“Same to you!” Roper hauled two huge suitcases in, handing him one.
“Damn, Bubba, you got a body in here?”
“Christmas from the folks. All wrapped and everything.”
Charles was waiting in the foyer and smiled as they hauled the suitcases inside. “Staying a few days, Roper? Ryder, you better show your brother his room before one of you hurts yourself.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Hey, Charles! Merry Christmas! I brought presents for under the tree.”
“Come on, butthead.” He led Roper to the guest room. “Here you go.”
“Nice!”
“Isn’t it? I’m going to make it a little more homey, but it’s still nice.”
Roper parked one suitcase at the foot of the bed and took the other from him to do the same. “I can’t believe I’m in New York. For Christmas.”
“I’m tickled as shit, Bubba. I have missed your face.” He took a hard hug, and they breathed together, nice and slow.
“Ditto. I’m glad to be here. It was time to see your place.” Roper shrugged out of his coat. “Are you good? You look good. Charles is taking good care of you?”
“He’s amazing. I’m happy. We spend a lot of time just…hanging out.” And it was perfect. They talked, they played cards, they made love, they took walks.
“Ugh. Love. Gross.” Roper squeezed his shoulders. “Damn good to see your stupid face.”
“Good to see your ugly one. Jackass.” They laughed together, both cracking up.
Roper took a breath. “I do need a break though. This is good. This is real good.”
“I’m glad.” It was tough, riding alone. Ryder knew it. He knew Roper’s heart had to hurt.
Roper shook that off quickly. “Y’all got eggnog? I’ll settle for a beer but…”
“It’s homemade and everything. We bought it from this space in the grower’s market.”
“Yeah? For real? Let’s go pour some.” Roper followed him back toward the kitchen. “You got cookies too?”
“You know it.”
There was a low chuckle from the living room, and his plate of snickerdoodles was missing from the kitchen counter.
“Oh, someone is celebrating already.” He grinned. “Do you need a glass of eggnog, Mister Charlie?”
“That would be lovely, thank you. Come sit, Roper. Ryder will take care of things for us.”
“Yeah? Okay. Okay, sure.” Roper winked at him, teasing him, but he did like things a certain way, so he got the eggnog, topped it with nutmeg, and took it into the front room.
“How was your flight?” Charles held a half-eaten cookie in one hand. “I trust Alan took care of you on the ride from the airport?”
“It was great, and I have to say, he’s a sweetheart. He knew all the hot spots, and he told me to insist on seeing Christmas windows.”
“Everyone likes him. I’m very lucky to have him in my employ. We’ll be tourists for a day or two for sure; if you haven’t been to New York at Christmastime before, there is plenty to see.” Charles took a cop of eggnog off his tray. “Thank you, love.”
“Yes, Sir.” He put the tray down and sat, offering Roper a glass. “I’m glad you’re here to share the holidays, man. For real.”
“I jumped on the invitation. I’ve been looking forward to spending Christmas with you.” Roper looked at Mister Charlie. “And Charles, of course.”