A Divisa Christmas (excerpt)

Bonus scene - Chasing Angel

As I wrestle with a branch cursing, I began to wonder why the hell Travis wasn't helping me. Glancing over the couch, Travis was crouched, fumbling with the TV. Big surprise—anything to get out of doing actual work. "Finally," he mumbled, right before the screen light up with The Griswald's Christmas Vacation, another family tradition. 

I shook my head, but before long, I was snickering, caught up in the humorous antics of the movie. Classic. It brought a fond memory of the year Lexi thought it would be brilliant to try and duplicate Clark's outside light spectacle. We had no power that Christmas in typical Winters fashion. 

I flashed across the room like a man on mission and picked up one of the Santa shaped mugs. Lexi loved tradition, and that included her to-die-for hot cocoa. I don't know what she put in the stuff, be it was like Christmas crack. Addicting and gives you a short-lived high. I swirled the peppermint stick, mixing its flavors with the foamy sweet white stuff. The smell of chocolate hit my senses in anticipation. 

"Aww, where's yours?" Angel asked, snatching the mug from my hands right before it touched my lips. 

I angled my head, a growl on the end of my tongue. "Very funny." But as I watched her, I found that I didn't mind sharing, even my hot cocoa. 

She took a sip and for the first time, I was jealous of inept object. A smile tugged at my lips. There was an adorable whipped cream mustache right above her lips. 

Her eyes narrowed. "What's so funny, besides that you put the tree together lopsided?" 

"Let me show you." I was kissing her before she could think, tasting the chocolaty sweetness. 

She moved into me, and kept moving, slowly, until our bodies molded. Her arms twined around my neck like ropes, sinking soft and warm against me. She let a sigh of pleasure escape—a shimmer of promises to come. 

I forgot, nearly forgot, where I was. I forgot, nearly forgot, everything but Angel. 

Her scent, a subtle unforgettably hint of peach. It stirred me, tangling my senses and making me lose myself. A lavish kiss, a velvet, punch of a kiss, swarming me with a flood of needs that had no place in front of an audience. 

Damn. Damn. Damn. 

I wanted to whisk her away, but we had only begun and I'd rather not have Lexi turn her fury on me. My little cousin could be quite feisty when it suited her. 

With great reluctance, I eased away, resisting the urge to yank her back. 

Travis cleared his throat. "Awkward." 

I jumped over the back of the couch, intent on giving Travis a thrashing, until I heard Lexi's voice cut through the air. "Don't. Think. About. It. I will not have blood on my tree." 

And that was the end of that. 

Putting up Christmas decorations with Angel was like no other year. She impacted all of lives in ways I had never thought possible. The experience was lively, only a few broken bulbs, a record in the Winters' household. 

Strands of lights swayed from her hand to mine as we wound them around the tree from bottom to tip. Our entire floor was covered in so much glitter it looked a fairy had sneezed. And when the last ornament was hung, we all took a step back to admire our handiwork. 

"Angel, you do the honors," Lexi said. 

Angel flipped the switch. It looked like Christmas puked all over our living room. 

"We rock," Lexi declared. 

Trying not to grin like a fool, a sudden wallop of emotion clogged my heart.