Chloe woke up Christmas morning to the smell of coffee wafting through the house.  Adam was up.  It surprised her.  Adam typically wasn’t an early riser.  Then again, it was Christmas.  Smiling to herself Chloe rolled over in the bed.  Her smile widened a bit more.  Justin was asleep next to her.  He was lying on his stomach, his head turned to face her.  One arm was stretched across her stomach.  The other was dangling off the edge of the bed and the covers were pulled down exposing his naked upper half.  He looked so peaceful.  She didn’t want to wake him.

Carefully, she tried to slide out from underneath his arm but failed miserably.  Next to her, Chloe heard Justin sigh then pull her closer, his eyes still closed as he pressed his lips up against her cheek.

“You’re awake.” Chloe giggled softly.

Justin smiled against her cheek.  “Only partially.  I think the smell of coffee woke me up.”

Chloe nodded.  “Me too.”

“Good morning, and Merry Christmas.” Justin said, his eyes fluttering open to lock with her green ones.

“Merry Christmas and Good morning to you too.” Chloe replied before popping a kiss on his lips.

Justin moaned softly and leaned into her kiss.  “Can I wake up like this every morning?”

“Like how?” Chloe asked slightly confused.

She had a feeling she knew what he was implying but she didn’t want to assume anything.

“Next to you.” Justin whispered before returning the pop kiss.

“You can, at least for seven of the next nine days.” Chloe answered smiling.

“Only 7?! How did you come up with that number?” Justin asked chuckling a bit.

He liked that although she did blush and get nervous around him at times, she didn’t shy away from him.  In other words, she communicated with him, and he didn’t intimidate her.

“I have the “On Call” shift tonight and Sunday night, but otherwise I’m all yours.”

Justin opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by the sound of thundering feet and then knocking on the door.

Chloe’s eyes widened and her face paled.  As if acting instinctively, Chloe sat bolt upright then tossed the comforter over Justin so that it covered him completely from head to toe.  Meanwhile, Justin could only quietly chuckle and shake his head.

“Don’t move.” Chloe hissed as the door to the bedroom flew open.

Before Gabby had a chance to jump on the bed Chloe caught her in her arms.

“Mommy! Get up! Get up!  Justin is coming over.” Gabby squealed happily.

Chloe couldn’t help but giggle.  “Justin?!  What about Santa?  Didn’t he come? Did he leave you presents?”

Gabby nodded and laughed.  “Silly Mommy, of course Santa came but I didn’t want to open any presents until Justin got here.”

Chloe smiled and placed her hand where she knew Justin’s leg was and gave the comforter a gentle squeeze.

“Ok, well, why don’t you go tell Uncle Adam to put the casserole in the oven and I will be out in just a few minutes.”

“When is Justin going to be here?” Gabby insisted.

Chloe had to fight not to laugh.  Gabby had no idea that Justin had spent the night.

“Soon.  Very, very soon, which is why I want to have the casserole ready.” Chloe said as she tried to hide her smile.

Gabby beamed.  “Ok Mommy! I’ll go tell Uncle Adam to put it in the oven.”

“Thank you, Sweetie.”

As soon as Gabby shut the door Justin pushed the comforter off his head and sat up next to Chloe.

“What’s your plan?” Justin asked as he smothered a grin.

Chloe giggled.  “Umm…I am going to get up, get dressed and go out to the kitchen and try to distract her.  You can get dressed then join me in a few minutes.  If she asks, I will just tell her that Adam left the front door unlocked for you.”

Justin laughed.  “Ok.”

“Did you have a better plan?” Chloe smirked.

Justin just laughed more.  “Nope.”

Still giggling a bit Chloe pushed the covers aside and got out of bed then quickly made her way to the closet to get dressed.  She settled on a pair of jeans and red sweatshirt.  Christmas in the De Luca/Hunter house was always far less formal than Christmas eve.

As soon as she was dressed Chloe headed for the master bathroom to comb her hair and brush her teeth.  Minutes later she emerged from the bathroom to find Justin out of bed and getting dressed.  He was buttoning the jeans he’d worn the night before.  They were from his collaboration with Levi’s.  She could tell just by looking at them, and as she looked, she couldn’t help but blush because his ass looked great in them.

With his jeans now on he moved to the small pile of the clothes neatly piled on top of his shoes and pulled a simple, grey sweater from the pile.  It wasn’t until he’d put the sweater on and sat down to put on his shoes that he noticed Chloe standing in the doorway.

He smiled as he looked up at her.  She looked comfortable but still gorgeous.

“You’re sure Gabby is still in the kitchen?” Justin asked grinning.

Chloe nodded.  “I’m sure.  She likes to help and if Adam is in the kitchen, he will have put her to work doing something.”

“Well, then, what if we walked in together and just told her that you found me at the front door if she asks.” Justin suggested with a grin.

Chloe blushed again.  “That could work.”

Justin stood from the bed and walked over to where Chloe was standing.  Smiling, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into him, letting his head rest against hers. 

“This! I didn’t know I needed this, that I was missing out until I met you.” Justin whispered.

Chloe’s eyes grew wide and her heart started to pound. 

“Justin…”

He pulled away a bit and looked into her eyes.  They were brimming with tears.  Smiling softly Justin quickly brushed them away with his thumb, allowing his hand to remain on her face as he continued to whisper to her.

“Chloe, I know what you’re thinking.  You are thinking that it’s too soon, that I couldn’t possibly feel a certain way about you…but, I do.  I do feel that way about you…and Gabby.  Chloe…I love you…I love you both.”

Chloe sucked in a breath.  She wasn’t completely convinced that what she’d heard was real.

“You love me?” Chloe managed to reply, her voice shaking.

Justin smiled and dropped his head again so that his forehead was resting against hers.  “I do! Very much!  For so long I’ve been alone.  Yeah, I know, I have my family and the guys but when I go home at night it’s just me.  There’s no one waiting for me.  No one to ask me how my day was or wake up next to every morning.  I never realized that’s what I wanted or needed…until I met you.  I love being able to kiss you goodnight and have you next to me when I wake up in the morning.  I’m going to really miss that when I go back on tour.”

“You love me?” Chloe repeated.

Justin smiled and nodded then kissed her softly.  “Yes, I love you, Chloe.”

Chloe cracked the tiniest of smiles and nodded.  “Justin…I love you too.  I just didn’t want to say it first…I didn’t want to say it and not have you feel the same way…”

Justin smiled more.  “I do.  I love you…and I love that adorable, amazing little girl of yours too.”

Chloe finally allowed her smile to take over as she looked up at him.  “Speaking of that little girl, we should probably get moving before she comes knocking again.”

Justin grinned.  “We probably should.”

Taking her hand in his Justin quietly led her to the door and down the hallway to the kitchen.  Adam looked up when they entered and couldn’t help but grin.  He knew that Justin had spent the night but didn’t want to say anything in front of Gabby.  However, his look said it all.

Chloe blushed and shook her head at the face Adam was making.

“Look what I found coming up the steps…” Chloe said with a wink at her brother.

“JUSTIN!” Gabby exclaimed as she bolted across the kitchen and threw her arms around him in a hug.

“Hey there! Merry Christmas Gabby!”

“Merry Christmas Justin!” Gabby replied grinning as she pulled away.

Gabby then turned to her mother, her eyes wide and hopeful.

“Now can we go open presents?!”

Chloe smiled and nodded.  “Yes, we can go open presents…just let me get some coffee first.”

“Agreed, coffee is definitely a must.” Justin added.

Gabby beamed.  “Well, Uncle Adam and I set up a coffee bar.  Creamer, whip cream, syrups…”

Justin squeezed Chloe’s hand.  Gabby really was a great kid.

“Sounds perfect Gabby Bug!” Chloe said smiling as she gently squeezed Justin’s hand back.

Within minutes everyone was settled in the living room in front of the tree.  Justin and Chloe were seated on one end of the sectional, Adam was in his favorite recliner chair and Chloe and Adam’s parents had just arrived.  They took seats at the opposite end of the sectional.  Gabby was standing in front of the tree ready to distribute presents to everyone.

“Justin first!” Gabby exclaimed once everyone was settled.

Before anyone had the chance to argue otherwise Gabby had retrieved a skinny, rectangular box from under the tree and was handing it to Justin.

Justin smiled and looked at Gabby as he carefully took the gift.  It was obvious she’d wrapped it herself but it made him love it more.  He didn’t need to know what was inside.  It was from Gabby, so he knew it would be perfect.

“Are you sure?” Justin asked.

Gabby nodded emphatically.

Justin smiled and looked back to the gift.  Carefully, he began to peel back the tape and open the package.  Just inside the wrapping paper was another piece of paper neatly folded.  Immediately, Justin’s smile transformed to a grin.  He knew what it was.  As carefully as possible he unfolded the paper and looked down at the image in front of him.

On the manila paper Gabby had drawn a picture of herself and Justin picking out the tree together and above them, as if floating in air was a giant, red heart. 

“I love it, Gabby!” Justin said grinning at her.

Gabby beamed.  “There is more.  Look inside the box.”

Justin redirected his attention to the box and his eyes widened when he opened it.  Inside was a gorgeous blue-grey tie with thin, silver stripes running through it.  It was definitely something he would wear and he would absolutely think of Gabby every time he wore it.

“Wow! Gabby! Did you pick this out yourself?!” Justin mused.

Gabby blushed.  “Yeah.  I had to ask Uncle Adam if he thought you would like it, but I picked it out and then I used my chore money to pay for it.”

“Gabby! That’s really sweet of you!  I’m definitely going to wear this!”

Chloe immediately put her mug to her lips so that no one would see her swallowing back happy tears.  This was the best Christmas she’d had in a really long time.

Justin stood from his seat next and headed for the tree.  Turning back around he handed a small box to Chloe and a much bigger box to Gabby.  In fact, the box he gave to Gabby was almost as big as she was.

Gabby ripped into the box almost immediately. Inside the box, the complete set of stuffed, plush Trolls. There was Poppy, Branch, Smidge, Cooper, Biggie, DJ Suki, King Peppy and Guy Diamond along with a smaller, autographed Guy Diamond.

Gabby squealed loudly with delight.

“EEEEK!”

Everyone chuckled as Gabby tackled Justin with a hug.

“Thank you SO MUCH Justin!”

“You’re going to have to make room on your bed for all of those.” Chloe half teased.

Gabby grinned.  “Guy Diamond and Branch can sleep with me.  The rest can go on my shelf.”

“Sounds like a good plan.” Justin said grinning.

Justin looked to Chloe next.  She was still holding her box.

“Your turn.” Justin said nodding to her.

Gingerly, Chloe tore the paper off the box then carefully opened it.  Inside was the most beautiful necklace she’d ever seen.  It was a rose gold, flat hoop with a garnet stone and tiny diamonds around the garnet.  On the hoop was Gabby’s name engraved into the gold in pretty script.  It was a mother’s necklace.  Chloe knew it immediately.

“Wow! Justin…this is…” Chloe stuttered.

“Merry Christmas.” He whispered before placing a light kiss on her cheek.

For a moment, Chloe sat there speechless, unable to move.  She had not expected such a thoughtful and beautiful gift.  In the next moment she stood up and went over to the tree.  From beneath the tree, she retrieved a very small, velvet box and handed it to Justin.

It looked like a ring box and for a moment Justin felt his breath catch in his throat.  Slowly, he opened the box and his lips curved into a smile when he saw what was inside.  Two white gold cuff links with his initials engraved on them and a matching tie tack. 

“Gabby gave me the idea.  I didn’t know what else to get you.” Chloe explained nervously.

Justin smiled up at her.  “This is perfect.”

***

Christmas was perfect.  Just the way Chloe had hoped it would be.  In fact, Chloe couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this happy.  Probably not since the day Gabby was born. 

The day after Christmas Chloe slept in until almost 2.  Justin was coming over for dinner that evening but in keeping with his promise to spend as much time with Chloe and Gabby as possible he came over a few hours early.  At 3:00 that afternoon Justin arrived just as Chloe came shuffling into the kitchen dressed in a pair of jeans and a NYU sweatshirt with her hair pulled back into a messy ponytail.  Gabby was in her room playing with her new toys.  In other words, it was the perfect opportunity for the adults to talk.

Upon entering the kitchen Adam handed his sister a steamy cup of peppermint tea with honey then motioned for her and Justin to sit.

Chloe looked to the tea and then her brother.  Peppermint tea was her go to beverage when she was stressed.  Something about the mint, honey and the warmth always seemed to help settle her nerves.  However, she wasn’t nervous or stressed.  Tired, yes, but that was understandable after working the night before so why Adam was giving her tea was a mystery. 

“What’s the tea for?” Chloe asked, eyeing her brother curiously.

He looked like he could use a cup of tea.  His eyes were bloodshot.  The stubble on his face was scruffy, his brow furrowed and the expression on his face was somber.  Something was up.

“Sit down Chloe.” Adam insisted.

“Adam?!” Chloe replied, giving her brother a stern look.

Adam chose to ignore the look then directed his gaze to Justin. 

“You should sit down too Justin.”

“What’s going on Adam?” Justin asked, also noticing the tension on Adam’s face.

“Both of you, please, sit down.  I will explain everything.” Adam sighed.

Chloe and Justin both sat as instructed then waited anxiously for Adam to begin speaking.

Adam took a deep, steadying breath then started to explain.

“I got a call…Christmas Eve morning…it was from a friend, a fellow lawyer at the New York City District Attorney’s office.  He called me as his friend to let me know they had arrested someone in connection with your accident and that the District Attorney is planning to take the case to court.” Adam started.

“They caught someone?” Chloe asked, her eyes wide.

Truthfully, so much time had passed since the accident she never even considered that they might actually find who caused it.

Adam nodded solemnly.  “They did, thanks to your tip.”

“What tip?” Justin asked looking to Chloe.

Chloe blushed slightly.  “Umm…I told the detectives that I knew it was a new Mercedes CLS based on the temporary tags I saw briefly in my rear-view mirror before the car hit me, and that I was pretty sure whomever owned the vehicle put in an after-market exhaust based on the level of noise it made before it hit me.”

Adam smirked and nodded.  “Yes, the police were able to narrow down a list of suspects based on the number of Mercedes CLS cars sold in New York within 30 days of the accident.  Then, from that list they visited the owner of each car until they found one with a modified exhaust. The suspect was arrested on the 23rd and his Arraignment hearing was today.  He is being charged with 2 counts of reckless endangerment, 2 counts of vehicular assault, destruction of public property and 1 count of Stalking in the 1st degree.  The D.A. is asking for a prison sentence of 15 years, which in my opinion is generous considering the maximum for all the charges carries a prison sentence of about 21 years, if not more.”

Justin could only sit there in shock.  His eyes were fixated on Adam.  There was something about the look in Adam’s eyes that worried him and then there was the Stalking charge.  He’d been hounded by fans before, and the press, even followed, but no one had ever tried to stalk him.

“Stalking?!  This guy was stalking me?” Justin managed to get out.

Adam sighed.  They had come to the part of the conversation that he’d been dreading the most.

“Not you, Justin.” Adam replied seriously.

“Me?! Why would anyone be stalking me?!” Chloe exclaimed.

Adam took a deep breath then reached across the counter to take his sister’s hand.  He squeezed it gently, reassuringly, as he looked directly into her wide green eyes.

“Chloe…it was Eddy!”

Chloe’s face went pale and her entire body began to tremble.  She didn’t want to and couldn’t believe what Adam was telling her. 

“Eddy?! As in Gabby’s father?!  Chloe’s ex-husband?!” Justin exclaimed.

His blue eyes were on fire and his heart was ramming into his chest. 

Adam nodded.  “My friend at the D.A.’s office said that according to his statement, Eddy followed you that night.  He was upset about not being able to see Gabby.  He’d gone out with a friend, they had a few drinks and he decided to follow you home, to try to talk to you, but the more he thought about it the angrier he got.  He started speeding up.  He was going way too fast in a residential area and when he hit the breaks he slid on the snow and ran into you.  Then when you hit Justin, he panicked and sped off.”

Justin was trying desperately to keep calm for Chloe, and so Gabby wouldn’t hear, but right then, he wanted to scream.  He wanted to punch something, or in this case someone.  He wasn’t a violent person by any means but in that moment, he wanted to kill Eddy for what he done to Chloe…and to Gabby.

“So, now what?” Chloe asked, her tone flat.

Adam looked at his sister.  She was calm.  Frighteningly calm.  It worried him.  He’d expected her to get angry or cry but he hadn’t expected this.  Her face was void of expression and her eyes empty.  It was as if he was looking at completely different person.

“Now both sides prepare for trial.  No date has been set yet, but the D.A. thinks it will be late January, early February at the very earliest.  There are a lot of factors at play.  Until then Eddy will stay in jail…because he can’t post bail.”

Chloe’s eyes went wide.  Her primary concern was Gabby.  How was she going to explain all of this to Gabby?  How was she going to tell Gabby that her father wasn’t going to be able to watch her graduate high school, or college or grow up at all?

“Fifteen years...Gabby will be…” Chloe whispered.

Adam sighed heavily and nodded.  “Almost 21.”

“I am guessing we will be asked to testify.” Chloe replied quietly.

Adam nodded.  “Yes.  You both are on the witness list and you both will be receiving subpoenas for medical records from that night.”

Adam looked to Justin next.  “And, yes, the D.A. knows you are the other driver in the accident.  A petition has been filed to keep the media out of the courtroom and my friend in the D.A.’s office has assured me that they will work with your tour schedule.”

Justin, not knowing how else to reply simply said, “Thank you.”

Truth be told, his primary focus was Chloe.  He couldn’t even imagine how she was feeling right then.  All he wanted was to pull her into his arms and escape from the world.

There was a long, deafening pause that followed.  Chloe sat there, staring down at her tea, unable to breathe, unable to speak, unable to move until the tears started to stream down her face, dripping into her cup.

“Damn him!  How? How do I tell Gabby? How do I explain to her that her Daddy can’t see her?” Chloe cried.

Justin and Adam both opened their mouths to speak but Chloe continued, cutting them off before they could utter a single word.

“Selfish! How can one person be so FUCKING selfish?!  He was so worried about himself, and how he was being wronged.  He got himself into this mess, and frankly, I could care less what happens, but did he even think for one second about Gabby? About how his actions affect her?  About what losing her father will do to her?  Of course, he didn’t.”

Without so much as a second thought Justin reached over, took her right hand in his left then lifted her chin and turned her head to face him with his right.

“You’re not alone in this, ok?!  No matter what happens, I’m here.  Even when I’m not, I’m here.  Call me at 2 a.m., text me between patients, fly out on your days off, but you are NOT alone in this.”  Justin said to her softly, looking straight into her eyes as he spoke.

Given the circumstances, Adam was trying to hide his smile.  It was obvious that Justin was in love with his sister and he couldn’t have been happier about it.

“He’s right.  WE will figure this out together.  We will figure out how and when and what to tell Gabby but until then, what do you need?” Adam replied.

“I don’t know! I don’t know how to feel, or what to say.  All I can think about is Gabby.” Chloe gushed.

“Let’s go for a walk…just you and me…some fresh air would be good for both of us.” Justin said smiling as he gently squeezed her hand.

Chloe nodded and cracked a tiny smile.  “Ok.”

“I’ve got Gabby, no worries.  She can help me with dinner.” Adam added.

Chloe smiled at her brother.  “Thank you.  I don’t know what I would do without you.”

Adam smiled back.  “I promise, you will NEVER have to worry about that.  I’m not going anywhere.”

Chloe’s eyes filled with tears at his words.  “That’s what Eddy use to say.”

Adam sighed and nodded.  “Well…Eddy isn’t me…”

“Or me.” Justin chimed in.

“I know.” Chloe whispered.