Skye Reeves hasn't seen Jaxtyn and Joshua for years. This year the Emmanuel kids are set to return home for the annual Christmas. Old feelings will resurface. Enemies will become something else. This Christmas everything you knew will be blown out t...
At 9 a.m., I pull my Skyline into my parents' garage. Parking it next to the Jeep Wrangler, I step out and set the car's alarm. Using the garage entrance to the house, I climb the stairs and head to the kitchen, where I see Mom sitting at the counter.
She turns around and hears me enter the room. "Hey, Jaxtyn."
"What are you doing, Mom?" I step behind her and look at the invites she has on the table. "You're leaving those for the last minute? You normally have them posted before Thanksgiving."
"I wasn't sure if my boys would come to this one. You've missed the last six parties, with you going off to college and wanting to travel the world." She stacks all the envelopes on the table, and one captures my attention.
Skye Reeves.
This party is going to be so much fun with her being here.
Dad walks into the kitchen at that moment, leans down, and kisses Mom on the lips. Turning towards me, he says, "Son, I need to talk to you in the study. Meet me there in thirty minutes."
"Okay," I walk out of the kitchen and head up to my room, which is located on the third floor. As I climb the stairs, I see my brother, Joshua and his wife, Nicole. "Good morning."
Nicole freezes on the step as she looks at me. Dropping Josh's hand, she rushes towards me and hugs me. "Your back?"
I give her a slight squeeze. "Yeah, I'm back." A smile spreads across my face. 'It feels like it's been forever since I've been home for a party.
She looks at her husband and holds her hand out to him. "That's because it has been forever. You were away for college for four years, and then you spent the last two travelling the world." Looking behind her, she says, "I thought you would have brought a girl home with you from your travels." I didn't meet anyone worthwhile, and I don't think I ever will.
"No, it's just me." I look at Joshua and ask. "Do you know why Dad would want to see me in the study?"
A smile spreads across his face. "Yep, but you'll have to talk to him about it. Good luck." He pulls his wife's hand, and they walk out the front door.
Walking to my room, I open the door and see that everything is the way it was before I left for College. There are football posters on the walls and trophies that I won for football and basketball.
A third-place ribbon from the swimming competition I took part in as a dare from some of my mates.
The double bed I slept in had fresh sheets, and the towels were folded on the bed. I also saw a piece of paper folded neatly on top of it.
Walking over to the bed, I pick up the letter and read.
Dear Jaxtyn, Welcome home, bud. I left your room the way it was because I was hoping you'd come home during those six years, but you didn't. I didn't have enough energy to deal with your room, so I left it alone. Now that you're back, you can clean it and get rid of stuff you no longer need. There are boxes in the basement you can use. Love Mom
Damn, it sounds like she's ready for me to move out. Or she wants my room to be age-appropriate for the Christmas Party on the 24th of December.
She probably thinks I will find someone at the party and she will be my future wife, but what Mom doesn't know is that I'm not in any hurry to get married and have a family.
Joshua is the one who's ready for that. He's been with his wife since he was fifteen, and they've been inseparable ever since. Along the way, he also loses his best friend because of his relationship with Nicole. If it weren't for Josh's friendship with another girl, he wouldn't have met Nicole, and I can't imagine his life without her.
As for the girl, well, she's still around, but no one hears much from her. I last heard that she hated her office job and wanted to quit. I'm sure she's still at the job she hates the most.
Grabbing clean clothes, I head to the bathroom for a quick shower.
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Opening the door to my father's office, I see him sitting behind his desk. The computer screen is on, and there's a picture of a nice-looking building on it.
I would love to work with something like that.
Clearing my throat, I let Dad know that I'm here. "That's a nice building."
He spins his chair around and looks at me. "It was a nice building until your Uncle Owen took over it. Now, it's a rundown piece of shit that has middle-class people living in it. This building is going to be yours. I want you to restore it to its former glory."
A smile spreads across my face. "I won't let you down, Dad. This is the best present that you could give me."
He stands up. "You have a hard choice to make, son, and that's whether or not you want the people living in the building to leave or stay."
"They have to go," I say without hesitation. "Do you know where they can live until they find somewhere else to go?"
"I have a building that's fully furnished. I know they'll enjoy the apartment block I have. However, there are a few people who aren't willing to leave. You'll have to sort something out with them."
"I will." I start to move toward the door.
"Son, you're mother and I think it's a good idea for you to live in the Duquett building. We know you like your privacy and will get it this way."
"Great," I say, holding my hand out to him. Can I get the keys to the apartment? I want to check it out tonight."
He gave me a pair of keys. "You don't have to move in tonight. We want to catch up with you."
"I'll stay until Tuesday." I walk out of the room and head to the kitchen. When I get there, I see Mom putting icing on the cookies she just made. Grabbing one off the table, I shove it in my mouth. "These are good."
She swats at my hands with a towel and says. "Those aren't for you. I'm taking them next door to the Reeves family. Do you want to come?"
No, I don't want to go near that place.
The last time I was there, Skye threw a plate at my head after I told her she was a waste of space on earth and nobody would want her. She reacted the way I would have if the roles were reversed.
"Ah," I scratch the back of my head. "I don't think that's a good idea."
"If you're worried about Skye being there. I can tell you for a fact, she won't be there. She hasn't been home since leaving for University."
