Read It’s Christmas Everywhere But Here for Free Online Page A

spun around with his daughter in his arms.
    “Papa! It’s Daddy! Daddy came back for Christmas!”
    Russ nodded. The lump in his throat prevented any noise from getting out. Dave said something to Ems, but the pounding in Russ’s ears kept him from hearing it. Dave kissed her and set her down, but his eyes, clear blue eyes, never left Russ’s face.
    “Hey.”
    “Hi.” Russ reached out a shaky hand. Then the closet doors rattled as Dave kissed him, strong hands cupping Russ’s face, kisses hard and fast and not very deep, but still enough to take his breath away. Russ cried and laughed all at once, holding on so tight there was scarcely room between them.
    It was like the first time they’d kissed, hot and hard, careening across Russ’s condo like an errant pinball. A kiss that had only ended once they were naked and sweaty and spent. This kiss was like that, thin lips over hard teeth, warm wet tongue, noses that kept colliding, only with the weight of experience and love and longing all poured together and boiling over.
    “I missed you.” Dave’s voice was harsh, low.
    “Oh God, you’re real.” Russ pressed a kiss on Dave’s jaw, buried his face in the warm flesh of Dave’s neck. “It’s Christmas, and you came.” Russ pulled back so he could see Dave’s face again, touch it. It was real and solid, not a memory or a photograph. “Christmas. All your presents are at home because we weren’t expecting—you don’t care.”
    Dave shook his head.
    Russ wiped the moisture from Dave’s cheek. He was the one with his emotions right under the surface, not Dave. Russ rubbed the tears between his fingers; they were real. The stiff fabric of his uniform, the bristle of his hair, the warm male scent of him. Russ used both arms to haul Dave into another bruising kiss. “Love you.”
    “Love you back.”
    “Daddy!” Emily’s whine made them both look down. Dave caught her up with one arm and kissed her cheek. Russ pulled back enough to finally see his family, standing at the end of the hall, watching them.
    “David’s here,” he explained, reaching up to knuckle the tears off his own cheeks. “Dave, you remember my parents, Doris and Randall.”
    “Ma’am, sir.”
    Russ kept his hand on Dave’s shoulder but moved so that Dave could shake hands.
    Doris just nodded at him, but Randall shook his hand firmly. “Welcome home, son.”
    “Thank you, sir.”
    Russ gave his dad a grateful smile. “And my brother, Max.”
    “Good to see you again, man.” Max was all smiles and a clasping handshake.
    “You also.”
    Russ glanced around. “Austin. Oh, jeez.” Randall stepped aside to let Russ through.
    Austin sat by the hearth where Russ had left him, eyes still on his video game. His small form rocked back and forth as his fingers flicked across the controls.
    “There’s my boy.” Dave set Emily down with another kiss and knelt in front of his son. “Aus?”
    “He was a little overloaded from the presents earlier,” Russ explained.
    Emily tucked up against his side, bouncing. When Russ glanced down she mouthed, “It’s Daddy!”
    “Okay.” Dave sat down on the floor where Russ had been, along Austin’s back. In one smooth move, he lifted the boy onto his lap. Austin froze for a moment; then he relaxed, and his fingers started flicking over the controls again.
    “C’mere.” Dave patted the floor next to him. Russ didn’t hesitate to sit in the spot, Emily a heavy weight on his lap. The angle was odd, but they shared another kiss.
    “We weren’t expecting you for a whole month, Daddy. How did you get here?”
    Dave smiled at Emily, bending forward to peck a kiss on her nose. Down between their legs, Dave’s fingers entwined with Russ’s.
    “I got to leave a little earlier than expected. I managed to get a flight here and took a cab from the airport. I couldn’t wait another second to be with my family.”
    Russ squeezed the hand he held and rested his chin on Dave’s shoulder. “We