93 : [Christmas Special] *Free Chapter*

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PDA was never her thing. 

But there was something in the way he held her hand, the way he talked to her, and the way he looked at her that surpassed her tendency to put up a brick wall every time someone showed more than friendly affection towards her. 

Then again, Théo wasn't just someone.  He was "the one" she'd hoped to meet even before the word 'relationship' became a constant thought.

As they waited in front of her mother's house, Veronica gave him a quick smile and let go of his hand, just so he wouldn't worry about her cold, sweaty palm or her ballooning apprehension. 

It felt close to a panic attack, like the last time.  In fact it took her more than five minutes and two attempts to calm her thoughts during the entire drive.  If Mick wasn't the designated driver and if he hadn't insisted that she and Théo should come along, she wouldn't even be here. 

The band had a five-day break from touring,  so she gave in to her mother's request that they go on a quick weekend trip to Philly to spend the holidays with her.  "Since you're all too busy, I called up your father. He said he's gonna be at the gallery, but, he'll be here Christmas Eve so you won't have to drive upstate to see him," Dr. Michel said over the phone the other day.

At that point, Veronica just couldn't say no anymore.  Her mother was emotionally blackmailing her like a pro, and there was no other acceptable answer but "Yes. Okay, Mom".  Her mom hadn't been on good terms with her father since the divorce.  

Rarely did Veronica hear about her parents talking to each other since her dad moved out of Philadelphia to restart his bachelor life with a new art gallery.  But this time, her mother seemed to be too eager to gather them all this Christmas. What gives?

Mick was on the same page.  He was even the one who called Théo first.  She protested, of course, but she just had to go along when Théo said yes to Mick's invitation. 

"Drama queen," her brother teased. "It's just two days. Three at most." Mick chuckled when she swore at him over the phone that night. 

"Are you high?"  Three whole days with her ex and her parents under one roof?  Did her brother actually want her to have a nervous breakdown?  "He's checking into a hotel."

"Nope." Mick even laughed at her. "Mom already prepped the rooms. She says I'm sleepin' with T in the room downstairs, and you're sleeping in her room." 

"Ugh. Fine."

So here they were.  The trip had to happen.  Now she would be spending Christmas Eve and at least two days with Théo and her parents, whom he'd never even met before. 

Would her mom be nice to him all the time?  Her dad might drop some inappropriate comments here and there, too.  Darn.  This might just be the most awkward Christmas Eve dinner she and Théo would have to sit through. 

Breathe in...

Breathe out. 

Deep breaths...  

Veronica shook off the tension in her hands by doing some arm stretches while they waited on her mother's porch.  According to her latest text, Dr. Michel was still in the supermarket to get additional ingredients for their heavy dinner.

"You okay?" Théo stared at her face and inched closer while Mick stood by the front door.

"Yeah," Veronica lied after giving Théo a fake smile.  She was trying not to be obviously anxious about the whole situation, though.

This was her brother's fault.  But of course Mick wouldn't admit it.  He even looked excited to spend the holidays with her, Théo, and their polar-opposites parents.  "Yo, T." Mick nodded to Théo. "There's a trail 'round here. Dad wants to take a look. It's got ATVs, big bikes, all that stuff. You cool with that?"

"Yeah. Sure." Théo grinned at Mick, his dimpled smile and tone quite excited.  "Sounds a lotta fun."

Veronica flung a glare in Mick's direction.  It was to remind him that Théo just got out of the hospital about a month ago due to some rib fractures and other minor injuries.  Mick still didn't know what exactly happened to her and Théo in Rome, but he did visit Théo in the hospital with her two weeks after the incident.

"Relax. Killjoy..." Mick made a face at her and then looked to Théo again. "I'm sure there's safety harnesses or somethin' like that. They're open on the 26th. You good to go?"

"Cool. Yeah." Théo nodded. "Maybe we could all have lunch there. Like a picnic?" He turned to her and smiled.

She kept her fists in her jacket's pockets and tried to smile back, her hands hurting for as long as her nails dug into her palms.  But she kept up the grin and tried not to glare at her brother again.  She should just keep up the fake smiles all evening and laugh along whenever someone dropped a joke. 

Plus, Théo's 27th birthday was just days away.  She should let him have some fun here in Philly for a day at least.

"Want me to help your mom cook?" he asked with a slanted grin.

"Yeah. She'd love that."  Veronica gave him a half-meant chuckle while his arm rested on her shoulders.

"Great. 'Cause sis here can't cook to save her life," Mick butted in while he kept playing some racing game on his phone.  His joke made Théo laugh out loud.

Well, Théo was admittedly a better cook than her, and her mom would definitely appreciate the fact that he was willing to help out in the kitchen this evening.

"Get off my shit, St-Pierre. Have fun making your own cupcakes and pie." She flipped the bird at her brother.  Mick's insult kind of hurt her ego, although it was mostly true.  She loved hearing Théo's laugh, though. 

It was deep and manly like his voice, but breathy and almost relaxing to the ears.  She couldn't remember the last time she'd made him laugh like that.  

"Yeah. She bakes better cakes and pies," Théo acknowledged with a half-grin.  He was snickering at Mick making faces at her.  "I'm marginally better with meals. Pasta dishes, and a few others."

"Psshh. No need to be modest." Mick scoffed and kept his attention on his phone screen. "She knows she's a shitty cook."

"Shut up." She muffled a chuckle when Théo laughed louder.  Actually she kind of missed her brother's constant badgering. 

Mick was almost always busy with his "Hollywood star" life, especially now that his career was taking off.  They should cherish this time with each other—albeit just a special few days with their parents—before they would all get too busy with their routines again.

"Hi, my loves! Sorry. The store was insanely crowded."

They all turned to look at the driveway.  Her mom was now parking her SUV in front of the porch.

"Hey, Mom." Mick waved at Dr. Michel who was all-smiles at them now. "Did you get me some ice cream?"

"Yes. Naturally," her mom replied after she turned off the engine.  "Aww...you all look so nice and dressed up."

"Get the groceries." Veronica nodded to her brother just as she felt Théo's grip on her wrist.  She could almost feel him tense up the second he saw her mother.  "Nervous?" She snickered.

"Just a bit." Théo grinned at her and got up from the bench to follow Mick.  "I'll help with the groceries."

In just seconds, the four grocery bags were all stuffed in her mom's kitchen.  Veronica started taking out the ingredients for their big dinner while her mother chatted with Théo.  As she stayed in the kitchen, Veronica could only watch and eavesdrop.  She pretended to be busy with the groceries but she could clearly hear Théo trying to charm the pants off her mom.

"Yes. New Year's.  I'll be back in Paris," Théo replied to Dr. Michel as they stood by the long dining table. "Gonna spend a few days with my sister and Tristan, her son. We'll visit Mamie."

"Oh. Right. Of course. How's your grandmother by the way, hon?"

"Hon"? Already? Veronica tried not to smile as she started slicing the big tomatoes into cubes.  Her mom wanted to cook at least two pasta dishes tonight. 

"Maman had her transferred to another care home few months ago. More staff. Bigger yard. Mamie likes it better." Théo chuckled.  He was helping her mother make pasta.  They were at the dining table while Mick stuffed his face with butterscotch brownies.

"I see. Sounds great. Say hi to your mom and Mamie for me. I haven't visited Paris in years," Dr. Michel said with a soft laugh. "Glad I could take some time off for Bre and Luke's wedding. You'll be there. Right? Via said you don't have work next weekend."

"Yeah. Definitely." Théo poured some  more flour onto the kneading board, both of his hands now covered with white powder. 

Veronica couldn't help but giggle at the sight of him wearing her mother's Christmas-themed apron, and she was trying not to mind the slight awkwardness by distracting herself with kitchen duties.  Any minute now, her dad would be here, and Valerian St-Pierre didn't like to wait for food, frankly speaking.

"Hon?" her mom called out. 

"Yeah, Mom?" 

"Can you get my phone? It's probably your dad calling. My hands are covered in butter."

"Yeah. Okay."  She checked her mom's phone by the sink.  Her dad dropped the call but left a text saying he was just an hour away.  "He says he's gonna be an hour late. At least."

"Oh, and maybe don't mention the doctor's appointment, y'know...last time," her mom mumbled with a mild frown.  Then Dr. Michel glanced at Théo. "Her father's been pressuring her lately. Getting bored and badly wants grandkids now." She let out a quick laugh.  

Veronica scoffed and repressed a grin when Théo turned to smirk at her. 

"Clock's tickin', sizzums!"  Mick jested in a singsong tone.  

Théo laughed alongside Dr. Michel. 

"I'll give Dad his first grandkid, on the condition that you ask Yui out to dinner first." Veronica eyed her brother.

"What d'you mean?" her mom muttered, her brows creased while she stared at Mick. "I thought Yui's already married?"

"Nope." Veronica couldn't help but giggle, noting her brother's scowl. "Called off the engagement."

"Shut up..." Mick sighed, to which Théo only laughed.

"I'm serious, Mikhail. Just ask her out. Jeez..."

"Sure. If you and T get hitched next year." Mick smirked at her now.  "Deal?"

With another frown, Veronica squinted at her brother and opted not to dignify his suggestion with a response.  

Théo couldn't stop grinning now while he kneaded the thick dough on the flour-covered wooden board.  "Sounds good to me," he then mumbled with a dimpled smile.

The comment made her entire face burn up almost instantly, but she went on pretending she was busy slicing vegetables for her mom's special vegetarian casserole.  

"Your babies would be so beautiful," her mother chimed in with a proud smile, her tone almost expectant. "Just sayin'..."

"Yo, T."  It was Mick again.  "Mom wants two at least. Dad wants half a dozen."

"Okay. Two at least. Noted," Théo retorted with some faint nods.  "I mean, I'd love a boy and a girl, too. Just sayin'..."

Excellent.  Now they were all ganging up on her.  Veronica rolled her eyes and kept slicing veggies by the sink while her mom kept giggling at the exchange.  She could tell he was no longer feeling any awkwardness in front of her family.  Which probably meant she would have to survive an entire night of taunting with him joining in the fun. 

Great.  Just great.  "You in a hurry, man?" She glanced at Théo.

"A little."

"Witness!" Mick whistled.

"Next year sound good, love?"  Théo put on his serious voice now, obviously enjoying where the conversation was headed.  "Doable?"

She felt her cheeks heat up again at his joke, but she kept busy with the veggies.  Was it merely a joke, though?  She couldn't tell for sure.  Or maybe he was just having too much fun watching her fidgeting in embarrassment.

"If it's a boy, kid's prolly gonna look like you, sis.  If it's a girl, 99 percent sure the kid's gonna look like me." Mick nodded twice and sounded believably confident in his hypothesis.  "No kidding, yo. Right, Mom? 'Cause genetics and stuff..."

Veronica snorted. "What, 'and stuff'?"

"Yeah, actually." Dr. Michel laughed at her son's words but nodded repeatedly.  With Théo's help, she was now preparing the other ingredients for the pasta sauce.  "The firstborn's probably gonna be blonde, too. Your brother's not wrong, hon."

Veronica made a face at her brother while Mick held back another mocking laugh. 

His theory was possible, though, since Mick and Théo were both naturally blond and had similar angular features.  Almost "too French" in her eyes.  And now she couldn't help but secretly laugh at the imagery in her head.  Thanks to her brother, her brain was now simultaneously imagining herself giving birth next year, and then some R-rated scenes with Théo.  Ugh.  Fantastic. 

"You heard that, sizzums?"

"Get off my back, St-Pierre. Go make your own babies with Yui." 

"Nah. Deal's a deal, dude." Mick wiggled his brows at her and scratched his thin, light brown beard. "Let him put a ring on it first."

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