Conspicuous Secrets

Chapter Thirty-Nine

I watched Kason wobble on the ladder as he reached up to hang the string lights on one of the hooks he had placed on the edge of the roof. "Oh, please be careful!" I begged, reaching out to hold the ladder still.

Kason chuckled before climbing down the ladder and moving it to the side a couple feet before climbing back up. "I am being careful."

"Doesn't look like it."

"If you think it's so easy, then you get up here and hang these lights."

I shook my head. "Not happening."

"Exactly," he chuckled.

It just a few more minutes, he finished up hanging the lights and climbed back down the ladder. While Kason folded up the ladder, I plugged the lights in the extension cord and we watched them light up. The sun had just started dropping behind a mountain in the distance, so the lights were visible in the dim sky. "They look really good," Kason said.

I nodded. "They are beautiful." Kason wrapped his arm around me and pulled me into him before kissing me on the head. "Thank you," I told him. "I haven't had Christmas lights on my house since I was little."

"Really?" he asked, sounding surprised. "Why not?"

I took a deep breath. Honestly, I was ready to tell him everything. "My dad wasn't one to do a lot for Christmas..." I started. "Kason, there's actually something I need—."

"How about you and Jaxon come over to my house Christmas morning?" he interrupted, pulling away from me enough to look me in the eyes.

His words caught me by surprise. "We wouldn't want to intrude on your family's Christmas."

Kason shrugged. "My father wouldn't mind at all and I know Lucy would love to have you over."

I hesitated. "What about you?" I asked, making him smile.

"If I had a problem with it, I wouldn't have invited you," he chuckled. "Come on, I want to you join us. Since you and Jaxon don't have your own family to see on Christmas, come over and we can start a new tradition."

I didn't dare move my eyes from his. There was a twinkle in his eye that I was starting to fall in love with. It was only there when he was looking at me. "Okay, I'm up for it. But, I will have to see what Jaxon thinks about it, so I'm not promising anything yet."

His smile widened and he placed his fingers on my chin and angled my head up to meet his. He kissed me and suddenly I was in Heaven. This boy was my weakness. He was going to be my downfall. When his lips were on mine, my thoughts were filled with only him. Sure, with the life I was living this was definitely something that would be us in more danger, but at least I was loving every second of it.

When we pulled away, a bright smile was on both of our faces. "How about we go inside and watch a Christmas movie until your brother comes home. Then we can ask him about Christmas," he suggested.

I nodded, feeling my fingers go numb from the cold breeze. "That sounds perfect."

"Great," he said. "You pick the movie. I'll make the hot chocolate."

#

Even with my bedroom door closed, I could hear the sound of my parents arguing down the hall. In every second that passed, I was praying that Jaxon would be home soon and that my dad wouldn't decide to include me in on the argument. The screams of my father were filled with dark anger and my mother was pleading incoherent words. My dad started arguments just about every day, but this time it seemed more serious between them.