Second Time Around

Chapter Sixty-Five

Tony sat back, smiling as Kelly settled between his legs on the sofa in the family room. "I think we done good, Tony."

He draped his arms about her shoulders. "They're all asleep?"

She nodded, snuggling against him. A fire crackled in the fireplace and the room was comfortably warm, but there was something so cozy about cuddling up against Tony. His arms tightened about her, and she had to hold back her sigh as she said, "All of them. Even Rebecca."

He chuckled as they both gazed around the room. Sure enough, Shane and Dan were zonked out on the far end of the sofa, with Rebecca snoring softly up against Dan's side. Alyssa and Amy were in the middle of the sofa, bundled in fleecy pjs and sound asleep leaning against one another, while Deirdre curled up in the chair closest to the tree, also asleep in the soft glow of the Christmas lights.

"Actually, this works out perfectly." Tony shifted to move around her and stand. Then, he caught her by the hand to draw her to her feet. "Come here, honey."

"What's going on?" she asked, narrowing her eyes as she stood.

"I have one more thing for you, Kelly. And I'd rather give it to you while things are quiet."

"Why?"

"Because."

 He gave her hand a squeeze and tugged gently on her arm to pull her around to the far side of the tree. The lights--a mix of traditional colored bulbs and twinkling ones--reflected off the windows, throwing color into the snow outside. The room was quiet, except for the soft Christmas music playing on the stereo and the occasional snore from one of the bodies.

The lights reflected in Tony's eyes as he smiled down at her. "Back in September, when we first started dating, I hoped we'd still be together at Christmas, but I have to admit, I didn't think you'd be pregnant, or that you'd be my wife."

"Yeah, somehow, I didn't think so, either." She smiled up at him. "But I'm glad I was wrong."

He bent to kiss her lightly on the lips. "Me, too, honey."

When they parted, she slid her arms about his waist, and tucked her head against his chest. Her eyes closed as he pressed a kiss into the top of her head. There was almost nothing in the world she loved as much as the feel of him up against her. And when she squeezed him, he whispered, "Easy, honey. I'm not going anywhere."

"I know." Resting her chin on his chest, she tilted her head back to gaze up at him. "This is probably the nicest Christmas I've ever had, Tony."

"Me, too, baby," he murmured, catching her face in his hands. This was another gesture she loved, when he cradled her face like this, as if he held something delicate and priceless, and it was a gesture that never failed to make her feel delicate and feminine. She might not be the girliest girl out there, but when Tony did this, it didn't matter. She felt girly-girl.

His eyes held hers for a long moment, his thumbs brushing along her cheeks. "God, you're so beautiful," he murmured with a subtle shake of his head. "You have no idea, either, do you?"

She held his gaze. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, honey. I just--sometimes it just blows me away, that's all." Now his thumbs swept along her cheeks, along the ridge of her cheekbones. "I'm a lucky man, Kell. A very lucky man."

No man ever said this to her with such raw emotion before and they weren't exactly words she'd expect a man like Tony to say, either. He came across as tough-as-nails, no-nonsense, almost gruff at times, but then at moments like these, she saw there was so much more to him, that she was very good at selling him short and writing him off as just another typical guy. But to hear those words, to hear the emotion stretched beneath them, did something funny to her insides. They fluttered, they warmed, and even as she wanted to melt on the inside, she tilted her head back slightly.