Chapter 83: Keys

When everything goes to hell, the people who stand beside you without flinching – they are your family. – Jim Butcher

Neo knew that Shelby would be pissed at him. And he was willing to live with that. He was also certain that she would eventually forgive him.

Pretty certain that she would.

Or she would kill him. It was a fifty-fifty chance at this point. Then again, that was just about every day of his life. It was a good day when everyone made it home at the end of the day.

While he was a police officer in the Marines, there were several days that not everyone came home. Those days still hung heavy over him. But today, Christmas day, was not going to be influenced by those days.

Today, he was going to focus on the woman who kept his office running so smoothly. And the little boy who can make his whole staff pitch in to guarantee the best Christmas ever. Although, right now, it probably seemed like the worst.

Neo knocked on the black door with the green wreath on it. Shelby opened