Morning."

"I brought you the last bunch of reports," he said when he didn't know how else to react. She wasn't scowling. At all. Christmas spirits must have kidnapped her, for sure, that was the only explanation.

He placed the papers on the edge of the desk, wary to go too close to her. She scared him when she was nice to him. It never bode good.

When he turned to leave, she said, "You know … that cake yesterday, it was really good."

"No, it wasn't."

"Well, yeah, not for the stomach." She lowered her eyes and paused for a moment before she went on. "But it made me realize that Christmas doesn't have to be bad even if I'm alone, you know. I don't have to stop myself from feeling the cheer."

The thought that he actually accomplished his mission overwhelmed him. He didn't think it would be so easy, particularly since he'd failed at everything he tried.

"That's … good. Besides, you're not alone. You're just without Logan and there's a difference. You still have Joshua, your family. As screwed-up as they are."

He avoided including himself into that group because he didn't want to spoil her good mood.

And she noticed it. She watched him, her gaze curious. "And you, right? You are part of the family."

He cleared his throat. "I guess."

She didn't say anything else till he reached the door.

"Alec?"

He turned back to her. He was anxious t get out, this soft Max was scaring the wits out of him. He didn't know how to deal with her.

"When you said that you only see me as your commander, were you being serious? I'm just curious," she added hastily when she thought he might misinterpret.

"Well, when you're acting as my commander, yes, I do."

"And at other times?"

Did she have to put him on the spot like this? Didn't she have any mercy?

"Will you kick my ass if I say no?"

She chuckled, it was a genuine laugh. When was the last time Logan made her laugh? Alec was scoring so many points lately it just didn't seem possible.

"No, I won't kick your ass."

Her face looked beautiful when she smiled, there was no strain there, no sadness anymore. She looked like a different person, like an ordinary girl. Like a girl he'd chat up if he'd met her at a bar.

Uh-oh, don't go there, Alec.

"See you later," he said before he disappeared through the door. He better beat it before he says something stupid and completely out of line. Usually, he had her scowling and complaining to measure what he could say and what he couldn't, but ever since that cake yesterday she was acting completely out of character and that confused him. He was afraid that without the limits her bitchiness usually imposed on him, he would overstep the line, make something stupid and irrevocable and make the situation worse. Because for all he knew, she was nice to him just so he would feel her spitefulness more severely when she decided she hated him again.

------------------------------------------------------

By the evening he was decided. What use was all that champagne he'd stolen if he couldn't drink it with a friend? He was a bit nervous when he came to Max's door. He hadn't planned this so he wasn't entirely sure how to proceed. For a split second, when he knocked, he wished he hadn't come. But once the door opened it was too late.

"Oh, it's you," Max said when she saw him. He could read the disappointment, she had been hoping against hope that it was Logan.

"Yup, unfortunately, it's just me," he said and surprisingly he felt a stab of pain at the thought that he wasn't what she'd hoped for. "I was kinda hoping you'd drink some champagne with me. You know, Christmas Eve and all that jazz."

"Isn't champagne more like a New Year's Eve thing?" she furrowed her brow as she moved aside to let him in. She was wrapped in a blanket, her place was no warmer than the rest of TC.

"Yeah," he grinned sheepishly, "but I stole too many bottles for just one night."

She scowled at him.

"Come on, Maxie, have a drink with me." He offered her his brightest smile.

"Ok, but just so you won't say I'm a killjoy," she grudgingly agreed.

"Great!"

He noticed her place was in a mess, just like he'd heard her say at Gem's place the other day. Her clothes were everywhere, shoes on the floor, plates on the couch. No wonder, with the time she'd been spending in her office, he doubted she even had a moment to enjoy a proper shower. A drink would do her good.

"Have you got any glasses for this?"

"Sure." She went to the kitchenette and rummaged through her cupboard till she found two similar glasses.

"This is the best you can do?"

"Can you do better?" she scowled at him.

He grinned at her and walked to the couch. He put an empty plate to the ground and pushed some clothes to the side. He picked up a black bra and dangled it in front of Max.

"Lace, nice. I can just see you …"

"Don't even think about it," she threatened.

"It's hard not to," he mumbled as he sat down and placed the two glasses onto the crate that functioned as a coffee table. Max soon joined him, making place for herself on the couch and wrapping the blanket more tightly around herself.

"This'll warm you up," Alec promised as he handed her the glass.

She took it and waited for him to toast.

"You say something," Alec said.

She thought for a second. "To surprises and friendships."

"To surprises and friendships," he agreed as they clinked the glasses.

He stared at her face as she made a sip and then searched for the TV remote. She seemed oblivious to his perusal until she suddenly faced him.

"What?"

He was taken aback and didn't know what to say. "Nothing."

"Then stop staring at me."

"I'm just …" He stopped.

"What?" this time her voice sounded less annoyed.

"Glad that you're back to your bitchy self."

She cracked a smile. "Aren't you afraid I'll kick your ass?"

"Yeah, but you and my ass mentioned in the same sentence makes me all tingly," he grinned.

She wanted to hit his shoulder but he caught her fist and pulled her to him.

"No fighting, it's Christmas," he chuckled and hugged her around her shoulders.

"Feeling any warmer yet?"

"A bit," she grumbled.

She searched the channels and finally found something that looked like a decent movie. They watched it in silence. Alec had difficulty following the story, his thoughts kept returning to Max and Logan and Max without Logan and that mistletoe and everything else from the past few days. He was confused but in a non-frustrating way. He had a feeling this confusion was good because it meant that he had several options. It was just a matter of courage to choose amongst them.

When he again concentrated on the screen, he was left speechless. He'd been completely unaware that there was a full nudity sex scene going on just a few yards from him. His jaw dropped, he couldn't believe his eyes. It would be perfectly okay if it weren't for Max sitting next to him. He could feel her go rigid from awkwardness.

Thankfully, the scene was over and the movie continued with less delicate story lines. He nearly fell asleep by the time the movie ended. Max moving by his side woke him.

"Is it finished?"

"You fell asleep?" she asked appalled. "Men!"

"What? It wasn't all that interesting."

"It was a good movie, except … for a few parts."

He chuckled when he saw her cheeks turn rosy. It looked cute on her. It made her less rough and more girly. Suddenly he felt the urge …

"I know there's no mistletoe here …" he started. Max stopped moving, she sat perfectly still, looking at him. Her gaze scared him a bit, but it was too late to stop.

"And I know you will kick my ass after this …" his voice became soft as he leaned closer to her, giving her the option to stop him, to move away. But she didn't move, her eyes flicked to his lips and back to his green eyes, she looked almost frightened.

He kissed her slowly and softly at first. His eyes closed when he felt her warm lips press against his. There was only a hint of a response from her. He pulled back to look in her face.

Her eyes were huge, dark, unreadable.

"Max …" He didn't know whether to ask her if she was okay or to apologize. But she didn't let him finish, anyway.

She kissed him. There was nothing soft about it, nothing tender. She was demanding and passionate. Overwhelming. When she pulled back, he was breathless from amazement.

"Merry Christmas," she whispered and he didn't have time to reply when she pushed him back into the couch till she was lying atop of him. He didn't protest when her mouth found his lips again. He closed his eyes and made a promise to himself that from now on he'd celebrate Christmas every year with a religious fervor.

THE END